Shaidulloev unifies RIZIN and PFL featherweight titles with unanimous decision over McKee

Razhabali Shaidulloev is now a dual-promotion featherweight champion after defeating A.J. McKee by unanimous decision in the main event of Super RIZIN 5 at the Kyosera Dome Osaka on Thursday, unifying the RIZIN and PFL featherweight titles before a crowd of nearly 49,000 fans.

All three judges scored the bout 30-27 in favour of Shaidulloev, who extended his unbeaten professional record to 19-0 and went the distance for the first time in his career. McKee rocked him early in the opening round, but Shaidulloev quickly regained control with a slam takedown and neutralised a subsequent choke attempt before dominating the grappling exchanges.

Shaidulloev came out sharper in the second, hurting McKee with punches to the head and a body kick before transitioning to ground-and-pound as McKee visibly tired. The American needed a finish in the third and fired off knees early, but Shaidulloev repeatedly dragged the fight to the mat. McKee managed to take his back briefly and scored a late takedown, yet could not convert either into meaningful damage.

In his post-fight interview, Shaidulloev revealed he has just one bout remaining on his RIZIN contract. Kyoma Akimoto, riding a six-fight winning streak after defeating former champion Kleber Koike in August, entered the ring to face off with the champion and signal his interest in a title shot.

In the co-main event, Mikuru Asakura stopped Shinya Aoki by first-round knockout in a fight that initially appeared to be going Aoki’s way. The veteran submission specialist took Asakura’s back early and threatened with a rear-naked choke, but an ill-timed armbar attempt allowed Asakura to escape and unleash a brutal ground-and-pound finish — ending Aoki’s return to RIZIN 11 years after his only previous appearance in the promotion.

Ren Hiramoto opened the main card with a split decision win over Karshyga Dautbek, a result that drew controversy. The Kazakhstani, who entered on a 12-fight unbeaten run, rocked Hiramoto in the first round and had arguably the stronger moments in the third, but two of the three judges favoured the Japanese striker. The dissenting judge scored it 29-27 for Dautbek.

On the preliminary card, former RIZIN lightweight champion Roberto Satoshi bounced back from his title loss to Ilkhom Nazimov with a comfortable victory over Shunta Nomura.