Aleksandar Rakić

Rakić's latest appearance ended badly when Murzakanov stopped him with punches in the opening round. The result mattered because it extended the losing streak to four straight after the defeats to Błachowicz, Procházka and Ankalaev, which left the heavyweight move looking more like a reset than a calculated climb.

Key moments

• Murzakanov finished Rakić by first-round TKO at 3:11.
• The defeat followed the unanimous-decision loss to Magomed Ankalaev in October 2024.
• It pushed Rakić to four consecutive losses heading into the August 2026 Tybura booking.

Ankalaev forced Rakić into a technical three-round fight and did enough to win unanimously on the cards. The loss mattered because it came right after the Procházka stoppage and confirmed that Rakić was still stuck just outside the division's real title line.

Key moments

• Lost a unanimous decision to Ankalaev after three rounds at UFC 308.
• The defeat came six months after the Jiří Procházka stoppage at UFC 300.
• It left Rakić 1-3 across the four-fight stretch after beating Thiago Santos.

Rakić's return from the long layoff looked competitive early, but Procházka's pressure and finishing pace eventually took over in the second round. The fight mattered because it was his first appearance since the 2022 knee-injury loss to Błachowicz and it immediately threw him back into the deep end of the light-heavyweight title mix.

Key moments

• Procházka stopped Rakić with punches at 3:17 of round two.
• The bout was Rakić's first fight since the May 2022 knee-injury TKO against Jan Błachowicz.
• The loss set up the October 2024 matchup with Magomed Ankalaev.

The Błachowicz fight ended in the worst possible way for Rakić, with a knee injury stopping the main event early in round three. It mattered because he came in as a genuine title-level light heavyweight and instead disappeared for nearly two years before the Procházka return.

Key moments

• Rakić lost by third-round TKO after a knee injury at 1:11.
• The defeat snapped the two-fight UFC winning run over Anthony Smith and Thiago Santos.
• It became the start of a long layoff before the April 2024 return at UFC 300.

Rakić's win over Santos was one of the cleaner high-level decision performances on his record because he controlled enough of the range battle across all three rounds to take a unanimous decision. The result mattered because it followed the Anthony Smith win and kept him moving toward a title-eliminator tier of opponent.

Key moments

• Beat Santos by unanimous decision over fifteen minutes at UFC 259.
• The win followed the August 2020 decision over Anthony Smith.
• It was Rakić's second straight victory over a ranked former title challenger.

Rakić turned his first UFC main event into a controlled three-round win over Anthony Smith in Las Vegas. He repeatedly battered Smith's lead leg with calf kicks, mixed in top control and never let the former title challenger build the kind of momentum that could swing the fight late.

Key moments

• Won a unanimous decision in his first UFC main event.
• Used hard calf kicks to damage Smith's lead leg from the opening round.
• Moved to 13-2 and extended his UFC winning streak to three fights.

The Oezdemir fight was a close three-round stand-up battle that went against Rakić on a split decision in Busan. It remains one of the more debated losses on his record because the fight was competitive enough that most media scorecards still favored Rakić even though the judges did not.

Key moments

• Lost a split decision to Oezdemir over fifteen minutes in South Korea.
• The defeat snapped Rakić's 12-fight winning streak.
• Most media scorecards tracked by MMA Decisions favored Rakić despite the official result.

Rakić announced himself as a real contender by flattening Jimi Manuwa with a head kick just 42 seconds into the first round in Stockholm. The knockout was so violent it ended the fight instantly and earned him his first Performance of the Night bonus in the UFC.

Key moments

• Knocked out Manuwa with a first-round head kick at 0:42.
• Earned a Performance of the Night bonus for the finish.
• Improved to 12-1 and kept his UFC run perfect through four appearances.

Rakić closed the first round against Devin Clark with one of the sharper finishes of his early UFC run. A spinning backfist dumped Clark to the canvas, and the follow-up punches forced the stoppage late in the frame in Toronto.

Key moments

• Stopped Clark by first-round TKO at 4:05.
• The finish sequence began with a spinning backfist before the punches on the floor.
• Pushed Rakić to 11-1 heading into the breakthrough fight with Jimi Manuwa.

Rakić's bout with Justin Ledet was one of the most one-sided decision wins of his UFC career. He shut out Ledet over three rounds in Hamburg, piling up a huge striking edge and cruising to wide scorecards that reflected how little offense Ledet generated in return.

Key moments

• Won a unanimous decision with wide scorecards after three rounds.
• The fight became known for an unusually lopsided strike differential in Rakić's favor.
• Moved to 10-1 and stayed unbeaten through his first two UFC appearances.

Rakić opened his UFC career with a steady unanimous decision over veteran Francimar Barroso in Rotterdam. It was not a flashy debut, but it gave him a clean introduction to the promotion and moved his pre-UFC 8-1 record into the Octagon without a stumble.

Key moments

• Won a unanimous decision in his UFC debut.
• Beat a more experienced UFC veteran over the full fifteen minutes.
• Improved to 9-1 after signing with the promotion in March 2017.

The Sergio Souza fight was Rakić's last win before the UFC signing and kept his European run moving in the right direction. He finished Souza with first-round punches in Vienna, extending the streak that had rebuilt his record after the debut loss to Christian Radke.

Key moments

• Stopped Souza by first-round TKO in Vienna.
• The win lifted Rakić to 8-1 before his UFC debut later that year.
• It capped the regional stretch that earned him a contract with the UFC.

Rakić needed only 26 seconds to knock out Martin Batur at Austrian Fight Challenge 1. The quick finish was one of the clearest examples of his early one-shot power on the regional circuit and pushed him further into a sustained winning run.

Key moments

• Knocked out Batur at 0:26 of the opening round.
• The bout took place in Vienna on an Austrian Fight Challenge card.
• Improved Rakić's professional record to 7-1.

Rakić's win over Marcin Prachnio aged well because he handed the future UFC fighter a third-round stoppage loss in Vienna. It stands out on the regional résumé as a deeper fight than many of his quick finishes, with Rakić still finding the stoppage after two full rounds of work.

Key moments

• Stopped Prachnio with punches at 3:00 of round three.
• The fight happened at Final Fight Championship 16 in Vienna.
• Moved to 6-1 with a win over an opponent who later reached the UFC.

Rakić had to work almost the entire first round before finishing Norbert Péter with punches at Heimgala 2. The win mattered mainly as another step in the rebuilding stretch that turned his 0-1 start into a strong Austrian regional record.

Key moments

• Finished Péter by TKO with three seconds left in round one.
• The bout took place in Vienna at Heimgala 2.
• Improved his record to 5-1.

The Rozmaring bout gave Rakić the only submission win on his professional record, a north-south choke finished in under two minutes. It showed that the young version of Rakić was not only a puncher and kicker on the regional scene, even if that became the dominant identity later.

Key moments

• Submitted Rozmaring with a north-south choke at 1:32 of round one.
• It remains the lone submission victory on Rakić's pro ledger.
• Pushed his record to 4-1 in Vienna.

Rakić scored one of his earliest documented head-kick finishes when he knocked out Laszlo Czene in Vienna. That result reads like an early preview of the Manuwa stoppage years later, with the kickboxing base already showing up clearly in his MMA results.

Key moments

• Won by first-round head-kick knockout.
• The bout happened at World Freefight Challenge: Challengers 3 in Vienna.
• Raised his record to 3-1.

Richard Longhimo extended Rakić into the second round before Rakić found the stoppage with punches late in the frame. It was an important early rebound win because it came just one fight after the loss in his debut and showed he could reset quickly rather than spiral.

Key moments

• Stopped Longhimo by punches at 4:30 of round two.
• The fight took place in Vienna at Vendetta 3.
• Improved Rakić to 2-1 after beginning his career with a submission loss.

Rakić picked up his first professional win by stopping Carsten Lorenz in the opening round in Erfurt. The quick TKO settled him after the Christian Radke defeat and started the long unbeaten stretch that carried him to the UFC years later.

Key moments

• Earned his first pro victory with a TKO at 1:42 of round one.
• The bout was held in Erfurt, Germany.
• Started the winning streak that eventually reached 12 straight fights.

Rakić's professional debut ended in a first-round guillotine loss to Christian Radke in Greifswald. It is still a useful row on the record because every win that followed came after this early stumble, making the later 12-fight surge a genuine rebound rather than a spotless rise.

Key moments

• Lost his pro debut by guillotine choke at 4:34 of round one.
• The fight took place at Rock the Cage 2 in Greifswald, Germany.
• It remains the only submission loss on Rakić's record.