Having a BJJ black belt and wrestling master as his guide has served Nuerdanbieke well. He’s compiled a 19-6 overall record in his five years on the mat, winning seven of his last eight dating back to 2019. The UFC Performance Institute in Shanghai took notice during their combine, and he now finds himself among the growing cadre of UFC talents emerging from mainland China.
Watch Saturday With Your ESPN+ Subscription
“There are a lot of great fighters ready to step into the UFC Octagon,” he says, noting that he’ll be far from the last representative of a sport growing like wildfire back home. “New fans are starting to discover the UFC and know more about MMA as a sport lately.”
In his rare downtime at home in Xinjiang, China, he spends a lot of time practicing the dombra, a traditional stringed Kazakh musical instrument. Aside from mere strumming, the instrument requires a lot of banging and clawing to achieve a percussive effect. There’s a metaphor for his fighting style in there somewhere.
