UNSTOPPABLE!!
#KSW84
#AndStillThe King 🇬🇧 @phildefriesmma
👑 pic.twitter.com/UaqlQst0fy— KSW (@KSW_MMA)
July 15, 2023
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Philip De
Fries keeps making history as the Konfrontacja Sztuk Walki
heavyweight champion.
In the KSW
84/a> headliner, De Fries (24-6, 1 NC; 10-0 KSW) re-asserted
that he’s one of the most dangerous heavyweight fighters in any
promotion, as he choked out Szymon
Bajor on Saturday at Polsat Plus Arena in Gdynia, Poland, for
his ninth consecutive title defense. A Professional Fighters League
alum, Bajor (24-10, 2-2 KSW) had some success with his strikes at
the beginning of the clash, giving the defending champion trouble
with his dirty boxing. When De Fries felt his opponent was taking
too much liberty with his punches, the Ultimate Fighting
Championship veteran shot for a successful takedown and kept Bajor
on the canvas for the rest of the round, landing punches and
forcing Bajor to carry his weight.
De Fries relied on his grappling skills right out of the gate in
the second frame, piling up more ground-and-pound. Bajor’s
resistance was futile, as De Fries kept advancing and improving his
position with exhausting patience. When the Englishman saw an
opening from the back, he sank in a rear-naked choke attempt. Even
though he never put the hooks in, the submission was tight, and
Bajor passed out. The official end came at the 4:57 mark of Round
2.
PUT. TO. SLEEP!! 😴
#KSW84🇵🇱 @przybyszmma
with a victory in his hometown!! pic.twitter.com/PSOrq9BCAM— KSW (@KSW_MMA)
July 15, 2023
In the co-main event, former divisional titleholder Sebastian
Przybysz made a point that he is more than versatile with his
grappling, as he choked out promotional newcomer Islam
Djabrailov in front of a partizan crowd. Przybysz (12-3-1, 9-2
KSW) was simply too much to handle for Djabrailov (8-5, 0-1 KSW)
with his stinging strikes. Still, it was on the mat where “Sebic”
gave his best by winning the scrambles and not allowing his
opponent to get back on his feet. Shortly after the beginning of
Round 3, Przybysz put Djabrailov into a tight guillotine choke.
Djabrailov attempted a timid defense, but Przybysz made some
adjustments and set the submission attempt even tighter. Djabrailov
ultimately passed out before he could tap. The official end came at
1:21 of the third period.
𝐊𝐍𝐎𝐂𝐊𝐎𝐔𝐓!!!💣
🇷🇸 Darko Stosic brings the pain once again!!
#KSW84 pic.twitter.com/Ubms9sk4hD— KSW (@KSW_MMA)
July 15, 2023
Elsewhere, Olympic bronze medalist Damian
Janikowski (9-5, 8-5 KSW) outpointed Cezariusz
Kesik (13-4, 3-4 KSW) on all scorecards (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
en route to a unanimous decision at middleweight; UFC veteran
Darko
Stosic (18-6, 5-1 KSW) mauled Stefan
Vojcak (6-1, 0-1 KSW) with punches at 2:34 of the third stanza
at heavyweight; 185-pounder Bartosz
Lesko (13-3-2, 2-1 KSW) submitted Nemanja
Nikolic (10-1-1, 0-1 KSW) with a rear-naked choke after
softening his foe with a spinning-back kick at 4:40 of the first
period; UFC featherweight alum Damian
Stasiak (14-9, 3-3 KSW) forced Pascal
Hintzen (8-3, 1-3 KSW) to tap due to a tight triangle choke at
1:52 of Round 1; bantamweight Gustavo
Oliveira (10-2, 1-1 KSW) overcame Bruno
Augusto dos Santos (10-5, 1-4 KSW) after the doctor stopped the
contest 1:52 into the third frame when a spinning back elbow opened
a deep cut on dos Santos’ head; Damian
Mieczkowski (2-0, 1-0 KSW) outstruck Borys
Dzikowski (3-1, 2-1 KSW) en route to a unanimous decision
(30-26, 30-26, 30-26) at middleweight; and the 135-pound clash
between Patryk
Chrobak (2-3, 1NC; 0-2, 1NC KSW) and Milosz
Melchert (2-1, 1NC; 0-1, 1NC KSW) was ruled no contest due to
an accidental clash of heads in the opening frame.