Tag: Amir Albazi

UFC on ESPN+ 30: Amir Albazi debuts with UFC’s first triangle choke finish of 2020

The triangle choke has been a less common finishing technique in MMA, but at UFC on ESPN+ 30, Amir Albazi managed to lock one up.

The triangle choke has been a less common finishing technique in MMA in recent years, but at UFC on ESPN+ 30, [autotag]Amir Albazi[/autotag] managed to lock one up.

Albazi (13-1 MMA, 1-0 UFC) earned the UFC’s first triangle choke submission victory of 2020 when he tapped out [autotag]Malcolm Gordon[/autotag] (12-4 MMA, 0-1 UFC) in the first round of their bantamweight fight on Saturday’s preliminary card, which took place at Flash Forum at Yas Island in Abu Dhabi.

It was an impressive way to introduce himself into the UFC, and in case you missed it, watch the reply of the choke below (via Twitter):

Albazi, who hails from Sweden, became just the ninth fighter in UFC bantamweight history to win a fight by triangle choke. No one has finished a fight in the division with the technique since Matt Schnell stopped Louis Smolka in March 2019, but Albazi broke the streak.

The 26-year-old has now stopped his opponent inside the distance in 12 of his 13 career wins, but none was bigger than what he did against Malcolm on Saturday.

The Blue Corner is MMA Junkie’s blog space. We don’t take it overly serious, and neither should you. If you come complaining to us that something you read here is not hard-hitting news, expect to have the previous sentence repeated in ALL CAPS.

[vertical-gallery id=536355]

Despite short-notice call, Amir Albazi is ‘more than ready and prepared’ for his UFC debut

When Amir Albazi got the call from the UFC on 10 days’ notice, he jumped all over the opportunity.

When [autotag]Amir Albazi[/autotag] got the call from the UFC, he jumped all over the opportunity.

Albazi (12-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) will replace Aleksander Doskalchuk and face [autotag]Malcom Gordon[/autotag] this Saturday at UFC on ESPN+ 30 at Yas Island in Abu Dhabi.

It all came together pretty quickly for the London Shootfighters’ prospect, who woke up to a ton of calls from his team waiting to deliver the good news. The fight was just 10 days away, but Albazi didn’t have to think twice.

“Actually, it’s a funny story,” Albazi told MMA Junkie. “I woke up, it was exactly last Wednesday morning in London, I see a lot of missed calls from both my coaches and manager. So after that, I just called up my manager, he told me there’s a last-minute fight in the UFC, do you want to take it? Straight away, I said yes, sure. Went to the gym, did my last training session, then straight to Heathrow Airport. Literally I didn’t have time to pack all my things, so I went back home, put everything in a bag and just left straight away.”

Albazi takes on fellow debutant, TKO’s two-division champion Gordon (12-3 MMA, 0-0 UFC), whom he admits was not a familiar name until he realized that he was actually signed to the same promotion as him, Middle-Eastern based organization BRAVE CF.

“It makes for a good fight here in the UFC,” Albazi said. “If I fight him in the UFC or BRAVE, it doesn’t really matter.”

Albazi has fought all across Europe, notching two wins with Bellator, as well. His only career blemish came at the hands of ex-UFC flyweight Jose Torres in April 2019, but he was able to rebound with a first-round submission over Ryan Curtis last November.

While Albazi had no clue he’d be fighting on July 18 until a few days ago, he wasn’t completely out of shape. He was scheduled to make his third appearance for BRAVE CF in April before the event was canceled due to COVID-19.

The circumstances may not be convenient, but proven finisher Albazi is confident he’ll put an impressive showing on Saturday.

“I’m pretty relaxed with that,” Albazi said. “I’m just here, enjoying it, taking it all in, and at the end of the day it’s gonna be a scrap on Saturday night, so it is what it is. I’m more than ready and prepared for this fight.

“I think I was already ready a couple of years ago, but with them taking away the division and with all the drama with the flyweights, it was a lot harder going in. They weren’t really signing new fighters, so by now with this opportunity, I’m just happy to be a part of ‘Fight Island’ and happy to put on a performance on Saturday night.”

[vertical-gallery id=532257]

Amir Albazi steps in to face Malcolm Gordon at UFC’s July 18 event in Abu Dhabi

One of Europe’s best flyweight prospects has gotten the call to the UFC and will step in to face Malcolm Gordon on July 18.

One of Europe’s most talented flyweight prospects is all set for his UFC debut.

[autotag]Aleksander Doskalchuk[/autotag] has been forced out of the UFC’s July 18 event due to undisclosed reasons and [autotag]Amir Albazi[/autotag] (12-1 MMA, 0-0 UFC) will step in and face [autotag]Malcolm Gordon[/autotag] (12-3 MMA, 0-0 UFC) at Yas Island in Abu Dhabi.

A person with knowledge of the booking confirmed the news to MMA Junkie on Friday after Albazi posted about the fight on his Instagram page. The UFC subsequently made the new booking official.

London Shootfighters’ Albazi has competed all across Europe and the Middle East. After notching back-to-back wins over Jamie Powell and Iuri Bejenari in Bellator, Albazi suffered his first career loss to ex-UFC flyweight Jose Torres at BRAVE CF 23 in April 2019. He then rebounded with a first-round submission win over Ryan Curtis this past November at BRAVE CF 29.

Gordon, TKO’s flyweight champion, has won four in a row and is coming off a first-round submission of “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 24 alum Yoni Sherbatov in April 2019.

With the change, the current July 18 lineup includes:

MAIN CARD (9 p.m. ET)

  • Deiveson Figueiredo vs. Joseph Benavidez – for vacant flyweight title
  • Kelvin Gastelum vs. Jack Hermansson
  • Marc Diakiese vs. Rafael Fiziev
  • Luana Carolina vs. Ariane Lipski
  • Askar Askarov vs. Alexandre Pantoja

PRELIMINARY CARD (6 p.m. ET)

  • Roman Dolidze vs. Khadis Ibragimov
  • Grant Dawson vs. Nad Narimani
  • Joel Alvarez vs. Joe Duffy
  • Montel Jackson vs. Brett Johns
  • Amir Albazi vs. Malcolm Gordon
  • Davi Ramos vs. Arman Tsarukyan
  • Carlos Felipe vs. Serghei Spivac