Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) Middleweight talents Shara Magomedov and Antonio Trocoli battled earlier tonight (Sat. June 22, 2024) live on ABC inside Kingdom Arena in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. In a decisive win, Magomedov picked apart his opponent en route to a third-round stoppage.
This bout was never too competitive. From the first bell, Magomedov’s massive speed advantage and wild kicking game kept in him in relative control. Trocoli landed a couple right hands and worked for the takedown, but he just couldn’t drag the Russian to the floor. Meanwhile, the damage quickly built for Magomedov, who really targeted the lead leg and body of his opponent.
There was, however, one major moment of controversy in the second. Magomedov was firmly in control of the fight, but Trocoli finally got deep on a takedown attempt. Just as he went to execute a clinch trip, Magomedov blatantly grabbed the fence to keep himself upright. Referee Marc Goddard acknowledged the fence grab, but he didn’t take a point or award Trocoli top position.
If Trocoli had an chance remaining, it evaporated there. He was exhausted by the third, and Magomedov forced the finish by teeing off with a flurry as his foe leaned along the fence.
Check out the highlight clips below:
Shara Bullet knocks out Antonio Tricoli pic.twitter.com/nQ8b9YdrKK
— MMA Mania (@mmamania) June 22, 2024
After the win, Magomedov improves to 2-0 inside the Octagon and has now scored his first finish in the promotion. A few people are complaining about the fence grab, but most will move on, because the Russian did dominate about every second of this fight. It’s an unfortunate asterisk mark, but “Shara Bullet” undoubtedly moves on to bigger challenges next.
For complete UFC Saudi Arabia results, coverage, and highlights, click HERE.