Kabiru ‘Hulk’ Adediran and Febian Texas, at the weekend, showed why they are among the most feared Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighters in the country with entertaining displays that enthralled the audience, at the ‘Battle of The Hood’ held at the Lukman Oluomo Sports Arena, Ajegunle, Lagos.

The MMA championship, organised by Akalaka Spirit Of The Warrior organisation, saw heavyweight star, Adediran, dominating Atiti Fidelis with a first-round technical knockout in the main event, confirming his reputation as one of Nigeria’s most intimidating fighters.

Two other thrilling fights happened in the light heavyweight division, where Fabian Texas emerged as the standout performer, winning both his bouts via first-round knockouts to claim the division’s honour.

His path to the final victory over Martin Azinba included a first round demolition of Imohi Prince in the semifinal. Aziba had knocked out Ennis Abdulkareem in another semifinalis of the light heavyweight class in the MMA showdown.

The lightweight category saw Joseph James claiming victory by split decision over Anietie Edem in a closely contested final, while Jeremiah Akpan secured a first-round submission win against Ichendu Victory in the bantamweight division.

The women’s flyweight competition produced equally thrilling encounters with Immaculata Nelson emerging as the Best Fighter of the Night after defeating Miracle Andrew by submission in the third and final round.

Nelson had earlier advanced by submitting Khadijat Idowu in the second round of their bout, while Andrew reached the final by securing a unanimous decision victory over Quadri Balikis.

“I’ am excited winning the Best Fighter of the Night award. I was prepared, I knew I was going to fight twice, so I did all I could to withstand anything that came my way,” Nelson said after her triumph.

Speaking on the championship, president of the Akalaka Spirit of the Warrior MMA Promotion, Dr Ebere Bernard, expressed satisfaction with the quality of fights on display.

“For me, it’s one of the best fights have witnessed this year. As you can see, we have a lot of knockouts, submissions, very entertaining fights. Gradually, people will get to identify with the game of MMA as a means of entertainment,” he said.

The event, which was broadcast to over 35 countries across Africa and beyond, represented another significant step in Nigeria’s developing MMA scene. Bernard said that all the finalists will be signed to the promotion and given opportunities to compete internationally.

Also speaking on the championship, Vice President, Akalaka Spirit of The Warrior,
Chris Nwokolo, highlighted the organisation’s mission to change perceptions about Nigerian youth through combat sports.

“We are all about youth empowerment, creating opportunities for youths and an avenue for them to express themselves. How can we catch those very energetic youths and channel their energies in the MMA world?

“We want to feed that culture and put Nigeria out there. So when people think about Nigeria, they are thinking of strength; they are thinking of youth, and that way they stop thinking of us as a nation of fraudsters, but rather as a nation of energy,” he said.