Athletes
Ramiz Brahimaj | Creating A Beautiful Mosaic
Ascending Welterweight Out To Continue Impressing At UFC 320 On Saturday
“You know what it is? Sometimes everything has to come apart for everything to come together,” Ramiz Brahimaj said with a smile, wrapped in a light robe, stationed in the sauna a couple of weeks ahead of his UFC 320 showdown with Austin Vanderford at T-Mobile Arena.
I had asked the ascending welterweight, whom I’ve spoken with repeatedly and in great detail throughout his time in the promotion, what has clicked over the course of his last two fights — a first-round knockout win over Mickey Gall last November at Madison Square Garden, and a first-round technical submission finish of Billy Ray Goff on the final day of May, each of which earned him a Performance of the Night bonus.
How To Watch UFC 320 In Your Region
“You know me, man — we’ve done interviews for the longest, and you know some of the bulls*** that I’ve been through — and with everything that came caving in, I looked at myself like a seed. A lot of times, people will throw dirt, and what people don’t understand is that through those cracks, through those crevices, water was just dripping down on me, and I kept growing and growing and growing, and now I’m at where I’m at.”
Where he’s at is somewhere dramatically different from where he’s been at different stages of this journey, both literally and figuratively.
In terms of his preparations, he is now working with Mike Valle and his Chicagoland crew, relishing the opportunity to train alongside former welterweight champ Belal Muhammad, lightweight striker Ignacio Bahamondes, and the rest of the Valle Flow Striking team. In terms of his career, he’s on his first winning streak since opening with straight wins, having gone nine consecutive fights alternating results beginning with his first professional setback and his unanimous decision to Themba Gorimbo last year.
UFC 320 Full Fight Card Preview
Mentally, physically, and emotionally, he’s in the best place he’s been in quite some time: happy, healthy, and brimming with earned confidence; a far cry from the man who struggled to stay healthy, felt shame about being unable to compete and the impact not being able to train had on his body, and who pondered retirement before his two-year hiatus ended last year.
Where the Bronx-raised Brahimaj used to speak with the signature grit and timbre of his borough, trying to convince you that he belonged on the UFC stage, now the ascending 32-year-old is calm and measured, and no longer concerned with convincing you with his words.
“I’m just gonna show you how great I am, just like Muhammad Ali said, and it’s the truth,” he said in regards to his shift in confidence and demeanor. “I’ve done so much hard work throughout my life, and I never do anything out of a false sense of confidence, a false sense of security, or a false anything. Everything that I have done that has led me to this point, I have earned, and I plan on continuing that, so that’s what’s changed.
Ramiz Brahimaj Submits Gilmore In Round 1 | UFC Fight Night: Makhachev vs Green
Unlock MORE of your inner combat sports fan with UFC Fight Pass! Fighting is what we live for. And no one brings you MORE live fights, new shows, and events across multiple combat sports from around the world. With a never-ending supply of fighting in every discipline, there`s always something new to watch. Leave it to the world`s authority in MMA to bring you the Ultimate 24/7 platform for MORE combat sports, UFC Fight Pass!
Ramiz Brahimaj Submits Gilmore In Round 1 | UFC Fight Night: Makhachev vs Green
/
“I started to fall back and truly believe in myself and allow myself to really blossom,” continued Brahimaj, who carries a 12-5 record and a 100-percent finishing rate into this weekend’s clash with Vanderford. “I think everybody should be able to do that, everybody should be able to feel that because it’s an amazing thing when you truly allow yourself to flourish and just allow yourself to turn into what you’re supposed to turn into.
“That’s where I’m at right now, brother, and nothing is gonna change. I’m just gonna continue to make magical moments happen, and I truly feel it in my heart.”
WATCH: UFC 320 Embedded
These last two performances, these last two wins have been emotional for Brahimaj for a number of reasons. As a New Yorker, winning at Madison Square Garden meant making good on a childhood promise to his mother and getting to celebrate with his beloved grandmother after the victory, while rolling with a change in opponent and putting Goff to sleep silenced any whispers that his knockout win over Gall may have been some kind of fluke.
But more than that, they have been validation of the work that confirms the feeling he’s held — like all his contemporaries — for all these years that he has the skills, talent, and drive to succeed inside the Octagon.
Highlight: Ramiz Brahimaj Chokes Out Palatnikov | UFC Fight Night: Cannonier vs Gastelum
Unlock MORE of your inner combat sports fan with UFC Fight Pass! Fighting is what we live for. And no one brings you MORE live fights, new shows, and events across multiple combat sports from around the world. With a never-ending supply of fighting in every discipline, there`s always something new to watch. Leave it to the world`s authority in MMA to bring you the Ultimate 24/7 platform for MORE combat sports, UFC Fight Pass!
Highlight: Ramiz Brahimaj Chokes Out Palatnikov | UFC Fight Night: Cannonier vs Gastelum
/
“It truly puts my heart at ease because it’s a glimpse into what I know, and now I know that I’ve grown into that position, and I know that I can continue to produce magic like that, right?” he said of his consecutive triumphs. “I’ve trusted the process, I’ve endured enough, and it just…”
He trailed off and looked skyward for a beat, trying to find the best way to describe the feeling. Even after a beat, he was still at a loss.
“I truly can’t put it into words; it’s very hard for me to put into words, he said. “It’s almost like a sigh of relief; like, ‘Okay — this is the way it’s supposed to be.’ I’m perfectly happy with it, and every single time I get into that Octagon, especially as of late, it’s not that I have a point to prove, it’s just I want to show the fruits of my labor. I want to show the artwork. I want to show the masterpieces that I have drawn up in my head, with every ounce of conviction in my heart.
“To be able to go out there and execute? There is nothing better.”
It’s a sentiment that can sound hollow from some, but having chronicled his career and spoken with him throughout the journey, I can tell you that when Brahimaj says it, it’s genuine and true.
This is all he has ever wanted, and all he has been working towards.
It’s why he continued pressing on after the discovery of a tumor behind his eye forced him to have surgery and scuttled his opportunity to compete on Dana White’s Contender Series six years ago.
It’s why he patiently, methodically worked his way back from a shoulder injury that had doctors unsure of the best method of treatment, with two suggesting spinal disc fusion surgery, and offering no assurances that he would ever compete again either way.
It’s why he broke down into tears telling me about the above and celebrating that he made it back to the Octagon last year against Gorimbo, where the result didn’t matter nearly as much as the simple act of making the walk once more.
And it’s why these last two wins — these twin stunning efforts where he wasn’t only victorious, but dominant and commanding with his performance — have meant so much, just like another win on Saturday night will as well.
FIGHT WEEK FOCUS: Ankalaev vs Pereira 2 | Dvalishvili vs Sandhagen
“There is no testimony without a test, so it’s gonna feel incredible,” said Brahimaj, before passing along another thoughtful gem from his father, Shaban. “My dad always said this one thing: he said, ‘Son, when you have a mosaic, even the smallest piece that gets removed, alters the mosaic.’
“So everything that has been coming and has been happening is going to produce this mosaic, this beautiful piece of art. Come October 4th, when I get my hand raised after a very beautiful performance, it’s gonna feel like I’m here, I belong here, and these are just the fruits of my labor.”
UFC 320: Ankalaev vs Pereira 2 took place live from T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada on October 4, 2025. See the final Prelim & Main Card Results, Official Scorecards and Who Won Bonuses - and relive the action on UFC FIGHT PASS!