Vinícius Oliveira may have just performed the knockout of the year with this vicious flying knee which put his opponent, Benardo Sopaj, to sleep during UFC Vegas 87 Fight Night.
As time ticked down in the second round of the bantamweight bout, Oliveira, 28, got Sopaj on his back foot with a leg kick and a nasty left hook before seemingly defying gravity with a flying left knee, dropping Sopaj like a bag of potatoes, video posted to ESPN’s Instagram shows.
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Poor Sopaj was just lying there, absolutely crumpled on the floor. I feel for the dude because not only was he on the business-end of possibly the nastiest shot he’s ever taken, but the highlight-of-the-year candidate will doubtlessly be played over and over again across ESPN and the internet for days to come.
Oliveira, a professional mixed martial artist and blackbelt out of Brazil, moves to 20-3. (RELATED: Sean Strickland Video Shows Why You Don’t Surprise Armed MMA Fighters)
Sopaj, an Albanian professional mixed martial artist, falls to 11-3 with the loss.
Kids, take notes: this is what happens when you give your guard. Sopaj turned his back for just a half-second but that was enough time for Oliveira. The Brazilian bantamweight smelled the blood in the water the second he saw his opening and did not hesitate.
I have a massive amount of respect for anyone who can use their body in such an effectively violent way. These dudes are trained killers — essentially modern-day gladiators. And while Sopaj might be embarrassed about getting his light put out, he’s one tough SOB for even being able to walk out of the octagon after that.
A shot that vicious would probably kill most men.