Saturday’s UFC card at Meta Apex did not exactly end on a high note, but there were still some talking points worth mentioning.
In the main event, Mario Bautista managed to submit Vinicius Oliveira and showed that he is still a factor in the bantamweight division.
And that was not the only fight on the card to end by submission.
A familiar name in the same weight class as Bautista picked up an extra $100,000 by securing a finish just before the final bell.
Merab Dvalishvili says Muin Gafurov tapped after hearing the bell at UFC Vegas 113
Muin Gafurov was among the four fighters who missed weight ahead of UFC Vegas 113, resulting in a 25% purse penalty and a catchweight bout.
Jakub Wiklacz, coming off a split decision win over Patchy Mix in his debut, nearly had another close call, but this time the fight ended with controversy.
The bout ended with questions after it appeared that Gafurov tapped to a guillotine submission just before the final bell.
Reviewing the footage showed that he tapped right after giving a thumbs-up to the referee.
Wiklacz was already leading on the scorecards, but a submission victory would have at least secured him a $25,000 finish bonus.
Merab Dvalishvili, present in Gafurov’s corner, explained why his teammate tapped in a video shared on his Instagram story.
He said: “I’m here with Muin Gafurov at UFC Meta Apex. I was cornering him and I asked him, why did you tap?… He’s saying, first he said [he’s] good and then when he heard the bell, he tapped. It’s so unfortunate. Congratulations to Jakub, I don’t have nothing against him, he’s a good fighter. But that’s what my brother Muin is telling me. He never taps to a choke.”
Jakub Wiklacz’s betting habit did not let him down this time
Wiklacz was already well on his way to another win on the judges’ cards before things took a turn late in the fight.
He decided to go for the guillotine again, a move that had not worked for him in his debut. But this time, it paid off with a $100,000 bonus.
The commentary team had pointed out during the bout that Wiklacz often looks for that submission, even though it has not always paid off in the past.
This time though, it did. Dustin Poirier would appreciate seeing another fighter trust his instincts and get rewarded for it.
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