Canada’s Aiemann Zahabi made the trip to Las Vegas for Saturday’s UFC Vegas 87, where he was paired with hot prospect Javid Basharat in bantamweight action.
Basharat was an unbeaten 14-0 to start the night, while TriStar’s Zahabi had won three straight with two finishes coming into the bout.
Plenty of kicks were thrown early in Zahabi vs. Basharat, with Javid mixing things up to the body and legs. Zahabi then took a big swing that put him off-balance, but he recovered quickly. Basharat employed feints and went to a side kick, while Zahabi closed the distance, firing a right hand. That right hand was cocked and loaded throughout the round, but the Canadian was firing a bit wild at times. Javid Basharat looked to uncork a spinning kick, but pulled up as Zahabi was out of range. He wasn’t out of range a moment later as Basharat capped off his attack with a kick to the body.
Later in the round, Basharat would jump for a knee but pull up, only to send Zahabi to his backside with a kick to the midsection. A couple of leg kicks by Aiemann, however, convinced Basharat to switch stances.
About 90 seconds into round two, it was Zahabi firing a combination, connecting on the final punch. That forced Basharat to regroup, but he went back on the attack undeterred. Basharat would soon test the chin of Zahabi, with Aiemann passing that test for the time being. Changing things up, Basharat changed levels for a takedown with just under two minutes left in the round. Zahabi, however, was able to stuff that, and keep the fight standing.
Another stuffed takedown briefly gave Zahabi control of the neck, but Basharat escaped when the Canadian tried to transition to the back. Instead, they closed out the round trading, with Aiemann Zahabi landing a clean left and a more damaging right that wobbled Basharat just ahead of the horn.
As if in direct response to the end of round two, Javid Basharat came out and went on the attack straight away in the third, firing a spinning kick to the body. He kept Zahabi on his heels, but not for long. Soon they were trading, minus a very brief pause for an apparent eye poke on Zahabi. The third was another back-and-forth striking round with Zahabi mixing in the odd bodyshot. A kick to the body and a jab landed for Zahabi; Basharat landed a right hand, and suddenly they were in the final minute. Zahabi then went for a takedown but was thrown off. The Canadian went on the attack with 30 seconds to go, finding one last wind and pushing Javid Basharat to the brink.
As it turns out, that final push in the third may have actually sealed the deal – Zahabi took the fight on all three scorecards!
Official Result: Aiemann Zahabi def. Javid Basharat by unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
