Bellator MMA prospect Aviv Gozali wants to fight 4 times this year and bring a championship bout to Israel

• Aviv Gozali, 21, returns to the Bellator MMA cage for a fight Saturday broadcast on Showtime.
• The unbeaten super prospect told Insider about his determination to fight four times this year.

Bellator MMA mega prospect Aviv Gozali wants to fight four times this year to put himself in a position where he's able to bring a championship bout to Israel in 2023.

A 21-year-old ground-game expert, Gozali has six finishes — all submission — from six wins in six fights, all inside the Bellator cage.

He has ended fights with a kimura, anaconda choke, and even set the record for fastest submission at Bellator 225 in 2019 when he defeated Eduard Muravitskiy in 11 seconds with a heel hook.

Gozali told Insider at the time that it was a record he had his eyes on in the locker room before the match, and so it is mind-blowing that he had the determination and ability to go out and do it in just his third match.

Since then, he has continued to grow and is No.9 in Bellator's lightweight ranking.

Speaking to Gozali this week, ahead of his seventh pro fight at Bellator 274, which takes place Saturday at the Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Connecticut, the fighter told Insider about his learnings to date and ambitions this year.

"I'm just growing up in this sport," said Gozali, as he focuses on taking opponent Bobby Green down this weekend.

"Every year, every fight, I'm getting better. I'm learning this sport more from the little details to the big details. Everything is going amazing now. I'm the best I've ever felt."

Though Gozali calls that 11-second finish "the biggest moment" of his career, there are other personal highlights as he seemingly makes a stamp on the sport whenever he competes.

He competed at Bellator 259 in May last year, and though he beat Sean Felton with a first-round heel hook, the preparations were complicated, he said.

"The last fight was the most important because the training camp for this fight came after a long time that I was off the cage. And I had real problems getting ready for this fight after COVID.

"I learned a lot about myself, the weight cut, my body. I had a lot of time to figure out how to be the best version of myself."

The Gozali story is one of family and an unshakeable father-son bond

Away from the battleground and the chokeholds, there lies a sweet story about a proud father and loving son.

Whether it's Bellator superstar fighter A.J. McKee and his dad Antonio, or Floyd Mayweather Jr. and his old boy Floyd Sr., father-son duos can dominate the combat sports landscape.

Aviv, with his pops Haim — a 48-year-old combatant with 15 wins (one knockout and 14 submissions) against six losses — is the next in line.

"He's my biggest supporter," said Aviv, with his eyes wide open, smiling, whenever he thinks and speaks about his family.

"I started when I was a kid. He put me in this sport, and I dedicate all this for him. That's how I'm seeing it.

"It is the best thing to happen in my life. My father is also an athlete, also a fighter, and he gave everything for me to continue the legacy."

Aviv and Haim have even competed on the same card, on the same night, for the same promotion, when they fought separate matches at Bellator 234, which took place November 14, 2019, at the Menora Mivtachim Arena in Tel Aviv, Israel.

The Gozalis fought on the show's main card, with Haim stepping into the cage one fight before Aviv.

When Aviv should have been going through the final preparations of his fight backstage, he couldn't help but watch how his dad was getting on in his bout.

It was distracting. Largely because, as Aviv recalls, Haim was getting hit. And getting hit. And getting hit.

It created one of the "craziest" memories for young Aviv, who "got mad in the dressing room" over how the night was panning out.

But it all worked out well in the end, though, as Haim battled back and secured a first-round heel hook against Artur Pronin before Aviv finished Zaka Fatullazade with an anaconda choke in just 56 seconds.

"That night was amazing for both of us," Aviv told us. "All my family were supporting us and supporting the sport. I have the best family."

Gozali now wants to bring a Bellator title fight to Israel

As an Israeli fighter coming out of Bat Yam, and with the Bellator 234 show in Tel Aviv creating such an impression on him, Gozali wants nothing more than to bring a Bellator title fight to his home country.

Doing so will be a challenge.

The company's champion, Patricky Pitbull, rules over the division, above contenders Sidney Outlaw, Brent Primus, Benson Henderson, Usman Nurmagomedov, and Islam Mamedov. They are all ranked above Gozali.

But Gozali has youth on his side, and as a mega prospect still forging his name and reputation in this fight game, he seems determined to compete frequently this year and rise through the rankings so that he may get his wish next year.

"I want to have as many fights as I can," Gozali told Insider.

First, Gozali must defeat Bobby Green at the Bellator 274 event on Saturday, broadcast on premium U.S. network Showtime.

Whether it's Green or a ranked opponent, Gozali sees the fight going the same way. "They're going to get finished. One way or another. And this fight is not going the distance. It's not going to be a decision win. I know my level.

"I have respect for Bobby Green. He's much older than me. He's a great fighter and a tough opponent. But I'm just confident in myself, I know myself, and I know nobody can stop me.

"I'm good everywhere in the fighting game. I've been working on the fighting game all my life. Nothing can surprise me in the cage. I'm ready for everything."

Such is Gozali's hunger to fight, he wants to add his name to the Bellator 277 event — arguably one of the greatest events the California-based MMA promotion has ever put together, in April. He said he wants to finish Green "quick" and then "jump into another one."

"I'd love to fight over there," he said of the April 15 show. "I'm planning three fights or four fights this year, and next year, I'd love to fight for the belt in Israel and make history."

Judging by his career so far, few would bet against him getting that shot.