European prospect of the year: Abdoul Abdouraguimov (15-1, 1 NC)
Like Lopes, this is the second award Abdouraguimov has earned in this three-part series. As stated in part one, Abdouraguimov arguably had the best year of his career. He has two wins as he beat former UFC fighter Godofredo Pepey. That was for the Ares FC title and then he defended it against veteran Karl Amoussou. Abdouraguimov should never have been mentioned here due to the fact the UFC went to Paris this year and he was an obvious choice to join that card. Snubbed by the UFC or not, he deserves some recognition for the year he put together. Abdouraguimov has done so much at welterweight he’s opening up in 2023 going for the Ares FC middleweight title. If he can manage to become an Ares FC double champ 2023 will be an even bigger year for him.
Asian prospect of the year: Makoto Takahashi (15-1-1)
There were a few options to represent Asia but Takahashi had an outstanding year. Takahashi made his US debut last November for CFFC, in a fight aired on UFC Fight Pass. The Japanese star, before coming to the US, won a fight in Rizin and defended his DEEP flyweight title. In his CFFC fight, he won the promotion’s flyweight title in a memorable performance. 3-0 in 2022 with a statement year behind him.
