Johnny Walker Rallies to Stop Waldo Cortes Acosta at UFC Vegas 124

Johnny Walker spent most of Saturday's main event under Waldo Cortes Acosta's pressure. Halfway through the third round, one question-mark kick gave him the opening he needed.

Walker hurt Cortes Acosta with the kick, followed with a backfist and drove him to the canvas with punches to earn the TKO at 2:27 of Round 3 at Meta APEX in Las Vegas. The short-notice win moved Walker to 2-0 at heavyweight, both by stoppage.

The UFC awarded the bout Fight of the Night. Walker also leaves UFC Vegas 124 with a win over the man who entered the week ranked No. 6 in the division.

Cortes Acosta made him absorb a heavyweight fight

Cortes Acosta made Walker work for every clean exchange. He kept walking him down, got through with heavy right hands and put him on the floor in the opening round. Walker rose quickly and kept attacking the lead leg, but the pressure never really stopped.

The second round belonged to Cortes Acosta's kind of fight. He forced exchanges, landed another hard right and ended up on top after Walker went down during a scramble. Walker's kicks still scored, including several to the leg and body, but his pace was slowing.

That is what made the finish matter. Walker did not catch a cold opponent in the first minute. He had to take clean heavyweight shots, work through a rough second round and find an answer while Cortes Acosta was still coming forward.

The question-mark kick changed everything

Cortes Acosta opened the third with another overhand right and continued backing Walker toward the fence. After a restart in the center, Walker brought his right leg up as if he were going low or to the body, then curved the kick over Cortes Acosta's guard.

Cortes Acosta staggered. Walker chased immediately, adding a backfist and a right hand before unloading on the ground. Referee Jason Herzog stopped the fight at 2:27.

Walker had spent much of the night investing in kicks below the head. The finishing kick worked because Cortes Acosta had already seen so many attacks start from the same side. It was an improvised finish, but the setup had been there since the first minute.

Afterward, Walker thanked Cortes Acosta for giving him a hard fight before turning to the criticism that has followed his durability throughout his UFC career.

"Without a heavy guy like this who could take a punch, it wouldn't be a good fight," Walker said in the Octagon, according to MMA Fighting. "F* everybody who said I had no chin. Who don't have a chin now? This was just to prove to everyone."

Walker's heavyweight move is working

Walker accepted the replacement headliner on eight days' notice after the original Sean Brady vs. Gabriel Bonfim main event fell apart. Five weeks earlier, he had knocked out Mick Parkin in the first round of his heavyweight debut at UFC 332.

The move up has given Walker room to use the speed and range that once made him such a difficult light heavyweight matchup. He is still taking risks, and Cortes Acosta showed how dangerous those risks can become when Walker is trapped near the fence. The difference through two heavyweight appearances is that Walker has found the finish before those moments cost him.

Two wins do not settle where he belongs in the title order, especially with Ciryl Gane defending the belt against Josh Hokit at UFC 334 next weekend. Walker said he plans to be in New York to watch that fight. What is settled is that his heavyweight run is no longer a test case. He has stopped two opponents in five weeks, and the second one made him fight through trouble to do it.