Pat Barry used powerful, effective punching to beat his rival Antoni Hardonk in a hard-hitting heavyweight bout at UFC 104.
The first round saw both fighters draw blood, Hardonk with an accidental eye poke and Barry with a couple of punches to the nose. Although most people thought this fight would be a stand-up battle, the fight actually went to the ground briefly, with Barry getting the better of it.
In the second Barry started to do damage with his hands, landing several effective punches that Hardonk couldn't answer. Midway through the second Barry leveled Hardonk with a hard punch, and on the ground he landed a few more to finish it. It was an impressive performance by Barry.
"I'm sorry to be so emotional," Barry said in the Octagon afterward, shedding tears as he spoke. After a brief post-fight interview, Barry did a backflip and then embraced Hardonk, who has been a friend, a rival, a training partner and now a fallen foe.
Both fighters have previously been K-1 kickboxers, and in the introduction UFC announcer Mike Goldberg referred to them as the two best heavyweight kickers in MMA today. That's an overstatement -- neither one kicks like Alistair Overeem -- but Barry and Hardonk both showed some power with their feet. Neither Barry nor Hardonk is an elite heavyweight, but Barry acquitted himself nicely in a fight that got the fans excited to start the televised portion of the UFC 104 fight card.
Barry improved to 5-1 record. Hardonk falls to 8-6.
For more on UFC 104, follow our UFC Twitter updates and UFC 104 results.
The first round saw both fighters draw blood, Hardonk with an accidental eye poke and Barry with a couple of punches to the nose. Although most people thought this fight would be a stand-up battle, the fight actually went to the ground briefly, with Barry getting the better of it.
In the second Barry started to do damage with his hands, landing several effective punches that Hardonk couldn't answer. Midway through the second Barry leveled Hardonk with a hard punch, and on the ground he landed a few more to finish it. It was an impressive performance by Barry.
"I'm sorry to be so emotional," Barry said in the Octagon afterward, shedding tears as he spoke. After a brief post-fight interview, Barry did a backflip and then embraced Hardonk, who has been a friend, a rival, a training partner and now a fallen foe.
Both fighters have previously been K-1 kickboxers, and in the introduction UFC announcer Mike Goldberg referred to them as the two best heavyweight kickers in MMA today. That's an overstatement -- neither one kicks like Alistair Overeem -- but Barry and Hardonk both showed some power with their feet. Neither Barry nor Hardonk is an elite heavyweight, but Barry acquitted himself nicely in a fight that got the fans excited to start the televised portion of the UFC 104 fight card.
Barry improved to 5-1 record. Hardonk falls to 8-6.
For more on UFC 104, follow our UFC Twitter updates and UFC 104 results.
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