The ALF Global reality series produced one of its most talked-about moments yet when Zalimkhan ‘Zalik’ Yusupov, a competitor trained under UFC legend Jon Jones, put his opponent Muhammad ‘Parrish’ Heybati to sleep with a guillotine choke during what was designated as a boxing match.
According to the broadcast, Heybati had controlled the tempo and positioning through the first two rounds. He appeared to be on course for a comfortable points victory.
Then early in the third round, everything changed. Zalik clamped onto a guillotine choke and refused to release, ultimately rendering Heybati unconscious and bringing the bout to an abrupt, controversial end.
Former UFC heavyweight champion Daniel Cormier, who was ringside for the occasion, wore his displeasure openly. While corners erupted and calls for bonuses rang out across the venue, Cormier’s focus was fixed on what he viewed as a calculated and deliberate violation of the sport’s rules.
Jones, watching from his corner, reportedly summed up the moment with a phrase delivered without any apparent remorse: “If you ain’t che ating, you ain’t trying.”
Cormier’s response left nothing to interpretation. “I expect Zalik to che at, because Jon Jones is his coach, and that’s all Jon Jones does is ch eat,” he said plainly.
The energy in the room told two very different stories. Those in Zalik’s camp celebrated loudly, with corner staff and onlookers calling for a performance bonus for the finish. Zalik himself sought out Cormier directly after the bout, asking the former champion to put him in front of UFC CEO Dana White.
“DC, brother! Give me the Dana White contract, please!” he called out, riding the wave of the moment.
Jones has spent much of his career as one of combat sports’ most gifted and simultaneously divisive figures, with a long paper trail of rule violations and suspensions that has followed even his most dominant performances.
His apparent amusement at the situation did little to ease Cormier’s temperature, and the former champion made no effort to disguise the fact that, in his view, the outcome was entirely predictable.
“Not a surprise,” Cormier noted, “because his coach is Jon Jones.”
