Aliaskhab Khizriev vs Makhmud Muradov Prediction: the Russian Fighter to Win by Submission

UFC Fight Night 235, also known as Vegas 85, will occur in the United States on February 4th. In one of the main card bouts, Russian fighter Aliaskhab Khizriev will share the octagon with Uzbek fighter Mahmud Muradov. The bout will take place in the middleweight division.

Aliaskhab Khizriev won the Universal Fighting Championship as an amateur, and as a professional, he won the fourth season of M-1 Fighter and the Fight Night Global title. He has yet to be defeated in his career, but Aliaskhab does not fight often - he has only had three bouts in the last five years, winning all early. Khizriev is a basic fighter but can also knock out, mostly finishing his opponents. And that's clearly a tradition he wants to continue. Aliaskhab won by technical submission over Denis Tiuliulin in his last fight.

Mahmud Muradov is a tough guy but below average. I've had fighters stronger than him. He has a little something in wrestling and standing, but I have nothing else to say about him.

Aliaskhab Khizriev

Makhmud Muradov is the same Uzbek guy who once worked on a construction site somewhere in Siberia and later became a martial arts superstar in the Czech Republic. He has been competing in the UFC since 2019, fighting very spectacularly, winning most of his bouts by knockout, and has a huge fan base worldwide. In his last fight, Makhmud Muradov won a unanimous decision over Bryan Barberena.

We would love to point out that Khizriev has no fights against strong opponents, and his rather long pauses could affect his skills. But we've seen Aliaskhab take a break more than once and return even stronger. So this trend might not change now. He will decide the bout's outcome on the parterre. Makhmud Muradov will fight in the feet, but it won't work - Khizriev will take him down anyway, as it's all about technique.