MMA Junkies Fight of the Month for October: Pereira vs. Rountree

Alex Pereira continued to shine as the promotion's MVP after claiming victory in his fourth main event title bout in 11 months.

Pereira (12-2 MMA, 9-1 UFC) defended his light heavyweight title for the third time by defeating Khalil Rountree (13-6 MMA, 9-6 UFC).

The challenger put up a tough fight at the start, but in the end the champion prevailed, stopping Rountree with a huge flurry at 4:32 of round 4.

Both landed well-placed counter shots at the start of the fight. Pereira kept Rountree guessing with kicks as the champion simply fended off punches coming his way in a hard-fought first round.

Pereira failed with a big headbutt attempt in round 2, leaving Rountree the opportunity to break him with a big punch. A combination and a fierce head kick soon followed, securing Rountree a clear second round.

At the start of the third round, Rountree continued to land hard counterpunches and pushed Pereira into the fence. Midway through the match, Pereira stepped up his offense again with hard leg kicks to slow down Rountree's reactions, which proved to be a crucial point in the fight.

Rountree was torn open by punches, and a jutting knee from Pereira sparked a fierce forward pressure attack to seal the third round.

Pereira was bruised and bloodied in round 4 and continued to pepper his opponent with sharp single punches while trying to dodge the counter punches. Pereira increased the pressure as Rountree began to back away, leading to a wild firefight.

Rountree was forced to cover up as he retreated to the fence with his right eye swollen shut, but Pereira was careful with the counterattacks and didn't leave himself open. “Poatan” caught the Thai clinch to land more punches, and the ensuing barrage of heavy punches ended the show.