UFC News & FeaturesUFC Baku Prelims: Seok Hyeon Ko Outshines Oban Elliott in Azerbaijan
Seok
Hyeon Ko could not have been more impressive in his
Ultimate Fighting Championship debut.
Repeated takedowns and a stifling ground game spurred the South Korean judoka to a clear-cut unanimous decision over Oban Elliott in the featured UFC on ABC 8 welterweight prelim on Saturday at Baku Crystal Hall in Baku, Azerbaijan. Ko (12-2, 1-0 UFC) swept the scorecards with matching 30-27 marks from the judges.
Elliott (12-3, 3-1 UFC) was surprisingly ineffective. Ko struck for
takedowns in all three rounds, opened a cut on his adversary’s left
eyebrow with a slashing elbow strike and generally made life
miserable for the Welshman. He wore down Elliott with an approach
that paid late dividends. Ko secured another takedown late in the
third round and progressed to full mount, putting the finishing
touches on a near-flawless performance.
Meanwhile, Korean Top Team export Jun Yong Park flexed his considerable resolve and laid claim to a hard-fought unanimous decision over Ismail Naurdiev in a foul-marred three-round middleweight clash. All three cageside judges sided with Park (19-6, 9-3 UFC): 29-26, 29-26 and 29-25.
The setback snapped a two-fight winning streak for Naurdiev.
Further down the undercard, MMA Factory’s Darya Zheleznyakova avenged a November 2022 defeat to Melissa Mullins with a unanimous decision over “No Mess” in their three-round women’s bantamweight rematch. Scores were 29-28, 30-27 and 30-27—all for Zheleznyakova (10-2, 2-1 UFC).
Mullins (7-2, 2-2 UFC) rallied from an inauspicious start late in the first round, where she executed a takedown, climbed to full mount and nearly finished it with an armbar. Zheleznyakova survived and seized the reins in the middle stanza, as she doubled over the Brit with a left jab to the liver and swarmed with follow-up punches. She managed to maintain her pace across the final five minutes, thwarted a takedown with an egregious fence grab—she was warned but not penalized—and kept Mullins at bay with a potent jab and power punches from both hands.
Zheleznyakova has posted three victories over her past four outings.
Elsewhere, Ankos MMA rep Klaudia Sygula outstruck, outhustled and outmaneuvered the favored Irina Alekseeva to a unanimous decision in their three-round women’s bantamweight affair. Sygula (7-2, 1-1 UFC) drew 30-27 scores from all three judges, as she bounced back from a Nov. 9 technical knockout loss to the aforementioned Mullins.
Alekseeva (5-3, 1-2 UFC) was a step behind from start to finish. Sygula chipped away with leg kicks and sharp one-twos, often punctuating her combinations with clubbing overhand rights. The decorated Polish kickboxer wobbled Alekseeva with a backfist in the third round and executed a late takedown. From there, Sygula climbed to full mount and cut loose with ground-and-pound, increasing the intensity of her attack in the waning seconds.
Sygula, 26, has won seven of her past eight bouts.
Deeper into the prelims, former Gorilla Fighting Championship titleholder Tagir Ulanbekov moved another step closer to a Top 10 ranking at 125 pounds with a unanimous decision over Azat Maksum in a hypercompetitive three-round flyweight scrap. Ulanbekov (17-2, 6-1 UFC) swept the scorecards with 29-28, 30-27 and 30-27 marks from the assigned judiciary.
A late replacement for Kyoji Horiguchi, Maksum (15-2, 1-2 UFC) held his own against the Khabib Nurmagomedov protégé. He frustrated Ulanbekov with airtight takedown defense, a persistent jab and some damaging dirty boxing. Those efforts, however, fell short. Ulanbekov countered effectively with both hands, piled up points with one-twos and stayed busy with close-range knees and elbows from the collar tie.
The 33-year-old Ulanbekov has rattled off four straight victories.
Finally, “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 30 winner Mohammed Usman rebounded from back-to-back losses to Mick Parkin and Thomas Petersen with a unanimous decision over the previously unbeaten Hamdy Abdelwahab in a three-round heavyweight tilt. All three judges scored it the same: 29-28 for Usman (11-4, 4-2 UFC).
Abdelwahab (6-1, 1-1 UFC) called upon punishing leg kicks and heavy one-twos throughout the first round, but his output dwindled noticeably over time. Usman capitalized on the inactivity, leaning into a steady jab—he targeted the body and head with equal aplomb—and occasional overhand rights. He staggered Abdelwahab with a right cross late in the third round, then pinned the onetime Olympian to the fence with punches to salt away the decision.
It was Usman’s first win in almost two years.
Repeated takedowns and a stifling ground game spurred the South Korean judoka to a clear-cut unanimous decision over Oban Elliott in the featured UFC on ABC 8 welterweight prelim on Saturday at Baku Crystal Hall in Baku, Azerbaijan. Ko (12-2, 1-0 UFC) swept the scorecards with matching 30-27 marks from the judges.
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Meanwhile, Korean Top Team export Jun Yong Park flexed his considerable resolve and laid claim to a hard-fought unanimous decision over Ismail Naurdiev in a foul-marred three-round middleweight clash. All three cageside judges sided with Park (19-6, 9-3 UFC): 29-26, 29-26 and 29-25.
Naurdiev (24-8, 3-3 UFC) was penalized two points for an illegal
knee strike in the second round and could never put the pieces back
together. Park wore down his Morocco-based counterpart with power
punches and tied a bow on his performance with a takedown in the
third round. He consolidated those efforts with suffocating top
control, multiple submission attempts and consistent
ground-and-pound.
The setback snapped a two-fight winning streak for Naurdiev.
Further down the undercard, MMA Factory’s Darya Zheleznyakova avenged a November 2022 defeat to Melissa Mullins with a unanimous decision over “No Mess” in their three-round women’s bantamweight rematch. Scores were 29-28, 30-27 and 30-27—all for Zheleznyakova (10-2, 2-1 UFC).
Related » UFC Baku Round-by-Round Scoring
Mullins (7-2, 2-2 UFC) rallied from an inauspicious start late in the first round, where she executed a takedown, climbed to full mount and nearly finished it with an armbar. Zheleznyakova survived and seized the reins in the middle stanza, as she doubled over the Brit with a left jab to the liver and swarmed with follow-up punches. She managed to maintain her pace across the final five minutes, thwarted a takedown with an egregious fence grab—she was warned but not penalized—and kept Mullins at bay with a potent jab and power punches from both hands.
Zheleznyakova has posted three victories over her past four outings.
Elsewhere, Ankos MMA rep Klaudia Sygula outstruck, outhustled and outmaneuvered the favored Irina Alekseeva to a unanimous decision in their three-round women’s bantamweight affair. Sygula (7-2, 1-1 UFC) drew 30-27 scores from all three judges, as she bounced back from a Nov. 9 technical knockout loss to the aforementioned Mullins.
Alekseeva (5-3, 1-2 UFC) was a step behind from start to finish. Sygula chipped away with leg kicks and sharp one-twos, often punctuating her combinations with clubbing overhand rights. The decorated Polish kickboxer wobbled Alekseeva with a backfist in the third round and executed a late takedown. From there, Sygula climbed to full mount and cut loose with ground-and-pound, increasing the intensity of her attack in the waning seconds.
Sygula, 26, has won seven of her past eight bouts.
Deeper into the prelims, former Gorilla Fighting Championship titleholder Tagir Ulanbekov moved another step closer to a Top 10 ranking at 125 pounds with a unanimous decision over Azat Maksum in a hypercompetitive three-round flyweight scrap. Ulanbekov (17-2, 6-1 UFC) swept the scorecards with 29-28, 30-27 and 30-27 marks from the assigned judiciary.
A late replacement for Kyoji Horiguchi, Maksum (15-2, 1-2 UFC) held his own against the Khabib Nurmagomedov protégé. He frustrated Ulanbekov with airtight takedown defense, a persistent jab and some damaging dirty boxing. Those efforts, however, fell short. Ulanbekov countered effectively with both hands, piled up points with one-twos and stayed busy with close-range knees and elbows from the collar tie.
The 33-year-old Ulanbekov has rattled off four straight victories.
Finally, “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 30 winner Mohammed Usman rebounded from back-to-back losses to Mick Parkin and Thomas Petersen with a unanimous decision over the previously unbeaten Hamdy Abdelwahab in a three-round heavyweight tilt. All three judges scored it the same: 29-28 for Usman (11-4, 4-2 UFC).
Abdelwahab (6-1, 1-1 UFC) called upon punishing leg kicks and heavy one-twos throughout the first round, but his output dwindled noticeably over time. Usman capitalized on the inactivity, leaning into a steady jab—he targeted the body and head with equal aplomb—and occasional overhand rights. He staggered Abdelwahab with a right cross late in the third round, then pinned the onetime Olympian to the fence with punches to salt away the decision.
It was Usman’s first win in almost two years.
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