A torrid streak of finishes at UFC Vegas 109 included an absolutely vicious slam knockout from a fast-rising prospect.
Competing in just his second UFC fight, Elijah Smith made good on his status as a massive pre-fight favorite when he finished Toshiomi Kazama late in the first round of their bantamweight matchup at UFC Vegas 109.
The brutal slam was the third-straight finish on the UFC Vegas 109 prelims after the event opened with back-to-back finishes, and Smith’s win immediately followed another first-round knockout from rising women’s bantamweight contender Joselyne Edwards.
Elijah Smith after his win at UFC Vegas 109. / (Zuffa LLC)
Following a 6-1 start to his professional career, Smith took a unanimous decision over the formerly-undefeated Aaron Tau on Dana White’s Contender Series to punch his ticket to the UFC.
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The 22-year-old took another unanimous decision over experienced veteran Vince Morales in February to officially kick off his UFC career, and for his sophomore outing Smith was booked to meet Road to UFC standout Kazama on the prelims of UFC Vegas 109.
Kazama came into the night after scoring his first UFC win against Charalampos Grigoriou in August, but the Japanese bantamweight fell to 1-3 since joining the promotion off Road to UFC when he tried to lock up a triangle choke and Smith brutally slammed him to the mat.
PICKED HIM UP & PUT HIM OUT! 🤯🤯🤯
Elijah Smith with a potential KNOCKOUT OF THE YEAR!
[ #UFCVegas109 | LIVE NOW on ESPN & ESPN+ ] pic.twitter.com/jl1a9S9dGJ
— UFC (@ufc) August 9, 2025
The finish was reminiscent of Quinton “Rampage” Jackson’s iconic PRIDE knockout against Ricardo Arona, and it marked Smith’s first Octagon finish after he previously collected five stoppage-wins during his pre-UFC career.
RAMPAGE-STYLE PRIDE SLAM!! #UFCVegas109 https://t.co/V4ce9eF7K8
— Zain Bando ™️ (@zainbando99) August 9, 2025
UFC Vegas 109 kicked off with a pair of decision-wins from Gabriella Fernandes and Eric McConico before things took a violent turn in the night’s third bout, which saw Uros Medic flatten Gilbert Urbina with a perfectly-timed left hand in just over a minute.
Uros Medic knocked out Gilbert Urbina on the UFC Vegas 109 prelims. / (Zuffa LLC)
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Medic’s victory was followed by another first-round knockout from Joselyne Edwards to bring the Panamanian’s current streak of finishes to three fights, and those two finishes and Smith’s seismic slam all helped to get fight fans primed for a main card headlined by top-ranked middleweights Roman Dolidze and Anthony Hernandez.
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