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Rolando Dy braces for toughest fight yet in Brave title eliminator

Rolando Dy is up for a tough task as he guns for a world title shot at Brave. Brave CF (file photo)
By Ivan Saldajeno

MANILA--Rolando Dy is in for what would be his biggest acid test as a lightweight as he battles Abdisalam Kubanychbek at Brave CF 47 in Manama, Bahrain.

Dy, one of Philippine mixed martial arts' biggest stars, takes on Kyrgyzstan's MMA hero Kubanychbek in the headliner of the said fight card for the right to challenge Amin Ayoub for the Brave lightweight title.

Right now, Dy is aware that Kubanychbek is someone not to be downplayed.

"Mahirap talaga siyang kalaban kasi... I've done my research sa kalaban ko, and sa tingin ko, ito ang pinakamahirap ko," Dy told the Sports on Air podcast on Sunday night.

According to Dy, Kubanychbek is ranked fourth among the top fighters within the former Soviet Union, making him a worthy protagonist in the title eliminator.

"We all know ano ang level ng Russia pagdating sa MMA, so alam ko mapapalaban ako sa laban na ito," Dy further said. "Kung hindi siya ang pinakamagaling, isa siya sa pinakamagaling na nakalaban ko."

Since joining Brave in 2019, Kubanychbek has been making a statement after another, knocking out Joao Paulo Rodrigues and Vagif Askerov in his first two forays into the promotion before submitting Jahongir Saidjamolov at Brave CF 46 last January.

While the knockouts showed how well rounded Kubanychbek can be, Dy believes Kubanychbek is at his best when he brings the fight to the ground.

"We know that Kyrgyzstan's wrestlers are one of the best," Dy further said.

However, he added that speed could be in his favor.

"Itong si Abdisalam, he's powerful but he's not fast. 'Di siya ganun kabilis," Dy analyzed Kubanychbek further. "He is a little bit stiff and slow."

Ahead of his March 11 battle, Dy said that he will leave for Manama next Sunday even as he wraps up his training camp here this week.

Follow him on Twitter: @IvanSaldajeno

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