KSW have just booked one of the most bizarre MMA fights in the history of the sport, as a Judo black belt and a BJJ black belt will be fighting one another in the gi at XTB KSW Epic on February 24th, 2024. It’s the same kind of craziness that fans might have seen in the 90s and early 2000s from Japanese MMA promotions, or something that might not look totally out of place on the regional MMA circuit. In fact, MMA fighters wearing a gi hasn’t been seen much at all for quite some time and the most only major recent example came back in 2021 when a fighter chose to wear one at RIZIN 32 and he was submitted with a bow and arrow choke for his troubles.
KSW generally occupy a level above the smaller MMA promotions even if they’re not the biggest name in the industry, and they are known for booking legitimate matches between talented fighters. That’s why it might seem surprising to see something as unusual as this happening under their brand, but there is some method to the madness. XTB KSW Epic will be celebrating the promotion’s twentieth anniversary and as a result, they’ve decided to book a number of fights that pay homage to the early origins of professional MMA.
There’s also going to be a light-heavyweight tournament between 8 of the promotion’s top contenders at that weight, and the main event is a boxing match between MMA veteran Mamed Khalidov and former boxing world champion Tomasz Adamek. The MMA fight in the gi at XTB KSW Epic will be contested at lightweight and it will feature BJJ black belt Piotr Kacprzak taking on Judo black belt Adam Brysz. Both men have plenty of MMA experience already, but competing on a gi and gloves is a unique challenge that not many men have ever faced before.
KSW announced the news that a Judo black belt and a BJJ black belt were going to meet in an MMA fight in the gi at XTB KSW Epic in a recent post to their official Instagram acount:
