Askhabov Disqualified in Copenhagen, TKO Win Wiped Off the Board

Khusein Askhabov's first-round TKO over Reinaldo Ekson is gone. On Monday, the Danish MMA Federation reviewed the lightweight co-main event from Airtox Dominance FC 8 — held Oct. 17 in Copenhagen — and overturned the result to a disqualification, slapping the one-time UFC fighter with a 12-month ban from all sanctioned activity.

The trouble didn't happen during the fight so much as around it. According to the federation, Askhabov attacked Ekson during a timeout called for an eye poke, triggering chaos that spilled over to the corner teams. The referee initially awarded Askhabov the TKO. Ekson's camp protested loudly on social media, and after its review the DMMAF decided the attack amounted to a serious violation of the Unified Rules — win canceled, suspension issued, cornermen included.

The federation didn't mince words. It condemned the attempt to strike an opponent during a timeout, the disregard for the referee's instructions, and the unauthorized corner interference, calling all of it unacceptable in professional MMA. The 12-month ban covers fighting, coaching, cornering — any capacity, under the federation's code of conduct.

Two Very Different Versions

Ekson told reporters the decision was fair and that justice had prevailed, insisting he never wanted to damage his opponent's reputation. He also described the fight as brutal before the stoppage, saying an illegal shot to the back of his head sent a jolt down his spine and left him down for roughly four minutes. He claimed a thumb to the eye left his vision blurred for days and required a week of antibiotics recommended by the event doctor. By his account, Askhabov was taunting him mid-examination, charged in with his team, and the fight was effectively over once the doctor confirmed the disqualification.

Askhabov saw it differently. He argued that he came to fight and that his opponent, in his words, was mentally broken and looking for a way out. He questioned how the bout wasn't at least ruled a no-contest and refused to accept Ekson being handed a win he felt wasn't earned inside the cage. He also stressed he never intended to hurt anyone.

Where This Leaves Him

This is another rough chapter for a fighter whose top-level run was already brief. Askhabov fought just once in the UFC before being released, reportedly following an arrest in Thailand in 2023 on allegations of kidnapping, torture and extortion. A year on the sidelines in Denmark doesn't help a career that's been trending the wrong way for a while now.

The cleaner read belongs to Ekson, who walks away with the official win, the medical story to match, and a federation ruling in his favor. Whatever genuinely happened in that cage, the paperwork now says disqualification — and that's the only version that counts.