By Caoilte de Barra
Host nation Australia is bringing the largest team to the 2022 IMMAF Oceania Championships. The squad of eighteen athletes features some of the top talents from across the country. In 2020 they saw four Oceania Champions crowned, and with the competition closed to the region, will be expecting more this time around.
The region hosted the last IMMAF event before the pandemic hit and with restrictions eased, can resume hosting the Championships again.
An Australian team of nine athletes travelled to Abu Dhabi for the 2021 IMMAF World Championships in January and finished the tournament with a silver medal through Erin Carter. There were also plenty of Australian competitors on the Oceania team, which flew over to the MMA SuperCup in Bahrain. The line-up for the upcoming tournament in Brisbane features some familiar names, but some new faces have entered the fray too. The athletes set to represent Australia are:
Women’s Divisions
Eden Gray [Strawweight]
Faine Mesquita [Flyweight]
Kristie-Anne Ryder [Flyweight]
Amena Hadaya [Bantamweight]
Emma Von Ryan [Lightweight]
Alice Jackson [Lightweight]
Men’s Divisions
Adam Assuncao [Flyweight]
Troy Fumo [Flyweight]
Daniel Mitchell [Bantamweight]
Thomas Hunt [Bantamweight]
Antonio Pascalis Cutri [Featherweight]
Ryan Bishop [Lightweight]
Alex Young [Welterweight]
Loni Doyle Filimoehala [Middleweight]
Auryn Pramley [Light Heavyweight]
Sekope Meke [Light Heavyweight]
Kev Sheridan [Heavyweight]
Samir Ali [Super Heavyweight]
Only one of Australia’s champions from the 2020 Oceania Championships, Troy Fumo, is back in action. This time he moves up a weight division in his effort to create history by becoming the first athlete to win Oceania gold at two weight divisions.
Earlier this year, his run at the World Championships got off to an impressive start, defeating Ali Kadhim Al Mayahi with a von flue choke. However, he was outpointed in his next bout. The ever-exciting flyweight contender will be a must-watch in Brisbane.
After featuring at both the Worlds and MMA SuperCup, Auryn Parmley is riding a wave of momentum heading into the weekend. Competing at Light Heavyweight, Parmley had a decision win at each of the competitions he entered this year, with his only loss coming in the quarter-finals of the Worlds.
On the regional scene, he has had some impressive wins, including a tornado kick victory in a title challenge in June last year. He will be the most experienced athlete in his category and eager to best his previous Oceania Championships outing that saw him settle for Bronze.
In the strawweight division, Eden Gray could take over from Olivia Ukmar and be the division’s successor. The BJJ Blue Belt only turned pro this past year and has just Amanda Cairney in her way of securing gold.
You can watch the finals of the 2022 IMMAF Oceania Championships live at IMMAF.tv for subscribers only on the platform worldwide, except for in Oceania, for which broadcast details are to be announced shortly.
