‘It was love at first sight’: Russian MMA manager on new life in Malaysia

“Wait, can we pause for a moment? I feel so nervous when I know I’m being recorded.”

My interview with Nursultan Srazhidinov about the Russian’s new life in Malaysia came to an abrupt halt, and mind you, we were only on the first question.

It is funny how he feels that way, though, considering he often appears on TV, albeit in the background. If you’ve ever watched any MMA fights, especially ones in Asia, you’d probably see him near the ring or octagon.

Srazhidinov is what’s called a combat sports manager. He founded KROC Sports Management together with his partner in April 2023.

Based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, he scouts, selects, and signs fighters from around the world, then manages their careers and journey towards becoming world champions.

Nursultan Srazhidinov has more than 300 fighters of all weight class in his roster. Source: Nursultan Srazhidinov

From having only a few fighters under his management when he first started, he now has more than 300 from all around the world with connections to major gyms and teams in South America, North America, Africa, Europe, and Asia, particularly in Central Asia and Southeast Asia.

But before he became the go-to person to build fight careers, Srazhidinov was just a regular guy alone in a country he had never been to before.

Nursultan Srazhidinov built a life in Malaysia after his brother recommended him to come visit. Source: Nursultan Srazhidinov

Alone in Malaysia

Srazhidinov first visited Malaysia at the end of 2016 as a tourist. He flew almost 8,000 kilometres to visit his brother, who was studying for his master’s degree in electronic engineering at Universiti Putra Malaysia, and to have some brotherly fun around the continent.

“We visited a couple of Southeast Asian countries, but the moment I arrived here, I felt something special about Malaysia. It was love at first sight.”

It was the tropical climate, friendly people, and food that won him over. And nobody could tell him otherwise.

Even when he was back in Russia, he started to miss life in Malaysia as if it were already his second home.

“Whenever I visit my family back in Russia, I cannot stay there more than three weeks, because after a few weeks, I start getting bored, and then I feel homesick,” he says. “A lot of things I start missing immediately, even to the simplest things like mamak restaurants. I hate wearing shoes all the time there and wearing jackets. I prefer to just stay here because anytime I can just go out with my shorts, t-shirt, and slippers!”

Even when his brother had left Malaysia to continue his studies in Hong Kong, he decided to return to Malaysia again, but for longer.

This time, he wanted to spend a life in Malaysia and complete a bachelor’s degree at HELP University, one of the top private higher education institutions in the country.

At HELP University, Nursultan Srazhidinov has learned to promote tourism at both local and global levels. Source: Nursultan Srazhidinov

He chose to study for a Bachelor of Tourism Management (Honours) there. For almost four years, Srazhidinov learned to promote tourism at both local and global levels by sourcing, analysing, and critically evaluating physical and natural landscapes, their attractions, and how human-made events impact the environment.

While studying, he worked as a part-time guide for Russian tourists too. And his life in Malaysia in addition to his genuine love towards the country only helped him score more jobs with them.

“To be a tour guide, you need to love the place where you guide them,” he says. “Because, I mean, some people might do it just for the money, but I wasn’t doing it just because of the money. It is because I wanted to do something that makes me like what I am doing.”

And for a can’t-sit-still person like him, staying stagnant in Malaysia is not an option.

From his tour guide gig, he worked as a Russian interpreter for LanguageLine Solutions, a global leader in interpretation, translation, and localisation services.

One of his interpreting jobs involved working with Russian fighters, and little did he know that that day marked the beginning of his own brand within the combat sports field.

It has been nine years since living a life in Malaysia, and Nursultan Srazhidinov is not planning to leave anytime soon. Source: Nursultan Srazhidinov

Living his best life in Malaysia

Srazhidinov has built a steady life in Malaysia for more than nine years and is enjoying every second of it.

Not only did he spend his university days here, this was also the country he was introduced to combat sports management and built an internationally known brand, where he met his wife, and now, where they are raising a young daughter.

“I’m very grateful to Malaysia and love Malaysia because it has given me the most experience,” Srazhidinov says.

“So I would advise international students not to be scared and just, without any hesitation, apply. I’ve gone through everything myself, so I know what I’m talking about when I say life in Malaysia is indeed one of the best options they could choose.”