Nursulton Ruziboev had a statement to make at UFC Baku on Saturday, and it took him less than four minutes to deliver it.
The Uzbek middleweight marked the milestone of his 50th professional MMA contest in the most fitting way possible, systematically dismantling Andrey Pulyaev before putting him to sleep with a RNC at 3:58 of the first round.
From the opening seconds, Ruziboev moved with a calm, purposeful aggression that Pulyaev simply had no answer for. He opened with a teep kick and immediately claimed the center of the cage, dictating the entire pace and geography of the contest.
Pulyaev tried to keep him honest with lunging left hands from the outside, but Ruziboev was relentless in his forward pressure.
The turning point came when Pulyaev attempted a body kick. Ruziboev caught it cleanly and converted it into a takedown without hesitation. Pulyaev managed to scramble back to the fence and regain his footing, but Ruziboev stayed attached with a tight body lock, mixing in well-placed knees to wear his opponent down.
Once the action moved back to open space, Ruziboev wasted no time transitioning to Pulyaev’s back and dragging him to the canvas. With both hooks in and control firmly established, he began landing measured punches, patiently constructing the finish rather than rushing it. The outcome felt inevitable well before it arrived.
Pulyaev battled the hands as long as he could, but there was no escaping the positioning Ruziboev had built. The short choke slipped in, the squeeze tightened, and Pulyaev went unconscious as referee stepped in to wave it off.
With the victory, Ruziboev improved his record to 37-9-2 (2 NC). The 32-year-old has quietly compiled a 5-1 record in the UFC, with his only promotional defeat coming against Joaquin Buckley in a welterweight clash in May 2024.
Official Result: Nursulton Ruziboev def. Andrey Pulyaev via R1 SUB (RNC), 3:58
This video man
Holy shit pic.twitter.com/gyNMGILtrF
— Spinnin Backfist (@SpinninBackfist) June 27, 2026
