When Alexander "Drago" Volkov lost to UFC newcomer Tom Aspinall at UFC London in March, there wasn't a brutal knockout nor a bone-crunching submission, but what did happen could have been considered worse. In less than a round, Aspinall beat him on the feet, took him to the ground and tapped him out – bish, bash, bosh – and losing in such a simple manner surely did a lot of damage to Volkov's mentality.

That was perhaps proven in this quick turnaround. His body was obviously fine, so he can compete. His wanting to get back on the proverbial horse so soon – the fastest since he was fighting in Bellator almost a decade ago – suggests a need to right a wrong, and his opponent, Jairzinho Rozenstruik, is the perfect foil for that.

But "Bigi Boi" Rozenstruik also needed a narrative adjustment. As a former kickboxing world champion, he has powerful stand up, which has provided 11 KOs in his 12-win career. However, with the recent losses to Francis Ngannou and Ciryl Gane, in which he was overpowered and technically outmatched, respectively, Rozenstruik's career is being viewed with a lot of hindsight, and that record, provided by his heavy hands, perhaps flatters to deceive.

Rozenstruik was losing throughout the fight against Alistair Overeem until he landed with that big right hand. Remember that the biggest scalps on his resumé, Andrei Arlovski and Junior dos Santos, were both significantly older and on the final chapters of their careers when he knocked them out.

So in the main event of this weekend's UFC Vegas event, Volkov had a chance to regain his momentum in the heavyweight top 10, and Rozenstruik had a chance to prove there's more to him than one-touch power.

Yet, when the bell rang, it looked like Volkov was the only one earnestly trying to prove a point. Bigi Boi went to control the center of the ring, as he always does, and Volkov went there to meet him. They traded kicks, and in doing so, Drago proved he wasn't afraid of Rosenstruik's striking power.

Based on body language, the fight was already over. Bigi Boi retreated, started looking for an opening and became a target to Volkov. The Russian's potshots were enough to totally stifle Rozenstruik. He stood there completely flat-footed, moving his arms around as if feinting some kind of potential offense, flinching at every forward movement from Volkov. Admittedly, Drago didn't throw more than a jab here and there, a sign of how much danger there is in his opponent's fists.

After two minutes of frustration, Rozenstruik started swinging wildly. Again, Volkov stood his ground, and they began trading. When Bigi Boi was the one to step back, it became instantly clear those light jabs had been range finders, as Volkov clocked his opponent with a hard right straight at the first opening.

Rozenstruik went weak at the knees, and Drago lived up to his name. He fired off a clean three-hit punch combination that sent Rozenstruik's mouthpiece flying; he only began to miss when his opponent started crumbling down the cage wall.

Referee Herb Dean stopped the fight when Volkov landed a clean uppercut to his downed opponent, but, as he did so, Rozenstruik got to his feet and looked upset. Volkov nodded and shook his hand.

The fighters seemed to believe it was an early stoppage, and as both men were up on their feet afterward, that's understandable. The replays – the slow motion of which always makes things look more brutal – told a different story: Rozenstruik was visibly flash KO'd at least once in the final exchange.

Not only that, according to ufcstats.com, Volkov landed all his attacks to the legs and body and 10 out of 26 aimed at Rozenstruik's head. In contrast, Volkov was only hit six times, three of which were to his lead leg in the opening.

While not erasing what happened against Aspinall, this win gets Alexander Volkov back on track – and likely spells the end of Jairzinho Rozenstruik's time in the top 10.

(Cover image: Referee Herb Dean raises Alexander Volkov's hand in victory following his win over Jairzinho Rozenstruik in the heavyweight main event of UFC Vegas at the UFC Apex facility in Las Vegas, Nevada, U.S. /Zuffa)