The strength of the MMA cage will be tested as heavyweight sluggers Nermin Hajdarpasic (3-0) faces Fatih Aktas (6-8) at FCR 12 on May seventh in Västerås, Sweden.
Hajdarpasic began his martial arts journey as a boxer and became the 2020 super heavyweight champion in amateur boxing. Just a few months following that achievement Hajdarpasic made his pro debut at FCR 8 against Salif Diop - who formerly represented the Swedish national team in amateur MMA. Hajdarpasic took an early lead and finished the fight via second round TKO.
Not long after that fight a heated rivalry began brewing between Hajdarpasic and fellow Swedish heavyweight Irman Smajic. However they would have to wait to settle the score.
Hajdarpasic was instead pited against Turkish striker Aktas - who has competed in major promotions such as Brave CF. Aktas did not arrive in Västerås to be a stepping stone, however. AThe turkish heavyweight dropped Hajdarpasic with a strike but the hometown favourite battled his way back into the fight, winning a close split decision after three tough rounds.
That fight earned Hajdarpasic a shot at his rival Smajic in the co-main event at FCR 10. The fight began somewhat slowly but quickly heated up, culminating in a drawn out TKO win for Hajdarpasic in the final round, ending the grudge match.
Aktas has a background in kickboxing and saw mostly successful results once transitioning to MMA. Following a TKO win over towering Italian Matteo Riccetti he had back-to-back fights in Brave CF against Swedes Smajic and Zvonimir Kralj. Aktas would end up losing both before the first bout with Hajdarpasic.
Aktas bounced back with a quick TKO win over veteran Ivan Vicic but lost his most recent bout via submission to undefeated prospect Zhasur Mirzamukhamedov.
Both fighters feel they did enough to win the first fight and neither combatant wants to leave the decision in the judges hands. Fans can expect a heated heavyweight battle that will surely produce fireworks.
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