Krzysztof Jotko Conquers Middleweight Tourney Atop Oktagon 82

Krzysztof
Jotko would not be denied.

Stuffed to the rafters of the PSD Bank Dome in Dusseldorf, Germany,
some 15,000 spectators bore witness to the speedy conclusion of the
Czech Republic-based league’s middleweight tournament. The
185-pound Ultimate Fighting Championship veteran put a
stamp on the Oktagon MMA 16-man grand prix on Saturday. Only one of
the two athletes engaged for a bit over three-and-a-half minutes,
as Jotko (29-6, 1 NC) chased the retreating Kerim
Engizek (24-5) around the cage for much of that time.
Eventually getting hold of his foe’s back, Jotko procured the
rear-naked choke and did not let go until the champ
surrendered.

Engizek failed to engage for the majority of the encounter, and one
lone half-hearted takedown attempt was met by the stonewalling
Jotko, who took full advantage of the situation. In the blink of an
eye, Jotko assumed back control and finished the submission, with
Engizek hardly throwing a strike for the three minutes, 37 seconds
that the match lasted. The victor promptly breakdanced around the
cage before hoisting the tremendous trophy in the air joined by his
American Top Team comrades.

The Polish tournament winner halted Engizek’s 10-year, 17-fight win
streak in a flash, and claimed his first submission triumph since a
tapout of Fabian
Loewke in 2012. Jotko collected 300K euros for his handiwork,
and confetti showered the cage as the event came to a close. In
victory, Jotko suggested a rematch could be in order, as Engizek
came into this match nursing an injury so significant that some
pondered if he would be able to compete at all.

Here’s Gjoni

Featherweight contender Gjoni
Palokaj (13-3) is nothing if not consistent. For all six of his
Oktagon appearances, the German has won a clean sweep on all
judges’ scorecards. This includes tonight’s outing, as he edged
James
Hendin (10-4) every round in a battle decided not by major
moments but small mistakes. Palokaj outstruck his foe by a fair
margin on the feet, and did not allow the Brit to turn his
takedowns into success.

Even though Hendin kept it relatively close and won over some
hearts and minds with his walkout of Boney M.’s “Daddy Cool,” there
remained zero doubt as to the victor when the dust settled. Palokaj
claimed a trio of 30-27 scores, and called his shot for not an
opponent but to compete again in his native Germany.

Rysavy Silences ‘El Pistolero’

Karol
Rysavy (15-10) slugged a beer on the top of the cage after
snatching up a slick guillotine choke on Deniz Ilbay
(8-3) towards the end of the first round. The third time proved to
be the charm, as the longtime Oktagon vet put a bit of green on a
ledger that had otherwise run red as of late. The shorter Ilbay
showed plenty of success on the feet, knocking the taller man’s
head around as Rysavy’s chin stayed far too high for his own
liking.

During an exchange, Ilbay pressed the featherweight to the fence
only to get snared in the guillotine from his opponent. The bearded
“Bomby” promptly jumped guard, and locked the submission down
before they hit the ground. “El Pistolero” immediately tapped, and
ended up leaving the cage in frustration as Rysavy celebrated. The
tap came at 3:49 of the first round, with the victorious Rysavy
welcoming fans to watch him fight in his home country of Slovakia
when the promotion travels there in June.

Dangerous Dulatov Delivers

Racing out of his corner like his hair was on fire, Tamerlan
Dulatov (4-0) ran through Stefan
Koncar (4-1) in less than a round. Stinging the then-unbeaten
Koncar with massive swings, “Most Wanted” Dulatov ran through a
book of submissions including a Suloev stretch and a deep
rear-naked choke. When Koncar briefly reversed position, the German
slapped on a triangle choke.

“The Butcher” survived the triangle, but could not get out of
position to prevent Dulatov’s transition to a textbook armbar. As
Dulatov cranked the limb with all his might, referee Josef Louc
intervened at 4:46 of Round 1 when registering that Koncar tapped.
Earning his BJJ brown belt for his performance in this 180-pound
catchweight contest, a fired-up Dulatov refused to shake hands with
his defeated foe and instead demanded an apology for their
pre-fight trash talk.

‘Sagat’ Soars Again

A wellspring of experience and pinpoint accurate striking overcame
youthful exuberance as the main card opener displayed 15 minutes of
action. Ex-UFC striker David
Zawada (20-12) registered a knockdown in the first round, and
his aggressive forward pressure got the better of the younger
Daniel
Ligocki (5-3). The 28-year-old came in on short notice to keep
the middleweight tournament reserve match intact, with the winner
ready on standby in case the main event fell through—although it
did not.

With “Sagat” winning the opening round and Ligocki taking the
second on the open scorecards, the three voting members were split
as two dropped 29-28 tallies for Zawada against one 29-28 for the
Czech athlete. The Dusseldorf native righted the ship after a
three-fight skid, picking up his first victory since 2024 and just
his third at the hands of the judges.

Mohsen Defangs Bark in Oktagon 82 Prelim Headliner

Zafar
Mohsen (14-4, 1 NC) capped off the preliminaries by outhustling
featherweight Samuel Bark
(13-3) to pick up the nod on all three scorecards (29-28, 29-28,
30-27); Kamil
Oniszczuk (12-5) earned his BJJ brown belt by putting Marek Bartl
(16-15) to sleep with an arm-triangle choke in Round 2 at the 4:32
mark; Tomas
Ciganik (7-3) wrapped up a rear-naked choke on fellow 155er
Maurice
Adorf (6-4) to hand the striker his first submission defeat at
4:11 of the opening frame; Lightweight Altin
Zenuni (3-0) battered Murat
Tuysuz (5-1) with his fists to force referee Gerd Richter to
step in at 2:44 of the second stanza; Patrik
Sebek (3-0) outgrappled a bloodied Emir-Can Al
(2-3) en route to a unanimous verdict (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) at
welterweight; kicking off the prelims in a 173-pound catchweight
match, Arian
Sadikovic (2-0) whittled down Jixie
Molapo (1-2) and put him away with a barrage of punches at 0:38
of the second round.