Ramadan Gitinov (4-0-0) secured a blazing 8-second win over Beknazar Zhanybekov at BRAVE CF 79 in the Kingdom of Bahrain to close 2023 in style. Gitinov injured his opponent, resulting in a technical knockout victory extending his winning streak to 34 wins. Yet another milestone by the fighter from KHK MMA is that he secured 8 wins in 2023, including 4 wins in his professional career. The former three-time amateur world champion is fast climbing the lightweight ranks at BRAVE Combat Federation (BRAVE CF) at the age of 26.
The Gold Standard Camp
In 2024, he is set to face one of his toughest opponents to date as he will face Prince Lolia (3-0-0) actively supported by his nemesis Eliezer Kubanza (5-0-0) hailing out of the Democratic Republic of Congo. The war of words has already divided Arab fans and African MMA fans as Gitinov will have an emotionally charged battle ahead of him at BRAVE CF 82 held in Mauritius. The 26-year-old is preparing for battle with a formidable camp at KHK MMA in Bahrain. He was joined by two of the biggest names in the history of MMA, undefeated former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov, and reigning UFC lightweight champ Islam Makhachev. Both legends were original members of the inaugural KHK MMA team, which was formed in 2015 by His Highness Shaikh Khaled bin Hamad Al Khalifa.
However, his opponent already mocked the three-time IMMAF amateur world champion, discounting his training with Nurmagomedov and Makhachev. Lolia mocked the training camp calling out that Gitinov is neither Nurmagomedov or Makhachev disrespecting the Dagestani wrestling-heavy gameplan. The Congalese prodigy addressed Gitinov as a hugging clown and expressed his confidence to dominate the KHK MMA fighter who trains alongside Nurmagomedov and Makhachev.
War of Continents
Lolia went on to further attacking Ramazan reminding about the time when Eliezer Kubanza knocked out Gitinov in the amateur ranks.
“Since Eliezer Kubanza knocked you out, I see the loss is still on your mind, I love this uppercut that lost, it will stay on your mind forever and you will not take it back hugging hugging fighter, your all career you never even drop a single fighter down, shame. He [Ramazan] is the one who likes to hide his pretty face. I hope he learns how to dodge punches or maybe he will go for takedowns to hide his face like always, tell him I’m not his girlfriend, this is MMA. He must be a man and face reality,” Lolia added.
Rivalry from IMMAF Days
The fight between Ramazan and Kubanza happened back in 2017 at the IMMAF African Open Championship when these two locked horns in the finals of the Welterweight category. It was Kubanza who came out on top in the fight with a third-round stoppage and in turn, handed Ramazan his first and one of only two losses in his 30-fight amateur career.
At BRAVE CF 82, Lolia will be looking to follow in the footsteps of his fellow countryman and mentor Kubanza and hand Gitinov his first loss in Professional MMA. As for Ramazan, a rematch with Kubanza is off the table due to the weight class differences but he could get his revenge if he manages to outclass Kubanza’s teammate Lolia at BRAVE CF 82.
BRAVE CF 82 will mark BRAVE Combat Federation’s return to Africa and its debut event in Mauritius. It will be the second event of the year for the MMA organization that has hosted events in most number of nations worldwide. The main event of the fight night will be headlined by the Bantamweight title fight between Jose ‘Shorty’ Torres and Nkosi Ndebele which is the first title fight trilogy in the history of BRAVE CF.
Fight card
About the author
Hari Bhagirath is the former Chief Creative Officer at BRAVE Combat Federation. Currently, he heads Strategic Relations and Financial Communication for a major Fortune 100 organization. He is also the co-founder of Totem Capital, a private wealth management initiative.
