UFC and Strikeforce veteran Adlan Amagov was involved in a shootout in Moscow that left two dead and six injured, authorities said. On Monday night, two clashing Chechen clans, the Khalidovs and the Baysurovs, engaged in a deadly shootout that involved Amagov, who retired from competition back in 2013 only to recently return at a Russian […]
UFC and Strikeforce veteran Adlan Amagov was involved in a shootout in Moscow that left two dead and six injured, authorities said.
On Monday night, two clashing Chechen clans, the Khalidovs and the Baysurovs, engaged in a deadly shootout that involved Amagov, who retired from competition back in 2013 only to recently return at a Russian regional show last year.
Amagov, siding with the Khalidov clan, allegedly stabbed and hospitalized fellow MMA fighter 19-year-old Timur Baysurov during the shootout. Amagov’s victim sustained a stab wound to the chest, and he was rushed to an intensive care unit at a nearby hospital in serious condition, according to authorities.
Five others were seriously wounded in the melee, and two others are confirmed to be dead.
Reports from Russia claim that the Khalidov’s and the Baysurovs’ had met in Western Moscow to discuss a business deal between the two clans, which apparently went south quickly and devolved into mayhem shortly after.
Magomed Khalidov, leader of the Khalidov clan, is the owner of the ‘Grand’ and ‘Three Pillars’ furniture centers, while rival Ruslan Baysurov is the CEO of Intro Energy. The two men, flanked by their associates, met at Krylasky Hill in Moscow Monday night for a meeting regarding the redistribution of a shared business between the two.
Authorities say when a deal could not be reached, the two groups resorted to violence, leading to the deadly shootout.
Moscow police are currently investigating the shootout that as of today left two dead and six injured, and have filed a criminal case for murder and the illegal transfer of firearms.
Amagov first broke out in North America during his stint in Strikeforce, where the welterweight went 3-1, with his lone defeat coming at the hands (or knee, rather) of Robbie Lawler. He signed with the UFC after Strikeforce was bought and absorbed by Zuffa, where he went 2-0 with one brutal knockout victory over TJ Waldburger.
After a three-year hiatus, Amagov returned to competition and won by first round armlock in a mixed-rules Sambo bout. The Chechen was a highly-regarded welterweight prospect at the time of his initial retirement from the sport. Amagov had compiled a 13-2-1 record, but had abruptly retired from the sport back in 2013.
While it was speculated that his retirement had to do with religious reasons (Amagov is a practicing Muslim), he later stated he had grown tired of the weight cuts and the demands it placed on his body.
No word has arrived on any charges Amagov might be facing.
Though he was considering a drop to featherweight following his recent submission win over Evan Dunham at UFC 167, Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone will remain at lightweight for his next Octagon appearance, which will take place at UFC on FOX 10: Henderson vs. Thomson (January 25th, Chicago), just two months after his last fight. It was confirmed over the weekend that Cerrone will face Adriano Martins, a Brazilian veteran and former BJJ world champion who won his UFC debut at UFC Fight Night 32 with a Submission of the Night-earning armbar of Daron Cruickshank.
Prior to the Cruickshank win, Martins scored a decision win against Jorge Gurgel at Strikeforce’s final show in January. Those are fairly impressive victories for a fresh UFC prospect, but a meeting with Cerrone is a major step up in competition. We wouldn’t go as far as to call it a squash match, but it’s certainly an unexpected booking for Cowboy, who has consistently faced well-known opponents throughout his UFC career. Still, it’s unlikely that you’ll hear him complain about it. The man loves to fight, and he has to pay for bull-feed somehow.
Though he was considering a drop to featherweight following his recent submission win over Evan Dunham at UFC 167, Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone will remain at lightweight for his next Octagon appearance, which will take place at UFC on FOX 10: Henderson vs. Thomson (January 25th, Chicago), just two months after his last fight. It was confirmed over the weekend that Cerrone will face Adriano Martins, a Brazilian veteran and former BJJ world champion who won his UFC debut at UFC Fight Night 32 with a Submission of the Night-earning armbar of Daron Cruickshank.
Prior to the Cruickshank win, Martins scored a decision win against Jorge Gurgel at Strikeforce’s final show in January. Those are fairly impressive victories for a fresh UFC prospect, but a meeting with Cerrone is a major step up in competition. We wouldn’t go as far as to call it a squash match, but it’s certainly an unexpected booking for Cowboy, who has consistently faced well-known opponents throughout his UFC career. Still, it’s unlikely that you’ll hear him complain about it. The man loves to fight, and he has to pay for bull-feed somehow.
In other booking news…
Part of the new wave of Russian fighters who have been wrecking shit in the UFC this year, welterweight Adlan Amagov will return to action at UFC Fight Night 35: Rockhold vs. Philippou (January 15th; Duluth, GA) where he’ll face Jason High. Amagov went 2-0 in the UFC in 2013, with wins over Chris Spang and TJ Waldburger, while High is riding his own two-fight win streak in the Octagon, most recently dominating Anthony Lapsley to a unanimous decision victory at UFC 167.
Filed under: StrikeforceHope you enjoyed your free preview weekend of Showtime in all its MMA-tastic glory. Strikeforce: Rockhold vs. Jardine went down more or less exactly as expected on Saturday night, with every favorite notching a victory and every…
Hope you enjoyed your free preview weekend of Showtime in all its MMA-tastic glory. Strikeforce: Rockhold vs. Jardine went down more or less exactly as expected on Saturday night, with every favorite notching a victory and every underdog taking a beating that was almost perfectly in line with how long their odds of success were.
With the event over and the Showtime preview curtain drawn closed, it’s time once again to sort through the action in search of the biggest winners, losers, and everything in between.
Biggest Winner: Luke Rockhold
He took a tough situation and made it look easy. Granted, a win over Keith Jardine doesn’t mean what it did five years ago, but you can’t complain about a first-round knockout. Rockhold was calm when he needed to be and ruthlessly aggressive when he saw his opening. He looked like a champion, in other words. His appeal for the UFC to send him some challengers was also a pretty savvy move. Zuffa won’t bring him over to the big show? Then let the big show come to him. Framing it that way lets the fans know that he wants bigger challenges just as badly as they want to see him challenged, but without alienating his employers in the process. For now, Strikeforce could match him against either Tim Kennedy or Robbie Lawler without eliciting too many groans, but if Rockhold keeps winning that talent pool is going to become a puddle very quickly.
Biggest Loser: Adlan Amagov
It looks bad enough when you wind up and hit a guy with a very illegal knee early in the first round. It looks even worse when that same guy comes right back at you with a very legal knee that floors you en route to a quick finish. Amagov seemed to be doing well against Lawler in the opening seconds, but that flagrant foul halted his momentum and only made Lawler mad. Then Amagov found out for himself what it’s like to be on the business end of a Lawler blitz. Strikeforce seemed hot on the young Russian coming into this bout, and that enthusiasm was not entirely unfounded. But this loss shows that he’s still in need of a little more seasoning — and maybe a primer on the unified rules — before he’s ready for the big fights.
Most Predictable: Keith Jardine
Again, you can’t blame Jardine for stepping up and taking his shot when Strikeforce offered — what’s he supposed to say, ‘Thanks, but I don’t deserve it’? — but the rest of us saw this coming. Jardine’s toughness has never been a question, but his skills have eroded with age. So has his chin. As nice a guy as Jardine is, we’ve got to be honest and admit that he’d done nothing to justify a title shot. Yes, he’s had a full, interesting career. And sure, anything can happen in a fight. At least, theoretically. At the same time, just because a given outcome is not impossible that does not make it likely. ‘Anything can happen’ is what you tell yourself when you’re about to do something that you know is a bad idea. It’s a way of reassuring yourself that while failure may be likely, it’s not guaranteed. That’s fine for some pursuits, like buying a lottery ticket. But maybe it’s not the right way to go about booking title fights.
Most Impressive in Defeat: Tyler Stinson
When the fight stayed standing, he had Tarec Saffiedine looking worried and confused. It was just when it hit the mat that Stinson seemed woefully out of his element. If he had better takedown defense or even just more of a sense of urgency about getting off his back, maybe this one would have gone a different way. Instead, he came off looking like a decent prospect with some obvious holes in his game. That’s not the worst thing that can happen. Saffiedine is a good fighter who’s struggled less with bigger names, so Stinson can take some minor solace in that. He can also get back in the gym and improve his wrestling, and then maybe the next time he gets a shot like this he’ll earn more than just a moral victory.
Least Impressive in Victory: Tyron Woodley
If you’ve been waiting for Woodley to develop into something more than just a wrestler with perfunctory ground-and-pound, your wait continues. He had little trouble taking Jordan Mein down and keeping him there, but once on top he seemed to put it in cruise control. Woodley’s ground attack appears designed solely to avoid stand-ups and submissions. Anything else — say, I don’t know, damaging his opponent in search of a finish — is a bonus. There were very few bonuses to be had against Mein, and so Woodley contented himself with staying on top and out of harm’s way. That’s smart, in a way, and it resulted in a decision victory. But as far as career advancement goes, it’s maybe not the best strategy. Woodley is 10-0 in his three years as a pro, which means he ought to be able to do a little more than just wrestle at this point. This fight was a great opportunity for him to show off a more well-rounded game, or at least a little more aggression once he had the fight where he wanted it. He took the cautious approach instead, and fans surely took note.
Most Passionately Compassionate: Mo Lawal
After knocking out Lorenz Larkin with a torrent of rapid-fire right hands, Lawal’s biggest concern seemed to be the lack of concern displayed by referee Kim Winslow. He seemed disgusted with how long she allowed the beating to continue and could even be heard on the broadcast chiding her for it as they stood awaiting the official announcement. Winslow claimed she wanted to give Larkin the chance to show he was still in it, but this was after he’d already been knocked out of it and then briefly back in again. Apparently Lawal doesn’t like being forced to hurt his fellow man more than is absolutely necessary, which is strange, considering his stated goal of ending “Feijao” Cavalcante’s career in a rematch. Let’s hope Winslow isn’t the ref for that one.
Strangest Sight: Mauro Ranallo interviewing Dana White
A year ago it would have been difficult to imagine a Strikeforce broadcast punctuated by a cageside interview with the UFC president. And now there he is, standing alongside the voice of MMA on Showtime, doing an interview that is noticeably less enthusiastic than the screaming pre-fight pitches he’s used to doing with Joe Rogan. In fairness, this time White didn’t have a pay-per-view to sell, but neither did he look terribly happy about his camera time. I guess some things you do because you want to, and other things you do because you have to. For White, all things Strikeforce seem to fall into the latter category.
In a disturbing instance of foreshadowing, Scott Coker waits way too long to intervene. Props: Five Ounces of Pain
We’ll be honest: It’s getting pretty hard to write Strikeforce aftermath articles anymore. With a Strikeforce event, you already know that the favorite is going to win. You already know that the champions have run out of legitimate challengers. Every aftermath piece we’ve written for a Strikeforce event since the UFC’s acquisition of the organization demonstrates this. Essentially, the organization is going through the motions, yet we have to find a way to write something original about it.
Heading into Rockhold vs. Jardine, it was pretty clear that the organization was giving Jardine a title shot out of convenience. He was healthy, available and had a name that fans recognized. Because Strikeforce isn’t planning on growing as an organization, those qualifications were enough to earn him a title shot against Middleweight Champion Luke Rockhold, despite never having competed at middleweight before. The fight didn’t come off as a legitimate title fight- it came off as a litmus test for Rockhold.
Keith Jardine gave us the same performance that we’ve come to expect from him. His awkward movement and looping punches seemed to confuse Rockhold at first, but once Luke Rockhold managed to figure out Jardine’s style he controlled the fight. While looking like a guy who hadn’t weighed 185 pounds since the ninth grade didn’t help Keith Jardine’s cause, it’s hard to imagine that a less fatigued Dean of Mean would have done significantly better. Luke Rockhold is the younger, more diverse fighter. Jardine is the same fighter that had been figured out years ago, except now he’s in the twilight of his career. A prospect that’s ready for the big leagues can beat an opponent like Keith Jardine, and that’s exactly what Rockhold did.
In a disturbing instance of foreshadowing, Scott Coker waits way too long to intervene. Props: Five Ounces of Pain
We’ll be honest: It’s getting pretty hard to write Strikeforce aftermath articles anymore. With a Strikeforce event, you already know that the favorite is going to win. You already know that the champions have run out of legitimate challengers. Every aftermath piece we’ve written for a Strikeforce event since the UFC’s acquisition of the organization demonstrates this. Essentially, the organization is going through the motions, yet we have to find a way to write something original about it.
Heading into Rockhold vs. Jardine, it was pretty clear that the organization was giving Jardine a title shot out of convenience. He was healthy, available and had a name that fans recognized. Because Strikeforce isn’t planning on growing as an organization, those qualifications were enough to earn him a title shot against Middleweight Champion Luke Rockhold, despite never having competed at middleweight before. The fight didn’t come off as a legitimate title fight- it came off as a litmus test for Rockhold.
Keith Jardine gave us the same performance that we’ve come to expect from him. His awkward movement and looping punches seemed to confuse Rockhold at first, but once Luke Rockhold managed to figure out Jardine’s style he controlled the fight. While looking like a guy who hadn’t weighed 185 pounds since the ninth grade didn’t help Keith Jardine’s cause, it’s hard to imagine that a less fatigued Dean of Mean would have done significantly better. Luke Rockhold is the younger, more diverse fighter. Jardine is the same fighter that had been figured out years ago, except now he’s in the twilight of his career. A prospect that’s ready for the big leagues can beat an opponent like Keith Jardine, and that’s exactly what Rockhold did.
Still, don’t expect Luke Rockhold’s next fight to be in the UFC. The UFC’s middleweight division already has challengers waiting for Anderson Silva- they don’t need to rush him out of the minors just yet. Besides, Strikeforce still has a legitimate challenger for Rockhold in the form of Tim Kennedy. If he can get past an opponent of Kennedy’s caliber, then expect him to earn a call up.
It was good to watch Robbie Lawler get back in the win column last night, as expected. After eating an illegal knee from Amagov, Lawler responded with a devastating flying knee of his own. While Lawler may not be getting a call up any time soon, he is always an exciting fighter to watch. On the other end of the spectrum, King Mo’s brutal knockout over Lorenz Larkin may have earned him a call up. Aside from a rematch with Rafael Cavalcante, there aren’t any compelling fights left for King Mo in Strikeforce. He’s demonstrated that he’s capable of surviving in the big leagues. Plus, his ongoing beef with Rampage Jackson makes for a compelling matchup.
Also of note, exactly one year after their first meeting, Tyron Woodley and Tarec Saffiedine more than likely set themselves up for a rematch against each other. Both men outworked their opponents en route to a split decision victory. While Woodley arguably should have won by unanimous decision, Saffiedine fought a much closer bout with Tyler Stinson, being caught early but managing to take control in the second and third rounds. Time will tell if this rematch will be for the vacant Strikeforce Welterweight title as well.
Main Bouts (on Showtime):
-Luke Rockhold def. Keith Jardine by TKO (strikes) at 4:26, R1
-Robbie Lawler def. Adlan Amagov by TKO (knee and strikes) at 1:48, R1
-Muhammed “King Mo” Lawal def. Lorenz Larkin by TKO (strikes) at 1:32, R2
-Tyron Woodley def. Jordan Mein by split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)
-Tarec Saffiedine def. Tyler Stinson by split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)
Preliminary Bouts (on Sho Extreme): -Nah-Shon Burrell def. James Terry by split decision (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)
-Gian Villante def. Trevor Smith by TKO (punches) at 1:05, R1
-Ricky Legere def. Chris Spang by unanimous decision (29-28 on all cards)
-Estevan Payan def. Alonzo Martinez by unanimous decision (30-27 on all cards)
Filed under: Strikeforce, NewsRobbie Lawler knocked out Adlan Amagov in the first round of one of the strangest fights you’ll ever see on Saturday night, one in which Amagov committed a blatantly illegal knee to the head, then got finished thanks to a …
Robbie Lawler knocked out Adlan Amagov in the first round of one of the strangest fights you’ll ever see on Saturday night, one in which Amagov committed a blatantly illegal knee to the head, then got finished thanks to a legal knee to the head from Lawler.
When the fight started, Amagov seemed to surprise Lawler by going for a takedown. That takedown was successful, but Amagov then landed a blatantly illegal knee to Lawler’s head on the ground, leading to a point deduction for Amagov.
After Lawler got a moment to compose himself and the fight re-started, he charged forward with a flying knee that appeared to only graze Amagov’s head — but which was enough to knock Amagov down, face-first. Lawler jumped on Amagov and bashed him with punches, and referee Steve Mazzagatti stepped in to stop the fight.
“I’m happy to win. I’m going to go back to the drawing board, work on my skills and look to knock people out in 2012,” Lawler said afterward.
Lawler is off to a good start on that front — his knockout victory over Amagov was impressive, even if it was also an early contender for one of the oddest fights of the year.
Hope you enjoyed your free preview weekend of Showtime in all its 
Robbie Lawler