UFC 307 results: Patient Alex Pereira violently finishes Khalil Rountree in Round 4 to defend title

Alex Pereira picked up his fourth UFC title fight win in 11 months by stopping Khalil Rountree in the UFC 307 main event.

[autotag]Alex Pereira[/autotag] continues to shine as the MVP of the promotion after claiming victory in his fourth main event title fight in 11 months.

In the UFC 307 main event at Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Pereira (12-2 MMA, 9-1 UFC) defended his light heavyweight title for the third time by defeating promotionally-ranked No. 8 [autotag]Khalil Rountree[/autotag]. The challenger put up a stiff fight early, but ultimately, the champ retained by stopping Rountree (13-6 MMA, 9-6 UFC) with a hellacious flurry at 4:32 of Round 4.

Both landed well-placed countershots early in the fight. Pereira kept Rountree guessing with kicks, while the champ only dealt with punches coming in his direction in a competitive first round.

Pereira missed with a big head kick attempt in Round 2, leaving an opening for Rountree to crack him with a big punch. A combination and a heavy head kick soon followed, securing a clear second round for Rountree.

Early in Round 3, Rountree continued to land hard counterpunches, backing Pereira into the fence. Midway through, Pereira went back to adding hard leg kicks to his offense to slow down Rountree’s responses, which proved to be a pivotal point in the fight.

Rountree was busted open from strikes, and a jumping knee from Pereira prompted a heavy forward-pressure attack to seal the third round.

Bruised and bloodied in Round 4, Pereira continued to pick apart his opponent with sharp single strikes while trying to evade the return punches. Pereira turned up the pressure as Rountree began to back away, drawing out a wild firefight.

Rountree was forced to cover up as he retreated to the fence with his right eye swollen shut, but Pereira was cautious of the counters and didn’t leave himself open. “Poatan” got a hold of Thai clinch to dig in more strikes, and the following flurry of heavy punches closed the show.

Pereira, 37, became the light heavyweight champ by stopping former champ Jiri Prochazka in the second round at UFC 295. He went on to pick up his first title defense in April at UFC 300 on short notice by finishing former title holder Jamahal Hill in the first round. “Poatan” stepped up to save the day again at UFC 303 in June, where he defeated Prochazka in a rematch.

Rountree, 34, was an unlikely challenger but, despite the loss, gave the champ a run for his money. He sees his five-fight winning streak come to an end in his first UFC title opportunity.

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Up-to-the-minute UFC 307 results include:

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 307.