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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Robert Whittaker added another one to the highlight reel on Saturday.

“The Reaper” closed out the UFC’s first visit to Saudi Arabia in style, needing less than two minutes to put away short-notice opponent Ikram Aliskerov with a furious sequence of knockout punches. It was an impressive performance by the former middleweight champion, who made an emphatic statement that he deserves another shot at UFC gold.

Originally, Whittaker was scheduled to fight Khamzat Chimaev in Saturday’s main event, but the undefeated Chimaev was forced to withdraw due to an illness. Aliskerov stepped in for Chimaev and was considered a serious threat to Whittaker as he entered their contest on a seven-fight win streak.

However, it was the far more experienced Whittaker that emerged victorious, adding Aliskerov to a list of recent wins that also includes ranked opponents Paulo Costa and Marvin Vettori.

Watch UFC Saudi Arabia main event highlights below.

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“He’s not ready”
| BJPenn.com

Last night (Sat., June 22, 2024), Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) ventured forth to Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia for UFC Saudi Arabia. The card definitely suffered a myriad of injuries and one extremely high-profile withdrawal from Khamzat Chimaev, but fortunately, it remained in better form than the average “Fight Night” affair. In the main event, Robert Whittaker continued his march towards another title shot by squaring off with rising Dagestani talent Ikram Aliskerov. The co-main was just as interesting, as knockout artists and top-ranked Heavyweights Alexander Volkov and Sergei Pavlovich set aside their friendship to trade punches.

Let’s take a look back over at UFC Saudi Arabia’s best performances and techniques:

Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Bobby Knuckles Wins Big

Robert Whittaker needed to make a statement.

Consider that mission accomplished, as “The Reaper” destroyed Middleweight’s hottest up-and-comer in about half-a-round. Aliskerov barely landed a strike before a massive Whittaker overhand crashed into his chin and sent him stumbling. The Aussie followed up in style, crushing his opponent with a brutal uppercut then forcing the ref’s hand with a few follow-up shots on the floor.

Whittaker’s first knockout win since 2017 came at the perfect time. It’s direct evidence that he’s still at the top of his game, still a threat to the champion. Dricus Du Plessis and Israel Adesanya will throw down in Perth later this year, but Whittaker is more deserving than Sean Strickland for the next shot in my eyes.

If Strickland disagrees, maybe the two should duke it out?

Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Friends No More

The lead up to Volkov vs. Pavlovich was kind of a bummer. The two were/are former training partners who didn’t want to fight each other, but contracts ended up being signed. Then, “Drago” talked a lot about how Pavlovich beat him up in training all the time, which is an odd way to market a fight …

Or brilliant gamesmanship?

Whatever the case, “Drago” put on a career-best performance last night. Against a Top Five opponent and fearsome puncher, Volkov controlled range really well. All night long, he was sticking Pavlovich with hard punches down the middle. The commentary crew and Pavlovich’s corner alike were asking for more volume from the former title challenger, but that’s a lot easier said than done when walking into punishing connections.

Aside from the straight shots, Volkov did really great work as a Southpaw. He spent long portions of the fight playing the left kick and left straight off one another, ripping at Pavlovich’s inner thigh and liver alongside the damage to his nose and eye.

All in all, it was very solid work from “Drago,” who should once again be considered a factor in the Heavyweight title mix.

Photo by Jeff Bottari/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

No Time For Walker’s Antics

Volkan Oezdemir fought Johnny Walker perfectly. He didn’t give him any respect on the feet, pressuring patiently from the first bell and firing in combination. Walker couldn’t keep Oezdemir off him with his kicks, and before long, his back started to touch the fence.

That’s a bad sign. “No Time” floored Walker once with a left hook, twice with a right uppercut, then sealed the deal with a positively nasty ground strike that sent Walker into a deep, deep sleep. It was a picture-perfect performance from Oezdemir, who is now back on the fringe of the 205-pound title mix.

Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

An Undercard Gem

Rinat Fakhretdinov vs. Nicholas Dalby was exactly the back-and-forth scrap that most expected.

Dalby actually started the fight well, denying takedowns and letting his punches fly from the first bell. Just as he seemed to be building momentum, however, Fakhretdinov floored him with a right hand. The Russian wrestler swarmed with more big punches and takedowns, finishing the round with a heavy jump knee connection.

The second and third continued to grow into a war of attrition. Dalby was constantly active with short strikes, but he spent a lot of time controlled on the fence or on the floor. It was all up in the air in the closing seconds, which saw both men standing their ground and swinging for the fences.

Ultimately, Fakhretdinov picked up the split-decision win and extended his unbeaten streak to 22.

Photo by Chris Unger/Zuffa LLC via Getty Images

Additional Thoughts

• Shara Magomedov defeats Antonio Trocoli via third-round knockout (Highlights): This was … not a very good fight. Magomedov was the far faster man and far superior kicker, so he circled the cage and kicked at his opponent for most of the fight. Trocoli, a short-notice replacement, looked tired early and didn’t do much aside from push for clinch takedowns. The most interesting moment of the fight was probably the illegal fence grab! Otherwise, Magomedov dominated as was widely expected, though he does earn some bonus points for forcing the finish on his wildly tired foe in the third.
• Felipe Lima defeats Muhammad Naimov via third-round rear naked choke (Highlights): Talk about a way to make a debut! Lima accepted the fight up a weight class and on short-notice, but “Jungle Boy” still came out firing. He took the first round on the strength of his crisp kickboxing combinations, but Naimov fought back well in the second to even the cards as Lima began to slow a bit. It all came down to the third, and Lima’s corner rose to the occasion with a rousing speech that really motivated their athlete. Lima surged forward once more, and he turned a sudden takedown into a rear naked choke victory just about a minute into the third. The 26 year old talent is definitely one to watch, as he showed off a well-rounded game in less-than-ideal circumstances.

For complete UFC Saudi Arabia results, coverage, and highlights, click HERE.

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Robert Whittaker had a tough task on paper facing dangerous short-notice replacement Ikram Aliskerov, but “The Reaper” made it look very easy.

Whittaker battled Aliskerov in the main event of Saturday’s UFC Saudi Arabia card in Riyadh, and needed less than two minutes to dispatch of the surging prospect. Whittaker was landing at will, and after landing a hard combination that badly hurt Aliskerov, Whittaker went for the kill and eventually got it with a brutal uppercut that sent Aliskerov crashing to the canvas.

The official time of the stoppage was 1:49 of the opening stanza.

Whittaker finds himself on his first win streak inside the octagon since a three-fight victory run between July 2020 and April 2021. The former champion started off 2024 with a unanimous decision win over Paulo Costa at UFC 298 in February.

Following Saturday’s win, Whittaker said he is good to go to be the backup fighter for the UFC 305 main event between champion Dricus du Plessis and Israel Adesanya on Aug. 17.

A slew of UFC fighters reacted to Whittaker’s victory, which you can see below.

MMA Fighting – All Posts

Following the first UFC event in Saudi Arabia on Saturday, the big winners from the fight card answered questions from the media during the post-fight press conference.  

The event was headlined by a middleweight bout between former champion Robert Whittaker and rising prospect Ikram Aliskerov.  Whittaker defeated the Dagestan fighter in the first round by knockout.  In the co-main event, Alexander Volkov defeated Sergei Pavlovich via unanimous decision.

UFC Saudi Arabia Post-Fight Press Conference

MMAWeekly.com | UFC and MMA News, Results, Rumors, and Videos

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MMA: Mixed Martial Arts

Dagestan has another champion.

On Saturday night at 3Arena in Dublin, Ramazan Kuramagomedov pulled off an upset, winning a unanimous decision over Jason Jackson in the main event of Bellator Dublin to claim the welterweight title.

Kuramagomedov came out strong, dominating the first three rounds with pressure, feints, striking, and grappling, building a big lead on the champion. It may have come at a cost though as Kuramagomedov appeared to be completely spent heading into the championship rounds and Jackson rallied, controlling the grappling and repeatedly attacking submissions from top position. In the end, Kuramagomedov was able to survive to the final bell and hold on to a decision victory.

In the co-main event, Paul Hughes made his PFL/Bellator debut in style, finishing Bobby King in the second round.

Hughes entered the fight with big expectations, having recently signed with the PFL as one of the best prospects in MMA, but things started tough as King dropped him early. The Irishman battled back and then took over the fight, mauling King with vicious ground-and-pound en route to a TKO stoppage from elbows just before the end of the second round.

In a featured main card bout, Arlene Blencowe once again defeated Sinead Kavanagh, leaving no doubt as to who the better fighter is. Blencowe and Kavanagh first fought at Bellator 182 in 2017 with Blencowe squeaking out a split decision win, but this time Blencowe dominated Dublin’s own, dropping her twice before snatching up a guillotine choke to get the finish.

In a main card middleweight bout, Dalton Rosta eked out a win over Norbert Novenyi Jr. in a fun scrap. Rosta took control of the fight early with his wrestling and control, banking the first two rounds. Novenyi rallied in the third though, pouring on damage to an exhausted Rosta, who managed to survive to the final bell.

In the end, two judges gave Rosta the win with the third scoring the bout a draw, for a majority decision win.

In the main card opener, Darragh Kelly moved to 6-0 in his professional career with a quick submission of Mathias Poiron. The budding Irish star has been one of the most exciting prospects in Bellator since joining the promotion in 2022, and Kelly continued to dominate on Saturday, securing an early guillotine choke and finishing Poiron in under 90 seconds.

Earlier in the evening, Kasum Kasumov punched his ticked to a bantamweight title shot against Patchy Mix with a dominant unanimous decision victory over Mattheus Mattos. Kasumov’s wrestling was simply too much for Mattos, as the Russian fighter moved to 16-1 in his professional career.

Check out full Bellator Dublin results here.

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