Kubanychbek continues reign of dominance!

TDT | Manama                                                       

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

The 77th edition of BRAVE Combat Federation that took place during BRAVE International Combat Week 2023 witnessed high-octane action, showcasing seven stellar fights that thrilled the packed arena.

Abdisalam Uulu Kubanychbek continues his reign of sheer dominance as he proved once again that he can overcome one of the toughest adversaries in the division. In the co-main event, a star was born as Kamal Magomedov ended the title reign of Marcin Bandel by way of technical knockout bringing the Super Welterweight Championship title to Russia.

Kubanychbek started strong trading exchanges with Lucas Martins. Martins pushed back with a wealth of experience at his side. A slick double-leg attempt from Kubanychbek after stunning Martins with an overhand right became the turning point that decided the fate of the bout.

Kubanychbek found success on his second takedown attempt, working his way to Martin’s back, and finishing him with a rear naked choke. In the co-main event, both fighters tested each other, landing thunderous strikes. Bandel put pressure on his opponent, nearly putting an end to the fight.

Magomedov made a comeback as he hulked up and retaliated with fury. Bandel was caught off guard by Magomedov’s counters. Magomedov’s confidence grew as he began landing devastating punches to finish with a well-deserved technical knockout victory.

In the opening fight of the night, the giant from Slovenia, Haris Aksalic, made a memorable debut showcasing pure dominance by destroying his helpless opponent Eid Amer by way of TKO. Aksalic showed no mercy with his XXXXL fists as he bombarded strikes upon the fallen Amer in 1:27 minutes of the first round.

Nicholas Hwende from Zimbabwe went toe-to-toe against Mutolibsho Akobirov from Tajikistan in a bantamweight clash that witnessed both fighters thrilling the packed audience with strikes that echoed throughout the arena.

Hwende made a comeback surviving gruesome submission attempts from his foe to navigate deep waters to make a comeback and dominate the bout by a unanimous decision. In the second round, Hwende shook Akobirov but couldn’t take advantage.

He repeated his strategy forcing Akobirov to switch to a grappling game that was reversed into a knee bar attempt allowing the national hero from Zimbabwe to get to the top position and rain punishing elbows. The most anticipated clash between the rising sensations of the flyweight division witnessed Vitalii Yakymenko unleashing his grappling dominance.

Yakymenko handed Maysara Mohammed his first loss in his professional career as he locked a rear naked choke to bring glory to Ukraine. In an open war between the grapplers, Adilet Nurmatov and Nikolay Samusev started testing the waters with high-precision strikes to revert to their basic instinct for grappling.

Nurmatov took down Samusev twice, quickly establishing ground superiority. Nurmatov attempted a rear naked choke on both occasions. However, Samusev defended well and refused to let Nursmatov lock both arms in. In the second round, Sumusev immediately looked to engage but slipped and injured his arm on the ground for the referee to call in a medical stoppage.

Nurmatov announced to the BRAVE Nation his intentions for the featherweight world championship title. Two warriors went all-in with a fiery exchange while Eskaraev looked for early takedowns. Under pressure, Eskaraev was hit by an accidental low blow.

However, once the fight restarted, Eskaraev took Tedeev down and kept control until the end of the round. The two warriors started the second round by punishing each other. While Tedeev was looking for big shots, Eskaraev got the better of him for another takedown.

Tedeev was keeping Eskaraev on his guard even though he was getting hit with powerful shots. Eskaraev’s constant pressure paid off as he attempted an arm triangle then took Tedeevs back to finish with a rear naked choke.