UFC Fight Night Results: Johnny Walker Stops Waldo Cortes-Acosta in Round 3

Johnny Walker stopped Waldo Cortes-Acosta by technical knockout at 2:27 of the third round Saturday night in the UFC Fight Night main event at Meta APEX in Las Vegas. It was Walker’s second straight stoppage since moving up from light heavyweight.

Walker caught Cortes-Acosta with a head kick in the third, then dropped him with a right hand and followed him to the mat with punches. The referee stepped in with 2:33 left in the round. The UFC’s official finish video records the result as a TKO.

Cortes-Acosta had knocked Walker down in the first round, but Walker got back to his feet and resumed attacking the lead leg. Cortes-Acosta spent part of the second round on top after Walker slipped, according to MMAWeekly’s round-by-round account.

Walker entered ranked 12th at heavyweight and Cortes-Acosta sixth. Walker knocked out Mick Parkin in the first round of his heavyweight debut in October. Cortes-Acosta has now lost three straight after decisions against Alexander Volkov and Curtis Blaydes, according to Sportsnet.

The heavyweights were elevated to the main event after Sean Brady withdrew from his scheduled fight against Gabriel Bonfim. Walker weighed 239 pounds on Friday, 23 pounds lighter than Cortes-Acosta.

Walker offers to serve as UFC 334 backup

Johnny Walker volunteered to serve as a backup for Ciryl Gane’s UFC 334 title defense against Josh Hokit after stopping Waldo Cortes-Acosta on Saturday. Walker made the offer in an interview with MMA Fighting.

“If they need someone to step in, I’m here,” Walker said. The UFC card lists Gane and Hokit as the heavyweight headliners. Walker’s comments were an offer to step in if needed.

Walker stopped Cortes-Acosta in the third round, his second knockout in two heavyweight appearances. He told MMA Fighting he would otherwise prefer to fight again in February or March.

Walker interview · UFC 334 event card

Elsewhere on the card, Nina Milošević stopped Priscila Cachoeira in the second round, Thomas Petersen stopped Gabriel Lorenco in the third and Andre Petroski stopped Mantas Kondratavičius in the second. The UFC’s results page lists the rest of the card.