Dagestani fighter makes history on way to earning UFC deal

Ikram Aliskerov caught the attention of MMA fans worldwide by pulling off a history-making kimura finish in the UFC's Dana White Contender Series.

The Dagestani from the same region as lightweight legend Khabib Nurmagomedov needed just over two minutes to execute a faultless jiu-jitsu move on Brazilian foe Mario Sousa in their middleweight bout at the UFC's Apex in Las Vegas.

Sousa had successfully fended off two takedown attempts from Aliskerov, but the Russian's onslaught proved too much and the kimura was executed to perfection.

On social media, Aliskerov received praise from the highest of places when Nurmagomedov shared a reel of the submission on Instagram and added the caption "you earned it" in Russian. 

Thanks to his win, UFC hopeful Aliskerov improved to 13-1 with the only defeat of his career coming against Khamzat Chimaev when both men were with the Brave FC promotion in 2019.

Should the 29-year-old continue in this fashion, however, it is possible he gets the chance to exact revenge on Chechen-based Swede Chimaev in the elite promotion one day.

Aliskerov was one of five winners on Tuesday night to be a handed a UFC deal by promotion chief Dana White.

"He came in, quick, easy... his only loss ever is to Khamzat Chimaev," said White of Aliskerov after his victory.  

"The only kimura ever [in Contender Series history] and one of the grossest kimuras I've ever seen, so welcome to the UFC," added White.