UFC 88: Evans Flattens Liddell in Atlanta’s Breakthrough Moment
On September 6, 2008, Rashad Evans knocked out Chuck Liddell at UFC 88: Breakthrough in Atlanta, Georgia. A punch ended their light heavyweight main event at 1:51 of round two at Philips Arena, giving Evans the decisive victory on a card filled with established names.
Evans delivers; Franklin finishes with a body kick
The knockout made Evans the headlining winner without a championship changing hands that night. Rich Franklin added another striking finish in the co-main event, stopping Matt Hamill with a kick to the body at 0:39 of the third round. The two leading bouts therefore ended through different weapons and in different rounds.
Dan Henderson defeated Rousimar Palhares by unanimous decision after three rounds. Nate Marquardt stopped Martin Kampmann with punches at 1:22 of round one, producing a much shorter middleweight contest. Dong Hyun Kim took a split decision over Matt Brown in their welterweight meeting.
MacDonald and Boetsch add stoppages
Kurt Pellegrino defeated Thiago Tavares by unanimous decision. Tim Boetsch stopped Michael Patt with punches at 2:03 of the opening round, while Jason MacDonald submitted Jason Lambert with a rear-naked choke at 1:20 of round two. Ryo Chonan defeated Roan Carneiro by split decision.
The nine bouts produced five finishes and four decisions. Evans’ knockout supplied the night’s most consequential light heavyweight result, but Franklin’s body-kick stoppage and Henderson’s decision also put notable veterans in the win column. Breakthrough combined abrupt endings with contests that needed every scheduled minute.
Sources
Article Tags
UFC 88, Rashad Evans, Chuck Liddell, Rich Franklin, Dan Henderson, MMA history
