Missed Fists: Cornerman slaps fighter moments before knockout loss

A new edition of Missed Fists highlights overlooked striking finishes and notable moments from MMA shows worldwide. In a Krush kickboxing event in Tokyo, Kei's corner attempted to motivate him with an aggressive slap moments before he was knocked out by Soma Kondo with a head kick. Though video editing may compress the timeline, the unfortunate sequence drew commentary from UFC legend Cub Swanson, who criticized the physicality of corner work. Kondo later joked on social media about the incident.

Tyjani Beztati, a former Glory lightweight champion now 4-0 in MMA since 2025, delivered one of the sharpest intercept knees in recent memory at Levels Fight League 24, catching Daniel Kolasinski square in the face as he threw an overhand right. Beztati's explosive counter sent Kolasinski crashing backward.

On the amateur circuit, Miguel Soares impressed at Martial Arts Championship 17 with an emotional face-plant finish of Heitor Santos. In his second pro appearance for Cage Warriors, IMMAF standout Alex Keogh—a massive -2000 favorite—fell to underdog Cristiano Oliveira, who caught him with a clubbing right after stuffing a takedown, then finished with hammerfists in just his second pro bout.

Other notable finishes included Derek Rayfield's eight-second knockout of Oliver Moeckel at Tuff-N-Uff 157; Israel Galvan's first-round bludgeoning of Devon Jackson for a flyweight belt at the same event; Pablo Colado's Tsarukyan-esque elbow finish over Vitor Enrique at WOW 32; and Lucas Ananias's walk-off knockout of Jameson Oliveira at Shooto Brasil 140.

From The Ultimate Fighter 34, Artem Belakh fell short in his post-tournament return at 559 Fights with a botched back-take submission attempt. Gabi McComb, a 5-0 unbeaten flyweight prospect well-known in competitive grappling, secured her victory at 28 years old with a nasty face crank over Taylor Maudlin.

Additional finishes: Jesus Hernandez's comeback knockout over Roman Sandoval at MMA Mexico 9, and varied striking displays from Ummat Jafarov and Nihat Kerimov at an Ased Fighting Championship show in Baku, Azerbaijan.