Levan Chokheli got the first finish of the night at UFC Fight Night 279, and it took just 23 seconds to put away fellow debutant Leon Shahbazyan.
Chokheli (15-3 MMA, 1-0 UFC) hurt Shahbazyan (12-5 MMA, 0-1 UFC) with a pair of leg kicks to start the welterweight bout. He then attacked upstairs with punches, and his opponent went down and covered up, forcing the referee to stop it just moments after the bout began at Meta APEX in Las Vegas.
Advertisement
Check out the replay of the quick win for Chokheli below (via X):
It was a punishing performance for the 29-year-old Chokheli, who is a veteran of the now-defunct Bellator promotion. He finally got his chance to showcase himself in the sport’s biggest promotion, and he hopes it’s the start of an impactful tenure at 170 pounds.
“It’s a long time that I’ve been out of UFC, but my skills are here,” Chokheli told Daniel Cormier in his post-fight interview. “I knew I can do better. I can do the same to the top 15 and top 10 or whatever.”
Advertisement
Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 279 results:
-
Levan Chokheli def. Leon Shahbazyan via TKO (strikes) – Round 1, 0:23
This article originally appeared on MMA Junkie: UFC Vegas 119 video: Levan Chokheli TKOs Leon Shahbazyan in 23 seconds
