Taktarov then entered the UFC's Ultimate Ultimate 1995 tournament. He rematched Dave Beneteau, who according to Taktarov came to the match having greased himself to difficult the Russian's grip. Unable to throw him, Taktarov resorted to a flying kneebar, and promptly transitioned it into an ankle lock to submit Beneteau. He then went to face luta livre exponent and highly regarded UFC 7 champion Marco Ruas. The match was lengthy and slow, with Taktarov trying repeatedly to take Ruas to the ground while the Brazilian caused damage with strikes and made Oleg bleed. After the time went out, however, Taktarov won the decision for his superior aggression during the match. Controversy arose when Ruas's manager Frederico Lapenda complained about the decision. Despite Taktarov being tired after the bout, he advanced round and lastly lastly met Dan Severn in the finals in a rematch of their fight at UFC 5. The Russian clamped another leglock combination in the first few minutes, which he claimed Severn was going to tap out to before Taktarov was forced to release it out of fatigue. The wrestler then scored headbutts and knee strikes from dominant positions until the end of the bout, including an overtime controlled by way of boxing, which granted him the decision.