Road to UFC video: Jeka Saragih advances in tournament with spectacular spinning backfist knockout

Jeka Saragih made the biggest impression so far in the “Road to UFC” tournament.

The Indonesian fighter capped off a strong performance against Pawan Maan (7-3-1) on Episode 2 of Road to UFC with an amazing third-round spinning backfist knockout, a finish that advanced him to the semifinals of the lightweight bracket.

Watch the KO blow above.

As they grappled on the feet, Saragih made Maan pay for not creating separation by rapidly rotating and catching Maan with a loud backfist. Maan dropped to the canvas and Saragih landed a follow-up strike before the referee stepped in for the stoppage at the 2:24 mark of Round 3.

This is the fourth straight win for Saragih (12-2), who stepped in as a replacement for Ailiya Muratbek.

The first two Road to UFC events took place Thursday afternoon and evening local time at Singapore Indoor Stadium and featured opening round flyweight, bantamweight, featherweight, and lightweight tournament action, as well as non-tournament bouts. Tournament finalists will compete for a UFC contract at an upcoming Fight Night event with a date still to be determined.

Episode 1 also featured an impressive knockout as Zhang Mingyang (16-6) defeated Bellator and Fury FC veteran George Tokkos (7-3) in a light heavyweight bout. Zhang dropped with a huge right hand before landing a couple of unnecessary shots before the first-round stoppage.

Watch more highlights and see full results for Road to UFC Episodes 1 and 2 below:

Episode 1:

Featherweight quarterfinal

Yi Zha def. Keisuke Sasu via submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:14 of Round 1

Lightweight quarterfinal

WonBin Ki def. Jinnosuke Kashimura via TKO (strikes) at 4:45 of Round 1

Bantamweight quarterfinal

Toshiomi Kazama def. Maimaitituoheti Keremuaili via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)

Flyweight quarterfinal

SeungGuk Choi def. Rama Supandhi via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Non-tournament bout

Zhang Mingyang def. Tuco Tokkos via KO (punches) at 3:57 of Round 1

Episode 2:

Featherweight quarterfinal

Koyomi Matsushima def. JunYoung Hong via split decision (28-29, 30-27, 30-27)

Flyweight quarterfinal

Qui Lun def. Wallen Del Rosario via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Lightweight quarterfinal

Jeka Saragih def. Pawan Maan via KO (spinning backfist) at 2:24 of Round 3

Non-tournament bout

Takeru Uchida def. Shaun Etchell by submission (rear-naked choke) at 3:26 of Round 1