Baisangur Susurkaev: The Chechen Who Fought Twice in One Week and Won Both

I need to tell you about this dude because what he did in his last fight might be the craziest thing any fighter has ever had happen in the UFC.

Tuesday night: Baisangur Susurkaev takes the Contender Series on four days' notice, body kicks a guy into the shadow realm in the first round, gets a UFC contract.

Saturday night: four days later, he's on the UFC 319 card in Chicago, same week. Submits his opponent in the second round by rear naked choke. His first UFC win. On the same card where his training partner Khamzat Chimaev won the middleweight title.

His brother was in the corner crying. His village in Chechnya was celebrating like they'd won a war. His brother told ESPN it felt like they were "living in a PlayStation game." And the wildest part? Before any of this happened, this man was delivering food and loading furniture for a living in Florida.

He's 10-0 now. He's 24. He fights at UFC 328 on May 9 on the Chimaev vs Strickland card. And if you're not paying attention to Baisangur "Hunter" Susurkaev yet, you're about to be.

From Chechnya to Sleeping in Cars in Florida

Susurkaev was born January 8, 2001 in the Chechen Republic. If you know anything about Chechnya, you know combat sports aren't a hobby there. They're a way of life. He started training MMA in 2018 at 17 and was immediately good at it. Won the 2019 Russian National Pankration Championship as a teenager. Racked up wins on the Chechen MMA scene and the ACA Young Eagles circuit with a string of first round finishes.

But before any of the UFC stuff, he was a general laborer in Chechnya. Physical work, long hours, making ends meet. Fighting was something he did on the side because he was good at it, not because it was paying his bills.

In 2023, he and his older brother Tamerlan made the decision to move to America. Tamerlan is a former fighter himself who became Baisangur's coach. The plan was to train at Kill Cliff MMA in Deerfield Beach, Florida, one of the best gyms in the country. Home to former champions like Kamaru Usman, Robbie Lawler, and Rashad Evans.

The reality was a lot rougher than it sounds. When they had money, they stayed in a hotel across the street from the gym. When money ran out, they slept in their car in the hotel parking lot. Sometimes on the lounge chairs by the hotel pool.

Susurkaev was working as a food delivery driver and a furniture mover to keep them afloat while training full time. Got married two months after arriving in LA. Now has two kids, a boy and a girl. All of this happening while he's trying to break into the biggest MMA promotion on the planet.

And on the mats at Kill Cliff? The coaches noticed immediately. Despite being a regional fighter from Chechnya with zero promotional backing, Susurkaev was hanging with everybody in the gym. The talent was obvious. The opportunity just hadn't come yet.

Three Years of Nothing

From March 2022 to late 2024, Susurkaev fought once. One fight in almost three years. No momentum. No money from competing. Just training, working odd jobs, and waiting for a phone call.

You're delivering DoorDash during the day and sparring with former UFC champions at night and nobody is booking you. That stretch would've killed most careers. A lot of guys disappear during a layoff like that. They get comfortable. They stop believing.

Susurkaev kept showing up to the gym every day though. And when the Contender Series call finally came in August 2025, it came on four days' notice as a replacement. Most fighters would need a full camp but Susurkaev said yeah, I'm ready, give me the fight.

The Craziest Week in UFC History

August 12, 2025. DWCS Season 9, Episode 1. Susurkaev versus undefeated Murtaza Talha.

First round. Body kick. Talha folded. Fight over. Contract earned. Dana White was grinning.

And then Susurkaev did something that basically nobody has ever done. He told the UFC he wanted to fight again. At UFC 319 in Chicago which was only four days later.

He was already going to be in Chicago to corner Chimaev for the middleweight title fight against Du Plessis. So his logic was simple: I'm already going to be there, put me on the card.

The Nevada State Athletic Commission has a seven day mandatory rest period after sanctioned bouts. Susurkaev was supposed to sign the form acknowledging this. He refused to sign it. Eventually the suspension was waived and the UFC booked him against Eric Nolan on the UFC 319 prelims.

Dude refused to sign a medical form because fighting four days after a KO was more important to him than following the rules.

At UFC 319, Nolan actually rocked him with a clean right hand in the first round. For a second it looked like the week was about to end badly. But Susurkaev adjusted in the second round, took Nolan down, got his back, and locked in a rear naked choke. Done. 10-0.

Tuesday: body kick KO on the Contender Series. Saturday: submission on a PPV card. Same week. On the same night Chimaev won the middleweight belt. His brother Tamerlan was losing it in the corner.

"In my village, it was crazy, crazy. Like we had won a war or something like this."

Tamerlan put it even better: "I couldn't believe it. It felt like we were living in a PlayStation game."

The dude plays UFC on PlayStation with his brother when he's not training. And then he went out and lived it in real life in the span of four days.

MSG, the Bo Nickal Callout, and the Patek Philippe

November 2025. UFC 322 at Madison Square Garden. Susurkaev versus Eric McConico. The fight went to the third round for only the second time in his career, but he got the KO anyway.

Three fights in three months. All wins. After a three year layoff. After sleeping in cars and delivering food.

After the McConico win he called out Bo Nickal and said it would be an "easy" fight. Bold statement about one of the most hyped prospects in the division. But Susurkaev had the receipts to back it up.

He also showed up to a press conference wearing a $180,000 Patek Philippe watch, which is an absolutely unhinged move for a guy who was sleeping on pool loungers 18 months earlier. Nobody knew where the watch came from and nobody asked. He just showed up dripping and kept it moving.

"I Am Going to Be Better Than Jon Jones"

When the UFC asked Susurkaev about his favorite fighter, he said Jon Jones. Then added: "He is the best of all time, but I am going to be better."

He's 24, has two kids. His brother is his coach. Three brothers and a sister still back in Chechnya. He won gold at the Jiu-Jitsu World League Pan Americans. He won the 2019 Russian National Pankration Championship. He's 6'2" at middleweight with KO power in both hands and a submission game nobody saw coming until the Nolan fight.

His long-term goal: "I want to take title and do defense more than Jon Jones or Anderson Silva. Being the best in the world all-time."

He fights Djorden Santos at UFC 328 on May 9 in Newark. Same card as Chimaev defending the belt against Strickland. Two Chechens on the same card. Gonna be gonna good.

Thanks for riding with CageLore. Stay locked in!

Frequently Asked Questions About Baisangur Susurkaev

Who is Baisangur Susurkaev?

A 24 year old Chechen middleweight in the UFC with a 10-0 record (8 KOs, 1 submission, 1 decision). He earned a UFC contract on the Contender Series in August 2025 and fought again four days later at UFC 319, setting a record for the fastest DWCS-to-UFC turnaround. He trains at Kill Cliff MMA in Florida.

Where is Baisangur Susurkaev from?

Born in the Chechen Republic, Russia. He moved to the United States in 2023 with his older brother Tamerlan to pursue a UFC career. He trained at Kill Cliff MMA in Deerfield Beach, Florida while working as a food delivery driver and furniture mover.

How did Susurkaev fight twice in one week?

He KO'd Murtaza Talha on the Contender Series on Tuesday August 12, 2025. He then refused to sign the standard seven day medical suspension, had it waived, and fought Eric Nolan four days later at UFC 319 on Saturday August 16, winning by rear-naked choke in round two.

When does Baisangur Susurkaev fight next?

UFC 328 on May 9, 2026 against Djorden Santos at the Prudential Center in Newark, New Jersey. The card is headlined by Khamzat Chimaev defending the middleweight title against Sean Strickland.

What is Susurkaev's connection to Khamzat Chimaev?

Both are from Chechnya and have trained together. Susurkaev met Chimaev in Chechnya in 2022 and later joined his UFC 319 camp in California. They fought on the same UFC 319 card where Chimaev won the middleweight title and Susurkaev won his debut.