Shara Magomedov

ANALYSIS
Get that $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus ready (later confirmed by Dana White). This was one of the most creative finishes you will ever see. Magomedov was likely on his way to being up two rounds at the time of the stoppage, but the fight was competitive. He took it out of the judges hands completely late in the second frame by connecting with back-to-back spinning back fists, one with each hand. Petrosyan dropped like a sack of potatoes and immediately knew he could no longer continue. Shara has looked great thus far with the UFC and is undefeated through four fights with the company, but the real test is going to come when he takes on an opponent that forces him to grapple. The UFC has matched him up against exclusively strikers up to this point. That can't last forever.

ANALYSIS
Magomedov has an opportunity to have defeated three middleweights in five months. After handing Antonio Trocoli in June, he outlasted Michael Oleksiejczuk in August. In Magomedov's way is a middleweight looking to bounce back after getting submitted by Rodolfo Vieira.

ANALYSIS
Oleksiejczuk probably isn't a top-15 middleweight at this point, but he's certainly the best opponent Magomedov had faced to date, and he passed the test with flying colors. As we had seen in his prior two UFC bouts, Shara is completely comfortable in a wild brawl and even excels in them. He's borderline reckless on the feet, but he fires off plenty of volume, is accurate and has been able to handle everything coming back his way without issue. Magomedov's grappling doesn't appear to be great, and he's probably going to have major issues with high-end wrestlers, but expect the UFC to avoid matching him up against a guy with those skills for quite a while. Magomedov is now 3-0 at the UFC and clearly a fighter to keep an eye on at 185 pounds moving forward. In the meantime, he'll also walk away with an extra $50,000 after this bout was awarded Fight of the Night honors -- Magomedov's second consecutive post-fight bonus earned.

ANALYSIS
Magomedov is likely limited to overseas bouts, as Dana White doesn't believe athletic commissions stateside will sanction him due to an eye issue, but this fight in Abu Dhabi fits the bill. The undefeated middleweight will now take on Oleksiejczuk, who appeared to break his arm in a June loss to Kevin Holland but has consistently asserted otherwise. Now just months after apparently averting an injury scare, he'll head overseas and likely be a betting underdog against Magomedov, who owns a heavy advantage in volume striking over his brief UFC run.

ANALYSIS
It was far from a flawless effort from Magomedov, but he got the stoppage victory he was seeking against an opponent that accepted this fight just a few days ago. Shara was always going to have a massive edge over Trocoli in terms of striking. What stood out the most in this fight was Magomedov's improved takedown defense. Trocoli failed on all seven of his attempts, allowing Shara to remain upright and eventually close the show with a massive flurry midway through the final frame. Undefeated as a professional and already 30 years of age, the UFC should push Magomedov quickly to see what exactly they have on their hands here. In the meantime, he'll take home a $50,000 Performance of the Night bonus for his efforts here.