OKTAGON 66 takes place on Saturday night in Dusseldorf, Germany, as the promotion’s latest signature tournament gets underway.
The Tipsport Gamechanger has been a huge success for OKTAGON over the past two years, with 2023 seeing the inaugural tournament taking place in the welterweight division, while last year’s tournament featured the lightweight class.
For 2025, the middleweight division takes centre stage, with the 16-man tournament set to get underway in Dusseldorf this weekend with a pair of first-round matchups.
Headlining the event is the newly-crowned middleweight champion Kerim Engizek, who faces promotional newcomer from France, Anthony Salamone.
Engizek dethroned former champion Patrik Kincl at OKTAGON 62 in Frankfurt last year, but his championship won’t be on the line in the tournament as he faces former PFL Europe contender Salamone, who arrives in OKTAGON MMA looking to make an instant impact by knocking the champion out of the tournament at the first round stage.
The other tournament matchup will see middleweight contender Matej Penaz face off against German veteran David Zawada.
Penaz is currently listed eighth in OKTAGON MMA’s official middleweight rankings, but his skills arguably should have him much higher on that list. His long-limbed striking is a major problem for anyone in the division, with the 9-1 Czech contender boasting an 83-inch reach – that’s just one inch shorter than reigning UFC heavyweight champion Jon Jones.
Standing in his way is gritty veteran Zawada, who has competed in the UFC, PFL and KSW during his career. Now a part of OKTAGON’s middleweight roster, Zawada will look to kickstart a new chapter in his career by claiming victory in his 30th professional fight.
Also set to feature in Dusseldorf is German lightweight contender Lom-Ali Eskiev, who faces French veteran Damien Lapilus in the co-main event, while rival strikers Vladimir Lengal and Deniz Ilbay get set to face off in a bout that could produce one of the most exciting clashes in European MMA this year.
OKTAGON 66: Engizek vs. Salamone – Fight card
MAIN CARD
- Kerim Engizek vs. Anthony Salamone – Tipsport Gamechanger
- Lom-Ali Eskiev vs. Damien Lapilus – lightweight
- Matej Penaz vs. David Zawada – Tipsport Gamechanger
- Vladimir Lengal vs. Deniz Ilbay – featherweight
- Matous Kohout vs. Cihad Akipa – welterweight
- Hojat Khajevant vs. Kamil Oniszczuk – Tipsport Gamechanger reserve bout
PRELIMINARY CARD
- Daniel Solaja vs. Raphael Federico – featherweight
- Emir-Can Al vs. Viktor Kovac – welterweight
- Tamerlan Dulatov vs. Ghith Ighzawi – 80kg catchweight
- Zoran Solaja vs. Lukas Elias – welterweight
- Sara Smajic vs. Danielle Misteli – women’s bantamweight
