Oakville-based pro-MMA fighter Amin Almelik flattened his opponent in 55 seconds in the opening bantam-weight matchup of Burlington Training Centre's 21 Fight Night in Kitchener Sunday.
On the cage floor, a battered Victor "the Lion" Jauregui was prodded back to consciousness, while above, the Aud's jumbotron beamed Almelik's victory lap, infecting spectators with the winner's astonished ecstasy.
For those who follow the sport, Jauregui, 36, from Guadalajara, opened with a right kick, which Almelik sideswiped. Almelik then quickly followed with a right hook and a grazing high kick.
When Jauregui began to duck, Almelik landed a left knee blow to Jauregui's orbital, fracturing the facial bone, in addition to briefly knocking him unconscious.
It may have taken less than a minute for Almelik to determine this fight, but the lead-up began more than three years ago when Almelik moved from Scarborough to Oakville's Bronte Village to train with MMA Coach Lyndon Whitlock.
Whitlock was at the time one of three co-owners of Para Bellum, an MMA gym on Speers Road that was forced to close its doors permanently due to the pandemic shutdown.
When Whitlock and his longtime business partner, Lucas Chaston, re-opened as Aegis MMA in the basement level of the McDonald's plaza on Lakeshore in October 2022, Almelik followed.
After an underwhelming split decision fight in Burlington on June 11 versus Carlos Adrián Arzate, Almelik says he worked hard with his coaches and teammates on improving his ability to clear his mind during fights.
In a cage-side interview, Almelik reflects that "before, I was just putting too much pressure on myself, the negative self-talk, caring so much about the results I overthought things. (Today) I didn't put too many high expectations. I kind of just let the flow just happen."
Almelik, 27, fell in love with Muay Thai as a 15-year-old following his brother into the gym 12 years ago. He started training in mixed martial arts five years ago.
When asked to express what he loves about his chosen profession, Almelik explains: "The hard work behind it, the development, the techniques -- like even the frustration points where you're not really improving, those push us to find that breakthrough. I feel like I'm addicted to that."
He says his family in Scarborough doesn't love seeing him get hurt, so they don't attend his fight nights. "But they love that I'm pursuing my passion and support me fully. Anything they can do to help me, they do. I am very grateful for that."
As a professional athlete, Almelik now splits his 50-hour workweek evenly between coaching and training at Aegis MMA and Burlington Training Centre's MMA gym near Appleby and Fairview.
And the older brother Almelik followed into the ring? He moved on to other pursuits and, like the rest of the family, "no, he doesn't like to come to watch," Almelik grins.
"It's been awesome to be a part of his transition from a Muay Thai fighter to an MMA fighter," Whitlock says. "Amin has matured as an athlete and a person so much over the years. I'm excited to see where all his hard work takes him."
For his part, Almelike's latest opponent chalked up his defeat to a critical error Almelik was able to capitalize on: "(I) let my guard down looking for the takedown," Jauregui said by Messenger chat from Guadalajara Wednesday.
"It was a great carelessness on my part. He did his job, and he did it better than me. Congratulations to Almelik for his victory!"
In MMA, the fight ends as soon as a fighter is knocked out — there are no additional rounds as might occur in boxing. Jauregui received an x-ray in Canada before travelling home as scheduled Sunday night, albeit without the opportunity to do any sightseeing he had been planning to do after the Saturday night match.
Jauregui will undergo surgery for the fracture on August 18 in Guadalajara. Though he is in significant pain, he says he can still walk. And, "This is not going to stop me from raising my flag (one day) in Canada!"