Rafael Fiziev rejects Kyrgyz MMA school label, praises Razhababli as a phenomenon

Rafael Fiziev has distanced himself from any association with the Kyrgyz martial arts school, stating he considers himself self-made and does not credit the country's system for his development. He also disputed that Valentina Shevchenko should be considered a product of Kyrgyz MMA, noting her coach drew from Korean taekwondo and that she subsequently trained internationally. Fiziev praised rising Kyrgyz fighters Razhababli and Orolbai, calling Razhababli a unique phenomenon comparable to Justin Gaethje, Islam Makhachev, and Khabib Nurmagomedov.