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UFC Saudi Arabia: Michael ‘Venom’ Page ends Sharabutdin Magomedov’s undefeated reign


Page, who has spent the majority of his career at welterweight, fought Magomedov at middleweight for the first time since 2012.

He has one win and one defeat since joining the UFC last year and said he intends to move back down to welterweight but the chance to fight Magomedov was too good to pass up.

The Russian has won all 15 of his professional bouts, and went viral after a spectacular spinning backfist knockout in his last fight in October.

Chants for Magomedov greeted the start of the fight as noise levels rose with fans excited at the prospect of the bout between the two flamboyant strikers.

With both fighters looking to control distance, the early stages saw Magomedov attacking with leg kicks and Page looking to land some big right hands.

Page’s movement and counter-striking started to prove problematic for Magomedov with stats showing in the second round the Briton had landed 12 unanswered strikes to the head.

Page was finding a home for his jab while avoiding anything dangerous from Magomedov, prompting the Russian’s team to tell their fighter he had to “leave everything” in the final round.

An explosive flying knee from Page brought gasps from the crowd, before the Russian applied the late pressure as the final bell sounded.

After earning statement win and biggest of his short UFC career so far, Page hinted he could stay at middleweight.

“One thing I knew coming out was my body wouldn’t be used to this [weight]. I’ve got some work to do at 170lb – so watch out guys, because I’m coming,” added Page.


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