BRAVE Combat Federation’s Super Welterweight champion Marcin Bandel has wasted no time making an impact in the most global MMA promotion.Since his debut fight, the Pole has produced performances of such a high standard that he earned his way to BRAVE CF gold in just three fights - one of the fastest routes to a BRAVE CF Championship.
His opening fight at BRAVE CF 54 saw him make a huge statement - living up to his stage name “Bomba” with an explosive performance against Switzerland’s Magomed Ayskhanov, whom he submitted by rear-naked choke within two minutes of the first round.
Impressing the BRAVE CF matchmakers, Bandel was given a more challenging task and thrown in at the deeper end against the Brazilian veteran Luis Felipe Dias. But the former GMC Middleweight Champion reiterated his dominance within the 175-pound division, proving that a new BRAVE CF star and potential future champion was on the rise after he dominated the experienced Diaz over three rounds to secure a unanimous decision victory at BRAVE CF 58. Backed by his motherland and beloved fans, Bandel was hungry to continue flying Poland’s flag in the most global MMA promotion, as he was now 2-0 in BRAVE CF.
With 21 wins, a jiu-jitsu black belt under ADCC Open-Weight champion Robert Drysdale, and 18 submissions to his name, Bandel was now officially the new threat in the division. But another rising star was quickly making his mark as the “Austrian Wonderboy” Ismail Naurdiev had plans to secure the title. Bandel and Naurdiev were matched up for the vacant BRAVE CF Super Welterweight title. With Naurdiev being the showman that he is, loved by thousands of BRAVE Nation fans, he was naturally dubbed the favorite.
It was a spectacular main event for an incredible show as the two stars headlined Kombat Kingdom’s BRAVE CF 63 show in Bahrain. Bandel proved just too much for his opponent as he knocked down Naurdiev before dominating him on the grappling side, silencing the “Austrian Wonderboy" fans with a frightening armbar early in the first round, securing yet another scalp on his long list of submission wins.
It was official, Poland had secured a BRAVE CF Super Welterweight champion, and the nation celebrated their new hero with a beautiful homecoming. Soon after, Bandel was honored in his home country, receiving the 2022 Herakles Submission of the Year Award following his incredible submission win over the world-renowned Naurdiev. The prestigious Herakles - regarded as the “Oscar” of Polish MMA awards - is the highest honor a Polish combat sports athlete can receive from the National Sporting Council. The ceremony - which took place at the Sheraton Hotel in Warsaw - consists of different categories and honored a who's who of the mixed martial arts scene in Poland, including the likes of Jan Blachowicz, Karolina Kowalkiewicz, and Mateusz Gamrot.
It was not the only recognition Bandel received as his emphatic win also earned him a Submission of the Year nomination at the 2022 BRAVE CF Awards. Bandel now had the world at his feet, and everybody had started to pay attention to the man. Eight months later, the dangerous unbeaten Russian in Kamal Magomedov desperately wanted what Bandel had and looked to secure BRAVE CF gold in the same period as the Pole.
Magomedov had entered BRAVE CF on an eight-fight win streak and secured two convincing wins over Vitaly Tverdokhlebov and Olli Santalahti at BRAVE CF 55 and 63, respectively. Magomedov had proven himself a worthy adversary and was then lined up to compete for Bandel’s throne. The two gladiators were set to meet in BRAVE CF’s return to the Kingdom of Bahrain this year at BRAVE CF 71 in what would have been Bandel’s first title defense, however, the fight fell through due to unforeseen circumstances.
With that said, a new meet is in the works between these two elite athletes, and BRAVE Nations fans could potentially find out who the real king of the division is before the end of this year.