UFC bantamweight Toshiomi Kazama has said he’s ‘really glad to be alive’ after suffering a brutal knockout.
Kazama, 28, fought Elijah Smith on the preliminary card of UFC Vegas 109 on Saturday night and was left unconscious in the last minute of the opening round.
The Japanese fighter found himself on his back in the final 60 seconds of round one, when his opponent summoned the strength to lift him straight above his head.
Both men knew what was coming as Kazama found himself in mid-air on the shoulders of Smith, who proceeded to drive his opponent with maximum force into the canvas.
Smith used his left hand to make sure Kazama felt the full wrath of his brutal powerbomb as the back of his head smashed the floor.
Kazama was instantly knocked out as he lay on the floor motionless, and Smith made sure the fight was over by following up with two successive right hands.
Members of the MMA fraternity were worried for the state of Kazama’s health in the aftermath of the finish.
However, the 28-year-old cleared up any doubts through a social media post that asserted that, although he will certainly be feeling the pain, he is just fine.
What did Toshiomi Kazama say after UFC Vegas 109?
“Defeat at Five Guys,” Kazama wrote on X, pictured at the popular restaurant in Vegas.
“For now, I’m just really glad to be alive…”
Fans were quick with their reactions to the insane KO too.
One took to X in response to the finish and wrote: “Knock out of the year right there. Absolutely ruthless finish.”
A second said: “That was really horrendous.
While others were left concerned with the nature of Smith’s finish.
A third added: “That move needs to be banned.”
And a fourth said the powerbomb ‘should be taken out’ of Dana White‘s promotion.
Kazama emerged through Road to UFC, an MMA event featuring Asian prospects fighting for UFC contracts, in 2022.
He won his entry bout to the UFC via unanimous decision and has since gone 1-3 in MMA’s biggest league.
Smith, meanwhile, came through Dana White’s Contender Series last year and is undefeated in two UFC fights.
Slams in the UFC are an extremely rare finish and have only been seen a matter of times in the organisation’s history.
Quinton ‘Rampage’ Jackson pulled off two slam finishes during his iconic career, and Smith gave a shout-out to the MMA veteran during his post-fight octagon interview.
“Unfortunately, I had to slam him on his dome piece,” he told UFC commentator Daniel Cormier.
“I knew I was going to be strong and powerful. I hope that slam gets in that conversation [for a $50,000 bonus].”
Smith was right, as he was awarded a Performance of the Night bonus for his incredible display.
Cormier, a former two-division UFC champion, said he wasn’t sure if he’d seen a powerbomb as devastating as Smith’s in MMA history.