UFC Fight Night 126 results: Donald Cerrone stops Yancy Medeiros with two seconds left in first

It almost was unfathomable, the thought that Donald Cerrone needed to snap a three-fight losing skid. But snap it he did, in a big way.

“Cowboy” Cerrone (33-10 MMA, 20-7 UFC) finished Yancy Medeiros (15-5 MMA, 6-5 UFC) with a TKO with just two seconds left in the first round to finally get back on track. The victory gave him 20 in the UFC and tied the record held by Michael Bisping and Georges St-Pierre.

The welterweight bout was the main event of today’s UFC Fight Night 126 card at Frank Erwin Center in Austin, Texas. It aired on FS1 following prelims on FS1 and UFC Fight Pass.

Medeiros came forward quickly, but Cerrone landed a right hand, then a kick to the body. Medeiros stayed close, though, and landed a right, then a spinning kick. Cerrone kicked to the body, then worked a kick to the leg. Two minutes in, Cerrone landed his jab. But Medeiros landed some solid combinations.

But Medeiros slipped and landed on the canvas, and instead of taking advantage, Cerrone let him back up. That had Medeiros laughing at the sportsmanship, and the two high-fived and hugged before going back at it. They tied up with a minute left and traded position along the fence.

When they broke, Cerrone landed a big right hand, then a solid combination that rocked Medeiros. And a few seconds later, he stunned him again. Cerrone saw Medeiros was hurt and took advantage. He drilled a right hand and put Medeiros on the canvas. Cerrone followed him to the canvas with just seconds left, and a few punches later Herb Dean waved things off.

After the fight, “Cowboy” sent Medeiros over the top of the cage to get a greeting from Cerrone’s own grandmother.

“I just bit down and said, ‘Ya know what? Let’s go,'” Cerrone said. “I didn’t know it was 10 seconds left, either – I was just going for the finish. That’s what Yancy and I go for.”

Cerrone snapped a three-fight losing skid for his first win since December 2016. Medeiros had a three-fight skid snapped.

Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 126 results include:

• Donald Cerrone def. Yancy Medeiros via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 4:58
• Derrick Lewis def. Marcin Tybura via knockout (punches) – Round 3, 2:48
• James Vick def. Francisco Trinaldo via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Curtis Millender def. Thiago Alves via knockout (knee) – Round 2, 4:17
• Brandon Davis def. Steven Peterson via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 30-26)
• Sage Northcutt def. Thibault Gouti via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Diego Ferreira def. Jared Gordon via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 1:58
• Geoff Neal def. Brian Camozzi via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 2:48
• Roberto Sanchez def. Joby Sanchez via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 1:50
• Lucie Pudilova def. Sarah Moras via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-27)
• Alex Morono def. Josh Burkman via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 1, 2:21
• Oskar Piechota def. Tim Williams via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 1:54

For complete covearge of UFC Fight Night 126, check out the UFC Events section of the site.

(MMAjunkie’s John Morgan contributed to this report on site in Austin.)