Dustin Akbari is powerful, compact lightweight who possesses strong takedowns from in close. His first preference is always to take his opponent down, and training with Team Alpha Male he has continued to make steady strides in his overall wrestling game. Physically strong, Akbari does make good use of his raw power but is still a little too reliant on his natural strength. He's able to muscle opponents to the mat and power out of submission attempts and tight positional situations, and although that's worked well on the smaller shows, against fighters on the bigger stage he will need to continue working on his technical abilities. A power grappler, Akbari is more comfortable fighting from top position where he displays excellent top control and promising ground and pound capabilities. He likes posturing up and standing in his opponents' guard, where he can work his punches and elbows on his opposition. Blessed with heavy hands, Akbari can throw powerful punches on the mat and is fully capable of finishing with his fists. Dustin's submission game is also coming along and he shows nice awareness and defensive skills to avoid being put in trouble from the top. Although he's still much more effective fighting from top position, Akbari's BJJ and submission skills continue to improve. He is particularly dangerous with leg locks and heel hooks, has shown continually improving sweeps and transitions, and has progressed to the point where he will pull guard if he feels it's to his benefit. A little wild, Akbari needs to learn to harness his strength, still rushes things a bit and will need to work on his defensive guard game

Although Akbari's does have a karate background, his primary strength is his grappling game and he makes a concerted effort to take the fight to the ground whenever he has a chance. Akbari is still uncomfortable standing and will need to put some good work into his striking game. Early in his career he hasn't shown great hand speed or defensive skills, and his footwork and overall technical skills require improvement. Akbari's punches lack technique and precision and he will resort to throwing wild haymakers. Because of that he can be countered and hit, as was the case in his fight with Evan Dunham where he was thoroughly outclassed on his feet. While Akbari's grappling potential is encouraging, he isn't a dominant wrestler with the takedowns to compensate for poor standup skills, and he will need to focus on his striking.