Rafael Fiziev admits his slump-busting UFC Baku knockout was a 'lucky' shot: 'I didn't see anything'

· Yahoo Sports

Rafael Fiziev is two-for-two in Azerbaijan after his latest fight at UFC Baku on Saturday. But Fiziev's stellar second-round stoppage of Manuel Torres didn't come easily.

Known for his thrilling Muay Thai striking style, Fiziev, 33, was prepared for a tough matchup against the rising Mexican contender, Torres. The first round left Fiziev damaged, as he absorbed a jab that blinded him in his left eye for the remainder of the fight. Wasting no time, Fiziev stormed back with a spectacular spinning wheel kick and followed it with punches to score the victory only 15 seconds into Round 2.

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Speaking on Monday on "The Ariel Helwani Show," Fiziev admitted it was a lucky shot, considering the state of his eye.

"I'm very lucky with that. I didn't see anything when I hit this spinning back kick," Fiziev told Uncrowned. "He gave me a good jab to my left eye, and I think he touched exactly my eye. I didn't see anything. Everything quadrupled. I tried to shake his hand at the end of the round, but I didn't see his hand and I missed. I went to sit in my corner and I didn't see the seat. I found it with my a**, and I sit.

"I told my corner, 'Guys, f*** — I [can’t] see anything.' They [reacted] like they don't hear anything. Because what can they do if I didn't see anything? They look to me like they don't hear me and say, 'Hey, bro. You did this good, change this one,' you know?

"When I make my decision to [throw the] spinning back kick, I just did it because I didn't see anything,” Fiziev continued. “I just know, 'OK, I know where my opponent's staying. I [don’t] need good vision for that spinning back kick. OK, I'm going to throw it.' I throw it, and I'm lucky, man."

Prior to the win, Fiziev had fallen on hard times in his recent UFC run. The lightweight striking sensation was on a hot streak throughout his first 13 professional fights, going 12-1 before he met the now-champion Justin Gaethje in March 2023. That loss led to a 1-4 stretch for Fiziev, including an ACL tear, before his big rebound win over Torres.

The highlight-reel outcome was exactly what Fiziev needed to lift a weight off his shoulders, as doubts had crept in before he earned his first finish since July 2022.

"I missed that feeling so much," Fiziev said. "Before this fight, all of this week, I was thinking like, 'Man, what the f***? A long time you not finish anybody. Man, come on, bro. You have to try. You have to leave your soul there in the Octagon and finish somebody because, come on. That's elephant s***, bro.'

"Too much [doubt] in mind all this time. When I fight with [Ignacio] Bahomondes last time here [at 2025’s UFC Baku event], I was not happy [with the result, a decision win]. Totally not happy after that fight, because I don't want to finish the fight like that."

Fiziev is one of only two fighters to fight current UFC lightweight champion Gaethje twice in the UFC. Having survived the full 15 minutes in each outing, Fiziev is well familiar with everything “The Highlight" is capable of. Despite that, he didn't expect Gaethje to pull off the upset earlier this month against Ilia Topuria at UFC Freedom 250 at the White House.

"I didn't want [Topuria vs. Gaethje] to happen" Fiziev admitted. "I thought maybe Ilia would give him some damage, so I didn't want it. But when this fight starts, first round, second round, end of the round, I started screaming like a kid. I'm very happy for [Gaethje]. But I didn't believe in him, honestly. I think many people didn't believe for that. That's why we love him."

Watching the lightweight landscape closely, Fiziev foresees an Arman Tsarukyan title fight as next for Gaethje, should the champion continue to fight on.

Fiziev carries similar feelings about that matchup as he did for Gaethje vs. Topuria, expressing how good Tsarukyan is as the division’s top contender. But he also doesn't want to count either man out after what transpired in the nation's capital.

"Arman is a hard guy. He's a very good wrestler," Fiziev said. "He's young also, but I don't want to say anything right now [who wins]. I didn’t believe [Gaethje would’ve] won the fight against Topuria, then look what happened. I don't want to repeat it."

After scoring his first win in 2026, Fiziev said he hopes to fight at least once more this year.

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