Missed Fists: Makwan Amirkhani thrown head over heels before being choked out

Welcome to the latest edition of Missed Fists where we shine a light on fights from across the globe that may have been overlooked in these hectic times where it seems like there’s an MMA show every other day.

This past weekend’s UFC Louisville card came and went without much fanfare (though the main card delivered well-enough if you were looking for satisfying—and not-so-satisfying—finishes), so if you wanted more lively combat sports action, you had to look elsewhere

And no, I’m not talking about the WWE NXT event that went down at the APEX, but rather the Oktagon MMA event over in Prague, Czech Republic.

(Big thanks as always to @Barrelelapierna for their weekly lists of the best KOs and submissions, and to @Grabaka_Hitman for uploading many of the clips you see here. Give them a follow and chip in on Patreon if you can.)

Attila Korkmaz vs. Makwan Amirkhani
Shem Rock vs. Jaroslav Pokorny
Ion Surdu vs. David Kozma
Deniz Ilbay vs. Denis Tripsansky
Marek Mazuch vs. David Zawada

Simply put, if you were looking for monster finishes and a sprinkling of recognizable names, then Oktagon MMA had you covered.

In the first fight of the card, UFC veteran Makwan Amirkhani was left still searching for his first win since leaving that promotion as he was powerbombed into the next dimension by German journeyman (say that three times fast) Attila Korkmaz.

The AEW-esque slam didn’t render Amirkhani unconscious immediately, but he gave up his neck seconds later, which made it clear how badly hurt he was. Amirkhani tapped out in the third, which makes this the second time in two appearances for Oktagon that he’s faltered in the final five minutes. In fact, he’s now lost four straight fights, all of which saw him falter after Round 1.

At least Amirkhani wasn’t put out completely, which can’t be said for Jaroslav Pokorny.

Submission specialist Shem Rock lived up to his reputation, snatching Pokorny’s back and holding on tight until Pokorny went limp. That’s three consecutive first-round rear-naked choke finishes for Rock, who improved to 11-1-1 in his career.

On a lighter note, Ion Surdu picked up a less grisly (but no less devastating) boop knockout of David Kozma.

Surdu landed that shot backing up, which gives the clip some serious Anderson Silva vibes. And hey, Silva’s back this weekend for a boxing match with Chael Sonnen. So props to Surdu for the homage.

Oh by the way, if you felt burnt by Jason Herzog’s stoppage in the Nassourdine Imavov-Jared Cannonier fight, you probably would have preferred the referees in Prague as they declined to step in until knockouts were 100 percent confirmed.

Hence, Deniz Ilbay pummeling Denis Tripsansky.

I’m counting at least half a dozen hard shots there before the referee moves into position to wave off the bout.

David Zawada, another UFC veteran, experienced this as well as he was left to fall face-first to the canvas as Marek Mazuch wailed on him.

Look, there’s a chance Cannonier was on his way to coming back and winning that fight (he certainly didn’t seem out of it), but in the long run he probably ended up better off than Tripsansky or Zawada.

Joey Hart vs. Tyler Scott

Over in Hammond, Ind., Joey Hart had Deniz Ilbay’s knee knockout setup beat. Hart slapped a traditional Thai clinch on Tyler Scott and when Scott tried to punch his way out of it, he ate a knee up the middle for his troubles.

Afterwards, Hart was understandably in awe of being recognized by Twitter MMA GOAT caposa.

That’s the wholesome content we’re here for.

LFA 185 is available for replay on UFC Fight Pass, which we’ll log back into later.

Vasily Rudenko vs. Jakyp Tuganbaev

From the prospect watch files, undefeated 25-year-old welterweight Vasily Rudenko straight-up smoked Jakyp Tuganbaev at MMA Series 81 in Moscow.

Rudenko hasn’t faced elite competition yet, but it’s hard not to get excited about an up-and-coming talent when you see a head kick like that. His record is now 11-0 with just two of his fights going to the scorecards.

Aaron Kennedy vs. Ahmed Khamis

I’m not entirely sure what to call this, so any answers are welcome.

At Ring of Combat 84 in Atlantic City, N.J., Aaron Kennedy secured an unorthodox choke on opponent Ahmed Khamis. I’d call that an inverted arm-triangle choke, which might not even be a thing. Initially, it kind of looks like Kennedy is setting up a D’Arce, but then Khamis scrambles and Kennedy has to improvise.

Regardless, he found a way to ramp up the pressure and earn the tap.

Mel Zeman vs. Brittany Bickhart

Speaking of pressure, Mel Zeman apparently felt none as she competed for the first time since 2020 at a BTC Fight Promotions event in Burlington, Ontario.

I hope Zeman wasn’t looking forward to enjoying a couple of rounds of action, because this one was over in just 19 seconds.

It’s fair to say she can’t have been too disappointed by how it turned out.

Andres Santillana vs. Luis De La Puente

Just last night at Fusion Fighting Championship 77 (available on UFC Fight Pass) in Lima, Peru, Andres Santillana stuck with the basics and went 1-2 buckle my shoe on Luis De La Puente face.

Fundamentals, kids. They never go out of style.

Stanley Okazaki vs. Nicholas Stoute
Alex Lawal vs. Kallee Cumbie
Antonio Figueiredo vs. German Ponce
Austin O’Connor vs. Camden Fontenot

At Fury FC 91 in Rosenberg, Texas, we had amateurs and pros in action, so let’s start with the folks fighting for free first. Especially since one of the amateurs did this:

That’s a 14-second flurry from first-timer Stanley Okazaki. He didn’t rush in either, he put out a few feeler shots before he realized that Nicholas Stoute’s chin was there for the taking. Then he went full Wanderlei and just started winging haymakers, as one does.

Poor Stoute was left frozen against the cage, preserved like a citizen of Pompeii.

Amateur flyweight Alex Lawal showed no mercy to Kallee Cumbie, cracking her ribs with a knee before following with a few perfunctory punches.

Really, that one could have been called five seconds earlier.

Antonio Figueiredo made his pro debut and was given a layup in 3-6-1 journeyman German (say that three times fast) Ponce. It was still on Figueiredo to impress, which he definitely did.

Ponce just ducks down at the worst possible time and Figueiredo’s leg slices through him like a broadsword. No follow-up shots were necessary, something that Figueiredo recognized right away.

And we can’t depart without mentioning the debut of Daniel Cormier protégé Austin O’Connor. The two-time NCAA wrestling champion would probably have liked to start as an amateur, but good luck finding someone to fight him for free given his existing combat sports credentials.

So instead O’Connor was matched up with fellow 0-0 fighter Camden Fontent, and unsurprisingly he utilized his wrestling to cruise to a third-round ground-and-pound knockout victory.

It’s entirely possible that O’Connor falls short of the lofty expectations that have been set for him. He’s not off to a bad start though.

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If you know of a recent fight or event that you think may have been overlooked, or a promotion that could use some attention, please let us know on X — @AlexanderKLee — using the hashtag #MissedFists.