ABU DHABI WARRIORS: ROCKIN' KL WITH MMA ACTIONS

International Pro MMA actions thrilled KL fight fans last 8 OCT 2016 at Kuala Lumpur badminton Stadium. This was for the Abu Dhabi Warriors. After locking down semi-finals in lightweight and middleweight tournament with the events in Thailand and Bulgaria, the series move to the featherweight and welterweight division, in KL 

Fans that filled the Stadium Cheras were treated to an electrifying night of action inside the ring. Partnered with Elite Boxing who oversaw the Muay Thai part of the event. The MMA fight cards:

Featherweight Tournament
Gibum Moon (South Korea) vs. Rodolfo Marques (Brazil)

Yerzhan Estanov (Kazakhstan) vs. Ismael Padavia (Afganistan)

Welterweight Tournament
Ivica Truscek (Croatia) vs. Giovanni Melillo (Italy)
Michael Dubois (Switzerland) vs. Nayeb Hezam (Algeria)

After an EFN Muay Thai super fight that warmed up the audience in the arena it was time for the opening MMA fight of the evening with Gi Bum Moon from South Korea fighting against the experienced Brazilian Rodolfo Marques.

Marques who’s a BJJ black belt fought his 30th professional fight and cashed in the extensive ring experience compared to his opponent. There was a lot of grinding throughout the fight as Marques tried to take down Moon who proved to be a tough nut to crack. 

We have seen attempt after attempt but Moon was rock solid and kept his composure. He had his shots but in the end it was Marques who took the split decision.
Rodolfo Marques def. Gibum Moon via Split Decision, Round 3, 5:00 

Next up were Ivica Truscek from Croatia and Giovanni Melillo who represented Italy. 

Ivica Truscek (31-25-0) is definitely one of the most experienced fighters in the MMA arenas all over the world when it comes to comparing his record against all other guys in the tournament. In the last 5 years alone he has fought in over 40 fights which is something unprecedented in the world of mixed martial arts.

His unique stance has surprised many men that faced him in the ring or cage. On top of that, he’s a deadly finisher having won 65% of his fights due to KO or TKO.

Melillo who started his pro career just last year was on a perfect 4-0 run until May of this year when he encountered Karl Amoussou (1-0 as a Warrior) who has inflicted him the first defeat of his career.

Once again the fans witnessed an up-tempo fight even though Truscek had over 50 fights more on his score. The experienced Croatian whose stance is unique in the MMA world had a lot of problems with the fit and muscular Italian who started taunting him from the start. 

But Truscek is far too experienced to fall to that and didn’t show any affection at all as Melillo was inviting him to a slugfest. They exchanged some serious punches and kicks through all three rounds but no one had any real opportunity to finish his opponent. 

It was up to the judges to declare the winner and the split decision went to Melillo in the end although Truscek was also expecting the win. Melillo moved to 5-1 while Truscek will have to wait for another opportunity for his 32nd career win. 

Giovanni Melillo def. Ivica Truscek via Split Decision, Round 3, 5:00

In the second featherweight fight of the evening Estanov from Kazakhstan and Padavia from Afghanistan battled it out for a place in the semi-final and a matchup with Rodolfo Marques who clinched a spot earlier in the evening.

Although Estanov is 4 years younger than Padavia his professional record is quite impressive.

Estanov is entering the tournament riding on a 2-fights winning streak, with the last one against Chinese powerhouse Lianjie Liu at Art Of War FC event in April this year. This submission machine with a 44% submission finishing rate in his career is a renowned BJJ practitioner.

36-year old Padavia lives in France but he’s originally from Afghanistan. He’s the Cage Warriors and KOC veteran and also the reigning KOC featherweight Champion. Padavia trains with the Werdum Combat Team which is run by the former UFC heavyweight Champion Fabrizio Werdum.

Someone’s winning streak is about to be ended that night as the two meet inside the ring. The winner will advance to the Road to Abu Dhabi featherweight tournament semifinals where he will face Rodolfo Marques

On a night of split decisions it was time for a third one in a row. Padavia has shown some of his slick BJJ moves in the opening round when he nearly submitted Estanov but the Kazakhstani survived. In the next two rounds the momentum turned in Estanov’s favour who completely bounced back after the tough Round 1 and eventually celebrated his 19th career win. 

Yerzhan Estanov def. Ismael Padavia via Split Decision, Round 3, 5:00

The last fight of the evening delivered some of the much-anticipated surprise factor as 13-years younger Michael Dubois from Switzerland squared off against Nayeb Hezam from Algeria. It was Hezam’s second appearance on the Road to Abu Dhabi. 

Last year he had to shake the hands of Diego Gonzales after dominating most of the fight in Bangkok, Thailand. This time Dubois didn’t stand a chance. The young gun came out guns blazing but after a swing and a miss it was all Hezam till the end. Hezam grabbed the legs of Dubois as his punch missed and moved the fight into the red corner. 

Once he got his opponent’s back, Hezam dominated. Dubois tried to defend himself and get out of the grip but Nayeb was just too powerful. Michael tapped after 90 seconds in Round 1 giving Hezam a well-deserved victory that placed him in the semi-final where he’ll meet Melillo.
Nayeb Hezam def. Michael Dubois via. Submission (Rear Naked Choke), Round 1, 1:30

Now the Abu Dhabi Warriors are moving to Brazil for the last leg of the 2016 Road to Abu Dhabi series. On November 1 we are coming to Sao Paolo.

EFN8 - NEXT STOP: MALAYSIA, ON THE TWIN ROAD TO THE KINGS CUP AND ABU DHABI WARRIORS.

EFN8 - NEXT STOP: MALAYSIA, ON THE TWIN ROAD TO THE KINGS CUP AND ABU DHABI WARRIORS.

Once again featuring both Muaythai and MMA fights on the bill, the 2016 Elite Fight Night (EFN) Series heads to Malaysia on October 8 for the third of four regional qualifiers on the road to twin year-end finales in Bangkok and Abu Dhabi.

Bow Suweilek will replace Aiman Red Army

Having launched with EFN6 in Thailand on August 12, EFN 2016 then moved on to Bulgaria for EFN7 on September 24 for the second event of the joint Muaythai and MMA series. Following EFN8 in Kuala Lumpur, the last of the qualifiers will take place in Sao Paulo, Brazil to determine the final places for the two series-end finales.

The MMA final will take place under the Abu Dhabi Warriors banner in the UAE capital on November 22, while the Kings Cup Final in Bangkok on December 5 will determine the EFN 2016 Muaythai champion.

The Road to Abu Dhabi...last Sept

The Muaythai at EFN8 will include one 4-man tournament at 72.5kg and one 4-man tournament at 65kg, with both tournament winners progressing to the Kings Cup Final.

The first semi-final fight in the 72 kilo tournament sees Malaysian fighter Muhammad Al-Salyuti face Thai opponent Thirapong Kiatkorwit. Muhammad holds several local titles and Thirapong was a contender in last year’s EFN 4 man in Kuala Lumpur, losing to the eventual winner Sean Kearney in his semi-final bout.

The second semi-final fight sees Bow Suweilek is native Thai, will be representing Malaysia, face Irish prospect Kurtis Michael Allen, who is the least experienced of all the contenders, but comes with a crowd pleasing, entertaining style and will be looking to put his name on the map with a win in this tournament. 

Bow enroute to winning the Super 4 last year in KL

Bow is a Muaythai coach attached to Borneo Combat Gym (BCG) in Labuan. He was the winner of EFN Super - 4 last year in KL. Almost contemplating hanging up his glove this year, but after BCG founder, coach Alvin Chong gave him a proper diet and nutrition plan through Usana products, Bow felt like a reborn fighter. 

In the 65 kilo tournament, the first semi-final sees Ncedo “Nintendo” Gomba of South Africa face South Korean Kim Dong Hwan. Ncedo, is a coach in TopDog factory Muaythai in Miri and he always brings an aggressive action packed fight to the table and Kim will be looking to cause an upset and make a name for himself.

The second 65 kilo semi-final sees Malaysian fighter Wes Jaya take on Iranian Amir Naseri in another intriguing match-up. Wes Jaya is the founder of Wes Gatos Muaythai in KL. He’s the Canadian Muaythai Champion and is a well sought after Muaythai trainer across Asia. Hailing from Miri Sarawak, Wes also dabbled into MMA before & holds a 3-1 records.

An exciting Super Fight on the card sees Thai fighter Nonthachai Kiatkorwit face Malaysian star and former SEA games silver medalist in Silat, Iwan Merican.

The fight card will also feature four MMA fights with the four winners earning their place at the Abu Dhabi Warriors final.

EFN brings you professional set up to give fight fans the ultimate fight experience

EFN8 has been produced by series organizers Elite Boxing in conjunction with local partner, Leko Beh, the owner of Dragon Fight Club and a passionate supporter of Muaythai in Malaysia. Elite Boxing co-founder, Toli Makris, commented
“We are really grateful for the support from Leko. We always receive a warm welcome in Malaysia and great support from sponsors, fighters and of course the local fans.”

Indeed, it is the fourth year in a row that Elite Boxing has staged an event in Malaysia. Having first brought their TVC brand to Malaysia for a Thailand VS Asia event in 2013, EB has returned with an Evolution event in 2014 and introduced EFN last year.
“We have promoted all three of our main brands here,”
said Makris.
“However, it is the first time for us to bring MMA to Malaysia. The new format of EFN will also help us to attract an MMA audience and we know that there is huge following for MMA in Malaysia.”



To find out more about the EFN Series, click here: www.eliteboxing.tv/efn