KSW 54 Preview

KSW is back with another studio show this Saturday, in Warsaw, Poland. The action will be available live on international PPV at KSWTV.com.

Headlining the card is a KSW Lightweight Championship fight as defending champion Mateusz Gamrot (16-0) faces Marian Ziółkowski (21-7-1). The original challenger was Shamil Musaev who was forced to pull out this week due to injury. Ziółkowski’s original opponent, Maciej Kazieczko (6-1), is expected to be rematched on this card. Gamrot had been predicting a UFC move with a win, so will be looking to impress with a great performance against a late replacement. In training for Musaev, Gamrot should be well prepared for Ziółkowski’s skill set.

In the co-main event, the heavyweight division has gained another world class fighter. Former boxing and kickboxing world champion Izuagbe Ugonoh (0-0) takes on fellow KSW debutant Quentin Domingos (5-1). Izu has been training alongside UFC title challenger Jan Błachowicz and pro boxer Artur Szpilka so has had plenty of big bodies to prepare for this fight against Domingos. The Portuguese is known for knockouts himself, so it will be interesting to see if he takes a chance and stays standing..

Two former KSW Heavyweight champions do battle. Michał Andryszak (21-8), coming off the back of a highlight reel 9 second head kick KO last time out, will be looking to recreate it versus Michał Kita (19-11-1), himself winning within 37 seconds in his last contest. The first fight between the two was won in the first round via anaconda by Andryszak. Don’t expect this one to reach the second round.

The Irish interest on the card is in the bantamweight division. Dublin based Pole Paweł Polityło (4-2) returns to the cage to take on Romanian Bogdan Barbu (16-11). Polityło, who trains out of Fantom MMA and has trained in SBG HQ recently, is looking to show his all action style against the European veteran Barbu. Polityło’s only losses have come via the tightest of split decisions to current champion Antun Račić, with many thinking Paweł won the fight.

This event marks the first time where two brothers will compete on the same card. The older of the two, Łukasz Rajewski (9-6) fights Bartłomiej Kopera (9-5), while the younger brother Sebastian Rajewski (8-5) takes on Armenian Armen Stepanyan (6-3). Both fights are being held at lightweight. To continue on with the brother theme, Bartłomiej Kopera’s brother Łukasz holds a win over Łukasz Rajewski.

Adam Niedźwiedź (7-3) opens up the card in his KSW debut. Niedźwiedź’s sister Agnieszka has competed for the Invicta strawweight title in the past. Across the cage will be fellow KSW debutant Kacper Koziorzębski (6-2). Niedźwiedź has faced high calibre opponents in the past, including Paweł Pawlak and Michał Michalski, and will be looking to use that experience to come out with the W. Most of Koziorzębski’s wins have come via strikes so will be looking to make a statement.

KSW 54 is live on Saturday, 29th August at KSWTV.com. The action kicks off at 7pm Irish time and costs €7.