BRAVE CF 66: Hanekom vs La set to be the new main event in Bali

23 November 2022

Following the news of Magomed Idrisov's withdrawal from the Indonesian tournament this month, BRAVE CF 66 will now have a new main event. Due to an unidentified ailment, the Bahraini superstar was unable to compete against Kazakhstan's Asu Almabaev in a crucial Flyweight match.

South African Chad Hanekom and South Korean In Jae La's original BRAVE CF 66 co-main event will now serve as the main event as these two competitors compete for a spot in the vacant 185-pound BRAVE CF Championship battle.

After Idrisov left, Kenneth "Smooth" Maningat from the Philippines entered. "Smooth" has a once-in-a-lifetime chance to establish himself on the most popular MMA platform in the entire globe. Maningat, a protégé of former BRAVE CF star Rolando Dy, makes his BRAVE CF debut this month in Bali, Indonesia.

On both the amateur and professional levels, he has never lost. He now has a six-fight winning run in professional combat. His most recent victory came in August when he defeated his fellow countryman Mark Oliva via technical knockout in the first round. Fighting under Dy's instruction at DyIncredible FFC, "Smooth" has two KO/TKO victories and two submission victories under his belt. He is a well-rounded athlete with a strong ground game and passable stand-up.

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He will compete against the third-ranked BRAVE CF Flyweight Almabaev, one of the best 125-pounders in the organisation. Almabaev had a memorable year in 2021. Two BRAVE CF Awards were given to him for his rear-naked choke victory over Aleksander Doslkalchuk at BRAVE CF 53: Submission of the Year and Breakthrough Fighter of the Year.

Almabaev increased his winning run this year with two more victories, defeating Imram Magaramov at BRAVE CF 57 and then defeating Zach Makovsky at BRAVE CF 60 for the biggest victory of his mixed martial arts career. One of the best flyweights in the world, Almabaev is ranked first in Kazakhstan, Central Asia, and the Middle East.

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With a victory over the challenging BRAVE CF rookie Maningat, he hopes to move one step closer to a Flyweight title contest. The world's fastest-growing MMA organisation makes its long-awaited return to Indonesia with BRAVE CF 66 on November 26. Go to www.bravecf.com for more details about BRAVE CF 66.