BRAVE CF’S PROVEN EUROPEAN TRACK RECORD COULD IGNITE MMA BOOM IN ITALY

Seef District, Bahrain - 28 July 2021

History, arts, and food will forever be associated with the rich culture of Italy. But little did many living outside Europe know that sports in the country has a long tradition.

Like in most European nations, football is widely popular in Italy. The national team has won the FIFA World Cup on four different occasions, most recently in 2006.

Meanwhile, automobile racing comes in as a close second with many Italian engineers and drivers having contributed much to the said sport.

When it comes to combat sports, Italy has produced a handful of notable names such as fencer Edoardo Mangiarotti and professional wrestler Bruno Sammartino.

But as far as mixed martial arts (MMA) is concerned, it has not caught on yet. All that could change on August 1st as BRAVE Combat Federation makes its first venture on Italian soil.

The Bahrain-headquartered outfit is set to host BRAVE CF 52: Bad Blood in the beautiful city of Milan, featuring a Light Heavyweight World Championship clash between middleweight titleholder Mohammad “The Latest” Fakhreddine and Mohamed “L'Ambiance" Said Maalem.

It is a welcome development for The Golden Cage--a local MMA promotion that has been spearheading the sport's rise from obscurity in the country since 2017.

It has been an uphill climb for the Italian MMA scene. Despite churning out top-caliber competitors like Marvin Vettori, Alessio Sakara and Alessio Di Chirico, it still does little to prevent many talents from leaving home to find greener pastures as opportunities range from low to none.

Ardent to push MMA into greater heights in Italy, The Golden Cage found an ally in BRAVE CF, an organization that has held 51 shows in 22 different countries—seven of which are European nations such as Northern Ireland, England, Sweden, Russia, Slovenia, Romania and Belarus.

“We have visited so many countries throughout our journey to help facilitate a global ecosystem for MMA. Our goal, apart from national sports development, is also to bring a positive change to MMA that will see the best talent from each country becoming global stars with talent being the only variable,” BRAVE CF president Mohammed Shahid stated.

"There are plenty of European fighters who are yet to be given an opportunity and we look forward to showing the excellence of European fighters to the world," the head honcho added.

For 2021, Europe has been the center of BRAVE CF’s attention, kicking off the year with a stacked card in Sochi, Russia last January.

The company upped the ante last June 4 by staging its maiden show in Minsk, Belarus, catering 11 high-octane bouts that managed to feature six up-and-comers from the host nation.

On August 1, BRAVE CF will be breaking new ground, widening its footprint in the continent.

With the foothold that BRAVE CF has already established in Europe, Swiss standout Kevin Ruart feels that Italian MMA could benefit the most from the promotion's forthcoming foray in Milan, Italy.

"BRAVE CF has top-level fighters on their roster that will keep you on the edge of your seat. Aside from that, they offer world-class production. Look at the events they held in the past. The production value is second to none. Truly marvelous," Ruart said.

“Combining good cage action and world-class production, I think that's the brand of MMA the Italian people will have to watch and will turn them into fans of the sport. And BRAVE CF can offer that to them."

Italian fans are in for a treat as their very own Enrico “The Killing Machine” Cortese gets the spotlight in the co-headliner as he squares off with Russian grappling wizard Rustam Chsiev.

The rest of the explosive main card will likewise serve as a showcase for a host of the very best international talents in MMA.

Former BRAVE CF Featherweight World Champion Elias “Smile” Boudegzdame will make his much-awaited return as he is slated to face France’s Brice “Lion Kid” Picaud.

On the other hand, former BRAVE CF Welterweight World Champion Abdoul “Lazy King” Abdouraguimov looks to continue his ascent in his new division by locking horns with 2021 Knockout of the Year candidate Nursulton Ruziboev.

Chechnya-born Swiss standout Husein Kadimagomaev is scheduled to battle Agshin “Warrior” Babaev of Azerbaijan, while 2020 BRAVE CF Breakout Fighter of the Year awardee Mochamed “The Beast” Machaev takes on Gamzat Magomedov.

BRAVE CF BECOMES PROVING GROUNDS OF BURGEONING FRENCH MMA’S TOP STARS

Seef District, Bahrain - 26 May 2021

As a nation with over 67 million inhabitants, France is a major part of the European landscape, and when it comes to martial arts, it has always been held in the same esteem as its neighboring countries—Greece’s Pankration, Russia’s Sambo and Switzerland’s Schwingen—for the prominent self-defense known as Savate.

Now, there is a new breed of warriors looking to put France on the combat sports map once again, and they plan to do so by plying their trade in the world’s fastest-growing mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion.

MMA is still relatively new to France after the legalization of the sport in January 2020, but it is developing quickly and there are plenty of outstanding homegrown talents climbing their way up the ranks in BRAVE Combat Federation.

Leading the pack is BRAVE CF Lightweight World Champion Amin “Fierceness” Ayoub, who holds a professional record of 16-4 with eight victories by way of submission and two via knockout.

Ayoub, who is currently riding high on an eight-bout winning streak, carved his name in the annals of MMA history at BRAVE CF 44 in November 2020 by dethroning Cleiton “Predador” Silva via an emphatic fourth-round stoppage.

Standing shoulder-to-shoulder with Ayoub is Benoit “God Of War” St. Denis, an undefeated super lightweight who owns an immaculate 7-0 standing with a 100 percent finishing rate.

St. Denis has been nothing short of spectacular since arriving in the Bahrain-based MMA outfit. In three of his last four outings, he authored a pair of submission wins and a total demolition of British veteran Mario “Rude Boy” Saeed within two rounds.

As St. Denis—a recipient of the BRAVE CF 2020 Submission of the Year award—moves closer to the upper echelon of the organization’s stacked 165-pound weight class, another Frenchman is making waves as part of the active roster.

Hailed by pundits as the No. 1 lightweight in Western Europe, Ylies Djiroun (18-6) made a triumphant promotional debut in the headliner of BRAVE CF 48: ARABIAN NIGHT this past March by submitting Russia’s Abdul-Rakhman Makhazhiev in the third round courtesy of a guillotine choke.

While it is a performance deserving of an ovation, Djiroun continues to marvel at the warm reception that he got as a newcomer.

“I’ve fought for many organizations. I’ve been here and there, but not once I was featured on a poster. But they (BRAVE CF) did that for me. In my first fight, my photo was on the poster. That means a lot to me. It’s important,” he said.

“I am happy to be with BRAVE CF. I want to be here for a long time,” Djiroun added. “I don’t know what the future holds, but if you’re going to ask me, I just want to stay here. They treat me well, and the people behind it are kind. I don’t see myself leaving BRAVE CF.”

Rounding up the elite cast are Ibrahim “Ibra Kumite” Mane (8-4), Abdoul “Lazy King” Abdouraguimov (12-1), Michael “The Soldier” Aljarouj (7-4) and Yanis “The Galactic” Ghemmouri (8-1).

According to company president Mohammed Shahid, the level of athletes within the roster is attributed largely to BRAVE CF’s scouting and connection building.

‘’We have the best scouting program in the world, there’s no doubt about it,” the head honcho shared. “That’s because we connect with MMA people around the world, we connect with the gyms, with their national federations, with everyone involved in the sport. That’s how you unearth the gems that we have.”

The signature French tri-color will be shining brightly on the undercard of the much-awaited BRAVE CF 51: THE FUTURE IS HERE, which takes place at the state-of-the-art Falcon Club Arena in Minsk, Belarus on June 4th.

Djiroun is penciled to duke it out with Englishman Sam “The Future'' Patterson, while Ghemmouri makes his maiden BRAVE CF appearance against hometown favorite and fellow debutant Vladislav Novitskiy in a three-round bantamweight contest.

With the foothold that BRAVE CF has already established in Europe, Djiroun truly believes that the balance of power in the continent has apparently started to favor the promotion.

“They are the only organization to hold events in Europe on this scale. No other promotion was able to do what BRAVE CF did in Europe. In my opinion, they’ve already taken control of Europe,” he declared.