Asu Almabayev delivered his best UFC performance at UFC Baku, submitting Charles Johnson with a Suloev stretch in the third round — the first time Johnson has been submitted in MMA. The win moves Almabayev to 7-1 in the UFC with his second consecutive submission finish and third overall, leaving him on the edge of the all-time submission leaders list in the flyweight division.
Asu Almabayev turned in the finest performance of his UFC career at UFC Baku on June 27, submitting Charles Johnson with a Suloev stretch in the third round to claim one of the most significant wins of his professional life.
Almabayev, known as "Zulfikar," now stands at 24-3-0 overall and 7-1 inside the octagon, with this victory marking his second consecutive submission finish and third submission win in UFC competition. The 32-year-old Kazakhstani flyweight, ranked eighth in his division, competes out of DAR Pro Team and brings a relentless grappling game to the cage — averaging 4.46 takedowns per 15 minutes and 1.5 submission attempts per 15 minutes. His striking accuracy sits at 50 percent, though his path to victory typically runs through the mat. The win leaves him on the doorstep of the flyweight division's all-time submission leaders list.
Johnson, nicknamed "InnerG," entered the bout with a 19-9-0 record and a career that had never featured a submission loss — making this a genuine first in his MMA journey. The 35-year-old American, who trains out of Murcielago MMA, is an active and accurate striker, landing 4.77 significant strikes per minute at 49 percent accuracy. At five-foot-nine with a 70-inch reach, he carries physical advantages over much of the flyweight roster, but Almabayev's takedown volume proved too much to manage across three rounds.
Why it matters
- Almabayev's 7-1 UFC record and eighth-place divisional ranking put him firmly in title contention conversation at flyweight.
- Back-to-back submission finishes signal a dangerous peak in form for a fighter whose grappling rate already ranks among the division's most prolific.
- Johnson's first-ever submission loss represents a meaningful résumé entry for Almabayev, demonstrating he can solve problems no opponent had previously solved.
