Before the UFC’s return to Abu Dhabi, an experienced fighter picked up a much-needed win.
Back in February, Shara Magomedov suffered his first career defeat, losing to Michael ‘Venom’ Page. It was a setback for the promising striker.
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Magomedov later spoke about health issues that affected his performance. But on July 26, he’ll have a chance to move past that when he returns to action.
‘Bullet’ is set to take on Marc-Andre Barriault at UFC Dhabi, and many are expecting him to deliver another highlight reel finish in this matchup.
While preparing for his return, Magomedov watched one of his former opponents – the man he beat to earn a UFC contract – put together an impressive comeback of his own.
Back in December 2022, Shara Magomedov stopped Kushal Vyas in just eight seconds. It was the last fight before Magomedov signed with the UFC.
Vyas went into that bout with a 7-6 record, while Magomedov was unbeaten at 10-0. The gap in quality showed right from the start.
That loss kicked off a brutal run for Vyas, who went on to lose 14 straight fights. Thirteen of those defeats came inside the first round.
Kushal Vyas breaks his 14-fight losing streak with his first win in four years! pic.twitter.com/tgl0qoJnU3
— Matysek (@Matysek88) July 23, 2025
But things finally turned around for him at a Mongolian Heroes MMA event on July 23rd in Bayannur, China. He faced Xiaoyu Han, who was making his professional debut.
This time, Vyas used his experience well. He controlled the fight from top position and locked in an armbar to get his first win since January 2021.
Shara Magomedov has only fought in Abu Dhabi or Saudi Arabia throughout his five-fight UFC career.
While all of his wins inside the Octagon have been impressive, there’s one that stands out from the rest, which happened the last time that he competed in Abu Dhabi.
‘Bullet’ pulled off an incredible spinning backfist knockout against Armen Petrosyan, giving fans one of the standout moments from UFC 308 last October.
The Double Bullet Shara Magomedov DID this last time out in Abu Dhabi #UFCAbuDhabi | @VisitAbuDhabi | @InAbuDhabi | #InAbuDhabi pic.twitter.com/dPdBGOSY0D
— UFC Europe (@UFCEurope) July 14, 2025
Magomedov’s striking was on full display again when he dropped Antonio Trocoli with a heavy shot before finishing him with ground and pound at UFC Saudi Arabia. Rogan did catch this finish live while commentating during fight companion podcast for JRE Fight Night – Strickland vs. Costa.
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