Amir Aliakbari (, born 11 December 1987) is an Iranian wrestler and mixed martial artist currently signed to ONE Championship, where he competes in the Heavyweight division. He has also competed for Full Metal Dojo in Thailand Absolute Championship Berkut (ACB) and Rizin Fighting Federation. Aliakbari is also a former gold medalist and world champion in Greco-Roman wrestling, winning gold medals at the 2010 World Wrestling Championships and 2009 Asian Wrestling Championships. International Wrestling Federation FILA (now United World Wrestling) banned Aliakbari from competing for life after a second doping offense.

Wrestling career

In 2007–2008, Aliakbari wrestled for Melli Haffari Company Ahvaz Sports Club of the Iranian Premier Wrestling League. Aliakbari missed the 2012 Summer Olympics due to a doping suspension. In the 2013 World Wrestling Championships, 120 kg he initially won a gold medal, making him a two-time world champion. However, in December 2013, International Wrestling Federation, FILA banned Aliakbari for life after a second doping offence. He was stripped of his gold medal and Heiki Nabi was moved up to gold.

Mixed martial arts career

Early career

In 2014, longtime MMA entrepreneur & Gambino associate, Michael Abul personally founded Aliakbari from his wrestling credentials and got him into MMA. Abul was also a Founding investor with Paradigm Sports, so Aliakbari signed a management agreement with Paradigm Sports. At the same time, he signed on to train under UFC star Mike Swick of AKA Thailand in Phuket, Thailand, also training alongside UFC fighters Mark Hunt and Soa Palelei. Aliakbari is the first world class Iranian wrestler to pursue an MMA career.

Early MMA career

Aliakbari made his professional MMA debut in October 2015, defeating Hyung Chul-Lee via TKO in the first round. His second bout came two months later as he defeated Radu Spinghel via TKO in the first round.

Rizin Fighting Federation

In early 2016, it was announced that Aliakbari had signed with the Japanese promotion Rizin Fighting Federation. He made his debut in September in the first round of the Openweight Grand Prix against Joao Isidoro Almeida. He won the fight via TKO in the first round. Aliakbari was scheduled to face former UFC champion Shane Carwin in the quarter-finals in December 2016. However, Carwin withdrew from the tournament and he instead faced Heath Herring. Aliakbari won the bout by unanimous decision. In the final stage of the tournament on December 31, Aliakbari faced Valentin Moldavsky. He won the fight via split decision. He then faced Mirko Cro Cop in the finals on the same night and lost the fight via knockout. He then defeated Geronimo dos Santos and Tyler King via TKO.

Absolute Championship Berkut

In December 2017 Aliakbari announced his departure from Rizin and his joining of ACB. His first opponent was Denis Smoldarev, whom Aliakbari defeated via technical knockout at 2:27 of the first round on March 24, 2018. He was set to have four opponents in ACB.

Ultimate Fighting Championship

It was reported that Aliakbari was signed by the UFC on June 6, 2019 after he offered compensation to the ACA for early termination of his contract, where the compensation sum was donated to charity. The UFC terminated the Agreement due to a doping ban handed down by the international amateur wrestling governing body, as well as US sanctions.

ONE Championship

In August 2020 news broke that Aliakbari had signed with the ONE Championship. He was scheduled to make his promotional debut against Islam Abasov at ONE Championship: Big Bang on December 4, 2020. However, Abasov withdrew from the fight after being detained following a road incident in his native Russia. Aliakbari faced Kang Ji Won at ONE Championship: Fists of Fury 2 on March 5, 2021. In a huge upset, Aliakbari lost to Kang by first-round knockout. Aliakbari faced Anatoly Malykhin at ONE Championship: Revolution on September 24, 2021. He lost the bout, getting knocked unconscious again in the first round. Aliakbari faced Mauro Cerilli at ONE on Prime Video 1 on August 27, 2022. He won the fight via technical knockout in the second round, earning his first promotional victory. Aliakbari faced the former ONE Heavyweight World Champion Brandon Vera on December 3, 2022, at ONE 164. He won the fight by a first-round technical knockout. Aliakbari faced Dustin Joynson on July 15, 2023, at ONE Fight Night 12. He won the fight by first-round submission due to strikes. The victory also earned him a Performance of the Night bonus. Aliakbari faced Arjan Bhullar on March 1, 2024, at ONE 166. He won the fight via disqualification due to Bhullar's timidity in round three. Aliakbari faced Marcus Buchecha on November 9, 2024, at ONE 169. He lost the fight via rear-naked choke in round one.

Mixed martial arts record

Greco-Roman results

! colspan="8" | World Championships matches ! Res. ! Record ! Opponent ! Score ! Date ! Event ! Location ! Notes ! style=background:white colspan=9 | Gold at the 2013 UWW World Championships at 120kg ! style=background:white colspan=9 | Gold at the 2010 UWW World Championships at 96kg ! style=background:white colspan=9 | Bronze at the 2009 UWW World Championships at 96kg