Three world champions from different martial arts look to shine at BRAVE CF 55

TDT | Manama

The Daily Tribune – www.newsofbahrain.com

BRAVE Combat Federation is home to elite mixed martial artists from different parts of the globe, but it also serves as the proving ground for practitioners who became World Champions in various disciplines.

Three of them will be given the privilege to strut their wares on the global stage of MMA, competing at the highly-anticipated BRAVE CF 55 set for Saturday, November 6 in Rostov-on-Don, Russia.

Ali Bagautinov

As far as successful crossovers go, Ali “The King Puncher” Bagautinov stands out above the rest.

Throughout his career spanning nearly 12 years, the Russian powerhouse has accomplished everything there is to accomplish both at the national and regional levels. But the only accolade missing in his trophy room is a coveted World Title in the sport. He is a three-time Sambo world champion and Pankration World Cup Champion.

The 36-year-old Dagestan native will have the opportunity to inch him closer to his goal of adding the words “World Champion” to his impressive résumé as he is slated to square off with Jose “Shorty” Torres in the semifinal round of the prestigious BRAVE CF Flyweight World Title Tournament, which will headline the promotion’s return trip to Russia.

Artur Sviridov

Bagautinov’s compatriot Artur Sviridov will be one of the organization’s blue-chip recruits scheduled to make a promotional debut at BRAVE CF 55. But before he turned pro in MMA nearly eight years ago, he made a name for himself by winning the Kickboxing World Cup. Now, his dreaded pedigree in the standup department will be one of the many things fans are anticipating this weekend.

Sviridov is booked to collide with French super welterweight Ibrahim “Ibra Kumite” Mane of France in the co-main event of BRAVE CF 55.

Rizvan Abuev

Building a reputation for being a three-time Pankration World Champion, Rizvan Abuev will bring his heavily-regarded ground game and tenacity to the forefront in a three-round flyweight MMA encounter against American veteran Sean “Shorty Rock” Santella at BRAVE CF 55. Santella, who has yet to win under the Bahrain-based outfit’s banner, will have his hands full versus Abuev.

The Russian has not lost a fight since 2018 and will get the luxury to have the home crowd cheering for him on Saturday.