Photo Credit – Akl Yazbeck, Sports Code
There is no doubt that Mohammad Fakhreddine has become a Desert Force icon starting from his strive towards the title, the first Academyia show all the way to his 84kg title defense. Beating fighters of high caliber in this division and moving down to 77 kg, Fakhreddine seemed as a promising contender in the welterweight division after a convincing performance in his first bout in this division.
This time, his opponent was a well experienced fighter, who showed a great heart and fair performance coming from a well reputable European organization, Cage Warriors. Jarrah, having a good record of 3-1 against international fighters, had to compete for the first time in Desert Force, and expressed his desire to snatch the title.
Came the fight between the two welterweight titans, Fakhreddine dominated the first round and came close to the finish, but his below par stamina and poor fitness betrayed him and showed to be the decisive factor, from which Jarrah benefited and turned the outcomes for his favor, ending the fight with a submission in the second round.
But the question remains, how would have the fight ended if Fakhreddine was ready fitness and stamina wise? Would he be able to keep a dominant pole? Or would Jarrah’s submission skills remain the dictators of the outcomes? It is not a matter of questioning any of both fighters’ skills, yet stylistically this bout seemed like a street fight for over 6 minutes, then came the submission. This is surely Fakhreddine’s worst performance since his MMA debut, while Jarrah’s debut in Desert Force seemed to be positive against a solid fighter.
Fakhreddine would be surely mulling for a rematch, which is expected to be heard from him very soon, and is up to the Desert Force management to decide.
All we have to do is to wait and see.
