Stage set today in Bahrain for ‘clash of technique vs strength’

TDT | Manama                                                               

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

Two of the top featherweights in mixed martial arts will clash in the main event of BRAVE CF 71, which goes down in the Kingdom of Bahrain, today.

Omar Solomanov and Ilyar Askhanov face off knowing that the winner guarantees a title shot at 145 pounds – which is on the line on BRAVE CF 72, on June 23, as the champion Roman Bogatov defends his crown against top contender Nemat Abdrashitov.

The main event bout has been billed as a clash of technique vs strength, with the wizard Solomanov taking on the seemingly stronger Askhanov.

However, it’s difficult to quantify how fair it is to say that Omar’s strongest point is his technique, while Askhanov purely relies on toughness to push through fights.

“’The story of this fight is technique vs strength. But when people say that, I don’t know whose technique and whose strength! When I see Solomanov, yes, I see technique, but I also see strength. I see both attributes in both guys. They’re highly-skilled in all areas of mixed martial arts, but they’re also strong and powerful. So that makes it very interesting, because it is the highest level of MMA we’re talking about here,’’ said Mohammed Shahid, BRAVE CF commentator.

However, BRAVE CF commentator Kirik Jenness pointed out a solid road for Ilyar Askhanov to get it done: make it a dog fight.

“They say ‘you box a fighter, and fight a boxer’ – if you’re less technical than your opponent, you need to make it a dog fight. Get in there, under the hips, grind out a win. And if Ilyar can implement that gameplan, then I absolutely think he can beat Solomanov,” Jenness said.

BRAVE CF 71 is the first event of a series of two cards held by the promotion in the Kingdom of Bahrain. The June 19 fight night will be headlined by the aforementioned featherweight title eliminator bout between Omar Solomanov and Ilyar Askhanov. The event will be broadcast live on BRAVE TV App and Bahrain TV.