Singapore based startup promotion Rebel Fighting Championship will host their debut event this Saturday night (21 December) at the Singapore Indoor Stadium. The ‘Into The Lion’s Den’ main event will feature arguably Australia’s top featherweight in Rob Lisita, who comes up against Japanese veteran, and two-time Shooto lightweight champion, Takeshi Inoue.
Joining Lisita on the card will be fellow Top Team gym products Suman Mokhtarian (pictured right of Rob Lisita) and Amy Adam, who both received the call up on just 2 days’ notice to face Singaporean locals Mubarak Abdat and May Ooi respectively.
Originally hailing from Adelaide, Suman Mokhtarian now resides in Sydney where he owns and trains out of the Australian Top Team Gym in Wentworthville, alongside fighters such as Sam Kei and Randall Rayment. The 21 year-old holds an amateur MMA record of 3-1 with all 3 of his victories coming by first round submissions. Mokhtarian was training in Phuket with Lisita and Will Chope when he was offered the very short notice matchup.
Fight News Australia spoke with Mokhtarian ahead of the fight.
“I’ve worked very hard to get where I am, been homeless been at the bottom of the pit and MMA saved my life, I’m only 21 years old but I’m going to make it on the world stage.
“Training at Phuket Top Team with Rob Lisita Will Chope and so many other guys that are the best here, getting my ass kicked by these guys is going to be much harder than what Ill face.”
Mokhtarian will face Mubarak Abdat, a Jiu Jitsu fighter who trains out of the Juggernaut Fight Club in Singapore. According to the Rebel FC website, Abdat is a veteran of nearly 40 amateur bouts in both MMA, and Silat — a collective word for indigenous martial arts from Southeast Asia.
The two men will meet in the amateur portion of the event at 66 kilograms.
Also currently based in Phuket, Sydney’s Amy Adam will be looking to rebound from her Valor 6 loss to Christina Tatnell. This will be the 21 year-old’s debut international appearance.
Fight Card:
- Rob Lisita vs Takeshi Inoue
- Syafig Samad vs Gyo Pyung Hwang
- Doo Hwan Kim vs Chris Hofmann
- Marcos Pancini vs Taiyo Nakahara
- Glenn Sparv vs Alberto Mina
Amateur Fights:
- Garie Tang vs Mohd Amir Ghafar
- Jen Loh Lim vs Amirul Syafig
- Mohammed Alsebaie vs Muhammad Nazri
- Mubarak Abdat vs Suman Mokhtarian
- Amy Adam vs May Ooi
- He Chong Qing vs Andy Neo Hong Chee
- Azman vs Sholihin Bin Rahman
Local Fighters:
- Rob Lisita
- Suman Mokhtarian
- Amy Adam
