Shaikh Khalid attends MMA final qualifying rounds

Shaikh Khalid aims to develop the sport and form a team for Bahrain

DT News Network

Manama

Under the patronage of the First Deputy Chairman of the Supreme Council for Youth and Sport and President of the Bahrain Athletics Association Shaikh Khalid bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the third and final qualifying round of the National Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) Championship was held on Thursday night at Khalifa Sports City Hall in Isa Town. It is being organised by the Khalid bin Hamad Foundation.

On arrival, Shaikh Khalid was welcomed by Minister of Youth and Sports Affairs Hisham Mohamed Al Jowder, International Mixed Martial Arts Federation (IMMAF) Chief Executive Densign White, British Judo Association (BJA) Chairman Kerrith Brown and a number of officials in the youth and sports sector.

Shaikh Khalid attended the final qualifying rounds, which featured 16 fighters in eight bouts from various weight categories from different local martial arts’ schools in the Kingdom.

In the finale, French fighter Francis Ngannou defeated Brazilian fighter William Baldutti in the second round.

Shaikh Khalid met White and Brown to review ties to upgrade Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) in the region, underscoring the importance of this sport.

He lauded the efforts behind organizing the championship, and expressing his delight for the participation of all the fighters and the high technical standards of the fighters during the rounds.

The first qualifying round was held in March and the second last month at Riffa Club Sports Hall, which featured six bouts in each qualifying round.

These tryouts were announced to select a five-man team to represent Bahrain in the Ultimate Fighting Championships taking place from July 6 to 11 in Las Vegas, US.

Shaikh Khalid said the qualifying rounds aimed to find and create a solid ground for MMA in Bahrain. It also aims to promote the culture of this sport that is already spreading among the Bahraini youth, thanks to the opening of several MMA schools and clubs, he said.

He added these rounds encouraged the youth to practice the sport within a safe framework and legal regulations, which would place Bahrain on the GCC, Arab and world map in this sport.

A large crowd came to watch the third and final tryouts and they watched two fighters at a time battle it out reminiscent of the ancient Gladiators in an enclosed cage.

Bouts between the two fighters lasted three rounds of three minutes and were played out in the flyweight, featherweight, bantamweight and middleweight divisions.

Shaikh Khalid is working to upgrade the profile of this sport in Bahrain and form a professional team to compete at international events. The vision is 'Determination, Strength, Challenge.'

Results: Third qualifying tryouts: (Flyweight) Hassan Ayyad bt Fahad Abdulrazzaq, (Featherweight) Isa Mohammed Al Omairi bt Raddad Al Dossary, (Bantamweight) Mahmood Abbas bt Naji Mohammed, (Featherweight) Maitham Ahmed bt Mohammed Adnan, (Bantamweight) Abdulla Seena bt Yousif Jawad, (Flyweight) Hussain Ayyad bt Atif Mohammed, (Featherweight) Abdulla Al Fayez bt Ali Hassan Al Showaikh, (Middleweight) Ali Jahromi bt Rashad Dagher.

Previous winners: (March): Abdulla Seena, Atif Mohammed Khadim, Hussain Ayyad, Abdul Aziz Monojahry, Mohammed Al Mulla, Mohammed Atif. (April): Atef Mohammed, Abdulla Seena, Ali Hassan Showaikh, Abdulla Al Fayez, Jassim Farhan, Ali Ebrahimi.