Exclusive | The Scholar and the Fighter, From PhD to PFL: Dr. Souhil Tahiri “Don’t set limits on yourself.”

ByTimothy Wheaton
Souhil Tahiri

Souhil Tahiri has defied the odds for his entire life. Despite doing poorly in school, he would later get his PhD. Despite not wanting to be a professional fighter, the French-Algerian is now competing in the lightweight semi-finals in PFL MENA taking place on September 20.

Dr. Souhil Tahiri

All he wanted to do was try to quit smoking, so one day Dr. Souhil Tahiri registered at an MMA gym. Speaking in an interview with Tim Wheaton of LowKickMMA, he explained:

“I just wanted to quit smoking and get in better shape. I’d never done combat sports or any sports before that. My main goal was to quit smoking and maybe get some abs or something basic like that.”

But what added to his drive was coaches telling him that he should not be doing this as he was a scholar. At this point, he was working on a PhD in mathematics. Therefore, a career in MMA simply didn’t add up. But he persisted anyway as he pushed himself to constantly be a better version of himself.

“I kept going with it. I started both journeys at the same time, and everybody kept telling me that it was too late to do combat sports or boxing, that I needed to focus on studying. Even in boxing, when I went to the gym, the coach would say, ‘You’re just a scholar. You’re good at studying, no need to put so much effort into boxing. You won’t go any further.‘”

A vital pillar of Souhil Tahiri is that one never stops growing, or learning. Whether it’s in the ring, cage, or classroom; people should strive to be their very best. Therefore, he kept pushing himself.

“Don’t set limits on yourself … I’m trying to motivate those around me. If you have goals, believe in them and work for them. Maybe you’ll get results, maybe not, but you’ll always benefit in some way.

“Yes, it’s possible. You have to put in hard work, believe in what you’re doing, and just keep showing up. Never let yourself down. Even on bad days, keep going to the gym, keep going to school. I failed many exams and lost many fights, but I kept showing up no matter what. Alhamdulillah, now I’m in the PFL, I have my PhD, and I have a job. So, yeah, things are going well.“

PFL MENA 3

Now, Dr. Souhil Tahiri will face the experienced Sanda fighter Mohsen Mohammadseifi in the semi-finals of the PFL MENA tournament. PFL MENA 3 goes down on September 20.

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See the full interview with Souhil Tahiri below:

Souhil Tahiri
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Timothy Wheaton is a combat sports writer who covers MMA, Kickboxing, and Muay Thai. He has been an avid follower of these sports since 2005. Tim has even covered the UFC, GLORY, PFL, Bellator, and more, in person at live events.

With Low Kick MMA, Tim has contributed interviews, articles, and podcasts.

Tim also works with a host of other media sites such as Calf Kick Sports, Sportskeeda MMA, Combat Press, Fighters Only, MMA Sucka, Vecht Sport Info, and Beyond Kickboxing. Tim is the authority on kickboxing and an MMA journalist who has covered K-1, PRIDE FC, UFC, GLORY Kickboxing, Bellator, PFL, ONE Championship, and plenty more.

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