UFC 108: Ellenberger rocks Pyle for first UFC win

UFC 108: Evans vs. Silva

UFC Press

Jake Ellenberger rocked Mike Pyle for his first promotional victory Saturday at UFC 108 in Las Vegas.

UFC 108 FULL COVERAGE:
Evans barely outlasts Silva in main event
Daley bombs Hazelett with big left hand
Stout stops J. Lauzon in upset decision
Sparta's Jim Miller submits Ludwig
Dos Santos KOs Yvel with big uppercut
Munoz makes quick work of Jensen
Kampmann scores TKO over Volkmann
C. Miller submits D. Lauzon

Ellenberger rebounded from a close defeat to Carlos Condit in his UFC debut by pounding out Pyle 22 seconds into the second round, landing a right knee to the rib cage and then flattening him with a right to the chin.  Ellenberger pounced on Pyle and exploded a flurry of blasts that forced the stoppage.

Ellenberger started out with a takedown 15 seconds in after throwing his fists in the opening moments. Pyle, in guard, tried for a triangle. Ellenberger stayed heavy on top, thwarting Pyle’s on-the-back offense. Through two minutes, the action was all in Pyle’s guard.

Pyle moved Elleberger into butterfly guard for a moment, only to let him back down into full guard. Ellenberger’s elbows found their way though twice over the next minute, then he stepped out of the guard and allowed the fight to come to the feet before scoring a quick takedown again. Pyle nearly scored a kimura, but Ellenberger powered out of it and finished off the round with a flurry to the turtle Pyle, blasting away with four clean shots to the side of the head.

Pyle appeared to say that he broke his rib on the right side and it was evident as Ellenberger landed the early TKO in the second round.

“The greatest feeling in the world," Ellenberger said.  "I trained my ass off for eight or nine weeks. Mike’s a tough guy, extremely experienced on the gorund. I had to force the takedowns, but it came out good. He’s long and has a good guard. I tried to keep my head high and stay out of the submissions. I like to lay my hands on guys – that’s my style.”

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