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Dimapur, Aug. 21 (EMN): Five mixed martial arts (MMA) fighters from Nagaland will represent India at the Global Association of Mixed Martial Arts (GAMMA) Asian MMA Championship, which is scheduled to take place in Kyrgyzstan from August 24 to the 28th.
One of the candidates from Nagaland, Mairidin Newmai, told Eastern Mirror that he will fight in featherweight category, while Arsenba Ozukum in flyweight category, Limasunep Imchen- bantamweight, Kekhrieneitso Angami- lightweight, and Longtsukumba Ao- welterweight.
All the five fighters from the state are from Combat Academy Nagaland in Dimapur, he said, adding that it would be their first exposure at international level.
A total of 16 fighters will be representing India at the championship.
Newmai informed that their preparation went well by ‘God's grace and was fortunate enough to be actively competing this year’ and they were ‘grateful and excited for this opportunity’.
He said that he weighed around 65kg and would be competing in the featherweight category, which is 65.8 kg. He added that his fighting technique was a mixture of ‘striking and wrestling’.
When queried about the sponsorship, Newmai informed that it was an expensive sport and ‘a very dangerous one’.
“What’s more dangerous than putting their body on the line every time you compete?” he asked.
He said that they would meet their own travelling expenses, which came to around INR 1 lakh per head. Although a big hurdle at the beginning as everyone had their own financial issues, he said that they were ‘fortunate to get help from their family members, well-wishers and others from the society’.
Currently in Mumbai, the team will be heading to Sharaj (UAE) before heading for Bishkek (Kyrgyzstan) on August 23.
The GAMMA Asian MMA Championship will bring together male and female athletes from GAMMA's Asian National Federations to compete in as many as 32 weight categories across two divisions -- MMA and striking MMA. Each division will have 16 weight categories, nine for men and seven for women.