A giant of the fight game crossed paths with one of combat sports’ smaller stars as Mike Tyson welcomed Hasbulla into his studio.
The 20-year-old Dagestani, who appears young due to a growth hormone deficiency, has become an internet sensation who hangs around with various elite UFC fighters.
And Hasbulla was on Tyson’s Hotboxing podcast on Tuesday, showing the legendary former heavyweight his skills.
The Russian strapped on a pair of large boxing gloves and hit Tyson’s hands as if hitting pads.
He attempted to launch an overhand right at the end of the clip shared by the podcast on social media.
Hasbulla was seen hitting Mike Tyson while wearing boxing gloves on the podcast before the former heavyweight boxer picked him up and pretended to bite his ear
The way Mike Tyson picked up Hasbulla. pic.twitter.com/pRrW5fPouM
— Complex (@Complex) March 21, 2023
Tyson’s fooling around was a nod to his own infamous bite of Evander Holyfield’s ear in 1997
He was then picked up by Tyson, who appeared to nibble Hasbulla’s ear, perhaps as a joke referencing his infamous bite on Evander Holyfield back in 1997.
Hasbulla’s profile has risen sharply over the past couple of years as he shared footage of himself with top fighters such as Islam Makhachev and Khabib Nurmagomedov.
The 3ft 3in social media star has seven million followers on Instagram and stands just shorter than the average height (4ft) of someone with Dwarfism.
Last year he cashed in on his popularity by signing a deal with the UFC.
He agreed terms on a promotional deal with the organisation and has appeared at numerous UFC events in recent months.
He was spotted in attendance during the recent UFC Fight Night event where Merab Dvalishvili beat Petr Yan via unanimous decision.
Hasbulla is regularly seen living the high life and rubbing shoulders with successful athletes and his appearance on Tyson’s popular podcast will no doubt raise that profile even higher in the US.
Many fight fans dislike the rise of influencers in MMA but that had not slowed the march of Hasbulla’s popularity.
He does not have a strong grasp of English and often works through a translator when touring outside of his homeland.
The Russian has risen to internet fame by posting videos and hanging out with fighters
The social media star has formed a close relationship with fighters such as Khabib Nurmagomedov
A picture shared to his Instagram account shows Hasbulla standing in-front of a McLaren
