UFC193: Ronda Rousey stunned by Holly Holm in world bantamweight title fight

HOLLY Holm has shocked the world, knocking out champion Ronda Rousey with a devastating kick to the head in their UFC world title fight.

Holly Holm of the US (R) lands a kick to the neck to knock out compatriot Ronda Rousey and win the UFC title fight in Melbourne on November 15, 2015. RESTRICTED TO EDITORIAL USE NO ADVERTISING USE NO PROMOTIONAL USE NO MERCHANDISING USE. AFP PHOTO/Paul CROCK

HOLLY Holm has shocked the world, knocking out champion Ronda Rousey in the second round.

Holm floored the champion with a devastating kick to the head before crunching Rousey’s head with hammer punches on the canvas, forcing referee Herb Dean to stop the fight.

Holm caused one of the biggest upsets in world sport, stopping Rousey 59 seconds into the second round.

Asked post fight how she felt about being the new undisputed champion, Holm replied “I don’t know I’m trying to take it in but it’s crazy,” she said.

“I had so much love and support and I though how could I not do this. I had the best coaches from stand-up, to grappling to wrestling …”

Holly Holm stunned Ronda Rousey in their UFC women's bantamweight championship bout at Etihad Stadium.

Holm said the fight went to plan as the unleashed a series of strikes on Rousey, who continued to charge forward.

“Everything we worked on presented itself in the fight,” Holm said.

“I have not spent so much time in the gym in all my life. Everything we worked on happened tonight.

“I didn’t want to kick her in the body, we went high and yeah.”

In the other women’s championship fight, Polish champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk was reduced to tears after clinching the strawweight title in a five-round war with French-Canadian Valerie Letourneau.

Jedrzejczyk, who maintained her unbeaten record and secured her third title defence with her 11th professional victory, was emotional as Dana White strapped the belt around her waist.

And while she voiced her dislike for Letourneau pre-fight in a bitter feud, Jedrzejczyk paid Letourneau the ultimate respect in her post-fight address.

“You’re not going to always win easy. I always want to fight with the best and Valerie deserved it,” she said.

“I expected a very long fight — five rounds — but I feel great.”

Holly Holm lands a kick to knock out Ronda Rousey and win the UFC title fight in Melbourne.

A gallant Letourneau also choked back tears as the vocal Australian crowd showed their support for the wounded challenger, who was sporting a large lump under her right eye.

“To be honest, nothing really surprised me,” Letourneau said

I just didn’t respond as well as I wanted to,” she added, choking back tears.

“Super Samoan” Mark Hunt inched closer to a shot at the heavyweight title with a brutal first-round knockout of Brazil’s Antonio “Big Foot” Silva.

A leaner, meaner Hunt lived up to his pre-fight prediction of “knocking his head off in the first round”, flooring Silva with a powerful overhand right before landing a second right hand to force a referee stoppage.

The rematch to the historic five-round draw in Brisbane lasted just 3.41 seconds, catapulting 41-year-old Hunt back into the top-10.

“I was ready and trained really hard — I’m ready to go again,” Hunt said.

“With rematches, I know not to make the same mistake twice. I have a lot of respect for Bigfoot. We used to train together and he’s a good guy. It’s just work to me, that’s how it is. All I can say is I wasn’t going to let it go three rounds. I’ve got no injuries. So, Dana, if there are any other fights, let me know.”

Silva conceded his plan was to push through the opening five minutes.

“This was a big rematch, but I didn’t feel any added pressure going into it. My strategy was to take it to the second round, but he didn’t like that strategy. He hit me and I slipped and then he hit me again. Tonight was his night.”

Sydney’s Robert Whittaker powered his way into the world’s top-10 middleweights with a gritty decision win over No. 10 ranked Jamaican Uriah Hall.

In his biggest test yet, Whittaker used his devastated striking power to outgun a flashy Hall.

“This win means everything to me,” Whittaker said.

Holly Holm celebrates her victory over Ronda Rousey.

“Fighting at home is one of the biggest honours and privileges I could have. To win in my home country is everything. I’ll go anywhere I need to fight next.

“If they want me to fight here, I’ll fight here. If they want me to go anywhere else, I’ll fight anywhere else.”

Hall, who stopped the fight briefly after claiming he copped an eye poke, admitted he was feeling worse for wear after the bruising three-round encounter.

“My eye hurts. The first one stung, but after the second one, I couldn’t see at all and I was completely relying on my instincts,” Hall said.

“I kept doing really dumb things like turning my back. I kept turning because when you can’t see it’s a natural instinct — I’ve never experienced anything like that before. Congrats to Robert.”