BRAVE CF Lightweight champion Abdisalam Kubanychbek is gearing up for his first official title defence as he will be fighting Georgian superstar Raul Tutarauli in the main event of BRAVE CF 87 in the Netherlands, on September 22.
While a win could catapult Kubanychbek as the greatest fighter in BRAVE CF history, for the Kyrgyz superstar, the fight is about inspiring the next generation of fighters in his country.
MMA in Kyrgyzstan has grown by leaps and bounds thanks to the success of Kubanychbek in BRAVE CF. He has been unstoppable in the organization and the exposure that he has gained competing in the most global MMA organization has trickled down to his home country, inspiring the next wave of MMA talent from the nation.
For Kubanychbek, while winning the Lightweight title was an important milestone, he believes defending the belt will have an even greater impact.
“We try to set an example for the younger generation, so we do not stop at what we achieved. We do not want young guys to have the idea that becoming a champion is easy. Being a champion means training hard, not skipping training, and putting in even more effort. This is our main goal,” he noted in a recent interview.
Kubanychbek will have an opportunity to do just that when he fights Tutarauli at BRAVE CF 87 in the Netherlands.
Not only will he have the chance to inspire the next generation of MMA talent from his country, but Kubanychbek can also break the Lightweight title curse in BRAVE Combat Federation as no Lightweight champion has been able to defend the title successfully in the organisation. While Kubanychbek was scheduled for his first title defence at BRAVE CF 77, his opponent, Lucas Martins missed weight, subsequently making it a non-title fight.
Now, the champion is back, hoping to make history and become the first fighter to defend the BRAVE CF Lightweight title. It will be easier said than done for the Kyrgyz star as Raul comes in with an impressive resume and is a two-division regional MMA champion, looking to continue the dominance of Georgian fighters in the MMA world.
As Kubanychbek prepares for the upcoming fight, he is aware of the challenge Raul presents.
“We watched Raul’s fights. For 2 months now, together with our coaches, we have been studying his tactics. We are preparing for his fighting style. We noticed that he is a well-rounded fighter, he is good both in wrestling and striking. We analyzed all these points and are ready to surprise him. God willing, I will be able to demonstrate all my developments during the fight. No one can give guarantees, not even Raul. I’m not afraid of him. We have won before and we will again” he added.
BRAVE CF 87 will mark BRAVE Combat Federation’s second event in the Netherlands following the organization’s debut event in the nation earlier this year with BRAVE CF 83. The event will be held in association with Enfusion’s ECE MMA brand and follows BRAVE CF 86 in Bulgaria.
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