Former ABC featherweight champion and ex-UFC star Zabit Magomedsharipov will grapple Youssef Zalal later this month in the main event of ACBJJ 22 in Istanbul.
Earlier this year, Zabit was expected to face UFC fighter Raul Rosas Jr. in a grappling bout at another ACBJJ event. However, the matchup did not come to fruition.
Zabit Magomedsharipov is returning to competition after more than half a decade
Zabit Magomedsharipov is returning to competition after a seven-year hiatus. The Russian fighter last competed in 2019 against Calvin Kattar and cruised to a unanimous decision win. Thereafter, in 2021, he was removed from the official UFC rankings due to inactivity.
A year later, Zabit decided to retire from the UFC because of severe health issues, despite being on a six-fight winning streak in the promotion and boasting an impressive 18-1 professional MMA record. He later revealed that he felt the promotion did not want him to be a champion, as at that time the UFC already had many champions from Russia, and having a third champ from the same region wouldn’t be beneficial for the UFC.
Zabit also alleged that the UFC brass had promised him a title shot if another fight was cancelled, but did not honor the promise after his 2020 fight against Yair Rodriguez was cancelled due to Rodriguez’s injury. All these reasons compelled him to retire.
Zabit Magomedsharipov’s younger brother, Khasan, previously revealed that Zabit is looking to compete in wrestling and grappling matches and is open to receiving offers.
Now the 35-year-old finally has a date and an opponent. His ACBJJ 22 opponent, Youssef Zalal, is the No. 8-ranked featherweight contender who most recently had his five-fight winning streak inside the octagon snapped after losing to former champion Aljamain Sterling.
In the co-main event of the ACBJJ 22 card, former UFC welterweight champion Belal Muhammad will face off against former OKTAGON MMA middleweight champion Kerim Engizek.
