Matches to Make After UFC Fight Night 173

Experience and guile still count for something in the cage—a lesson Derek Brunson taught Edmen Shahbazyan with violent clarity.

Brunson reaffirmed himself as a Top 10 middleweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship and dispatched the previously undefeated Glendale Fighting Club prospect with punches in the third round of their UFC Fight Night 173 headliner on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. Shahbazyan, who entered the cage with a perfect 11-0 record, succumbed to blows 26 seconds into Round 3.

In a bid to shed his gatekeeper label, a measured Brunson followed the blueprint laid out by Sanford MMA trainer Henri Hooft. He shook off Shahbazyan’s best shots—they included sweeping hooks…