MMA

OKTAGON 31 lost another game! The tournament will once again be saved by matches with Underground rules

An uncomfortable situation for Octagon. In the afternoon, another match was cancelled and there would be only 8 fights on Saturday’s tournament. For the second time in a row, the organization has to supplement its gala with stand-up fights.

Published

3 years ago

25. 2. 2022

Pavel Langr

During Friday’s weigh-ins before OKTAGON 31, the promoter of the biggest Czechoslovak MMA organization Ondrej Novotny announced that the fight between Andrey Kalashnik and Arthur Karavaev will not take place on Saturday.

While Kalashnik is a citizen of the Czech Republic, he was born in Ukraine and still has family there. The Russian Karavaev has offered to step in without the Russian flag, just as Kalashnik opposed the war. The Octagon nevertheless did not allow the fight, lest it be used for propaganda.

Besides, a possible withdrawal from the fight was expressed by Lucie Pudilova, whose opponent did not meet the weight limit. The Czech fighter was waiting for the decision of her famous coach John Kavanagh, under whose guidance she was preparing for the fight in Ireland.

“Lucie Pudilova unfortunately will not enter the fight. The decision was made by her coach John Kavanagh after her opponent failed to meet the weight limit by nearly two kilos on her second attempt,” the organisation announced the cancellation on social media.

Octagon tried to arrange for Pudilova’s opponent to undergo a reweight session the afternoon before the fight, but to no avail. Thus, for the second straight year, the organization must deal with the addition of a fight card bout under OKTAGON UNDERGROUND rules.