Paul Abraham
The 2026 IMMAF World Championships continued on Friday, November 6, in Tbilisi, Georgia. The fifth day featured the junior finals. Athletes from around the world competed for gold.
A special guest attended the event: Ilia Topuria, former two-division UFC champion and one of Georgia’s biggest sporting stars.
Georgia’s Nika Beridze submitted Doniyor Kuvandikov with a first-round guillotine choke. He became junior super middleweight world champion and received his gold medal from the former UFC champion.
Rahimjon Davlatzoda defeated Dzhamal Kamilov by first-round submission to win junior middleweight gold for Tajikistan.
Amir Nasrullaev submitted Asroriddin Giyosov in the second round. He claimed junior flyweight gold with the first finish of the day. Nasrullaev submitted all five of his opponents during the tournament.
Russia topped the junior medal table with 12 gold medals. Nurmagomed Magomedov was among the standout performers. He defeated Dominik Sitko, the 2025 IMMAF Youth World Champion.
Other Russian champions included Anzor Bogatyrev, who won junior strawweight gold, and Ali Khizriev, who claimed the bantamweight title. In the women’s divisions, Anastasiia Tiunina also won gold. She defeated her opponent by decision to become atomweight champion.
Ukraine finished second in the junior medal table with two gold medals. Liliia Huhliak defeated 2025 Asian Champion Aida Ablayeva in a back-and-forth fight to win strawweight gold. It was Ukraine’s first gold medal of the championships.
Her compatriot Anastasiia Horodivska followed with a victory in the flyweight final.
England also celebrated a junior world title. Valentina Pensavalle, the 2025 IMMAF Youth World Champion, made the move to the junior division and won gold with sterling performances to announce herself as one of the most exciting and charismatic new talents to join the adult ranks.
For many athletes, this was their first experience on the world stage. Some will return next year, while others may move on to professional MMA. Whatever path they choose, the junior championships represent an important milestone in their careers.
The junior finals are now over. The 2026 IMMAF World Championships conclude tomorrow with the senior finals.
