Marwan Rahiki (6-0 pro, 11-1 combined)
22 years old
Featherweight
Lions Den Academy (Sydney)
Marwan Rahiki is somebody who I wholeheartedly believe is a special talent, and is UFC-bound, bound to be in his Contenders Series fight (which I think he wins) or later down the line.
Rahiki has a creative yet devastating standup game predicated on high volume, long combination striking, and his ability to mix in a variety of kicks. He also effectively mixes high-level feinting into his game, moving himself out of the way of danger and just generally rarely wasting movement. He fights on the feet with an intent to kill, and has been able to manipulate range/angles at will through his ability to pressure his opponents heavily against the cage, cut them off, and try to land a big shot.
Rahiki moves well defensively, too, and has shown he has the capacity to address danger through his lateral movement and his seemingly natural ability to move his head off the center line when throwing strikes. Needless to say, Rahiki has incredibly crisp striking that poses a serious threat to his opponent, regardless of their own ability on the feet.
Rahiki is clearly a very high-level kickboxer who poses a serious threat on the feet, but his grappling is at a high enough level where it will also inevitably be a concern at the very least in some UFC-level competition. He has a dangerous submission game if the fight hits the mat, can control when given the opportunity, and has been able to scramble back to his feet off his back if desired.
Whilst Rahiki, I don’t believe, is the type of fighter who will grind his opponent against the cage working for a TD, he will utilise throws and trips when clinched if they’re there for him, and has often found his success coming from his opponent initiating the grappling exchanges. It’s clear Rahiki has addressed this aspect of his game, knowing it could be a potential weakness (especially given his only career loss came from him being held on his back the whole fight), and getting work in with teammates like George Mangos and Kris Ustijanovski, who themselves are high-level grapplers, has clearly paid massive dividends already.
Rahiki, at such a young age, has already shown so much, and what I love most about him is how much he has shown the ability to exponentially improve from fight to fight. The scary thing is, he’s only going to continue to develop these skills as he progresses through his MMA career, and it’s blatantly clear to anyone who’s seen him fight that there is championship-level potential in Marwan Rahiki.
In terms of his fighting career, I first took note of Rahiki when he finished highly touted amateur Baz Demiral as a 2-0 amateur in under a minute – I thought a lot of Demiral, so to see him get dominated like that was a huge statement to Rahiki’s intentions in the sport. He would then go to compete at GAMMA, where, after two wins, he lost to strong German grappler Ali Guenduez in a match he was predominantly held on his back.
After this setback, Rahiki quickly turned pro, finishing 1-0 Julian Giustiniano just thirty seconds into his debut. Rahiki then finished 2-1 Ryan Dennis before his toughest test to date in Michael Mannu, a highly experienced grappler sporting a 7-4 record, and his losses almost only coming to high-level competition. Rahiki absolutely dominantly disposed of Mannu, making a statement to those on the Australian regional scene by finishing him in the first round.
Following that fight, it was hard for Rahiki to find an opponent, but Michael Barber was willing to put his hand up as the absolute dog he is. While his 6-8 record may not seem impressive on the surface, this really undersells his ability, as his losses are primarily all to high-level opposition, and if you’ve got the time, I’d highly recommend watching his recent fight against Dimps Gillies because it’s one of the best regional fights I’ve seen. Rahiki impressively finished Barber in the first round, who is someone renowned for his toughness and ability to fight through big damage to reach the final bell.
Next was an opportunity against skilled grappler Sem Kakembo for the HEX Featherweight Title, recently vacated by his teammate George Mangos. While Sem is a strong fighter, he was simply no match for Rahiki, who exhibited dominance on the feet and subbed the grappler in Sem, showcasing high-level grappling, which was an area most thought Rahiki could be vulnerable. Finally, in his most recent fight, he took on Gabriel Schlupp for the Beatdown promotions featherweight title, a highly respected fighter with his only previous loss coming to Seb Szalay and Rahiki really bullied Schlupp everywhere in that spot for as long as it lasted.
Overall, Rahiki has fought some strong competition, especially for his age, and even through this impressive run, he’s still consistently shown how his game has levelled up. He has the skill set now to be a real problem, and with so much time on his side, he has the upside to be highly problematic for a long time in the UFC.
**Repost of an earlier article