Dustin Stoltzfus stopped Mansur Abdul-Malik by rear-naked choke late in the second round at UFC 330. The victory snaps a two-fight losing skid for Stoltzfus, who improves to 17-8. Abdul-Malik falls to 9-2-1, suffering his second consecutive defeat.
Dustin Stoltzfus ended his losing streak in decisive fashion at UFC 330, submitting Mansur Abdul-Malik with a rear-naked choke late in the second round on August 15 in the middleweight division.
Stoltzfus, a 34-year-old Orthodox striker out of Frankers Fight Team, improves to 17-8 with the finish. Standing six feet tall with a 75-inch reach, the American had been on a difficult two-fight skid heading into the night. He averages 3.3 significant strikes per minute at 45 percent accuracy, and his grappling has always been a calling card — he attempts submissions at a rate of 1.1 per 15 minutes, a figure that proved telling on Saturday night. He also averages 2.08 takedowns per 15 minutes, reflecting a well-rounded ground game that he used to put the finishing sequence together.
Abdul-Malik, 28, drops to 9-2-1 and has now lost back-to-back bouts. The MMA Masters product carries a physically imposing frame at six-foot-two with a remarkable 80-inch reach, and he entered the fight averaging 3.28 significant strikes landed per minute. His submission attempt rate of 0.3 per 15 minutes, however, signals that grappling on the mat is not his primary domain — a contrast that Stoltzfus was able to exploit once the fight hit the canvas in the second round.
Why it matters
- Stoltzfus halts a two-fight skid and reasserts himself as a viable middleweight contender heading into late 2026.
- Abdul-Malik suffers consecutive losses for the first time in his career, raising questions about where he lands in the divisional pecking order.
- The finish underscores a clear stylistic edge for Stoltzfus on the ground, particularly against opponents whose submission defense has room to develop.
Saturday, August 15, 2026
