Josh Emmett knocks Bryce Mitchell OUT COLD with devastating right hand

Josh Emmett started UFC 296 with a brutal knockout over Bryce Mitchell, followed by Cody Garbrandt's first-round knockout of Brian Kelleher.

Josh Emmett kicked off the main card of UFC 296 with an explosive first-round knockout of Bryce Mitchell. The fight started slowly, with both fighters feeling each other out, much to the disappointment of the Las Vegas crowd. However, Emmett quickly changed the tone of the fight with a powerful right-handed punch that left Mitchell unconscious on the canvas just 1 minute and 57 seconds into the fight.

After the knockout, Emmett expressed his respect for Mitchell's toughness but asserted his dominance as the most powerful hitter in the featherweight division. He thanked Mitchell for taking the fight on short notice, acknowledging the danger he posed as an opponent. Mitchell, who accepted the bout with only two weeks' notice, had previously scored a decision win over Dan Ige but suffered his second career loss against Emmett.

On the other hand, Emmett bounced back from a loss to featherweight title contender Ilia Topuria in June, improving his record to 19-4 with seven knockouts. In another exciting fight earlier in the evening, former UFC bantamweight champion Cody Garbrandt secured his second consecutive victory with a first-round knockout of Brian Kelleher.

The bout started with Kelleher using leg kicks to keep Garbrandt at bay, but the former champion's relentless pressure and combinations eventually broke through Kelleher's defense. Garbrandt landed a clean right hook in the middle of the Octagon, sending Kelleher crashing to the canvas. Referee Mark Goddard stopped the fight at the 3:42 mark, allowing Garbrandt to walk away with another impressive win.