France’s Islam Taisumov (2-0) will test his skills with Canada’s Samuel Giguere (0-3) on Friday at Trophee des Etoiles 15 in a featherweight bout emanating from Arena Du Pays D’Aix in Aix-en-Provence, France.
Taisumov is a 22-year-old fighter who was born in Chechnya, but trains out of Southern France.
The Chechnya-to-France pipeline had quietly become one of European MMA's most productive talent routes — fighters raised on wrestling and combat sambo relocating to French gyms, where a legal domestic scene finally gave them somewhere to fight.
Taisumov's position captured the moment perfectly — a 22-year-old with two pro wins, an established gym, and a whole country's worth of new opponents suddenly available, which is exactly the kind of head start that turns a regional prospect into a continental name.
Fighting in France is an opportunity that is significant for Taisumov, especially considering the sport is still freshly-legalized in the country.
France had only recently lifted its longtime ban on the sport — MMA events were illegal in the country until the start of 2020, which made cards like Trophee des Etoiles the first real rung of a professional ladder French fighters had never had before.
For Aix-en-Provence, hosting a sanctioned featherweight bout was its own milestone — the Arena Du Pays D'Aix became one of the venues where France's newly-legal scene put down roots, and local fighters finally got to headline in their own region rather than travelling abroad to turn pro.
“You know, it’s an honour for me to fight in front of a French public and for my next fight into July I will do anything to not disappoint them. And inshallah I will win this fight in July at the Arena Du Pays D’Aix in Aix-en-Provence,” said Taisumov in an interview with MMA Empire.
When offering up his thoughts on Giguere, he interjected a dose of realism to the situation by referencing an acclaimed action film.
Giguere's 0-3 record made him an interesting test in reverse — a winless fighter is dangerous in exactly one way, having nothing left to protect, and Taisumov's film-referencing dismissal suggested he understood the trap of taking an opponent lightly.
“First, I want to say I respect everyone in the sport. In the sport, I respect everyone. For Samuel, I want to say to you good luck for this war, bro,” said Taisumov.
“And just I want to say you know, John Wick is avenge his dog yes, but it’s in the film. And brother, here is not a film. It’s a war, brother. It’s MMA you know, it’s not a film. I think you are ready for this fight and me too. I’m ready for this fight.”
Taisumov sharpens his tools under the mentorship of the his gym’s namesake and also has a seemingly endless roster of sparring partners.
“I train with my coaches…Serge Eloffe. About sparring partners, I don’t have a special partner. I train with everybody and in the gym I train with everybody. I don’t have special sparring partners,” said Taisumov.
Taisumov has been on a notable hiatus extending back to March 2019.
The layoff stretched across the sport's strangest era — a global pandemic had wiped out most of 2020's calendar, and fighters like Taisumov spent the gap sharpening in gyms while the event scene slowly restarted.
There is much he wants to showcase since his sub-one minute triangle choke over Steven Dupont, but Trophee des Etoiles 15 will be the grand reveal of this next permutation of Taisumov.
The triangle choke of Dupont in under a minute had been the performance that put him on the radar — a finishing instinct inside the first minute is the single most valuable thing a 2-0 prospect can own, and it promised this next fight would be no less emphatic.
Against Giguere the stakes were straightforward but real — stay unbeaten and the French scene's new calendar keeps calling; lose to a winless opponent and the prospect label evaporates before it ever forms.
“So you will see that in my next fight, inshallah. That’s a surprise. Surprise surprise.”
Taisumov’s Shoutouts
“Just big up to all French and Chechnya fighters. Thank you very much MMA Empire for this interview. Thank you very much. Good luck.” Follow Taisumov on social media: FACEBOOK, INSTAGRAM
