Nikita Krylov just earned his $25,000 finish bonus in epic fashion, pulling off a buzzer-beater finish of Modestas Bukauskas at UFC 324.
After three straight first-round finishes to open up the night, Krylov vs. Bukauskas’ pacing seemed to bring things down. While Krylov landed well, the fight had more of a grappling focus, with Krylov looking to keep Bukauskas pinned against the fence during the first and second rounds.
In the closing seconds of the round, Krylov, after getting it going, landed a cracking right hand that put Bukauskas down. Krylov got on top, on Bukauskas’ back, and landed some follow-up shots to score the finish with three seconds left in the fight.
Nikita Krylov Cracks, Downs Modestas Bukauskas At UFC 324
NO SCORECARDS NEEDED TONIGHT 🤯
Nikita Krylov gets the KO in the final seconds to keep the finish streak going!
Bogdan Guskov scored a statement victory that will hopefully bring him up the light heavyweight ranks, finishing Nikita Krylov in the opening round of their fight that started the UFC Abu Dhabi main card.
Krylov came out aggressive, looking to back Guskov up with offensive pressure and control the action. Krylov worked over him well with combinations, but Guskov started to use his counterstriking to his advantage.
Guskov started to connect and do damage to Krylov’s face, backing Krylov up with his power. Guskov would land a powerful overhand right that dropped Krylov.
“The Devastator” really is back. And if his words ring true, better than ever.
Dominick Reyes pulled off yet another knockout in his attempted career resurgence, needing just one round to defeat Nikita Krylov in the opening main card bout for UFC 314.
As the two were feeling each other out and slowly finding their rhythm, Reyes landed a right hand that seemed to stun Krylov. Krylov was able to recover quickly.
Later on in the round, Krylov charged forward with a one-two. Reyes dodged it and landed a sudden left hand that dropped Krylov out cold.
Dominick Reyes Wins Third Straight With Brutal Finish Of Nikita Krylov At UFC 314
As noted by the UFC commentary team, the punch looked similar to the knockout Conor McGregor had of Jose Aldo that won him the UFC featherweight title at UFC 194 in December 2015.
Reyes has now won three straight after suffering a four-fight losing skid that included a pair of unsuccessful bids at the UFC light heavyweight championship (starting with a controversial decision loss to Jon Jones). Since his return from a year-and-a-half absence in June 2024, Reyes has scored finishes of Dustin Jacoby and Anthony Smith, in addition to tonight’s win.
This was Krylov’s first fight since March 2023. Krylov had been on a three-fight win streak that saw him score victories over Alexander Gustafsson, Volkan Oezdemir and Ryan Spann.
Krylov is set to return to action after being sidelined since March 2023. He enters the fight riding a three-fight winning streak with victories over Ryan Spann, Volkan Oezdemir, and Alexander Gustafsson. Despite his hiatus, the veteran contender will look to extend his momentum against a tough opponent.
A clash of ranked light heavyweight contenders has been booked for the UFC’s return to England’s capital.
The promotion has announced that a fight between the #9-ranked Nikita Krylov (26-8) and the #11-ranked Paul Craig (15-4-1) has been added to a stacked UFC London card, set to go down inside the city’s O2 Arena on March 19.
Big light heavyweights!
🇺🇦 Nikita Krylov vs @PCraigmma 🏴 official for #UFCLondon
Returning to fight in the UK for the first time since his 2018 triangle choke submission victory over Magomed Ankalaev, Scotland’s Craig will be hoping to continue his rise towards contention by extending his win streak to four at UFC London.
Since a knockout loss to powerhouse Alonzo Menifield in 2019, “Bearjew” has found the form of his life. After returning to the win column against Vinicius Moreira, Craig fought to a split draw against Maurício Rua, before securing a wins against Gadzhimurad Antigulov, “Shogun,” and, most recently, Jamahal Hill.
Joining the likes of Alexander Volkov, Dan Hooker, Timur Valiev, and Makwan Amirkhani as one of the international athletes hoping to spoil a homecoming at UFC London will be Ukraine’s Krylov. “The Minor” has exchanged wins and losses in his last five appearances.
While he fell to defeats against former champion Jan Blachowicz, reigning light heavyweight king Glover Teixeira, and Ankalaev, the 29-year-old had his hand raised versus Ovince Saint Preux and Johnny Walker.
