Ukraine's Zhan Beleniuk starts MMA career with technical knockout victory
Olympic champion and People's Deputy of Ukraine Zhan Beleniuk (photo: Getty Images)
Kyiv hosted the inaugural event of the new ARENA Championship promotion, with the spotlight on Olympic champion and Ukrainian lawmaker Zhan Beleniuk, who made his professional mixed martial arts debut against Israeli veteran Haim Gozali.
Quick finish at Kyiv Palace of Sports
The debut event of the newly launched ARENA Championship promotion took place on Saturday, July 11, at the Palace of Sports in Kyiv.
The main event featured decorated Ukrainian Greco-Roman wrestler Zhan Beleniuk taking on experienced Israeli fighter Haim Gozali, who competed in 21 bouts during his lengthy career with Bellator MMA.
The MMA bout ended in the opening five-minute round. Beleniuk wasted no time testing the striking exchanges and immediately relied on his trademark wrestling, taking his opponent to the ground within seconds.
Once on the mat, the Ukrainian calmly and methodically broke through Gozali's defense with heavy ground-and-pound strikes.
The relentless pressure proved too much for the 53-year-old Gozali, whose record stood at 15-6 entering the fight. After absorbing a series of punches, he suffered a deep cut that left blood streaming down his face, making it increasingly difficult to defend himself.
In the fourth minute of the opening round, after nearly two minutes of complete domination on the ground by Beleniuk, Gozali's corner threw in the towel to end the one-sided contest.
The referee awarded Beleniuk a first-round technical knockout victory after the Israeli fighter's corner signaled that he would not continue.
Career full of twists: From retirement to Los Angeles 2028
The fight marked the beginning of a new chapter in Zhan Beleniuk's athletic career, after months of uncertainty about what the Olympic champion would do next.
The Greco-Roman wrestler had previously announced that he would retire from elite competition after the 2024 Paris Olympics, where he won the bronze medal.
The 34-year-old athlete also boasts an Olympic gold from Tokyo 2020 and a silver medal from the 2016 Rio Games.
However, retirement proved to be short-lived. Beleniuk recently surprised many by being included in Ukraine's 2026 national Greco-Roman wrestling team roster.
He later confirmed to the media that he had officially resumed training and openly suggested that he intends to compete for a place at the 2028 Olympic Games in Los Angeles.
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