Oktagon 83 heavyweight Lazar Todev has had something of a rollercoaster ride over the past year and a half.
In December 2024, Todev was scheduled to face Oktagon MMA heavyweight champion Hatef Moeil at Oktagon 64. However, during a pre-fight press conference, an altercation broke out and Moeil actually threw his belt at the challenger, although it was instead hit and cut Oktagon co-founder Pavol Neruda.
Promotion officials believed that Moeil was responsible for the altercation and imposed a heavy fine on the champion. In turn, he withdrew from the battle – on the day of the battle.
“It certainly wasn’t that fun, but this is part of the game. Sometimes someone can cancel the fight because of an injury or something else,” Todev (12-7) recently told Cageside Press. “I accepted, and a few months later we did [made] the fight against Will Fleury. This one was also a good option. Tough opponent, but a good option.”
The Fleury fight came after Moeil parted ways with Oktagon and either vacated or was stripped of his heavyweight title, depending on which side of the split you look at things from. Todev ultimately lost a decision against Fleury, now a two-division champion in Okgaton who recently defeated former UFC star Martin Buday.
“This is what I expected, that Will Fleury would win this fight by KO,” Todev said of Fleury’s recent victory. The goal for Todev now is clearly to fight his way back to Fleury and the heavyweight title. He got off to a good start in his last fight, beating UFC veteran Luis Henrique Barbosa.
Now Josh Parisian, who fought twice on the Contender Series and performed The ultimate fighter before his own stint in the UFC, is next.
“This match is perfect for me because look, my goal is to fight the best fighters and be the best fighter one day,” Todev said. “That’s why Josh Parisian is a great fight. It’s great to fight someone who’s a good fighter.”
Parisian’s name value is an added bonus. “Maybe this can be useful, yes. Maybe this can be very useful, because he is a big name, and to beat him there has to be something.”
“Two wins against fighters, ex-fighters from the UFC, it’s something big for me. I like this,” Todev added.
That said, the road back to Fleury and heavyweight gold could be a long one. It appears he is set for a rematch with Daniel Skvor after the pair had an in-cage showdown last month. The Irish star has also suggested he could drop down to middleweight and attempt to reach the third belt.
“We’ll see, because the situation now with Will is that he’s a superstar. He’s a two-division champion now,” Todev noted when asked about a possible rematch. “It’s tough to plan something with him. That’s why, if I can win the title now.” [challenger]Of course I’ll be the man, I’ll be ready. But if not, I’m going to look forward to the next fight. It doesn’t matter who comes.”
What if Oktagon wants to win an interim heavyweight title while Fleury pursues fights in other divisions? “That’s an interesting question,” Todev admitted. “Maybe we can make it, maybe we can organize that. The question is: who is the man who deserves to fight for an interim title?”
Watch our full interview with Oktagon 83’s Lazar Todev above. The event will take place on Saturday, January 31, 2026 in Stuttgart, Germany.
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