Francis Marshall will have a highlight-reel knockout to remember from his octagon debut at UFC on ESPN 42.
Marshall (7-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC), a 23-year-old featherweight prospect off Dana White’s Contender Series, made quite an impression in his official UFC debut on Saturday when he brutally knocked out Marcelo Rojo (16-9 MMA, 0-3 UFC) in the second round of their fight at Amway Center in Orlando, Fla.
It was clear early on that Marshall held the edge in power, and he applied the pressure on Rojo until in the second round, he uncorked and landed a clean right hand that floored his opponent. Rojo was essentially out when he hit the mat, but Marshall pounded and got a few more in for good measure.
Check out the replay of the finish below (via Twitter):
What a knockout by Francis Marshall 👊 #UFCOrlando pic.twitter.com/CewPlusjYx
— UFC (@ufc) December 4, 2022
The Fire Marshall just brought the heat in his UFC debut 🔥
[ #UFCOrlando is LIVE on @ESPN ] pic.twitter.com/xvndKPXszQ
— UFC (@ufc) December 4, 2022
The result marked the first knockout win of Marshall’s young career. He came into the fight with all of his stopped by submission, but this time he got to show off his hands on the biggest stage, and could not have been happier after the fact.
“This is definitely everything I could’ve imagined and more,” Marshall told Daniel Cormier during his post-fight interview. “It’s like a dream turning into a reality.”
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC on ESPN 42.
