Jan Blachowicz admittedly would have preferred a clean finish against Aleksandar Rakic in the UFC on ESPN 36 main event, but the Polish light heavyweight was nontheless pleased with the final result.
The fight ended prematurely when Rakic suffered an apparent right knee injury while stepping backward, and the bout was halted immediately at the 1:11 mark of Round 3. The matchup was competitive to that point, with Blachowicz having success on the feet in Round 1 and Rakic controlling positioning following a takedown in the second frame. Blachowicz made a point at Saturday’s post-fight press conference that durability is part of being a successful fighter — and he had the obvious edge in that category on Saturday night at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas.