Johnson beats Borg to break UFC record

LAS VEGAS, Nev. — Demetrious Johnson successfully defended his flyweight title for a UFC record-breaking 11th time, stopping New Mexico’s Ray Borg by armor submission at 3:15 of the fifth round Saturday night.

The card was the first major sporting event in Las Vegas since the mass shooting that killed 58 people and the shooter last Sunday. A moment of silence kicked off the pay-per-view portion of the event, then a handful of survivors and first responders were brought into the octagon and recognized as Everlast performed “America the Beautiful.” The UFC has pledged to donate $1 million to help victims and their families.

The 31-year-old Johnson (27-2-1) broke the defense record he shared with longtime middleweight champion Anderson Silva.

“Shout out to Las Vegas,” Johnson said. “Thank you so much to all the first responders.”

Borg dropped to 11-3.

“Ray Borg was running his mouth,” Johnson said of the fighter who trains at Albuquerque’s Jackson-Wink MMA. “I got the suplex and the armor, I knew I got it.”

Johnson landed a heavy body kick in the first round and was able to gain top control, working from half-guard for most of the round while neutralizing any offense from Borg.

In the second round, Borg was able to press forward and secure a short takedown before briefly taking Johnson’s back. Johnson offered a quick reversal and was once again on top of Borg in dominant position.

The third round found Borg looking to secure another single-leg takedown early, only to be reversed once again with Johnson on top. Johnson’s ever-active smothering grappling rendered Borg ineffective for most of the first three rounds.

Most of Borg’s energy was spent simply trying to escape his disadvantaged position, while fighting off submission attempts.

Two other Jackson-Wink fighters, competing in undercard bouts, also failed to win. But both put on shows the crowd, and social media, seemed to enjoy.

JW’s Lando “Groovy” Vannata fought Bobby Green to a split decision draw (2828, 29-27, 27-29). Vannata was docked a point in the first round for a knee to the face of a grounded opponent, a point that cost him the win.

JW bantamweight Tom “Fire Kid” Duquesnoy lost to Cody Stanman by split decision (30-27, 28-29, 29-28).