After getting dropped by a thunderous right hand in the opening round, the Brazilian rallied behind relentless pressure, nonstop volume, and a relentless pace to wear down Bekzat Almakhan and earn a hard-fought unanimous decision victory at UFC Baku on Saturday.

Round 1 – Almakhan took the center of the cage right away while Matsumoto stayed on the outside, circling away from the power hand. Almakhan pumped a few jabs to the body, stalking the Brazilian with his right hand loaded up, waiting for the perfect opening.

When he found it, he let his hands fly. A flurry capped off by a big right hand had Matsumoto firing back, but Almakhan’s lunging attacks did a good job of disrupting the Brazilian’s kicking game.

Then Almakhan landed a huge right hand that dropped Matsumoto. Instead of chasing the finish on the ground, he let Matsumoto back to his feet and went right back to work. The Brazilian tried to answer with pressure and big punches before shooting for a takedown, but Almakhan easily stuffed it.

As the round went on, Almakhan’s right hand kept finding a home, forcing Matsumoto to rely more on his wrestling. His first couple of takedown attempts went nowhere, but he stayed with it. Finally, Matsumoto got underneath Almakhan, lifted him into the air, and slammed him to the mat to close out the round.

Round 2 – Matsumoto came out with a little more urgency in the second, opening the round with a quick combination. Almakhan stayed patient, continuing to stalk him and waiting for another chance to uncork that dangerous right hand.

Matsumoto looked for takedowns early, but Almakhan did a good job keeping his legs out of reach. Instead, it was the Brazilian who started applying the pressure, flipping the script after spending most of the first round backing up.

Almakhan still found success with a nasty right hand that appeared to wobble Matsumoto for a moment, but the Brazilian kept coming. He was throwing more volume, mixing his strikes well, and making Almakhan work every second of the round. Another takedown attempt came up short, but Matsumoto never let off the gas.

He ripped a hard knee to the body, followed it with a head kick, and it looked like Almakhan was starting to slow down. Even with a nasty cut over his left eye, Matsumoto refused to back off. If anything, he got even more aggressive, throwing flying knees, head kicks, and looping hooks from every angle.

He closed the round in style with a wild combination that started with a spinning backfist, flowed into a flurry of punches, and ended with a head kick, stealing the momentum heading into the third.

Round 3 – Matsumoto’s corner spent most of the break worrying about the nasty cut over his left eye, repeatedly telling him he couldn’t afford to take another clean shot there.

The Brazilian didn’t let it slow him down.

He came out applying pressure again, ripping shots to the body and mixing in head kicks. One of those kicks appeared to drift low, and Almakhan immediately called for a timeout. The replay didn’t offer much evidence of a foul, but after a brief break, the action resumed.

Matsumoto picked up right where he left off, walking Almakhan down and forcing him onto the back foot. Almakhan still landed the harder shots, but Matsumoto was winning the numbers game, piling up volume with punches and kicks.

After the halfway point, both fighters started trading combinations in the middle of the cage. Matsumoto mixed things up with a takedown, but Almakhan popped right back to his feet.

Back in striking range, Almakhan fired off another combination before Matsumoto changed levels again. He quickly abandoned the takedown, went back to striking, and ripped more shots to the body.

With 10 seconds left, Almakhan tried to wave Matsumoto into one final exchange, but the Brazilian wasn’t interested. He stayed disciplined, saw out the final seconds, and made it to the scorecards.

Official Result: Jean Matsumoto def. Bekzat Almakhan via Unanimous Decision (29-28×3)

The post Jean Matsumoto Survives Scare, Outlasts Almakhan at UFC Baku appeared first on Cageside Press.

Topuria, with just seven pro fights to his name, entered with exactly half the experience of Almakhan.

It was Topuria pressing forward early, and through the first couple of minutes, he displayed a well-timed jab to go with that aggression. Almakhan, however, took Topuria off his feet with a well-placed leg kick, and moments later came very close to catching him with a knee. Undeterred, Topuria marched forward, with Almakhan circling to the side, back to the fence. In a clinch, just under two minutes on the clock, Topuria landed a throw, getting on top, in guard, with ample time to work.

Flowing like water, Topuria moved into mount almost instantly. No slouch on the ground, Almakhan was able to scramble, and while Topuria briefly took the back, the Kazakh soon escaped.

Round two saw more stand-up action, with Almakhan again targeting the legs. Again in this round, he hobbled Topuria, who didn’t go down, but came close off a crisp kick about three minutes in. To Topuria’s credit, he continued to march forward throughout, and with 90 seconds left changed levels and shot in on a takedown, only to be denied. After stuffing that attempt, Almakhan circled out. More importantly however, as the round progressed, and with Topuria having found his range, Bekzat was bloodied. Especially noticeable in the final minute, Topuria’s foward pressure was finally paying off.

Topuria continued to walk down Almakhan in round three, whose nose had a Rudolph-colored tinge to it after being cracked again and again. Bekzat continued to circle on the outside, but any counters he fired tended to be either ineffective, or just hit air as Topuria slipped away. Almakhan would change things up late in the round, changing levels for his own takedown attempt only for Topuria to scramble free. Topuria then clinched up in the final 30 seconds, and with time ticking off the clock, it was clear Almakhan needed something big to have any hope of winning. He’d finally tag Topuria a couple of times in the dying seconds of the bout, but it was a classic case of too little, too late.

Official Result: Aleksandre Topuria def. Bekzat Almakhan by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

The post UFC Qatar: Aleksandre Topuria Bloodies Bekzat Almakhan En Route to Decision Victory appeared first on Cageside Press.

In fact he knew it the moment he got the name of his opponent.

“This was exactly what we prepared. The second I got Brad as an opponent I knew that this combination works and I was preparing it and working it and making sure that I know how to do this,” Almakhan told reporters including Cageside Press at his post-fight scrum.

“It worked. You saw it worked.”

Almakhan (12-2) finished a UFC veteran in the first round in very impressive fashion in Montreal. He believes he’s barely scratching the surface of what he’s going to be in the UFC.

He also sent a warning to the entire UFC bantamweight division.

“You haven’t seen anything yet. This is just the beginning for me. I’m still very young. I have time to develop myself, to hone my skills, God knows this.,” he said.

“I’m going to be a nightmare for this division. Everybody’s going to be afraid of me. I’m going to make sure to blast through this division.”

Watch the entire post-fight scrum with Bekzat Almakhan above.

The post Bekzat Almakhan: “I’m going to be a nightmare for this division.” appeared first on Cageside Press.

On Wednesday, Eurosport’s Marcel Dorff was first to report that Canadian bantamweight and “Multiple Fighter” Brad Katona (14-4) will face Bekzat Almakhan (11-2) at the event, set for the Bell Centre in Montreal on May 10, 2025.

Almakhan later confirmed the booking on social media.

Katona is on his second stint with the UFC after winning The Ultimate Fighter for the second time. He first won the reality fighting show in 2018, capturing the TUF 27 crown. A four-fight stint in the company (including his TUF win) saw him go 2-2; the SBG Ireland fighter was released off losses to Merab Dvalishvili and Hunter Azure.

After a successful run in Brave CF that saw him win that promotion’s 135lb title, Katona returned as part of The Ultimate Fighter 31, once again winning a TUF championship – and becoming the first two-time winner of the show.

Bekzat Almakhan joined the UFC in 2024, losing his debut against future title challenger Umar Nurmagomedov. He has not fought since. The loss was just the second of Almakhan’s professional MMA career.

No other fights beyond Brad Katona vs. Bekzat Almakhan have been announced for UFC 315 thus far. The card marks the promotion’s return to the French Canadian province for the first time in a decade.

The post Brad Katona vs. Bekzat Almakhan Added to UFC 315 in Monteal appeared first on Cageside Press.

There’s a lot to unpack before we get to what comes next for these athletes, so let’s get to work!

Shamil Gaziev

In the eyes of many a fan and pundit, Shamil Gaziev was the heavy favorite heading into UFC Vegas 87, where he faced Surinamese kickboxer Jairzinho Rozenstruik. A lot of that likely came down to Gaziev’s undefeated record, but looks can be deceiving. There are a lot of 0-0, 1-0, and 2-0 records belonging to the Bahraini’s opponents on his resume; through his first seven fights, he didn’t face anyone with more than five fights’ worth of experience, and even that was an outlier. Pro fight number seven, Gaziev was fighting someone making their pro debut.

A lot of that matchmaking comes down to where Shamil was competing and how thin heavyweight is. So not knocking him, just the reality is, not all undefeated records are created equally. Even when he got to stiffer competition, Darko Stosic is barely a heavyweight (he fought at 205 in the UFC).

As for Gaziev quitting in this fight, it comes down to an argument between fighter and corner about being unable to see between rounds. Here’s what quashes the quitting argument: at the end of it all, Gaziev appeared ready to soldier on for the fifth round. Nor was he trying to get the ref’s attention, as he wasn’t speaking English. Credit to ref Marc Goddard for having the presence of mind to a) recognize something was wrong and b) demand the translator explain what was going on. He made the right call in stopping the fight. Gaziev made the right call in telling his corner. The only fault really is his corner urging him to carry on with impaired vision, but even that is understandable in the heat of the moment.

Ultimately Shamil will now regroup and probably needs a slower path up the division. He was exposed pretty badly by Jair Rozenstruik’s jab, and there are obvious cardio issues. When Gaziev is ready to rumble again, let’s go with someone outside of the rankings. The loser of Josh Parisian vs. Olympian Robelis Despaigne at UFC 299 works.

Gaziev’s next fight: Josh Parisian vs. Robelis Despaigne loser

Tyson Pedro

Australian light heavyweight Tyson Pedro retired after his loss to Vitor Petrino, so we don’t need to do any matchmaking for him. But Pedro’s retirement has sparked the fighter pay debate yet again, just over six weeks out from the UFC heading to the biggest fight in company history: not UFC 300, but an antitrust lawsuit that sees them risking the loss of over a billion dollars, and the possibility that some of their business practices be deemed illegitimate.

Since fighter pay is no longer disclosed in Nevada, it’s hard to say what Pedro made on Saturday. That’s a black mark on the Nevada Athletic Commission, which never should have caved to pressure from promoters to hide fighter pay behind the curtain (in short, fighter’s no longer have a point of reference as to what their peers make when negotiating contracts with the promotion, and it keeps the unseemly low pay of high level athletes out of the public eye). But in 2023, Pedro fought twice, going 1-1. Right off the bat, that means he earned 75% of his potential salary, because of the show/win system. Beyond that, he had travel expenses, gym fees, and taxes. While Pedro cited the need to be with his family as a factor in retiring, he also joked that he’d need to mug someone in the parking lot after losing half his paycheck on Saturday.

This is a very bad look for the UFC, though the usual pack of dimwits rushed to Dana White’s defense, blaming Pedro for accepting a bad deal. That brings us back to the antitrust suit, which alleges the UFC used their market dominance to force a bad deal on pretty much everyone. At least from 2011 to 2017. Pedro joined the promotion in 2016, so he is part of the class period and entitled to compensation should the outcome favor the fighters. But that fact is, it’s 2024, and entry-level UFC fighters are making the same money they were a decade ago, despite soaring inflation. Mid-tier fighters barely earn enough to squeak by. Playing in the Canadian Football League gives you a more reliable paycheck than the UFC at this point. It’s shameful.

And the timing is really, really bad for the UFC, as it just reminds everyone of the upcoming lawsuit, as settlement talks remain ongoing.

Pedro’s next fight: Retirement

Alex Perez

Ex-flyweight title challenger Alex Perez looked decent in a loss to top-flight prospect Muhammad Mokaev at UFC Vegas 87, and some have suggested he even exposed “The Punisher” to some degree. Let’s not get too crazy, but it was a competitive fight. Perez doesn’t lose too much shine from the loss itself, but rather from having dropped three straight, and his lack of activity, fighting three times in four years.

This would be a good time to rebook the Matt Schnell fight. It’s fallen through more than once, it feels like there’s unfinished business there, and Schnell fought and lost on the same card.

Perez’s next fight: Matt Schnell

Bekzat Almakhan

You land your UFC debut, and it’s against Umar Nurmagomedov. Man, what a gut punch. But Bekzat Almakhan didn’t hesitate, where a number of UFC veterans did. Credit to the Kazakh for taking the fight, and even knocking down Nurmagomedov early in the bout. He was dominated from there, but let’s see how he looks against someone not from the Nurmagomedov clan before we pass judgement.

Daniel “Willycat” Santos is 2-1 in the UFC and doesn’t have a fight booked. Let’s see how that goes.

Almakhan’s next fight: Daniel Santos

Matt Schnell

Matt Schnell was flatlined by Steven Erceg in the UFC Vegas 87 card-opener. That’s something you don’t see often at flyweight. Now seems like the perfect time to get that fight with Alex Perez back on the books, as we’ve already discussed. They both lost on the same night so the timing works out, though Schnell might need a slightly longer layoff to heal up.

Schnell’s next fight: Alex Perez

The post What’s Next: UFC Vegas 87 Losers appeared first on Cageside Press.

The undefeated, 16-0 Umar Nurmagomedov. A heck of a test for a seasoned UFC athlete, but with no one willing to fight Umar, cousin of retired UFC lightweight champ Khabib, it was a newcomer stepping up.

Round one started and they both traded kicks. Out of nowhere, Almakhan dropped Nurmagomedov with a huge overhand right. Nurmagomedov recovered fast and got the single-leg takedown. As Almakhan was moving he allowed Nurmagomedov to take his back. From the back, Nurmagomedov was actively softening up Almakhan with punches. Eventually, Almakhan was able to roll to his back but was unable to get any space. Nurmagomedov was staying busy with short elbows and punches to the end of the round.

In round two Nurmagomedov was heavily feinting the takedowns until he committed and got it down. As Nurmagomedov tried to step over to mount Almakhan exploded and got back to his feet. Right away though, Nurmagomedov completed a single-leg takedown. That time he transitioned right into the mount. Nurmagomedov landed a ton of ground and pound until Almakhan scrambled back up. Like a dog on a bone, Almakhan was back on his back with Nurmagomedov in mount. More grounded punches were being landed from Nurmagomedov but Almakhan kept moving and surviving to the bell.

In the final round, Almakhan was in need of a finish. Again Nurmagomedov landed a perfectly executed single-leg takedown. Throughout the fight Nurmagomedov was landing those short elbows. Also throwing punches, he was staying very busy when on top. Never complacent Almakhan would work to a position but Nurmagomedov was all over him. He’d give up his back but get right back out. Nurmagomedov never let up with the ground and pound no matter what position he was in. Nurmagomedov would end the fight on top in mount landing punches.

Official Result: Umar Nurmagomedov def. Bekzat Almakhan by unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-25)

The post UFC Vegas 87: Umar Nurmagomedov Survives Knockdown, Decisions Bekzat Almakhan appeared first on Cageside Press.

Bekzat Almakhan has the unenviable task of facing the unbeaten, 16-0 Umar Nurmagomedov in Almakhan’s promotional debut at UFC Vegas 87. The card is headlined by heavyweights Jair Rozenstruik and Shamil Gaziev, but a couple of newcomers in Almakhan and Bernardo Sopaj may actually hold more promise.

Bekzat Almakhan
Standing at five-foot-seven
Fighting at 135 lbs (bantamweight)
26-years-old
Fighting out of Uzynagash, Kazakhstan
Training out of Triumph Fights
A pro record of 17-1
13 KO/TKOs, 2 Submissions

How Almakhan will fare in the UFC:

It’s nice to see Almakhan sign to the UFC because he’s that level of fighter. 17-1 is a fantastic record and he’s done it against good competition. His only loss is to a good fighter and that was four years ago. Almakhan has now won his last nine fights. Lately, the UFC has brought in a lot of these fighters from Kazakhstan and they’ve all done well. Even if it is a crazy debut he’s a UFC-ready fighter.

Almakhan is a well-rounded fighter with a lot of the basics needed. The biggest improvement I’d like to see him make is with his grappling. His wrestling is good, ground and pound is excellent, and he is strong on top. His problem is improving positions and it’s why he’s been told to get up while on top a few times in his career. It’s not a big issue but it would elevate his game much higher. His wrestling checks out though. He can get the takedowns from the clinch but from the outside as well. Almakhan has a nice double leg he goes to. He shots off throwing an overhand right so the setups are nice. Defensively too his takedown defense has looked great and defensive wrestling is on point.

On the feet, Almakhan has the power, speed, and shot placement. Overall his right hand is his best weapon. That could just be with a hook, straight, overhand, or off a one-two. Almakhan does a great job of coming in with a straight left followed by a right hand. He does throw usually always in twos. Almakhan throws a sneaky head kick that he hides behind punches.

Almakhan doesn’t have any glaring holes, although he could keep his hands up higher because a few times he’s been clipped especially with a kick. It’s more so that he just needs to grow as a fighter and improve his ground game. I see Almakhan being in the UFC for years and eventually ranked in the top 15.

How he matches up with Nurmagomedov:

Almakhan is getting an insane UFC debut fighting the #13-ranked Nurmagomedov. Nobody would fight Nurmagomedov so they had to get a highly touted newcomer to take the fight. As good as Almakhan is Nurmagomedov is on a different level. He’s better in every area. I can see him either winning by a headkick or maybe a decision. I see Almakhan being competitive but it’s a step up too soon.

The post Welcome to the UFC: Bekzat Almakhan appeared first on Cageside Press.

I will go over every promising prospect in alphabetic order along with a brief description.

Featherweight, Abylaykhan Kadirzhan (6-1):

Kadirzhan was somebody I was scouting years ago but he just doesn’t fight often. He fought last year but before that, he fought for M1 Challenge back when that was a thing. The good thing about it is that Kadirzhan is still only 26. Kadirzhan is well-rounded. He’s light on his feet and does a great job striking and getting back out of the pocket. Somebody you don’t want to dictate the pace because he will light you up. He’s even more of a threat when he gets it down as he has four submission wins. If Kadirzhan can just stay active a bigger promotion would be pounding the table to get him.

Flyweight, Aibek Bekbolatov (4-0):

Bekbolatov is a long 125er that knows how to use his range. He’s a really talented striker who stays on the outside and uses his kickboxing. He can chop away at the lead leg and will mix it up and he’s pretty diverse in his offense as well. His jiu-jitsu also shines, even if it’s off his back. Bekbolatov is very active always moving and looking to improve position. He has a lot of qualities at flyweight and looks like someone that could make an impact in the future.

Flyweight, Aktore Batyrbek (6-2):

Batyrbek is an excellent submission grappler with all but one win coming by submission. He’s really good at attacking off his back with the armbar and mainly the triangle. Along with the submission base, he is a quality wrestler. He’s looked good but he needs a key win. Both his losses are to good fighters. One of those is UFC fighter and fellow Kazakhstan native Azat Maksum.  Batyrbek has the strength and jiu-jitsu to be a big threat but does need to prove himself.

The post Not Just Shavkat: An In-Depth Look into the Kazakhstan MMA Scene appeared first on Cageside Press.