LAS VEGAS – Cezary Oleksiejczuk wants to kick off his UFC tenure by getting some revenge for his brother.
Oleksiejczuk (16-3), younger brother of UFC middleweight Michal, punched his ticket to the octagon with a 36-second TKO of Theo Haig Tuesday at Dana White’s Contender Series 80 from the UFC Apex. Oleksiejczuk’s desired first opponent is a former foe of his brother’s, Shara Magomedov, who beat Michal by unanimous decision in a Fight of the Night battle at UFC on ABC 7 last August.
“I want to be back as soon as possible. I also want to avenge some of my brother’s losses,” Oleksiejczuk told MMA Junkie and other reporters through an interpreter after DWCS 80 on Tuesday. “So, I hope to fight Shara ‘Bullet’ in October in Abu Dhabi.”
Oleksiejczuk’s contract-winning performance didn’t come without controversy. Haig had a hold of the leg of Oleksiejczuk, who rained down hammerfists that put him out. That prompted referee Gary Copeland to call a timeout, thinking that the shots were illegal. However, after reviewing with other officials cageside, Copeland ruled the fight a TKO win for Oleksiejczuk.
The 25-year-old was unfazed by the confusion surrounding his finish.
“The most important was to win the fight and get the contract, and that’s done,” Oleksiejczuk said. “It’s not my fault with the ending so, I’m not thinking about that. I’m just happy that everything went as it should. … At first, I had no idea what’s going on and what it’s all about. I was asking the ref constantly like, ‘Did I win, did I win?’ And after like three or four questions I asked, he finally told me that I won by KO, and that was the moment that I realized I won the fight.”
