Umar Dzambekov vs. Artem Brusov | UFC Fight Pass - October 3, 2025

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Umar Dzambekov-Artem Brusov to headline October 3 in Santa Ynez

Light heavyweight Umar Dzambekov will take on Artem Brusov in a “Hollywood Fight Nights” headliner on October 3 at Chumash Casino Resort in Santa Ynez, California.

Dzambekov, 12-0 (8 KOs), a native of Vienna, Austria, who now trains out of the Wild Card Gym in Los Angeles, will be fighting for the third time in 2025. A 27-year-old southpaw, he most recently bested Roamer Angulo in an eight-round unanimous decision win at Chumash in June.

Brusov, 13-1 (12 KOs), originally from Tambor, Russia, and now fighting out of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, hasn’t fought in more than 16 months. But in his previous outing, he stopped Wilson Santana inside a round in May 2023.

“Umar Dzambekov continues to pass each test in grand style and has earned the position to be in the main event for this show,” 360 Promotions’ Tom Loeffler said. “Artem Brusov presents another very tough challenge for him on October 3.”

In the co-feature of the UFC Fight Pass-broadcast show, junior bantamweight Daniel “Chucky” Barrera, 9-1-1 (4 KOs), of Eastvale, California, will meet Mario Hernandez, 13-6-1 (4 KOs), of Santa Ana, California, in a scheduled eight-rounder.

Barrera, 23, most recently won an eight-round unanimous decision over Basilio Franco in June. In his previous outing, Hernandez bumped off then-undefeated prospect Jesus Martinez in June.

Also on the card will be junior welterweight Sacramento’s Cain Sandoval, 16-0 (14 KOs), who will square off against Jino Rodrigo, 13-5-2 (11 KOs), of Metro Manila, Philippines, in a scheduled eight-rounder.

Already in 2025, Sandoval has notched a fourth-round stoppage of Mark Bernaldez in February and a second-round knockout of Jonathan Jose Eniz in June. Rodrigo has lost two of three – but against stiff competition in Ruslan Abdullaev (an eight-round decision in April) and Elvis Rodriguez (a 10-round points defeat in June 2024).

Los Angeles attraction “Right Hook” Roxy Verduzco, 5-0 (1 KOs), will face Mexico’s Perla Lomeli, 7-5 (1 KOs), in an eight-round junior featherweight bout. Verduzco, 23, will be fighting for the fourth time in 2025, while Lomeli most recently dropped a six-round decision to Shannel Butler on August 9.

Competing in the super welterweight division over ten scheduled rounds, undefeated contender

Kazakhstan junior middleweight Sadriddin Akhmedov, 15-0-1 (13 KOs), now fighting out of Big Bear, California, under trainer Abel Sanchez, will meet Mexico’s Edgardo Velazquez, 16-2 (16 KOs), from Tijuana.

Akhmedov is coming off a 10-round majority draw against Elias Espadas in April, while Velazquez saw a four-fight win streak end in his previous bout, an eight-round points loss to Jose de Jesus Adama Chio in August 2024.

Angel Carrillo, 5-0 (2 KOs), a 20-year-old junior featherweight from Oxnard, California, will kick off the broadcast in a scheduled six-rounder against an opponent to be named.

In the preliminaries, aired on the UFC Fight Pass YouTube channel, 19-year-old junior bantamweight Diego Aviles Parra, 4-0 (4 KOs), and junior lightweight Mario Zamora, from Port Hueneme, California, and making his pro debut, will fight in separate four-rounders against opponents to be announced in the near future.

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Fight week!!

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Umar Dzambekov is eager to show where he stands in light heavyweight division

Umar Dzambekov will show where he stacks up in the light heavyweight division on Friday night.

Dzambekov faces Artem Brusov in a 10-round main event at the Chumash Casino in Santa Ynez, California. The bout will stream on UFC Fight Pass.

Dzambekov, 12-0 (8 KOs), a 27-year-old from Austria, now residing in Los Angeles, is eager to mix it up with the top names in the division. Marvin Somodio, his trainer, believes this fight will tell a lot about where he is in the division.

“We will find out after this fight,” Somodio told BS. “Based on training, he can fight the top guys right now.”

This is Dzambekov's first 10-round fight. It is also his first time main-eventing a fight card in the United States. With that comes added pressure, which is difficult to predict something that is unpredictable in how a fighter will adapt to the situation.

“It is different in the gym, everything changes when you go to different places, especially in front of a crowd,” Somodio said. “The mental part is the thing that can affect the fighter's ability.”

Brusov, 13-1 (12 KOs), is a Russian power-puncher training in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. The 34-year-old Brusov suffered a loss in 2023 to Atif Oberlton, but returned in May to stop Wilson Santana. Somodio shared that Dzambekov has the traits of an elite fighter, furthering what experience grants you.

“Once they have experience, then you can make adjustments,” Somodio said.

In a division that is top-heavy with names like Artur Beterbiev, Dmitry Bivol, David Benavidez and David Morrell, it would take a lot more ability to stand out than usual.

Somodio feels that his fighter would measure up to the competition well.

“Umar is a complete fighter,” Somodio said. “His skills, his heart, and he is a light heavyweight who moves like a lighter fighter.”

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Dzambekov 12-0 (8 KOs) came in Thursday at 175.6lbs while Brusov 13-1 (12 KOs) weighed 174.2lbs for their ten round light heavyweight bout.

Daniel “Chucky” Barrera and Mario Hernandez both weighed in at 115lbs.

10 rounds - junior welterweights
Cain Sandoval (141.8lbs) vs. Jino Rodrigo (140.8lbs)

8 rounds - junior featherweights
Roxy Verduzco (120.8lbs) vs. Perla Lomeli (121.2lbs)

4 rounds - featherweights
Jonathan Vasquez (125lbs) vs. Antonio Ferrel (126lbs)

4 rounds - lightweights
Mario Zamora (135 lbs) vs. Abraham Morales (135lbs)

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Umar Dzambekov experiences thrill of letting his hands go in KO win

Wasting no time and delivering no respect to his opponent is a strategy that ideally suits light heavyweight Umar Dzambekov.

Uncorking a second-round uppercut with one second remaining, Dzambekov knocked out Artem Brusov and improved to 13-0 with nine knockouts Friday night here at Chumash Casino Resort.

Dzambekov, coming off a more thoughtful and difficult bout in June against veteran former title challenger Roamer Alexis Angulo, immediately unveiled a rapid power punch that rocked Brusov three times in the first round, giving the southpaw a convincing early advantage that was missing last time out.

“My last opponent knew how to deal with those shots. He was experienced,” Dzambekov told BS after the bout. “These were shots I was preparing to land – and they landed.”

At 27 and on the brink of a career move from fight promoter Tom Loeffler’s 360 Promotions to Dana White and Turki Alalshikh’s Zuffa Boxing, which starts on Paramount+ in January, Dzambekov perfectly timed his improvement under trainer Marvin Somodio.

Vienna’s Dzambekov said even though he had hurt Russia’s Brusov, 13-2 (12 KOs), earlier, the knockout blow came as Brusov likely “underestimated my power … the most dangerous punches are the ones you don’t see coming, and that was one of them.”

Dzambekov agreed he can build a reputation as a destructive force in the division by throwing his power punches without restraint or hesitation.

“I’d say so,” he said.

He said fighting for Zuffa Boxing “is going to be big” and boost his prominence, something he sought to do without the millions of dollars in promotion that are coming.

“I want to go viral every day, and there’s no better way to do so than with a knockout,” he said.

“I’m learning. I’m getting better.”

In the co-main event, junior bantamweight Daniel “Chucky” Barrera belted opponent Mario Hernandez in the defining sequences, outshining Hernandez’s inside body work en route to a unanimous decision victory by scores of 80-72, 79-73, 77-75 in the eight-round bout.

Barrera’s effective counterpunching shined, especially in the sixth round.

Barrera, 10-1-1 (4 KOs), was willing to take a few Hernandez punches in order to capitalize on openings exposed by his foe’s movement.

Although Hernandez, 13-7-1 (4 KOs), may have led in the race for most body punches, it was Barrera, of Eastvale, California, who impressed by being unaffected by the repetition and unloading the more damaging shots that impressed the crowd.

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Friday Night Fights: Umar Dzambekov, Cain Sandoval Pitch Big Wins In California

Los Angeles-based light heavyweight prospect Umar Dzambekov produced a second-round stoppage win over Artem Brusov, ending their Friday night main event early at California's Chumash Casino Resort.

Dzambekov, trained by Marvin Somodio from the Wildcard Boxing Gym, was aggressive from the off and danced with danger at close-range before earning his reward after stinging nine-year pro Brusov (13-2, 12 KOs) thrice in the opening frame.

A huge left uppercut was the decisive blow late in round two, with esteemed referee Thomas Taylor waving off proceedings after seeing the 34-year-old stagger when scrambling to beat his count.

Russian born, Austrian southpaw Dzambekov (13-0, 9 KOs) continues building his profile as he'll naturally seek to crack into the world's top-15 rankings at 175-pounds once the opposition level keeps increasing.


Daniel Barrera delivered a career-best showing in the chief support, earning a well-deserved points win (80-72, 79-73, 77-75) over veteran Mario Hernandez.

Hernandez (13-7-1, 4 KOs) was riding a high coming into the contest, having inflicted a maiden career defeat at Jesus Martinez's expense on June 7, snapping a two-fight losing streak. Yet he couldn't follow that up against 'Chucky', whose counterpunching and shot selection kept the 34-year-old at bay for sustained periods.

Barrera (10-1-1, 4 KOs) has won two straight since an eight-round majority decision defeat by Cristopher Rios in February, who parlayed that victory into a spot on Top Rank's final televised show on ESPN against Steven Navarro in July.

It was a welcome win for Cain Sandoval as the junior welterweight contender scored a final round finish of Philippines' Jino Rodrigo during their competitive clash scheduled for 10.

Sandoval (17-0, 15 KOs) led 88-83 twice and 89-82 on another scorecard before the stoppage, unleashing a three-punch combination which left gamely visitor Rodrigo (13-6-2, 11 KOs) thoroughly unstuck.


In the junior featherweight division, 24-year-old talent Roxy Verduczo (6-0, 1 KO) didn't put a foot wrong as she emerged a comfortable points winner over eight rounds (80-72 x 2, 79-73) against Mexican veteran Perla Lomeli (7-6, 1 KO).

Prior, Jonathan Vazquez (2-0, 1 KO) dropped Antonio Ferrel (0-2) en route to a first-round finish during a fight scheduled for four between California featherweights to open the card.