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Artem Vakhitov
Russia
Contract for former kickboxer
Vakhitov defeated Islem Masraf via TKO (punches) at 4:23 of Round 1 at Dana White's Tuesday Night Contender Series. After the show, he was one of four fighters to be awarded an official UFC contract.
ANALYSIS
Vakhitov comes from a kickboxing background and has just four professional MMA fights at the age of 33, but his claim to fame is splitting a pair of kickboxing fights against current UFC champion Alex Pereira back in 2021. In fact, it was apparently Pereira who convinced Dana White to give Vakhitov his shot. Those who enter the UFC with this type of background often struggle in the grappling department, but Vakhitov successfully fought off all five takedown attempts from his opponent, who likely understood it was his only path to victory as a sizable betting underdog. Vakhitov eventually closed the proceedings with a knee in the clinch, followed by a big body shot and an even bigger right hand that was essentially all his opponent could take. Given the success of Pereira after entering the company with a similar background, look for the UFC to put the marketing machine behind Vakhitov out of the gates.
Vakhitov comes from a kickboxing background and has just four professional MMA fights at the age of 33, but his claim to fame is splitting a pair of kickboxing fights against current UFC champion Alex Pereira back in 2021. In fact, it was apparently Pereira who convinced Dana White to give Vakhitov his shot. Those who enter the UFC with this type of background often struggle in the grappling department, but Vakhitov successfully fought off all five takedown attempts from his opponent, who likely understood it was his only path to victory as a sizable betting underdog. Vakhitov eventually closed the proceedings with a knee in the clinch, followed by a big body shot and an even bigger right hand that was essentially all his opponent could take. Given the success of Pereira after entering the company with a similar background, look for the UFC to put the marketing machine behind Vakhitov out of the gates.