UFC Vegas 74 video: Muhammad Naimov flattens Jamie Mullarkey with one punch, wins as biggest underdog on card

Muhammad Naimov was understandably emotional after pulling off the biggest upset possible at UFC Vegas 74 after he flattened Jamie Mullarkey in the second round.

As a last minute replacement, the Tajikistan native was a massive underdog heading into Saturday night but he only needed a single right hand counter that dropped Mullarkey to the canvas to earn his first win inside the octagon. As soon as the shot landed, Mullarkey crumbled to the canvas and Naimov followed him to the ground with a few more shots as the referee rushed in to stop the contest.

The end came at 2:59 in the second round.

“The last three years have been a really hard time,” Naimov said afterwards. “Three years, I carried a lot of things in this sport. Today it pays off. A lot of people wait for this debut. Nobody believed I can beat this lightweight. Featherweight, you guys have a problem. You guys have a big problem.

“You guys have a new king. That short guy [Alexander Volkanovski], Max Holloway, forget about them. I’m here.”

Naimov, who previously appeared on Dana White’s Contender Series in 2020, looked extremely confident as he stood toe-to-toe with Mullarkey throughout the fight. It was a back and forth battle throughout with Naimov displaying a rock solid chin while firing back during every exchange with Mullarkey on the feet.

As the second round go started, Naimov really started to settle into his performance as he uncorked a beautiful spinning wheel kick that appeared just inches away from tagging Mullarkey on the top of the head. Perhaps that was the moment that made Mullarkey get a little more aggressive to close the distance but Naimov made him pay for it.

With Mullarkey coming forward, Naimov measured his counter right hook, which landed clean and helped the 28-year-old prospect earn his first UFC win.

Naimov also sent a message back to a huge number of fans in Tajikistan, who were celebrating his performance with the fight taking place past 4 a.m. local time.