IMMAF a great step: Kooheji

Manama : With the international mixed martial arts federation officially granting Bahrain the right to host the fourth edition of the IMMAF world amateur championships this November, Hamza Kooheji, the first MMA super star to come out of Bahrain shared his thoughts about the meaning and effects of this ground breaking move.

“I never thought that the IMMAF world championships could take place in Bahrain, that’s a great step for all the up and coming athletes and the entire sports sector in Bahrain.”

This development is even more surprising considering it will be the first time the event will be held outside Las Vegas, Nevada.

The implications of this are huge for the Kingdom as the event will literally bring fighters from all over the world, with some of the best prospects on the planet battling for worldwide recognition. Not to mention, the aspiring Arab MMA fighters in the Middle East now have a clear goal to aim towards.

In your amateur career, no one is counting your fights and results. Not all the champions you see today were undefeated as amateurs.” Kooheji in turn did not have the opportunity to compete as an amateur.

“When I started, we barely had a small gym and a couple of guys training with us and It was either you compete as pro, or you sit down and wait until something else comes up. I wanted to fight!”

Kooheji knows the feeling of competing in the Kingdom very well as three of his five wins were in Bahrain with his latest battle at Brave 2: Dynasty in December.