Matches to Make After UFC Fight Night ‘Whittaker vs. Brunson’

Chaos did not suit Derek Brunson, at least not against Robert Whittaker. Brunson charged at “The Ultimate Fighter: The Smashes” winner and all but impaled himself in the UFC Fight Night 101 “Whittaker vs. Brunson” main event on Saturday, as he yielded to a first-round head kick and follow-up punches at Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne, Australia. The end came 4:07 into Round 1, Brunson’s five-fight winning streak having run its course.Paying little attention to anything resembling sound defense or strategy, Brunson threw himself at the Australia-based New Zealand native from the start, hands flying and chin extended. For a brief time, there seemed to be a method to his madness, as he had Whittaker on his heels. Prosperity did not last. Whittaker threw out his anchor, waited for the storm to pass and capitalized. He stopped Brunson in his tracks with a clean left hook, uncorked a series of vicious uppercuts and then reset himself. A head kick further compromised Brunson and left him unable to shield himself from the attack that followed, as Whittaker buried the North Carolinian with unanswered punches at the base of the cage. According to preliminary FightMetric data, Whittaker connected on nearly 60 percent of the strikes he threw — further evidence of Brunson ill-conceived kamikaze tactics. In wake of UFC Fight Night “Whittaker vs. Brunson,” here are five matches that ought to be made (online betting):Robert Whittaker vs. Gegard Mousasi: Whittaker can no longer be ignored as a viable contender at 185 pounds. The 25-year-old has rattled off six …

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