Kubanychbek faced a stern test in the form of Rauli Tutarauli, who pushed the pace hard and looked to wear down the champion with his heavy-handed strikes. But, in a five-round battle that went all the way to the scorecards, it was Kubanychbek who held the edge, as he mixed up strikes with takedowns to earn a unanimous decision.
It was far from easy for the champion, however. Tutarauli’s strikes were powerful and precise, and in the third round a big shot from the challenger briefly appeared to have Kubanychbek in trouble. But the champion weathered the storm and connected with big shots of his own as the pair battled back and forth all the way to the final bell.
In the end, Kubanychbek edged the verdict on the scorecards, earning scores of 48-47, 49-46, 48-47 to make history as the first fighter in promotional history to successfully defend the BRAVE CF lightweight title.
Blyden lets his fists do the talking
The co-main event had the Alkmaar crowd on their feet, as local star Noach Blyden showcased his striking skills to stop Poland’s Adrian Gralak and continue his remarkable run of finishing his opponents inside the opening round.
Gralak had stated pre-fight that he intended to prove that K-1 kickboxing star Blyden didn’t belong in MMA, but Blyden’s performance gave the perfect response, as he dominated the exchanges, both in the striking realm, and in clinch and wrestling situations.
And, as the bout went into the final minute of the opening round, Blyden punished a Gralak takedown attempt by locking up the clinch and punishing his man with knees. The barrage continued and eventually sent Gralak to the mat, where a couple of follow-up punches finished the job
Best of the rest
The main card saw an undefeated record go by the wayside, as Nabil Haryouli lost a unanimous decision to Germany-based Afghan fighter Zabiullah Mubarez.
In a bout that saw the pair battle back and forth for the full 15-minute duration, it was Mubarez whose work held sway with the three cageside judges, who scored the bout 29-28, 30-27, 30-27 for a clear decision victory as Haryouli fell to his first career defeat.
The night saw a landmark moment for Clyde Brunswijk, who claimed the first submission finish of his professional MMA career with a third-round ninja choke finish of Madalin Pirvulescu in their middleweight matchup.
The former kickboxing ace was forced to grapple early as Pirvulescu quickly took the Surinamese fighter to the mat and established mount inside the opening minute. His attempt to escape then put him in even more trouble as Pirvulesco locked up an armbar. But Brunswijk managed to escape the hold and nullify the Romanian’s ground game for the rest of the round.
The second stanza saw Brunswijk look to home comforts as he returned to his kickboxing to methodically pick apart Pirvulescu and set up a winner-takes-all final round.
And, with both men looking to find the crucial breakthrough to eliminate all doubt, it was Brunswijk who found a route to victory via an unexpected route. After Pirvulescu took him to the mat mid-way through the round, Brunswijk worked himself some space, and locked up a guillotine choke to claim the dramatic third-round victory.
And in the opening bout of the night, undefeated wrestling phenom-turned-MMA fighter Rasul Magomedov extended his perfect professional record to 6-0 with a first-round TKO stoppage of Brazil’s Pablo Benaion.
After landing some heavy punches in the opening seconds, Magomedov had no problem taking Benaion to the mat early, before dominating from top position and finishing his man with heavy strikes from top position to put the BRAVE CF 205-pound division on notice with a dominant, decisive victory.
BRAVE CF 87: Official results
- Abdisalam Kubanychbek def. Rauli Tutarauli via unanimous decision (48-47, 49-46, 48-47) – for lightweight title
- Noach Blyden def. Adrian Gralak via TKO (knees and punches) – Round 1, 4:55
- Zabiullah Mubarez def. Nabil Haryouli via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)
- Clyde Brunswijk def. Maralin Pirvulescu via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 3, 3:13
- Rasul Magomedov def. Pablo Benaion via TKO (punches) – Round 1, 2:18
