Gokhan Saricam has made a quick first impression within the UFC, however one knockout doesn’t place a heavyweight on a title observe. The Turkish consultant has the facility and expertise to turn out to be a helpful title within the division, although his subsequent reserving will say extra about his ceiling than his debut did.
Gokhan Saricam
Saricam, 35, moved to 12-2 after stopping Canada’s Tanner Boser with punches at 4:43 of the second spherical at UFC Combat Night time in Winnipeg on April 18 wherein the Turkish athlete was a slight favourite with bet bahis siteleri. It was his UFC debut, following a 5-2 run in Bellator, and gave him a 1-0 UFC file. The 6ft 3in heavyweight is listed with a 76-inch attain, fights from an orthodox stance and has competed out of Kops Gymnasium.
Saricam was born in Sint-Niklaas, Belgium, to Turkish dad and mom and moved along with his household to Heusden-Zolder on the age of seven, the place he grew up. He discovered boxing at 12 beneath former Olympian Abdel Wahabi, fought his first bout in Munich at 17 and constructed a 28-1 beginner file, together with Belgian super-heavyweight titles in 2012 and 2013. He stepped away from fight sports activities in his early 20s to construct a portray enterprise and help his household, later returning to coaching after connecting with Gegard Mousasi’s workforce.
Saricam moved into MMA in 2018, signed with Bellator the next yr and developed his wrestling alongside his established boxing base. He’s married with two daughters, whereas his hyperlinks to each Belgium and Turkey stay a part of his public id.
The Boser win provided the clearest model of Saricam’s attraction: measured stress, a willingness to remain in vary and sufficient power to alter a struggle late in a spherical. He landed 79 of 145 important strikes, with one knockdown recorded, earlier than the end. Eight of Saricam’s 12 skilled victories have come by knockout or TKO, so a stoppage isn’t a shock with him.
His prior file additionally provides helpful context. Saricam beat Daniel James by unanimous determination in June 2023, a outcome that confirmed he can deal with three full rounds towards a reputable giant heavyweight. His two defeats got here by determination towards Oleg Popov and Stated Sowma, whereas Steve Mowry submitted him in 2019. These losses recommend the route towards Saricam is prone to contain management, wrestling and longer exchanges somewhat than standing straight in entrance of him.
The instant challenge is that Saricam at the moment has no confirmed subsequent UFC struggle. A proposed assembly with Scotland’s Louie Sutherland for the July 25 UFC occasion in Abu Dhabi was cancelled, leaving him with out an introduced opponent or date.
Saricam was a -142 favorite towards Boser on CBS Sports activities’ pre-fight line, which implied a 56% likelihood of victory. Different listings had him a lot shorter. His Bellator historical past reveals bookmakers have usually trusted him towards lower-ranked opposition: he closed round -550 towards Charlie Milner in 2021 and was roughly -150 towards Kirill Sidelnikov in 2022. He was the underdog towards Popov, closing round +175, then misplaced on factors.
A title problem appears to be like unlikely within the brief time period. At 35, Saricam doesn’t have years to spend constructing slowly, and the UFC heavyweight division has skilled contenders with deeper resumes. Nonetheless, two extra UFC wins, particularly one over a reputable athlete with wrestling stress, might put him close to the rankings dialog. Saricam has the type of ending menace that may flip a preliminary-card slot right into a speaking level. Whether or not he turns into greater than that may rely upon what occurs as soon as opponents cease accepting a putting contest.
