Volkan Oezdemir entered his bout with Johnny Walker in the main card opener of UFC Saudi Arabia at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh with the reputation as a powerful striker. He was also one who had gone more than four years without a win by knockout.
He changed that in a dramatic way on Saturday when he blew Johnny Walker out due to strikes in just 2:28 of the first round of their light heavyweight bout.
Oezdemir, whose last knockout came on Aug. 10, 2019, when he stopped Ilir Latifi in Uruguay, badly hurt Walker with a crushing left handle. Walker stumbled backward against the cage, and was in no position to intelligently defend himself.
Oezdemir cracked Walker with a left hook to start the damage. He followed with another left and then drilled Walker with a right hand as Walker was going down. Referee Jason Herzog immediately stopped it, giving Oezdemir his second win in a row and his first by knockout in 46 months.
“The uppercut was key with him,” Oezdemir said. “I knew I had to take my time. He’s a little bit crazy in the first two minutes. That Johnny Walker, man. He’s a crazy guy. I knew I had to watch out, take my time a little bit and land those shots.”
The win was Oezdemir’s 20th in MMA, raising his overall record to 20-7. He is 8-6 in the UFC.