The signing was announced through his manager, Ali Abdelaziz, who teased it as one of the most infamous names in UFC history before ESPN’s Brett Okamoto confirmed the deal. Reports describe it as a four-fight agreement, which suggests RAF sees him as more than a one-night novelty.
The hype around Magomedsharipov never needed a reminder, but the record explains why it never faded. The Dagestani went 6-0 in the UFC after arriving as the reigning ACB featherweight champion, mixing flying knees, spinning attacks and slick submissions in a style that made him a fixture of highlight packages and an early-2020 title contender. His last fight was a Fight of the Night unanimous decision over Calvin Kattar in the main event of UFC Fight Night in Moscow on November 9, 2019. Then he simply stopped. A string of health problems kept him out, the UFC removed him from its rankings in April 2021 for inactivity, and in June 2022 he notified the promotion that he was retiring from active competition. He has said he has no interest in returning to MMA, and RAF’s freestyle ruleset, with no strikes and no submissions, gives him a way back to competition without it.
This is not his first step back. Magomedsharipov was scheduled to grapple Raul Rosas Jr. at ACBJJ 21 in July before withdrawing with an undisclosed injury, then returned at an ACBJJ event in August, and according to EssentiallySports beat UFC featherweight Youssef Zalal in a grappling match. November will be his second competitive appearance of the year, and his first in the wrestling-only format, where his roots in freestyle and sambo should translate more cleanly than most crossover entrants.
Chikadze arrives from a very different place. The 38-year-old Georgian, a former Glory kickboxer, has lost his last four UFC appearances and is 1-4 across his past five, most recently a first-round knockout loss to Joanderson Brito at UFC 331 less than three weeks ago. A freestyle match against a Dagestani grappler removes his best weapon entirely, so his takedown defence and his ability to scramble out of bad positions will decide whether this is competitive. On paper it is a winnable debut for the returning Magomedsharipov; on the mat, it is a genuine test of how much a seven-year absence from elite live competition costs.
The Abu Dhabi card is now one of RAF’s deepest. Above the Covington-Chimaev headliner and this bout, two-time Olympic champion Abdulrashid Sadulaev, Kyle Snyder, Henry Cejudo and Arman Tsarukyan were already confirmed, and Jordan Burroughs now has his opponent: Azamat Nurykau, in a rematch of their 2019 World Championships match, which Burroughs won. MMA Mania reports that Umar Nurmagomedov, the bantamweight contender working back from his first career loss to Song Yadong, and Urijah Faber have also been added, with the event set to air on FOX Nation. RAF has spent the year proving it can turn crossover curiosity into ticket sales. In Abu Dhabi, it has added the curiosity the sport spent seven years wondering about.
November 14, Etihad Arena. Zabit Magomedsharipov competes again.
