An up-and-comer scored his first UFC victory in style at the Shanghai event on Saturday.
The MMA community reflects on the events that unfolded during the last visit of the UFC to China, with some memorable finishes and a wild upset to close the night in the indoor stage of Shanghai.
Johnny Walker put Zhang Mingyang in the main event to spoil the home favorite plan to win again for his countrymen. Before that, Aljamain Sterling Brian Ortega dominated to go back to winning manners and to set up his claim for a title shot of featherweight.
But some of the best moments of the map took place on the Prelims, where three of the four 'version of the Night' bonuses were distributed. Among them was a finish that would not have seen much …
Uran Satybaldiev only became the fourth hunter who won in the UFC with an Ezekiel choke
The UFC Shanghai event started in style with a historic finish in the very first fight of the night.
Opening the card was a slight heavyweight collision between prospects Uran Satybaldiev and Diyar Nurgozhay. Both men wanted to bounce back after losing their respective debut in the Octagon earlier this year.
In the end it was Satybaldiev who succeeded in that goal, and he did this in a surprising way.
The Kyrgyz hunter moved to 10-1 as a professional by force his opponent to tap just over two and a half minutes in the round. The finish was due to an ultra-and-hungry entry, the Ezekiel Choke.
With his performance in Shanghai, 'Gorilla' only became the fourth hunter in the UFC history to win with the move. Aleksei Oleinik became known for that entry in his long career and used it twice to overcome in the Octagon.
In addition to Remco Pardoel Triumphing with the technology, Alexander Volkov Tai Tuivasa submitted via Ezechiel Choke on UFC 293 two years ago.
Another UFC Shanghai winner needed his bonus
After the sixth victory through a Ezekiel choke in the history of UFC, Satybaldiev was one of the four hunters who took a Potn bonus home in Shanghai. But it seems that one of the biggest winners of the night needed his extra check the most.
In perhaps the best matchup on the Prelims, Charles Johnson Lone'er Kavanagh took out to guarantee a wild bowl of victory and improve his name 'Prospect Killer'. The result has not surprisingly 'inner' an extra $ 50,000 secured, something that will have come to him as a huge relief for him.
Ariel Helwani reported post-fight that Johnson had no money for UFC Shanghai and had to borrow cash from his manager.
“Charles Johnson's bank account went on red this week, says his team,” Helwani wrote on X.
“His manager Brian Butler borrowed him some money. Johnson now has a baby that arrives every day.
“I have this big ko. Also got a bonus. First victory of 2025. Congratulations @innergmma_ufc,” he added.
The UFC has come under fire as an answer, with many who wonder how one of the most active hunters of the promotion that all four of his 2024 fights won can struggle financially.