“This is my house,” proclaimed the UFC’s newest signing and kickboxing legend Gökhan Saki after he scored a brutal knockout over Henrique da Silva at UFC Fight Night 117 in Saitama, Japan.
Saki, 33, joined the UFC in May and was originally expected to fight on the promotion’s Rotterdam event, seeing as it was so close to his birthplace of Schiedam. For whatever reason, the UFC pulled the plug on that, instead deciding to field Saki at the Saitama Super Arena on September 23.
Going into the Fight Night Japan event, there were obvious questions over the credentials of Saki. Of course, he was an elite kickboxer, having fought amongst the best of the sport’s ‘golden era’, but it was his time off which was the problem. Not only had he not fought competitively since April 2015, but his last MMA bout was more than a decade ago.
https://twitter.com/UFCEurope/status/911427225336999936
Gökhan Saki scores brutal knockout over Henrique da Silva
In the end, the inactiveness of Saki seemed irrelevant. The “Turkish Tyson” looked strong against da Silva — who was on a three-fight losing streak — and the former K-1 and GLORY star continually landed a heavy barrage of stiff left hands and high kicks, a combination which dropped the Brazilian early on.
It wasn’t exactly a walk in the park for Saki though, da Silva held his own inside the cage and even hurt his opponent prior to the finishing exchange. The end seemed to come out of nowhere, as da Silva forced Saki onto the cage wall, but like a caged animal the kickboxing legend came out swinging and landed a right hand, followed by a devastating left hook, which sent an unconscious da Silva tumbling to the canvas at the 4:45 mark of round one.
Now 1-1 in his professional MMA career, Saki’s performance in Japan showcased the potential of his UFC run. His success, however, will largely be determined by whether or not his opponents can take him down. For now, the UFC must protect him if they wish to build his legitimacy, meaning we should expect plenty more highlight-reel finishes from him in the near future.
