Vladimir Burdun, president of the Academy of Martial Arts and promoter of the Battle on the Coast-3 Championship
THE THIRD ROUND OF THE “BATTLE ON THE COAST” CHAMPIONSHIP BY PROFESSIONAL MUAYTAY GATHERED DUBAI IN THE DUBAI OF FAR EAST AND FAR EAST.
On November 25, 2010, the president of the Dubai Martial Arts Academy and promoter Vladimir Burdun, with the support of the Muaythai World Council (WMC) and the Dubai Sports Council, in co-promotion with the international Elite Boxing group, held a professional Muaythai tournament - “Battle on the Coast” -3 ". On the territory of the five-star Dusit Thani Dubai Hotel, against the backdrop of the breathtaking panorama of night Dubai, 8 professional fights took place. Like every tournament in this series, the next "battle" was unique and not like the previous ones. If the feature of the first “Battle on the Coast” was heavyweight fights, and the second was the participation of fighters from English clubs, then the third “Battle on the Coast” was a confrontation between Thailand and the Middle East, held on the roof of the parking lot of the Dusit Thani Hotel, where the ring and places for viewers. The event was organized as part of the Thai Culture Days, held in conjunction with the Royal Thai Embassy in the UAE and the Thai Consulate General in Dubai and the United Arab Emirates. For the first time in the history of the Battle of the Coast, the third tournament, Thailand vs Middle East, entered the series of international championships Thailand vs Challenger. The leader of the tournament was the actress and star of Thai television - Sonia Couling, who specially arrived in Dubai from Thailand.
Dubai or Sharjah - who is who?
At the very beginning, the audience was waiting for traditional Thai dances performed by professional dancers in colorful national costumes. It was a lively demonstration of true Thai hospitality. The tournament was opened by the battle of Muhammad Sanad (UAE), who opposed Muhammad Sami (Egypt). Both fighters spent three hard uncompromising rounds in a constant exchange of blows, the judges gave the victory to the representative of Egypt. The rest of the preliminary battles were actually a match meeting between the emirates of Dubai and Sharjah. Dubai was represented by GenerationExtreme Gym and Sharjah by Sharjah Fighting Club.
In the second match, Daniel Gadzhimirza Osmanov easily managed to cope with Anas Alsamari. Chasing an opponent in the ring in the first round, Gadzhimirza in the second right-handed hit sent him to the floor of the ring. Heavyweight Magomed Idigov knocked out his rival even faster than his teammate, at the very beginning of the first round, Thaksin Taklekh was knocked down and then knocked out. No doubt, the results of these battles were affected by the difference in the setting of the training process in Dubai and Sharjah. Dubai athletes are training under the guidance of coaches Magomed Suleymanov and Abdulmalik Gadzhiev, who have serious experience of playing in the professional ring. In fairness, it is worth noting that the fighters from the Sharjah Fighting Club were much younger than their rivals from the GenerationExtreme Gym. Thus, it can be stated that in the first four fights the crushing victory of the GenerationExtreme club over the Sharjah Fighting Club was won. All fights took place to the accompaniment of drums, which increased pace as the passions intensified in the ring.
Middle vs Far
The main program of the evening began with the battle of Mustafa Abdullahi (Iran) against Samranchai 96 Pingunga (Thailand). For 4 years, Mustafa played for the national team of Iran at the World Championships in amateur Thai boxing. In 2007, he won the title of World Champion (IFMA) in the weight category up to 75 kg. Mustafa conducted his 22nd professional battle as part of the “Battle on the Coast-3” very competently and collectively. Despite the cut over the right eye received in the third round, Mustafa courageously continued to fight to the end. In this stubborn duel of five rounds, the Thai boxer won, who in the second half of the fight almost completely seized the advantage. The sixth fight was a classic of Thai boxing. Shortly before the tournament, the participant of the sixth battle, Wahid Roshani (Iran), was injured, and the organizers had to urgently look for a replacement, which became the well-known fighter in Thailand - Ole Or Piripinho. Two Thai fighters demonstrated a high-tech battle, but it was clear to specialists that the Thais did not intend to cause serious harm to each other away from Thailand. However, viewers were able to enjoy the classic Muaythai style.
In the next battle, Ahmed Saadi (Tunisia) and Ja Mo Pumfanmuang (Thailand) met. Tunisian Ahmed Saadi, largely inspired by films featuring Jean Claude Van Dam, left for Thailand at the age of 17 to become a fighter. Upon arrival in Bangkok, he was quite surprised when he found out that the soldiers did not break palm trees with their feet. However, the realities of the Thai boxing world turned out to be much tougher. Ahmed, who spent only a few fights, was brought to the tournament in Australia, where he opposed the Australian Muaythai star Soren Mongontong. Ahmed lost that fight by knockout, the opponent's elbow opened his lip, and the winner hastened to remove this wound in the video. Nevertheless, such a school made Ahmed Saadi rely only on himself. Now that he has over 50 professional fights behind him, Ahmed has entered the ring in Dubai. Spectators in one breath watched four intense rounds in which a representative of the Middle East team, thanks to experience, coped with the attacks of the former champion of the Thai stadium Rajadamner. In the second round, the Thai shocked the Arab soldier with a kick to the head, and in the third he delivered a heavy elbow strike. Nevertheless, by the middle of the battle, Ahmed confidently led the fight, and in the last minute of the fourth round, with a series of punches, to the delight of local fans, he sent the Thai to the floor of the ring.
East - West
The main event of the evening was the fight for the WMC Middle East Champion title title between Antoine Xiangboxing (France - Thailand) and Dominic Zidov (Croatia - Switzerland). The title, and at the same time the sympathy of most viewers, was won by a 19-year-old Frenchman who has lived and trained in Thailand since childhood. Antoine, Xiangboxing started Muaythai at 10 when he moved to Thailand with his family. Initially, the father of a young Frenchman was against the participation of his son in fights according to the rules of Muay Thai, but once, at one of the many boxing shows in Thailand, he lost sight of his 11-year-old son for some time, and he saw him already in the ring. Parents were unable to obstruct the desire of his son, and Antoine began to regularly perform in professional fights. Now for Antoine, whose number of fights has long exceeded one hundred, to have a fight in a professional ring is like going to a bakery for bread. However, the 15 minutes that Antoine spends in the ring is just the tip of the iceberg, which is based on daily 12-kilometer cross-country routes and 6-hour training.
The rival of Antoine was the owner of numerous tattoos and the nickname "Akuma" (translated from Japanese - "devil", approx. Ed.) - Dominic Zidov, a Swiss of Croatian descent, who managed to go to prisons in both countries, but successfully "tied up" the past and moved to Thailand in 2003 to devote himself to training and fighting. It is worth noting that in the battle with Zidov, Antoine was, literally and figuratively, a cut above his opponent. As a result, the sympathy of some of the fans turned out to be on the side of the colorful Zidov, who looked like an outsider of this fight and really needed support. Dominic Zidov, under the encouraging cries of the fans, tried to turn the tide of the fight up to the final bell, but a miracle did not happen. Antoine won by unanimous decision. It is worth noting that for him this regional title was far from the first, he already became the WMC Welterweight World Champion and intends to box for the same title, but already in super-welterweight. Recently, it has become increasingly difficult for promoters to select rivals for Antoine in the Muaythai homeland, they have to find foreign athletes or organize fights outside of Thailand, and in many professional tournaments, the majority of Antoine fans are the beautiful half of humanity.
Summing up the results of the third round of “Battle on the Coast”, we can confidently say that Thai boxing is gaining more and more fans around the world. The most daring even change their lifestyle - they leave to adopt knowledge and experience, and begin to perform in Thailand. But still, for any foreigner, a fight with a representative of Thailand is a serious test. In order to further promote Muaythai art in the United Arab Emirates, President of the Martial Arts Academy and promoter of the Battle on the Coast series, Vladimir Burdun, plans to regularly organize professional tournaments in the UAE with the participation of Thai fighters who have this beautiful sport in every sense, in blood. This means that fans and fans of Muaythai in the UAE are waiting for new and interesting meetings. Follow the announcements!
