Avizo Lanamai

After Avizo Lanamai’s professional debut, his coach explained a detail that never appears in a win-loss record. Abhishek Negi switched stances, so the plan was to attack his lead leg, avoid overcommitting with the hands and wait for the heavier attack when his stance changed. The knockdown, Khriemelie Metha recalled, came with Negi standing southpaw.

In that August 2022 interview with LockerRoom, Metha also described a leg-lock entry Lanamai had been drilling backstage shortly before the fight. Lanamai attempted it towards the end of the first round; his coach admired the sequence while acknowledging the risk. The account came from his own corner, but it offers a rare look at the preparation behind a regional fighter’s first professional appearance.

Lanamai beat Negi by unanimous decision at Matrix Fight Night 9 on 24 June 2022, according to MFN’s bout history. He was one of three winners from The Combat Academy Nagaland that night. Eastern Mirror’s contemporary report also recorded victories for Arsenba Ozukum and Imkongsunep Jamir, all training under Metha.

His next appearance tested a different part of the preparation. Speaking to the media in Dimapur after MFN 10, Lanamai said his opponent had changed late, following more than two and a half months of training. The replacement was Dushyant Singh, whom he submitted with a first-round rear-naked choke in Dubai on 18 November 2022. MFN records the finish at 3 minutes 32 seconds.

The Morung Express’s report of that conversation, published on 27 November, also captured a practical change. Metha said the promoter covered flights, accommodation and medical expenses, and spoke about Lanamai and Ozukum reaching the point of being paid professionals. The team was discussing how to sustain a fighting career as well as how to win the next bout.

Lanamai’s first professional defeat followed against Rahul Thapa at MFN 12 on 1 July 2023. MFN lists a unanimous decision. His return to winning came a year later at Bidang Fighting Championship 6 in Guwahati, with a first-round knockout of Arun Nager on 21 July 2024.

There had been another opponent change. LockerRoom’s report after BFC 6 said a planned bout with Afghanistan’s Zahoor Shah had fallen through before Nager stepped in. Lanamai used the win to call for the winner of a forthcoming Shyamanand–Thapa fight. The report placed him at The Combat Academy and Kaizen MMA, establishing a training connection between Nagaland and Bengaluru by July 2024.

He beat Mohsin Shaikh by unanimous decision at MFN 16 on 28 February 2025. Then, on 2 May 2026, he faced Shyam Anand at MFN 18 in Greater Noida’s Shaheed Vijay Singh Pathik Sports Complex and won a split decision after three rounds. The Morung Express’s report again identified The Combat Academy Nagaland and Kaizen MMA Bangalore as his teams.

The result was his third successive professional win after the Thapa defeat. Sherdog’s bout history records the Guwahati finish as a head kick, followed by the two decision victories. By May 2026, Lanamai had gone from a debut alongside his Nagaland teammates to a submission win abroad, two opponent changes and a winning run through the Indian circuit.