Ali Abdelaziz didn’t hold back in his admiration for Movsar Evloev, even declaring him to be on par with several UFC icons.
Evloev was supposed to square off against former bantamweight champion Aljamain Sterling on the UFC 307 main card, scheduled for October 5 at the Delta Center in Salt Lake City, Utah. However, on Wednesday, "Funk Master" announced that he had sustained an elbow injury during training, forcing him to withdraw from the fight as he won’t be able to recover in time for the event.
Loading tweet...
The UFC has yet to officially confirm the cancellation, but Evloev has made it clear on social media that he's been putting in the work for this fight. He’s even expressed his readiness to take on a short-notice opponent.
The 30-year-old Russian has been unstoppable since making his UFC debut in April 2019, where he announced his arrival with a commanding unanimous decision victory over SeungWoo Choi. Evloev has racked up eight consecutive victories inside the Octagon, all via decision. He has secured notable wins along the way, including victories over Dan Ige, Hakeem Dawodu, Diego Lopes, and, most recently, Arnold Allen at UFC 297 this past January.
Abdelaziz, who only began managing Evloev last month, is confident that the American Top Team standout has the potential to ascend to the same level of greatness as UFC Hall of Famer Khabib Nurmagomedov, reigning lightweight champion Islam Makhachev, and former welterweight titleholder Kamaru Usman.
Abdelaziz Predicts Evloev Will Capture UFC Featherweight Gold By 2025
During a recent interview with TMZSports, Abdelaziz opened up about Evloev's relatively sparse appearances in the Octagon. The Dominance MMA founder expressed his commitment to working closely with the UFC to ensure his new client stays more active.
He emphasized that if frequent competition is what it takes for Evloev to earn his shot at the title, he’s fully prepared to make that happen.
I believe that he should fight again in December or January," Abdelaziz said. "I want to keep him busy. It doesn't matter—Khabib had to beat 10 guys to fight for the title, same with Islam and Kamaru. If this is the route the UFC wants, he needs to just smash everyone ahead of him and show why the UFC has no choice but to give him a title shot. And guess what? He's willing to fight anybody, anywhere, anytime. But the key here is to keep him busy against anybody, and this is what's gonna happen.
Abdelaziz further added that he recently trained with Evloev and described him as one of the most dedicated fighters he’s ever encountered. The renowned MMA manager even likened the Russian’s work ethic to that of Nurmagomedov, Makhachev, and Usman.
I had the pleasure to train with [Evloev], and he's one of the strongest guys I've ever trained with. He's dedicated—this guy sleeps at a certain time, eats specific food, and lives and breathes fighting. I truly believe that by 2025, Movsar is going to be the featherweight champion. I believe he's a very hard puzzle to solve and very hard to beat. The abilities he has, the discipline he has, remind me of Khabib, Islam, and Kamaru. He's on the same level—how these guys live, how they walk, how they talk, how they train.
While Evloev undoubtedly possesses the skills to claim the 145-pound title in the near future with his wrestling-heavy approach, the road ahead is far from easy. A formidable lineup of dangerous contenders lies in wait, eager to challenge his ascent to the top.