Shamil Gaziev took matters into his own hands at UFC Saudi Arabia.
The hard-hitting heavyweight found his knockout touch again at Saturday’s show in Riyadh, needing a little more than three minutes to land a devastating right hand that put Thomas Petersen down for good. Gaziev immediately walked off to punctuate the finish.
Watch the knockout below.
One. Hitter. Quitter.
— MMA Fighting (@MMAFighting) February 1, 2025
Shamil Gaziev punches through Thomas Peterson at #UFCSaudiArabia !pic.twitter.com/OeWMwPY4aC
From the start, Gaziev had a clear striking advantage, and he took his time advancing and scoring against his fellow Contender Series signing. When Petersen left a gap in his defense, Gaziev didn’t miss, firing a right hand down the middle that immediately put Petersen on his back. Referee Jason Herzog waited a beat before taking Gaziev’s cue and stepping in to stop the bout at the 3:12 mark of the opening round.
That’s back-to-back wins now for Gaziev (14-1), who was coming off of a unanimous decision win over Don’Tale Mayes this past August.
Petersen (9-3) falls to 1-2 inside the octagon.