UFC Fight Night 80 results: Tim Means knocks John Howard stiff in second round

LAS VEGAS – Tim Means began his fight against John Howard by landing a clean left hand in the opening seconds of the first round. It was only fitting that he ended it the same way, blasting Howard with a left hook that dropped him flat just 21 seconds into the second round, earning Means a dramatic knockout victory.

The welterweight bout closed out the preliminary card of today’s UFC Fight Night 80 event at The Chelsea at The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas. It streamed on UFC Fight Pass.

Means (25-7-1 MMA, 7-4 UFC) got off to a fast start, pasting Howard (23-12 MMA, 7-7 UFC) with a straight left almost immediately – a punch that appeared to have Howard hurt as he spun and retreated toward the cage. When Means went to follow up with a jumping knee, however, he gave Howard the opportunity to grab a desperation takedown, which Means attempted to thwart with a particularly egregious fence grab.

Howard would eventually get his takedown, and with it enough time to recover from the initial blow. Still, Means kept picking him apart at distance throughout the opening round, popping back up with ease every time Howard managed to drag him to the mat.

In the opening minute of the second frame, Means landed the short left hook, cracking Howard directly on the jaw. He expended seemingly little effort to land the punch, but the effect was immediate. Howard collapsed onto his back, hands out at his sides as Means followed up with one extra blow before referee Herb Dean could stop the bout.

Once Dean intervened, Means moved off to celebrate while Howard lay frozen for a few more moments, briefly unconscious from what appeared to be a one-punch knockout.

The victory for Means is his first since a submission loss to Matt Brown in July, and he followed up the win by requesting a rematch with Brown. Howard has now lost four of his last five.

Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 80 results include:

• Tim Means def. John Howard by knockout (punches) – Round 2, 0:21
• Sergio Moraes def. Omari Akhmedov via TKO (punches) – Round 3, 2:18
• Kevin Casey vs. Antonio Carlos Junior – no-contest (unintentional eye poke) – Round 1, 0:11
• Aljamain Sterling def. Johnny Eduardo via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 2, 4:18
• Santiago Ponzinibbio def. Andreas Stahl via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 4:25
• Danny Roberts def. Nathan Coy via technical submission (triangle choke) – Round 1, 2:46
• Zubaira Tukhugov def. Phillipe Nover via split decision (30-27, 28-29, 30-27)
• Kailin Curran def. Emily Kagan via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 4:13

For complete coverage of UFC Fight Night 80, check out the UFC Events section of the site.

(MMAjunkie’s John Morgan and Steven Marrocco contributed to this report on site in Las Vegas.)