On October 27, light heavyweight contender Volkan Oezdemir makes his long-awaited return to the Octagon, as he faces Anthony Smith in the main event of UFC Moncton. The road back to a title shot begins for Oezdemir in Canada, but before fight night arrives, let’s see how “No Time” got here.
Valhalla: Battle of the Vikings
Oezdemir hadn’t started calling himself “No Time” yet, but it may be safe to say that this night in March 2013 was where it all began. Fighting three times in one night is a brutal and grueling prospect for any fighter, but Oezdemir might not recall it as being too physically taxing, as he defeated Benyaich Mohamed, Angelier Benjamin and David Round in succession. All by knockout. All in the first round. All in under a minute. Oh yeah, the world would soon know the Switzerland native.
Josh Lanier
Oezdemir’s regional success earned him a call from the Bellator promotion, and in October 2013 he made his United States debut against Josh Lanier. It wasn’t a spectacular finish for Oezdemir, but it was decisive, as he ground-and-pounded his way to a first-round win that ended in 3:13.
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WIN! To share/ À partager After a full out war of 3 rounds, I won my first #UFC fight vs. #6 World Ranked #UFC Fighter! I am proud to have been able to represent Switzerland at this stage. This is only the beginning, there is still a lot of room for work and improvement but I'm more motivated than ever! A big thanks to everybody who supported me all around the world! Thanks to @henrihooft @coachgjones and @neilmelansonmma to have been around and pushing me all this times
A post shared by Volkan Oezdemir (@volkan_oezdemir) on Feb 4, 2017 at 11:28pm PST
Ovince Saint Preux (WATCH ON UFC FIGHT PASS)
Following the Lanier bout, Oezdemir went 2-1, but he had been on the sidelines for nearly a year when he got a short notice call to make his UFC debut against Ovince Saint Preux. Despite his talent and status as a prospect to watch, Oezdemir was rightfully an underdog to OSP, but three rounds later, he had a win and a fresh start in the biggest show in the sport. Now everybody wanted to be on the Volkan Oezdemir bandwagon.
Misha Cirkunov (WATCH ON UFC FIGHT PASS)
Misha Cirkunov was on an eight-fight winning streak that included four UFC wins (and finishes) as he entered his May 2017 bout against Oezdemir. Just 28 seconds later, the streak came to an end at the hands of Oezdemir, who followed up his debut win in devastating style, throwing himself into the 205-pound title picture in the process.
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Eruption done Thank you to all of you for the support, you are amazing ! And thank you @danawhite for giving me the opportunity to show the world my capacities during the biggest event of the year! #ufc214 #Ihadpredicted #readyforthenextone #notime
A post shared by Volkan Oezdemir (@volkan_oezdemir) on Jul 30, 2017 at 4:33am PDT
Jimi Manuwa (WATCH ON UFC FIGHT PASS)
Put two of the premier knockout artists in the Octagon together and someone likely isn’t hearing the final horn. But few expected Oezdemir to get Jimi Manuwa out of there in just 42 seconds. The spectacular Performance of the Night finish earned Oezdemir a shot at Daniel Cormier’s light heavyweight crown, and while he came up short against “DC,” a win over Smith on October 27 can put him right back in the title fight conversation.
