Navajo Stirling stays unbeaten, stops Ion Cutelaba at UFC Vegas 119

Navajo Stirling stayed unbeaten Saturday night, stopping Ion Cutelaba with a vicious ground-and-pound finish in the second round of their heavyweight/" class="internal-link text-bone underline decoration-ash/30 hover:decoration-gold underline-offset-2">light heavyweight co-main event at UFC Vegas 119.

Stirling trapped Cutelaba against the cage midway through the second frame and unloaded a succession of punches before adding elbows that forced the referee to step in at 3:23, per MMA Fighting. Cutelaba covered up but offered no defense as the New Zealander poured it on. The finish capped a back-and-forth scrap that saw both men threaten submissions — Cutelaba locked in a standing guillotine in the opening round, and later attempted a kimura from bottom position — but Stirling's scrambling ability kept pulling him clear.

Stirling calls out ranked competition after fifth straight UFC win

"I told everyone that I was the next big thing," Stirling said afterward, according to the report. "They can come fraud check these nuts because I'm the real deal. I can scramble my ass off. I know no matter what, I'm not afraid to get taken down because I'm going to get back up." He added that he would fight anyone in the division, ideally in October.

The 10-0 prospect used his reach to land jabs and body shots early, including a stiff shot to Cutelaba's ribs late in the first that drew a counter. In the second, a right hand from Stirling set up a scramble where Cutelaba grabbed the kimura, only for Stirling to reverse and separate. From there, Stirling pinned him to the fence and went to work.

Stirling is now 5-0 in the UFC and climbs closer to ranked opponents at 205 pounds. His next bout is expected to come later this year.

Original reporting:

• mmafighting.com — UFC Vegas 119 video: Navajo Stirling unloads barrage of punches, elbows to melt Ion Cutelaba in second round | MMA Fighting