Tipsport Gamechanger semi-finals to headline as fight card confirmed for OKTAGON 77

OKTAGON MMA’s next event will see the promotion head to Slovakia as Bratislava plays host to OKTAGON 77.

Headlining the fight card at the Tipos Arena are the two Tipsport Gamechanger semi-final matchups, as the promotion’s €1 million middleweight tournament approaches its finale.

The main event will see OKTAGON’s middleweight champion Kerim Engizek take on Czech contender, and the revelation of the entire tournament, Dominik Humburger, for a place in the tournament final.

Engizek kicked off his tournament with a unanimous decision victory over Kamil Oniszczuk at OKTAGON 66, then punched his ticket to the final four with a first-round TKO finish of former Cage Warriors champion Mick Stanton at OKTAGON 74 in August.

Now he’ll take on Humburger, who stepped into the tournament as a wild-card entry and sprung an immediate shock by knocking out Samuel Kristofic in the main event of OKTAGON 70 in Karlovy Vary.

Humburger then faced highly-fancied South African contender Mark Hulme in the quarter-finals at OKTAGON 74. And, once again, Humburger claimed the crowd-pleasing stoppage victory as he stunned Hulme with an elbow mid-way through the second round to earn his place in the semi-finals.

Now Humburger is set to face Engizek, and although the championship hasn’t been on the line in this tournament, it represents the chance for Humburger to prove that he is the top 185-pounder in the promotion by bouncing the current champ out of the tournament.

The co-main event will feature the other tournament semi-final, as Poland’s former UFC veteran Krzysztof Jotko takes on Hojat Khajevand.

Jotko has looked in strong form through his two tournament appearances so far as he has cruised into the semi-finals. He outworked welterweight champion Ion Surdu in the opening round of the tournament at OKTAGON 70, then stopped Marek Mazuch with ground strikes at OKTAGON 74 to earn his place in the semis.

He’ll face Khajevand, who wasn’t in the original tournament lineup, but defeated Lukasz Siwiec in a tournament reserve bout at OKTAGON 70. And, after Czech contender Matej Penaz was forced out of the tournament through illness, Khajevand was handed his chance against former interim champion Piotr Wawrzyniak.

Despite being a sizeable underdog, Khajevand produced an outstanding performance to claim a unanimous decision victory and earn his place in the semi-finals. Now the tournament’s newest participant will get the chance to reach the final, and a shot at the €300,000 first prize.

Also set for action on the card is a cracker of a lightweight matchup as former two-division champion Ivan Buchinger faces off against Irish contender Richie Smullen, and there’s a banger of a tournament reserve bout between Samuel Kristofic and Jaime Cordero that should deliver fireworks.

The event will also feature the promotion’s number-one women’s flyweight contender Veronika Smolkova, who will take on promotional newcomer Ana Carolina Araujo.

Check out the full list of confirmed matchups for Bratislava below.