title: Nikolai Zouev
text: # Nikolai Zouev
  
  Nikolai Nikolayevich Zouev (Russian: Николай Николаевич Зуев; 20 May 1958 – 21 May 2022) was a Russian mixed martial artist. He competed in the Heavyweight division.
  
  ## Career
  
  He had a background in sambo and freestyle wrestling, starting a rivalry with Volk Han.
  
  He debuted on 13 July 1993 at Fighting Network Rings "RINGS BATTLE DIMENSION '93" against Todor Todorov.
  
  He spent most of his career in Fighting Network Rings in a variety of fighting codes including professional wrestling, Sambo and Mixed Martial Arts. He had multiple matches against his rival Volk Han and Mitsuya Nagai.
  
  He stopped fighting for RINGS on 21 February 1999 in a loss against Magomedkhan Gamzatkhanov as the promotion was shifting towards only doing MMA matches.
  
  He became a coach after his retirement, helping to train fighters such as Sergei Kharitonov.
  
  Zouev died on May 21, 2022, a day after his 64th birthday, from years of heart disease.
  
  ## Mixed martial arts record
  
  Professional record breakdown :
  
  | 5 matches | 1 win | 4 losses |
  | - | - | - |
  | By submission | 0 | 2 |
  | Unknown | 1 | 2 |
  | Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location |
  | Loss | 1-4 | Magomedkhan Gamzatkhanov | Submission | Rings: Final Capture | 21 February 1999 | 1 | 4:49 | Japan |
  | Loss | 1-3 | Akira Maeda | Submission (rear naked choke) | Rings: Mega Battle Tournament 1997 Semifinal 1 | 25 October 1997 | 1 | 5:17 | Japan |
  | Win | 1-2 | Mitsuya Nagai | N/A | Rings: Budokan Hall 1997 | 22 January 1997 | 0 | 0:00 | Tokyo, Japan |
  | Loss | 0-2 | Tariel Bitsadze | N/A | Rings: Battle Dimensions Tournament 1996 Opening Round | 25 October 1996 | 0 | 0:00 | |
  | Loss | 0-1 | Mikhail Ilyukhin | N/A | Rings: Battle Dimensions Tournament 1995 Opening Round | 21 October 1995 | 0 | 0:00 | |
  