Nursulton Ruziboev received some boos from the Seattle crowd during his fight, but that wasn’t the case when it was over after an electric finish of Eric McConico at UFC Fight Night 252.
With the crowd showing some impatience with the action in the opening round of the middleweight bout at Climate Pledge Arena, Ruziboev (35-9-2 MMA, 3-1 UFC) turned on the heat in the second frame when he dropped McConico (9-3-1 MMA, 0-1 UFC) multiple times before it was stopped at the 33-second mark.
Check out the replay of the finish below (via X):
RUZIBOEV WAS RELENTLESS FOR THE FINISH
#UFCSEATTLE pic.twitter.com/UPWyVTw90O
— ESPN MMA (@espnmma) February 22, 2025
After the big win, which marked Ruziboev’s return to 185 pounds after his first octagon loss against Joaquin Buckley at welterweight, Ruziboev said he was proud to get back on track and score another victory for his native Uzbekistan.
“We accepted this fight on 10 days notice, but we were ready for this,” Ruziboev said through an interpreter in his post-fight interview with Michael Bisping. “We won this.”
Up-to-the-minute UFC Fight Night 252 results include:
- Nursulton Ruziboev def. Eric McConico via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 0:33
- Modestas Bukauskas def. Rafael Cerqueira via knockout (punches) – Round 1, 2:12
For more on the card, visit MMA Junkie’s event hub for UFC Fight Night 252.
