Rajabali Shaidullaev continues to dominate the competition in Rizin. | Rizin FF
Rajabali Shaidullaev is one of MMA’s most talented fighters outside of the UFC. The 25-year-old Kyrgyz warrior kept his unblemished record intact and easily retained his featherweight title with a first-round TKO victory in the Rizin Fighting Federation “Landmark Vol. 13” main event on Sunday in Fukuoka, Japan.Shaidullaev (19-0, 7-0 Rizin), who has run into a shortage of challengers on the Rizin roster, was matched up against striker Yuta Kubo (5-3, 1 NC; 5-3, 1 NC Rizin) in a rematch from their first meeting at the end of 2024. That first fight ended in a TKO triumph for Shaidullaev, and he captured his Rizin featherweight title four months later, but it was also the only time in his Rizin career so far that he was taken into a second round.
Perhaps motivated to make a statement with an even more dominant victory, Shaidullaev did just that in the rematch. After engaging in a…