Ismael Bonfim will not forget his UFC debut. Bonfim outgunned ferocious striker Terrance McKinney, putting his lights out with a flying knee knockout at UFC 283 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil on Saturday.
Bonfim performed well in the first round of his UFC debut against McKinney, but he really cranked up the violence in Round 2. McKinney was desperately flailing to land shots as Bonfim hit him cleaner and cleaner. Bonfim backed his foe to the fence and uncorked a punch that knocked out McKinney’s mouthpiece. He measured McKinney and launched forward with a flying knee that immediately folded McKinney. No follow-up shots were necessary.
Bonfim improved to 19-3 professionally and extended his active winning streak to 13. A lightweight prospect worth keeping an eye on, two of Bonfim’s early career losses came against future UFC fighters Renato Moicano and Adriano Moraes. Ismael Bonfim’s younger brother, Gabriel Bonfim, is scheduled to fight on the UFC 283 prelims against Mounir Lazzez.
McKinney (13-5) entered the fight having gone 3-1 in his UFC debut year in 2022. The Bonfim fight marks the first time that McKinney had ever seen Round 2 inside the Octagon.
