Nursulton Ruziboev secured a first-round technical submission victory over Andrey Pulyaev at UFC Fight Night 280 on Saturday.
The middleweight bout took place at the National Gymnastics Arena in Baku, Azerbaijan.
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Ruziboev forced Pulyaev unconscious with a short choke at 3:58 of Round 1.
The win marked his 50th professional mixed martial arts fight and his 26th career first-round finish.
The fight began with Ruziboev taking the center of the cage. He caught a body kick from Pulyaev and executed a takedown.
Although Pulyaev returned to his feet against the fence, Ruziboev maintained a body lock, dragged him back down, and locked in both hooks to establish back control.
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After the bout, Ruziboev expressed his desire to face top-tier competition in the middleweight division during his post-fight interview with Michael Bisping.
"I'm 5-0 in the middleweight division," Ruziboev said. "I'm ready for anybody.
I want people from the rankings. I want people from the top of the rankings."
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The victory improves Ruziboev's professional record to 37-9-2 and 5-1 within the UFC. Pulyaev drops to 10-5 overall and 1-3 inside the octagon.
