Jonathan
Martinez has some of the most dangerous leg kicks in the
Ultimate Fighting Championship, and he proved it again on Saturday
night.
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The Factory X representative joined Edson
Barboza as the only two fighters in promotion history to earn
two finishes via leg kicks with his second-round stoppage of
Adrian
Yanez in a featured bantamweight bout at UFC Fight Night 230 in
Las Vegas. “Dragon” hobbled his adversary with repeated leg kicks
until Yanez could no longer stand, ending the contest at the 2:26
mark of Round 2. Martinez has won six consecutive UFC appearances,
including five in a row at 135 pounds.
“When I said I wanted a second round finish and it happened, I was
really excited about that —just all the hard work we put in there,”
Martinez said in a post-fight
interview with the UFC. “He’s a really good boxer so we had to
take his legs out, and after that, his hands wouldn’t be dangerous
as much.
“To me, if you check the kick, I’m still gonna kick. You’ve got to
break my legs — I’m still gonna kick.”
Thanks to his performance against Yanez, Martinez figures to
receive another ranked foe for his next Octagon appearance. He’s
also growing more comfortable competing in the sport’s premiere
mixed martial arts organization.
“I’m obviously real excited. I’m in the best division in the UFC,
in the world. I keep getting better and better. I’m barely 29 and I
keep getting better,” Martinez said.
“Now it just feels like home. I think I’m about to go six years.
Just another day in the office.”