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MMA

03rd Mar 2019

With flying knee and celebration injury, Johnny Walker remains must-see TV

Walker injured his shoulder while celebrating his victory

Darragh Murphy

Johnny Walker has more knockout wins in the UFC than minutes in the Octagon.

The streaking Brazilian’s average fight time in the UFC is less than a minute and in just five short months, Walker finds himself not a million miles away from a title shot at light heavyweight.

A flying knee gave Walker his 16th career victory on UFC 235’s preliminary card on Saturday night and his reputation continues to soar after the statistic emerged that he has landed 11 combined strikes and absorbed just five in his three trips to the Octagon.

At 26, the sky is the limit for Walker, who quickly finished opponent Misha Cirkunov with ground and pound after his picture-perfect knee found a home on Cirkunov’s chin.

Walker, who took the Cirkunov fight on short notice, could well have been available for another quick return following his 38-second win this weekend but, unfortunately, he injured himself with his post-fight celebration.

“Yeah, a little bit,” Walker laughed when asked by Joe Rogan if he injured himself after the bout.

Walker then confirmed that he dislocated his shoulder when he face-planted on the mat before writhing around in agony.

“If I can survive myself then I can survive anyone,” he added.

Walker started Saturday night as the 15th-ranked 205lber in the world but he can expect a significant rise up the rankings when they are updated early next week.