Jairzinho Rozenstruik reminded fans just how vicious he can be with a stunning second round knockout at DBX 2 tonight.
The former UFC heavyweight contender was surprisingly let go by the promotion earlier this year after a decision loss to Sergei Pavlovich. And he didn’t spend long licking his wounds, heading directly to Jon Jones and Mike Perry’s Dirty Boxing Championship.
Rozenstruik had won two of his last three fights, and had only one time ever lost twice consecutively under the UFC banner. Luckily for Perry and Jones, he showcased his punishing power tonight, and booked a shot at the first ever DBX heavyweight title.
Jairzinho Rozenstruik lands vicious one-punch KO in first fight outside UFC
For his first fight away from the octagon, Jairzinho Rozenstruik took on little-known Brazilian Victor Cardoso in the headliner of DBX 2 at the Hangar in Miami. In the early stages, Cardoso looked solid and used his muay thai movements to confuse Rozenstruik at times.
However, it didn’t take too long for Rozenstruik to find his range and when he did he landed a thudding right hand that sent Cardoso to the canvas. Ground and pound is within the Dirty Boxing ruleset, and as a result the referee almost forced him to the deck.
But it was all essentially for show as Rozenstruik landed a couple of light shots that caused the bout to be waved off. It marks his first victory since August of last year and his first legitimate knockout since December 2022.
Jairzinho Rozenstruik books Dirty Boxing Championship heavyweight title fight
Earlier in the night, Robinson ‘The Wolf’ Perez landed a fairly impressive knockout of his own against UFC and PFL veteran Alex Nicholson. Perez had made a name for himself throughout fight week with intense trash talk, and was rewarded by the promotion with a guaranteed title fight against Rozenstruik.
He was even let into the ring for a face-off with ‘Bigi Boy’, whom he immediately argued with and pushed, forcing the pair to be dragged apart. Reportedly the pair shared a tense meeting in an elevator during fight week, and Rozenstruik seemed more than happy to book the fight.
Perez’s record may not look like much on paper, but he was able to show impressive movement and shot selection for his size against Nicholson. And he now gets his chance at gold in the main event of the next Dirty Boxing event, which is slated for July 26.