BRAVE CF 7: Pato submits Quintanar to settle rivalry; younger Fakhreddine debuts with TKO win

There is a new king in town. Tijuana now belongs to Alejandro Martinez, and there’s no doubt about it. Pato beat Fabian Quintanar for the second time, now with a second-round submission at BRAVE CF 7: Untamed main event, to settle the biggest rivalry in Mexican MMA.

Martinez got into the cage haunted by the ghost of controversy from the first meeting with Fabian. In the occasion, a year ago, he won via split decision but didn’t convince his opponent or his teammates. Now, Pato left no room for doubt and stopped Quintanar with a rear-naked choke.

Both Alejandro and Fabian started the fight looking for the leg kicks. Even though Quintanar had the reach advantage, it was Martinez controlling the distance and throwing long range punches. When he managed to bring the fight to the close distance, Fabian clinched and used his dirty boxing. Closer to the end of the first round, Pato’s low kicks started to damage Quintanar’s leg and reduce his mobility.

Early into the second round, Quintanar went for the single leg but Martinez defended well. Soon after, it was Martinez’s turn to go for the takedown and successfully take the fight to the ground twice. After the second takedown, Pato got Fabian’s back quickly and that was the beginning of the end. With a tight rear-naked choke locked, Martinez waited for the tap and got his second win in a row against Quintanar.

With the triumph over Quintanar, Martinez improved his professional record to 3-0. The Mexican lightweight, who had an extensive and victorious amateur career, is now 2-0 under BRAVE CF’s banner.

Hassan Fakhreddine debuts with TKO win

These are special days for the Fakhreddine family. Two weeks before Mohammad Fakhreddine fight for the inaugural welterweight title in Brazil, the younger brother Hassan made his professional debut and left a great impression.

“The Young Assassin” faced the local prospect Rodrigo Reyes in front of a hostile audience but didn’t even have time to care about this. Hassan showed his boxing credentials and secured his first pro win with a TKO after a doctor stoppage.

Now Hassan turns his attention to BRAVE CF 8: The Rise of Champions, more specifically to the co-main event. On August 12, his older brother Mohammad will face Carl Booth for the welterweight title in one of the most anticipated bouts in BRAVE Combat Federation history.

Sabori survives submission attempt, wins via TKO

The Mexico vs Philippines clash between Pablo Sabori and Andrew Lagdaan was anticipated as one of the most exciting bouts of BRAVE CF 7 card and it has delivered. In a back and forth match, with both fighters getting really close to finishing the fight, Sabori ended up with a win via technical knockout in the third round.

Early in the contest, Lagdaan goes for the takedown and successfully puts Sabori against his back. “El Toro de las Pilipinas” quickly gets his opponent’s back and starts working towards the rear-naked choke. Andrew is really close to finishing the fight but Pablo manages to reverse the position and regain the guard. Lagdaan insists and gets the half-guard, throwing some good strikes from the top.

Back to the the stand- up, Lagdaan is paying a high price for his previous effort and starts to gas out. Pablo Sabori then takes the center of the cage and hurts the Filipino-American with his striking. The Mexican avoids the next takedown attempts from Lagdaan and establishes that the fight will take place in his own territory, which he further reinforced with a flashy flying head kick.

Halfway through the third and last round, the Filipino almost gets another takedown but is swiped, ending up from the bottom. With more than three minutes on the clock and the advantage position, Sabori delivers some strong hits and brings the fight back to the stand-up. Constantly switching stances, Sabori rocks Lagdaan with a head kick and goes for the kill. The Mexican delivers some hammer-fists to the head and the referee stops the fight.

With the late knockout, Pablo Sabori got his seventh professional win, while the 32-year-old Lagdaan suffered his fourth loss.

BRAVE CF 7: Untamed Results:

• Alejandro Martinez def. Fabian Quintanar via submission (rear-naked choke) – R2, 2:14
• Chris Padilla def. Ivan Castillo via split decision (30-27, 28-29 30-28)
• Antonio Duarte def. Hector Valenzuela via unanimous decision (30-26, 30-26, 30-27)
• Pablo Sabori def. Andrew Lagdaan via TKO (punches) – R3, 3:03
• Hassan Fakhreddine def. Rodrigo Reyes via TKO (doctor stoppage) – R2, 4:58
• Marcos Beristain def. Ernesto Galán via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
• Victor Tirado def. Ben Pineda via TKO (punches) – R1, 1:09
• Eduardo Alvarado def. Daniel Rincón via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Saul Cabrera def. José Salazar via submission (armbar) – R1, 0:51
• Kevin Amador def. Irving Hernandez via submission (armbar) – R2, 3:32