Rizin Fighting Federation is going
international in the most unexpected of ways.

The Japan-based promotion had hinted that a trip to Azerbaijan
would be in the cards in the future, due to a number of talented
competitors on its roster from the region. All past Rizin events,
from Saraba no Utake in December 2015, to its secret Landmark
events held in undisclosed locations, to its blockbuster shows at
the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, have taken place in Japan.
According to a press conference
on Thursday, the organization is officially going to Baku,
Azerbaijan, on Nov. 4, for Rizin
Landmark Vol. 7, which will take place at the country’s
National Gymnastics Arena.

The historic event – as no major MMA promotion has ever staged an
event in this country – will receive a headliner that is title
fight including one of Azerbaijan’s top fighters. Vugar
Karamov (19-4) conquered the Rizin featherweight throne in
July, when he tapped out company staple Mikuru
Asakura in under three minutes. He is scheduled to make his
first defense against surging talent Chihiro
Suzuki (11-3, 1 NC), who sparked Patricio
Freire at the end of July in a late-notice lightweight
matchup.

All five of the pairings released by Rizin including Karamov-Suzuki
include one combatant from Azerbaijan, and two of those five will
be making their organizational debuts. The likely co-main
attraction will see the most active Azerbaijani fighter under
Rizin’s banner in 2019 tourney champ Tofiq
Musayev (21-5) come to blows at 155 pounds with longtime Rizin
vet Koji Takeda
(15-5), with the latter one of 14 fighters to make at least 10
appearances with Rizin.

Looking to keep rebounding from a 2022 loss on Dana White’s Contender Series, Ramana native
Nariman
Abbasov (28-4) will be stepping into the Rizin cage – as the
Landmark shows use cages instead of rings – against Russian striker
Ali
Abdulkhalikov (12-2) at lightweight. Practically alternating
wins and losses throughout his entire career, Mehman
Mamedov (6-6, 1 NC) will look to put his first-ever win streak
together when he collides with well-traveled flyweight Justin
Scoggins (15-6). Finally, ACA mainstay Tural
Ragimov (21-9) will be competing outside of that organization
for the first time since 2015 when he faces South Korean finisher
Kyung
Pyo Kim (12-4) in a lightweight clash.

Rizin Landmark 7 Lineup:

Vugar
Karamov vs. Chihiro
Suzuki – featherweight championship
Tofiq
Musayev vs. Koji Takeda
– lightweight
Nariman
Abbasov vs. Ali
Abdulkhalikov – lightweight
Mehman
Mamedov vs. Justin
Scoggins – flyweight
Tural
Ragimov vs. Kyung Pyo
Kim – lightweight

IMAK ADMIN

By IMAK ADMIN

Internationaler Kampfkunst und Kampfsport Kleinanzeiger