Ibragim Ibragimov

Ibragim Ibragimov has 3 brothers connected the books astatine Manchester United - but is hoping to win successful his ain realm arsenic helium continues his MMA career

Ibragim Ibragimov is attempting to beryllium helium belongs among the elite successful mixed martial arts - but admits he's not adjacent the champion sportsman successful his family.

Ibragimov, 20, returns to the PFL cage connected Saturday nighttime for his 2nd combat with the promotion having made an awesome debut successful Newcastle successful June. He volition instrumentality connected Nacho Campos successful Saudi Arabia connected a paper headlined by Francis Ngannou's instrumentality to MMA against Renan Ferreira.

But Ibragimov has pugnacious contention astatine location with his 3 brothers each connected the books astatine Manchester United, with Amir connected people to play for the archetypal squad having scored his archetypal extremity for England Under 16s. But the eldest sibling admits the brothers' dada rules the sporting roost.

"My member has been grooming with the archetypal squad truthful hopefully adjacent twelvemonth helium tin play for them," helium said. "Both my different brothers play for Manchester United arsenic good and they volition marque it too. I judge successful them, and possibly successful the aboriginal we tin bring the PFL to Old Trafford and marque a large show.

"But my dada is the champion athlete, that's wherefore we are here, that's wherefore we are truthful competitory successful my family, the genes from my dad. He didn't marque it to immoderate helium wanted to bash but helium has done a batch for us. We are each wherever we are due to the fact that of him."

Ibragimov grew up successful Dagestan earlier moving to Manchester - and helium astir ended up playing for United's large rivals. "We each started successful wrestling due to the fact that successful Dagestan you can't beryllium a anemic kid; you person to train, you person to bash something," helium added. "We decided to bash wrestling and built up from there.

"At the aforesaid clip we were playing shot and my brothers had a bully talent. Then we moved to the UK and my brothers started playing football, they had trials astatine Sheffield United and got picked up by Manchester United.

"I had trials too, I had a proceedings astatine Man City, but it was a spot excessively precocious for maine to marque it, truthful my brothers are determination and I'm here. My small member is doing well, he's connected a bully stage, he's astir to marque the archetypal squad and helium scored his archetypal extremity for the England team. It's a large accidental for each of us."

And contempt his brothers taking a antithetic path, Ibragimov's siblings person not forgotten their roots - adjacent if it comes astatine the occasional cost. "We bash wrestle astatine home, they're not allowed, adjacent past week my 2nd member broke my small brother's limb truthful it's not bully for footballers," helium said. "They privation to enactment retired of information but they are inactive wrestling, we person been doing it since a young age."