Ronaldo “Jacare” Souza connected on a flush right hand to the temple to knock out Chris Weidman in the third round of a middleweight bout at UFC 230.

Souza and Weidman were engaged in a brutal slugfest that kept both fighters on their feet for most of the first 2½ rounds. Weidman finally got caught and clung to Souza’s leg as he tried to find his bearings. Souza got a couple of punches in for good measure until referee Dan Miragliotta mercifully stopped the fight.

Souza rebounded from a loss to Kelvin Gastelum at UFC 224 and did it with a busted nose. Weidman stunned Souza with a right that smashed the Brazilian’s nose, making it spew blood for the remainder of the first round.

Weidman, who lost his last fight at Madison Square Garden to Yoel Romero two years ago, is from Long Island and had dozens of fans walking around Madison Square Garden in his T-shirts and chanting “USA!” early in the fight.

Souza shook it all off and got the win in a battle of two fighters who both badly needed one.