Preview: UFC Qatar Prelims

Men’s Bantamweights

Bekzat Almakhan (12-2; 1-1 UFC) vs. Alexandre Topuria (6-1; 1-0 UFC)

Odds: Almakhan (-120); Topuria (+100)

The younger Topuria brother meets the latest UFC prospect out of Kazakhstan in this intriguing bantamweight prelim matchup.

Almakhan’s entry to the UFC last year was not an auspicious one, as Sherdog’s research into his regional résumé revealed a ton of nonexistent (or at least non-MMA) wins padding his record. That kind of malfeasance usually indicates a fighter who is not UFC-level and is about to learn that fact really hard—think Askar Mozharov—but his debut made it hard to confirm or disprove; yes, he was trounced by Umar Nurmagomedov, but most UFC newcomers facing a Top 10 fighter would be.

In his second outing in the Octagon, Almakhan absolutely blasted Brad Katona, a solid mid-level UFC bantamweight who had never been stopped before. That might be a better indicator of his true upside, and at 28, he should just be entering his prime. Almakhan is a fast, fluid striker who likes to stick and move and is capable of landing with power at almost any range. Even in an otherwise one-sided shellacking by Nurmagomedov, Almakhan hurt his opponent several times on the feet.

While Almakhan prefers to do his work on the feet, he is a capable wrestler, and times his entries adeptly to punish opponents who overpursue him or keep their guard too high in expectation of his boxing. He has nice body lock and trip takedowns and can deliver solid ground-and-pound. While he has just two submission wins to date, that seems to be due to his strategic choices rather than any lack of skill.

Topuria is, of course, the younger brother of former featherweight champ Ilia Topuria, and it shows. He looks similar, moves similarly and favors the same general style of fight. He is a crisp boxer with good power, a strong offensive wrestler with a penchant for emphatic takedowns, and a capable grappler. So why is Alexandre a mildly promising 7-1 prospect while Ilia is an undefeated wrecking machine and arguably the top pound-for-pound fighter in the entire sport right now?

Some of the reasons are easy to quantify while others are more nebulous. On one hand, he simply hasn’t fought nearly as much or been as ambitious about his own career as his older brother. On the other hand, while he is similar in broad strokes, he isn’t nearly as explosive, and Alexandre lacks the fast-twitch athleticism that makes his older brother such a deadly striker and overwhelming wrestler.

This is one of the few fights at UFC Qatar where the line might actually be too close. Almakhan is younger, faster, twice as experienced, and might be more skilled in every facet of MMA. Barring a major improvement in Topuria’s game—which is not implausible given his inexperience—this should be a one-sided fight. The pick is Almakhan, probably by dominant decision.



Jump To »
Grad vs. Riley
Dalby vs. Izagakhmaev
Perez vs. Almabayev
Yakhyaev vs. Cerqueira
Almakhan vs. Topuria
Naurdiev vs. Loder
Aliev vs. Rock
Bujlo vs. Freeman