UFC London: Bryan Barberena's mid-fight turnaway leads to surprise knockdown [Video]

Bryan Barberena's first fight at middleweight against Makhmud Muradov at UFC Fight Night: Aspinall vs. Tybura saw 'Bam Bam' get knocked down. He turned his head after missing a leg kick and got punched in the blink of an eye, wobbling him to the floor.

"don’t turn away when you are fighting."

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Barberena, a UFC veteran who has mostly fought at welterweight, was appearing for the first time at middleweight for the promotion. He entered the bout with a two-fight losing streak and relied heavily on his pace and volume to underpower Muradov. Muradov tried using wrestling, an infrequent weapon for him, to keep Barberena in control.

With the Tajik-Uzbek fighter keeping the fight well under his control, Bryan Barberena needed a finish in the final round. He couldn't succeed in knocking out Muradov, but 'Bam Bam' stayed undeterred and braved blows and an ugly stumble to stay alive throughout the bout. The fight resulted in a unanimous decision victory for Makhmud Muradov, with all three judges scoring the contest 30-27, ending his drought of victories.

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Alongside Bryan Barberena, Shauna Bannon also suffered a decision loss at UFC London

Bryan Barberena lost in a debut middleweight bout, while Shauna Bannon had to swallow the bitter pill of defeat in her UFC debut. Bannon lost to Bruna Brasil at UFC London by a unanimous decision. She entered the octagon with a perfect professional MMA record of 5-0, including a famous win over two-time Invicta FC title challenger Minna Grusander.

"Bruna Brasil gets the decision victory (30-27, 29-28 x2) and spoils Shauna Bannon UFC debut.

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A fighter with extensive exposure to martial arts and a background in kickboxing, Bannon brought a lot of fanfare with her to the bout. Conor McGregor was also rooting for her and had expressed his support for 'Mama B' on multiple accounts. She herself, a day prior to making her UFC debut, revealed that she was being sponsored by Forged Stout and The Black Forge Inn, companies owned by McGregor.