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Jack Hermansson has completed his black horse course to an undisputed middleweight contender.
"The Joker" took his fate in hand Saturday, replacing Ronaldo Souza (26-7, 1 NC) in the main UFC Fort Lauderdale tournament at the BB & T Center in Sunrise, Florida. and go out with a unanimous decision (49-46, 48-47, 48-47) win.
There was a lot at stake for both fighters, Souza hoping that a win over Hermansson would keep him in the running for a long-awaited shot at the UFC gold, and Hermansson looking to prove that his recent rise to the rankings was not a coincidence. In five rounds, Hermansson made his point.
"I'm very happy, I'm just a little tired," said Hermansson after the fight. "I am very happy to be here and ready to show everyone in the world who looks at MMA that I am a force to be reckoned with. I am a candidate for the title. "
As the final round approached, the action seemed to be leaning towards Hermansson. In the first round, Hermansson wounded Souza at the feet and sought a throttle, testing the defense of his master, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
Souza turned in the choking and waited patiently for its opening to emerge. Still, Hermansson stayed on him and used a padlock to keep "Jacare" neutralized against the fence.
"My coach said that the fight [was going to be like this]. I hoped to finish early, "said Hermansson later, with a laugh. "The five laps have been gone, I do not like to make a decision, that's why you do not see me smile so much now. I like to finish the fights well, but I hope it was impressive anyway and I can not wait to finish the next one. "
Although an arrival escapes him, the pressure of Hermansson continues in the second turn. Hermansson did a great job mixing his shots and then scored a shot on the ground for about a minute. The rest of the period saw Hermansson move to control of the mission, retaining only the leading position and scoring with enough strikes to avoid a clash.
"Jacare" prepared a shot on the bottom to open the third round, which gave him a positive momentum as he began to get some success in moving forward. He punched in the middle section of Hermansson, then cracked it with an elbow and a right hand on the top.
Injured Hermansson went into full defense mode to recover, but he could not avoid another right hand that had tripped him to close the round.
Hermansson may have saved energy in the third round, as he picked up the pace in fourth and fifth place, touching "Jacare" from a distance and staying out of Souza's power. Hermansson was responding to every blow of three or four major hits.
They fought to the end and Hermansson took a last shot on goal to finish first.
Hermansson has won four straight victories (20-4), his previous three being the former World Series of Fighting champion, David Branch, his submissions specialist, Gerald Meerschaert, and his rival for the UFC title, Thales Leites.
The 30-year-old Swede now feels like he is claiming and his goal is to capitalize on his high ranking with a top spot in Denmark later this year.
"I would love to be back, I heard that there was a map in Copenhagen in October," Hermansson said. "I would love to titrate this card and give myself a prominent name. What I ask the UFC is to get the names that lead me as such, I'm obsessed with this title. That's what I want in this sport. After a win like this, I saved the series on short notice against one of the toughest guys in the world and I think I need a good reward by the following. "
Souza, 39, has now alternated wins and losses in his last six bouts. Last November, he beat former champion Chris Weidman in the round of 16 at the 230th UFC, but now has to climb back into the middleweight mountain.
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