Karate Combat: Olympus full event video replay

Karate Combat hosted their sophomore ‘Olympus’ event this past Saturday from Athens, Greece. The full-contact karate league’s second show went down at the historic Zappeion Courtyard, where the first modern day Olympics were held back in 1896. In a show of respect, the card opened up with a moment of silence for those affected by the tragic fires that have plagued the city of Greece.

The top of the billing witnessed England’s Jerome Brown taking a first round TKO due to an unfortunate leg injury to France’s Davy Dona. Brown worked his leg attacks early in the fight with Dona looking to throw his hands. When Dona did decide to throw a kick, he connected on the shin of Brown, and instantly showed signs of an injury. The bout was called off shortly after.

In the co-main event, Morocco’s Achraf Ouchen overcame early adversity to score a knockout of Ecuadorian karateka Franklin Mina. Mina started strong, dropping Ouchen with a laser-like right cross, before landing several more right hands. But, Ouchen recovered quickly and clipped Mina with a counter right of his own to score a knockdown, and then a series of ground strikes sealed the deal. What a momentum swing!

Russia’s Myrza-Bek Tebuev earned himself a spectacular second round knockout over Deives Ferreras of the Dominican Republic. Tebuev came out hot, kicking Ferreras right in the face, before blasting an illegal double leg takedown. Ferreras took control of the center of the pit soon afterward, though, forcing Tebuev to play the outside – with Ferreras popping him whenever he closed the distance. The second round saw Ferreras come forward with heavy punches, but Tebuev was ready to counter with big strikes of his own. Tebuev threw a massive southpaw overhand left, with his forearm catching Ferreras clean on the chin. The Dominican went crashing to the floor, with his eyes rolling back in his head. Ferreras recovered quickly, but the fight was already over.

Also on the card, Trukey’s Yaser Sahintekin found himself in the win column after finishing Brazil’s Wellington Barbosa on the ground. Barbosa landed first, stinging his opponent with a stiff cross, but Sahintekin was right there to return the same punch. The opening round ended with a solid flurry from each man. The action slowed down in the second round, prompting the referee to call a timeout and warn both athletes about the lack of action. Upon the restart, Sahintekin tripped Barbosa to the ground, and then dropped several punches in bunches to his downed opponent to score the TKO victory.

Igor De Castañeda of Spain wasted no time in getting the job done at Olympus, picking up the first round knockout of Italian karateka Fioravante Valentino. Castañeda dropped his foe with the first leg kick he threw, and then followed up with some heavy ground strikes before the stand-up. Back on the feet, Castañeda poured it on, giving Valentino no time to recover. A well-placed cross sent Valentino crashing back down to the floor, and the referee stepped in to rescue him from any unnecessary damage.

Karate Combat also hosted their very first women’s bout at Olympus. Sarah Ait Ibrahim of France picked up a doctor stoppage TKO of Mexico’s Fabiola Esquivel between round two and three. Ibrahim let her hands go early, landing several damaging blows and planting her opponent on the mat several times. Esquibel battled back in the second round with sinister straights of her own, but the punches of Ibrahim appeared to break Esquibel’s nose, prompting the doctor to step in and recommend that the bout be called off.

Opening up the event, Reda Messaoudi of Morocco scored a third round knockout of Nikos Kosmas from Greece. Messaoudi came out swinging early, throwing looping punches that had Kosmas on the floor multiple times. By the final round, Messaoudi looked in complete control when he landed a massive punch that sent Kosmas crashing to the canvas to end the bout.

• Jerome Brown def. Davy Dona by TKO in round 1: 165 pounds
• Achraf Ouchen def. Franklin Mina by KO in round 1: 205 pounds
• Myrza-Bek Tebuev def. Deives Ferreras by KO in round 2: 147 pounds
• Yaser Sahintekin def. Wellington Barbosa by TKO in round 2: 225 pounds
• Igor De Castañeda def. Fioravante Valentino by KO in round 1: 185 pounds
• Sarah Ait Ibrahim def. Fabiola Esquivel by TKO in round 2: 121 pounds
• Reda Messaoudi def. Nikos Kosmas by KO in round 3: 165 pounds

Good MMA article from bloodyelbow