
Three young East London mixed martial arts (MMA) fighters will be participating in the IMMAF Youth MMA World Championships in Abu Dhabi later this year.
Asange Belu,16, Sean Swart, 17, and Lorenzo Haile-Michael, 15, will be competing in the tournament from August 2-5.
The tournament is overseen by the International Mixed Martial Arts Federation, which has put a specific set of rules in place to accommodate and protect the younger age groups. For example, IMMAF does not permit head strikes for competitors under the age of 18.
Haile-Michael only began his MMA journey this year and has already proven himself worthy of representing his country on an international stage.
“I only joined MMA fighting in January, but I always liked boxing, so when I was looking for a gym, I came across East London MMA and Fitness Centre and decided to try MMA.
“It was unexpected but I am taking this opportunity and working harder,” Haile-Michael said.
Swart and Belu are best friends who fell in love with MMA by watching videos online.
They started competing late last year and recently took part in the MMA SA nationals where they both received silver medals.
“This is a very big opportunity for me to showcase my skills and prove that I take the sport seriously.
“I have been given another chance to win the gold. This will motivate me to keep up the hard work so I can further myself in the sport,” Belu said.
“It motivates me to pursue MMA as a career and pushes me to train harder. I look forward to winning my fight and bringing the gold medal back,” Swart said.
Brandon Parker is one of the coaches. He has been fighting since 2009 and has been training students since 2016.
“Words cannot describe how proud I am of these students.
“They are paving the way as the first youth fighters from our gym to qualify for this tournament and they will hopefully not be the last.
“We have been studying their fights from nationals to find areas where they can improve,” Parker said.
Donald Nzirawa is the second coach who has been assisting the boys on their journey. Nzirawa is a pro SA MMA fighter who has experience fighting in the EFC.
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