At long last, Timur Valiev was set to make his UFC debut on Saturday night.
The PFL standout had been booked to make his debut on August 1, on the Shahbazyan vs. Brunson card. He was pulled from his fight with Jammall Emmers, however. He was then moved to UFC Vegas 7 against Mark Striegl. While Striegl didn’t make it to the fight, Valiev at least stuck, going up against replacement fighter and fellow newcomer Trevin Jones.
Jones was a massive underdog. He looked like it early. Valiev stormed out of the gate in the first, and found his range with his kicks throwing a variety thereof. Jones was a bit flustered with the output, feints, and the creativity of Valiev. The kicks of Valiev were soon starting to add up and Valiev landed a teep kick that hurt Jones badly. Valiev went off with a flurry of strikes going low and high, forcing Jones to just curl up and take punishment. There was probably an argument that the fight could have been stopped, with the ref urging Jones to move or fight back, and Jones barely complying. However Jones somehow survived and actually got a takedown at the end of the round.
TEE-ING OFF 👊
🇷🇺 @Timurvaliev_DF is firing early & often!
Tune in now – LIVE on #ESPNPlus pic.twitter.com/e5ZYBRceTH
— UFC (@ufc) August 22, 2020
Barely escaping round one, Jones came out aggressive in round two, looking to try and take the fight to the mat. Jones shot in but Valiev met him with a well-timed knee and defended. Valiev continued to piece apart Jones with kicks while faking and throwing with something different on every attack. It looked like things were going from bad to worse for Jones, but out of nowhere, Jones landed a right hand dropping Valiev! Jones followed up with ground and pound until the ref stepped in, waving it off. Valiev, unaware, was still trying to defend/hold on, but the stoppage was far from the worst we’ve seen.
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
TREVIN JONES WITH A STUNNING UPSET!
📺 Tune in on #ESPNPlus pic.twitter.com/nUbdfC9RhV
— UFC (@ufc) August 22, 2020
Given the non-call in the first, there will be some debate about that one. At the least it’s a huge comeback win for Trevin Jones — up there for comeback of the year.
Official Result: Trevin Jones def. Timur Valiev by TKO (Right hook and Ground and Pound), Round 2, 1:59
