SFL 18 went down this past Friday, May 24th, in Mumbai, India as part of its fortnightly ‘Friday Fight Nights’ initiative. The 18th installment of the India-based promotion saw a total of 6 finishes on its fight card, 5 of which came in the 1st stanza.
The females took centre stage for the first time since the promotion’s inception, as young spaniard Irene Cabello (2-2) showcased her improved BJJ abilities against Ritika Singh (1-2), submitting the latter via an Armbar in the first stanza. It was Cabello who landed the takedown, which was shortly reversed by Singh. However, it was then all she wrote for the young 19-year-old Indian fighter as she was forced to tap once Cabello had grabbed a hold of her arm.
The co-main event saw Philipp Schranz (13-7) marking his promotional SFL debut in style as he made a quick and devastating work of his Indian counterpart, Mohamed Abdel Hamid (0-2). Hamid, of course, was a late replacement so all credit is due to the fighter for taking the bout on short notice. With Hamid pursuing for a takedown, Schranz locked in a Guillotine choke attempt whilst landing some knees. It was then, however, Hamid’s turn to lock in the aforementioned choke although this time, Hamid may have made a mistake by dropping guard. Schranz found himself in full mount, and rained down continuous elbows forcing Hamid to tap. The audience cheered for Schranz, clearly elated and impressed by the Austrian’s brutal ground-and-pound. In his post-fight interview, Schranz credited the win towards the Enomoto brothers of Enomoto Dojo, stating that the training in Switzerland had clearly paid off.
Other notable fights:
- The flyweights showed they were no pushovers by putting on a stellar performance for the audience. Sachin Panwar vs. Uchit Sharma provided a striking clinic as both fighters showcased their Kickboxing and Wushu skills respectively. In the first round, both fighters started off by throwing lots of kicks and it was Uchit who landed the 1st near stoppage when he had a Guillotine Choke attempt shrugged off, following a WWE-style suplex that would’ve undoubtedly impressed the audience. After controlling the first 5 minutes, it was payback time for Panwar who dominated the 2nd stanza, following top control & ground-and-pound after a slick reversal from Uchit’s takedown. The fight had to be stopped, however, when Uchit couldn’t continue due to a swollen ankle. He may have forfeited the fight but combat fans would’ve certainly been impressed with both SFL faithfuls.
- Sandeep Kumar entered his fight against Samarveer Mavi desperate to get back in the win column following his TKO loss at the hands of Amit Thapa back at SFL 16. And my oh my, he may have very well warranted a re-match after his resounding TKO of Samarveer Mavi. Kumar was patient in his southpaw stance, allowing Samarveer Mavi to throw and connect with a couple of strikes. But Kumar showed he was no slouch in Boxing by throwing a beautiful right-hook, and following it up with a left-hand that sent Mavi running for his life. After a few more strikes from the former, however, the referee was forced to make an intervention, declaring the bout a TKO win for Sandeep Kumar.
MMASucka.com’s SFL 18 Three Stars:
1. Philipp Schranz
2. Arun Nagar
3. Sandeep Kumar
Check out the full results of SFL 18 below:
- Irene Cabello def. Ritika Singh via Submission (Armbar) at 2:06 of Round 1
- Philipp Schranz def. Mohamed Abdel Hamid via Submission (Punches) at 1:54 of Round 1
- Pawan Maan Singh def. Jamshed Khan via Submission (Guillotine Choke) at 1:12 of Round 1
- Arun Nagar def. Mohd Asgar via KO (Punch) at 2:41 of Round 1
- Sandeep Kumar def. Samarveer Mavi via TKO (Punches) at 0:52 of Round 1
- Sachin Panwar def. Uchit Sharma via TKO (Retirement) at 5:00 of Round 2
- Mohammad Naemi def. Vladimir Prodanovic via Split Decision
The Super Fight League returns in two weeks as they bring you SFL 19: Friday Night Fights, so keep it locked to MMASucka.com for more information and updates.
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