Rafael Fiziev needed a statement night, and he delivered one in UFC’s second historic trip to Azerbaijan. Fighting in front of his home crowd at UFC Baku, the 33-year-old lightweight stopped Manuel Torres just 15 seconds into the second round with a spectacular spinning heel kick.
Many on social media are calling it one of the cleanest finishes of the UFC’s 2026 calendar year. Fiziev improved his professional mixed martial arts record to 14-5 with the win, remaining a perfect 2-0 when fighting on home soil in Azerbaijan.
But the win came with a serious caveat. What looked like a composed, calculated finish from the outside was anything but. Fiziev revealed in his post-fight Octagon interview that he spent most of the fight completely blind in one eye and still figured out a way to close the show.
Rafael Fiziev Reveals He Fought Half-Blind After Torres Jab Caused Vision Loss in Round One
Fiziev entered UFC Baku on a brutal 1-4 skid. After losing a war to Justin Gaethje, suffering a freak knee injury against Mateusz Gamrot, and getting stopped by Mauricio Ruffy earlier in 2026, his status as a top contender was slipping away. Another loss might have jeopardized his entire UFC career.
Torres came in with a reputation as one of the division’s most dangerous finishers, with 15 of his 17 career wins coming in the very first round, and he hurt Fiziev early. In the closing seconds of round one, Torres landed a stiff jab that immediately messed up Fiziev’s vision.
After the fight, Fiziev described, “Bro, I didn’t see anything with my left eye. He has last his jab in the first round… I have something happen in my eye bro. Like that, I close my eye and I don’t see. I see everything. But when I open two, everything double you know. And when I stepped to second round, I think what the f–k man, like what I can do right now. Okay, throw spinning back kick and boom, and you know what happened now.”
His solution to fighting with double vision was a spectacular spinning heel kick that dropped Torres instantly. Fiziev swarmed him against the fence, forcing referee Marc Goddard to stop the fight.
As the main event headliner, Fiziev’s base pay is estimated to have jumped to around $150,000, up from the $110,000 he made in his previous fight. The highlight-reel finish also earned him an extra $100,000 Performance of the Night bonus, bringing his total purse for the event to over $250,000.
Overall, it looked like a perfectly calculated finish, but Fiziev did it completely blind in one eye.
Fiziev’s Eye Injury Raises Serious Red Flags Ahead of His Lightweight Future
His win was impressive, but the medical reality is concerning. Fiziev already had his career derailed once by a bad knee injury against Mateusz Gamrot. In a division as dangerous as lightweight, you can’t afford to carry physical weaknesses. He wants a BMF title shot next, which makes sense after a knockout like that, but that all depends on what the doctors say.
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Double vision from a punch is not normal. It usually means an orbital fracture, muscle trauma, or a concussion. He needs a thorough medical assessment. The athletic commission and the UFC will definitely require full clearance from an eye specialist before he can book another fight.
Fiziev is 33 years old and trying to climb out of a 1-4 slump. His body has taken a lot of damage. While he remains one of the best strikers in the division, a lasting eye injury against top contenders like Islam Makhachev, Arman Tsarukyan, or Renato Moicano could end his career.
PHOTO CREDIT: IMAGO / AAP
