UFC 307: Alex Pereira, Khalil Rountree sacrifice their bodies in awesome display of grit, courage and fighting spirit

SALT LAKE CITY -- It was one of the most remarkable moments you'd ever want to see.

UFC 307 have ended the way so many of them have ended in the last couple of years, with Alex Pereira knocking someone out. Pereira had just bloodied, battered and finally stopped an incredibly game Khalil Rountree Jr. in the fourth round to retain his light heavyweight title in a Fight of the Night battle in the main event at the Delta Center.

It's going to be one of those fights that'll be talked about years down the road.

But more than 10 minutes after it had ended, few in the sell-out crowd of 17,487 had left. They roared in tribute to Pereira, who went through an extraordinary number of maladies in training camp but never for a moment considered backing out.

Pereira put on a show to win for the fifth time in a row and for the 12th outing in his last 13. It wasn't just Pereira the large crowd stayed to thank. Suddenly, they began to chant, "Khail! Khail! Khalil!" in tribute to to the gutsy effort Rountree put forth.

His face looked like he'd played back-to-back games against the Pittsburgh Steelers' great T.J. Watt without wearing a helmet. Blood oozed from every orifice and even from some Pereira created on Saturday.

Rountree never gave up and he kept battling until he couldn't take it any more. After a series of calf kicks and then combinations to the head left him really around the cage, Pereira dug two body shots that folded Rountree and forced Marc Goddard to stop it.

He got what he expected from Pereira, though he conceded he thought he'd be able to mount more offense himself.

"I don't think I was surprised at all [by Pereira's skill]," Rountree said. "I do think I thought I was going to be able to hit him. I thought I'd be able to hit him a lot more but he did a really good job at evading the punches and counter striking."

Rountree won the first two rounds on all judges cards and proved wrong those who complained that he didn't deserve a title shot being ranked eighth.

"Did this not play out the way everybody thought it would?" UFC CEO/President Dana White said. "[Some said], 'Oh, he's only ranked No. 8,' but you knew that it was going to be a bad-ass fight."

Pereira put on another in what is becoming a line of signature performances despite a series of issues in his training camp. Most prominently, he had to fly back to Brazil from his training base in Danbury, Conn., because of a passport issue. He was contacting the consulate every day. 

He'd torn a ligament in his toe before he stepped in to replace Conor McGregor at UFC 303, and he re-aggravated it. He had a sore throat at one stage. HIs knee he had injured and had surgery on quietly without anyone knowing was bothering him.

Through it all the power of his mind kept him going.

"I'd rather not go through everything I went through," Pereira said. "The body suffers and we suffer physically, but it's the mind that really suffers. I'd rather not have to go through that."

He handled it like the superstar he is, though. He came out and fired a kick at Rountree immediately off the hop. But he quickly ate a straight left hand as Rountree closed the distance and was right in his face. 

Rountree was scoring regularly with hard shots early, but Pereira was chopping away at his legs. Slowly, he was slowing his mobility and eventually, Rountree wasn't as elusive. Pereira then turned him into a bloody mess by popping him with a thudding jab that landed on the nose over and over, especially in the decisive fourth round.

Pereira made his third successful title defense in less than 180 days, the fastest anyone has ever done it in the UFC. He's pushed himself to the limit and beyond, but he sees an opportunity and he wants to grasp it.

He's making a lot of money and an even bigger reputation.

"Nobody's done what he's done," White said.

And while Pereira admitted it can be tough, he wants to continue to ride the wave.

"For sure, it's a lot, and I think there is a limit on what I can do, but I want to push myself as much as I can," Pereira siad. "I'm 37 and I want to take advantage of [these opportunities], but I do need to take a break."

He's up there with Jon Jones and Anderson Silva for the most incredible runs in UFC history. But Pereira is a lot older than either Silva or Jones were when they went on their runs. Jones was 21 when he defeated Mauricio "Shogun" Rua to begin his epic streak. Silva was 31.

Pereira is a lot older and has a lot more miles on his body, but he's performing as well as anyone in UFC history.

It's going to end sooner or later, because they all do. While it's ongoing, make sure to make it on the calendar because no one in MMA is more appointment viewing these days than Alex Pereira.