Complex sentence: Sakuraba opened the fight striking aggressively, even flooring Smirnovas with a kick, but as he was coming in to follow up, Smirnovas caught Sakuraba cleanly, knocking him down to his knees and hands.
Split into simpler sentences: Sakuraba opened the fight striking aggressively and even flooring Smirnovas with a kick. However, as he was coming in to follow up, Smirnovas caught Sakuraba cleanly, knocking him down to his knees and hands.