Nicolae Negumereanu is knocked out by Carlos Ullberg to start UFC 281 at MSG.

Be judicious in your requests, Nicolae Negumereanu.

A little more than a minute into the opening round, the Romanian light heavyweight had had enough of the pursuit and turned to head back toward the centre of the cage, waving for Carlos Ullberg to follow.

Negumereanu was knocked out by Ullberg little over two minutes later, and the UFC 281 programme at Madison Square Garden on Saturday night got underway.

Ullberg started off the finish with a left jab-hook combo (8-1). Negumereanu (13-2), whose left leg had been damaged by calf kicks earlier in the round, collapsed to the floor. At the 3:44 mark, Ullberg delivered a crushing right hand to the face to end the light heavyweight contest.

Horns should be blown!
Matt Frevola of Huntington entered the cage to the trumpet-heavy entrance song “Narco” by Mets closer Edwin Diaz. According to Frevola, “He’s the best closer in baseball, and I’m the best closing in the UFC.” “I had to represent as a lifetime Mets fan in New York City, so I had to do it there. The crowd really got into it, and it’s a great song.

Double knockdowns
Twenty seconds into their featherweight match, Seungwoo Choi used a left hook to knock Michael Trizano to the ground. Choi received a similar knockout from Trizano for a rare double. Both warriors instantly rose up and continued to fascinate the audience with a frenzied hitting match. With nine seconds left in the opening frame, Trizano of New Jersey floored Choi with a left hook before landing three ground strikes.