Rafael Fiziev on why he considers Justin Gaethje 'inexperienced' compared to himself
Rafael Fiziev is approaching his biggest fight since dedicating himself to the sport of mixed martial arts, but despite the big stage, the European believes Justin Gaethje is an inexperienced fighter compared to himself.
'Ataman' has been a force in the lightweight division and has bulldozed through a number of talented contenders to find himself within touching distance of the title picture. Last time out, the Muay Thai specialist knocked out Rafael dos Anjos, following on from his huge spinning wheel kick finish of Brad Riddell the year prior.
While discussing his upcoming matchup, Rafael Fiziev shed praise for Justin Gaethje's style but insisted that having 30 fights in MMA isn't enough experience to compete against his 300 bouts in combat sports.
"We have the same heart. He likes to fight with his heart. He likes to pressure with hard punches... But still, he has like 25-30 fights in MMA. I think it's still not enough for me because I had a big, big amateur career. I have close to 300 fights in my life. Your 30 fights is nothing to me... My IQ is much better than his and also my technique has more special moments."
Despite fighting professionally just 13 times in MMA, Fiziev has an extensive history in combat and has accolades to show for it. During his time in Muay Thai—where he continued to be a dangerous athlete—the Kazakh managed to earn Bronze in the IFMA World Muaythai Championships.
Justin Gaethje boasts over double the amount of fights his opponent does inside the cage and has been in much bigger fights with much bigger stakes on multiple occasions throughout his career, an experience that could be valuable on fight night.
Check out what Rafael Fiziev had to say about his opponent in the video below.
'He has 25-30 fights... it's still not enough... I have close to 300' 😮💨
Rafael Fiziev is feeling confident going into his fight with Justin Gaethje 🔥
Watch the interview between @AdamCatterall and @RafaelFiziev on YouTube now ▶️
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Rafael Fiziev's UFC record: Where does Justin Gaethje stack up against the prospect's former opponents?
Rafael Fiziev is undoubtedly entertaining and brings with him a pleasing-to-watch Muay Thai fight style into the octagon, but has the rising star fought anybody of Justin Gaethje's caliber?
Whilst he holds a win over former UFC lightweight king Rafael dos Anjos, the 30-year-old has arguably never been locked in a cage with somebody as dangerous as the NCAA Division I wrestler during this time in his career.
Gaethje has been at the top and fought for undisputed UFC gold on two occasions, making him a step above Fiziev's opponents of Renato Moicano, Bobby Green, 'RDA', and the aforementioned Brad Riddell.