Aviv Gozali Promises to Finish Bobby King in the First Round at Bellator 274

One of the most exciting prospects under the Bellator MMA banner is making his cage return on Saturday at Bellator 274, when Aviv Gozali is scheduled to collide with Bobby King in a three-round lightweight affair. At 21, Gozali (6-0) has already scored the fastest submission in promotional history after tapping Eduard Muravitskiy via heel hook 11 seconds into their Bellator 225 encounter. None of Gozali’s previous opponents survived more than a round, and “The King” promises his next adversary will suffer the same fate.

“I’m gonna finish him in the first round,” Gozali told Sherdog. “He can try to block [my submission attempts], but he’s not gonna be able to block them. I’m working here with the best guys in the world in grappling, and I’m feeling the most prepared I’ve ever felt before a fight. Nothing can stop me now. Nobody can stop me now.”

While Gozali recorded six first-round submissions in as many cage appearances, the Israeli fighter believes he has shown only an fraction of his true potential. When asked whether fans can expect a knockout from him sooner or later, he answered with only two words: Don’t blink.

“It’s only my beginning,” he said. “To be honest, you didn’t see nothing until now [of] what I’m capable of. I can do a lot more stuff than just submitting guys. I’m just in the [beginning] of my career.”

Gozali also talked about the inauguration of the gym that he founded with his father, Haim Gozali. He revealed his dream of competing for the Bellator belt in Israel next year, discussed his favorite submission technique, and more.

Timestamps:

(00:00) Opening his gym in Israel
(01:30) Where he spent his training camp
(02:09) Targeting a first-round submission victory
(02:52) Discussion his potential
(03:39) His favorite submission technique
(04:45) The growth of MMA in Israel
(05:42) Dreaming of fighting for the belt in Israel in 2023
(06:23) Aiming to fight as much as he can in 2022
(07:27) Picking Neiman Gracie vs. Logan Storley
(08:15) Outro

Tudor Leonte started writing about mixed martial arts in 2013 for Italian media outlets. His journey with Sherdog began in 2018 and he now covers One Championship and countless European shows. You can follow him on Twitter @MrTudorLeonte.