Steven Asplund Outlasts Guilherme Pat In Wild UFC Vegas 120 Heavyweight War
Steven Asplund survived a wild heavyweight war with Guilherme Pat to get his hand raised at UFC Vegas 120.
“Concrete” came out looking to rebound from the first UFC loss of his career, while Pat was also chasing his second Octagon victory after splitting his opening two promotional appearances.
The Minnesota heavyweight controlled much of the opening round with constant pressure. After trading in the clinch and at range, Asplund connected with a big right hand that dropped “Kong” late in the frame. He followed him to the canvas and unloaded with ground-and-pound, but Pat survived to hear the bell.
Pat came roaring back in the second. His sharp jab began finding Asplund repeatedly before a left hook dropped the American. Pat could not capitalize on the knockdown, however, and Asplund continued forcing his way into the pocket and clinch.
The fight remained competitive heading into the final round, but Steven Asplund found another gear. A high kick caught Pat clean and visibly wobbled the Brazilian before both heavyweights slowed down during a series of exhausting clinch exchanges.
After 15 minutes of back-and-forth action, all three judges scored the fight 29-28 for Asplund, giving him the unanimous decision victory.
The win improved Steven Asplund to 8-2 professionally and moved him back into the win column after his defeat to Vitor Petrino. “Kong” fell to 6-2 professionally and will now look to regroup after another competitive UFC outing.
