Rafael Fiziev rejects Kyrgyz MMA label, praises Radjabali as world-class phenomenon

Rafael Fiziev has distanced himself from being called a product of the Kyrgyz martial arts school, saying he considers himself self-made. He also argued that Valentina Shevchenko, who trained in Kyrgyzstan for only five or six years before moving on, should not be considered a product of that system either. Fiziev praised Radjabali as a unique global phenomenon with 100 percent finishes, and placed him in the same elite category as fighters like Islam Makhachev, Khabib Nurmagomedov, Jon Jones, and Justin Gaethje.