Paul Abraham
The 2026 IMMAF World Championships concluded on Saturday, November 7, in Tbilisi, Georgia. After six days of competition, the final day featured the senior finals. Athletes from around the world competed for the last gold medals of the tournament.
The senior finals featured several submission victories and defending champions losing their titles.
A first-round submission decided the women’s bantamweight final. Rachel Jackson defeated Clémentine Pauty to secure another gold medal for England. The women’s flyweight final also ended by submission, this time in the third round. Pnina Aronov overcame Aisha Smudkova to become world champion and bring gold to Israel.
One of the biggest moments of the day came in the senior strawweight final. The 2025 junior world champion Farhodi Davlatali faced defending senior champion Yerulan Kabdulov. After three rounds, Davlatali won by unanimous decision. The Tajik fighter added a senior world title to the junior gold he won last year.
Already a two-time French national champion and winner of the Netflix series L’Arène, Assita Ouattara added a world title to her record. She defeated Morocco’s Kenza Elkihel by unanimous decision to claim senior women’s strawweight gold.
Another defending champion was beaten in the women’s lightweight final. Martyna Caruk secured a unanimous decision victory over Finland’s Isla Fono to claim gold.
One of the most spectacular finishes of the day came in the heavyweight final. Angola’s Lionel Konda knocked out Dzevad Baltic with a powerful right hook in the second round to claim gold.
A total of 20 senior world titles were awarded on the final day. Of those, 12 were in the men’s divisions and 8 in the women’s divisions.
The championships ended on a high note. Athletes from countries across every continent had the opportunity to shine. Some will return to compete again, while others will move on to professional MMA. Whatever comes next, they all shared the same passion for the sport throughout these six days in Tbilisi.
