There aren’t many better ways to win a title than with a perfectly timed head kick.
Some of the biggest and most memorable championship wins in MMA history have come with that brutal move, among them being Leon Edwards’ knockout of Kamaru Usman at UFC 278 in 2022.
They often come out of nowhere, and now-former Jungle Fight middleweight champion Joao Dantas experienced that first-hand at the Brazilian promotion’s most recent event.
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Oton Jasse crowned new Jungle Fight middleweight champion after devastating head kick knockout
Jungle Fight has long been one of the top regional promotions and has been a feeder organization of sorts for the UFC.
A number of notable names have fought and won under that banner, including former two-division UFC champion Alex Pereira and the legendary Jose Aldo.
While those two all-time greats did not hold gold in the promotion, recognizable stars like Paulo Costa, Renato Moicano, and Natalia Silva did.
A new name recently joined them on the list of Jungle Fight champions, as Brazilian veteran Oton Jasse won gold in his 34th professional fight as a mixed martial artist.
The 32-year-old headlined Jungle Fight 153 in Sao Paulo on Saturday night, where he challenged Joao Dantas for the title at 185 pounds.
The fight came to an end before the midway point of round one, as Jasse connected with a truly brutal kick to the back and side of the defending champ’s head.
He immediately collapsed, stiff, to the ground, and the referee thankfully intervened before any follow-up shots were thrown at the defenseless Dantas.
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Jasse is now 23-11 in MMA and has won back-to-back fights.
Before his current streak, the Brazilian had lost five times in a dismal six-fight run, marking quite the turnaround for the newly crowned Jungle Fight middleweight champion.
Dantas, meanwhile, fell to 8-3 in the cage. Before his title win last time out, the 30-year-old was knocked out by Costello van Steenis in the PFL.
2026-07-26 20:00:00
