INGLEWOOD, Calif. – And that is how you announce your arrival to the UFC with authority.
Just five days ago, Azamat Bekoev was simply an LFA middleweight champion with a UFC dream. On Saturday, that dream was realized in a big way with an impressive debut TKO victory over Zach Reese.
The finish came at the 3:04 mark of the first round after Bekoev (19-3 MMA, 1-0 UFC) unleashed some vicious ground-and-pound punches that found their marks and had Reese (8-2 MMA, 2-2 UFC) staring aimlessly into the Intuit Dome rafters.
You can watch the finish in the video below (via X):
THE GROUND AND POUND FROM BEKOEV WAS NASTY 💥 #UFC311 pic.twitter.com/4EVYLTHDFi
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) January 19, 2025
Bekoev, 29, got this opportunity on Monday after Sedriques Dumas was ruled out for an undisclosed reason. Bekoev, who’s been LFA’s 185-pound champ since June 2023, is now on a seven-fight winning streak.
Up-to-the-minute UFC 311 results include:
- Azamat Bekoev def. Zach Reese via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 3:04
- Bogdan Guskov def. Billy Elekana via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 2, 3:33
- Grant Dawson def. Diego Ferreira via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Ailin Perez def. Karol Rosa via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 30-27)
- Muin Gafurov def. Rinya Nakamura via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
- Bernardo Sopaj def. Ricky Turcios via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
- Tagir Ulanbekov def. Clayton Carpenter via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC 311.
