WATCH: Paul Craig lands 20 elbow strikes in 20 seconds to defeat Andre Muniz at UFC London
Scottish UFC fighter Paul Craig looked better than ever at his middleweight debut at UFC London.
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Paul Craig won his middleweight debut at UFC London (Image Courtesy - Daily Records)
After a stint in the light heavyweight division, submission specialist Paul Craig decided to cut down to the middleweight division. Craig took on another submission specialist Andre Muniz at the UFC London Fight Night card. Muniz has a history of submitting his opponents brutally. Hence, most people expected Craig to lose the fight, but his impressive performance shocked everyone.
The fight had a competitive back-and-forth action up until the finishing sequence. Both fighters landed takedowns and tried to implement their game plan. Craig landed volume strikes, whereas Muniz appeared to land cleaner strikes. However, toward the end of the second round, Craig got the mount position and started landing elbow strikes without taking a break. Within 20 seconds, Craig landed north of 20 elbow strikes to get the TKO win at UFC London.
Craig struggled against the top fighters in the light heavyweight division. He lost back-to-back to Volkan Oezdemir and Johnny Walker, which took his momentum away. The decision to move down the middleweight division might be the best for Craig. He looked better against Muniz and could legitimately use his size advantage to climb the rankings in the division.
He could face anyone from the top 15 for his next fight in the 185-pound division. Another impressive fact about Craig’s career remains the fact that he has never won a decision in his career. All his victories came via knockouts or submissions. Only time will tell if Craig climbs the rankings of the 185-pound division.
Paul Craig explains his decision to move down to the middleweight division
Scottish UFC fighter Paul Craig had a successful stint in the 205-pound division. He had notable wins over Nikita Krylov and Mauricio Rua. Craig remains the last fighter to defeat championship-level competitors like Magomed Ankalaev and Jamahal Hill. However, the last two losses made him change the weight class.
Craig spoke about his mindset heading into his middleweight debut. He said, “I was a light heavyweight for 12 years of my career, and I’ve decided to move down. I feel much better in my skin and I feel much better in my body.”
With the win over Andre Muniz at 185 pounds, he will likely fight a top 15 fighter in his next fight. Craig will have a size advantage over other fighters in the division. The Scottish fighter has all the skills to become a middleweight division threat.
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