ABU DHABI: In an evening of 14 high-level jiu-jitsu and mixed martial arts bouts, American Urijah Faber and Brazil's Rayron Gracie were crowned champions of the fifth Abu Dhabi Extreme Championship (ADXC) at Mubadala on Friday Arena. Faber won the no-gi trophy and Gracie went home with the gi.
Faber showed his resilience as he defeated Brazil's Bibiano Fernandes almost 20 years after they first met in MMA.
Tapping into his grappling background to counter Fernandes' attacks, Faber worked better from the top as he put pressure on his opponent's guard. The Brazilian had some good moments as he was able to land some takedowns and sweeps, but Faber's skills won out.
In the end, the American fighter conquered the ADXC cage by unanimous decision. After the duel, Faber emphasized his respect for his rival and praised the event in Abu Dhabi.
“I like Fernandes. This guy has changed the lives of a lot of athletes throughout his career and he's also very hard to finish,” Faber said. “It felt good fighting in the cage again. If you are looking for something to change your life, look into martial arts. Abu Dhabi is doing the right thing by investing in something like jiu-jitsu.”
In his matchup, Gracie didn't give debutant Marcos Carrozzino a chance and picked up his second straight ADXC win, once again via submission.
Gracie started the fight defending well against her opponent's attacks. After a Carrozzino takedown attempt, Gracie locked in an unorthodox choke, forcing his rival to tap out. Gracie later paid tribute to his uncle, renowned mixed martial artist Renzo Gracie, who was in his corner for the match.
“I know everything is going well when my uncle is by my side,” Gracie said. “My first loop choke was blocked but Carrozzino got away really well. The guillotine he applied to me was very tight, but I knew he was going to put everything into it, so I managed to defend myself and recover. Five minutes before the fight, my uncle told me to use the corner choke about 40 seconds before the end of the round.”
In the second main event, American Chad Mendes defeated Brazilian Diego Brandão by unanimous decision. Mendes led throughout the fight, controlling his opponent's head in the standing fight, applying good takedowns and defending superbly.
The other main event was a very technical and balanced battle with Portugal's Pedro Ramalho defeating Sweden's Max Lindblad by split decision to take the title. With similar fighting styles, the competitors traded holds and attacks while defending dangerous positions. Ramalho stood out with good sweeps and was particularly dangerous with his feet. Lindblad's standout moment was an attempted leg block that put him in front. In the end, though, Ramalho's consistency paid off.
In addition to the four main fights, 10 other fights spiced up ADXC 5. In the opening match, Balqees Al-Hashmi of the United Arab Emirates dominated his fight against Maria Odintsova of Russia. Making full use of his guard, Al Hashmi maintained control throughout, landing some promising strikes and using positional control to keep his opponent under pressure. Al-Hashmi won by unanimous decision.
Another Emirati fighter also claimed a win on home soil. Omar Al-Suwaidi defeated Samuel Marquez by unanimous decision in a fight that Al-Suwaidi dominated by maintaining a high tempo.
Another stellar display of strength and technique from Iranian fighter Pouya Rahmani in the ADXC cage saw him execute a single-leg takedown on Hamdy Abdelwahab and take his back, extending his arms to the crowd before slipping them under Abdelwahab's neck and securing victory by choke. you
Tunisian fighter Amin Boudhina was defeated by Brazil's Davi Vetoraci. Vetoraci attacked early with a dangerous flying triangle, then went for an armbar attempt, which Boudhina saved. Later, Vetoraci faked a shoulder lock. As the Tunisian fighter spun to escape, Vetoraci closed the winning armbar.
Kazakhstan's nineteen-year-old Seilkhan Bolatbek scored a quick victory against Emad Ahmedin of the Netherlands, and Chinese fighter Xiaosong Shi was defeated by American fighter Abe “The Killer” Alsaghir in an intense match in which Alsaghir used the cage to his advantage. Shi had some good moments, including a particularly well-executed guillotine attempt in the second round, but Alsaghir kept up the pressure to emerge victorious by unanimous decision.
