Ramazan Kuramagomedov Outlasts Shamil Musaev to Seize Welterweight Gold – PFL Dubai Highlights
Ramazan Kuramagomedov outworked Shamil Musaev to keep his ‘O’ intact and claim gold in the PFL Dubai co-main event.
Aside from an accidental low blow to Kuramagomedov just past the halfway point of round one, the story of the stanza was Kuramagomedov’s unrelenting pressure. That trend continued into the second as Musaev simply had no answer for the methodical grappling of his countryman.
Kuramagomedov scored an early takedown in the third, keeping Musaev on the mat for the majority of the round. Musaev slowly worked his way toward the fence, but his progress was halted after Kuramagomedov took his back, locking in a body triangle before securing a rear-naked choke.
However, Musaev was nowhere near ready to quit as the top-ranked welterweight turned into the position, gaining top control and finishing the round on top of Kuramagomedov.
That moment of resiliency appeared to be a turning point in the fight, as Musaev largely dominated the fourth round and landed some big shots on Kuramagomedov against the fence. Unfortunately, much of Musaev’s success was stifled after he threw an illegal knee while Kuramagomedov was technically down. That prompted referee ‘Big’ John McCarthy to pause the action and deduct a point from Musaev.
Going into the fifth and final round, recognizing he needed a stoppage, Musaev wasted no time getting Kuramagomedov to the mat with a slick inside trip near the cage. Unfortunately for Musaev, his gas tank started to wane in the final minutes of the fight, allowing Kuramagomedov to grind out a decision victory and collect his first PFL world title.
Official Result: Ramazan Kuramagomedov def. Shamil Musaev via unanimous decision (48-46, 48-46, 48-46) to win the PFL welterweight world championship.
