"I hit him with a real quick short elbow, and it hit him on the bone just above his right eye, and then my elbow sank into his eye," winner Brian Stann told MMAjunkie.com Radio (MMAjunkie.com Radio | MMAjunkie.com).
"I heard him say something in Italian, then right when he was saying that in Italian, that's when I hit him twice, and he went out for a second."
UFC on FUEL TV 2 took place this past Saturday at Ericsson Globe Arena in Stockholm. Stann (12-4 MMA, 6-3 UFC) vs. Sakara (15-9 MMA, 6-6 UFC) aired as part of the FUEL TV-televised main card following prelims on Facebook.
The first-round stoppage may have looked a little bit suspicious to many fans watching the event. When Stann landed the shots at the midway point of the round and then appeared to consult the ref before leaning down and consoling Sakara, it looked a little like tampering.
But Stann said there was a telltale sign that Sakara was out, which may not have been evident to those watching on TV.
"His legs were wrapped around me so I could feel his muscles go limp, and my instincts just said this guy is no longer there," he said.
Of course, there were many that praised Stann for not delivering excess punishment to the Italian fighter, who shortly afterward regained his senses. The gesture made the home page of Yahoo! Sports.
Stann suspects Sakara may have been verbally submitting with the utterance, but can't be sure. His Italian isn't so good. Regardless, he feels he did the right thing.
"I really respect Alessio," he said. "I could feel he was done and was no longer really with us, so I looked to the ref for some help there."
The Sakara fight was notable for another reason, as well. Stann admitted that while he took the bout having lost a previous fight against now-top contender Chael Sonnen, his lower-ranked opponent presented a situation in which he had more to lose than to gain. Next time out, he wants to fight someone at or above the unofficial rankings that drive future UFC fights.
"I don't want to fight down the rankings," Stann said. "I want to fight up the rankings, so that's my biggest concern right now. I don't want to take a fight now where I have more to lose that I have to gain, which was partially the case in my last fight, which adds pressure."
Opponents who suit him include Michael Bisping, Mark Munoz, Chris Weidman, Alan Belcher and Rousimar Palhares. Unfortunately, all but Weidman are booked.
"I'm probably going to have to wait a little while and see what shakes out from a lot of those fights to see who I'm going to get," Stann said.
But with a knockout such as the one he recently delivered, he may get his wish.
"Fighting anybody else, I'm giving them more of an opportunity than I'm getting," he said. "I think every fighter wants to fight up the rankings."
