Walker vs Oezdemir

Who won Walker vs Oezdemir?

Volkan Oezdemir beat Johnny Walker by knockout in the 1st round during the main card of UFC Fight Night, on Saturday 22nd June 2024 at Kingdom Arena in Riyadh.

The fight was scheduled to take place over 3 rounds in the Light Heavyweight division, which meant the weight limit was 205 pounds (14.6 stone or 93 KG).

Walker vs Oezdemir stats

Johnny Walker stepped into the octagon with a record of 21 wins, 8 losses and 0 draws, 16 of those wins coming by the way of knock out and 3 by submission.

Volkan Oezdemir made his way to the cage with a record of 19 wins, 7 losses and 0 draws, 12 of those wins coming by knock out and 2 by submission.

This was Johnny Walker's 14th fight in the UFC, having made his debut for the promotion in 2018. Volkan Oezdemir marked his 14th fight for them, having made his own debut for the promotion in 2017.

Johnny Walker's UFC record stood at 7-6-0, while Volkan Oezdemir's came in at 8-6-0.

The stats suggested Walker had an advantage in power over Oezdemir, with a 76% knock out percentage over Oezdemir's 63%.

If the fight went to the ground, their records suggested Walker had a slight advantage over Oezdemir, with a 14% submission rate over Oezdemir's 11%.

Johnny Walker was the younger man by 2 years, at 32 years old.

Walker had a height advantage of 4 inches over Oezdemir. That also extended to a 7-inch reach advantage.

Walker was arguably the less experienced fighter, having had 3 more fights, and made his debut in 2013, 3 years and 3 months later than Oezdemir, whose first professional fight was in 2010. He had fought 2 less professional rounds, 47 to Oezdemir's 49.

Walker vs Oezdemir form

Walker had beaten 3 of his last 5 opponents, stopping 1 of them, going to the judges twice.

In his last fight before this contest, he had lost to Magomed Ankalaev at UFC Fight Night: Ankalaev vs. Walker on 13th January 2024 by knockout in the 2nd round at UFC Apex, Las Vegas, United States.

Previous to that, his fight against Magomed Ankalaev at UFC 294 on 21st October 2023 ended in a no contest.

Going into that contest, he had won against Anthony Smith at UFC Fight Night – Rozenstruik vs. Almeida on 13th May 2023 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at Spectrum Center, Charlotte, United States.

Before that, he had beaten Paul Craig at UFC 283 on 21st January 2023 by knockout in the 1st round at Jeunesse Arena, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

He had defeated Ion Cutelaba at UFC 279 on 10th September 2022 by submission in the 1st round at T-Mobile Arena, Las Vegas, United States.

Volkan Oezdemir had beaten 3 of his last 5 opponents.

In his last fight leading up to this contest, he was victorious against Bogdan Guskov at UFC Fight Night Paris – Gane vs. Spivac on 2nd September 2023 by submission in the 1st round at Accor Arena, Paris, France.

Previous to that, he had been beaten by Nikita Krylov at UFC 280 on 22nd October 2022 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at Etihad Arena, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.

Going into that contest, he had won against Paul Craig at UFC Fight Night London on 23rd July 2022 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest at The O2, London, United Kingdom.

Before that, he had been defeated by Magomed Ankalaev at UFC 267 on 30th October 2021 by unanimous decision in their 3 round contest.

He had beaten Aleksandar Rakic at UFC on ESPN+ 23 on 21st December 2019 by split decision in their 3 round contest at Sajik Arena, Busan, South Korea.

Activity check

In terms of activity leading into the fight, Johnny Walker had been fighting more than Volkan Oezdemir.

Going to this contest, Johnny Walker had last fought 6 months and 11 days ago, while Volkan Oezdemir's last outing had been 10 months and 22 days ago.

Walker's last 5 fights had come over a period of 1 year, 10 months and 14 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 4 months and 16 days. In those fights, he fought a total of 8 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 1.6 rounds on average.

Oezdemir's last 5 fights had come over a period of 4 years, 7 months and 3 days, meaning he had been fighting on average every 11 months and 1 day. In those fights, he fought a total of 13 rounds, meaning that they had lasted 2.6 rounds on average.

What time did Walker vs Oezdemir start?

The fighters were expected to walk out at around 7:10 PM UTC , which was 3:10 PM EST or 12:10 PM PST on the West Coast of America, or 8:10 PM BST in the UK.

What were the odds on Walker vs Oezdemir?

Johnny Walker was a 4/5 (-130) favourite going into the contest, while Volkan Oezdemir made his way into the ring at 1/1 (+100) with oddsmakers.