Karshyga Dautbek rejected the judges’ verdict after Ren Hiramoto beat him by split decision at Super RIZIN 5, arguing that he won two rounds despite injuring his right hand.
Dautbek made the case during RIZIN’s official post-fight interview in Osaka. The loss ended his 10-fight winning streak, while Hiramoto earned his first victory since July 2024 after nearly two years away.
Watch the official post-fight interview below:
RIZIN’s translated caption track rendered Dautbek’s opening assessment as follows:
“I don’t think I lost. I think I put up a great fight. I think I was able to make the most of my strengths and was gaining an advantage, but I think I broke my hand, or rather, I injured my fist, in the first round. After that, I wasn’t able to land any really strong blows in the second and third rounds, but even so, I understand that I won at least the first and third rounds.”
Dautbek Requested A New Year’s Eve Rematch
Dautbek said the swelling left him unsure whether he had broken a finger or another part of his hand. He nevertheless insisted the injury did not erase the work he believed won the first and third rounds.
“Once my fractured hand heals, I’d like to have a rematch on New Year’s Eve. If he believes that he won today, I hope he will prove it properly in the rematch. After today’s match, I noticed that Hiramoto looked in the mirror and seemed to be crying a little. I think he also thought he had lost at that time. I’d like to ask the referees why things turned out the way they did today.”
“If Hiramoto believes he was the winner today, then I would like him to prove it clearly and definitively once again. I’ve said this many times before, but I don’t think I lost.”
His request would put both men back on the promotion’s traditional year-end schedule. The same Osaka card also produced Mikuru Asakura’s call for another fight with Hiramoto, giving RIZIN more than one possible direction for the Japanese star.
A Hand Injury Shaped Dautbek’s Scoring Argument
Dautbek tied his reduced punching output after Round 1 to the injury. He said the pain prevented him from throwing with full force during the final ten minutes.
“I’m not sure if it was a finger or something else, but my hand is very swollen now, so I think I may have fractured something. Because of that, from the second round onward, I was in a lot of pain every time I threw a punch. If my hand hadn’t broken, I think I could have knocked him out in the third round.”
He credited Hiramoto with the second round because of the Japanese fighter’s low kicks, but argued that his own punches and takedowns carried the other two rounds.
“I was landing more hits. Moreover, I was able to land more accurate blows, and I was able to take him down multiple times. Therefore, I believe I won the third round. I won the first round, but in the second round, I think Hiramoto won because he landed quite a few low kicks. I think I won the third round as well, so overall, I think I won.”
Dautbek said this was the first result in his career that he considered questionable. He plans to discuss the available appeal process with his team, although he placed a second fight above an administrative challenge.
“Regarding the result of the ruling and whether or not to appeal, I’ll talk to the team, and if there’s a system in place for that, I might give it a try. But what’s important to me right now isn’t whether or not to appeal. I’m confident that I’m stronger than Hiramoto, so I want to get revenge, have a rematch and win that one.”
RIZIN has not announced a rematch. Elsewhere on the card, Razhabali Shaidulloev defeated AJ McKee to leave Osaka with both the RIZIN and PFL featherweight titles.
