Zhalgas Zhumagulov finally snapped his losing streak as he got the better of Jerome Rivera in the opening fight of UFC 264.
The Kazakhstani locked Rivera in a vicious choke that forced ‘The Renegade’ to tap early in the first round.
You can watch the video below:
As Rivera waded in for a takedown, Zhumagulov sprawled beautifully to counter the American’s effort to take him down. He caught Rivera’s neck and executed a ninja choke to claim the first-round victory.
UFC commentator and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu specialist Joe Rogan was clearly impressed with Zhumagulov’s dexterity in pulling off the choke, stating:
“That’s one of the best chokes you’re ever going to see,” Rogan exclaimed.
According to former UFC referee John McCarthy, Zhumagulov’s choke could also be referred to as ‘front naked choke’.
It was Rivera’s fourth successive loss in the UFC. He signed with the promotion after a successful outing on Dana White’s Contender Series in August last year, and has been on a losing streak since.
Zhalgas Zhumagulov finally gets into the win column
Zhalgas Zhumagulov had lost two of his previous fights in the UFC. The 32-year-old made his promotional debut at UFC 251, where he suffered a loss at the hands of Raulian Paiva.
Zhumagulov then challenged Amir Albazi at UFC 257 in January earlier this year. However, the Kazakhstani failed to bounce back with a win, losing the fight via a controversial unanimous decision.
At UFC 264, Zhumagulov ran into a do-or-die situation, and the flyweight delivered a clinical performance.
Zhalgas Zhumagulov’s professional MMA record now stands at 14-5. The 32-year-old spent most of his career competing in regional MMA promotions in Kazakhstan.
In 2016, he signed with Fight Nights Global (now AMC Fight Nights), where he amassed a formidable 7-1 record.
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