Abdul Razak Alhassan versus Jacob Malkoun showcased a matchup between two men looking to bounce back from disastrous knockout losses in their last fights. Those two defeats only last 48 seconds, combined. This one want much longer than that.
To start the fight, Malkoun said no thanks to a striking battle with a power puncher and pushed to get an early takedown. The former welterweight Alhassan was able to get back to the feet, and looked to end it quick by slinging bombs. The technique didn’t work and he eventually was taken back down four more times. “Mamba” did not do much damage but surely won the round. Credit to “Judo Thunder” for never accepting a mat war and working to get back up every single time.
The second started with a couple more flash takedowns for the Australian, with the second finally being the one where Malkoun was able to assert control on the mat. Several times Malkoun rinse and repeated the same technique of keeping his opponent grounded by threatening guillotine chokes, to force Alhassan to defend and return to his back. The 35-year-old keeps fighting but he has no answers for Malkoun’s grappling.
Another round and another wrestling war of attrition the Fortis MMA fighter had few responses for. The final decision was a no-brainer as Malkoun earned the unanimous decision win and bounced back from his 18-second knockout to loss Phil Hawes in October. He is now 4-1 as a professional and gets his first win as a member of the UFC roster. After winning three straight in the promotion, Alhassan has now racked up three straight Ls and moves to 4-4 in the UFC.
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