Although it seems ages ago, especially with the approaching of Desert Force Al Academia Season 2, the first Desert Force Al Academia was a hit show, full of drama, entertainment and good fights.
The most dominant student of Al Academia was doubtlessly Mohammad “Killer” Ghorabi. Virtually every fighter who has faced him has fell miles away in terms of power, technique and will. After Al Academia, Ghorabi destroyed his opponent and the show’s welterweight favorite Izz El DeenBelharch in the Al Academia finale by TKO in round 1 and went on to defeat Bachir Majri by TKO in round 2 earning a title shot for the welterweight championship. Striking fear into his opponents even before they enter the cage, Ghorabi always seemed unstoppable and ended every bout he has ever fought in decisively.
However, looking back at Ghorabi’s opponents, there was one who proved to be not as easy as the others, even almost shockingly beating the “Killer”.
Joeshwa Mortada came into Al Academia to fight, and fight he did. After having two gruesome back to back fights and taking a lot of punishment, Mortada was picked to fight Ghorabi for his third fight in the same week! Mortada seemed relaxed and ready to battle, stating that he is ready and “fight” is what he came to do.
While everyone thought it would be an easy win for the favorite Ghorabi, the “Killer” still came in committed and focused. In the fight, Mortada was able to control Ghorabi for two entire rounds using his superior grappling and take-down skills, putting Ghorabi on his back, in a guillotine choke and even mounting him late in the second round. However, though winning rounds one and two on the official scorecard, Mortada’s body looked to finally give up on him while approaching the end of the third round, which delivered an opportunity for Ghorabi to win via what seemed to be an early TKO stoppage. Mortada looked a little upset after the fight was stopped, but quickly went to congratulate Ghorabi for his win.
Mortada:
“I came into Al Academia because I had things to prove to myself and some people around me. I wanted to see how tough and durable I am and Al Academia was the perfect platform for that experiment. After the show, people come to me and say “You almost beat Ghorabi”, stating the circumstances I had to fight under as excuses as to why I didn’t win. Well, guess what.. I lost that fight, he won and there are no excuses. I won’t take his (Ghorabi’s) victory away from him by using or making any excuses. In fighting, someone wins and the other loses, but I come to fight and compete every time. He (Ghorabi) respects me, I respect him and I like how he is constantly developing as a fighter. Good luck to him.”
Since then, Mortada has participated in grappling tournaments and had three mixed martial arts fights, two of which were at the IMMAF world championship in Las Vegas. He is always looking to improve and develop as a fighter to be able to put on the best performance he can. It will be interesting to see what Mortada plans for next in his fight career. Stay tuned to find out.
