UFC bantamweight Bekzat Almakhan earned his first promotional win in style to jumpstart UFC 315.
One of Conor McGregor‘s teammates suffered a horrific knockout to kick off the UFC 315 prelims on Saturday in Montreal.
UFC bantamweights Bekzat Almakhan and Brad Katona featured in the night’s first fight at UFC 315. Almakhan was searching for his first UFC victory after a lengthy layoff stemming from his debut loss to Umar Nurmagomedov in March 2024.
Facing the two-time The Ultimate Fighter winner Katona, Almakhan didn’t need long to finish Katona and leave the Canadian crowd bewildered by his one-punch power.
Bekzat Almakhan wastes no time kicking off UFC 315 with a wild highlight-reel finish
Just seconds into the fight, Almakhan confused Katona with blistering-fast movement in and out of the pocket. At the one-minute mark of the first round, Almakhan caught Katona with a ferocious right uppercut that sent Katona falling backwards onto the canvas below.
After a few ground-and-pound shots, the referee stepped in and awarded Almakhan the TKO finish. It was a great bounce-back performance for Almakhan as he etched himself as a new name to keep an eye on in the stacked UFC bantamweight division.
Almakhan earned the attention of UFC fans when he earned an early knockdown of Nurmagomedov in his short-notice promotional debut last year. But despite earning the early knockdown, Almakhan faded in the final minutes as Nurmagomedov coasted to a unanimous decision victory.
Before falling to Nurmagomedov in his UFC debut, Almakhan was one of the top bantamweight prospects outside of the UFC with successful stints in Octagon and UAE Warriors. After finishing Katona, 10 of Almakhan’s 11 career victories have come by knockout.
Katona’s loss was his third over his last four fights, and was his first stoppage defeat since 2021. He defeated Timur Valiev by split decision to win The Ultimate Fighter 31 and a second stint with the promotion.
- READ MORE: Georges St-Pierre snubs Jon Jones when giving surprising take on his greatest of all time
Fight fans concerned with Conor McGregor after new training footage surfaces
As UFC 315 plays out, fight fans continue to wait for any sign of McGregor returning to the Octagon after a four-year hiatus from competition. He hasn’t fought since a TKO loss to Dustin Poirier at UFC 264.
Many fans weren’t impressed with what McGregor offered in recent training footage shared on his Instagram page. Many fans labeled McGregor as ‘slow’ and out of shape, while speculation runs rampant regarding a comeback fight.
McGregor was briefly linked to a boxing match with Logan Paul earlier this year before the UFC brass thwarted negotiations. As of this writing, McGregor remains under contract with the UFC.
McGregor was booked to face Michael Chandler last June at UFC 303 before withdrawing due to a toe injury. In recent weeks, McGregor has reignited the Chandler fight talks on social media.
Follow along here at Bloody Elbow for all the latest news and highlights from UFC 315.