The 2021 IMMAF Amateur MMA Award winners were revealed last night (27), at a black-tie ceremony at the Millennium Hotel, in Abu Dhabi. The event took place during the 2021 IMMAF World Senior & Junior Championships and brought together representatives from over 30 National Federations, in addition to the IMMAF staff and media.
Every year, the IMMAF Awards celebrates the various achievements across amateur mixed martial arts of IMMAF athletes, coaches, officials and National Federations. In this edition, the winners were chosen for their performance between November 2020 to October 2021.
As one of the highlights of the night, President Kerrith Brown and CEO Densign White awarded Michele Verroken, Anti-doping Consultant, for her work in the past year that culminated in achieving IMMAF’s WADA signatory status. The International Mixed Martial Arts Federation is the first organization to do so under the revised Policy for Acceptance of New Signatories that came into effect at the beginning of 2021.
Inside the octagon, the winners of the night were Sabrina Laurentina de Sousa (Bahrain) as Best Female Athlete; Ramazan Gitinov (Bahrain) as Best Male Athlete; and Otabek Rajabov (Tajikistan) as Best Junior Athlete and Best Newcomer.
See all winners below.
WINNERS OF THE 2021 IMMAF AMATEUR MMA AWARDS
- Best Female Athlete: Sabrina Laurentina de Sousa (Bahrain)
- Best Male Athlete: Ramazan Gitinov (Bahrain)
- Best Junior Athlete of the Year: Otabek Rajabov (Tajikistan)
- Best Newcomer of the Year: Otabek Rajabov (Tajikistan)
- Best Performance: Ayan Tursyn (Kazakhstan)
- Host Federation of the Year: RMMAU
- Best on Social Media Award 2020: French Mixed Martial Arts Federation
- Best National Federation for MMA Coaching: Polynesian Federation of Wrestling, Mixed Martial Arts, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Associated Disciplines (FPLAJDA)
- IMMAF Anti-doping Award: Bulgarian Mixed Martial Arts Federation (BULMMAF)
- Best Grading Scheme Award: Panhellenic MMA Federation
- MyNextMatch Award: International Mixed Martial Arts Federation of Australia
- Best IT team: MMA League of Ukraine
- National Federation of the Year: Mixed Martial Arts Zambia
- Regulatory Excellence and Contribution Award: Scott Manhardt and Manap Kabdiyev
- President’s Award: Michele Verroken (Sporting Integrity) for her contribution to achieving World Anti-doping signatory status for IMMAF; Mohammad Al Hosani on behalf the UAE Jiu Jitsu and MMA Federation for their hosting and rescuing of the 2021 IMMAF World Championships
Michele Verroken accepts President’s Award 
Ramazan Gitinov accepts Best Male Athlete Award 
Sabrina de Sousa accepts Best Female Athlete Award 
Rob Hewitt (Fighters Only CEO) presents President’s Award to UAEMMAF
