UFC alum nearly robbed of rare submission at ACA 209 - MMA Junkie

Former UFC fighter Felipe Bunes had to submit his opponent twice Friday in order to get a win.

At ACA 209 in Dushanbe, Tajikistan, Bunes (15-9) locked Azam Gaforov (16-6) into a twister midway through Round 1. Even though the tap came, referee Maxim Protasov did not stop the fight. Bunes let go, thinking the fight was over. Luckily for him, he was able to work to get another. The stoppage came at 4:13. The crowd went silent.

A win is a win and now Bunes has a twister submission win to his name. It could be the exact sort of maneuver he needed to get back on the UFC radar. Bunes departed the promotion earlier in 2026 after a 1-3 stint that included back-to-back losses on the way out.

He'll likely need another win or two before he gets a call from UFC matchmaker Mick Maynard – but this was a hell of a start.

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