Jim Miller demolishes Erick Gonzalez with a stunning one-punch knockout in the second round at UFC Vegas 40

Jim Miller demolishes Erick Gonzalez with a stunning one-punch knockout in the second round at UFC Vegas 40

Jim Miller knocked out his 38th opponent in the UFC with a highlight-reel knockout. Miller hammered Erick Gonzalez with an extremely savage left hand just 14 seconds into the second round to win his first knockout in a little over five years at UFC Vegas 40 on Saturday night, putting him in sole possession of the most fights in the promotion’s history.

“I’m ecstatic,” Miller remarked of his latest victory. “He’s a tough nut to crack. Coming in with nothing to lose is a great way to start. I received a KO as an old dog learning new tricks.

“I’m here to fight. I just like to fight and then get paid. My early goal was 40 fights in the UFC, we’re two away from that. We’re going to try to get to [UFC] 300.”

Gonzalez, for his first fight in the UFC, showed no fear, landing an early takedown followed by a brutal combination on the feet that left Miller scared for a moment. Gonzalez was dragged to the ground by the New Jersey native in order to regain his senses and recover, but he couldn’t maintain the battle there for long.

BOOOOOM!@JimMiller_155 punctuates UFC appearance number 38 with a massive KO 💥 #UFCVegas40 pic.twitter.com/jE3RQkZEH5

— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) October 17, 2021

Back on his feet, Gonzalez became overconfident with his strikes, leaving him vulnerable to Miller’s punishing overhand lefts, which had him hunting for the finish. Miller started unloading with a series of powerful blows with Gonzalez backed up against the cage, but the UFC newbie weathered the storm and advanced to the second round.

That quickly changed after the fight was restarted, with Gonzalez pushing forward with his hands down low and Miller punishing him with a superbly timed left-cross that burst like a bomb on his chin.

As the referee raced in to end the fight, Gonzalez collapsed to the canvas, and Miller celebrated the knockout and his 22nd UFC victory overall.

Miller has been a mainstay of the promotion for exactly 13 years, and he shows no signs of slowing down as he aims to break a few more records before calling it a career.