Fighters from around the globe dream of the day they’ll step into the UFC octagon for the first time. For three athletes, Saturday’s UFC on ESPN+ 21 event marked that special moment in their career.
Check out this week’s rookie report to see what kind of first impression those fighters made on the sport’s biggest stage from CSKA Arena in Moscow.
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Abubakar Nurmagomedov
Division: Welterweight
Result: David Zawada def. Abubakar Nurmagomedov via submission (triangle choke) – Round 1, 2:50
Record: (15-3-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC)
Grade: C+
Walking to the cage with Khabib Nurmagomedov in your corner – and while sharing his last name – brings a certain level of expectations. Abubakar Nurmagomedov is used to that by now, but doing that in your UFC debut, and in Russia, no less, had to have brought the pressure to a different level.
Nurmagomedov looked up to the challenge to start, showing quick, straight punches that found their mark early and beautiful timing on a level change to bring the fight to the floor. Those skills will certainly serve him well moving forward.
However, once on the ground, Nurmagomedov struggled, controlling only briefly from the top before he found himself trapped in an armbar. Nurmagomedov did respond well in terms of keeping his arm at a safe angle, but he wasn’t able to counter by either removing his arm from the hold or getting his other arm inside. Hence, he was forced to tap to a triangle choke at the 2:50 mark of the opening round.
Nurmagomedov’s striking actually looks better than that of his UFC champion cousin, and the little bit of wrestling we did see appeared to be up to snuff. But Nurmagomedov has now been submitted in two of his past four outings, which is a real red flag for a fighter who would likely prefer to grapple. Perhaps he can give a better accounting of himself next time, if placed in a less difficult position.
Roman Kopylov
Division: Middleweight
Result: Karl Roberson produces bloody comeback after horrific eye poke at UFC Moscow
Record: (8-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC)
Grade: D
Undefeated on his entry to the UFC, perhaps the expectations placed on Roman Kopylov were just too much to live up to in his debut, but this performance just seemed disappointing for too many reasons.
A dangerous striker, Kopylov was patient in this battle of dueling southpaws with Karl Roberson, but it was patient to a fault. There’s definitely impressive speed to his strikes when he does pull the trigger, but it just wasn’t often enough. Kopylove was well on his way to losing a rather uneventful decision, and then he made things words.
A nasty eyepoke in the third round left real concern as to whether or not Roberson would be able to continue. Kopylov certainly didn’t do it on purpose, but his behavior afterward wasn’t exactly apologetic – swarming Roberson on the restart and seemingly trying to take advantage of his wounded prey.
I guess you can’t blame someone for trying to win a fight at all times, but when your most impressive offense comes after you shove your finger in someone’s eye socket, it just leaves a sour taste in my mouth.
I do think Kopylov will find success in the UFC. I just felt this first step was a poor one.
Shamil Gamzatov
Division: Light heavyweight
Result: Shamil Gamzatov def. Klidson Abreu via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 29-28)
Record: (14-0 MMA, 1-0 UFC)
Grade: D-
This was clearly the most forgettable contest on the main card and really provided little in terms of discussion-worthy moments. Shamil Gamzatov did just enough Klidson Abreu – and I mean JUST enough – to take home a split-decision win, but he didn’t make many fans in the process.
Content to fight on the outside and spend most of his time retreating, though not on a clever way, in hopes of drawing in his opponent, Gamzatov just didn’t seem all that interested in engaging on the feet. He clearly didn’t want to test himself on the ground against Abreu, making just one half-hearted attempt to bring the fight to the floor. But that’s what made the rest of the fight so confusing.
Naked kicks on the outside, seemingly content to just fight from range but not really launch meaningful engagements – bottom line, it just wasn’t entertaining, and it didn’t seem like anything that would threaten many 205-pounders on the UFC roster. Gamzatov has an impressive career record, but he didn’t do much of anything to turn heads in his debut.
