Knockout! Rafael Fiziev finishes Rafael dos Anjos with monster left hook at UFC Vegas 58

Rafael Fiziev and Rafael dos Anjos went to war for more than 20 minutes in UFC Vegas 58’s main event tonight (Sat., July 9, 2022), but in the end it was Fiziev who locked up a win just 18 seconds into the fifth round.

Fiziev caught dos Anjos with a massive left hook that dropped the tough Brazilian. Under the threat of more strikes, the referee was forced to step in and stop the fight.

dos Anjos started the fight strong as Fiziev was too worried about takedowns to focus on his own offensive striking. That allowed dos Anjos to control the opening minutes and land a several good strikes. But, once Fiziev shrugged off some takedowns and managed to power away from dos Anjos’s smothering cage pressure, he opened up and started unloading with his own combinations.

It was a close fight across four rounds, but it looked like Fiziev was more active with effective striking, while dos Anjos’s best moments were up against the fence without a whole lot of damage to show for it. Two judges had the fight three rounds to one for Fiziev, with the third judge splitting the bout two apiece.

In the end, the scorecards weren’t needed as Fiziev opened the fifth round with a flying knee attempt followed with a left hook that caught dos Anjos right on the jaw. Some may complain that the fight was stopped quickly from there, but it seemed clear that dos Anjos was out of it and would have continued to take damage.

Watch the highlights below:

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