Jake Matthews showed class beyond his 23 years on Sunday morning.
After easily taking the first round against Li Jingliang, Jake Matthews suffered some adversity in the second. The knockdown, ground and pound from full mount and rear-naked choke attempt in the opening stanza seemed like a distant memory once he got clipped by the Chinese fighter.
However, in the scramble, ‘the Snake’ managed to turn the tide and work for a guillotine choke. Just when he looked like he had the submission locked in, Jingliang escaped. The referee warned him, but in the madness of the wild exchanges that followed, there was confusion over what exactly he did wrong.
Replays confirmed everyone’s suspicions. A blatant eye gouge by Jingliang helped him break free from the submission. He had two fingers inside the Aussie’s eye-socket which changed the course of the fight. Yet, nothing was done bar a warning.
Fortunately, justice prevailed. Matthews got the unanimous decision after taking the third round through takedowns and superior striking. The judges awarded him the 29-28, 30-26, 30-26 victory.
During his Octagon interview with John Anik, Matthews explained that he harboured no ill will towards his adversary. Despite the fact that the foul caused his eye to bleed, he claimed he didn’t even notice it happening.
“In the heat of the fight, you don’t realise that stuff. There was a couple of fingers in the glove, but in the heat of the fight, you’ll do anything to win/ I can’t fault that. No hard feelings at all.”
It was an important win for Matthews (12-3) who’s now racked up consecutive wins for the first time since 2016. Meanwhile, the result sees Jingliang’s impressive win-streak end at four.
