BURGAS, Bulgaria — Kashmir’s rising mixed martial arts star Owais Yaqoob delivered the defining victory of his professional career on Saturday night, dropping and finishing Bulgaria's previously undefeated Delyan Georgiev via first-round technical knockout at BRAVE Combat Federation (BRAVE CF) 107.
Competing in a 68-kg catchweight bout at the Arena Burgas, the 28-year-old native of Murran village in Jammu and Kashmir’s Pulwama district needed just four minutes to silence the host crowd and hand the 32-year-old Bulgarian his first professional loss.
Going into the contest, fan predictions heavily favored the home favorite, with over 70% picking Georgiev on fight prediction portals. However, Yaqoob, who made his walk to the cage draped in a traditional Kashmiri karakuli cap and pashmina shawl while carrying the Indian tricolour, quickly took center stage.
From the opening bell, Yaqoob established ring control with a kick-heavy approach and crisp combinations. After stuffing a series of takedown attempts from Georgiev, Yaqoob landed a lethal left hook to the temple that sent the Bulgarian crashing to the canvas. Yaqoob immediately followed up with a decisive flurry of ground-and-pound, forcing the referee to intervene and wave off the fight.
"Alhamdulillah! Thank you Bulgaria for not supporting me, but one day you will love me," an emotional Yaqoob declared during his post-fight interview atop the cage. "We are professional fighters. I want a belt for India. You don't know how much pressure was on me—we travelled for 40 hours, had no sleep for two days, and worked through a tough weight cut."
The triumph improves Yaqoob's professional record to 6-1, marking his sixth consecutive victory and his third straight stoppage under the BRAVE CF banner. The Kashmiri lightweight trains out of the world-renowned American Kickboxing Academy (AKA) in San Jose, California, under head coach Javier Mendez and former UFC lightweight champion Khabib Nurmagomedov.
Commentators and combat sports analysts hailed the performance as a landmark moment for Indian MMA on the global stage. Having dismantled one of the region's top prospects in host territory, Yaqoob has placed himself firmly in line for a BRAVE CF title shot.
