Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates – The ancient oasis city of Al Ain was treated to an evening of combat sports action that was unprecedented in the proud regional history of the Middle East, with seven thrilling finishes dropping the collective jaws of the sold-out crowd at the Adnec Centre.
This card was curated to deliver stoppages and breakneck action rather than divisional permutations but little did anyone realise to what extent it would deliver on pure adrenaline throughout the evening. The catchweight main event featured a Russia versus Serbia clash between Basir Saraliev (10-1) and Evgeny Morozov (9-2) that erupted into a three-round war that dragged both combatants into deep waters. Ultimately it was Saraliev who took the judges decision handing ‘The General’ his second loss in his career.
The co-main event which also took place at catch, did not last as long, thanks to a resurgent Alex da Silva (25-6) who returned to the scene of his last defeat in February to put on a clinic against a spirited Kurbanali Isabekov (9-4) who had no reply to a flurry of second round strikes which forced the referee’s intervention. The crowd were enlived by the reappearance of Persian kickboxing sensation Abdullo Khodzhaev (7-1) who had told the media during the fight week press conference that his next bout would have to be Arabian lightweight title and to prove his credentials for such a claim put his opponent, Turan Ahmadov (5-3) away in the first-round courtesy of a blithering striking onslaught.
Sticking with the memo was Welsh debutante John Martin Fraser (10-5) who faced the veteran Egyptian slugger, Abdul Elwahab Saeed (8-9-1) who succumbed to a first-round ground n’ pound barrage after being taken down by the former Eternal MMA champ. Who knows if he will ever be matched with his original opponent, Tarek Suleiman (13-9) ever again? Certainly the best performance of the night belonged to Egyptian bantamweight prodigy, Flobater Fares (2-0) who made short violent work of his formerly undefeated Pinoy foe, Alex Asio Jr (3-1) with a fluid Muay Thai combination from hell.
The evening was notable for the packed-out crowd that had travelled not only across the United Arab Emirates, but also from around world to attend an evening that even by Warrior’s lofty standard truly stood out. So much so that the promotion announced its return to The Garden City in November, which will take place after UAE Warriors 64 which will feature no less than three title fights during Abu Dhabi Showdown Week.
The entire UAE Warriors 63 results:
LHW Nutsalkhan Magomedov def Ion Chirilov by Arm Triangle Rd 1
BW Flobater Fares def Alex Asio Jr. by KO/TKO Rd 1
FLW Sarah Mahmood def Ilknur Kurt by UD
LHW: Magomed Tuchalov def Khabib Gaziev by KO/TKO Rd 2
LW: Slimen Hassaini def Mirmehti Miriyev by UD
MW Pedro Oliveira def Ali Foladi by RNC Rd 2
CW: John Martin Fraser def Abdul Elwahab Saeed by KO/TKO Rd 1
LW: Abdullo Khodzhaev def Turan Ahmadov by KO/TKO Rd 1
CW Zarrukh Adashev def Luke Shanks by UD
LHW: Magomed Saidov def Valmir da Silva by UD
CW: Alex da Silva def Kurbanali Isabekov by KO/TKO Rd 2
CW: Basir Saraliev def Evgeny Morozov by UD
Further information available at www.uaewarriors.com
