Siyar Bahadurzada is a retired Afghan-born Dutch mixed martial artist who competed in the Welterweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship, making him the first Afghan to compete in the promotion.
25 Facts About Siyar Bahadurzada
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Siyar Bahadurzada trained under the Golden Glory association based in the Netherlands.
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Siyar Bahadurzada then signed a 4-fight contract with Strikeforce, but like many of the Golden Glory team signed to the organization, his promotional debut was delayed.
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Siyar Bahadurzada gave an interview for Strikeforce, which can be heard on his Facebook profile.
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Siyar Bahadurzada waited for a fight from Strikeforce but never acquired a visa.
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Siyar Bahadurzada later commented in January 2011 on the scenario and expressed displeasure, saying he would never fight for the promotion.
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On 30 September 2011 Siyar Bahadurzada announced he had signed with the UFC.
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Siyar Bahadurzada was expected to face Erick Silva on 14 January 2012 at UFC 142.
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However, Siyar Bahadurzada pulled out of the bout with an injury and was replaced by Carlo Prater.
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Siyar Bahadurzada fought Paulo Thiago on 14 April 2012 at UFC on Fuel TV 2 and won by KO at 42 seconds of the first round, earning him Knockout of the Night honors, he became the first man to knock out Thiago.
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Siyar Bahadurzada was expected to face Thiago Alves on 21 July 2012 at UFC 149, replacing an injured Yoshihiro Akiyama.
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Siyar Bahadurzada faced Dong Hyun Kim on 3 March 2013 at UFC on Fuel TV 8.
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Siyar Bahadurzada lost a lopsided decision after he was dominated by the grappling offense and ground and pound of Kim for all three rounds.
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Siyar Bahadurzada was expected to face Robbie Lawler on 27 July 2013 at UFC on Fox 8, replacing an injured Tarec Saffiedine.
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Siyar Bahadurzada faced John Howard on 28 December 2013 at UFC 168.
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Siyar Bahadurzada won the fight by submission in the third round.
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Siyar Bahadurzada was scheduled to face Claudio Silva on 30 July 2016 at UFC 201.
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Siyar Bahadurzada won the fight via TKO in the second round.
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Siyar Bahadurzada faced Luan Chagas on 21 April 2018 at UFC Fight Night 128.
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Siyar Bahadurzada won the fight via knockout in the second round.
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Siyar Bahadurzada faced Curtis Millender on 29 December 2018 at UFC 232.
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Siyar Bahadurzada was scheduled to face Nordine Taleb on 4 May 2019 at UFC Fight Night: Iaquinta vs Cowboy.
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However, it was reported on 24 April 2019 that Siyar Bahadurzada pulled out of the bout citing injury, and he is replaced by newcomer Kyle Prepolec.
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Siyar Bahadurzada faced Ismail Naurdiev on 28 September 2019 at UFC on ESPN+ 18.
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On 13 January 2020 Singapore-based mixed martial arts team Evolve MMA announced that Siyar Bahadurzada had been appointed as the new head coach.