Rinat Fakhretdinov earned the biggest victory of his career earlier tonight (Sat., July 1, 2023) at UFC Vegas 76 live on ESPN/ESPN+ from inside UFC Apex in Las Vegas, Nevada, when the talented welterweight prospect stopped a returning Kevin Lee with a first-round submission (guillotine choke).
Lee looked good and sounded good in advance to his Octagon return, but he was coming back against a straight killer in Fakhretdinov, who came into tonight with a 19-fight win streak. Needless to say, the odds were stacked against “Motown Phenom.”
With just under one minute down in the first round a right hand from Fakhretdinov sent Lee crashing to the canvas. Rinat followed up and quickly grabbed a hold of the guillotine choke. Lee stood up as Fakhretdinov cranked and eventually went to his knees and fell asleep. Unfortunately, it took referee Herb Dean a few more seconds than needed to see that Lee was out and stop the action.
Check out the final moments above courtesy of UFC/ESPN.
Fakhretdinov, 31, is now 3-0 under the bright lights of the Octagon and pushes his current overall win streak to 20. The Russian fighter looks to be a real problem at 170 pounds and should easily get a top 15 matchup after Saturday’s performance.
For complete UFC Vegas 76 results, coverage, and highlights click HERE.