Johnson scores first-round KO of Bader at UFC on Fox 18

NEWARK, N.J. — Reno native Ryan Bader said during an interview Thursday that even though he wanted to get his light heavyweight fight against dangerous striker Anthony Johnson to the ground as quickly and often as possible, he knew he would have to mix up his attack because simply shooting for a takedown wouldn't work.

Then he opened his Ultimate Fighting Championship main event bout against Johnson at Prudential Center on Saturday night by immediately diving for Johnson's leg in an attempt to get him to the mat.

As Bader predicted, it wasn't successful.

Johnson stuffed the takedown and worked to take Bader's back and secure the mount.

Once his hands were free and Bader was in a compromising position, Johnson exploded with a series of punches that knocked Bader cold at 1:26 of the first round.

"There were two ways this was going to play out," Johnson said. "He was either going to play it smart and cautious and hope to catch me out of position, or he was going to bum rush me and try to take me down. He tried to bum rush me, and it just didn't work out. I liked his game plan."

Johnson hopes the win earns him a chance to fight the winner of a title bout between champion Daniel Cormier and former champ Jon Jones, which is expected to happen in April or May.

"I'll be waiting for whoever has that belt," said Johnson, who said he would be willing to wait until the end of the year if necessary. "That's the biggest fight of my life. If they want to make me wait that long, I'll definitely do it. It gives me plenty of time to get ready for whoever."

He indicated one benefit of his quick night of work is that he would be available as a replacement for either Jones or Cormier should one of them not be able to fight.

"If one of them gets hurt, I'll definitely jump in," Johnson said. "I didn't get hurt tonight, so I'm good to go."

Bader acknowledged the way the opening seconds played out were not part of the script.

"It wasn't the strategy to shoot on him right away," he said. "I was originally going to try to stick and move. I tried to fake a shot and come up with a left hook, and he ended up taking me down."

It only got worse from there.

"I figured I had a kimura on there looking to sweep him and stand back up," Bader said. "I got to a point where I was just trying to get to my knees, and before I knew it, it was over. It felt like I didn't get to show what I could do out there."

Also on the card, heavyweight contender Ben Rothwell submitted Josh Barnett in the second round, and welterweight Bryan Barberena handed 19-year-old phenom Sage Northcutt the first loss of his career with a second-round submission.

Rothwell is certainly more well known for his power than his jiu-jitsu skills. The submission of Barnett, one of the most skilled grapplers in the heavyweight division, was borderline shocking. It was the first time Barnett had tapped out in his 42-fight pro career.

Rothwell locked in a gogo choke, which he says was developed by one of his trainers, as Barnett looked for a takedown midway through the second round.

"I feel my submission skills are like a (video game) cheat code right now," he said. "Guys don't even know what I'm doing."

Northcutt didn't appear to know what was going on in his fight with Barberena, either.

The much-hyped lightweight prospect, who took the welterweight fight against Barberena on eight days notice, tapped out to an arm triangle choke from half guard.

Almost immediately, fighters began taking to social media to opine that the maneuver shouldn't be able to finish a professional from that position.

Barberena insists he was going to finish the fight at some point anyway.

"I was ready to keep going and doing what I was doing," he said. "I felt I had the choke tight, and it was only getting tighter. I feel I can tap anyone I have in that position."

Northcutt may have been a victim of his youthful exuberance. After an impressive first round that showcased his speed and power, he went to the mat after whiffing on a cartwheel kick. Barberena immediately pounced and damaged Northcutt with punches and short elbows before the choke finished the fight.

"I'm just disappointed," Northcutt said. "That's all I can say."

New Jersey local hero Jimmie Rivera extended his winning streak to 18, including the past three in the UFC, with a unanimous decision over bantamweight Iuri Alcantara on the main card.

Welterweight Tarec Saffiedine highlighted the preliminary card, as he returned from nearly a 16-month layoff with a unanimous decision over Jake Ellenberger.

"It's good to be back after a year off," Saffiedine said. "He was a tough opponent, and I couldn't be happier right now. I didn't feel too much ring rust. I train hard. I was basically sleeping, eating and training in the gym. I had to get mentally stronger, it was tough."

Randy Brown, who came off the same UFC-produced reality show as Northcutt, made his debut in the organization with a unanimous decision over Matt Dwyer in a welterweight bout.

Alex Caceres snapped a three-fight losing streak with a unanimous decision over Masio Fullen in his return to the featherweight division.

Carlos Diego Ferreira and Wilson Reis won unanimous decisions, and featherweights Damon Jackson and Levan Makashvili fought to a majority draw after Makashvili had a point deducted for multiple fouls.

Rafael Natal knocked out Kevin Casey in a middleweight bout, and welterweight Alexander Yakovlev knocked out George Sullivan.

Also, lightweight Tony Martin choked out Felipe Olivieri in the third round of the first fight.

— Contact reporter Adam Hill at ahill@reviewjournal.com or 702-224-5509. Follow him on Twitter: @adamhilllvrj.