Abus Magomedov didn’t give Cam Rowston time to get comfortable. The middleweight locked up a guillotine choke and got the finish at 1:44 of Round 1 on the UFC 333 preliminary card Saturday at Etihad Arena in Abu Dhabi. That’s the official result posted by @UFCNews.
The broadcast had barely finished introducing the two men. The UFC’s main account didn’t hold back afterward, posting “WHAT A SUBMISSION” and adding that Magomedov had left no doubt with the first-round finish. Tatiana Suarez was watching too, and she summed it up on X in two words: “Beautiful guillotine.”
What was on the line
This wasn’t a throwaway prelim. Before the opening bell, the UFC promoted the matchup by telling fans that rankings were at play, so the winner was always going to move on the 185-pound ladder. Both men made weight cleanly on Friday. Magomedov came in at 185.5 and Rowston at 185, according to MMA Fighting’s weigh-in results.
View post on X
The finish also cost some forecasters. MMA Fighting’s UFC 333 predictions had Rowston beating Magomedov. Instead, Magomedov had the choke secured and the fight finished before the two-minute mark.
The fight was part of the four-fight preliminary block that started at 12 p.m. ET on Paramount+. That block also included Grant Dawson vs. Nurullo Aliev, Nikita Krylov against unbeaten-in-the-UFC prospect Abdul Rakhman Yakhyaev, and the featured prelim between Azamat Murzakanov and Dominick Reyes. The main card starts at 2 p.m. ET. Aaron Pico vs. Losene Keita opens it, and two title fights close it: Petr Yan defends the bantamweight belt against Merab Dvalishvili in their trilogy, and Alexander Volkanovski puts the featherweight title on the line against the undefeated Movsar Evloev (20-0, 10-0 UFC).
View post on X
The sources don’t mention a next booking for either middleweight. Magomedov’s next opponent will depend on where the updated rankings put him after a result like this.
Quick take
This is my favorite kind of prelim finish. It was fast and decisive, and the referee had no judgment call to make because a submission ends the fight on its own. Some people expected Rowston to win, and Magomedov answered with a front choke in less than two minutes. Rowston now has 104 seconds of tape to review on the trip home. Magomedov gets to watch Volkanovski and Evloev from the good seats with his evening’s work already done. If the UFC meant it about rankings being on the line, Magomedov’s name should appear on the updated 185-pound list.
View post on X
