Still undefeated – and now a two-time champion.
The undefeated Featherweight demolition machine and reigning RIZIN Champion Ražabali Shaidullaev added another belt to his collection by defeating the former King of Bellator AJ McKee at the main event of the year SUPER RIZIN 5 earlier this morning (Thursday, September 10, 2026) at Kyocera Dome Osaka in Osaka, Japan.
With the unanimous decision victory, Shaydullaev successfully defended his RIZIN featherweight title and captured the vacant PFL 145-pound championship.
It wasn’t exactly smooth sailing for the champion.
Shaydullaev was forced to recover from an early scare after McKee hit him with a clean one-two combination and sent him crashing to the canvas. But the champion wasted little time to respond, airing McKee and landing a huge blow on him.
Shaydullaev took control from there, suffocating the former Bellator champion from top position, chipping away with short punches and elbows.
The same pattern continued throughout the final two rounds. McKee had occasional success with jabs, knees and grapples, but Shaydullaev kept forcing him backwards before dragging him back to the mat. The champ’s suffocating pace eventually began to wear on McKee, who landed close cut after cut and struggled to generate sustained offense.
McKee briefly retook Shaydullayev during the third round, but the position was quickly lost. After Shaydullaev noticed the challenger controlling the clock with about 90 seconds left, Shaydullaev secured another takedown and controlled McKee until the final bell.
All three judges scored the fight 30-27 in favor of the champion.
Shaydullaev has one more fight left on his RIZIN contract and is expected to compete against an up-and-coming contender Kyoma Akimoto campaign at the iconic New Year’s Eve event. Akimoto stepped into the ring and faced the champion after his win on Thursday.
So, what happens after that?
Maybe Shaydullaev will finally bring his fearsome talents to the UFC’s loaded featherweight division?
Shaydullaev is said to be the first major fighter to be signed by the combined promotion.
The win improved Shaydullayev’s professional record to 20-0. McKee became the first opponent to survive until the final bell against him, giving the champion a perfect 100 percent finish.
Still, getting 19 out of 20 pro wins isn’t too shabby.
Shaydullaev owns seven knockouts and 12 submissions, and now he gets the chance to test himself in increasingly recognizable competition under the MVP label.
Two championships, an unblemished record and a new promotional home.
Not a bad morning for the most feared featherweight outside of the UFC.
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