Fiziev was struggling with his vision moments before he put the
decisive finishing sequence in motion in the UFC
Baku headliner.
“Ataman” rocked and dropped Manuel
Torres with a spinning wheel kick, then put his reeling foe
away with a barrage of punches 15 seconds into Round 2 of their
lightweight clash on Saturday at National Gymnastics Arena in Baku,
Azerbaijan. Fiziev’s spectacular finish seems even better
considering the fact that he was dealing with extenuating
circumstances in that moment.
SPINNING HEEL KICK INTO GNP 🤯
Rafael Fiziev blows the roof off of #UFCBaku
👏[ LIVE ON @ParamountPlus
] pic.twitter.com/3kGbvxosLJ
— UFC on Paramount+ (@UFConParamount)
June 27, 2026
“This guy is strong, he [has] reach, long hands, power,” Fiziev
said in an interview with the UFC. “…[His] last jab on my eye, I
didn’t see anything when I opened my both eyes, but when I closed
my left eye, I see good.
“Beginning of the second round, I didn’t see anything. I opened my
two eyes, I didn’t see anything, like everything double. I think,
OK, I’m just throwing spinning back kick because I don’t need the
eye to see that, and I throw it like, ‘Oh, man.’”
It was a much-needed performance for Fiziev, who had lost four of
his last five Octagon appearances and was coming off a second-round
TKO loss to Mauricio
Ruffy at UFC 325 in January.
“I’m feeling amazing, man. After this loss in Australia, [to] come
back like that, I feel good, I feel great,” he said. “Zero
pressure, zero pressure.
“It’s a very special win, of course. It’s a very special win in my
career, because it’s a black line, …last five fights, four lost,
and only two bonuses in all of these five losses. And now it’s the
third one, so I’m happy.”
Eyeing the BMF
Looking ahead, Fiziev has interest in fighting for the BMF title,
which is currently held by Charles
Oliveira. Fiziev was slated to face the popular Brazilian last
October at UFC Rio before he was forced to withdraw from the card
due to injury.
“Honestly, I believe [in the] UFC, I believe [in matchmaker] Sean
Shelby. I want to fight BMF maybe, because we already have some
story with Charles, and I can’t get it last time,” he said. “But if
not, I don’t care.”
“It’s a very special win in my career.”
Rafael
Fiziev (@RafaelFiziev)
felt “zero pressure” and was happy to deliver a thrilling knockout
win in Azerbaijan. #UFCBakuComplete Main Card Results ➡️ pic.twitter.com/7STpZjEMgH
— UFC News (@UFCNews)
June 27, 2026