Tag: Zuluzinho

VIDEO: Referee’s terrible decision leads to Zuluzinho faceplanting into canvas after vicious knockout

This referee owes “Zulu” an apology.

Imagine you’re in a dominant mount position working on a submission attempt only to have the referee stand up you and your opponent. Then imagine within seconds of the reset you’re on the receiving end of a brutal knockout and face down on the canvas.

That’s unfortunately what happened to [autotag]Zuluzinho[/autotag] against Petr Romankevich on Saturday at AMC Fight Nights Global 114 in Minsk, Belarus.

Don’t just take our word for it. Here’s the video of the baffling and brutal sequence of events (via Twitter):

Why the referee decided to stand up Zuluzinho and Romankevich is anyone’s guess. All we know is that he owes “Zulu” an apology.

UPDATE: Apparently the referee may have been acting in accordance with a recently installed rule by AMC Fight Nights Global in which fighters are stood up after one minute, regardless if one fighter is working for a submission at that moment.

That is completely whack.

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=391998]

400-pound PRIDE alum Zuluzinho floors opponent at buzzer, celebrates too soon, loses fight

At age 42, Zuluzinho showed he can still pack a punch and nearly pulled off an upset.

There’s nothing quite like a little [autotag]Zuluzinho[/autotag] fight on a Tuesday afternoon in 2021 – especially when he floors his opponent and almost pulls off an upset.

Zuluzinho, 42, lost a majority decision to [autotag]Yusup Shuaev[/autotag] at an AMC Fight Nights event held in an aptly named WOW Arena in Sochi, Russia.

Yes, I’m talking about that Zuluzinho. The same “Little Zulu” who competed in PRIDE over a decade-and-a-half ago. The one who fought Fedor Emelianenko and Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira in 2005.

At 6-foor-6 and 397 pounds, Zuluzinho took his time going down the entrance stairs and strutted his way to the cage. As one can probably guess by looking at the images and videos associated with this blog post, mobility was never Zuluzinho’s strong suit, which is still the case 15 years later.

Sounds like the crossroads between a freakshow fight and a set-up record-booster, right? Well, weirdly enough, in very MMA fashion, it didn’t play out exactly as expected.

Very late in Round 1, Zuluzinho (12-10) ended the lackluster tempo with an overhand right that floored Shuaev (7-0-1). As Shuaev fell onto the mat, Zuluzinho toppled over him as he looked for the finish.

That’s when the referee got involved and confusion ensued. Now, obviously, there was a language barrier. Zuluzinho got off his opponent and celebrated what he thought to be his fourth consecutive MMA win. However, in reality, the round had ended, so the referee separated the fighters.

With his butt crack peeking out of his long, black pants for the full duration of the 15 minutes, Zuluzinho never backed down from his opponent. Late in Round 3, Zuluzinho displayed true showmanship. He jigged and danced when there was a lull in the action – and even purposely leaned forward to goad Shuaev into throwing a head kick.

Though much of his attack was a slow plod forward or from a stationary position, Zuluzinho (dare I say, all things considered) looked much better than I expected. I mean, no one was expecting he’d win, right? And he almost did.

It’s easy to stare in awe at the weirdness, but Zuluzinho had the guts, at age 42, to do something many people 15 years younger wouldn’t ever consider. Something I wouldn’t consider. I’ll always give props to anyone who steps into that cage, but especially the pioneers of the sport.

So hats off, Zuluzinho. I’m glad you’re still having fun after all these years. The next time you fight, entertain away. You know I’ll be watching.

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.

Combat Rewind, April 19: That’s way too many upkicks for a human skull

Check out the best highlights from this day in history with MMA Junkie’s “Combat Rewind.”

There’s “Flashback Friday” and “Throwback Thursday” (and Tuesday, too, if you want). But at MMA Junkie, we figured why not expand that to every day?

“Combat Rewind” brings you some of combat sports’ best highlights from every calendar day of the year. It’s a look back at history, courtesy of the UFC Fight Pass archives, featuring stellar finishes and classic moments in MMA and beyond on their anniversaries.

Today’s highlight include a few impressive knockouts, including one from a series of pinpoint upkicks, as well as a night future UFC star Marlon Moraes would probably rather forget.

So kick back and relive the following bits of greatness in the video above:

  • King of the Cage – Throwdown: [autotag]Brian Castillo[/autotag] vs. [autotag]John Rozema[/autotag] – April 19, 2017
  • Shooto Brazil 6: [autotag]Alexandre Pinheiro[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Marlon Moraes[/autotag] – April 19, 2008
  • Shooto Japan – Gig Tokyo 2: [autotag]Daisuke Ishizawa[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Sakae Kasuya[/autotag] – April 19, 2009
  • fightFORCE – Russia vs. The World: [autotag]Ibragim Magomedov[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Zuluzinho[/autotag] – April 19, 2008
  • Shooto Brazil 6: [autotag]Willamy Freire[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Giovanni Diniz[/autotag] – April 19, 2008
  • Shooto Brazil 53: [autotag]Alcides Nunes[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Junior Goncalves[/autotag] – April 19, 2015

Fight footage courtesy of UFC Fight Pass, the UFC’s official digital subscription service, which is currently offering a seven-day free trial. UFC Fight Pass gives fans access to exclusive live UFC events and fights, exclusive live MMA and combat sports events from around the world, exclusive original and behind the scenes content and unprecedented 24-7 access to the world’s biggest fight library.

Combat Rewind – April 19

“Combat Rewind” brings you some of combat sports’ best highlights from every calendar day of the year, courtesy of the UFC Fight Pass archives.

“Combat Rewind” brings you some of combat sports’ best highlights from every calendar day of the year, courtesy of the UFC Fight Pass archives.

Combat Rewind, April 8: Top highlights include top submission artists Shinya Aoki, ‘Butterbean’

Check out the best highlights from this day in history with MMA Junkie’s “Combat Rewind.”

There’s “Flashback Friday” and “Throwback Thursday” (and Tuesday, too, if you want). But at MMA Junkie, we figured why not expand that to every day?

“Combat Rewind” brings you some of combat sports’ best highlights from every calendar day of the year. It’s a look back at history, courtesy of the UFC Fight Pass archives, featuring stellar finishes and classic moments in MMA and beyond on their anniversaries.

So kick back and relive the following bits of greatness in the video above:

  • Absolute Muay Thai: [autotag]Chai So Jo Toy Paedriw[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Phonchainoi Thidet 99[/autotag] – April 8, 2019
  • PRIDE 34: [autotag]Gilbert Yvel[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Akira Shoji[/autotag] – April 8, 2007
  • PRIDE 34: [autotag]Eric ‘Butterbean’ Esch[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Zuluzinho[/autotag] – April 8, 2007
  • Pancrase – Eyes of Beast 3: [autotag]Bas Rutten[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Takaku Fuke[/autotag] – April 8, 1995
  • PRIDE 34: [autotag]Shinya Aoki[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Brian Lo-A-Njoe[/autotag] – April 8, 2007
  • PRIDE 34: [autotag]Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou[/autotag] vs. [autotag]Ricardo Arona[/autotag] – April 8, 2007

Fight footage courtesy of UFC Fight Pass, the UFC’s official digital subscription service, which is currently offering a seven-day free trial. UFC Fight Pass gives fans access to exclusive live UFC events and fights, exclusive live MMA and combat sports events from around the world, exclusive original and behind the scenes content and unprecedented 24-7 access to the world’s biggest fight library.