The second fight on the main card features an interesting lightweight bout between veteran Michael Johnson and divisional newcomer Darrius Flowers.
Michael Johnson Earns Decision Win at UFC Vegas 86
Michael Johnson holds a professional record of 21-19 and a UFC record of 13-15 and is a veteran of the sport, known for his explosive hand speed and slick striking. Despite past inconsistencies, Johnson has shown moments of brilliance, including wins over lightweight legends such as Dustin Porier, Edson Barboza and Tony Ferguson. He has a striking accuracy of 39%, and a solid takedown defense of 80%. Johnson’s last fight resulted in a devastating knockout loss to Carlos Diego Ferreira, raising concerns about his durability at this stage of his career.
Darrius Flowers
Darrius Flowers enters this fight with a 12-6-1 record, and earned his UFC contract with a slam TKO on Dana White’s Contender Series. Flowers is recognized for his physicality and explosive power, having fought as high as middleweight and also competing at welterweight. However, his UFC debut against Jake Matthews highlighted both his aggressive potential and the challenges of stepping up in competition. He went on to lose his debut via Rear Naked Choke in Round 2. Flowers has a striking accuracy of 56%, a notable takedown average of 1.7 per 15 minutes and a perfect takedown defense in his short UFC tenure.
Analysts predict this matchup could go either way due to Johnson’s experience and striking skill versus Flowers’ physicality and aggression. Johnson is expected to leverage his striking and experience to negate Flowers’ early onslaught. However, the concern remains about Johnson’s ability to withstand Flowers’ power, especially considering his recent knockout loss. Flowers, on the other hand, might face challenges with Johnson’s speed and experience if he cannot manage the weight cut effectively or expose holes in his defense.
Johnson aims to prove he still has what it takes to compete at a high level, while Flowers looks to establish his presence in the UFC with a significant win.
What Unfolded at UFC Vegas 86
In the first both men showed glimpse of what they can do. Flowers stayed busy with his kicks, adopting a more patient approach. Meanwhile, Johnson pushed forward, stayed busy and stuck to the fundamentals well, attacking the body and then going up stairs. Johnson the more active of the two, takes the round with a takedown at the end of the round.
Again, Johnson starts the round firing of 1-2’s to the body with not much fire coming back from Flowers. The experience of Johnson is on full-display in the second slowly but surely breaking down Flowers. Just like the first round, Johnson ends the round on top on the mat eating elbows and punches. Another round for Johnson.
With Flowers with it all to do, he ends up on his back in the opening minute of the last-round. The remainder of the fight played out with Johnson staying heavy on the mat, transitioning to different positions hunting for submissions. Johnson with over 6 minutes control time, and comfortably cruises to a unanimous decision victory.
Official result: Michael Johnson def. Darrius Flowers by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images
