The UFC visited Abu Dhabi last night for a Fight Night event that, to be fair, was pretty heavy with talent. In the end, though, the show was a bit middling.UFC Fight Night: Robert Whittaker vs. Reinier de Ridder saw a major upset in the headliner, and some decent action elsewhere.It's unlikely that this event will be as fondly remembered as some of the promotion's previous visits to Abu Dhabi, but it did throw up some talking points.Here are five takeaways from UFC Fight Night: Robert Whittaker vs. Reinier de Ridder.#5. Muslim Salikhov scored one of the best knockouts of the year at the age of 41The best finish produced at last night's event came from a surprising source in Muslim Salikhov.The UFC is famously no country for old men, and 'The King of Kung Fu' is now 41 years old. Despite this, he needed just 42 seconds to absolutely starch Carlos Leal in savage fashion, and he's now on a three-fight win streak.The story of the short fight was simply that Leal just didn't respect Salikhov enough. He tried to back him up and swarm him on the fence, but 'The King of Kung Fu' simply bided his time, and when he saw an opening, he struck.Salikhov landed a wild overhand right to the temple that crushed Leal, and when the Brazilian went down face-first, he didn't even need to follow up. The finish was up there with the best of 2025.Quite how much longer Salikhov can keep this run going is anyone's guess, but for now, he remains a man to watch closely at 170 pounds. Unsurprisingly, this knockout won him a bonus $50k.#4. Bryce Mitchell won his bantamweight debut, but the same issues lingerDespite the bout being positioned on the preliminary card, the bantamweight debut of Bryce Mitchell was definitely one of the more curious aspects of last night's event.'Thug Nasty' had climbed the ladder in the UFC's featherweight division, but couldn't quite get over the last hurdle into title contention.A loss to Jean Silva earlier this year pushed him to move to 135 pounds, so faced with a solid foe in Said Nurmagomedov, how did Mitchell perform?The answer, essentially, is that he performed like Bryce Mitchell. 'Thug Nasty' won the fight, but the same holes that prevented him from reaching the top at 145 pounds apparently remain.Mitchell won the fight by basically outgrappling Nurmagomedov down the stretch, once the Dagestani tired. To see Mitchell still fresh at that point was impressive.However, he'd also given up a number of key positions at that point, and still looked a little awkward standing - doing well to absorb a bad knockdown from a knee in the first round.Given that the UFC's bantamweight division is arguably more loaded than the featherweight division, it was clear from this that if Mitchell wants to become a contender, he still needs to improve some more.#3. Shara Magomedov remains fun, but his win over Marc-Andre Barriault showed his limitationsLast night's 'Fight of the Night' bonus went to middleweights Sharaputdin Magomedov and Marc-Andre Barriault, and nobody could say they didn't deserve it.The two men put on a three-round bloodbath, with 'Shara Bullet' eventually winning via unanimous decision.Early on, it looked like he'd cruise to victory, as he comfortably outstruck Barriault in the first round. In the second, though, 'Power Bar' came roaring back, busting the Dagestani's nose and hurting him badly.'Shara Bullet' got back on the front foot in the third, though, and had Barriault on the retreat for the most part, eventually dropping him to solidify his win.Naturally, the fans loved the bout, and the performance might be enough to save Barriault's UFC run, despite the loss being his fourth in five fights.However, it also suggested that Magomedov probably has a ceiling to his game, and that ceiling means he won't become a bona fide contender at 185 pounds.There's nothing wrong with that, of course - the UFC needs reliable action fighters and 'Shara Bullet' is certainly that. Given his reputation before his arrival, though, it's also hard not to feel a twinge of disappointment.#2. Petr Yan remains one of the UFC's best bantamweights and deserves a title eliminator next time outThe most curious booking at last night's event pitted former UFC bantamweight champ Petr Yan against No. 12-ranked Marcus McGhee.'The Maniac' came into the fight on a six-fight win streak, including four in the octagon. However, Yan was always a huge step up for him, and when it came to the fight, it showed.'No Mercy' basically picked McGhee apart with little issue, despite 'The Maniac' swinging hard in the second round. Essentially, Yan outclassed him from start to finish.Quite why Yan - who is still ranked at No. 3 - ended up being booked into this fight remains a bit of a mystery. Essentially, with no offense meant to McGhee, he deserved a higher-ranked foe, especially with the title picture still open.With any luck, the promotion can book him in a top contender's fight - perhaps against Umar Nurmagomedov - soon.#1. Reinier de Ridder has arrived as a contender - but is Robert Whittaker on his way down?Last night's headline bout ended in a huge upset, as Reinier de Ridder arrived as a UFC middleweight title contender in a big way. 'The Dutch Knight' edged out former champ Robert Whittaker over five rounds, and now finds himself on the cusp of a title shot.It's something few fans would've expected when de Ridder debuted in the UFC with a sloppy win over journeyman Gerald Meerschaert last year. Since then, he's beaten Kevin Holland, Bo Nickal, and now 'The Reaper'.Last night's fight was very close to call, as Whittaker appeared to be in control after winning two of the first three rounds, scoring a knockdown in the third for good measure.From there, though, 'The Reaper' appeared to tire, and de Ridder was able to wrest the final two rounds from him, gaining more control in the clinch and narrowly outlanding him too.Following his split decision win, de Ridder will advance into title contention. It's likely, in fact, that his next fight could be against another former champ in Israel Adesanya, with Sean Strickland seemingly on ice for now.What's next for Whittaker, though? It definitely feels like 'The Reaper' is beginning to get old. He's now on the first two-fight losing streak of his middleweight career, and at the age of 34, he might be wise to consider his future.After all, he's been around for a long time now, and his crazy wars with Yoel Romero are already nearly a decade old.Last night was a coming-out party of sorts for de Ridder, but it may also be remembered as the final time fans viewed Whittaker as a genuinely elite-level middleweight.