Toshiomi Kazama scored a huge win earlier tonight (Sat., Aug. 10, 2024) at UFC Vegas 95 live on ESPN/ESPN+ from inside UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada, stunning bantamweight prospect Charalampos Grigoriou with an impressive triangle choke off his back in the second round.
Grigoriou was the pre-fight favorite as Kazama had been finished in each of his previous two UFC appearances. The Japanese fighter has shown a suspect chin and most thought Grigoriou’s power would play a large role in the early going. It did.
The first round was a back-and-forth affair, but you could tell Grigoriou was doing the most damage. He carried his momentum into the second round and scored a big-time knockdown with a brutal left hand. Grigoriou went to work landing heavy ground-and-pound. Unfortunately, Kazama was able to weather the storm. Grigoriou eventually tired and it allowed Kazama to lock up the comeback stoppage.
Check out the final moments above.
Kazama, 27, came into this main card opening riding that two-fight losing streak so it was basically a must-win for “The Silent Finisher.” He was getting busted up pretty good and a case can be made that the referee could have stopped the fight, but Kazama kept moving and dug deep to earn his come-from-behind stoppage over Grigoriou.
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