MMA · Lightweight
Makwan Amirkhani
Twenty wins, fourteen of them by submission, eight years on the UFC roster and a championship belt at home in Finland. Makwan Amirkhani carries the Kurdistan flag to the scales before he fights, every time.
Makwan Amirkhani: the facts
| Record | MMA: 20-11 (1 KO, 14 submissions, 5 decisions) |
|---|---|
| Weight class | Lightweight and featherweight |
| Roots | Kirmaşan, Rojhilat |
| Based in | Turku, Finland |
| Born | 8 November 1988 |
| Height | 178 cm |
| Reach | 180 cm |
| Team | MA Training Center |
| @makwanufc · 153,546 followers | |
| Titles | Ice Cage lightweight champion (2025-08-06) |
Makwan Amirkhani fight history
| Result | Opponent | Event | Date | Method |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Win | Theo Kolehmainen | Ice Cage 5 - Amirkhani vs. Kolehmainen | 6 September 2025 | Submission (Anaconda Choke) |
| Win | Joni Salovaara | Ice Cage 4 - Amirkhani vs. Salovaara | 3 May 2025 | Decision (Unanimous) |
| Win | Fernando Flores | Ice Cage 3 - Amirkhani vs. Flores | 28 December 2024 | Submission (Anaconda Choke) |
| Loss | Attila Korkmaz | Oktagon MMA - Oktagon 58: Vemola vs. Vegh 2 | 8 June 2024 | Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) |
| Loss | Mochamed Machaev | Oktagon MMA - Oktagon 54: Kincl vs. Wawrzyniak | 2 March 2024 | KO (Punches) |
| Loss | Jack Shore | UFC 286 - Edwards vs. Usman 3 | 18 March 2023 | Submission (Rear-Naked Choke) |
| Loss | Jonathan Pearce | UFC Fight Night 208 - Blaydes vs. Aspinall | 23 July 2022 | TKO (Punches) |
| Win | Mike Grundy | UFC Fight Night 204 - Volkov vs. Aspinall | 19 March 2022 | Technical Submission (Anaconda Choke) |
| Loss | Lerone Murphy | UFC 267 - Blachowicz vs. Teixeira | 30 October 2021 | KO (Knee) |
| Loss | Kamuela Kirk | UFC Fight Night 189 - Rozenstruik vs. Sakai | 5 June 2021 | Decision (Unanimous) |
| Loss | Edson Barboza | UFC Fight Night 179 - Moraes vs. Sandhagen | 10 October 2020 | Decision (Unanimous) |
| Win | Danny Henry | UFC 251 - Usman vs. Masvidal | 11 July 2020 | Technical Submission (Anaconda Choke) |
| Loss | Shane Burgos | UFC 244 - Masvidal vs. Diaz | 2 November 2019 | TKO (Punches) |
| Win | Chris Fishgold | UFC Fight Night 153 - Gustafsson vs. Smith | 1 June 2019 | Submission (Anaconda Choke) |
| Win | Jason Knight | UFC Fight Night 130 - Thompson vs. Till | 27 May 2018 | Decision (Split) |
Fight history per Sherdog, retrieved 5 August 2026.
Who is Makwan Amirkhani?
Makwan Amirkhani was born on 8 November 1988 in Kirmaşan, in Rojhilat, and moved to Finland with his family as a child. He is 178 centimetres tall, fights at lightweight and featherweight, and trains at MA Training Center. He is known for being proud of his Kurdish heritage and for posing with the Kurdistan flag at weigh ins (Wikipedia, 2026; Kurdistan24, 2026).
Before mixed martial arts he wrestled for the Finnish national team, and it shows in the way he fights.
What Makwan Amirkhani’s record shows
Our own count on the official record: twenty wins and eleven losses, with fourteen of those wins by submission. That means seventy percent of everything he has won, he won by making an opponent give up. One knockout and five decisions make up the rest (Wikipedia, 2026).
He fought in the UFC from 2015 to 2023, then in Oktagon MMA, and since 2024 in Ice Cage Fighting. On 6 August 2025 he took the Ice Cage lightweight title, and on 6 September 2025 he defended his form with an anaconda choke over Theo Kolehmainen at forty seven seconds of the first round.
Why he matters
Amirkhani was the first Kurdish fighter many people ever saw inside the Octagon. Eight years on that roster is not a cameo, it is a career. And in Finland he is a household name, which is why the search interest for him there is larger than for any other Kurdish fighter in any single country.
Frequently asked questions about Makwan Amirkhani
When is Makwan Amirkhani’s next fight?
No next fight has been announced (as of 5 August 2026). As soon as one is set, it appears here.
Is Makwan Amirkhani Kurdish?
Yes. He was born in Kirmaşan in Rojhilat into a Kurdish family and moved to Finland as a child (Wikipedia, 2026).
What is Makwan Amirkhani’s record?
Twenty wins and eleven losses, with fourteen submissions, one knockout and five decisions among the wins (Wikipedia, 2026).
Does he still fight in the UFC?
No. He fought in the UFC from 2015 to 2023, then in Oktagon MMA, and since 2024 in Ice Cage Fighting, where he is the lightweight champion.
What is his nickname?
Mr. Finland.
What was his last fight?
He beat Theo Kolehmainen by anaconda choke in the first round on 6 September 2025 at Ice Cage Fighting 5.
Sources
- Wikipedia, Makwan Amirkhani (2026)
- Kurdistan24, UFC victory for Kurdish MMA fighter Makwan Amirkhani (2026)