Make that six straight fights without a win for Donald Cerrone.
The fan favourite “Cowboy” was stopped by Alex Morono in the first round of their welterweight matchup Saturday at the UFC Apex facility in Las Vegas.
Cerrone was originally scheduled to face Diego Sanchez before Sanchez’s bizarre split from the UFC in late April and Morono stepped in on short notice.
The beginning of the end happened in the final minute of the opening stanza when Morono rocked Cerrone with a right hand then followed up with a barrage of strikes.
Delivering on short notice! @AlexMoronoMMA stops Cowboy in RD 1! #UFCVegas26 pic.twitter.com/8ahCkOJsAM
— UFC (@ufc) May 9, 2021
Strawweights Rodriguez and Waterson fill the main event slot on short notice.
The headliner was initially supposed to be Cory Sandhagen welcoming TJ Dillashaw back to the UFC following the former bantamweight champion’s PED suspension. Dillashaw withdrew from the event due to a cut sustained while training and the plan is for that 135-pound matchup to be rebooked later this year.
Rodriguez (14-1-2) was the more effective striker in a fight that took place primarily on the feet, out-landing Waterson 144-100 in total strikes.
Rodriguez was coming a huge TKO win over Amanda Ribas and has plenty of momentum as the No. 6-ranked fighter at 115 pounds. Her lone loss in MMA was a split decision to inaugural strawweight champion Carla Ezparza last July.
Several bouts fell apart in the days leading up to the event so there were only nine fights on the card. Below are the complete results:
MAIN CARD
-- Marina Rodriguez def. Michelle Waterson by unanimous decision
-- Alex Morono def. Donald Cerrone by TKO
-- Neil Magny def. Geoff Neal by unanimous decision
-- Marcos Rogerio de Lima def. Maurice Greene by unanimous decision
-- Gregor Gillespie def. Carlos Diego Ferreira TKO (punches)
-- Phil Hawes def. Kyle Daukaus by unanimous decision
PRELIMINARY CARD
-- Michael Trizano def. Ľudovít Klein by unanimous decision
-- Jun Yong Park def. Tafon Nchukwi by majority decision
-- Carlston Harris def. Christian Aguilera by technical submission (anaconda choke)
