Said Nurmagomedov made the most of his UFC bantamweight debut at UFC Fortaleza, finishing Ricardo Ramos with a spinning back kick to the body in the first round.
Following impressive flyweights at UFC Fortaleza, bantamweights Ricardo Ramos and Said Nurmagomedov looked to stake their claim as some of the hottest prospects in the promotion. Both fighters came into the bout with one loss on their record, and bright futures ahead of them.
For Nurmagomedov, it was his return to bantamweight, following his win over Justin Scoggins at 125-pounds in his promotional debut last July. The 26-year-old’s lone loss of his career coming into UFC Fortaleza came at the hands of flyweight Magomed Bibulatov in 2014. Nurmagomedov was the #12 ranked flyweight ahead of the bout with Ramos in Brazil.
Ramos, 23, had managed to impress in his three-fight UFC career before heading to Fortaleza. Going 3-0 in those matchups, Ramos is most remembered for his spinning back elbow KO of Aiemann Zahabi at UFC 217. He impressed the oddsmakers as well, coming into the fight as the slight-favorite.
The duo traded kicks througout the opening minute of the fight, with Nurmagomedov landing the better of the strikes early. Creative striking from Nurmagomedov kept Ramos off balance, as both fighters made sure to keep range early. Then, a heavy spinning back kick to the body sent Ramos stumbling backward toward the cage holding his ribs.
With his opponent clearly hurt, Nurmagomedov swarmed Ramos, cascading punch after punch on the downed Brazilian before the referee stepped-in to stop the fight.
Said Nurmagomedov def. Ricardo Ramos via TKO (2:28 – Round 1)
