Former UFC Title Challenger Highlights Several Major Additions to UFC Baku Fight Card

The UFC’s second event in Baku, Azerbaijan has added several more noteworthy matchups as of this week.

Scheduled to take place at Baku Crystal Hall on June 27, the UFC’s second visit to Baku in as many years will be headlined by a huge lightweight matchup between Rafael Fiziev and Manuel Torres.

Shara Magomedov also returns to meet Michel Pereira in the card’s middleweight main event, and the card has added a number of other fights in recent weeks as the UFC’s summer slate draws ever closer.

Marvin Vettori Faces Ismail Naurdeiv at UFC Baku

In a major addition to UFC Baku, Ismail Naurdiev is set to make his third Octagon appearance against former middleweight title challenger Marvin Vettori.

The fight was first announced by Naurdiev’s team via Instagram before being confirmed by the UFC, and the matchup will see the 29-year-old attempt to build on the momentum of the first-round knockout he scored against Ryan Loder last November. That result brought Naurdiev’s UFC record to 2-1 after he defeated Bruno Silva in his promotional debut before dropping a decision to Jun Yong Park in his sophomore outing.

Marvin Vettori (red gloves) fights Brunno Ferreira (blue gloves) during UFC 323 at T-Mobile Arena. | Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

A staple of the UFC middleweight rankings for years, Vettori is currently on a four-fight skid that most recently saw him come up short on the scorecards at UFC 323 when he met Brunno Ferriera, who is also scheduled to meet Ikram Aliskerov at UFC Baku. “The Italian Dream” has gone 2-5 overall since his failed middleweight title bid against Israel Adesanya in 2021.

Michal Oleksiejczuk Takes Win Streak Into Fight With Abus Magomedov

First reported by Léo Guimaraes, UFC Baku has also added another middleweight matchup between Abus Magomedov and surging contender Michal Oleksiejczuk.

Michal Oleksiejczuk (blue gloves) reacts after the fight against Gerald Meerschaert (red gloves) during UFC 319 at United Center. | Kamil Krzaczynski-Imagn Images

A former light heavyweight, Oleksiejczuk is currently on a three-fight win streak that includes first-round knockouts of Sedriques Dumas and Gerald Meerschaert. Magomedov also put together three-straight wins between 2024 and mid-2025 but was submitted by Joe Pyfer in his last outing at UFC 320.

Abus Magomedov (red gloves) fights Joe Pyfer (blue gloves) during UFC 320 at T-Mobile Arena. | Stephen R. Sylvanie-Imagn Images

Per Marcel Dorff, the UFC has also signed Azerbaijani welterweight Farman Hasanov to make his promotional debut at UFC Baku. The 30-year-old boasts a perfect 5-0 record and will face Eric Nolan, who fell to Baisangur Susurkaev in his first Octagon outing at UFC 319 last August.

UFC Baku Fight Card

Main Event: Rafael Fiziev vs. Manuel Torres

Co-Main Event: Michel Pereira vs. Shara Magomedov

Brunno Ferreira vs. Ikram Aliskerov

Asu Almabayaev vs. Charles Johnson

Marvin Vettori vs. Ismail Naurdiev

Abus Magomedov vs. Michal Oleksiejczuk

Abdul Rakhman Yakhyaev vs. Julius Walker

Rizvan Kuniev vs. Tyrell Fortune

Nursulton Ruziboev vs. Andrey Pulyaev

Bekzat Almakhan vs. Jean Matsumoto

Daniil Donchecnko vs. Andreas Gustafsson

Nazim Sadykhov vs. Matheus Camilo

Farman Hasanov vs. Eric Nolan

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