Eagle FC 49 will emanate from Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan, on Wednesday, Aug. 10 for the promotion’s first event in nearly a month. Fight fans will be promised an exciting main event when Russia’s Rasul Magomedov and Kyrgyzstan’s Busurmankul Abdibait uulu go to battle over the EFC Undisputed Featherweight Championship.
Fight fans can watch the show live and free on FLXcast app beginning at 8 a.m. ET/5 a.m. PT for the prelims prior to the main card getting underway at around 10 a.m. ET/7 a.m. PT. The event replay will be also be available on demand for free on FLXcast.
Featherweight Championship Headliner
Less than 24 hours after Bo Nickal made his mark on the latest episode of Dana White’s Contender Series, several fighters across Eurasia will be looking to make a name for themselves with Busurmankul (14-3-1) and Magomedov (10-3) chief among them. The Kyrgyzstani Busurmankul entered Tuesday as the reigning featherweight champion of the promotion, having won the belt back at EFC 38 when he knocked out Ruslan Yamabaev. However, the would-be champion missed weight by approximately three pounds on Tuesday and was promptly stripped of his championship. As a result, he will be unable to win the title while the chance exists that an undisputed featherweight champion is not crowned on Wednesday. Busurmankul will also be deducted a point prior to the start of the fight.
Magomedov, however, made championship weight, and thus the interim champion will be able eligible to lose the interim tag with a victory over Busurmankul. Following the weigh-ins, Busurmankul spoke to the Russian media, lamenting the weight miss while alluding to a potential move to a higher weight class. As for the matchup itself, it will feature a clash of styles akin to the striker vs. grappler matchups of the sport’s infancy. Busurmankul is primarily a stand-up fighter who loves to lay leather on his opponents. All seven of his knockouts have come courtesy of his hands, though four of the six fights in his most recent winning streak have done to a decision with Kyrgyzstani winning a split or majority decision on three of those occasions.
He could have a tough time winning a decision against Magomedov, who is 4-1 when the fight hits the judges scorecards, though he too is somewhat of a proven finisher, particularly on the ground. The Russian owns six stoppage victories in his career, with all but one of them occurring on the ground (a doctor stoppage). Magomedov is also no stranger to title fights. He opened his career as a .500 fighter at 2-2 before proceeding to win eight of his next nine fights with the lone blemish coming in the Eagle FC cage. After winning the featherweight strap at the end of 2020, Magomedov succumbed to a triangle choke at the hands of Ruslan Yamanbaev at EFC 35. Yamaneav would promptly lose the title to Busurmankul, thus beginning the collision course between Wednesday’s main eventers. Despite his preference to strike, Busurmankul has shown he can think outside the box on the ground, as he owns three submission victories by way of armbar, kneebar, and Achilles lock. However, if Busurmankul is out of shape, such submissions may not come to into play, which would pave the way for Magomedov becoming a two-time champion in Bishkek.
Flyweight Focus
The featherweight championship will not be the only Eagle FC title up for grabs on Wednesday, as Magomedrasul Gadzhiev is set to challenge Irgit Oveenchi at 125 pounds. Both of Wednesday’s combatants will enter the EFC 49 co-main event on substantial winning streaks. While Gadzhiev is an unbeaten 5-0, Oveenchi is flying high at 6-2 after dropping the first two fights of his career. They will also have a chance to enter some good company with a title win, as prominent Russian flyweights Ali Bagautinov and Tagir Ulanbekov are both former EFC flyweight champions. The most recent champion is 10-0 Mansur Malachiev, who appears to have quietly vacated the belt as Wednesday’s fight is being advertised for the vacant championship.
At just 23-years-old, Gadzhiev will have the opportunity to become the youngest champion in promotion history. Training out of Golden Team with UFC middleweight Gadzhi Omargadzhiev, Gadzhiev boasts a well-rounded skillset with specialty on the ground. Each of his last two victories, which also happened to occur in the Eagle FC cage, came by way of rear naked choke. If he’s looking to notch a third choke in as many fights, he’ll have to do it against another grappling specialist in Oveenchi, who owns three submission victories in seven career wins. That is not to say, however, that another submission is out of the cards for the 23-year-old. He has fought a stellar level of competition throughout his young career with his opponents owning a combined record of 25-7. Another victory or two could allow Gadzhiev to follow in the steps of Ulanbekov and net a spot in the UFC flyweight division. Meanwhile, it will be up to the 32-year-old Oveenchi to play spoiler.
Rest of the Card
The main card will also feature a rematch between fellow flyweights Vitaly Kositsyn and Aydarbek Abdibait uulu. The two met back at EFC 31 where they fought to a draw on the judges’ scorecards. Almost two years later, the two former foes will look to settle the score and perhaps position themselves in line to fight the winner of the vacant title fight to follow. Since the draw, Kositsyn has fought twice, most recently winning a split decision over Kunni Kinniev, while Aydarbek fought just once, knocking out Vitaliy Chesnokov in 71 seconds thanks to a picture-perfect overhand right.
A super-lightweight (165 lbs.) clash between Shakhban Alkhasov and Mikhail Doroshenko is scheduled to kick off the main card. Alkhasov is a Nurmagomedov fighter, and has thus far displayed the level of dominance befitting of a fighter trained under Abdulmanap Nurmagomedov. The 25-year-old is 6-0 with six finishes, and will be looking to add a seventh in as many fights against Doroshenko, a man who has fought all over the Russian regional circuit. He is set to make his return to Eagle FC after finishing Eduardo Rufino via first-round ground and pound at RCC 11.
Eagle FC 49 Results
Main Card (FLXcast, Noon ET/9 a.m. PT)
Rasul Magomedov def. Busurmankul Abdibait uulu via Unanimous Decision (48-47, 48-47, 48-47) — for the Undisputed EFC Featherweight Championship
Irgit Oveenchi def. Magomedrasul Gadzhiev via TKO (strikes) at 3:09 of Round 3 — for the vacant EFC Flyweight Championship
Aydarbek Abdibait def. Vitaly Kositsyn via Unanimous Decision
Shakhban Alkhasov def. Mikhail Doroshenko via Submission (Standing RNC) at 1:23 of Round 1
Preliminary Card (FLXcast, 8 a.m. ET/5 a.m. PT)
Georgy Shakhruramazanov def. Zhanysh Uraim uulu via TKO (tap to strikes) at 4:30 of Round 1
Mansur Dzhamburaev def. Akhkubeg Omarov via Unanimous Decision
Khabib Nabiev def. Konstantin Veselkin via Unanimous Decision
Amru Magomedov def. Elmurod Madaminov via TKO in Round 1
Vladimir Dayneko def. Soslan Gasiev via Knockout (right hook) at :47 of Round 1
Adis Taalaybek uulu def. Murad Khasaev via Unanimous Decision
Arslan Bilalov def. Aybolat Muratuly via TKO (tap to strikes) at 1:00 of Round 1
Sergey Shirkunov def. Mukhamedali Aliev via Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Yusif Gasimov def. Dzhamal Aliev via Submission (RNC) at 3:41 of Round 3
Magomed Kurbanov def. Ali Magomedov via Unanimous Decision
