LAS VEGAS – The hype surrounding a perfect 11-0 start for Edmen Shahbazyan was not enough to impress former UNC Pembroke wrestler Derek Brunson who took down the heavily-favored Armenian-American UFC fighter just 26 seconds into the third period on Saturday evening in Las Vegas.
 
Brunson (21-7 UFC) picked up his 21^st career UFC victory with the "upset" and, more importantly, kept himself on the path toward securing his first title fight. Listed No. 8 in the latest UFC middleweight rankings, Brunson has now captured five of his last seven UFC matchups, including a current three-match win streak. Saturday's victory over Shahbazyan, who has repeatedly been touted as the next middleweight champion by his manager, former UFC fighter Ronda Rousey, marked the 12^th knockout of Brunson's career. He also has three wins by submission and six more by decision.
 
"I'm not given enough respect in this division, but I am ok with earning it," Brunson said following Saturday's match. "There have been fights where I've had the flu. I went to the doctor to nurse myself back to health, and then had to fight five days later. I was home with the family making sure everything was okay when we had a hurricane in North Carolina. I had to fight 10 days after that but I had not been training for two weeks."
 
A native of Wilmington, Brunson raked in a trio of all-America honors for the UNCP wrestling team from 2003-07, including a freshman season that watched him tack up 39 victories (T-5^th all-time) on the way to a fourth-place finish at the NCAA Division II Championships. He posted an eighth-place showing on the NCAA's biggest stage as a junior, and closed out his collegiate career by finishing seventh at the 2007 NCAA Championships.
 
Brunson earned UNC Pembroke's Young Alumnus of the Year award in 2014, and was 2016 inductee into the UNCP Athletics Hall of Fame.