UFC 285 opens with a lightweight banger as Loik Radzhabov defeats Esteban Ribovics via unanimous decision 29-28 x 3.
Round 1
Neither man wastes any time getting right to the action. Esteban Ribovics storms the centre looking to continue his 100% finish rate but he gets caught. Loik Radzhabov lands some heavy blows but opts to wrestle and finds great success negating the striking of Ribovics.
The Argentine does find his feet several times. Using creative and imaginative ways to force a scrabble and refind his feet.
Round 2
Esteban flies out of the traps once again in the second, landing a nice combination. However, it’s not long before he’s on his back again with Radzhabov taking him down. Radzhabov scores several more takedowns but Ribovics keeps finding a way out of trouble and back to a vertical base.
Another slick combination attacking both the head and the body hurts Loik who is momentarily dropped. The round ends with Esteban on the front foot.
Round 3
Looking to continue where he left off Ribovics goes for the kill. Unfortunately for him, he’s met with some ferocious blows that slow him down. It’s not long before Radzhabov is back on top. Ribovics uses a kimura submission attempt to take the back for the second time in the fight. Loik manages to escape and regain top control.
Back on the feet, Ribovics pours on the pressure looking to finish the fight. As the story of the fight dictates Loik Radzhabov grapples and the round ends.
Loik Radzhabov wins the bout via Unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28).
What’s Next?
Making the most of his short-notice debut, Loik Radzhabov picks up the win in his UFC debut. The fighter from Tajikistan becomes just the second fighter from the nation ever in the company.
With an overall record of 17-4-1, the 31-year-old is not short on experience and enters the UFC at his peak. A win in his debut lands Loik in great stead moving forward especially taking the zero off an undefeated prospect.
Next up for Radzhabov it would be good to see him compete on a full training camp. An opponent in a similar position with a UFC win under their belt would make sense. Names like Trevor Peek, Nazim Sadykhov and Elves Brener all make sense given their similar timelines.
Featured image credits to Embed from Getty Images
