L’udovit Klein and Tofiq Musayev capped off the UFC Belgrade preliminary card on Saturday, throwing down in a lightweight clash that had both men entered off victories in their last outing.
The fight opened with some feeling out, and back-and-forth, the first frame playing out pretty much entirely on the feet. Klein found some success with leg kicks, while Musayev didn’t shy away from them himself. Musayev began to turn up the heat with leg kicks and straight right hands as the round wore on, until by the final minute, Klein had his back against the fence, and appeared to be favoring his lead leg. Given Klein had injured his leg previously, it was a calculated attack by Musayev.
Round two saw the pair go to the fence early, Musayev getting double underhooks for a time and landing some knees. Kline whiffed with a decent punch off the break, leading to some exchanges at center. Tofiq had the edge in terms of volume, though it was far from a crazy pace. Kline backed up the Azerbaijani with a high kick, but it didn’t connect clean but was rather blocked. Kline would land a right hand moments later, with Musayev returning in kind. Then, that high kick snuck up again for Kline, and was followed by a side kick. Two minutes still on the clock, and Kline was having his best moments.
Yet just as Kline was heating up, Musayev got back in control. He’d drop Kline, following a body shot with a right hook, left hand combo. Musayev piled on with hammer fists from there as Klein covered up, and while some might have hit the back of the head, Klein was moving and none appeared intentional. Soon enough the ref called it, and Tofiq Musayev had the TKO win!
Saying that age was just a number in his post-fight interview, Musayev addressed UFC CEO and President Dana White. “Give me top 15. Give me bonus. Let’s go!”
Official Result: Tofiq Musayev def. L’udovit Klein by TKO, Round 2, 4:07
