Brad Riddell's journey toward UFC gold will have to take a longer route.
After making a huge splash in the lightweight division through his first four bouts, and earning a spot in the top 15, the Kiwi star was handed his first UFC defeat at the hands of a familiar foe.
Taking on former training partner Rafael Fiziev, Riddell was stopped midway through the third and final round with a spectacular spinning wheel kick freezing him in his tracks and forcing referee Herb Dean to stop the fight.
It's a minor setback for Riddell, who will likely swap his No 12 ranking for Fiziev's No 14 when the updated rankings are released early next week.
The two, who trained together at Thailand's Tiger Muay Thai gym four years ago and remain friends, embraced after the fight, and Fiziev told Riddell: "My brother, I'm so sorry."
A bout many fans were excited about, the duo engaged in a technical and physical striking battle.
The Kyrgyzstani fighter took control of the octagon from the outset, however Riddell looked fairly comfortable fighting with his back to the cage.
Riddell worked his jab nicely in the opening exchanges, while Fiziev invested in body kicks. A close round, Riddell made his claim for the points with a late flurry to marginally out-strike Fiziev for the round.
It was a similar display in the second round, as Fiziev controlled the octagon space and forced Riddell onto the back foot. Whenever it looked like Riddell had turned the position, Fiziev circled right back out and into the centre again.
Both throwing with more volume in the round, Fiziev got the better of the exchanges, cutting Riddell open above the left eyebrow with a well-timed elbow.
While the cut didn't look to be giving Riddell too many issues, the ringside doctor was called in to assess it before the third round, and said if it got any worse, he would be forced to call the fight off.
However, after some good exchanges with both fighters landing heavy blows, Fiziev switched his stance from southpaw (right foot forward) to orthodox. Riddell responded by circling away from Fiziev's power hand.
It appeared to be exactly what Fiziev has wanted to set up, as he spun and launched his back leg at Riddell, catching him on the move.
While Riddell stayed on his feet, he was visibly compromised and the referee waved the fight off before Fiziev would follow up.
While elementary, all three judges had scored the first two rounds in favour of Fiziev.
