Hulk: The Undeniable Submission Wrestling of Ali Bagov
Photo courtesy of Absolute Championship Akhmat (ACA), ACA 89
Check out our full divisional rundown of ACA’s lightweight division.
In the early days of mixed martial arts, before performance enhancing drug regulation was even attempted, it was fairly common to see established grappling specialists turned science experiments terrorizing the global scene. Steroid cocktails in human form have always run rampant in MMA, but every now and then, they’d have legitimate skill to channel through their cartoonish bodies.
Folk and freestyle national champion Mark Kerr pounded overmatched foes into dust, another three-time ADCC champion in Ricardo Arona imposed his will on the best big men of the era, at the lighter weights you literally had a guy nicknamed, “The Muscle Shark”.
The introduction of USADA has made it difficult for freaks of this category to make it to “the big show” in the modern era, as seen by 2010 Greco-Roman World champion Amir Aliakbari’s unsuccessful attempt to join the UFC roster. There was the brief age of Brock Lesnar, you have the rare Paulo Costa, but the days of hyper-physical monstrosities in the UFC seem to have passed. Thankfully, not every organization actively works to prevent these demons from emerging.
With four Russian national grappling titles and one UWW\FILA no-gi gold medal to his name, former ACA lightweight champion Ali “Hulk” Bagov is the newest model for the turbocharged submission wrestler. While his career arc has been heavily influenced by gains in size and athleticism, underneath his suspicious vascularity is the coherent, functional game of a true specialist.
2009-2014: Proto-Bagov
The essence of Kabardino-Balkaria’s Ali Bagov is imposing, aggressive top position grappling, a game which consistently prioritizes creating space to pass and attack submissions or strike rather than gain control time. Explosive shot entries and timed level changes off his opponent’s attacks or caught kicks often give Bagov his preferred positions early on in each bout.
At first, this system could only be seen in short bursts, Bagov was certainly a front-runner with a limited tank and shallow toolkit.
In terms of his top game, the basic idea is that the Kabardian Hulk uses immense shoulder and head pressure, combined with his iron grip, to keep his opponent’s back flat on the mat while he stacks and elevates his hips to create passing opportunities. He welcomes the butterfly guard, from which he can stack and hop over to side mount or trap his opponent on the cage to tee off.
That upper body control is paramount, it’s what allows Bagov to high-step or back-step over the guard, elevate and stuff butterfly hooks, or even cinch up the “leg mount”.
If his opponent does manage to create enough space to shrimp, Bagov switches off to binding the legs and uses his head pressure on the hips to keep them from posturing up while he works to pass.
We saw it a lot more often in his early career, but Bagov will jump on any open limb he sees. Creating scrambling opportunities from his own active guard game and leg entanglements, Bagov has no fear of losing position. Attacking with the power and instincts of a prime Rousimar Palhares, watch as Ali Bagov annihilates Rustam Bogotov in 21 seconds.
Bagov’s development has been fairly unique.
It’s tough to find footage of his early career, but from what I’ve seen, he was frantic to get the fight to the ground, his aggressive passing game gave opponents the opportunity to get up more often than not, and his cardio was not up to the task of repeating that approach over three rounds.
In his fourth pro fight, he took on a young Khabib Nurmagomedov, who was 7-0 at the time. While his initial explosive double entry was enough to briefly establish top position, Nurmagomedov was able to elevate with underhooks and butterfly hooks to create space and sweep from the leg entanglement.
Clearly already tired after that first exchange, Bagov resorted to pulling guard, having absolutely nothing to offer on the feet. Nurmagomedov didn’t entirely dominate in Bagov’s guard, but he easily avoided half-hearted submission attempts and scored with punches and headbutts.
Around 2014 he began to turn the corner and demonstrate a functional game.
While still quite swole, proto-Bagov was much less physically imposing, relying on his outside kicking game to score points and keep him safe for long stretches before picking his takedown entries. His boxing was, and still is, practically non-existent, his defensive habit of leaning back at the waist with his hands up at the sign of any punch is ugly as sin, but for the game he played, it did its job.
The links between striking and takedown entries are absolutely essential for any grappling-dependent fighter, at least, if they’re going to be facing elite opposition.
While Bagov’s striking is janky, to say the least, the few tools on the feet he’s mastered serve his goals.
It’s fairly common for guard players to throw a high volume of kicks, they’re typically lankier so body type already lends to the techniques, and as Joe Rogan has pointed out ad infinitum, they’re not worried about being taken down.
Bagov’s bottom game is excellent, but he’s undeniably a wrestler and top player, how does kicking exclusively with his lead leg aid in this approach? We’ve seen it with other wrestlers, take a look at how Zach Makovsky used skip-up low kicks to get into range for his takedown entries.
Skipping up into entries is more of a later Bagov development, early on his kicking game was more of a long con. All on his lead leg, he’d cycle through inside low kicks, round kicks to the body and head, along with the occasional side or hook kick. There is face validity to this approach, the kicks did actually land, and Bagov’s form had him tilting back and out of range for counters - some of the time.
As a wrestler, there are a few inherent advantages to this striking style.
The first is that if you’re constantly leading with naked lead leg kicks, especially the inside low kick, you’re begging for straight counters. Zach Makovsky played off this urge to counter to drop into his entries after skipping up with low kicks. It’s an approach that encourages aggression and forward movement, a reactive shot artist’s best friend.
If you’re landing your kicks, more often than not you’re planting your opponent in place, providing a stationary target to shoot on. Let’s say you’re a powerful kicker and give them a reason to check, feinting into range could give you a one-legged takedown dummy.
The last reason is specific to the lead round kick to the head. Typically, opponents react defensively by backing up tall, hands up. If you’re skip-up head kicking into range, you’ll have to cover a bit more distance, but there should be a larger window for entries on the hips or legs.
That’s more or less the entire book on Bagov’s striking, and I’m not even confident that it was originally developed for the aforementioned reasons. In his first meeting with Abdul-Aziz Abdulvakhabov (AAA), Bagov was disciplined and dedicated to his kicking game, but most of his entries came under the jab of AAA, his striking stood on its own for the most part.
It wasn’t until after that third-round knockout loss to AAA in 2014 that Bagov’s true game started to fully assemble.
2014-2016: Feeding the Beast
Diagnosing the loss to Abdulvakhabov is difficult. You could point to his complete lack of boxing game, predictable defensive responses, gaps in his top control, athletically-dependent wrestling, you might even suggest he think about reconstructing his entire game.
The logical suggestion is generally, “Get better at MMA.” Easy, right?
Often, attempting to round out a fighter’s game defeats the purpose of being a specialist. Sure, it would be great if every expert in one discipline could become highly effective in several others, but that’s an incredibly tough ask, and it’s often counterproductive.
For some time, Demian Maia focused on his striking, working it to a serviceable level. It kept him alive on the feet, but it wasn’t winning him fights. Ultimately, the most fruitful development in Maia’s game was an even stronger focus on imposing his grappling attack. He specifically worked his wrestling, yes, but he simplified his approach - shooting early and often and implementing a system of sweeps and transitions that stemmed from his stronger wrestling positions.
I’m not sure when exactly Bagov moved to Dagestan to train with Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov, but, whether intentionally or not, Bagov made the decision to lean into his specialty and own his game, flaws and all.
What were his main strengths? Literally, strength, for starters. Bagov made a commitment to strength and conditioning, likely taking a more scientific approach to what he put in his body.
Training with a team of killer grapplers, Bagov started to sharpen his ground game with some MMA specific strategies, implementing some Nurmagomedov favorites like the leg mount, as well as other positions that emphasized his gifts like a heavy knee on belly with his opponent trapped against the cage. What sets Bagov apart from most of his Dagestani training partners is his preference for more traditional grappling positions like full mount and back control with hooks in, rather than folkstyle rides and the mounted crucifix.
On the feet, technically, Bagov regressed. But that wasn’t necessarily a bad thing. The basic principles and tools of his kicking game remained, with a 1-3 for closing distance thrown in, but he disposed of anything that wasn’t directly contributing to his takedown entries. In simpler words, Bagov stopped wasting time and got right to his A-game.
Improving physicality gave him the strength and confidence to pursue this new, focused version of his approach.
Avenging a 2010 loss, Bagov had his way with Kirill Sukhomlinov on the mat. Considering the power of his driving shot, Bagov had to be ready to grapple against the cage almost immediately in each bout. This was one of the first examples of his patented approach.
As his opponents begin to posture or wall walk, Bagov cycles through a few different options. The first is to slide into knee on belly and control the head, is immense weight and pressure typically keeping them in place. The next is more common in MMA, Bagov would slip off toward the back via half guard, but instead of committing to back mount or rear-standing, he’d pressure straight forward while pinning with the head and arm grip. Less often, Bagov gets a clean shot at the back and usually sinks both hooks in.
The beautiful thing about these options is that they feed into each other. Knee on belly encourages fighters to turn in or away, giving up front headlock, back mount, or even opportunistic submissions. Against Sukhomlinov, Bagov snatched up the arm as his opponent posted to create distance while turning.
Each of these positions are incredibly dangerous for Bagov opponents, but back mount is likely the most disastrous. Even in the “backpack” position, you’re essentially depending on the ability to fight grips and control limbs against the strongest man in the division. You can see why Sukhomlinov ended up lifeless on the mat.
In another avenging victory against Georgi Stoyanov, Bagov showed off more of his improved cagecraft. Instead of pressing straight in and fighting to collapse the legs on his takedown attempts, Bagov moved his opponent off the cage with the single, turned him to narrow his base, then reshot for a tighter double.
No new insights in this one, just some slick transitions after a ridiculous, leaping lead hand entry.
The highlight of Bagov’s eight-fight win streak is undoubtedly his first-round domination of the immensely talented Eduard Vartanyan. Currently one of the top three most talented lightweights in the world, and the subject of next week’s ACA article, Vartanyan works behind a varied jab, building into combinations that complement his gorgeous takedown entry game and solid work on top.
If there is one major flaw in Vartanyan’s game, spanning most of his career, it’s his vulnerability in the first round. He applies his approach with broad strokes, advancing with his jab, looking to make reads. It’s gotten him in trouble on more than one occasion, most notably in his knockout loss to Abdul-Aziz Abdulvakhabov.
Against Ali Bagov, Vartanyan didn’t make any one major mistake, the margin for error was just razor thin.
A failed reactive level change off Vartanyan’s pressure gave Bagov a single underhook, it was all the leverage he needed to back the all-rounder into the cage.
Bagov turned Vartanyan off the cage by running the pipe on a single, Vartanyan went to tripod to keep his base under him and recover, Bagov capitalized by dragging the Armenian-Russian back down from rear standing, eventually putting his hooks in for back mount.
Vartanyan fought in vain to maintain a two-on-one and stave off the choking arm. Ultimately, Bagov found his opening and put the future great to sleep.
***
Two years after their first meeting, Bagov had the opportunity to avenge his knockout loss to Abdul-Aziz Abdulvakhabov.
In their first meeting, Bagov struggled to establish meaningful control positions from which he could generate offense, and AAA had more than enough time to make his reads on the feet and exhaust the powerful grappler.
At ACB 48, it was beautiful chaos right off the whistle.
Walking right up to AAA with zero setup, Bagov level changed and attacked the hips. Already framing off and beginning to sprawl, AAA caught the outstretched arm of Bagov with a whizzer and hipped in, debasing the Hulk and knocking him to his side.
Instead of welcoming the bottom position and committing to an offensive guard, Bagov used the momentum to roll through while underhooking the far leg, taking himself back to his knees to get to the single.
A scramble ensued, Bagov worked off the single to a bodylock against the cage and began to collapse AAA with his mighty grip.
In an absolutely brilliant maneuver, AAA hit a last second uchi mata off the double overhooks as Bagov stepped around for the outside trip finish, forcing Bagov to rely on his guard once again. Grabbing and underhook and sitting in, Bagov powered through the crossface and latched onto a seated bodylock, standing and looking to hit a sag throw off the outside trip once again.
Demonstrating urgency that was lacking in their first exchange, Bagov immediately hit a butterfly sweep off the bodylock as he fell, switching off to a single and turning in as AAA was suspended in the air.
AAA had finally lost the initiative, Bagov swam to the back off his single when they hit the cage, kicking out AAA’s base as the Chechen looked to base up and wall-walk.
After an intensely competitive first minute, Bagov showed the power of his terrifying top game.
AAA persistently looked to shrimp and use the cage, but the crushing knee on belly of Bagov, combined with aggressive control of the head with top-side guillotine grips kept him planted and defensive. Bagov constantly peeled away the grips and pulled AAA off the cage, planting his head on the mat while pinning his torso and hips with that knee.
All the while, he pounded on his body and head when postured up, demonstrating his emerging ground striking game.
After nearly three minutes of relentless punishment, Bagov switched from knee on belly to the front headlock, spinning for the go-behind and attempting to put his hooks in.
That brief moment of impatience was dire, Abdulavakhov was able to get height and shake Bagov off his back.
Bagov completely deflated. His activity dwindled to a halt, and the end of the round saw AAA teeing off on an almost lifeless Hulk. Bagov did not come out for the next round.
The tape on Bagov’s shoulder suggests an injury, but it’s obvious he was exhausted. I’d wager the injury was bothering him, and he was simply too tired to find the motivation to push through it.
The improvements from Bagov were clear, but he still had adjustments to make before taking out the best lightweight in Russia outside of the UFC.
2017-Present: Hulk Smash
Nearly six months later, Bagov returned against former collegiate wrestling star Bubba Jenkins at ACB 54.
A tremendous talent coming to Penn State University, Jenkins made the podium for the first time in 2008 when he lost in the NCAA finals to an all-timer in Brent Metcalf. Some controversy followed, PSU recruited at Jenkins’ weight and brought in the phenom David Taylor, cutting Jenkins from the team.
Jenkins transferred to Arizona State University, and in his senior year, he won an NCAA championship by pinning David Taylor. It’s one of my favorite storylines in the sport of folkstyle wrestling.
For the first time since his early career meeting with Khabib Nurmagomedov, Bagov was fighting someone who actually wanted to take him to the ground. Perhaps unprepared for this fact, Bagov approached in his usually way, hopping in on one leg, only to be blast doubled into guard.
Perfectly content to play off his back, Bagov isolated limbs and mostly attacked the wrists of Jenkins, looking to create windows to slip in triangles. At one point Bagov overhooked on the tricep and converted an inverted armlock into an armbar from guard, which Jenkins lifted and slammed his way out of.
For the most part, Jenkins stayed flat in the guard, any space would undoubtedly be used by Bagov to create openings to sweep and scramble. Every time Jenkins looked to attack, Bagov was controlling limbs and finding openings for submission attempts.
It’s tough to say if Bagov won the first round off his back, but ultimately it wouldn’t matter.
He pressured in immediately in round 2, dropping to a snatch single off the front headlock against the cage. Bagov returned the NCAA champion to the mat by switching off to a double from rear-standing, gorgeous chain wrestling against one of the best neutral wrestlers in the world.
With Bagov on his back, Jenkins was dead in the water. He stalled helplessly as Bagov smacked him from various back mount positions, to the point where Bagov began to play with his food, giving up space and literally sitting on the back of Jenkins. When the American finally exploded to turn in, Bagov sat into a reverse triangle, cinched it and stuck his hand in the gap to block the arteries on both sides.
Jenkins was asleep in seconds.
Following that high-profile victory, Bagov took off another six months before his next bout.
***
Bagov’s transformation into his present, monstrous form, has been bittersweet for this author.
In his time away, it appears that the Kabardian Hulk spent more and more time with the Nurmagomedov clan, elements of Khabib’s game began to show up more and more often in Bagov’s performances.
On one hand, his wrestling fundamentals looked better than ever, especially his finishes and work on the cage. His grappling went through a fairly stark change. Bagov would still look to stack almost immediately after the takedown, but instead of his typical aggressive passing game, he hovered and controlled the legs, suffocating while firing off nasty hooks and straights to the body and head.
To summarize, Bagov moved his grappling from high-volume passing and submission attempts to longer control periods and ground and pound.
It’s obviously an excellent game to use, as we’ve seen from Khabib Nurmagomedov’s undefeated championship career, but watching Bagov flow from position to position and attack every opening was a sight to behold.
Don’t worry, we’ll still see some big jungle cat maneuvering from Bagov, especially as he flurries to complete takedowns or hits seamless go-behinds.
However, his increased size coincided with a decreased pace.
The first sign of Bagov’s Nurmagomedov-influenced game came against Herdeson Batista, as Bagov spent the majority of the first round sitting in the leg mount against the cage, wailing on the Brazilian.
Generally, you could clearly observe Bagov prioritizing ground striking over passing and submitting. That’s very practical for MMA, and an increasingly beefy Bagov dropping anvils is a great look, but it’s just a departure from the fun, unique game we’ve come to love.
On the bright side, there’s a new version of Ali Bagov to fall in love with. One who delivers cruel, merciless beatings from the top position, like he did against Gleristone Santos.
The only disappointing performance in this latest run from Bagov is his fight with Leandro Silva, at least on the surface.
The bout didn’t devolve into a savage beating until late in the third round, and Silva even managed to take a round off Bagov from the top position in the second. Silva’s physicality, defensive guard, and rounded grappling skills were enough to keep him alive against the Hulk.
The lost round in question came after Bagov stood straight up against the cage, likely completely taken by surprise when Silva scored with an inside trip.
Silva, a seven-time UFC veteran, is a bit of an underrated gem in the MMA landscape. He was always a bit of a spoiler, competent and athletic enough in all phases to give highly skilled fighters trouble, but not specialized or strategic enough to actually beat them.
In a piece co-written with Sriram Muralidaran, I explored Silva’s success against the great Francisco Trinaldo, an extremely physical and talented striker and clinch artist.
Bagov’s four-fight win streak was enough to earn a shot at the ACB lightweight title, against none other than Abdul-Aziz Abdulvakhabov.
If you haven’t yet read Sriram’s career breakdown on AAA, that is required before proceeding.
Redemption: The Hulk Tames the Lion
The title bout, and third meeting with Abdul-Aziz Abdulvakhabov marked the culmination of Bagov’s improved style, a journey he began after their first bout.
Earlier, we had taken a look at how Bagov’s striking had regressed as he prioritized wrestling opportunities over scoring on the feet. His main weapons remained - lead leg kicking, and jab-lead hook combinations. At first, these were only used as tools to close distance or set up the shot, but as he grew more comfortable using them, Bagov started to find legitimate opportunities to make them work to keep opponents from swarming when he reset following a taxing flurry.
Impressively, Bagov showed off his newfound understanding of these weapons against Abdulvakhabov, jabbing to the body both to keep range and mask the shot entry, teeping to set posture and retain distance, and check hooking to discourage striking entries from his opponent.
He would need to implement everything he learned just to survive five rounds with his greatest rival, and close friend.
Bagov’s initial shot entry was brilliant. Skipping up into a high lead round kick, he cut off AAA’s motion to that side, pressured in with his lead hand and shot his opponent straight into the fence. An explosive shot entry on a retreating opponent is worthless if you can’t catch your opponent square on, Bagov learned his lesson well from their last meeting.
In their first bout, Bagov was pass-happy, giving up space early and often to reach more dominant positions. It was this approach that led to AAA’s escapes, which gave him the time to find the knockout strike on the feet.
This time, Bagov stuck tight, keeping AAA cramped against the cage as he stacked. It was up to AAA to push off on the hips to create space, which in turn allowed Bagov to pass the legs and get to half guard and side control.
In round two, the real fight began.
Pressuring in off a teep, Bagov dipped under the intercepting jab of AAA to get to the legs. Leading with his head, Bagov’s shot was shallow, AAA got his hips back, whizzered, and turned Bagov away with an underhook, tossing him to the cage.
As you’ll see in Sriram’s AAA breakdown, once Bagov’s back hit the fence, AAA unleashed hell - he lead with straights to the body, lever punched off his jab and kept his man stuck in place, terrorizing the massive grappler.
Demonstrating his durability and survival instincts, Bagov refused to fold, soon after catching a kick in open space and getting back to work on top.
After a prolonged mauling, AAA’s habit of shrimping in and getting stuck on his hip came back to bite him. Bagov stepped over his head and attacked the exposed arm, locking on tight with the kimura grip. Sitting back to put his body on the kimura side, Bagov gathered his strength before wrenching the lock, forcing AAA to roll to his back in desperation.
Somehow surviving having his shoulder cranked far past its natural limits, AAA was saved both by the mat intercepting the motion and the end of the round.
Bagov survived a brief scare, but he was up two rounds.
Another round passed with similar dynamics, Bagov’s cardio was holding, and he showed he could consistently push through tough wrestling situations to net top control time against the Lion.
Likely up three heading into the championship rounds, Bagov swaggered out to the center, pressuring with his usual tactics, certain he would plant AAA on the mat again and pad his lead.
Instead, AAA showed off brilliant handfighting and footwork, shucking off the charge of Bagov and circling him to the cage yet again. It was a repeat of the nightmarish onslaught in round 2, but this time, AAA doubled down, digging gruesome hooks and uppercuts to the body, framing off on the neck and battering the torso of Bagov. Wrestling out of panic, AAA smashed his way into the top position and continued to punish the Hulk.
It was a spitting image of the end of their rematch, the sequence that led to Bagov retiring on the stool.
But just when the situation seemed the most severe, with AAA in full mount, Bagov rallied - trapping the head and bridging out toward the caging, bumping AAA off to front headlock.
With just 30 seconds left, Bagov attacked, drilling the rising Lion with powerful knees, check hooking to stave off a secondary assault, then slipping the striking entry of AAA before circling out and covering in back control.
It may have seemed like a small moment, but it was a major victory - in the eyes of two judges, Bagov had just stolen the 10-8 round from Abdul-Aziz Abdulvakhabov.
In the fifth, after failing his initial takedown entries, Bagov prioritized damage control, literally somersaulting into guard and preventing AAA from generating any serious offense.
The gambit paid off, he was awarded a majority decision and the ACB lightweight title.
After a surefire “Fight of the Year” contender, the two friends embraced.
Epilogue: Stifling the Chechen Beyblade
There is some controversy surrounding Ali Bagov’s first title defense against Khusein Khaliev. Originally scheduled for ACA 94, as a title unification bout between ACB and WCFA, Bagov, after coming in overweight, refused to fight, and the bout was cancelled.
Typically, this would be grounds for the champion to relinquish their title.
It may not have been common knowledge, but behind the scenes, Ali Bagov may have been in serious trouble.
After cutting some horrendous amount of weight to make the 155-pound limit, and still failing, Bagov was hospitalized - or so suggests this article featuring a video of Bagov receiving medical attention.
68 Likes, 6 Comments - Ali_halk_Bagov⚔️ (@team_bagov) on Instagram: ""Лига АСА вынуждена с разочарованием объявить об отмене титульного боя в лёгком весе между Али..."
It would not be a surprise to learn that the rumors were true, and that Bagov’s kidneys failed.
Bagov was suspended from competition for six months, but instead of immediately moving up to welterweight, Bagov went through with the fight to unify the titles.
It was an incredibly high-risk decision, as Khusein Khaliev has proven to be one of the most dangerous and well-rounded lightweights in the world. If you don’t believe me, Ryan Wagner’s breakdown on Khaliev’s game is required reading.
A striker by trade, Khaliev is as comfortable in a ranged kickboxing match as he is throwing hands in close quarters, with a surprisingly deep wrestling and grappling skill-set to complement his talent on the feet.
The beauty of Ali Bagov’s approach, however, is that he’s going to do the same thing, regardless of his opponent’s style. You may have the tools to hang with him for some time, but at lightweight, Ali Bagov is inevitable.
Despite the simplicity of his game, Bagov continues to add new wrinkles that serve his preferred weapons. It may seem like an obvious step, but early on against Khaliev, Bagov feinted the level change, then continued to probe at range without taking the committed shot right away.
Considering that Bagov is almost always bulldozing off the whistle, hard feints and fakes can draw out strong reactions, leading to clean entry opportunities.
Standing up straight to kick high, Bagov stepped in, waited on Khaliev’s intercepting hook, then shot under to get a clean bite on a single. Standing with the leg and underhooking the other side, Bagov circled away from the base leg, stepped through to block and tripped Khaliev to the mat.
Persistent, stubborn, and disciplined, Khaliev extended the scramble by flexing the butterfly hook to knock Bagov off from covering the hips, forcing Bagov to reattack the single.
Switching up his single finishes, Bagov opted to run the pipe, back-stepping over the body of Khaliev to cover up after the Chechen’s butt hit the mat.
To his credit, Khaliev wasn’t shying away from continuing to grapple with Bagov. Pushed up against the fence, Khaliev capitalized on Bagov’s narrow stance (just like Leandro Silva and Bubba Jenkins before him) and hit what wrestlers call a whizzer hip toss, into side control.
Showcasing elements of his bottom game we hadn’t seen in some time, Bagov snuck in his instep inside the thigh of Khaliev to elevate repeatedly, until he found the space to sit up and attack the ankles, reaping the knee to debase Khaliev with a heel hook attempt.
Biding his time, Bagov abandoned the submission, hustled to get height, and covered in rear-standing as Khaliev turned to escape. Not long after, a crafty sweep by Khaliev (covered in more depth in Ryan’s breakdown) saw Bagov working off his back once again.
It was a chance for Bagov to flex another lovely technique in his seemingly endless arsenal of grappling techniques - the octopus half guard sweep. Traditionally in jiu-jitsu, you sit up for the underhook on the same side as the half guard lock, eventually working parallel on your hands and knees or even slipping off to the back.
Octopus half sees the practitioner work cross-body, swimming the underhook from the half-guard side to the opposite side, reaching across the back and peaking the head out from under the armpit. There are a few options during this motion - you can release the half guard and gain initiative in the fight for the next position, be it in a more neutral position like front headlock or bottom referee’s. A much more skilled user, Ali Bagov kept the near-side hook in from his half guard, used the swimming motion to gain height and debase Khaliev, then slipped back to the original side to shoot the same-side underhook, gaining the standing or grounded seatbelt position, as originally intended.
It was all Bagov from there on.
His constant lead leg kicking was wonderful bait for the veteran striker Khaliev, who could not help but respond with a naked kick of his own - which Bagov immediately caught. Stacking and pressuring, Bagov slowly encouraged Khaliev to take greater risks, leading to more dominant positions for the Kabardian Hulk.
By the fourth round, Khaliev was spent, becoming increasingly static on bottom. Bagov passed to side control, proceeding to torture Khaliev by repeatedly trapping the arm for mounted crucifix attempts - another Nurmagomedov family favorite.
Reaching, pawing, attempting to avoid giving up control once again, Khaliev gave Bagov the perfect window to pop up and step over the head, the reaching arm trapped inside an inverted triangle.
With Khaliev stuck in place, Bagov applied a kimura for the quick tap.
***
Cutting back to lightweight to fight Khaliev was a horrendous idea for Ali Bagov. At 5’9, with the most muscular build in the division by far, he was never a true 155. No wonder his kidneys failed.
It came as no surprise when Bagov vacated the title, announcing his move up to 170.
His first test will be Friday, February 21st at ACA 104 vs. Adam Townsend.
While not a standout in any one area, Townsend is a fairly large, physical welterweight, one who should be a decent measuring stick for the once overpowering grappling assault of Ali Bagov.
Perhaps his best days are behind him, or maybe a healthier weight cut will lead to an energized, even more terrifying Bagov. Regardless, Bagov’s future is likely in ACA.