The Yair Rodriguez train just hit a wall — and it hit hard.
And that wall’s name is Frankie Edgar.
Right from the beginning of the match these guys came in swinging hard at each other. There was no time for the feeling out process.
Edgar hit a huge double leg takedown early, and from then on, it was all Frankie. He brutalized Yair for the remaining minutes of the first round, dropping huge punches and elbows on him. By the time the match ended, Rodriguez looked like he had been repeatedly hit with a sack of potatoes.
Huge shots by @FrankieEdgar land on Yair! #UFC211 pic.twitter.com/IvXwHZJfup
— UFC (@ufc) May 14, 2017
Despite the fact that his eye was badly damaged, the cut man didn’t even touch it.
Round 2 started with another huge takedown by Edgar. For a moment, Yair looked like he was still in it, though, as he grabbed on to Frankie’s leg and came close to hitting a kneebar.
Edgar, however, pushed his way out and transitioned to mount. From there, the punishment continued.
We have to give Yair credit; again, he held on for the entirety of the round. But during the break, Yair’s eye was so swollen that the referee could not have allowed him to continue — although, he did seem to think about letting the fight go on at first, much to the ire of Frankie.
Referee Chris Reed, though, eventually came back to his senses, and called the fight off, declaring the winner by TKO, Frankie Edgar!!!
