Fighter from Tajikistan joins UFC

For the first time, a Tajik mixed martial arts fighter has signed a contract with the most famous sports organization.

Photo: Internet

22-year-old representative of Tajikistan Nurullo Aliyev has joined the ranks of fighters who signed contracts with the UFC following the latest selection show of Dana White’s Contender Series, which took place in Las Vegas. He defeated American Josh Wick, forcing the referee to stop the fight in the final seconds of the first round.

After his victory, Aliyev promised the UFC president that he would win the lightweight championship belt in two years.

UFC President Dana White praised the fighter. “He took a poke in the eye and then handled his business without any problems. If you want to incorporate ground-and-pound, take a page from this guy. Congratulations, buddy, you’re in the UFC,” he said.

Dana White also stated at the press conference after the fights on September 20:

“When I posted a video of the athletes training on my Instagram account, Nurullo Aliyev’s fans wrote 1500 comments under the video, which is an indicator that the whole country is behind him,” said Dana White.

22-year-old Nurullo Aliyev is a native of the Vanj district of GBAO. He has many fans in Tajikistan and abroad. Due to his resemblance to Khabib Nurmagomedov, he is also called “Khabib’s clone” and “the Tajik eagle.”

Nurullo Aliyev began his professional MMA career in 2018 and also competed in the organization “Fight Nights Global.” He is the first Tajik athlete to sign a contract with one of the major sports organizations of “First Round Management.” His record stands at 7-0. He has not suffered any defeats in professional sports so far.