Jab Paves Way to Jairzinho Rozenstruik TKO in UFC Fight Night 238 Headliner

Jairzinho Rozenstruik administered a prolonged beating and made sure the door to the Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight elite stayed shut.

The American Top Team-trained kickboxer called upon a crushing jab and improved takedown defense, as he forced a stoppage against the previously unbeaten Shamil Gaziev in the UFC Fight Night 238 headliner on Saturday at the UFC Apex in Las Vegas. A battered and beaten Gaziev (12-1, 1-1 UFC) was deemed unfit to continue in between the fourth and fifth rounds.

Rozenstruik (14-5, 8-5 UFC) handled his business after being taken down late in the first round. He bloodied Gaziev’s nose with a lightning-quick jab, varying its pace and intensity while occasionally incorporating leg kicks. Rozenstruik’s combinations picked up steam as time went on, and it became clear after the fourth round that his opponent had no interest in absorbing more damage.

Meanwhile, CM System’s Vitor Petrino took another step forward at 205 pounds with a slow-placed—it was downright plodding at times—unanimous decision over Tyson Pedro in the three-round light heavyweight co-main event. All three judges submitted scorecards for the undefeated Petrino (11-0, 4-0 UFC): 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28.

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Pedro (10-5, 6-5 UFC) tried but ultimately failed to keep the chiseled Brazilian at bay with kicks to the lower leg. Petrino answered with a punishing jab and sporadic low kicks of his own. He did his best work in Round 3, where he secured multiple takedowns, applied moderate ground-and-pound and eventually made a loose pass at an arm-triangle. While the finish failed to materialize, the outcome had longe been decided.

Afterward, the 32-year-old Pedro announced his retirement from mixed martial arts.

Further down the bill, KHK MMA Team prospect Muhammad Mokaev remained unbeaten with a grimy and clinch-heavy unanimous decision over former Tachi Palace Fights champion Alex Perez in a three-round flyweight showcase. Mokaev (12-0, 6-0 UFC) swept the scorecards with matching 29-28 marks from the cageside judiciary.

Perez (24-8, 6-4 UFC) made the Russian earn every inch of ground he gained. The Team Oyama mainstay managed to deny the majority of Mokaev’s takedowns with an effective sprawl, but in doing so, he failed to generate much offense of his own. It resulted in repeated back-and-forth grappling exchanges between the two men. Mokaev connected with most of the consequential strikes on the feet and closed out his night’s work with a nice belly-to-back suplex in the third round.

The 23-year-old Mokaev has won seven straight bouts since his June 2021 pairing with Ibragim Navruzov ended in a no contest under the Brave Combat Federation banner.

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Elsewhere, undefeated American Kickboxing Academy export Umar Nurmagomedov withstood an early knockdown and kept his perfect professional record intact with a unanimous decision over promotional newcomer Bekzat Almakhan in a three-round bantamweight feature. All three judges sided with Nurmagomedov (17-0, 5-0 UFC): 30-25, 30-26 and 30-26.

Almakhan (14-2, 0-1 UFC) sat down the ex-Eagle Fighting Championship titleholder with a clubbing right hand to the temple in the first round but could not follow it with anything of substance. Nurmagomedov cleared the cobwebs and scrambled into top position, where he flexed his stifling control and steady ground-and-pound. He took down and mounted Almakhan twice in the second round and again in the third, slashing away with elbows and punches from above.

The setback closed the book on Almakhan’s eight-fight winning streak.

Finally, former Eternal MMA champion Steve Erceg punched out Matt Schnell in the second round of their flyweight appetizer. Schnell (16-8, 6-6 UFC) bowed out 26 seconds into Round 2, having been victimized by the surging Australian in spectacular fashion.

Erceg (12-1, 3-0 UFC) set the tone with a persistent jab and clean punching combinations in the first round, where he opened a cut above the Fortis MMA rep’s left eye. Schnell shrugged off the damage, lured his counterpart into extended exchanges and got his attention with a few punching volleys of his own. However, it all came crashing down for the American early in the middle stanza. Erceg folded him in the center of the cage with a textbook left hook. Schnell collapsed downward, his head bouncing violently off the canvas. No follow-up shots were required.

The 28-year-old Erceg has rattled off 11 consecutive victories.

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