Rafael Fiziev

Rafael Fiziev
Fiziev in 2023
Born	(1993-03-05) March 5, 1993 (age 31) Korday, Kazakhstan [1]
Nickname	Ataman
Residence	Phuket, Thailand
Nationality	Azerbaijani (since 2021) Kyrgyzstani (until 2021)
Height	5 ft 8 in (1.73 m)
Weight	155 lb (70 kg; 11 st 1 lb)
Division	Lightweight (2015–present)
Reach	71 in (180 cm) [2]
Style	Muay Thai
Fighting out of	Deerfield Beach, Florida, U.S. [3]
Team	Phuket Top Team (2015–2017) [4] Tiger Muay Thai (2017–present) [4] Kill Cliff FC (2021–present) [3]
Rank	Blue belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under Bruninho Barbosa [5]
Years active	2015–present
Kickboxing record
Total	47
Wins	39
By knockout	29
Losses	8
Mixed martial arts record
Total	15
Wins	12
By knockout	8
By submission	1
By decision	3
Losses	3
By knockout	2
By decision	1
Other information
Occupation	Police Officer [6]
Notable school(s)	Police Academy of Kyrgyzstan
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog
Medal record Men's Muay Thai Representing   Kyrgyzstan World Championships 2016 Jönköping −71 kg (B class)

Rafael Fiziev (born March 5, 1993) is an Azerbaijani ^[7] professional mixed martial artist and Muay Thai fighter. He currently competes in the Lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). As of October 8, 2024, he is #10 in the UFC lightweight rankings. ^[8]

Early life

Fiziev was born in Korday, Kazakhstan, to an Azerbaijani father and a Russian mother. When he was a child, Fiziev's family moved to Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan. ^[9]

When he was a child, Fiziev's father bought him and his cousins boxing gloves and told them to spar. Initially, he did not enjoy sparring, and it was not until he changed schools as a teenager that Fiziev took up Muay Thai at the age of 11 due to being bullied. ^[10] While he concentrated on Muay Thai growing up, he also took up several other combat sports including combat sambo, boxing, Jiu Jitsu, and wrestling. ^[10] When switching from Muay Thai to MMA, he says learning the grappling was the toughest part but his striking and standup required adjusting as well. ^[10]

Muay Thai career

On April 29, 2016, Fiziev participated to the Toyota Marathon Tournament. In the quarter-finals he defeated Ruslan Rybakov by decision. In the semi-finals he knocked out Phakhow Darbphong 191. In Final he faced Sorgraw Petchyindee Academy who defeated him by decision. ^[11]

Fiziev entered the 2017 Toyota Marathon 154 lb tournament as well, defeating Detrit Sathian Gym by decision in the semifinal. In the final he rematched Sorgraw Petchyindee Academy. He lost again by decision but went viral on social media in the process due to the impressive lean back defensive technique he displayed. ^[12]

On April 21, 2017, Fiziev faced former Lumpinee Stadium champion Yodpayak Sitsongpeenong at a Muay Xtreme event in Bangkok, Thailand. Fiziev won the fight by knockout in the second round. ^[13]

On September 22, 2017, Fiziev faced Leyton Collimore at Phoenix FC 3 in London, England. He was defeated by unanimous decision. ^[14]

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Fiziev made his professional MMA debut in 2015. He fought in Asian regional promotions such as ROAD FC and the American promotion Titan FC before he signed with UFC. ^[15]

Ultimate Fighting Championship

In his promotional debut, Fiziev faced Magomed Mustafaev on April 20, 2019, at UFC Fight Night 149. ^[16] He lost the fight by first-round technical knockout. ^[17]

Fiziev next faced Alex White on October 26, 2019, at UFC on ESPN+ 20. ^[18] He won the fight via unanimous decision. ^[19]

Fiziev faced Marc Diakiese, replacing Alan Patrick on July 19, 2020, at UFC Fight Night 172. ^[20] He won the fight via unanimous decision. ^[21] This fight earned him the Fight of the Night award. ^[22]

On August 5, 2020, Fiziev announced on his social media that he had signed a new, four-fight contract with the UFC. ^[23]

He was scheduled to face Renato Moicano on November 28, 2020, at UFC on ESPN: Blaydes vs. Lewis. ^[24] However, Moicano pulled out on November 28 after testing positive for COVID-19 and the bout was rescheduled for UFC 256. ^[25] Fiziev won the fight via TKO in the first round. ^[26] This win earned him his first Performance of the Night award. ^[27]

Fiziev faced Bobby Green on August 7, 2021, at UFC 265. ^[28] He won the fight via unanimous decision. ^[29] This fight earned him the Fight of the Night award. ^[30]

He faced Brad Riddell at UFC on ESPN 31 on December 4, 2021. ^[31] He won the fight via knockout in round three. ^[32] This win earned him the Performance of the Night award. ^[33]

Fiziev was scheduled to face Rafael dos Anjos on February 19, 2022, at UFC Fight Night 201. ^[34] However, the bout was postponed to UFC 272 due to visa issues with Fiziev. ^[35] One week before the event, Fiziev was again forced to withdraw due to testing positive for COVID-19 ^[36] and was replaced by Renato Moicano. ^[37] The bout was rescheduled the third time for UFC on ESPN 39 on July 9, 2022. ^[38] Fiziev won the fight via knockout in round five. ^[39] This win earned him the Performance of the Night award. ^[40]

Fiziev faced former UFC interim Lightweight Champion Justin Gaethje on March 18, 2023, at UFC 286. ^[41] He lost the back-and-forth fight via majority decision. ^[42] This fight earned him the Fight of the Night bonus award. ^[43]

Fiziev faced Mateusz Gamrot on September 23, 2023, at UFC Fight Night 228. ^[44] He lost the fight via technical knockout due to knee injury in round two. ^[45]

Personal life

Outside of fighting, Fiziev enjoys blacksmithing with an emphasis on cold steel arms. ^[10]

In 2021, Fiziev revealed he would no longer be representing his home country of Kyrgyzstan during his UFC bouts due to the country's religious discrimination of Shia Muslims. He has since made Phuket, Thailand his primary residence. ^[46] In 2021, Fiziev became a citizen of Azerbaijan and now represents the country, and he is the first Azerbaijani representative to compete in the UFC. ^[47]

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts

• Ultimate Fighting Championship
  • Fight of the Night (Three times) vs. Marc Diakiese, Bobby Green and Justin Gaethje ^{[22] [30] [43]}
  • Performance of the Night (Three times) vs. Renato Moicano, Brad Riddell and Rafael dos Anjos ^{[27] [33] [40]}
• Combat Press
  • 2021 Breakout Fighter of the Year ^[48]
• MMAjunkie.com
  • 2023 March Fight of the Month vs. Justin Gaethje ^[49]
• Sherdog
  • 2023 Round of the Year vs. Justin Gaethje ^[50]

Muay Thai

• Kyrgyz Muaythai Federation
  • 3x Kyrgyzstan Muay Thai Champion (2007, 2008, and 2009)
• International Federation of Muaythai Associations
  • 2009 IFMA World Championships Junior
  • 2011 Kazakhstan National Champion
  • 2016 IFMA World Championships (B-class) -71 kg ^[51]
• World Muaythai Federation
  • 2010 WMF Intercontinental -63.5 kg Champion ^[52]

Mixed martial arts record

Professional record breakdown

15 matches	12 wins	3 losses
By knockout	8	2
By submission	1	0
By decision	3	1

Res.	Record	Opponent	Method	Event	Date	Round	Time	Location	Notes
Loss	12–3	Mateusz Gamrot	TKO (knee injury)	UFC Fight Night: Fiziev vs. Gamrot	September 23, 2023	2	2:03	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Loss	12–2	Justin Gaethje	Decision (majority)	UFC 286	March 18, 2023	3	5:00	London, England	Fight of the Night.
Win	12–1	Rafael dos Anjos	KO (punches)	UFC on ESPN: dos Anjos vs. Fiziev	July 9, 2022	5	0:18	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States	Performance of the Night.
Win	11–1	Brad Riddell	KO (spinning wheel kick)	UFC on ESPN: Font vs. Aldo	December 4, 2021	3	2:20	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States	Performance of the Night.
Win	10–1	Bobby Green	Decision (unanimous)	UFC 265	August 7, 2021	3	5:00	Houston, Texas, United States	Fight of the Night.
Win	9–1	Renato Moicano	KO (punches)	UFC 256	December 12, 2020	1	4:05	Las Vegas, Nevada, United States	Performance of the Night.
Win	8–1	Marc Diakiese	Decision (unanimous)	UFC Fight Night: Figueiredo vs. Benavidez 2	July 18, 2020	3	5:00	Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates	Fight of the Night.
Win	7–1	Alex White	Decision (unanimous)	UFC Fight Night: Maia vs. Askren	October 26, 2019	3	5:00	Kallang, Singapore
Loss	6–1	Magomed Mustafaev	TKO (spinning back kick and punches)	UFC Fight Night: Overeem vs. Oleinik	April 20, 2019	1	1:26	Saint Petersburg, Russia
Win	6–0	Nurzhan Tutaev	KO (body kick)	Titan FC 51	December 21, 2018	2	0:51	Almaty, Kazakhstan
Win	5–0	Nandin-Erdene Munguntsooj	KO (head kick and punches)	Road FC 45	December 23, 2017	1	0:58	Seoul, South Korea	Catchweight (158 lb) bout.
Win	4–0	Kim Seung-yeon	TKO (knees and punches)	Road FC 39	June 10, 2017	1	4:23	Seoul, South Korea
Win	3–0	Suraj Bahadur	TKO (punches)	Primal FC: Dark Moon Rising	March 24, 2017	1	2:30	Phuket, Thailand	Catchweight (159 lb) bout.
Win	2–0	Gunduz Nabiev	Submission (rear naked choke)	Boroda FC	October 10, 2016	1	3:40	Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan
Win	1–0	Sam Bastin	KO (flying knee)	W.I.N FC	July 18, 2015	1	N/A	Shenzhen, China	Lightweight debut.

^[53]

Muay Thai record

Professional Muay Thai record (incomplete)

39 wins, 29 wins by KO, 8 losses
Date	Result	Opponent	Event	Location	Method	Round	Time
2017-09-22	Loss	Leyton Collymore	Phoenix FC 3	London, England	Decision (Unanimous)	3	3:00
2017-04-21	Win	Yodpayak Sitsongpeenong	Muay Xtreme	Bangkok, Thailand	KO (Right Cross)	2
2017-01-27	Loss	Sorgraw Petchyindee	Toyota Marathon, Final	Phitsanulok, Thailand	Decision	3	3:00
For the Toyota Marathon -154 lbs title.
2017-01-27	Win	Dechrid Sathian Muaythai Gym	Toyota Marathon, Semi-final	Phitsanulok, Thailand	Decision	3	3:00
2016-12-30	Win	Oasis	Bangla Stadium	Patong, Thailand	KO (Right Cross)	2
Wins Bangla Stadium title.
2016-11-	Win	Jilas	Bangla Stadium, Final	Patong, Thailand	KO (Flying Knee)	2
2016-11-	Win	Michael	Bangla Stadium, Semi-final	Patong, Thailand	TKO (Body Kick)	1
2016-04-29	Loss	Sorgraw Petchyindee	Toyota Marathon, Final	Chonburi, Thailand	Decision	3	3:00
For the Toyota Marathon -154 lbs title.
2016-04-29	Win	Phakhow Darbphong 191	Toyota Marathon, Semi-final	Chonburi, Thailand	KO (Right Cross)	2
2016-04-29	Win	Ruslan Rybakov	Toyota Marathon, Quarter-final	Chonburi, Thailand	Decision	3	3:00
2016-04-01	Win	Wuttichai	Bangla Stadium	Patong, Thailand	KO (Spinning Back Kick)	2
2016-02-03	Win	Teelek	Bangla Stadium	Patong, Thailand	KO (Punches)	2
2015-12-27	Win	A Kuang Rattanachai	Bangla Stadium	Patong, Thailand	KO (Punches)	1
2015-12-27	Win	Jack Keawpituk	Bangla Stadium	Patong, Thailand	KO (Overhand Right)	1
2015-12-16	Win	Damien Sit.Or	Bangla Stadium	Patong, Thailand	KO (Left Hook)	2
2012-06-28	Win	Rishat Livensho		Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan	Decision (Unanimous)	3	3:00
2010-05-08	Win	Sergey Kulyaba		Mytishchi, Russia	Decision	3	3:00
Wins WMF Intercontinental Light Welterweight title.
Legend:   Win   Loss   Draw/No contest   Notes

Amateur Muay Thai record (incomplete)

Date	Result	Opponent	Event	Location	Method	Round	Time
2016-05-25	Loss	Denis Kolotygin	IFMA World Championships 2016, Semi-final	Jonkoping, Sweden	TKO	3
Wins 2016 IFMA World Championships (B-class) -71kg Bronze Medal.
2016-05-24	Win	Martynas Jasunias	IFMA World Championships 2016, Quarter-final	Jonkoping, Sweden	Decision	3
2016-05-	Win	Facson Perrine	IFMA World Championships 2016, Round of 16	Jonkoping, Sweden	Decision (Unanimous)	3
2016-05-	Win	Serjio Villa	IFMA World Championships 2016, Round of 32	Jonkoping, Sweden	Decision	3
2011-09-21	Win	Antero Hynynen	IFMA World Championships 2011	Tashkent, Uzbekistan	Decision	4	2:00
Legend:   Win   Loss   Draw/No contest   Notes

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External links

• Professional MMA record for Rafael Fiziev from Sherdog
• Rafael Fiziev at UFC