Sutherland had to do was listen to his team.
Sutherland took on heavyweight veteran Tai Tuivasa
in hostile territory at
UFC Perth on Saturday. “The Vanilla Gorilla” outgrappled
Tuivasa for three rounds amidst a sea of boos to earn a unanimous
decision win. The Englishman revealed that his victory over Tuivasa
was the first time that he paid heed to his corner mid-fight in
quite some time.
The bulky Brit Sutherland stated that he lost his composure and
ignored his training partners in his recent last knockout loss to
Brando
Pericic. While Sutherland knows that he can brawl when he wants
to, it was crucial to earn his first Ultimate Fighting Championship victory.
Sutherland admitted in his post-fight interview:
“It’s the first time I’ve listened to my coaches is probably about
six fights,” Sutherland said sheepishly. “And that’s the result.
Against Brando, I lost my composure, didn’t listen to the corner.
My corner’s like, ‘Look, we know you can brawl, you’re an MMA
fighter, in the gym day in day out.’ I can do it all. It’s just
taken me 16 pro fights to show it. Who doesn’t like a knockout or a
finish at least? But I was here to get the win, get my money, go
home, feed the kids.”
Sutherland (11-5) made his UFC debut on short notice last year
against Valter
Walker, who tapped him out with a heel hook. Sutherland’s
subsequent outing came against the aforementioned Pericic, which
didn’t go his way either. Meanwhile, Tuivasa (14-10) is now on a
seven-fight losing streak, one shy of the company record held by
Tony
Ferguson. Nevertheless, Tuivasa has claimed he plans to fight
on, regardless of if he remains on the roster or not.
“I know that I’m good enough to compete in
this division.”Louie Sutherland outworked Tai Tuivasa to get the decision nod and
secure his first win in the Octagon.
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— UFC News (@UFCNews)
May 2, 2026