5 Things You Might Not Know About Roberto Soldic

Roberto Soldic gets a rare second chance to make a first impression with the Chatri Sityodtong-led One Championship organization.

The 28-year-old knockout artist will collide with Zebaztian Kadestam in a ONE on Prime Video 10 welterweight attraction on Friday at the 1stBank Center in Broomfield, Colorado. Soldic has not tasted defeat in more than four years. He made his promotional debut in December, when his ONE on Prime Video 5 showdown with Murad Ramazanov resulted in a no contest due to an accidental knee to the groin. Soldic entered the match on the heels of seven consecutive victories, six of them finishes.

As Soldic moves ever closer to his upcoming battle with Kadestam at 185 pounds, here are five things you might not know about him:

1. His was a difficult introduction.

Soldic was born on Jan. 25, 1995 in war-torn Vitez, Bosnia-Herzegovina, a city of roughly 25,000 inhabitants situated near the geographic center of the southeastern European nation. It rests 48 miles to the northwest of the capital of Sarajevo. Soldic began his formal martial arts training in judo.

2. He was something of a phenom.

“Robocop” made his professional mixed martial arts debut as a teenager when he took down Ante Alilovic with punches in the second round of their Oct. 19, 2014 confrontation under the Arti Fighting Championship banner. Soldic was just 19 years old at the time. He fought once more before the age of 20, as he submitted Mladen Ponjevic with a guillotine choke in a mere 35 seconds two months later.

3. Hardware validates his hype.

The heavy-handed Soldic was a two-division champion in KSW, where he struck gold at 170 and 185 pounds. He laid claim to the welterweight crown when he forced a third-round corner stoppage against Borys Mankowski at KSW 41 in December 2017 and captured the middleweight belt with a second-round knockout of Mamed Khalidov at KSW 65 in December 2021. Soldic has also held titles in the Superior Fighting Championship, Final Fight Championship and Swiss MMA Championship promotions.

4. He chose his allies wisely.

Soldic operates out of the UFD Gym in Dusseldorf, Germany, where he trains under Ivan Dijakovic. Among others who have linked arms with the respected academy: Abusupiyan Magomedov, David Zawada, Hector Lombard, Lom-Ali Eskiev and Simon Biyong.

5. Opportunity forced him to stretch his legs.

Now 24 bouts into his career, Soldic has already fought in 11 different countries. In addition to two appearances in his native Bosnia-Herzegovina, he has competed in Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro, Russia, Switzerland, Germany, Wales, Poland, England and the Philippines.