Asu Almabayev defeated Johnson by wearing him down on the ground before securing a submission finish late in the third round. The bout featured creative grappling exchanges from both fighters throughout its duration.
Asu Almabayev earned a third-round submission victory over Johnson, grinding out a patient and methodical performance before securing the finish late in the final frame of their flyweight contest on June 27, 2026.
Almabayev, nicknamed "Zulfikar," improves to 24-3-0 with the win, reinforcing his standing as the number-eight ranked flyweight in the world. The 32-year-old Kazakhstani fighter, who trains out of DAR Pro Team, built the victory the way he typically does — through relentless grappling pressure. He averages 4.46 takedowns per 15 minutes and 1.5 submission attempts per 15 minutes, and those numbers told the story of this fight. Standing five-foot-four with a 65-inch reach, Almabayev is compact and difficult to keep at distance, and once he gets opponents to the ground, he is adept at sustaining pressure until opportunities open up. His 50 percent striking accuracy reflects a fighter who picks his spots rather than chasing volume, landing 2.31 significant strikes per minute.
Johnson showed resilience throughout the bout, with both men producing creative grappling exchanges across all three rounds, but Almabayev's ability to wear his opponent down proved decisive as the fight wore on.
Why it matters
- Almabayev moves to 24-3-0 and strengthens his case as a legitimate top-ten flyweight contender at number eight in the division
- The submission finish adds another highlight to a career built on grappling-heavy dominance, with his takedown and submission rates among the busiest in the weight class
- A performance of this nature keeps Almabayev in range of the flyweight title conversation, depending on how the division's upper rankings shift
