MMA fighter Zaki Rasooli is running late. He has a training session in 30 minutes and the gym is all the way on the other side of Kabul, Afghanistan's traffic-clogged capital.
Pro Men's welterweight in South Asia, goes by the nickname "Sang Khor" - "The Stone Eater" - among his legion of fans. He recalls one of his first MMA matches in 2015 as an example of the kinds of struggles MMA fighters have had to face in Afghanistan. "I entered the octagon in this dingy, dark room and there was literally sewage dripping onto the octagon from a sewer pipe above us.
"With each blow, we let the people of Afghanistan know that there are guys like us who can dominate the world of MMA," Rasooli said, looking back on that night.When Rasooli isn't training he's often posting updates to his 50,000 followers on Instagram, where his gruff but affable personality shines through.
He was tending to his family's land in their native Maidan Wardak, a province known for its apples but also for insecurity and Taliban presence. On that afternoon, a bearded man in a black turban approached him. "I know you. I've seen you on TV," the man said in Pashto to an astonished Rasooli. "Aren't you that fighter? I was so happy when you won your last match, we all cheered. Everyone here supports you.
Rasooli and Nazhand both grew up in Kabul, and both men consider themselves self-made. Early on, Rasooli worked at a mechanic, where he taught himself English from the cartoons on TV. Nazhand was once a bookseller, earning 50 Afghanis a day.
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