Asu Almabayev

Asu Almabayev
Almabayev in 2023
BornAsu Abaiuly Almabayev[1]
(1994-01-25) January 25, 1994 (age 30)
Janatalap, Kazakhstan
NicknameZulfikar
Height5 ft 4 in (1.63 m)
Weight125 lb (57 kg; 8 st 13 lb)
DivisionFlyweight
Reach65 in (165 cm)[2]
StanceOrthodox
Fighting out ofAlmaty, Kazakhstan
TeamDAR Pro Team
Years active2013–present
Mixed martial arts record
Total23
Wins21
By knockout3
By submission9
By decision9
Losses2
By knockout1
By decision1
Other information
Mixed martial arts record from Sherdog

Asu Abaiuly Almabayev (Kazakh: Асу Абайұлы Алмабаев; born January 25, 1994) is a Kazakh professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Flyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional since 2013, Almabayev has also competed in M-1 Global, where he is a former Interim M-1 Global Flyweight Champion. As of December 17, 2024, he is #8 in the UFC flyweight rankings.[3]

Background

Almabayev was born on January 25, 1994, in the village of Janatalap in the Sarysu District of the Jambyl Region of Kazakhstan. He was raised by his grandparents until he was ten. At the age of five, he began to train wrestling. When he was in the fifth grade, he and his family moved to Almaty, where he attended other combat sport classes such as karate, boxing, and Brazilian jiu-jitsu.[4] While in Almaty, Almabayev worked at a market, where his parents had a small shop. He worked at the market until he was 23. In BJJ, Almabayev became the champion of Kazakhstan and Asia. However, he eventually chose to compete in mixed martial arts after watching it on television while studying in college.[5]

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Almabayev made his professional MMA debut against Vadim Buseev on June 1, 2013, at Rod Fighting: Shield and Sword 4. He won the bout via unanimous decision.[6]

After a three-year layoff, Almabayev returned in 2016 and won three early victories in the Alash Pride FC, Tech-Krep FC and Fight Nights Global promotions. In 2017, he suffered his first defeat at Fight Nights Global 58, losing to current UFC fighter Tagir Ulanbekov. Two months later, Almabayev returned to the cage at the Alash Pride FC tournament and suffered a second defeat, losing to Mehman Mamedov. From there, he never lost again, bringing his record to 17–2. Almabayev won the next thirteen victories in a row in the ACB, Alash Pride, Fight Nights Global, Naiza, M-1 Global and Brave Combat Federation organizations.[7]

M-1 Global

Almabayev faced Chris Kelades on October 19, 2019, at M-1 Challenge 105 for the Interim M-1 Global Flyweight Championship. He won the bout via unanimous decision.[6]

Brave Combat Federation

Almabayev made his Brave Combat Federation debut on August 21, 2021, against Aleksander Doskalchuk at Brave CF 53. He won the bout via a rear-naked choke submission in the second round.[8]

Almabayev faced Imram Magaramov on March 11, 2022, at Brave CF 57. He won the bout via unanimous decision.[9]

Almabayev faced Zach Makovsky on July 30, 2022, at Brave CF 60. He won the bout via split decision.[10]

Almabayev faced Kenneth Maningat on November 26, 2022, at Brave CF 66. He won via a rear-naked choke submission in the second round.[11]

Ultimate Fighting Championship

Almabayev made his UFC debut against Ode' Osbourne on August 5, 2023, at UFC on ESPN 50.[12] He won the bout via a rear-naked choke submission in the second round.[13] This fight earned him the Performance of the Night award.[14]

Almabayev faced C.J. Vergara on March 9, 2024, at UFC 299.[15] At the weigh ins, Vergara weighed in at 127 pounds, one pound over the flyweight non-title fight limit, which led the bout to proceed at catchweight with 30 percent of Vergara's purse going to Almabayev.[16] He won the bout via unanimous decision.[17]

Almabayev faced Jose Johnson on June 15, 2024, at UFC on ESPN 58.[18] He won the bout via unanimous decision.[19]

Almabayev faced Matheus Nicolau on October 19, 2024, at UFC Fight Night 245.[20] He won the fight by unanimous decision.[21]

Almabayey is scheduled to face Steve Erceg on March 1, 2025 at UFC Fight Night 253.[22]

Championships and accomplishments

Mixed martial arts record

Professional record breakdown
23 matches 21 wins 2 losses
By knockout 3 1
By submission 9 0
By decision 9 1
Res. Record Opponent Method Event Date Round Time Location Notes
Win 21–2 Matheus Nicolau Decision (unanimous) UFC Fight Night: Hernandez vs. Pereira October 19, 2024 3 5:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win 20–2 Jose Johnson Decision (unanimous) UFC on ESPN: Perez vs. Taira June 15, 2024 3 5:00 Las Vegas, Nevada, United States
Win 19–2 C.J. Vergara Decision (unanimous) UFC 299 March 9, 2024 3 5:00 Miami, Florida, United States Catchweight (127 lb) bout; Vergara missed weight.
Win 18–2 Ode' Osbourne Submission (rear-naked choke) UFC on ESPN: Sandhagen vs. Font August 5, 2023 2 3:11 Nashville, Tennessee, United States Performance of the Night.
Win 17–2 Kenneth Maningat Submission (rear-naked choke) Brave CF 66 November 26, 2022 2 3:30 Bali, Indonesia
Win 16–2 Zach Makovsky Decision (split) Brave CF 60 July 30, 2022 3 5:00 Isa Town, Bahrain
Win 15–2 Imram Magaramov Decision (unanimous) Brave CF 57 March 11, 2022 3 5:00 Isa Town, Bahrain
Win 14–2 Kayck Alencar KO (punch) Naiza FC 36 December 29, 2021 3 0:27 Almaty, Kazakhstan
Win 13–2 Aleksander Doskalchuk Submission (rear-naked choke) Brave CF 53 August 21, 2021 2 3:47 Almaty, Kazakhstan
Win 12–2 Darkhan Skakov Submission (rear-naked choke) Naiza FC 27 December 24, 2020 1 3:29 Almaty, Kazakhstan Won the vacant Naiza FC Flyweight Championship.
Win 11–2 Chris Kelades Decision (unanimous) M-1 Challenge 105 October 19, 2019 5 5:00 Nur-Sultan, Kazakhstan Won the interim M-1 Global Flyweight Championship.
Win 10–2 Pierre Ludet Submission (guillotine choke) M-1 Challenge 101 March 30, 2019 2 1:45 Almaty, Kazakhstan
Win 9–2 Kiril Fomenkov Submission (rear-naked choke) M-1 Challenge 100 December 15, 2018 2 3:51 Atyrau, Kazakhstan
Win 8–2 Saud Karagishov TKO (punches) Fight Nights Global 88 August 31, 2018 2 4:09 Astana, Kazakhstan Catchweight (130 lb) bout; Karagishov missed weight.
Win 7–2 Shamil Akhmaev Decision (unanimous) Berkut Young Eagles 4 April 29, 2018 3 5:00 Tolstoy-Yurt, Russia
Win 6–2 Kenan Jafarli Decision (unanimous) Alash Pride FC: Almaty Arena December 30, 2017 2 5:00 Almaty, Kazakhstan
Win 5–2 Ibrahim Mamaev Submission (Peruvian necktie) ACB 69: Young Eagles 22 September 9, 2017 2 2:07 Almaty, Kazakhstan
Loss 4–2 Mehman Mamedov Decision (unanimous) Alash Pride FC: Alash Aibary April 1, 2017 3 5:00 Almaty, Kazakhstan
Loss 4–1 Tagir Ulanbekov TKO (submission to punches) Fight Nights Global 58 January 28, 2017 3 4:51 Kaspiysk, Russia
Win 4–0 Galamirza Ayvazov Submission (armbar) Fight Nights Global 45 April 22, 2016 1 3:41 Ufa, Russia Catchweight (130 lb) bout.
Win 3–0 Oleg Erik Submission (rear-naked choke) Tech-Krep FC: Southern Front 3 March 3, 2016 1 4:04 Krasnodar, Russia
Win 2–0 Yeldos Kaliev TKO (punches) Alash Pride FC: Selection 13 February 14, 2016 1 4:32 Kaskelen, Kazakhstan Flyweight debut.
Win 1–0 Vadim Buseev Decision (unanimous) R.O.D: Shield and Sword 4 June 1, 2013 3 5:00 Moscow, Russia Bantamweight debut.

[23]

See also

References

  1. ^ "Қазақстандық Асу Алмабаев UFC-дегі алғашқы жекпе-жегінде жеңіске жетті". informburo.kz (in Kazakh). 2023-08-06. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
  2. ^ "Stats | UFC". ufcstats.com.
  3. ^ "UFC Rankings | UFC.com". www.ufc.com. Retrieved 2024-12-17.
  4. ^ Павел Задорин (2023-08-03). "Работал на рынке, дрался в ночных клубах, дружит с Рахмоновым, дебютант UFC: кто такой Асу Алмабаев" (in Russian). mma.metaratings.ru. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
  5. ^ "От продавца на базаре до бойца UFC. История Асу Алмабаев" (in Russian). vesti.kz. 2023-04-18. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
  6. ^ a b c "Асу Алмабаев: биография, статистика, рекорд, национальность, лучшие бои, где тренируется, чем увлекается" (in Russian). mma.metaratings.ru. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
  7. ^ "Асу Алмабаев официально пополнил ростер UFC. Что известно о казахстанском бойце?" (in Russian). prosports.kz. 6 April 2023. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
  8. ^ "Almabayev vs Doskalchuk". fightsmma.com. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
  9. ^ "Brave CF 57 Results". combatpress.com. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
  10. ^ "Brave CF 60". sherdog. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
  11. ^ "Brave CF 66". sherdog. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
  12. ^ Anderson, Jay (2023-05-26). "Ode Osbourne Welcomes Asu Almabaev to UFC on August 5". cagesidepress.com. Retrieved 2023-05-27.
  13. ^ Bitter, Shawn (2023-08-05). "Assu Asmabayev Takes Osbourne Down, Ends His Night In R2 By Submission". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2023-08-06.
  14. ^ a b Matt Erickson (2023-08-06). "UFC on ESPN 50 bonuses: Tatiana Suarez among five $50,000 'Music City' winners". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2023-08-06.
  15. ^ "CJ Vergara vs Assu Almabayev Reported for UFC 299 PPV". www.itnwwe.com. 2023-12-06. Retrieved 2023-12-06.
  16. ^ Nolan King and Ken Hathaway (2024-03-08). "UFC 299 weigh-in results, video: Fighter misses mark for third time". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2024-03-08.
  17. ^ Dewar, Val (2024-03-10). "UFC 299: Assu Almabayev Extends Streak to Fifteen Wins, Beats Overweight C.J. Vergara". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2024-03-10.
  18. ^ Segura, Danny (2024-05-13). "Rising Japanese star Tatsuro Taira books first UFC main event vs. Alex Perez on June 15". mmajunkie. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
  19. ^ Dewar, Val (2024-06-15). "UFC Vegas 93: Asu Almabayev Continues Ascent, Extends Streak Versus Jose Johnson". Cageside Press. Retrieved 2024-08-10.
  20. ^ MMA Junkie Staff (2024-07-29). "Asu Almabayev says he's fighting Matheus Nicolau at UFC Fight Night in October". mmajunkie.usatoday.com. Retrieved 2024-07-29.
  21. ^ Bryan Hester (2024-10-19). "UFC Vegas 99: Asu Almabayev Improves to 4-0 in UFC with Win Over Matheus Nicolau". cagesidepress.com. Retrieved 2024-10-19.
  22. ^ Behunin, Alexander (2025-01-02). "Sorry UFC 312, A Former Title Challenger Will NOT Be Fighting In His Home Country (Because He's Stuck At The APEX)". MMAmania.com. Retrieved 2025-01-03.
  23. ^ "Asu Almabayev". Sherdog.