At the start of a big weekend in the combat sports world, a pair of former competitors met in the main event of Karate Combat 47, as lightweights James Vick and Rafael Alves faced off. The ending of the contest saw one of the most brutal knockouts of 2024 so far. Vick went 9-5 across his 14-fight stint in the UFC, although he did close out his run with the world's leading MMA promotion with four straight defeats.
One of those losses was in 2019. However, for as vicious as that stoppage was, it was nothing compared to the fashion in which Vick was obliterated by Alves on Friday night. Since departing the UFC five years ago, Vick has gone 3-4 across various martial arts disciplines, including boxing, MMA and karate.
He now has a losing record in Karate Combat after getting separated from his senses with a brutal head kick from Alves. As you'll notice in the footage above, the Karate Combat arena is very different from the UFC's Octagon, with the action taking place inside a 6.5m x 6.
5m square combat pit surrounded by 45° angled walls. These unique walls mean that it's impossible for competitors to gain an advantage by grabbing hold of the fence - as is often seen in the UFC. A Karate Combat bout consists of three rounds each lasting three minutes with of two additional rounds for championship fights.
However, the Alves vs Vick clash never made it the scheduled nine-minute distance, thanks to a picture-perfect left head kick from the Brazilian that left his opponent unconcious .
