Welcome to the latest edition of Missed Fists where we shine a light on fights from across the globe that may have been overlooked in these hectic times where it seems like there’s an MMA show every other day.
UFC is hosting a historic show this Saturday in Manchester, England, with a lineup featuring two British champions in action. But make no mistake, this is Cage Warriors territory, and the promotion reminded everyone of that fact by holding two shows in six days.
On Thursday, Cage Warriors 175 went down in Manchester, and it was Dylan Hazan who set the bar for the most picturesque knockout to take place on English soil this week so far.
(Big thanks as always to @Barrelelapierna for their weekly lists of the best KOs and submissions, and to @Grabaka_Hitman for uploading many of the clips you see here. Give them a follow and chip in on Patreon if you can.)
Dylan Hazan vs. Elves Oliveira
Naglis Kanisauskas vs. Leon Naumann
Giuseppe Mastrogiacomo vs. Seyed Hossein Mousavi
Mason Jones vs. Michael Pagani
Hazan rocked Elves Oliveira with a left hand and then went for maximum style points here.
OH. MY. WORD.
— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors) July 25, 2024
Dylan Hazan lands a left hook followed by a STUNNING FLYING KNEE KO!
Watch #CW175 live on @UFCFightPass pic.twitter.com/0t2eHQXBdw
My man got air on that one and caught every part of Oliveira’s face. Watch that one again and you’ll notice it almost looks as though the referee is running in to wave the bout off during Hazan’s run-up. He could see that Oliveira was hurt, but by the time he closed the distance, it was too late to save him.
Speaking of closing the distance, Naglis Kanisauskas showed no respect for Leon Naumann, just walking him down and causing him to instantly crumble with a right hand at the end of Round 2.
BOOM! RIGHT HAND KO
— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors) July 25, 2024
Naglis Kanišauskas closes the distance and delivers a devastating punch for the win!
Watch #CW175 live on @UFCFightPass pic.twitter.com/fmZ5yO1dXq
Not a bad Humpty Dumpty Fall of the week candidate, but there’s plenty more where that came from.
There were also a lot of finishes that saw one fighter mercilessly rush the other down, as Giuseppe Mastrogiacomo did to Seyed Hossein Mousavi.
The Ref asked for Action... Giuseppe Mastrogiacomo said watch this! This 22-year-old just Stole the Show
— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors) July 25, 2024
Watch #CW175 live on @UFCFightPass pic.twitter.com/AozdI7fu62
Hardly a clean combination, Mastrogiacomo threw everything at him and he only needed one good strike to land. In this case, it was a dagger elbow right down the pipe.
And ICYMI, make sure to check out the co-main event, a three-round corker between Mason Jones and Michael Pagani.
What a finish.
— UFC FIGHT PASS (@UFCFightPass) July 25, 2024
What a damn fight.#CW175 pic.twitter.com/MInqkXLcnZ
Jones went on to win his fourth straight fight since parting ways with the UFC in 2022, and though he saw a finishing streak snapped, beating the previously undefeated Pagani shows that Jones is still a step above his Cage Warriors competition. The Welshman’s first UFC run never took off after he dropped a fantastically entertaining decision to Mike Davis, but he could see a return to that promotion sooner rather than later.
Francesco Mazzeo vs. Vanderlei Junior
Rhi Rhi Hudson vs. Jennifer Trioreau
Jimmy Quinn vs. Imad Bouamri
Gheorghe Grozav vs. Tommy Brunning
Francesco Mazzeo just committed a murder. Holy shit. #CW174 pic.twitter.com/m8fLTlur0v
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) July 20, 2024
No, you’re not seeing a replay of the Mastrogiacomo finish. That’s another daring flurry that was capped off by a highlight-reel strike, this time from Cage Warriors 174, which took place in London this past Saturday.
Like Mastrogiacomo, Francesco Mazzeo threw a lot out there without much of it actually landing. His right hand though? On point, and more than enough to take out Vanderlei Junior.
Rhi Rhi Hudson landed pretty much everything in her pro debut, not that there was much to land as she won in just 13 seconds.
Oh my! Rhi-Rhi Hudson with one of the fastest KO wins you will see
— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors) July 20, 2024
Needed only 13 seconds to win her professional debut. A very bright future ahead for this strawweight contender.#CW174 pic.twitter.com/sN4ZnEOuo7
Once she dropped Jennifer Trioreau, she didn’t miss with her follow-up punches.
Jimmy Quinn took advantage of an inattentive Imad Bouamri, making him pay with a flying knee for turning away from the action.
Jimmy Quinn caught him running. Never turn away from your opponent #CW174 pic.twitter.com/lyI39UTlR2
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) July 20, 2024
That’s a rough way to get Horodecki’d.
We can’t leave out our grapplers, so big props to Gheorghe Grozav for this sick kimura submission.
Gheorghe Grozav displays impressive grappling skills, disposing of his opponent with a Kimura in round one
— Cage Warriors (@CageWarriors) July 20, 2024
Watch #CW174 live on UFC Fight Pass
https://t.co/yjObJawcLP pic.twitter.com/4FxSTkhXwv
Grozav had a dominant position at the end of Round 2 but he wasn’t satisfied with just riding out the last few seconds. He snatched Tommy Brunning’s arm, twisted it a brutal angle, and earned a quick tap-out.
Cage Warriors 174 and 175 are available for replay on UFC Fight Pass.
Thomas Glot vs. Parwaiz Arabzai
Theo Ulrich vs. Jason Polydor
Thomas Glot has a left hand that would make Conor McGregor blush, and he flashed it early and often at Hexagone MMA 19 in Orange, France.
Thomas Glot KO1 Parwaiz Arabzai pic.twitter.com/2wATVOf0pV
— Neo Vale Tudo (@NeoValeTudo) July 25, 2024
Parwaiz Arabzai looked like he had no clue what hit him, which might explain why he made no adjustments to avoid Glot’s power hand. Over and over again that left connected until a perfect hook put Arabzai down for the count.
Theo Ulrich took a more traditional approach to setting up his knockout punch, first making Jason Polydor think about the left and then catching him with a zinging right on the chin when he least expected it.
Théo Ulrich KO1 Jason Polydor pic.twitter.com/n3z4xafFv4
— Neo Vale Tudo (@NeoValeTudo) July 25, 2024
Bekah Irwin vs. Tayde Garcia
At Fury FC 94 (replay available on UFC Fight Pass) in Houston, Bekah Irwin won her first MMA fight with a series of hellacious knees to the body.
Former GLORY kickboxer/MT standout Bekah Irwin makes a successful pro MMA debut, taking out Tayde Garcia with some nasty clinch knees. #FuryFC94 pic.twitter.com/batmnmnKvj
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) July 21, 2024
I’m sure her opponent wasn’t using those internal organs anyway.
Andrei Borissov vs. Eric Perry
Things are no less violent on the amateur scene, as evidenced by the debuting Andrei Borissov’s spinning backfist knockout of Eric Perry.
Andrei Borissov KO3 Eric Perry - WXC 94 pic.twitter.com/zfdqHGEiTX
— Neo Vale Tudo (@NeoValeTudo) July 20, 2024
This is the kind of stuff you expect to see at this level of competition and Perry should learn a lot from this experience. He just lunged in with no plan, not expecting Borissov to have the perfect counter ready. Five knuckles just whipped into Perry’s face at what looked to be about 200 mph.
Warrior Xtreme Cagefighting 94 is available for replay with a subscription to Spectation Sports.
Junior Luiz vs. Thiago Hayne
Remember when I said there were more Humpty Dumpty falls coming?
From Centurion FC 21 in Rio de Janeiro:
Holy faceplant. Junior Luiz flatlines Thiago Hayne in the first round at Centurion FC #CFC21 pic.twitter.com/VGAosq9GNE
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) July 21, 2024
Junior Luiz read Thiago Hayne like a book to set up that one-punch flatliner. Hayne does the correct thing by patiently cutting off the cage, but he drops his hands at the wrong time and eats a skull-rattling right hand. That mat was looking mighty comfy all of a sudden.
Modestino Rodrigues vs. Nathan Oliveira
Skipping over to Jungle Fight 128 in Sao Paulo, Modestino Rodrigues scored a shutdown knockout of his own.
Rodrigues was tearing Nathan Oliveira apart with his standup and it was only a matter of time until Oliveira got dropped. That was just the beginning of the pain for him though, as Rodrigues landed a trio of Thor-worthy hammerfists to send Oliveira to Valhalla.
Modestino Rodrigues KO's Nathan Oliveira #JF128 pic.twitter.com/Ii2dJyZZ1e
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) July 21, 2024
Milan Datelinka vs. Ondrej Raska
Losene Keita vs. Predrag Bogdanovic
You’ve probably heard coaches talk about the effectiveness of “punching through” someone. That’s what Milan Datelinka did here.
Milan Datelinka #OKTAGON59 pic.twitter.com/PjVfIzG5eQ
— Neo Vale Tudo (@NeoValeTudo) July 20, 2024
Both fighters taking a forward step at the exact same time, one letting his power hand go. The result? Oblivion.
In the Oktagon MMA 59 main event from Bratislava, Slovakia, top lightweight prospect Losene Keita improved to 14-1 with vicious body shot knockout.
☝ There is only one Losene Keita!
— OKTAGON MMA (@OktagonOfficial) July 20, 2024
‘Black Panther’ picks up knockout victory number nine!
Can anyone stop one of the best prospects in the world? #OKTAGON59
https://t.co/TVP7NaDRbZ & DAZN pic.twitter.com/P0A4N8hGk0
Keita has been crushing it for the Czech Republic-based promotion and whether or not he signs with another major promotion in the future, he is must-see TV whenever he enters the cage.
Islom Boltaev vs. Murad Abdurakhmanov
Shokhasan Mirzamatov vs. Mahir Mamedov
That could also be said for Kazakhstan’s newly crowned Octagon League middleweight champion, Islom Boltaev, who appropriately enough bolted Murad Abdurakhmanov with a left hand and a perfectly timed knee to claim a vacant belt.
Uzbekistan's Islam Baltaev snatches the crown by force, dropping Murad Abdurakhmanov with a left and drilling him with a knee to the face. DAMN
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) July 19, 2024
And NEW Octagon Middleweight champ. #Octagon60 pic.twitter.com/rescAMeYMV
That’s three straight now for Boltaev, who at 5-2 still has his best days ahead of him.
And if you haven’t had enough knee knockouts this week, here’s Shokhasan Mirzamatov kneeing his opponent’s soul out of his body.
My GOD. Brutal walk off knee KO by Shokhasan Mirzamatov #Octagon60 pic.twitter.com/bhetHfzTxY
— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) July 19, 2024
Adam Brysz vs. Hugo Deux
Last, but never least, KSW 96 delivered this wonderful finish:
3-HOUR NOTICE AND THIS HAPPENED!
— KSW (@KSW_MMA) July 20, 2024
Adam Brysz!!!
KO of the Year candidate?
XTB #KSW96 | Viaplay | KSWTV pic.twitter.com/Occj016A2I
Face swelling up, Adam Brysz decided to just say eff it and cranked up the aggression to 11 with time ticking away in the second round. He put it ON Hugo Deux, drowning him with a relentless series of strikes and capping off the performance with a spinning back elbow that Deux could not withstand.
Oh, Brysz’s nickname? “Tornado.”
Poll
What was the Humpty Dumpty Fall of the Week?
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0%
Naglis Kanisauskas vs. Leon Naumann
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0%
Junior Luiz vs. Thiago Hayne
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0%
Shokhasan Mirzamatov vs. Mahir Mamedov
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0%
Other (leave comment below)
If you know of a recent fight or event that you think may have been overlooked, or a promotion that could use some attention, please let us know on X — @AlexanderKLee — using the hashtag #MissedFists.