Bazigit Atavovich Atajev (, ; born 3 December 1979) is a Russian mixed martial artist and ''

sanshou Sanda (), formerly Sanshou (), also known as Chinese boxing or Chinese kickboxing, is the official Chinese kickboxing full-contact combat sport. Sanda is a fighting system which was originally developed by the Chinese military based upon the s ...

kickboxer Kickboxing is a combat sport focused on kicking and punching. The combat takes place in a boxing ring, normally with boxing gloves, mouthguards, shorts, and bare feet to favour the use of kicks. Kickboxing is practiced for self-defense, general ...

, who currently competes in the

Light Heavyweight Light heavyweight, also referred to as junior cruiserweight or light cruiserweight, is a weight class in combat sports. Boxing Professional In professional boxing, the division is above and up to , falling between super middleweight and cruise ...

division. A professional since 2000, he has competed in RINGS and

PRIDE Fighting Championships PRIDE Fighting Championships (Pride or Pride FC, founded as KRS-Pride) was a Japanese mixed martial arts promotion company. Its inaugural event was held at the Tokyo Dome on October 11, 1997. Pride held more than sixty mixed martial arts even ...

. He is known for a fierce spinning heel kick and

Sambo , aka = Sombo (in English-speaking countries) , focus = Hybrid , country = Soviet Union , pioneers = Viktor Spiridonov, Vasili Oshchepkov, Anatoly Kharlampiev , famous_pract = List of Practitioners , oly ...

style grappling.

Early life

Bozigit was born in 1979 in the village of Lower Kazanyshy to a Kumyk family. He studied in the famous in Dagestan sports-dedicated boarding school "

Five Directions of the World Five Directions of the World (russian: link=no, Пять сторон света) is a martial arts school in Dagestan, Russia. It provides both formal education as well as training in martial arts. History Gusein Magomaev was an artist who g ...

Mixed martial arts career

PRIDE Fighting Championships

Atajev debuted in

PRIDE Pride is defined by Merriam-Webster as "reasonable self-esteem" or "confidence and satisfaction in oneself". A healthy amount of pride is good, however, pride sometimes is used interchangeably with "conceit" or "arrogance" (among other words) wh ...

in December 2002 and suffered his only loss against Dutchman Alistair Overeem at

PRIDE 24 The year 2002 is the 6th year in the history of the Pride Fighting Championships, a mixed martial arts promotion based in Japan. 2002 had 10 events beginning with, ''Pride FC: The Best, Vol. 1''. Title fights Debut Pride FC fighters The ...

. Atajev planned to make his return to PRIDE at their final event

PRIDE 34 ''Pride 34: Kamikaze'' was a mixed martial arts event held by Pride Fighting Championships on April 8, 2007 at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan. Background This was the last Pride show promoted by Dream Stage Entertainment before the ...

against

Gilbert Yvel Gilbert Ramon Yvel (born 30 June 1976) is a Dutch professional mixed martial artist. A professional competitor since 1997, Yvel competed in the PRIDE Fighting Championships, Affliction, the UFC, Road FC, the RFA, RINGS, M-1 Challenge, Cage Rage ...

. However, due to a stomach illness, the bout was cancelled. In 2008, he faced the eventual K-1 champion Remy Bonjasky in his kickboxing debut. He was defeated by knockout early in the third round. He won the gold medal at the

2013 World Wushu Championships The 2013 World Wushu Championships was the 12th edition of the World Wushu Championships. It was held at the Kuala Lumpur Badminton Stadium in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia from November 1 to November 5, 2013. Medal summary Medal table Men's taolu ...

Professional Fighters League

Atajev made his debut in North America on 21 June 2018 at PFL 2 against

Dan Spohn Daniel Brian Spohn (born October 12, 1984) is an American mixed martial artist currently competing in the Light Heavyweight division. A professional competitor since 2006, he has competed for the UFC, Bellator, and was a competitor on The Ulti ...

in Light heavyweight tournaments. He lost the fight by technical knockout in the third round. In his second fight in the tournament, Atajev faced

Sean O'Connell Sean O'Connell was a Gaelic football manager and player who featured for the Derry county team in the late 1950s, 1960s and 1970s and was on the Derry side that finished runners-up to Dublin in the 1958 All-Ireland Championship – winning a ...

at PFL 7 on 30 August 2018. He won the fight via TKO in the first round. In the semifinals, Atajev faced Vinny Magalhaes, losing via first-round submission. In 2019, Atajev fought

in a rematch at PFL 3, winning in via first-round knockout. On 8 August at PFL 6, Atajev fought Emiliano Sordi, losing via first-round knockout. He faced Sordi again in the quarterfinals of the 2019 tournament, losing via rear-naked choke submission in the first round.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 20–5–1 , Emiliano Sordi , Submission (rear-naked choke) , rowspan=2, PFL 9 , rowspan=2, , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:26 , rowspan=2,

Las Vegas, Nevada Las Vegas (; Spanish for "The Meadows"), often known simply as Vegas, is the 25th-most populous city in the United States, the most populous city in the state of Nevada, and the county seat of Clark County. The city anchors the Las Vegas ...

, United States , , - , Draw , align=center, 20–4–1 , Viktor Nemkov , Draw (majority) , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:26 , , - , Loss , align=center, 20–4 , Emiliano Sordi , KO (punches) , PFL 6 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:22 ,

Atlantic City, New Jersey Atlantic City, often known by its initials A.C., is a coastal resort city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. The city is known for its casinos, boardwalk, and beaches. In 2020, the city had a population of 38,497.

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 20–3 ,

, KO (punches) , PFL 3 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:25 ,

Uniondale, New York Uniondale is a census-designated place (CDP), as well as a suburb in Nassau County, New York, Nassau County, New York (state), New York, on Long Island, in the Town of Hempstead, New York, Town of Hempstead. The population was 32,473 at the 2020 ...

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 19–3 , Vinny Magalhães , Submission (kimura) , rowspan=2 , PFL 9 , rowspan=2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:58 , rowspan=2 ,

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 19–2 , Emiliano Sordi , TKO (punches) , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:43 , , - , Win , align=center, 18–2 ,

, TKO (spinning back kick and punches) , PFL 7 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:30 ,

, United States , , - , Loss , align=center, 17–2 ,

, TKO (punches) , PFL 2 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 4:31 ,

Chicago, Illinois (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

, United States ,

debut. , - , Win , align=center, 17–1 , Jeremy May , TKO (punches) , Kunlun Fight MMA 10 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:15 ,

Beijing } Beijing ( ; ; ), alternatively romanized as Peking ( ), is the capital of the People's Republic of China. It is the center of power and development of the country. Beijing is the world's most populous national capital city, with over 21 ...

, China , , - , Win , align=center, 16–1 , Valdas Pocevicius , KO (punches) , HERO'S Lithuania 2006 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:02 ,

Vilnius Vilnius ( , ; see also other names) is the capital and largest city of Lithuania, with a population of 592,389 (according to the state register) or 625,107 (according to the municipality of Vilnius). The population of Vilnius's functional urb ...

, Lithuania , , - , Win , align=center, 15–1 , Beneilton Pereira da Silva , TKO (punches) , RINGS Russia: CIS vs. The World , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:03 ,

Yekaterinburg Yekaterinburg ( ; rus, Екатеринбург, p=jɪkətʲɪrʲɪnˈburk), alternatively romanized as Ekaterinburg and formerly known as Sverdlovsk ( rus, Свердло́вск, , svʲɪrˈdlofsk, 1924–1991), is a city and the administra ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 14–1 , Mindaugas Kulikauskas , Submission (armbar) , Shooto Lithuania: King of Bushido Stage 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:53 ,

, Lithuania , , - , Loss , align=center, 13–1 , Alistair Overeem , TKO (knee to the body) ,

, , align=center, 2 , align=center, 4:59 ,

Fukuoka is the sixth-largest city in Japan, the second-largest port city after Yokohama, and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since ancie ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 13–0 , Kestutis Arbocius , Submission (guillotine choke) , RINGS Lithuania: Bushido RINGS 5: Shock , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 2:58 ,

, Lithuania , , - , Win , align=center, 12–0 , Chris Franco , Submission (neck crank) , Shoot Boxing: S-Cup 2002 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:31 ,

Yokohama is the second-largest city in Japan by population and the most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city and the most populous city in Kanagawa Prefecture, with a 2020 population of 3.8 million. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of To ...

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 11–0 ,

Tsuyoshi Kohsaka is a retired Japanese mixed martial artist, submission grappler and professional wrestler who competed in the Heavyweight division. A professional MMA competitor from 1994 till 2022, he has competed for the UFC, PRIDE Fighting Championships, RI ...

, Decision (majority) , RINGS: World Title Series 5 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 10–0 , Aaron Brink , KO (spinning back kick) , RINGS: 10th Anniversary , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:09 ,

Tokyo Tokyo (; ja, 東京, , ), officially the Tokyo Metropolis ( ja, 東京都, label=none, ), is the capital and largest city of Japan. Formerly known as Edo, its metropolitan area () is the most populous in the world, with an estimated 37.468 ...

, Japana , , - , Win , align=center, 9–0 , Maynard Marcum , KO (punch) , RINGS: World Title Series 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:08 ,

, Japan , , - , Win , align=center, 8–0 , Roman Zentsov , KO (spinning wheel kick) , BARS: Moscow vs St. Petersburg , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:10 ,

Moscow Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 million ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 7–0 , Rolandas Digrys , Submission (armbar) , RINGS Lithuania: Bushido Rings 2 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:47 ,

, Lithuania , , - , Win , align=center, 6–0 , Dimitar Doichinov , TKO (strikes) , RINGS Russia: Russia vs. Bulgaria , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 4:12 ,

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 5–0 , Islam Dadalov , TKO (submission to strikes) , IAFC: Pankration Russian Championship 2001 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:48 ,

Yaroslavl Yaroslavl ( rus, Ярослáвль, p=jɪrɐˈsɫavlʲ) is a city and the administrative center of Yaroslavl Oblast, Russia, located northeast of Moscow. The historic part of the city is a World Heritage Site, and is located at the confluence ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0 , Vitali Shkraba , TKO (corner stoppage) , IAFC: Pankration Russian Championship 2001 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:45 ,

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0 , Yuri Zhernikov , TKO (submission to punches) , IAFC: Pankration Russian Championship 2001 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:26 ,

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Tikhon Gladkov , TKO (punches) , IAFC: Pankration Russian Championship 2001 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:41 ,

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Arunas Juskevicius , KO , RINGS Lithuania: Bushido RINGS 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:14 ,

, Lithuania ,

Kickboxing record (incomplete)

, - bgcolor="#FFBBBB" , 2008-7-13 , , Loss , , align=left, Remy Bonjasky , , K-1 World GP 2008 in Taipei , ,

Taipei City, Taiwan Taipei (), officially Taipei City, is the capital and a special municipality of the Republic of China (Taiwan). Located in Northern Taiwan, Taipei City is an enclave of the municipality of New Taipei City that sits about southwest of the ...

, , KO (jumping knee strike) , , 3 , , 2:17 , , 1-2 , - bgcolor="#FFBBBB" , 2003-06-25 , , Loss , , align=left, Eduard Voznovich , , BARS: Heavyweight Cup Of Gold BARS 2003 , ,

Moscow, Russia Moscow ( , American English, US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the Capital city, capital and List of cities and towns in Russia by population, largest city of Russia. The city stands on t ...

, , Decision , , 5 , , 3:00 , , 1-1 , - bgcolor="#CCFFCC" , 2003-06-25 , , Win, , align=left, Denis Grigoriev , , BARS: Heavyweight Cup Of Gold BARS 2003 , ,

, , Decision , , 5 , , 3:00 , , 1-0

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Atajev Living people Kumyks Dagestani mixed martial artists Russian sambo practitioners Russian sanshou practitioners Russian male kickboxers Heavyweight mixed martial artists Heavyweight kickboxers Mixed martial artists utilizing sanshou Mixed martial artists utilizing sambo 1979 births Sportspeople from Dagestan