Jarrah Hussein Al-Silawi Chops Down Ismail Naurdiev, Defends Belt at Brave CF 50

Damnn. An accumulation of damage to the left leg of Ismail Naurdiev puts an end to the Brave main event. Jarrah Hussein Al-Silawi finishes the UFC vet with low kicks in R2. #BRAVECF50 pic.twitter.com/RKUpajVOC8

— caposa (@Grabaka_Hitman) April 1, 2021

The judges put in overtime at Brave Combat Federation’s jam-packed card on Thursday.

The main event of Brave CF 50 saw 175-pound titleholder Jarrah Hussein Al-Silawi (16-3) notching his first title defense at the expense of Ultimate Fighting Championship alum Ismail Naurdiev (20-5). “The Jordanian Lion” and Naurdiev spent most of the opening stanza studying one another, with the defending champion landing effective kicks while his opponent returned fire with repeated jabs. Al-Silawi’s gameplan started paying dividends as the bout progressed, as “The Austrian Wonderboy” started losing his footwork. The defending champion forced Naurdiev to back against the fence as he hunted his opponent down with kick after battering kick. One of Al-Silawi’s kicks seemingly injured Naurdiev, as the latter attempted a desperation takedown before collapsing while clutching his leg. “The Jordanian Lion” restrained himself from inflicting more damage, as the referee stopped the contest after 79 seconds into the second round.

The scheduled co-main light heavyweight tilt between Mohamed Said Maalem and Mohammad Fakhreddine fell off the card after Fakhreddine pulled out a few hours before the match due to an illness. In the new co-main event, former UFC title contender Ali Bagautinov (21-7) displayed his wrestling skills against fellow UFC competitor Dustin Ortiz (19-9) to capture a place in the semifinals of Brave’s flyweight grand prix. Ultimately, Bagautinov earned 29-28, 29-28, and 29-28 scores from the judges, while taking his place in the second semifinal. “The King Puncher” will collide with Jose Torres at a future date.

On the other side of the bracket, Velimurad Alkhasov (8-1) edged UFC and Bellator MMA veteran Zach Makovsky (21-10) by split verdict as he advanced to the finals to await the winner of Bagautinov vs. Torres. Alkhasov narrowly took home the win by receiving a pair of 29-28 scorecards, as the third judge sided with “Fun Size” with a 29-28 tally.

Earlier on the card, 155-pound titleholder Amin Ayoub (16-4) prevailed on the scorecards over Mashrabjon Ruziboev (11-3-1) in a non-title, 163-pound catchweight contest; Marcel Grabinski (21-6) scored a decision victory against Issa Isakov (8-3) in Brave’s super lightweight division.

The 16-fight card did feature some action amidst the high number of decisions. Louis Glismann (8-2) crushed Kevin Ruart (9-4) with punches with three seconds left in Round 2 at Brave’s super welterweight division; in a 145-pound bout, Omar Solomanov (10-2) bested Valeriu Mircea (25-7-1) by unanimous decision; Anton Turkalj (7-0) scored the fastest KO in the promotional history by smashing Konstantin Soldatov (5-2) with a spinning backfist a mere 13 seconds in the opening round of their 209-pound catchweight affair; UFC alum Brad Katona (9-2) tapped Borislav Nikolic (8-1) with a guillotine choke 40 seconds into the third round in their 135-pound clash; in the middleweight division, Rustam Chsiev (4-2) forced the doctor to intervene and halt the contest against Brendan Lesar (3-2) at the end of the opening frame.

In early action, Carl Booth (10-4) hurt fellow welterweight Carlos Belloso (7-2) with a heavy leg kick before smashing him with punches 72 seconds into Round 1; Alexander Keshtov (10-1) defeated Bair Shtepin (9-4) on the scorecards in a 135-pound clash; Shoaib Yousaf (8-2) overcame Steven Goncalves (6-3) by decision in the featherweight division; Maciej Gierszewski (8-6) rendered Felipe Silva (9-5) with a right hand and a vicious left hook that halted the fight at the 2:28 mark of the first period in a 161-pound catchweight bout; Magomed Magomedov (5-0) kept his record unblemished after upending Yann Liasse (4-1) via unanimous decision in the lightweight division; in the first bout of the night, featherweight Glenn McVeigh (1-2) scored his first professional victory by outpointing Abdulmanap Magomedov (1-2) via unanimous consensus.