Paul Abraham
IMMAF will be back in the Octagon this weekend. IN UFC Abu Dhabi: Ankalaev vs. Guskov, Abdul Hussein And Magomed Tuchalov both are making their UFC debuts. These two fighters have very different careers, but they have one thing in common: both won gold as amateurs before turning pro.
Abdul Hussein was one of IMMAF’s top bantamweights in the mid-2010s. Representing Finland, he won the 2015 European Championship after four wins. He won in the final Marco Zanetti qualify for a gold medal.
A year later, Hussein achieved even more. At the 2016 World Championships, he once again won four fights and became world champion. He won Alexander Pereira, Let Stevens, Hughie O’Rourke before the beating David Evans in the final.
These two titles established him as one of the top bantamweights of his generation. But unlike many promising players, Hussein did not immediately get into the UFC. He spent several years fighting in different organizations and establishing his record.
The Finnish fighter now enters the UFC with a 15-2 record. One of his defeats came from fellow graduates. Muhammad Mokaev in 2021. Since then, Hussein has put together a long winning streak and finished off several opponents. In his UFC debut, he will face Cody Gibson. The American has more than 30 professional fights and has spent many years in the UFC. It’s a tough first match, but Hussein has more experience than most debutants.
Magomed Tuchalov arrives with a different profile. The Russian won the 2019 IMMAF World Junior Championships in the 185-pound weight class. He won Mehdi Taqi, Lucas Kaplan And Matej Grkal qualify for a gold medal. Having become a professional, Tuchalov did not lose a single fight. He enters the UFC with a 6-0 record and has defeated five of his six opponents. His style is aggressive and most of his fights don’t go to the final bell. Tuchalov won by submission, elbows, ground and pound and even a knee strike. In his last fight, he stopped former UFC fighter Caio Machado in the first round. This victory showed that he is ready for greater opportunities.
He will now face Brandson Ribeiro in his UFC debut. The Brazilian has already competed several times in the organization and is known for his power. Tuchalov will have to be careful, but a win will immediately make him an interesting name in the middleweight division.
Hussein and Tuchalov took different paths to the UFC. Hussein spent years gaining experience before finally earning his chance, and Tuchalov made it into the organization after just six professional fights. However, both first made a name for themselves in IMMAF. This weekend they will try to show that their amateur success can also extend to the UFC.