- Team Tajikistan to face Bahrain in the Quarter-Finals
- National Team includes women athletes for the first time
- ‘To face one of the best teams in the world, Bahrain, is a real challenge for us but Tajikistan is ready to surprise spectators and fans’
Team Tajikistan is pitted against home nation Bahrain at the MMA Super Cup in Manama on 9, 10 and 12 March 2022, broadcast on immaf.tv.
Organised by BRAVE as part of BRAVE International Combat Week, the MMA Super Cup presents the 6 strongest, national amateur MMA teams in the world, according to the IMMAF World Amateur MMA rankings plus 2 wildcard teams. The teams will be facing off to determine the greatest nation(s) in MMA and for the opportunity to win cash prizes of US$100,000, US$75,000 and US$50,000 for first to third place respectively. The prize money is intended to fund the development of the next generation of MMA athletes in the winning nations through their IMMAF affiliated national federations.
Team Tajikistan made its mark on the IMMAF circuit in 2021 coursing a path to the upper echelons of the World Amateur MMA Rankings and claiming medals success across senior, junior and youth championships.
The Tajikistan MMA Federation (TAJMMAF) will be entering women competitors for the first time on the international stage with flyweight Anisa Karimova and bantamweight Shohona Ghozoeva, following dedicated selections for the divisions. Karimova has previously placed first in the Championship of Moscow in Amateur MMA and is a RMMAU champion.
Of the team’s male counterparts, the majority are national champions with competitive experience on the IMMAF platform. Welterweight Jovidon Mahmudov can boast the most IMMAF accolades in 2021 as World Cup gold medalist, World Championship silver medalist and European bronze medalist. Other notable names include featherweight Bakhtiyor Husainov, who became a 3-time IMMAF bronze medalist in 202 in the World Championships, World Cup and European Championships; and bantamweight reserve, Amirhamza Islamov, who attained bronze at the 2021 IMMAF European Championships.
Team Tajikistan’s full athlete line-up is as follows:
Men:
● Bantamweight (135lbs): Akrom Uzakov
Reserve: Amirhamza Islamov
● Featherweight (145lbs): Bakhtiyor Husainov
● Lightweight (155lbs): Masud Odinaev
● Welterweight (170lbs): Jovidon Mahmudov
● Middleweight (185lbs): Khalid Tolibzoda
● Light Heavyweight (205lbs): Abdullokh Nazarov
● Heavyweight (265lbs): Anvar Langarchiev
Women:
- Flyweight (125lbs): Anisa Karimova
Reserve: Manizha Samadova - Bantamweight women (135lbs): Shohona Ghozoeva
Team Coaches: Davron Abdurahmonov, Rustam Ziyaev
Vice-President of the Tajikistan MMA Federation, Bakhtiyor Khojaev, said:
“The MMA Super Cup in Bahrain is a new format of competition between the best federations of MMA where team vs team competes for a Super Cup. This is a great opportunity for us as a young federation to show our athletes’ skills and abilities and achieve experience with the best teams in the MMA world. Our athletes are now training with national and foreign coaches with enthusiasm and patience. To face one of the best teams in the world, Bahrain, is a real challenge for us, but notwithstanding Tajikistan is ready to surprise spectators and fans.”
The MMA Super Cup takes place under IMMAF Amateur MMA Rules and World Anti-Doping Agency Rules. All competitors will be medically precleared by Safe MMA.
The MMA Super Cup takes place between March 8 to March 12, during BRAVE International Combat Week, with BRAVE CF 57 taking place on Friday 11 and an Opening Ceremony on 8 March.
