You know your best days are behind you when your fans start urging you to hang up the gloves. A fighter from UFC Perth has now found himself in this position. 36-year-old Beneil Dariush took on Quillan Salkilld, a man ten years his junior, on the co-main event of UFC Perth at the RAC Arena in Perth, Western Australia.
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The Australian lightweight delivered a composed yet explosive performance against the American southpaw to secure a first-round KO victory. The fight began with early adversity for Salkilld, as Dariush landed a sharp jab that dropped him and briefly took control with grappling pressure. However, he struggled to fully establish his ground game.
As the fight progressed, Quillan Salkilld found his rhythm. He began landing powerful counterstrikes, exploiting openings whenever Dariush attempted to press forward. The momentum quickly shifted, with Salkilld’s striking proving more dangerous and precise.
The decisive moment came when Salkilld connected with a brutal right hand that sent Dariush to the canvas. He followed up with strikes on the ground, forcing the referee to step in. The bout ended just 3:29 into the opening round, marking a statement finish.
Salkilld just knocked out Beneil Dariush in the first round. No surprises here. pic.twitter.com/L2R57Dra4s
— The Sports Pulse (@Tsportspulse) May 2, 2026
With the loss, Dariush has now lost four out of his last five fights. And that too in the very first round of the fight. While this makes it obvious that the Kings MMA standout has effectively exited his prime, things are only looking up for the Australian. Salkilld now has the second-longest win streak in the lightweight division.
In any case, after the fight ended, fans quickly started urging Beneil Dariush to close the chapter on his MMA career.
Everyone is saying the same thing about Beneil Dariush
Dariush has given over a decade of his life to the UFC, and now, most people think it’s time to stop. One fan posted: “Dariush needs to retire at this point. It’s obvious #ufc #ufcfightnight.” Yet, there’s no indication that the 36-year-old is planning to stop.
The next user felt the same way. “Dariush needs to retire if he’s gonna keep getting ko’d that easy #UFCPerth,” the user wrote. The UFC has no shortage of fighters who declined massively at the tail end of their careers but refused to retire.
Someone else had an alternative for Dariush. “Dariush either needs to retire or fight exclusively powerless uncs,” the user wrote. He recently spoke about getting prospects as opponents, and he didn’t seem to mind. If he doesn’t retire, he would probably become a gatekeeper.
Meanwhile, this fan had gotten his hopes up about Dariush. “Wow, Dariush was looking decent until he wasn’t #UFCPerth,” wrote the fan. Perhaps the 36-year-old still has what it takes, but needs to put in a lot more work.
Another user was impressed with the performance Quillan Salkilld presented. “Maybe a bit of an early stoppage against Beneil Dariush, but Salkilld is real. Kid is huge for the division. Beneil took a risk trying to throw that elbow off the clinch break and paid for it dearly in an exchange,” the user commented. Salkilld would likely make it on the lightweight rankings after his latest win.
It appears fans are already asking Beneil Dariush to hand over the reins to the next generation. However, only time will tell whether the 36-year-old is ready to call it quits.
