UFC 319 Results: Lerone Murphy Dominates Aaron Pico With Spinning Back Elbow
UFC 319’s main card has shown the ability to be historic as Lerone Murphy continues to add to the history books with his first-round knockout over Aaron Pico. After seeing a convincing fight the previous bout, the UFC 319 co-main event brought us some exciting action. Let’s take a closer look at how Lerone Murphy’s victory over Aaron Pico just showcased what the future of the UFC Featherweight Division could look like.
UFC 319: Lerone Murphy Dominates Aaron Pico
On just three weeks’ notice, Lerone Murphy accepted the fight against Aaron Pico in his UFC debut in the co-main event. This UFC Featherweight fight showcased a lot, but in the end we saw the experience in the octagon take over. Murphy, entering the fight as the sixth-ranked fighter in the division, was tied for the longest current winning streak in the UFC with eight straight wins. However, he was able to take sole possession with this win.
Aaron Pico made his UFC debut and came out swinging with his immediate pressure. However, Murphy was able to use his experience and noticed how Pico continued to charge forward. For the second consecutive fight on the UFC 319 card, Murphy connected with a spinning back elbow to secure the first-round knockout in 3:21. This is something that is just plainly unseen in the UFC, as it is just the 10th time a fight has ended with the move.
Lerone Murphy showcased exactly what the experience difference looks like entering the octagon compared to other MMA companies. It appears that Murphy should now be in the UFC Featherweight Championship picture, as he should be lined up to be a title fight against the current champion, Alexander Volkanovski. While Volkanovski’s next challenger has not officially been announced, Murphy certainly should be on the shortlist for the end of the year.
For Pico, he showcased the ability to be a good fighter and had Murphy backpedalling for a majority of the short fight. However, the experience difference was just too much to overcome. It will be interesting if the fight between him and Movsar Evloev will happen next, since it was the original bout on the UFC 319 card. It will be interesting to see what both fighters do coming out of the co-main event.
