Jordan’s Jarrah Al-Silawi has been a mainstay of BRAVE CF since the company arrived on the MMA landscape back in 2016. Al-Silawi first competed for the promotion at BRAVE CF 2, scoring a second-round submission win over Sweden’s Erik Carlsson to open his BRAVE CF account.
The “Jordanian Lion” now has a record of 9-1 under the company’s banner, and this Thursday (April 1), he will chase win number ten when he defends his Super Welterweight title in the main event of BRAVE CF 50 against Russian-born Austrian Ismail Naurdiev.
It seems fitting that one of the promotion’s longest-tenured fighters will be headlining the show and while his focus is on the task at hand. Al-Silawi is proud of the work he and the company have done, helping increase the profile of MMA in the Middle East.
“BRAVE CF grew in every sense and aspect of the sport. It feels actually like a different company, but the same name,” Al-Silawi said, speaking to LowkickMMA about the changes he has seen since he first stepped into the BRAVE CF cage.
“I feel a sense of pride to have witnessed the development of the company and to represent Arabs in this organization.”
In Naurdiev, Al-Silawi will be facing a former UFC veteran who racked up a 2-2 record before he and the company parted ways. This bout will be Naurdiev’s promotional debut, and Al-Silawi knows he will have a fight on his hands once the cage doors close on the pair later this week.
” I watched him, and he looks like a great adversary, but I feel I am better than him in all aspects. But he needs to understand that he is not coming and taking the title away from me. He is in for a battle, and I will keep my title in the end.”
Naurdiev is not the only recent addition to the BRAVE CF super welterweight ranks. The company’s president, Mohammed Shahid, has been vocal about his desire to add talent to the division, and recent signings such as Nauldiev, alongside figures such as Kamal Magomedov and Andreas Stahl, has done just that.
Al-Silawi has been watching the developments with a close eye. The arrival of new competition has helped fuel his drive to get the best out of himself, especially in this recent training camp.
I see the new signings, and it is giving me a boost to keep training and improving to defend my title over and over,” Al-Silawi explained.
“My training camp was very good. The only thing is that I had to finish my camp in Dubai due to the high number of cases and lockdown in Jordan. However, I feel I had one of the best training camps, and I kept in contact daily with my coaches and team.”
Globally MMA is continuing to bring in new fans and participants at an impressive rate, and the Middle East is no exception when it comes to increased interest in the sport. Al-Silawi wants to continue seeing the sport he loves grow and prosper in the region and aims to fulfill his part by remaining one of the faces of the region’s premier MMA promotion.
“The future is now, and the growth is mind-blowing. There are a lot of opportunities, and I am happy that I am spearheading the biggest global organization on the planet, and my partnership with the organization has and will continue being a fruitful one.”
Al-Silawi may have several new challenges for his title, but as far as he is concerned, he will be holding on to his belt and helping BRAVE CF continue to expand for some time to come.