Jonathan Martinez has some of the most dangerous leg kicks in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, and he proved it again on Saturday night.
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.”
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