UFC on ESPN+ 12 results: Randy Brown batters Bryan Barberena's body for third-round TKO

Randy Brown pulled off an upset in the co-headliner of UFC on ESPN+ 12 with a flurry of well-placed body shots.

Brown (11-3 MMA, 5-3 UFC) outstruck Bryan Barbarena (14-7 MMA, 5-5 UFC) at distance, making expert use of his height and reach, before landing a punch that put Barbarena on the canvas at the 2:54 mark of the second round.

The welterweight bout served as the UFC on ESPN+ 12 co-main event Saturday at Bon Secours Wellness Arena in Greenville, S.C.

Brown returned to the octagon 11 months after getting knocked out by hammerfists from the bottom in a fight against Niko Price. The Dana White Contender Series vet showed little aprehension despite his setback, pushing Barbarena across the canvas with long kicks. Barbarena tried to take away his opponent’s mobility with his own leg attacks and took several hard left hands from Brown as he circled away in transition.

Barbarena tried to reverse momentum in the second with a more aggressive attack. Brown gave him no chance to engage until the two wrapped up in the clinch, where they tagged each other with elbows. Brown came alive in the later half of the round, landing a series of punishing shots at distance. Every time he kept the correct range, he was a step ahead of Barbarena as they punched it out.

Barbarena again tried to take away Brown’s movement with an early leg attack in the third. But when Brown knocked him to the canvas with a combination, the flight started to slip away. Brown landed with impunity at distance, connecting with a knee that sucked the wind out of Barbarena. There was no time to recover as Brown continued to attack, pushing Barbarena to the fence and landing heavy punches. More shots went to the midsection, and Barbarena finally had enough.

It was a triumphant turnaround for Brown, who said his grandmother died on Tuesday and dedicated the fight to her.

“I’m learning on the job,” he said.

Brown now improves to 5-3 in the octagon while Barbarena suffers his second consecutive stoppage loss after a brutal knockout against Vicente Luque. Barbarena is 1-3 in his past four outings.

Up-to-the-minute UFC on ESPN+ 12 results:

Randy Brown def. Bryan Barberena via TKO (punches) – Round 3, 2:54 Andre Ewell def. Anderson dos Santos via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-27) Andrea Lee def. Montana De La Rosa via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28) Kevin Holland def. Alessio Di Chirico via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28) Dan Ige def. Kevin Aguilar via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-27) Ashley Yoder def. Syuri Kondo via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-25, 30-24) Luis Pena def. Matt Wiman via TKO (strikes) – Round 3, 1:14 Jair Rozenstruik def. Allen Crowder via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 0:09 Jair Rozenstruik def. Allen Crowder via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 0:09 Molly McCann def. Ariane Lipski via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) Deron Winn def. Eric Spicely via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

For complete coverage of UFC on ESPN+ 12, visit the UFC Events section of the site.