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USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Nolan King and Ken Hathaway

Alonzo Menifield was genuinely concerned for Misha Cirkunov after brutal UFC Fight Night 212 knockout

LAS VEGAS – A knockout was his goal, but that doesn’t mean Alonzo Menifield felt comfortable once he pulled it off.

At UFC Fight Night 212, Menifield (13-3 MMA, 6-3 UFC) brutally knocked out Misha Cirkunov (15-9 MMA, 6-7 UFC) with a series of punches. The stoppage came 68 seconds into the bout.

“The feeling was great, but I was concerned about him,” Menifield told reporters, including MMA Junkie, at a post-fight news conference Saturday. “You hear him huffing and puffing, ‘Ahh … ahh.’ I’m looking, like, ‘OK, he’s not getting up.’ I was concerned. He got up, so I was able to enjoy fully that feeling.”

Menifield, 34, said he has nothing but respect for Cirkunov, who fell to 0-4 in his most recent four appearances. Health and wellbeing is paramount, Menifield emphasized.

“Misha, overall, is a great opponent as far as being in the sport,” Menifield said. “Any time you’ve got two warriors in there and one of them don’t get up, you should get concerned. I know I would. At the same time, this is the fight game. When he got up, yeah, I was relieved.”

After the fight, Menifield elected to leave Cirkunov alone and let him regain his bearings. There was no sense in having a conversation that wouldn’t be remembered, Menifield said.

“He’s got to come to it, so as far as saying anything to him, it wouldn’t matter,” Menifield said. “If I can relay this message to him: Great fight. You caught me, man. I really had to dig deep and pull that out.”

For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 212.

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