Three Sarawak muaythai combat fighters advance to next round

BINTULU (Aug 16): Three muaythai combat fighters from Sarawak advanced to the next round on the opening day of the sport here yesterday.

Seven Sarawak fighters stepped into the ring for the initial round at Naim Bintulu Paragon Street Mall.

In the women’s category, Intan Nirmala Mosidi, competing in the 45kg weight class, delivered a stunning performance against Nurul Jannah Ulfah Tumijan from Negeri Sembilan, securing a decisive victory.

Muhammad Mikail Ghazali Zulfikar, fighting in the 54kg category, also emerged victorious, demonstrating his prowess and earning a spot in the next round.

Mohammad Izzat Zulfakar Hazrid, in the 63.5kg kg weight class, faced off against Alif Haikal Zainuddin from Perak and the Sarawakian triumphed, advancing further to the next round.

However, Mohd Nurizman Abdullah, competing in the 60kg category, faced a tough opponent in Saafuan Shah Roslan from Selangor and was defeated.

Similarly, Muhammad Khuzairie Zaidie lost to Amirul Shamel Zulkafli from Federal Territory.

Mohammad Hasbullah Mood, who had been predicted to reach the final, was defeated by defending champion Wassof Rumijam from Federal Territory in the 51kg category.

The Sarawak team also faced a challenging situation when a discrepancy between the timekeeper and the screen led to confusion during this bout.

“When we saw the time on the screen, we complained because according to the screen, we were winning, leading by three minutes and 46 seconds.

“But when they explained, it turned out that the timekeeper and the screen were not synchronised,” Sarawak muaythai head coach Muhammad Azan Mohd Nadzri told the media.

Despite the confusion, the team accepted the narrow one-point defeat.

“We accepted the fact that we lost by one point because the system is different now. Previously, winning Round 1 and Round 2 meant a clear win. Now, it’s all about points, combining all the points,” he noted.

He said the team chose not to file a protest after the explanation and video review.

In the women’s 48kg category, Dayangku Hana Humaira Awang Zallaluddin fought valiantly against Eva Anatasia from Sabah but the latter proved too strong.

Looking ahead, Muhammad Azan is optimistic about the 10 upcoming combat matches today.