Adrian Bartosinski Denies Salahdine Parnasse’s Bid to Become Triple-Champ at KSW 89

JUMPING KNEE!!!!

🇵🇱 @bartos_mma 👑 XTB #KSW89 pic.twitter.com/VmFqkC6DWy

— KSW (@KSW_MMA) December 16, 2023

History was attempted but not made Saturday night as Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki welterweight champion Adrian Bartosinski foiled double champ Salahdine Parnasse’s quest for a third title in a major mixed martial arts organization. After five gritty rounds, Bartosinski (14-0) successfully retained his belt after bullying his way to a unanimous decision (49-46, 49-46, 48-47) in the KSW 89 main event at PreZero Arena in Gliwice, Poland.

Parnasse (18-2) tried to do something that no fighter has ever done and quickly found out how difficult it would be. Bartosinski used his superior size to bully and push Parnasse’s back toward the fence and keep him at bay. The fight was mostly spent in the clinch where Bartosinski was able to ragdoll and stifle Parnasse’s offense.

When the two fighters were disengaged, the bout evened out as Parnasse’s speed became apparent, but Bartosinski’s elevated power from being a true welterweight caused the double champion to be cautious. Bartosinski put Parnasse on full alert with a flush right knee that dropped him in the second round. Parnasse wouldn’t see serious danger for the rest of the fight, but he wouldn’t take chances either. It was clear that he was the smaller man in the clinch, yet he seemed content with locking up with Bartosinski for long periods.

KSW middleweight champion Pawel Pawlak defended his belt in style against former champion Michal Materla in the co-main event. Pawlak and Materia chose to stay on their feet and trade for most of the 25-minute affair, but that didn’t play out well for the former champ.

Pawlak notched his first successful title defense by boxing circles around the 39-year-old Materla en route to a unanimous decision (49-46, 50-45, 50-45). Pawlak popped Materla with jabs and straights for most of the fight but couldn’t hurt the former middleweight kingpin. Materla’s willingness to come forward and press the action led to some entertaining exchanges, but Pawlak’s movement was too much to contain. Materla looked a step behind Pawlak (23-4-1), as does most of the KSW Middleweight division. With a 5-0 record in the promotion, the former Ultimate Fighting Championship fighter has made a home in Poland’s premier organization and could look to rule for a long time.

Damian Janikowski utilized his Olympic-caliber wrestling to upset former middleweight title contender Tomasz Romanowski en route to a slim unanimous decision win (29-28, 29-28, 29-28). Romanowski had Janikowski on skates in the first round, but Janikowski recovered and did what he does best. Romanowski couldn’t stop Janikowski on the ground and was stifled and frustrated while being pummeled. Romanowkski hoped to fight his way into another title shot, but the upset win may have set the stage for Janikowski’s run toward the title.

Raul Tutarauli ruined the much-anticipated KSW debut of Polish star Marcin Held with a left hand that had Held helpless late in the second round. Held (28-10) looked to end the fight early with a heel hook and nearly sunk it again off his back in Round 2. Unfortunately for Held, he held onto Tutarauli’s leg too long, leaving his chin susceptible to a haymaker. Tatarauli seized his opportunity to pick up his second straight win with an overhand left that bounced Held’s head off the canvas at the 3:49 mark.

Andrzej Grzebyk (21-6) spoiled Madars Bertholds-Fleminas' KSW debut by unanimous decision in welterweight action. Berthold-Fleminas and Grzebyk have 18 knockouts between them, but the latter was focused on the game plan. As the KSW debutant looked for one shot to turn the tide, Grzebyk cruised to his third straight win by striking in flurries and neutralizing his man on the ground.

Heavyweights Szymon Bajor and Viktor Pesta slugged it out for three straight rounds in a back-and-forth war that ended with Bajor’s hands raised in victory. Bajor clipped Pesta with overhand rights all afternoon and nearly ended the fight with a rear-naked choke. Pesta, however, showed why he’s considered one of KSW’s most dangerous heavyweights by landing his share of bone-rattling shots. The judges were unable to agree in total but the majority sided with Bajor’s work over the action-packed 15 minutes (29-28, 28-29, 29-28).

Twenty-seven-year-old featherweight Ahmed Vila picked up the biggest win of his career despite the fact that he felt like he didn’t deserve it. Lukasz Charzewski (12-2) seemed to get the better of the exchanges and could’ve easily been awarded the win or at least a split decision, but it was Vila who took the unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 29-28). Vila admitted post-fight that he thought Charzewski was the better man and would happily welcome a rematch.

Wilson Varela’s walk to the cage was longer than his entire fight Saturday. Just 17 seconds after the bell commenced Varela’s lightweight showdown with former title contender Sebastian Rajewski, Valera (11-5) closed the show with a debilitating front snap kick straight to the solar plexus.

Few fighters have had a more successful year than Valrela. After closing out 2022 with three losses in a row, “The Prototype” channeled his 180-degree turnaround into a five-fight win streak that has him surging up the KSW lightweight rankings.

Emilia Czerwinska (3-1) bounced back from her first professional defeat with a comeback win over flyweight foe Natalia Baczynska-Krawiec. Czerwinska started the fight on her back foot and was beaten to the punch often as she tried to find her range. As the fight continued, Czerwinska’s jab found success as she landed tight knees on the inside. Tied heading into the final round, Czerwinska edged out the bout with a whizzer in the final 30 seconds (29-28, 29-28, 29-28).

Michal Domin improved to 6-3 with a unanimous decision win over featherweight Wojciech Kazieczko (30-27, 30-27, 30-27). Domin secured his second straight win by pressuring Kazieczko toward the fence at the start of each round and easily securing takedowns off double-legged shots.

Despite Domin’s dominance on the ground, the Pole was nearly finished by a surprise buggy choke in the first round. Kazieczko reverted back to the technique each time he was taken to his back, but the move became less effective with each attempt. By the end of the fight, Domin was in full control as Kazieczko’s face was bloodied from consistent ground-and-pound.