Dennis Buzukja

Grad controlled the early going and pursued the finish throughout. The fight reached the second round. Grad secured an arm-triangle choke late in the second round. The referee waved the fight off. The fight ended at 4:33 of round two, with Buzukja protesting the stoppage.

Key moments

• Grad was on top of the fight early and hunted the finish throughout.
• Grad locked an arm-triangle choke late in the second round.
• The referee stopped the fight at 4:33 of round two, after which Buzukja protested.

Buzukja's most recent appearance ended quickly when Marcio Barbosa knocked him out in the opening round. The result mattered because it came after the Francis Marshall split decision and left him at 1-4 across his last five bouts.

Key moments

• Barbosa stopped Buzukja by knockout at 1:20 of round one.
• The loss followed the narrow split-decision defeat to Francis Marshall.
• It left Connor Matthews as Buzukja's only win in his last five fights.

Marshall pushed Buzukja through a competitive three-round fight and came away with the split decision.

Key moments

• Lost a split decision after the full fifteen minutes.
• The fight came right after Buzukja had stopped Connor Matthews for his first UFC win.
• It set up the long gap before the April 2026 Marcio Barbosa loss.

The bout matters because it introduced the UFC chapter as a competitive decision loss rather than an immediate breakthrough after the Contender Series contract win.

Key moments

• Dropped a unanimous decision to Woodson in his UFC debut.
• The fight followed Buzukja's June 2023 CFFC submission of Soslan Abanokov.
• It started the four-fight UFC sequence before the Connor Matthews win finally broke through.

The finish mattered because it was the final regional result before his short-notice UFC debut against Sean Woodson.

Key moments

• Submitted Abanokov with a rear-naked choke at 1:29 of round two.
• The fight followed the February 2023 first-round stoppage of Mark Gregory Valerio at UAE Warriors 36.
• It stood as Buzukja's last win before the Aug. 5, 2023 UFC debut against Sean Woodson.

Buzukja earned his way back to the UFC APEX and made the second Contender Series chance count, beating Kaleio Romero over three rounds.

Key moments

• Beat Romero by unanimous decision over three rounds at the UFC APEX.
• Entered as a moderate betting favorite and handled his second Contender Series appearance without needing a finish.
• The result followed his ROC title defense against Josh Rohler and led into the Maverick MMA title win over Boimah Karmo.

Buzukja kept his Ring of Combat belt with a quick first-round stoppage of Mike Lawrence in Atlantic City. The result showed the sharper version of his regional game after the Melsik Baghdasaryan setback and kept the route to a second Contender Series chance alive.

Key moments

• Stopped Lawrence by TKO at 1:06 of round one at ROC 74.
• The bout was another ROC featherweight title defense with Buzukja entering as champion.
• It came seven months after the decision win over Shaquan Moore at Triton Fights 18.

Buzukja rebuilt after the first Contender Series loss by taking a Triton Fights booking and sweeping the cards against Shaquan Moore.

Key moments

• Beat Moore by unanimous decision over fifteen minutes at Triton Fights 18.
• The win came after the September 2020 Contender Series loss to Melsik Baghdasaryan.
• It led into the October 2021 ROC title defense against Mike Lawrence.

Buzukja got his first Contender Series audition in 2020 but Melsik Baghdasaryan beat him over three rounds in the main event. That loss mattered because it delayed the UFC entry point and forced Buzukja to rebuild on the regional circuit before earning a second shot in 2022.

Key moments

• Lost a unanimous decision to Baghdasaryan in a DWCS main event at the UFC APEX.
• Buzukja entered as only a slight betting favorite, so it was a competitive matchmaking spot rather than a showcase.
• He answered the setback with wins over Shaquan Moore, Mike Lawrence, Josh Rohler and Kaleio Romero.

Buzukja got back on track against Shaquan Moore at ROC 67, using steady work over three rounds to earn a unanimous decision.

Key moments

• Beat Moore by unanimous decision in a three-round ROC bout.
• The fight followed the November 2018 decision loss to Nick Rodrigues.
• It was later followed by a second win over Moore at Triton Fights 18 in 2021.

The defeat mattered because it interrupted the quick start off the Bellator debut win and forced him to rebuild on the New Jersey regional circuit.

Key moments

• Lost a unanimous decision to Rodrigues over three rounds at ROC 66.
• The bout was contested at lightweight, not featherweight.
• Buzukja answered the loss with decision wins over Shaquan Moore and then the spinning-back-elbow knockout of William Calhoun III.