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Nikita Krylov is nicknamed 'The Miner' because he comes from a family of miners. Furthermore, the Ukraine-born light heavyweight hails from the Donbas region of the country, where mining is a significant occupation. Prior to his venture into mixed martial arts, Krylov worked as a miner.
Nikita Krylov will face Volkan Oezdemir on the preliminary card of UFC 280. This will be Krylov's 17th appearance with the promotion. He has fought in two weight classes and is on his second stint with the UFC.
'The Miner' made his UFC debut in 2013 at UFC 164 and was released from the promotion in 2017. After a successful run in a couple of regional organizations in Eurasia, he rejoined the UFC in 2018 at UFC Fight Night 136.
Interestingly, Krylov was nicknamed 'Al Capone' before he was called 'The Miner', as the No.10-ranked UFC light heavyweight is a self-proclaimed admirer of the infamous mobster. Nikita Krylov switched his moniker to 'The Miner' prior to his fight with Francimar Barroso at UFC Fight Night 87.
Check out MMA Weekly's interview from 2014 where Krylov talks about his former nickname:
Nikita Krylov has a UFC record of 9-7 and an overall MMA record of 28-9. His most recent win came against Alexander Gustafsson at UFC London in July, where he finished 'The Mauler' with punches in the first round. Krylov will now face Gustafsson's teammate Volkan Oezdemir at UFC 280. 'No Time' has sworn revenge against Krylov for his win against 'The Mauler'.
Check out the finishing sequence of Krylov's most recent win against Gustafsson at UFC Fight Night 208:
Krylov stands at 6'3" (191 cms) and has a reach of 77.5 inches. He last weighed in at 206 pounds against Gustafsson.
Nikita Krylov's nickname symbolizes "power and character"
The Ukrainian light heavyweight worked as a miner and comes from a family of miners. He is all too familiar with the challenges and fears associated with scaling tunnels hundreds of meters below the ground. Krylov has also previously detailed his thoughts on growing up in a region plagued by conflict.
Prior to his fight with Cody Donovan at UFC Fight Night 46, Nikita Krylov had to flee his hometown of Donetsk due to the then conflict between Ukraine and Russia.
Krylov currently resides in Moscow, Russia. The Ukraine-born fighter once garnered a lot of negative attention in Kiev for having a "firm allegiance to Russia." He was even shunned from his old gym in Kiev for that reason.
'The Miner' has been training in martial arts since he was 10 years old. He has his roots in Kyokushin karate and has trained in army hand-to-hand combat and submission fighting.
