UFC Veteran Darko Stosic Demolishes Michal Martinek at KSW 87

JUST. LIKE. THAT!!! 👊 #KSW87

🇷🇸 Darko Stosic silences the Czech fans. pic.twitter.com/9Y9dCxBpEJ

— KSW (@KSW_MMA) October 14, 2023

KSW 87 took place in the beautiful Czech Republic and featured plenty of local talent.

In the headliner, No. 1 ranked heavyweight and Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran Darko Stosic (19-6, 5-1 KSW) faced No. 3 Michal Martinek (10-5, 1-2 KSW). Stosic went 1-3 in the UFC, with his last outing a decision loss to current light heavyweight champion Jamahal Hill, but had gone 5-2 since leaving the organization, including four thunderous knockouts. Stosic already had a crack at KSW heavyweight champion Phil De Fries but was been forced to retreat late in Round 5. Stosic was hoping a big win could get him a rematch.

Martinek, meanwhile, was looking to right the ship and electrify the home crowd after a split decision verdict against another UFC veteran, Daniel Omielanczuk, went against him last time out. As with many of Stosic's bouts, the ending was sudden and brutal. At just over 2 minutes into the fight, he landed a clubbing overhand right that hit the side of Martinek's head and then hit pay dirt with a furious left hook flush on the chin, causing the Czech to crash to the canvas at the 2:04 mark. It was yet another highlight-reel knockout, and Stosic called out De Fries for a rematch afterward.

The co-main event was a battle of lightweight contenders as No. 3 ranked Roman Szymanski (17-8, 9-5 KSW) of Poland met No. 7 hometown hero Leo Brichta (12-3, 2-0 KSW). Szymanski is a long-time veteran of the Polish promotion despite still being only 30 and Brichta was riding an impressive 7-fight winning streak heading into the contest. It was a close battle for the first two rounds, with the 6' tall Brichta having a small advantage in the striking but the 5' 8” Szymanski utilizing timely takedowns, including one that likely won him the second stanza. However, in the final round, it was Brichta who attained top position, and an exhausted Szymanski had no answer to an endless barrage of ground and pound. Tired himself, not all of Brichta's blows were hard, but the domination led referee Tomasz Bonder to halt the action just 10 seconds until the final bell.

The KSW light heavyweight rankings saw an upset when 31-year-old top Croatian contender Ivan Erslan (13-3, 3-3 KSW) met promotional newcomer, 36-year-old Polish fighter Rafal Haratyk (17-5-2, 1-0 KSW). After a very quiet first round where both men were feeling one another out, Erslan ran right into a big bomb in the form of a Haratyk overhand right, dropping him like a sack of potatoes before follow-up blows prompted a stoppage 4:21 into the contest.

Armbar Submission from 🇺🇦 Oleksii Polishchuk! #KSW87 pic.twitter.com/qgRg1fEmHh

— KSW (@KSW_MMA) October 14, 2023

At bantamweight, the very well-traveled Czech Filip Macek (27-19-1, 0-2 KSW) scrapped with Ukrainian Oleksii Polishchuk (11-4, 1-1 KSW) but came up short, with the latter locking in a slick triangle armbar to elicit a tap at 4:06 of the first frame. At light heavyweight, 23-year-old Polish prospect Michal Dreczkowski (4-0, 1-0 KSW) faced his sternest test yet in the form of Czech veteran Vojtech Garba (8-5, 0-1 KSW). Garba had his moments, but Dreczkowski took the unanimous decision at the end, staying perfect.

In a 192-pound catchweight affair, Adrian Dudek (7-2, 1-1 KSW) dominated Lukas Dvorak (5-3, 0-1 KSW), winning an easy decision with scores of 30-27 across the board. At lightweight, Sahil Siraj (9-2, 1-1 KSW) scored a spectacular knockout of Ahmed Abdulkadirov (9-2, 0-1 KSW), smashing him with an overhand right and then finishing the job with a devastating left hook, giving him 8 knockouts in 9 wins. The end came abruptly at 3:16 of the first. In a featherweight affair, Dawid Kareta (5-3, 1-0 KSW) beat previously unbeaten Josef Stummer (3-1, 1-1 KSW) from pillar to post, delivering dozens upon dozens of unanswered knees and punches to a huddled over, but still standing Stummer. The beating was halted at 4:10 of the first frame. Opening the card, Tobiasz Le (4-1, 1-0 KSW) delivered a protracted mugging of Carl McNally (2-2, 1-2 KSW), who was grounded due to an injured leg and received an unending stream of ground-and-pound, with the fight waived off 2:52 the third round.