Anthony Pettis revisits being the first UFC fighter to finish Donald Cerrone on 9-year anniversary
Anthony Pettis recently posted a tweet looking back at his TKO win over Donald Cerrone nine years ago.
Following the 'Showtime Kick' and his victory over Benson Henderson, the Roufusport product was one of the most exciting prospects to cross over from WEC.
However, Pettis lost his debut fight in the UFC against Clay Guida. He then bounced back with wins over Joe Lauzon and Jeremy Stephens before facing Cerrone, who was on a two-fight win streak of his own at the time.
At UFC on FOX 6, Anthony Pettis switched to the southpaw stance and peppered 'Cowboy' with a barrage of strikes. Soon after, a well-placed liver kick put a stop to the contest. The win made Pettis the first UFC fighter to finish Cerrone.
The duo had a rematch at UFC 249 in May 2020, which 'Showtime' won by unanimous decision.
Taking to Twitter, Anthony Pettis shared a clip from their first fight, with a caption that read:
"Nine years ago today."
Nine years ago today 🙏 https://t.co/LutTU23tkw
Anthony Pettis would like a rematch with Tony Ferguson
Anthony Pettis and Tony Ferguson had a brutal clash at UFC 220, which earned them the Fight of the Night honor.
'Showtime' looked to have had an opportunity to win via KO but couldn't capitalize and eventually broke his hand in the second round. Pettis' corner was forced to throw in the towel due to the injury.
During a recent appearance on The Jason Chambers Podcast, the former lightweight champion stated that he enjoyed his fight with Ferguson, even though some spectators might have found it overly gruesome. Pettis stated that he'd like to have a rematch with 'El Cucuy' down the line if given the chance.
"Oh man, we went to war. Me and Tony went to war... it looks bloody and it looks like... I think it looks more barbaric to people than it really is. Like, a cut on your eyebrow isn't as bad as a concussion in boxing. You know like, it's wet that's way worse. So like, that fight we were bloody, we were having fun, we were smiling like, it was, it was honestly just pure pure joy. I was like, 'Man, this is a fun time' and I broke my hand. I almost knocked him out and then I broke my hand on the second punch and I was just like, one of them fights bro, you can't fight with one less weapon that you already have so my coach called it and we never get to see that third round."
Check out Anthony Pettis' appearance on the podcast below: