Is Rafael Fiziev Russian and Did He Change His Nationality? UFC Star’s Ethnicity & More

#11 Lightweight contender Rafael Fiziev has found himself stepping up as a replacement this weekend at UFC 313. And who does ‘Ataman’ have standing on the other side of the cage? A nemesis in the form of former BMF champion, Justin Gaethje. Besides the fact that he lost the first encounter, Fiziev has showcased his superb durability and courage in all of his UFC outings and has an impressive record to show for it.

Rafael Fiziev’s superb prowess in the Octagon had caught the eye of a lot of fans over time. But the lightweight contender isn’t known for staying in the spotlight much. But, a chunk of UFC fans might be currently rooting to know more about him. So, let’s take a bit of a history lesson on Fiziev’s life. Here’s what we know!

Where is Rafael Fiziev from? Ethnicity & Nationality 

Rafael Fiziev was born to an Azerbaijani father and a Russian mother, but at that time, his parents used to live in Korday, a village in the southeastern part of Kazakhstan. But, ‘Ataman’ moved to Bishkek in 125lbs women’s champ Valentina Shevchenko‘s native country of Kyrgyzstan, along with his family during ‘Ataman’s infant years. Regardless, Fiziev still holds an Azerbaijani passport.

When it comes to his ethnic background, fans may be confused since Rafael Fiziev was born in Azerbaijan but grew up in Kyrgyzstan. But guess what? While there are no confirmed reports about his ethnicity, Fiziev could be assumed to belong to the community of the Dungan people, who are based in Korday, his birthplace.

Although Rafael Fiziev, who relatively goes under the fans’ radar when his fighting career is not in focus, did find himself in a controversy about his national flag. Fun Fact: Did you know that ‘Ataman’ used to represent Kyrgyzstan? Let’s take a look at that front.

Rafael Fiziev’s Flag Controversy

The eleventh-ranked UFC lightweight used to represent his adopted country until 2021, when things went south. Apparently, Rafael Fiziev took issue with the way Shia Muslims were being treated in Sunni Muslim-dominated Kyrgyzstan. It happens that ‘Ataman’ is a devout Sunni, and the reports of the alleged partial behavior toward people from his religious community didn’t sit right with the UFC star.

Rafael Fiziev, who used to carry the Kyrgyzstan flag, decided to stop representing the country and announced it in a now-deleted X post. Claiming that he’s planning to switch nationalities, the UFC lightweight wrote, “That’s it, I’m done. Nothing ties me to Kyrgyzstan anymore. My family and I are considering moving. I will no longer compete for Kyrgyzstan.”

Coming back to the fighting side of things, as fans may be aware, there are only a handful or no fighters who get to start their career in the UFC. Rafael Fiziev also wasn’t an exception in this regard. The 31-year-old started by fighting in smaller promotions and finally made his way to the biggest of all. But the lightweight star wasn’t too keen on fighting at all when he was just a kid. Let’s take a look further into his life growing up.

More about Rafael Fiziev’s early life

Rafael Fiziev had his first unofficial sparring session at a pretty tender age and it was his father who sowed the seeds for what would become his son’s bread and butter. His father would one day decide to buy a few pairs of boxing gloves for ‘Ataman’ and his cousins and ask them to spar, but on every occasion, Fiziev would end up badly beaten, which led him to stop sparring altogether.

However, fighting might have been his destiny because when he started getting bullied after going through a change of schools, it caught up to him. The 155fer was eleven years old when he took up Muay Thai to prevent instances of getting picked on by other kids. Although he concentrated on Muay Thai, ‘Ataman’ also started training in a few other combat sports disciplines, which included combat sambo, boxing, Jiu-Jitsu, and wrestling as well. His amazing fight skills finally led him to the grandest stage of all: the UFC.

Most fans might agree that the pre-bout skill analysis of the fighters increases the excitement. And as far as the rematch between Rafael Fiziev and the title-chasing Justin Gaethje is concerned, both fighters are lethal in their striking game. But then again, their UFC 313 clash this weekend was put up on short notice, so it remains to be seen how the fight pans out on March 8.