Mohammad Yahya is getting ready for what might be essentially the most defining second of his preventing profession because the Emirati fighter eyes his first win in UFC.
On July 26, inside Abu Dhabi’s Etihad Enviornment, Yahya will enter the Octagon for his third UFC look. However greater than one other struggle, this bout marks a reckoning. For Yahya, the primary and solely Emirati to compete within the UFC, the matchup in opposition to American striker Steven Nguyen is an opportunity to validate 16 years of blood, sweat, and perseverance.
“I’ve nothing to lose anymore,” Yahya tells Khaleej Instances. “This struggle, it’s about proving to myself that I belong right here. The opposite fights have been simply setbacks.”
It has been a tough highway to date on the planet’s premier MMA promotion. Yahya made his UFC debut in October 2023 at UFC 294 in Abu Dhabi, dealing with off in opposition to Trevor Peek. That evening, the stress of a sold-out UFC pay-per-view card, heightened expectations, and debut nerves weighed closely. He misplaced by unanimous resolution. His second struggle, in August 2024, ended much more painfully: a first-round TKO loss after he fractured his shin whereas checking a kick within the first 30 seconds.
“I couldn’t transfer in my final struggle,” he explains. “I checked one among his kicks early and fractured my shinbone. Since then, I’ve simply been targeted on enhancing my footwork and coaching.”
That damage set the tone for a year-long rebuild. Yahya didn’t simply heal. He developed. He switched divisions, transferring from light-weight to featherweight, and introduced on new coaches. Most notably, he added a Dagestani coach to his nook, somebody from the camps of legendary Khabib Nurmagomedov.
“Coaching with somebody from Khabib’s group has introduced a brand new layer of technique and self-discipline,” Yahya says. “I really feel quite a bit sooner, leaner, and truthfully, stronger. I used to be carrying useless weight earlier than. This feels just like the division I’m meant to be in.”
Yahya appears like somebody who’s endured sufficient doubt and ache to lastly arrive with self-belief. And but, as he prepares for Steven Nguyen, he acknowledges the stakes have by no means been greater. One other loss might imply the top of his UFC tenure. However the stress that when rattled him not looms.
This shift in mindset marks a turning level. Nevertheless it isn’t nearly private redemption. As the only real Emirati within the UFC, Yahya is a torchbearer for a era of native fighters. His journey from teenage hopeful to worldwide competitor displays the evolution of MMA within the UAE, from nonexistent to world-class.
“After I began at 14, there have been no MMA occasions right here. No gyms. Nothing,” he remembers. “However now? Abu Dhabi hosts the largest UFC playing cards, helps beginner and youth improvement, and our rulers have invested a lot within the sport. It’s change into the hub for MMA within the area.”
He beams when talking concerning the UAE’s rising struggle tradition; a number of octagons at youth occasions, worldwide jiu-jitsu tournaments, and native promotions feeding into international organisations. For Yahya, this isn’t simply his struggle. It’s his nation’s, too.
“Elevating the UAE flag within the UFC has at all times been my dream,” he says. “Successful in my homeland means every part to me.”
That sense of obligation is each a burden and a present. Yahya receives messages from younger Emirati followers who see him as a logo of hope. Many have been heartbroken after his earlier defeats. And their disappointment cuts deep.
“A few of the messages made me unhappy that I did not win,” he says. “That I did not get the win for them and provides them the end result they wished in spite of everything their assist. However hopefully this time I am going to make as much as everybody.”
That likelihood will come in opposition to Steven Nguyen, a talented striker and newcomer. Yahya respects the problem. Each fighters will likely be preventing for his or her first win within the UFC.
“That is the UFC. Everybody right here is the perfect, or else they would not be on this organisation. I’m not taking him frivolously,” he says. “However I am very assured in my abilities and that I’ll out with the W.”
When requested what reward he’s deliberate for himself after the struggle, his reply is humble: one other coaching camp.
“I’m considering of going to Thailand,” he says. “Benefit from the seashores there, however it is going to be a coaching camp vacation.”
Because the dialog winds down, we ask him what message he desires to ship to the followers who will watch him on July 26.
His response is evident: “I can promise to be a special athlete. Completely different Individual. Completely different fighter. That is going to be my greatest efficiency ever. I have been working arduous and ticking all of the packing containers. So I’ve no excuse to not win. The remainder is as much as God, Inshallah.”
