Shamil Hasbulatovich Gaziev (born February 10, 1990) is a Russian and Bahraini professional

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA) is a full-contact fighting sport based on striking and grappling; incorporating techniques from various combat sports from around the world. In the early 20th century, various inter-stylistic contests took place t ...

. He currently competes in the

Heavyweight Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Male boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 2 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation an ...

division of the

Ultimate Fighting Championship The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promoter (entertainment), promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority owned subsidiary of Endeavor ( ...

(UFC). A professional since 2020, Gaziev earned his UFC contract on

Dana White's Contender Series Dana White's Contender Series, formerly named Dana White's Tuesday Night Contender Series, is an American mixed martial arts promotion. In May 2017, the UFC announced White would hold the competition weekly on UFC Fight Pass (It has since been mov ...

, winning by first round submission. As of June 24, 2025, he is #11 in the UFC Heavyweight rankings.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Gaziev acquired a record of 7–0 competing exclusively on the Russian and Belarusian regional circuit, winning all seven fights by stoppage inside two rounds. Gaziev faced fellow undefeated prospect Kirill Kornilov at Ares FC 7 in Paris, France. He won the fight via split decision.

BRAVE CF

Gaziev then competed under the

Brave Combat Federation BRAVE Combat Federation is a mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion based in Bahrain. The organization was established on 23 September 2016 by Sheikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa. BRAVE Combat Federation features mixed martial artists from more than ...

banner, first competing at BRAVE CF 65 against Pavel Dailidko on October 28, 2022. He won the fight via second round knockout. Gaziev next competed against UFC veteran Darko Stošić in the co-main event of BRAVE CF 69 on February 18, 2023. He won the fight via first round technical knockout.

Dana White's Contender Series

Gaziev was then booked to compete on Week 7 of Season 7 of

on September 19, 2023, against fellow undefeated prospect Greg Velasco. He won the fight via first round submission and was awarded a contract by

Dana White Dana Frederick White Jr. (born July 28, 1969) is an American businessman who is the CEO and president of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), a global mixed martial arts organization. In August 2019, White's net worth was estimated at . Out ...

Ultimate Fighting Championship

After earning his contract, Gaziev made his UFC debut at UFC 296 against Martin Buday on December 16, 2023. He won the fight via technical knockout in the second round. This would earn Gaziev Performance of the Night. Gaziev was booked for his first UFC main event opposite Jairzinho Rozenstruik at UFC Fight Night: Rozenstruik vs. Gaziev on March 2, 2024. He suffered the first professional loss of his career after retiring from his corner at the end of the fourth round. Gaziev faced Don'Tale Mayes at UFC on ABC 7 on August 3, 2024. Gaziev rebounded from his first career loss, winning a unanimous decision. Gaziev faced Thomas Peterson at UFC Fight Night 250 on February 1, 2025. He won the fight by technical knockout in the first round. Gaziev was scheduled to face Serghei Spivac on May 17, 2025 at UFC Fight Night 256. However, for unknown reasons, their bout was moved to UFC 316 which was set to take place on June 7, 2025. However, Gaziev pulled out due to a broken finger sustained during training and was replaced by Waldo Cortes-Acosta.

Personal life

Gaziev currently resides in

Manama Manama ( ', Bahrani Arabic, Bahrani pronunciation: ) is the capital and List of cities in Bahrain, largest city of Bahrain, with an approximate population of 297,502 as of 2012. Long an important trading center in the Persian Gulf, Manama is ...

, Bahrain, where he trains with the KHK MMA Team. Gaziev represents Bahrain in his professional career, making him the first fighter to represent the nation in the UFC.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Win , align=center, 14–1 , Thomas Petersen , TKO (punch) , UFC Fight Night: Adesanya vs. Imavov , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:12 ,

Riyadh Riyadh is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of the Riyadh Governorate. Located on the eastern bank of Wadi Hanifa, the current form of the metropolis largely emerged in th ...

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Abu Dhabi Abu Dhabi is the capital city of the United Arab Emirates. The city is the seat of the Abu Dhabi Central Capital District, the capital city of the Emirate of Abu Dhabi, and the UAE's List of cities in the United Arab Emirates, second-most popu ...

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Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas, colloquially referred to as Vegas, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and the county seat of Clark County. The Las Vegas Valley metropolitan area is the largest within the greater Mojave Desert, and second-l ...

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Belgrade Belgrade is the Capital city, capital and List of cities in Serbia, largest city of Serbia. It is located at the confluence of the Sava and Danube rivers and at the crossroads of the Pannonian Basin, Pannonian Plain and the Balkan Peninsula. T ...

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Isa Town Isa Town (, ''Madīnat ʿĪsā'') is a middle class town located in Bahrain, in the north central part of the country. Etymology The name ''Isa'' refers to Isa ibn Salman Al Khalifah, a former ruler of Bahrain, from 1961 to 1999. History Isa To ...

, Bahrain , , - , Win , align=center, 8–0 , Kirill Kornilov , Decision (split) , Ares FC 7 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

, France , , - , Win , align=center, 7–0 , Aleksandr Kolomytsev , Submission (rear-naked choke) , ProFC 70 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:13 ,

Rostov-on-Don Rostov-on-Don is a port city and the administrative centre of Rostov Oblast and the Southern Federal District of Russia. It lies in the southeastern part of the East European Plain on the Don River, from the Sea of Azov, directly north of t ...

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Sochi Sochi ( rus, Сочи, p=ˈsotɕɪ, a=Ru-Сочи.ogg, from – ''seaside'') is the largest Resort town, resort city in Russia. The city is situated on the Sochi (river), Sochi River, along the Black Sea in the North Caucasus of Souther ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 5–0 , Murad Adyrbaev , Submission (rear-naked choke) , Belarusian FC: Contender Series 7 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:59 ,

Minsk Minsk (, ; , ) is the capital and largest city of Belarus, located on the Svislach (Berezina), Svislach and the now subterranean Nyamiha, Niamiha rivers. As the capital, Minsk has a special administrative status in Belarus and is the administra ...

, Belarus , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0 , Alexey Druzhinin , TKO (punches) , MMA Series 29 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:33 ,

, Belarus , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0 , Vladislav Kozlovskiy , TKO (punches) , Belarusian FC 66 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:35 ,

, Belarus , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Artur Bunkov , TKO (punches) , MMA Series 22 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:20 ,

Kaliningrad Kaliningrad,. known as Königsberg; ; . until 1946, is the largest city and administrative centre of Kaliningrad Oblast, an Enclave and exclave, exclave of Russia between Lithuania and Poland ( west of the bulk of Russia), located on the Prego ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Denis Gvozdev , TKO (punches) , Belarusian FC 63 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:23 ,

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References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gaziev, Shamil 1990 births Living people Bahraini male mixed martial artists Russian male mixed martial artists Heavyweight mixed martial artists Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters