Marwan Rahiki proud of placement on UFC Perth main card

Marwan Rahiki always knew that his style would shine under the bright lights.

Rahiki was originally scheduled to face Jack Jenkins at UFC Perth on Saturday. However, an injured Jenkins was replaced on four days’ notice by Hungarian debutant Oliver Schmid. Rahiki dropped Schmid with a left hook in the first round, and a few follow-up shots were needed for referee Mike Beltran to step in.

While this served as Rahiki’s sophomore UFC outing, he was the third fight on the main card at the RAC Arena in Perth, Australia. Rahiki also debuted on a main card, appearing opposite Harry Hardwick in March and breaking Hardwick’s jaw in the process. Although Rahiki respects the competitors on the prelims, he never saw himself opening a fight card. The Moroccan-Australian always felt that his action-first style would earn him high bout order placements. Rahiki boasted in his post-fight interview:

“This is what I imagined coming into the UFC,” Rahiki said confidently. “With all the respect to the prelims and early prelims, I’ve never seen myself as the first fight in the card. I knew the way I fight, it’s exciting, it’s entertaining. With the bonus on the line, there’s a prize. I train so hard, if there’s this much to take, I’m not gonna be happy with just a little bit.”

The unbeaten Rahiki (9-0) has finished his adversary in all nine of his career wins. Making his way up the ranks of the Hex Fight Series circuit, “Freaky” went on to secure a contract on the 2025 season of Dana White's Contender Series. He has only competed beyond the second round once, when he tapped out Semakadde Kakembo for the HFS 145-pound title last May.