​Aussies Tyson Pedro And Robert Whittaker Triumph On A Wild Night At UFC Melbourne

We knew he was good after his upset victory over Steven 'Warzone' Warby at AFC 17 but rising Australian MMA star, Tyson Pedro really showed the world what he was capable of yesterday with his remarkable comeback victory on debut over Khalil Rountree at UFC Fight Night 101, held at Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne.

Just moments after the bout began Pedro wore an absolute bomb to the face from the American power-striker, the blow short-circuiting his system and sending him crashing to the canvas. Yet, in what was a remarkable show of mettle for a 23-year-old UFC rookie, Pedro was straight up and with his opponent on his back. Three minutes later he had Rountree tapped out with a rear-naked-chokehold; the same method he used to defeat Warby in his breakthrough victory three weeks ago.

"Man, that guy hits like a tank … he has tanks for hands," he said of Rountree following the win.

via GIPHY

Pedro, who is the son of Aussie MMA originator, John Pedro, was a last minute addition to the Fight Night 101 cards following the withdrawal of American middleweight, Luke Rockhold. He came into the fight with just three weeks preparation (as did his opponent) but told Vice Sports he was confident of victory in the lead-up.

"Opportunities like this you gotta take 'em by the balls man and just go for it," he said, adding, with a touch of jest, he would use his victory speech to once again call out UFC President Dana White, which he did.

"A lot of people had me down and said Kahlil was gonna walk through me. Coming in I asked Dana (White) if I could get on the card…Now I'll ask if he can give me that 50 G ($50,000 bonus) because it's almost Christmas time, baby!" he said afterwards.

But the omnipotent UFC President Dana White chose not to give it to Pedro instead going with Kiwi-born, Australian fighter Robert Whittaker, whose frenetic, brawling encounter with American Derek Brunson had the crowd on its feet in the main card.

In one head-spinning round of brutality, Brunson flew into a stunning offensive to open the fight, forcing Whittaker to run around the Octagon in defence at times. That was until he spotted a gap in his opponent's defence, planted his feet, and let fly an absolute hammer of a hook into the advancing Brunson. The fight was turned on its head immediately. Referee Herb Dean was forced to step in shortly after as several follow up shots landed by Whittaker left Brunson on the ground unable to defend himself.

"He hits hard but I hit hard too. I'm just as fast and just as strong," Whittaker said post-fight.

"I'm ready for those top five contenders. I'm ready for my run now," he said.

The bloodbath of the night went to four-time Olympic judo competitor, Australian Dan Kelly, who ground out a gruesome points win over American Chris Camozzi. It was a vicious left elbow to the forehead that opened Kelly up, but the 39 year old veteran kept pace and eventually claimed the win with superior wrestling and striking.

"He didn't hurt me with anything. He was very accurate with his elbows and I think the blood annoyed him as much as it annoyed me, especially when I was on top in the second round and blood was pouring on his face," he said of the injury which would require a massive 12 stitches to mend.

He dedicated the win, which many are calling the best of his career, to his career to his 11 year old son, Erik, who suffers from a debilitating kidney disease, cystinosis, that requires daily injections and medication up to 20 times a day.

"What I do is easy compared with what he has to deal with every single day and he's a very happy kid and embraces life. We could learn a lot from him," he said.