Day 3 of the 2023 IMMAF World Championships saw the stakes rise to a near-insurmountable level as athletes competed for a spot in the semi-finals.
After being in the shadow of Ukraine and Kazakhstan for much of the tournament, Tajikistan finally took the lead with 16 wins across the day. Fans worldwide tuned in to see the nation’s star athlete, Otabek Rajabov, take on Belgium’s European Champion, Movsar Ibragimov.
The two elite bantamweights put on a riveting back-and-forth bout that went to the absolute wire. However, despite Ibragimov’s best efforts, the judges awarded Rajabov the win, sending the Tajik protege into the semi-finals of the Senior Bantamweight division.
While Ibragimov may have come up short, his countrymen had more success. Patrick Haibora scored yet another sensational highlight reel victory, while Stiven Shehu continued to impress.
Finland’s Sani Brannfors made her mark, claiming a stunning submission finish in the first round. However, she will undoubtedly have one eye on fellow bantamweight Josiane Oliveira. The Brazilian IMMAF veteran scored yet another spinning back kick TKO. Both women are well on track for a potential blockbuster finale clash if they get by their semi-final opponents.
Czech’s Tagir Machmudov was successful in his return to the IMMAF Fighting Area. The former World Champion will be looking to secure his second Junior World gold medal.
One of the smallest nations competing, French Polynesia, has cast off its underdog status. Their Junior Lightweight prospect, Ariimana Lehartel, claimed an impressive armbar submission win to book a place against Ukraine’s Ivan Yushchenko.
France is another nation that continues to impress. Samba Sima, a newcomer to IMMAF competition, has now claimed three successive victories. He will take on Buzurgmehri Saifullozoda next, a product of Tajikistan coming off a 33-second anaconda submission.
The semi-finals will see everything ramped up to an even higher notch, with athletes guaranteed a medal should they be victorious. Kazakhstan’s Yersultan Shakenbay will make his long-awaited first fight of the championships after back-to-back weigh-in failures from his opponents, while the Women’s Featherweight division will finally feature, with the likes of England’s Lisa Zimmo and Czech’s Katerina Lisova all making the walk.
