One loss can do serious damage to = the career=20 of a UFC = fighter. Two=20 in a row is a disaster.
That was the reality facing Joe Lauzon Wednesday as he entered his = bout with=20 Kyle Bradley at Fight Night 15 coming off of the first loss in his UFC = career.=20 Despite that weighing on his mind, Lauzon looked cool and confident in = his=20 second-round TKO win.
=E2=80=9CEvery fight=E2=80=99s important, but this one was super = important because I was=20 coming off a loss,=E2=80=9D Lauzon said. =E2=80=9CAnyone can lose a = fight, but you never want to=20 lose two in a row. It was super important to get the momentum going in = the right=20 direction again.=E2=80=9D
Lauzon=E2=80=99s situation wasn=E2=80=99t dire. He has already = established himself as a=20 legitimate UFC fighter and his lone defeat came to top lightweight Kenny = Florianin April. But a loss to Bradley would have severely hurt his=20 standing.
=E2=80=9CI don=E2=80=99t think it would have been a case of being = gone from the UFC,=E2=80=9D the=20 East Bridgewater native said. =E2=80=9CBut it=E2=80=99s definitely not = helping when you start=20 losing two in a row, especially when they=E2=80=99re putting you against = a guy you=20 should win against.=E2=80=9D
Bradley (13-6-1) may not have been highly touted, but he handled = himself well=20 in the first round. Lauzon was expected to have superior jiu-jitsu = skills, and=20 it looked as though the fight might end in the first minute when he = pulled off a=20 nifty flying heel hook.
Lauzon (16-4) wasn=E2=80=99t able to finish the submission move and = Bradley wiggled=20 free.
=E2=80=9CIt=E2=80=99s one of those moves that I did a lot when I = first started training and=20 I=E2=80=99ve always had it and I just haven=E2=80=99t needed to pull it = out,=E2=80=9D Lauzon said. =E2=80=9CWe=20 were talking and said, =E2=80=99Let=E2=80=99s do a flying heel = hook=E2=80=99It would have been awesome.=20 We definitely would have gotten submission of the night. It was kind of = what we=20 were thinking of -- we=E2=80=99ll get that bonus. It=E2=80=99s all right = though. I got a=20 takedown and it gave someone else something else they have to game plan=20 for.=E2=80=9D
The fighters mostly stayed on their feet after that, and Bradley = landed the=20 best shot of the round, buckling Lauzon=E2=80=99s knees with a left hook = to the jaw two=20 minutes into the fight.
=E2=80=9CI think it knocked me off balance,=E2=80=9D Lauzon said. = =E2=80=9CIf you look at my feet, I=20 don=E2=80=99t have the best boxing stance. I was kind of squared to him = and I didn=E2=80=99t=20 have anything to step back with. I think I caught myself with my left = hand. I=20 didn=E2=80=99t remember ever getting hurt during the fight. Then I saw = the video and I=20 saw that I definitely got wobbled.=E2=80=9D
The rest of the round was evenly contested, but Lauzon quickly took = control=20 in the second. One minute in, Bradley threw another left hook that = Lauzon was=20 able to duck. Lauzon immediately went for a takedown and wound up on top = of=20 Bradley against the cage.
Lauzon quickly assumed the dominant mount position and Bradley made = the=20 critical error of turning his back. From this vulnerable spot, Bradley = had=20 little defense and the fight was ended after Lauzon rained down over a = dozen=20 hard lefts in a matter of seconds.
=E2=80=9CWhen I got Kyle=E2=80=99s back, I was going to hit him a = couple of times and try to=20 choke him,=E2=80=9D Lauzon said. =E2=80=9CA lot of people are good at = defending not getting hit,=20 but the way he turned into me a little bit, it left him open. I hit him = with a=20 good shot and I don=E2=80=99t know if I stunned him or what, but I = poured it on and just=20 overwhelmed him.=E2=80=9D
The win did more than restore Lauzon=E2=80=99s status as a serious = contender in the=20 lightweight division. It validated his training program. During his = career, the=20 24-year-old hasn=E2=80=99t had a set regimen, as he was still working = his IT job=20 full-time when he began in the UFC.
Then Lauzon trained in the fishbowl of the UFC reality show = =E2=80=9CThe Ultimate=20 Fighter.=E2=80=9D After the filming ended, Lauzon traveled to Hawaii to = work with=20 current lightweight champion B.J. Penn in preparation for the Florian = fight.
Lauzon stayed home to train for this latest fight, working chiefly at = his=20 regular gym in Bridgewater. With all of that experience under his belt, = Lauzon=20 believes he=E2=80=99ll be able to incorporate the best aspects from each = to form one=20 comprehensive program.
=E2=80=9CI think I=E2=80=99m going to stick around home = more,=E2=80=9D Lauzon said. =E2=80=9CI=E2=80=99m definitely=20 going to try to make it to Hawaii, just to go out and do some training. = I felt=20 being at home I was more focused. I took a lot of the things we did in = Hawaii=20 and I did them here. (I did) a lot of the drills, a lot of the workouts = -- I=20 took a lot of Hawaii and brought it back to Boston with me.=E2=80=9D
***
Sibling revelry
Immediately after Lauzon=E2=80=99s win over Bradley, there was a = funny moment when=20 his brother, Dan, tried to congratulate him. Dan Lauzon, who was working = in his=20 brother=E2=80=99s corner, jumped up, leaned over the top of the Octagon = and tried to hug=20 his brother.
Initially, Joe put his arm around him, but he then pushed his brother = away.=20 While it seemed like an odd thing to do, Lauzon had good reason.
=E2=80=9CNormally, I jump up on the cage (after a win), but they made = us sign=20 something in the UFC front office saying that us and our corners are not = supposed to jump on the cage,=E2=80=9D Lauzon said. =E2=80=9CI guess = guys are going in and out=20 of the cage (by) jumping over the top, and I don=E2=80=99t know if = someone got hurt or=20 fell off, but they told me the commissions were fining = people.=E2=80=9D
Even in his excitement, Lauzon had enough awareness not to lose = $1,000 on a=20 silly fine, so he gave his brother a brisk shove off the cage. While Dan = Lauzon=20 was initially caught off guard, the incident made for a good for a laugh = after=20 the fight.
=E2=80=9CIt was kind of funny looking back,=E2=80=9D Lauzon said. = =E2=80=9CMy brother was like, =E2=80=99What=20 the (expletive)?=E2=80=99 I was all happy and celebrating and then I = realized we=E2=80=99re not=20 supposed to be on the cage. I just shoved him off. It was = funny.=E2=80=9D
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