Abdul-Aziz Abdulvakhabov (14-1) successfully defended his ACB Lightweight title when he defeated Ali Bagov (22-10) by corner stoppage after the first round at ACB 48 in Moscow, Russia this evening.
In a rematch of their 2014 bout, which was won by Abdulvakhabov, Bagov would try to continue his nine fight winning streak to take the title from the last person to defeat him.
“Hulk” was the aggressor at the start of round one going for an immediate takedown however Abdulvakhabov countered to land in Bagov’s guard. They both were very active working very fluid chain wrestling and beautiful transitions until Bagov came out on top and into mount.
He unsuccessfully tried to look for a guillotine but reigned in punches to the face and body of Abdulvakhabov beore forcing him to escape another submission attempt with a RNC.
Bagov seemed to be in control however he allowed Abdulvakhabov to shake him off and take top position with 90 seconds to go. “Lion” used this to his full advantage landing thunderous elbows and punches before moving to side control. He continued to land hard elbows to Bagov’s head until the buzzer sounded to end round one.
While in the corner between rounds, Bagov pointed to his ear and was signalling to his corner he may have a problem. With the referee signalling the fighters up for the second round, Bagov waved off the fight giving Abdulvakhabov the victory by way of TKO via corner stoppage
Askarov puts on classy performance to claim flyweight title
In the co-main event, Askar Askarov (8-0) defeated Brazilian opponent Jose Marie Tome (35-8) with an Anaconda Choke in the final round to stretch his undefeated record to 8 wins and capture the vacant ACB Flyweight title.
In round one, “No Chance” showed a lot of unorthodox movement to try and confuse Askarov and disrupt his gameplan however Askarov stayed patient before landing two big takedowns and taking the back where he attempted to secure a RNC. Tome continuosly fought off the attempts but was uncomfortable as Askarov landed big left hands to end the round.
In the second and third round, Askarov implemented his gameplan perfectly working a stiff jab and hard leg kicks to chip away at Tome. He landed takedowns in both rounds and enjoyed long periods in top control where he smothered and pressured Tome while staying patient and opening up a cut under the left eye of “No Chance” ending round three far ahead on the scorecards.
After more of the same in round four, Tome came out looking for something big in the final round of the fight. He went looking for a takedown but Askarov blocked it and kept the fight standing. The pivitol moment of the fight came when Askarov landed a big right uppercut which dropped Tome and allowed the Russian to lock in the Anaconda Choke to win via submission in round five.
Askarov, who is partially deaf since birth and only retains 20% hearing, became the ACB Flyweight champion and became one to watch in the world of MMA in the division as he stays undefeated.
Highlights from earlier bouts include Max Nunes who after a year out made a slow start before scoring a come from behind victory, stopping Maxim Futin in the third round when the referee had to stop the fight after Nunes opened up a grotesque cut on the forehead of Futin. The doctor ruled Futin could not continue giving the Swede the win on his ACB debut.
ACB 48 Revenge Results
The fight for the ACB lightweight title:
Abdul-Aziz Abdulvakhabov (c) def. Ali Bagov via TKO (fighter injury) in round 1
The fight for the ACB flyweighttitle:
Askar Askarov (c) def. Jose Maria Tome via submission (anaconda choke) in round 3
Main fights
Michail Tsarev def. Shamil Abdulkhalikov via submission (Triangle) in round 1
Benny Alloway def. Sergei Khandozhko via submission (RNC) in round 3
Max Nunes def. Maxim Futin via TKO (ref stoppage) in round 3
Amirkhan Adae def. Marcio Breno Rodrigues Braga via unanimous decision
Preliminary fights
Mukhamed Berkhamov def. Jesse Taylor via submission (armbar) in round 1
Abdul-Rahman Dzhanaev def. Vasily Novikov by unanimous decision
Stanislav Vlasenko def. Andrei Ciubotaru via unanimous decision
Mukhomad Vakhaev def. Sergei Bilostenniy via submission (RNC) in round 1
Ruslan Albitarov def. Marcin Lasota on points via unanimous decision
Denis Kanakov def. Abdul-Rakhman Makhadzhiev in Round 2 via referee stoppage
