Returning himself to the winner’s enclosure, Suriname kickboxing talent, Jairzinho Rozenstruik handed Dagestan-born contender, Shamil Gaziev his first professional loss in their UFC Vegas 87 main event clash tonight — forcing a fourth round corner’s stoppage TKO win — with the Bahrain newcomer appearing to signal his intentions of missing a fifth and final round start.
Rozenstruik, the current number twelve ranked heavyweight contender, made his return to the Apex facility tonight where he has previously headlined for the promotion — turning in his first victory since a blsitering 23-second KO win over Chris Daukaus.
As for Gaziev, the former Brave CF contender made his Octagon debut late last year with a knockout win over Martin Buday, following a successful outing on Dana White’s Contender Series.
And fast-tracked to a main event fight in just his sophomore outing under the organization’s banner, Gaziev struggled early with the timing and fast hands of experienced striker, Jairzinho Rozenstruik, who also managed to defend numerous laborious takedown attempts from the Russian-born contender.
Turning up the heat in the fourth frame, Jairzinho Rozenstruik almost forced the issue against a clearly frustrated Gaziev — forcing the latter against the fence before the buzzer with a fierce and frenzied striking combination.
And ahead of the slated start of a fifth and final round, Gaziev argued with his corner in his native language, appearing less than interested in competing further tonight.
With referee, Marc Goddard ordering translations from his chief cornerman, Gaziev allegedly claimed he was struggling with his vision, with the official waving off the fight after instructing the Octagon-side physician to check on the unbeaten former — resulting in a TKO win for striking veteran, Rozenstruik.