Damir Ismagulov
Kazakhstan
Can't defend takedown in loss
Ismagulov lost to Grant Dawson via unanimous decision (26-30, 27-30, 27-30) at UFC Fight Night on Saturday in Las Vegas.
ANALYSIS
Ismagulov announced this past January that he planned on retiring from MMA due to health issues. Later in the month he backtracked, saying he would compete in at least one more fight under his current contract. It is anyone's guess as to whether or not that had any impact on his performance here, but this was a highly concerning effort, to say the least. Damir was forced to the mat by Dawson in all three rounds, spending virtually the entire fight on the ground. There's a real chance Ismagulov's no-show was simply the result of Dawson being darn good, but that's an open question at this point. The 32-year-old Russian has lost back-to-back fights on the heels of five straight victories to begin his UFC run.
Ismagulov announced this past January that he planned on retiring from MMA due to health issues. Later in the month he backtracked, saying he would compete in at least one more fight under his current contract. It is anyone's guess as to whether or not that had any impact on his performance here, but this was a highly concerning effort, to say the least. Damir was forced to the mat by Dawson in all three rounds, spending virtually the entire fight on the ground. There's a real chance Ismagulov's no-show was simply the result of Dawson being darn good, but that's an open question at this point. The 32-year-old Russian has lost back-to-back fights on the heels of five straight victories to begin his UFC run.
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Dawson fight scheduled
Ismagulov will fight Grant Dawson in a lightweight bout at UFC Vegas 76 on July 1, according to Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl.
ANALYSIS
Back in January, Ismagulov announced he would retire from MMA after logging one more fight, now expected to be against a rising competitor. Dawson, the UFC rankings' No. 15 lightweight, is 19-1-1 with seven wins and no losses since signing with the company.
Back in January, Ismagulov announced he would retire from MMA after logging one more fight, now expected to be against a rising competitor. Dawson, the UFC rankings' No. 15 lightweight, is 19-1-1 with seven wins and no losses since signing with the company.
Postponing UFC retirement
Ismagulov announced via his personal Instagram on Sunday that he intends to compete in at least one more fight under his current UFC contract, per MMAJunkie.com.
ANALYSIS
Ismagulov announced Jan. 2 that he planned to retire from MMA due to "circumstances and health issues," according to MMAJunkie.com. However, the lightweight contender apparently decided to end his UFC career at least partially due to his belief that his contract with the promotion would come to an end. As a result, Isamgulov announced in his recent post that, "after finding out I had another fight under my contract, I decided to go back and finish it!" The 31-year-old simultaneously expressed his desire for a rematch against Arman Tsarukyan, whom he fell to via unanimous decision back in mid-December. Either way, Ismagulov will look to notch the 25th victory of his professional career with at least one more bout in the UFC.
Ismagulov announced Jan. 2 that he planned to retire from MMA due to "circumstances and health issues," according to MMAJunkie.com. However, the lightweight contender apparently decided to end his UFC career at least partially due to his belief that his contract with the promotion would come to an end. As a result, Isamgulov announced in his recent post that, "after finding out I had another fight under my contract, I decided to go back and finish it!" The 31-year-old simultaneously expressed his desire for a rematch against Arman Tsarukyan, whom he fell to via unanimous decision back in mid-December. Either way, Ismagulov will look to notch the 25th victory of his professional career with at least one more bout in the UFC.
Announces retirement
Ismagulov announced via his personal Instagram account Sunday that he would be retiring from MMA due to health issues.
ANALYSIS
Ismagulov started his UFC career with five consecutive victories, and even after a lopsided loss to Arman Tsarukyan two weeks ago, he was still the promotion's No. 12-ranked lightweight fighter. He's just 31 years old so it wouldn't be surprising to see him change his tune at some point down the road, but that all might depend on the exact nature of his injury, which was not disclosed in the post. If it's truly the end, he'll wrap up his career with a stellar 24-2-0 professional record.
Ismagulov started his UFC career with five consecutive victories, and even after a lopsided loss to Arman Tsarukyan two weeks ago, he was still the promotion's No. 12-ranked lightweight fighter. He's just 31 years old so it wouldn't be surprising to see him change his tune at some point down the road, but that all might depend on the exact nature of his injury, which was not disclosed in the post. If it's truly the end, he'll wrap up his career with a stellar 24-2-0 professional record.
Dominated in defeat
Ismagulov lost to Arman Tsarukyan via unanimous decision (27-30, 27-30, 27-30) at UFC Fight Night on Saturday in Las Vegas.
ANALYSIS
Ismagulov is an excellent fighter who entered having won each of his first five UFC bouts, but Tsarukyan is a potential future title contender, and there was a clear gap between the two. The striking numbers were eerily similar. Ismagulov landed 51-of-106 total strikes, while Tsarukyan landed 50-of-105. The difference came in the grappling. Seven successful Tsarukyan takedowns ended any chance Ismagulov had of earning a decision. Every single time Damir appeared to be making some headway on the feet, he found himself on his back shortly thereafter. Set to turn 32 years of age this coming February, Ismagulov needs to rebound his next time out.
Ismagulov is an excellent fighter who entered having won each of his first five UFC bouts, but Tsarukyan is a potential future title contender, and there was a clear gap between the two. The striking numbers were eerily similar. Ismagulov landed 51-of-106 total strikes, while Tsarukyan landed 50-of-105. The difference came in the grappling. Seven successful Tsarukyan takedowns ended any chance Ismagulov had of earning a decision. Every single time Damir appeared to be making some headway on the feet, he found himself on his back shortly thereafter. Set to turn 32 years of age this coming February, Ismagulov needs to rebound his next time out.
Looking to go to 6-0 in UFC
Ismagulov will take on Arman Tsarukyan at the UFC event on Dec. 17, Marcel Dorff of Eurosport.nl reports.
ANALYSIS
Ismagulov was able to secure his fifth win in as many tries with the UFC back in June in a split decision against Guram Kutateladze. It should be a great lightweight matchup as Tsarukyan will be hungry to avenge his most recent defeat in June that snapped a five-fight win streak.
Ismagulov was able to secure his fifth win in as many tries with the UFC back in June in a split decision against Guram Kutateladze. It should be a great lightweight matchup as Tsarukyan will be hungry to avenge his most recent defeat in June that snapped a five-fight win streak.