Athletes
Ikram Aliskerov Aims To Make Another Statement
Streaking Middleweight Focused On Collecting Another Impressive Finish On Saturday
Ikram Aliskerov is getting used to marking down fight dates and names of pending opponents in pencil, expecting that at some point between the time he signs the contract and the night he steps foot in the Octagon next, something is bound to change.
Since making his successful debut last spring with a first-round knockout win over Phil Hawes at UFC 288, the streaking Russian middleweight has dealt with two cancelled fights and two opponent changes, with just a single appearance and victory to show for the last 12 months and change.
“It’s a bit annoying to tell you the truth, all these changes, but there is nothing I can do about it; this is just sport,” Aliskerov said on Wednesday morning through translator Sergey Nagorny, just a few days out from his return to action against Antonio Trocoli on Saturday at the UFC APEX. “This is my job, this is what I have to do, and I have to come out and perform.”
The original plan wasn’t for the 31-year-old standout to only make his 2024 debut in June, but Aliskerov was forced to withdraw from a proposed bout with Anthony Hernandez at UFC 298 earlier this year. A bout with the promotional newcomer Trocoli wasn’t the original booking here, either, as Aliskerov was first paired off with fellow Dana White’s Contender Series (DWCS) graduate Andre Muniz before the Brazilian fractured his foot and was forced to withdraw.
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So the UFC tapped Trocoli, himself a former DWCS competitor, to fill the void, allowing Aliskerov to remain on the card, which was his chief concern when he heard the news about Muniz.
“When they called me and they told me once again that your opponent is pulling out, I told them, ‘It does not matter; just leave the fight,’” explained Aliskerov, who stopped Warlley Alves last October at UFC 294 to move to 15-1 and extend his overall winning streak to seven. “(I said, ‘Please don’t cancel the fight. Give me any person, any opponent; I will be ready for anybody.’”
Though the frequent shifts each time he’s set to make the walk to the UFC cage is getting a little bothersome to Aliskerov, the middleweight dark horse does recognize a positive in how he’s being paired off each time out.
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“Every time I get an opponent, I always check them out on Tapology and I see these are known people, people with a name, people that are respected,” he said, referring to both his original dance partners and the individuals stepping up on short notice. “It does motivate me and it does feel good that they’re not just giving me cans.”
After debuting against Hawes, the former combat sambo world champion was briefly linked to a fight with Paulo Costa before getting paired off with Nassourdine Imavov last October before the Paris-based contender was forced to withdraw and was replaced by Alves, a former Ultimate Fighter winner with a wealth of UFC experience under his belt.
Even after he was forced to pull out of his proposed clash with Hernandez, the UFC matchmakers put Aliskerov right back into a comparable matchup, positioning him opposite former Top 15 fixture Muniz before targeting Trocoli to replace him.
While the change certainly takes a little of the shine off this weekend’s matchup, the Russian dark horse still views Saturday’s meeting with the promotional newcomer as an opportunity to make another statement and set himself up for an even greater opportunity later in the year.
“I think one more of these exciting finishes and the next fight, they definitely have to give me a Top 10 fighter no matter what,” he said, noting that in an ideal world, he’d prefer to fight every three or four months, rather than the every six-to-eight month schedule he’s been forced to maintain so far through his first three UFC starts.
“September, October, I’d be ready to fight the next fight,” he added. “I’d love to.”
Although the opponent shift is sub-optimal, staying on the card and getting to compete this weekend is not only a chance for Aliskerov to put forth another quality effort and re-affirm his standing as a rising star in the 185-pound ranks, but also an opportunity to ensure that his name is mentioned when discussions about the future direction of the middleweight division start to be had in the coming weeks, as June has been, and will continue to be, a busy month in the division.
On the first day of the month, former champ Sean Strickland defeated Paulo Costa at UFC 302. Last weekend, Imavov collected a fourth-round stoppage win over Jared Cannonier in the main event of the UFC’s return to Louisville, Kentucky.
This weekend, Aliskerov gets his chance to show out once again before all eyes will shift to Riyadh, Saudi Arabia next weekend, where the UFC’s debut event at Kingdom Arena will be headlined by a pivotal bout between Robert Whittaker and Khamzat Chimaev, the man responsible for the lone blemish on Aliskerov’s otherwise pristine record.
“Of course I’m excited about that fight,” he said in regards to next weekend’s five-round clash that carries clear championship implications. “But right now, the most important thing is my fight at middleweight, the fight I have this Saturday.
“After this fight, that’s when I’m gonna count down the days until next Saturday to watch that fight at middleweight.”
With all eyes on the division and the spotlight on the UFC APEX this weekend, the ascending standout from Dagestan has only one thing in mind when he finally makes his 2024 debut on Saturday evening.
“I want to come out there and finish him in exciting fashion,” he said confidently. “This is exactly what I’ve been channeling, this is what I’m ready for, and I’m excited to do it on Saturday.”
UFC Fight Night: Perez vs Taira took place live from UFC APEX in Las Vegas, Nevada on June 15, 2024. See the final Prelim and Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC Fight Pass!
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