The African Knockout Championship, a mixed martial arts (MMA) fight league, recently held its ninth instalment in the upscale Lekki neighbourhood of Lagos, Nigeria’s commercial capital.
The event drew thousands of cheering MMA fans and featured 18 fighters from eight African countries.
While football remained the most popular sport in Nigeria, combat sports like boxing and wrestling have enjoyed moderate success.
The exploits of Nigerian-born UFC champions Israel Adesanya and Kamaru Usman are spurring interest in organised MMA in the African economic powerhouse.
African Knockout’s chief operating officer, Ryan Fayad, said the championship was driven by the need to provide a platform for African talent to showcase themselves to the world and progress to international stages.
”If we had proper infrastructure, people would go to stadiums to watch,” said Fayad,
Despite the growing interest and optimism, the championship faces challenges like lack of infrastructure and institutional support.
Fayad said getting visas for foreign fighters was always cumbersome, and the championship relies on rented spaces to stage fights.
The organisation is hoping for government support to access proper infrastructure and make operations easier.
Two female fighters competed in the championship, with roughly half of the fighters being Nigerians and the rest from countries like Egypt, Angola, Togo, Burkina Faso, and Cameroon.
About 5,000 fans watched the last edition held in April in person, and several thousand more streamed the fights online.
One of the championship’s fighters, DR Congo’s Josias Musasa, made his UFC debut in March.
Jibrin Inuwa Baba, a four-time national kickboxing gold medallist. “I decided to do this sport because of the love of the sport and love of competition.”
”We are still coming up, and I feel that we are not there yet,” said Nigerian fighter Fabian Texas after knocking out Egypt’s Mahmud Ibrahim in the second round.
The African Knockout Championship is working to promote African talent and provide a platform for fighters to showcase their skills. With fighters like Kamaru Usman supporting the championship, it has the potential to become a major force in African MMA.
