UFC Vegas 45 video: Ricky Simon scores vicious knockout of Raphael Assuncao, calls out Sean O’Malley

Don’t be surprised to see a number next to Ricky Simon’s name soon.

The 29-year-old bantamweight scored perhaps the biggest win of career on Saturday with a savage second-round knockout of veteran contender Raphael Assuncao at UFC Vegas 45.

Simon (19-3) set the tone early by taking Assuncao (27-9) down and spending the majority of the opening round working to advance position and land short punches from top control. Simon continued to stay aggressive in Round 2, walking down Assuncao to the fence and knocking the Brazilian off his feet with a right hook. Two more follow-up shots were all it took for referee Chris Tognoni to intervene, calling a stop to the bout at 2:14 of the round.

“I’ve told you guys from the beginning, the more comfortable I get in here, the more dangerous I’m going to be. And dang I felt comfortable today,” Simon said.

“If Sean O’Malley can get Dana White’s permission, we’ve been trying to make that happen for a while. But I’m not trying to bully the kid into a fight, so anybody else, I know where I’m headed — I’m headed for the title. Anybody in front of me, I’d like to fight — but that [O’Malley fight] would be a great fight for me.”

Simon has now won four consecutive bouts under the UFC umbrella, while the 39-year-old Assuncao has suffered a career-worst four straight losses.

Watch video of Simon’s win below.