- RMMAU to Face Ireland in the Quarter-Finals
- “I can’t hide the fact that we feel lucky with our draw,” says RMMAU Head Coach
Team RMMAU will face Team Ireland under the guidance of Conor McGregor coach, John Kavanagh, at the MMA SuperCup in Bahrain on 9, 10 and 12 March 2022, broadcast on immaf.tv.
Organised by BRAVE as part of BRAVE International Combat Week, the MMA SuperCup presents the 6 strongest, national amateur MMA teams in the world, according to the IMMAF World Amateur MMA rankings plus 2 unified, 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.
Teams RMMAU and Ireland will meet in the tournament’s opening round of the quarter-finals, competing in 9 bouts across 9weight categories. The team that records the most wins in each nations’ 9-bout match-up advances to the next round.
With the 4 top-seeded IMMAF nations placed in opposite brackets, the quarter-finals will also see Team Bahrain up against Tajikistan, Kazakhstan against the Balkan Champions and Team Ukraine face the Arab Champions.
The RMMAU is proud to be the first national team to announce its athlete line-up, as follows:
Men:
● Bantamweight (135lbs): Gadzhimurad Zavaev, Dagestan Rep.
● Featherweight (145lbs): Kurban Zainukov, Leningrad Oblast
● Lightweight (155lbs): Akhmed Khadaev, Vologda Oblast (reserve – Omaraskhab Yusupov, Dagestan Rep.)
● Welterweight (170lbs): Adbulla Aliev, Dagestan Rep. (reserve – Kamil Shaikhamatov, Moscow)
● Middleweight (185lbs): Yusup Magomedov, Moscow
● Light Heavyweight (205lbs): Dzhamal Medzhidov, Voronezh region
● Heavyweight (265lbs): Shamil Kuramagomedov, Dagestan Rep.
Women:
● Flyweight (125lbs): Malika Kuchaeva, Dagestan Rep. (reserve – Lyubov Salnikova, Kemerovo Obl.)
● Bantamweight (135lbs): Tatiana Postarnakova, Kaliningrad Obl.
Coaches: Shamil Alibatyrov, Gasanali Gasanaliev and Andrey Terentiev.
Team Head Coach, Gennady Pavlovich Kapshay, commented:
“The team includes both winners of the IMMAF World Championship held in Abu Dhabi, and the winners of the IMMAF European Championship in Kazan and the Russian Championship in Kemerovo. Today it is objectively the best roster, taking into account the pandemic. I can’t hide the fact that we feel lucky with our draw, since on the other side of the bracket three strong national teams of Bahrain, Kazakhstan and Tajikistan are set to meet early. The dark horse, in my opinion, will be the Balkan champions. To win in each round, it will be sufficient to win five bouts.”
Kamil Shaikhamatov 
Yusup Magomedov 
Kurban Zainukov 
Adbulla Aliev 
Akhmed Khadaev 
Malika Kuchaeva 
Dzhamal Medzhidov 
Omaraskhab Yusupov 
Gadzhimurad Zavaev 
Tatiana Postarnakova 
Shamil Kuramagomedov
The MMA SuperCup takes place under IMMAF Amateur MMA Rules and World Anti-Doping Agency Rules. All competitors will medically precleared by Safe MMA.
The MMA SuperCup is jointly organised by the IMMAF, KHK Sports, Bahrain MMA Federation, and BRAVE Combat Federation. It 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.
