Jordan, the hub of MMA in the region, has been improving drastically in the recent past. More and more Jordanian fighters are continuously popping up. One of which is Youssef Abu Shreekh, a former amateur fighter and one of the first to compete in MMA in the country.
Abu Shreekh will be making his debut in Desert Force on December 15 as it hits KSA for the first time. Coaching and training is nothing new for this heavyweight as he managed to train with Team Altaamari, house of many other MMA fighters. Abu Shreekh has also been raising a new generation of Jordanian fighters who recently had the chance to showcase their talent in the first amateur Jordanian based promotion JAC.
“The JAC competition, a positive move for MMA in Jordan, was incredibly successful. In general the fights were on a good level but of course with time even better performances will show. I was impressed with the performance of the female fighter Lina Fayyad who exemplifies a very good level of skill for a female fighter. Mohamed Seeto who fought in the main event also showed a high level of confidence and skill with an impressive finish. Also one of my students Mohamed Jamal impressed all the coaches and fans that night and will surely learn from this experience.”
After signing a five fight deal with Desert Force, his first opponent Jarjis “Man mountain “Danho will welcome him to the desert force cage in what could be the hardest Debut for any fighter in Desert Force. Abu Shreekh, however, is more than confident that his team and training will get the job done.
Though many people are under the assumption that Abu Shreekh is from Team Source or Team Intensiti, he actually trains and fights under Coach Ali Altaamari, who he considers the best striking coach in Jordan. The assumption comes from the fact that Abu Shreekh and some of his teammates used to train Brazilian Jiu-jitsu with Team Source, as well as Muay Thai. All of them however are now combined to form Team Ali Altaamari. Currently, some of the other coaches Yousef trains under are Coach Raed Mish3al for BJJ, Yahya Abi Tabikh for wrestling and Kamal AbouSatti and Ahmed Toiymat for Boxing.
“I am training differently for this fight with Team Altaamari. Since I signed a deal for 5 fights with Desert Force things are a lot more serious, so training is different to that of the previous amateur fights.”
I have been training for 6 hours a day, and I am in full fight mode for this upcoming chance to take the shield.
“I watched some of Danho’s fights, and I will be more than ready for him. I think I have an edge both in the stand up and on the ground, but he is a good fighter which I can’t take easy. My eyes are on the Shield.With all due respect to Jarjis Danho, he will be my first step towards the Shield and Mark Tanios will be next Inshalla. Both these fighters have proven to be tough and great at what they do, but my trust in God, myself and my coaches is very high. And good things will happen.”
I honestly hope that he would win but I think Jarjis is on a whole different level than any1 in Desert Force