UFC fighter Joaquin Buckley stunned viewers during UFC Fight Night 179, using a spinning back kick to knock out Impa Kasanganay. Some fans called this move one of the greatest knockouts in MMA history, and President Donald Trump seemingly agreed with this opinion. He called UFC President Dana White after watching the fight to rave about the knockout.
Buckley spoke with TMZ recently and revealed that he received a phone call from White. The UFC head told him that Trump had personally called to say that he was a big fan of the finish. The president is someone with a significant number of fans and critics alike, but Buckley said that he is flattered by the compliment. “He’s the world leader at the end of the day. If anything, that’s good to have a person like that on your side,” Buckley told TMZ.
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A KO UNLIKE ANY OTHER.
Four days later and we still can’t wrap our heads around this @Newmansa94 finish 🤯 pic.twitter.com/QyeqWZ7kg8
— UFC (@ufc) October 14, 2020
“[Kasanganay] had control of my foot, but I had something to counter that,” Buckley recently told Sports Illustrated. “There were two other times he grabbed my foot. When he grabbed my foot the first time, I kicked my foot back and got myself out of trouble. The second time he did it, he had good control and pushed my weight back. I was falling back, and I had to turn my leg over.
“I realized I was in a position for a kick — almost a mule kick with my lead leg, but I was turning too heavy and he was pushing my momentum backward, so I couldn’t do it,” Buckley continued. “That’s when I told myself, ‘If I kick again and he catches my foot, as soon as he whips my leg around, I’m going throw the kick.’ And that’s what happened. Once he grabbed my foot again, I turned, I looked back toward my shoulder, and I threw the kick as hard as I could. That got the result I needed.”
Along with discussing his knockout and Trump’s response, Buckley also revealed that he is only a part-time fighter. He also works at Walgreens. He said that his coworkers and his boss are supportive of his career. Although he also acknowledged that he will have to adjust his schedule due to the potential fights on the horizon.
As an example of his rising fame, Buckley has already booked his next bout. He will face off with the undefeated Jordan Wright at UFC 255 on Nov. 21. Buckley previously told Sports Illustrated that his goal was to fight again before the end of the year while potentially making history with another highlight-reel knockout. Now he will do just that.
