“At first I thought maybe it was a little bit early,” Kampmann told the Sherdog Radio Network’s “Savage Dog Show.” “Because I don’t like early stoppages at all. I like letting them go as much as possible. I thought it looked a little early, but when I saw the replay, it didn’t look like [Ellenberger] was doing much defense. He was just kind of curling up on his side. I don’t think it would have been much different if [Mazzagatti] gave him a couple of extra seconds. I had plenty of elbows left.”
The finish came 1:40 into the second round. Kampmann had hurt Ellenberger with a right hand and dropped him with a knee from the clinch. However, in the first round, it was Kampmann who found himself on his back after eating a left hook.
“I would have been pissed if [Mazzagatti] had tried to stop the fight on my first knockdown,” Kampmann said. “That was just a flash knockdown. I was still going. I was still moving as soon as I landed on my ass. I wasn’t out. I think he did a good job letting it go there.”
If it were up to Kampmann, Mazzagatti would have given Ellenberger a little bit longer to recover too. That doesn’t mean he necessarily disagrees with the stoppage, though. He just doesn’t want it to take away from what proved to be a dramatic comeback win.
“It sucks for me to hear people complain about it because I feel I was in the best position possible,” Kampmann said. “I would have happily let the fight go on for a little bit longer because [Ellenberger] was just turned up on his side and he wasn’t really doing any defense at all. I don’t like when people try to take away from my victory.”
Listen to the full interview (beginning at 1:30:36).
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