There can be little doubt that Sidney Outlaw suffered a massive disappointment ahead of Bellator 283, seeing his title shot and main event billing fall through due to an injury to lightweight champ Patricky Pitbull.
Stepping in to replace Pitbull was Tofiq Musayev, a former RIZIN champ who happened to hold a win over Pitbull.
If the loss of the title fight was disappointing, the end result for Outlaw in Tacoma, WA on Friday was sheer catastrophe.
Right off the opening bell, a right hand, then a left, had Sidney Outlaw on legs made of spaghetti. The dance that ensured was an invitation for Tofiq Musayev to attack, and he did just that, launching a hellacious right hand with a full wind-up. Outlaw immediately went down, thoughts of the title shot that could have been no doubt swirling. He would protest the stoppage, to no avail.
𝗦𝗧𝗔𝗧𝗘𝗠𝗘𝗡𝗧 𝗠𝗔𝗗𝗘.@Tofiq__Musayev stops @SidOutlaw in the 1st round of his Bellator debut! Was @PatrickyPitbull watching that one? 👀#Bellator283 is LIVE on @SHOsports. pic.twitter.com/ZBQ9xtqBZd
— BellatorMMA (@BellatorMMA) July 23, 2022
The entire fight took less than thirty seconds. Less than half a minute, and Outlaw’s dreams of a title fight had been dashed, at least for the time being. In the meantime, Musayev, given his history with champ Patricky Pitbull, may have just inserted his name into the title conversation.
Usman Nurmagomedov may have something to say about that. Depending on Pitbull’s time table for a return, an interim title could even be in the offing.
Musayev asked for a shot at Pitbull following the fight, saying he would wait for the title, and adding that he thinks “Pitbull wants the fight too.”
Official Result: Tofiq Musayev def. Sidney Outlaw by knockout, Round 1, 0:27
