Payton Talbott Knocks Out Deiveson Figueiredo in the Co-Main
Payton Talbott knocked out Deiveson Figueiredo in the first round of their bantamweight co-main at UFC 332. The stoppage came at 2:09 on Saturday at Delta Center in Salt Lake City, and it was the former two-time flyweight champion’s fifth loss in six fights.
The official result was a KO/TKO by punches. Talbott scored both knockdowns. Figueiredo entered at 25-7-1 and missed both of his takedown attempts. Talbott came in at 11-1, off a decision win over Henry Cejudo at UFC 323 last December.
The volume told the story of a short fight. Talbott landed 27 of 46 total strikes and 25 of 44 significant strikes, including eight on the ground. Figueiredo connected on 5 of 6. Neither man attempted a submission. The two knockdowns ended it before the round reached the halfway mark.
Talbott had already described the fight before it started. “I think he’s going to turn into a wrestler at some point, you know? Maybe he thinks he’s going to strike with me, but that’s not going to last that long,” Talbott told MMA Junkie. He also said he was going to try to finish Figueiredo regardless of the name.
That is what the card showed. Figueiredo shot twice and did not get him down. The striking did not last two and a half minutes. Talbott had the only knockdowns, and the ground strikes followed the second one.
Talbott moved to 12-1. Figueiredo fell to 25-8-1.
Figueiredo’s recent run made the booking look like a crossroads before the first punch. He lost a second-round submission to Song Yadong in May at UFC Macau, and that was the fourth defeat in five outings. The flyweight titles are behind him. The bantamweight move has not produced a win streak.
Talbott had been waiting on a fight for most of the year. He had won five of his six UFC bouts coming in, and the only loss on his record had gone to the scorecards. Saturday was the first time he finished a former champion. It was also the first time he did it in a co-main.
A first-round knockout of Figueiredo answers the question Talbott had been asking about ranked opponents. The wrestle-first plan did not survive the opening round.
After the stoppage, Payton Talbott called for Sean O’Malley. “I just mopped the floor with two champions back-to-back, and I want another one,” Talbott told Joe Rogan. “Sean O’Malley. You can’t run forever. Give the people what they want.”
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Figueiredo leaves Salt Lake City with another short night and a record that now reads five losses in six. The takedowns were there. They did not land. A rebound fight is the next conversation, not a title one.
Talbott leaves with the co-main win and a finish that matched the preview. He said the striking would not last. It lasted 2:09.
