The head of the Chechen Republic, Ramzan Kadyrov is becoming an increasingly influential character among UFC fighters. Spotted at numerous events with the likes of Khabib Nurmagomedov and Khamzat Chimaev, Kadyrov has become like a father figure to some fighters.
By now it is no secret that Khamzat Chimaev is one of the Chechen dictator’s closest friends. Recently, we even saw a Swedish far-right politician condemn their friendship publicly. With the pair sharing such a tight bond it only makes sense that Kadyrov would entrust Khamzat to train his son Ali.
Among the UFC fighters that Kadyrov’s kid has been training with in Thailand are Khamzat Chimaev, former champ Petr Yan, flyweight contender Muhammad Mokaev, and Darren Till. pic.twitter.com/rFsiqBHiPy
— Karim Zidan (@ZidanSports) February 5, 2023
As such, Chimaev is currently training with Ali at the Tiger Muay Thai facility in Thailand. In his recent Instagram posts, Kadyrov’s son is seen training with the likes of Chimaev, Darren Till, and Muhammad Mokaev. Moreover, former bantamweight champion Petr Yan and PFL tournament winner Brendan Loughnane were also present.
Although there are some incredible fighters there, Kadyrov’s son seems closest to Chimaev. The pair have been training together for a long time now with Ali also seen accompanying Khamzat at UFC 280. Despite criticisms of his affiliation with Ramzan, Chimaev seems to be relatively unbothered.
Previously, Kadyrov was said to have helped with Khamzat’s legal troubles in Russia. Moreover, the Chechen dictator also played a key role in inspiring Chimaev to reconsider his retirement. Most recently, Kadyrov helped to solve a dispute between Chimaev and Abubakar Nurmagomedov after their scuffle at UFC 280.
Can Ramzan Kadyrov’s son, Ali Kadyrov fight in the UFC?
Currently, Ali Kadyrov is said to be 15 years old. As such, he is not eligible to fight in the UFC at the moment. According to the State Athletic Commission, the minimum age to fight in the UFC is 18 years old. Most recently, Raul Rosas Jr. became the youngest-ever UFC fighter at 18 years and 63 days old, when he took on Jay Perrin.
Despite not being able to fight in the UFC, Ali Kadyrov has already begun his MMA journey. Fighting in the Absolute Championship Akhmat, owned by his father, Ali already has a win to his name. Notably, the young fighter also had Khamzat Chimaev in his corner when he made his MMA debut at ACA 150, last December.
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For the most part, many watching the fight insisted that the fight was fixed. After getting the upper hand, Ali was striking his opponent with some very flimsy strikes. Moreover, the strikes barely seemed to be doing the opponent any damage, despite this, the referee decided to call the fight, giving Ali the win.
Since the win, Ali Kadyrov has declared that he will be fighting again soon and is training wholeheartedly for his return. Despite the long list of accusations against his name, it appears as though Ramzan Kadyrov has managed to become a prominent figure in MMA. Be it through his affiliations with UFC fighters, his own MMA promotion, or his son, a budding MMA fighter, Kadyrov has become deeply connected in the world of combat sports.
