Anton Turkalj Record: 8-4-0

Earning the contract

Turkalj's path to the Octagon ran through Dana White's Contender Series in July 2022, where he outpointed durable veteran Acácio dos Santos over three rounds to claim a UFC deal. Earlier, in December 2019, he had also taken part in an exhibition grappling match against Swedish light heavyweight star Alexander Gustafsson, scored on points – a notable early-career touchpoint against one of the country's biggest names.

Inside the UFC

The step up proved unforgiving. Turkalj debuted at UFC 279 in September 2022 against grappling phenom Jailton Almeida and was submitted by rear-naked choke in the first round. He followed with a competitive but losing unanimous decision to unbeaten Vitor Petrino in March 2023, then was knocked out by punches in the first round by Tyson Pedro at UFC 293 in September 2023. His run closed with a rematch against Ibo Aslan in March 2024, this time on the wrong end of a third-round TKO, leaving him at 8-4 overall and 0-4 inside the Octagon.

Fighting style

Turkalj is an aggressive, finish-minded light heavyweight: five of his eight wins came by knockout and two by submission, an 88% finish rate, and he is one of the few fighters at any weight to own a spinning-backfist knockout on his ledger. At his best he uses his length to land power strikes and his physicality to bully opponents into ground-and-pound. The UFC run exposed the gaps, though – elite grapplers like Almeida found his takedown and submission defense, and rangier strikers tested a chin that was cracked more than once at the highest level. The tools are real; the consistency against top-tier opposition has been the missing piece.

Career highlights

• Contender Series contract — earned his UFC deal by defeating veteran Acácio dos Santos by unanimous decision on Dana White's Contender Series in 2022.
• Spinning-backfist knockout — flattened Konstantin Soldatov with a first-round spinning backfist at BRAVE CF 50, one of the most spectacular finishes of his career.
• 88% finish rate — closed out seven of his eight professional wins inside the distance, five by knockout and two by submission.