Ruslan Gadzhimagomedovich Magomedov (russian: Руслан Гаджимагомедович Магомедов; born 26 November 1986 in

Dagestan Dagestan ( ; rus, Дагеста́н, , dəɡʲɪˈstan, links=yes), officially the Republic of Dagestan (russian: Респу́блика Дагеста́н, Respúblika Dagestán, links=no), is a republic of Russia situated in the North Ca ...

) is a Russian

mixed martial artist Mixed martial arts (MMA), sometimes referred to as cage fighting, no holds barred (NHB), and ultimate fighting, and originally referred to as Vale Tudo is a full-contact combat sport based on striking, grappling and ground fighting, incorpo ...

, who competes in the

Heavyweight Heavyweight is a weight class in combat sports and professional wrestling. Boxing Professional Boxers who weigh over are considered heavyweights by 3 of the 4 major professional boxing organizations: the International Boxing Federation, the W ...

division. Magomedov was the first UFC fighter to receive lifetime ban from

USADA The United States Anti-Doping Agency (USADA, ) is a non-profit, non-governmental 501(c)(3) organization and the national anti- doping organization (NADO) for the United States. To protect clean competition and the integrity of sport and prevent ...

after sustaining his third anti-doping violation in February 2019. He is ranked #8 in the ACA heavyweight rankings.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

Magomedov was born in village Tsudakhar,

Levashinsky District Levashinsky District (russian: Левашинский райо́н; Dargwa: Лавашала къатI; av, Лаваша мухъ) is an administrativeLaw #16 and municipalLaw #6 district (raion), one of the forty-one in the Republic of Dagesta ...

, Russia. He is an ethnic Dargin and a devout

Sunni Muslim Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagre ...

. At the age of eight he began to train in

Karate (; ; Okinawan pronunciation: ) is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tii'' in Okinawan) under the influence of Chinese martial arts, particularly Fuj ...

Amateur boxing Amateur boxing is a variant of boxing practiced at the collegiate level, at the Olympic Games, Pan American Games and Commonwealth Games, as well as many associations. Amateur boxing bouts are short in duration, comprising three rounds of three ...

and

Muay Thai Muay Thai ( th, มวยไทย, , ), sometimes referred to as Thai boxing, is a combat sport that uses stand-up striking along with various clinching techniques. This discipline is known as the "art of eight limbs", as it is characterise ...

under Igor Ivanov. After higher school, he joined the Russian Army

Strategic Missile Troops The Strategic Rocket Forces of the Russian Federation or the Strategic Missile Forces of the Russian Federation (RVSN RF; russian: Ракетные войска стратегического назначения Российской Фед� ...

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 ...

and

Irkutsk Irkutsk ( ; rus, Иркутск, p=ɪrˈkutsk; Buryat and mn, Эрхүү, ''Erhüü'', ) is the largest city and administrative center of Irkutsk Oblast, Russia. With a population of 617,473 as of the 2010 Census, Irkutsk is the 25th-larges ...

, in the army he won national Army hand-to-hand fight championships, he is

Second lieutenant Second lieutenant is a junior commissioned officer military rank in many armed forces, comparable to NATO OF-1 rank. Australia The rank of second lieutenant existed in the military forces of the Australian colonies and Australian Army unt ...

, after the army he started MMA. Magomedov made his professional MMA debut in November 2008 and went 9-1 in his first 10 fights. Ruslan trains in Russian MMA Academy. He sparred with Olympic

Wrestling Wrestling is a series of combat sports involving grappling-type techniques such as clinch fighting, throws and takedowns, joint locks, pins and other grappling holds. Wrestling techniques have been incorporated into martial arts, combat s ...

Champions from the Dagestan Republic. Ruslan has shown good

boxing Boxing (also known as "Western boxing" or "pugilism") is a combat sport in which two people, usually wearing protective gloves and other protective equipment such as hand wraps and mouthguards, throw punches at each other for a predetermined ...

technique, as he has four victories coming by way of knockout. He defeated former

UFC Heavyweight Champion Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) champions are fighters who have won UFC championships. Historical notes At the time of the UFC's inception in 1993, mixed martial arts was not sanctioned in the United States, and did not include weight class ...

Ricco Rodriguez via unanimous decision at United Glory 15.

Bellator MMA

In April 2012, Ruslan signed a contract with

Bellator Fighting Championships Bellator MMA (formerly Bellator Fighting Championships) is an American mixed martial arts promotion (entertainment), promotion founded in 2008 and based in Santa Monica, California, owned and operated as a subsidiary of television and media cong ...

. Magomedov was expected to compete in the Bellator season seven heavyweight tournament, and was expected to face Brett Rogers in the quarterfinals at Bellator 75. However, Magomedov was forced out of the bout with a visa problems and replaced by Alexander Volkov.

Fight Nights MMA

Magomedov faced Strikeforce veteran and

Cage Warriors Cage Warriors (CW) is an Irish owned mixed martial arts promotion, based in London, England. The promotion was established in 2001 and staged its first MMA event in London in July, 2002. Many MMA stars have made their names under the Cage War ...

Heavyweight Champion Mike Hayes on February 23, 2013 on Fight Nights: Battle of Moscow 10. He won via unanimous decision. Magomedov faced former

Tim Sylvia Timothy Deane Sylvia (born March 5, 1976) is an American retired mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter, professional wrestler, and a former two-time UFC Heavyweight Champion. He has competed as a Super Heavyweight and Heavyweight. While he is best kn ...

on October 27, 2013 on Fight Nights: Battle of Moscow 13. He won the fight via unanimous decision.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

In February 2014, Magomedov signed a contract with the UFC to fight in their

division. Magomedov made his UFC debut against fellow newcomer Viktor Pešta on May 31, 2014 at

UFC Fight Night 41 The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

. By this time, Magomedov was splitting his training between the MMA Academy in Russia and Jackson/Winklejohn MMA in

Albuquerque Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding i ...

, USA. He won the fight by unanimous decision. Magomedov was briefly linked to a bout with

Ben Rothwell Ben Rothwell (born October 17, 1981) is an American mixed martial artist who competes as a Heavyweight. He most notably had a 17 bout stint in the Ultimate Fighting Championship and competed for the Quad Cities Silverbacks of the IFL where he h ...

for on August 30, 2014 at

UFC 177 ''UFC 177: Dillashaw vs. Soto'' was a mixed martial arts event held on August 30, 2014, at the Sleep Train Arena in Sacramento, California. Background The event was originally planned to take place at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas, ...

. However, on July 9, the UFC announced Rothwell would be facing

Alistair Overeem Alistair Cees Overeem (born 17 May 1980) is a Dutch professional heavyweight mixed martial artist and kickboxer, currently competing in the heavyweight division of Glory. He is a former Strikeforce Heavyweight Champion, Dream Heavyweight Cha ...

on September 5, 2014 at UFC Fight Night 50. Magomedov eventually was linked to a bout with Richard Odoms on the same card. However, on August 14, it was announced that the bout would be scrapped due to an injury from Odoms. Magomedov faced Josh Copeland on November 22, 2014 at

UFC Fight Night 57 ''UFC Fight Night: Edgar vs. Swanson'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 57'') was a mixed martial arts event held at the Frank Erwin Center in Austin, Texas, on November 22, 2014. Background The event was the second that the organization had host ...

. He won the fight via unanimous decision. Magomedov faced

Shawn Jordan Shawn Martin Jordan (born October 24, 1984) is an American professional mixed martial artist who last competed in the Professional Fighters League's Heavyweight division. A professional competitor since 2009, Jordan has also formerly competed for ...

on October 3, 2015 at

UFC 192 The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by Zuffa, a wholly owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. It is the largest MMA ...

. He won via unanimous decision. Magomedov was expected to face

Gabriel Gonzaga Gabriel Gonzaga Santos Nogueira (; born 18 May 1979) is a Brazilian mixed martial artist, who competed in the Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. He is perhaps best known for his upset head-kick knockout of M ...

on April 10, 2016 at

UFC Fight Night 86 ''UFC Fight Night: Rothwell vs. dos Santos'' (also known as ''UFC Fight Night 86'') was a mixed martial arts event held on April 10, 2016, at the Arena Zagreb in Zagreb, Croatia. Background The event was the first that the organization has host ...

. However, Magomedov was forced from the bout in early March due to injury and replaced by

Derrick Lewis Derrick James Lewis (born February 7, 1985) is an American professional mixed martial artist. He currently competes in the Heavyweight division in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he currently holds the record for most knockouts i ...

. Magomedov was expected to face

Stefan Struve Stefan Jaimy Struve (; born February 18, 1988) is a Dutch former mixed martial artist who competed as a heavyweight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). At , he is the tallest fighter in the history of the UFC. Background Growing up in th ...

on October 8, 2016 at UFC 204, but had to pull out with injury. On September 26, 2016 Magomedov was suspended by USADA, the administrator of the UFC anti-doping program following a potential Anti-Doping Policy violation stemming from an out-of-competition sample collection made on September 7, 2016 In February 2018, it was announced that Magomedov had received a two years USADA suspension after testing positive for

ostarine Enobosarm, also known as ostarine or MK-2866, is an investigational selective androgen receptor modulator (SARM) developed by GTx, Inc. for the treatment of conditions such as muscle wasting and osteoporosis, formerly under development by Merc ...

in relation to a sample collected in October 29, 2016. In addition, Magomedov along with teammate

Zubaira Tukhugov Zubaira Alikhanovich Tukhugov (born January 15, 1991) is a Russian mixed martial artist who fights in the Lightweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC). A professional MMA competitor since 2010, Tukhugov made a name for himsel ...

agreed to pay a total of 10,000 US Dollars towards arbitration costs. Magomedov was scheduled to face Marcos Rogerio de Lima on November 3, 2018 at

UFC 230 ''UFC 230: Cormier vs. Lewis'' was a mixed martial arts event produced by the Ultimate Fighting Championship that was held on November 3, 2018 at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. Background A UFC Heavyweight Championship bo ...

. However, it was reported on October 24, 2018 that he pulled out from the event due to visa issues and he was replaced by Adam Wieczorek. In April 2019, Magomedov received a lifetime ban from

after sustaining his second and third violations under the policy. Magomedov tested positive for two

anabolic steroids Anabolic steroids, also known more properly as anabolic–androgenic steroids (AAS), are steroidal androgens that include natural androgens like testosterone as well as synthetic androgens that are structurally related and have similar effects t ...

in October 2018 and then in February 2019 refused to complete the sample collection process as requested by a doping control officer during an out-of-competition test session.

Post-UFC career

After the ban, Magomedov signed with the Absolute Championship Akhmat. He made his promotional debut against Daniel James at ACA 101: Strus vs. Nemchinov on November 15, 2019. He won the fight via unanimous decision. He made his sophomore appearance against Dmitry Poberezhets at ACA 115: Magomed Ismailov vs. Shtyrkov on December 12, 2020. He was knocked out cold in the third round. Magomedov faced Denis Smoldarev on July 16, 2021 at ACA 126: Magomedov vs. Egemberdiev. He lost the bout via split decision.

Mixed martial arts record

, - , Loss , align=center, 15–3 , Denis Smoldarev , Decision (split) , ACA 126: Magomedov vs. Egemberdiev , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Sochi Sochi ( rus, Со́чи, p=ˈsotɕɪ, a=Ru-Сочи.ogg) is the largest resort city in Russia. The city is situated on the Sochi River, along the Black Sea in Southern Russia, with a population of 466,078 residents, up to 600,000 residents i ...

, Russia , , - , Loss , align=center, 15–2 , Dmitry Poberezhets , KO (punches) , ACA 115: Magomed Ismailov vs. Shtyrkov , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 0:30 ,

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, 15–1 , Daniel James , Decision (unanimous) , ACA 101: Strus vs. Nemchinov , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officiall ...

, Poland , , - , Win , align=center, 14–1 ,

, Decision (unanimous) ,

, , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Houston, Texas Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 i ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 13–1 , Josh Copeland , Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Edgar vs. Swanson , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Austin, Texas Austin is the capital city of the U.S. state of Texas, as well as the seat and largest city of Travis County, with portions extending into Hays and Williamson counties. Incorporated on December 27, 1839, it is the 11th-most-populous city ...

, United States , , - , Win , align=center, 12–1 , Viktor Pešta , Decision (unanimous) , UFC Fight Night: Munoz vs. Mousasi , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitu ...

, Germany , , - , Win , align=center, 11–1 ,

, Decision (unanimous) , Fight Nights: Battle of Moscow 13 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 10–1 , Mike Hayes , Decision (unanimous) , Fight Nights: Battle of Moscow 10 , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 9–1 , Amir Aliskerov , Decision (unanimous) , Dictator Fighting Championship 1 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 8–1 , Igor Zadernovsky , Submission (guillotine choke) , League S-70: Russian Championship Third Round , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 3:29 ,

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 7–1 , Ricco Rodriguez , Decision (unanimous) , United Glory 15: 2012 Glory World Series , , align=center, 3 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 6–1 , Vitalii Yalovenko , Decision (unanimous) , Fight Nights: Battle of Moscow 4 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 5:00 ,

, Russia , , - , Loss , align=center, 5–1 ,

Konstantin Gluhov Konstantin Gluhov (russian: Константин Игоревич Глухов, lv, Konstantīns Gluhovs; born January 17, 1980) is a Latvian heavyweight kickboxer and mixed martial artist of Russian descent. He is a former WPKA World Muaythai ...

, TKO (body punch) , Warrior's Honor 3 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 1:19 ,

Kharkiv Kharkiv ( uk, Ха́рків, ), also known as Kharkov (russian: Харькoв, ), is the second-largest city and municipality in Ukraine.

, Ukraine , , - , Win , align=center, 5–0 , Vagan Bodzhukyan , TKO (punches) , Warrior's Honor 3 , , align=center, 2 , align=center, 3:12 ,

Kharkiv Kharkiv ( uk, Ха́рків, ), also known as Kharkov (russian: Харькoв, ), is the second-largest city and municipality in Ukraine.

, Ukraine , , - , Win , align=center, 4–0 , Anatoliy Nosyrev , Submission (armbar) , ProFC - Union Nation Cup 14 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 0:28 ,

Rostov-on-Don Rostov-on-Don ( rus, Ростов-на-Дону, r=Rostov-na-Donu, p=rɐˈstof nə dɐˈnu) is a port city and the administrative centre of Rostov Oblast and the Southern Federal District of Russia. It lies in the southeastern part of the Eas ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 3–0 , Magomedtagir Magomedov , TKO (punches) , ProFC 22 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 1:30 ,

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 2–0 , Murad Magomedov , TKO (punches) , ProFC: Russia Cup Stage 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 2:30 ,

Taganrog Taganrog ( rus, Таганрог, p=təɡɐnˈrok) is a port city in Rostov Oblast, Russia, on the north shore of the Taganrog Bay in the Sea of Azov, several kilometers west of the mouth of the Don River. Population: History of Taganrog Th ...

, Russia , , - , Win , align=center, 1–0 , Rasul Musrailov , TKO (doctor stoppage) , ProFC: Russia Cup Stage 1 , , align=center, 1 , align=center, 3:43 ,

, Russia ,

Filmography

References

External links

Official UFC Profile
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Magomedov, Ruslan Living people 1986 births Dargwa people Dagestani mixed martial artists Heavyweight mixed martial artists Sportspeople from Makhachkala Russian Muslims Russian expatriates in the United States Russian male mixed martial artists Mixed martial artists utilizing Muay Thai Mixed martial artists utilizing karate Mixed martial artists utilizing boxing Mixed martial artists utilizing wrestling Mixed martial artists utilizing ARB Doping cases in mixed martial arts Russian Muay Thai practitioners Russian male karateka Ultimate Fighting Championship male fighters