KSW’s European expansion continues next month, when the promotion makes their debut in Croatia on Saturday, November 9th. This will be the fourth different country that the organization has visited and marks the first time they’ve put on back-to-back shows outside of Poland. One of KSW’s biggest selling points is the fact that they often promote cards around a theme, and their 51st numbered show appears to be no different.
The Balkans are a small group of countries located closely to one another in Europe, including Croatia, Bosnia, and Serbia. Many fighters from this area are on the card and will aim to display the talent emerging within the region against competitors from other countries around the world. This ‘national pride’ theme is clear to see in the first promotional trailer relased for KSW 51.
In the evening’s headliner, five times World’s Strongest Man, Mariusz Pudzianowski (12-7, 1NC) is scheduled to face Bosnian bodybuilder and social media star, Erko Jun (3-0), in a blockbuster heavyweight clash. Polish fan-favourite, Borys Mańkowski (19-8-1), will face Montenegro’s Vaso Bakocevic (39-18-1) in the co-main event, while the promotion’s first ever bantamweight champion will be crowned when Antun Racić (23-8-1) competes in front of his home country against UFC veteran, Damian Stasiak (11-6).
The current KSW 51 card features:
Heavyweight – Mariusz Pudzianowski (12-7, 1NC) vs. Erko Jun (3-0)
Catchweight (161 lbs) – Borys Mańkowski (19-8-1) vs. Vaso Bakocevic (39-18-1)
Inaugural Bantamweight Title – Antun Racić (23-8-1) vs. Damian Stasiak (11-6)
Featherweight – Filip Pejić (14-2-2) vs. Krzysztof Klaczek (12-6)
Middleweight – Aleksandar Ilić (12-2) vs. Caezary Kęsik (9-0)
Light Heavyweight – Ivan Erslan (7-0, 1NC) vs. Darwin Rodriguez (9-4)
Lightweight – Roman Szymański (11-5) vs. Milos Janicić (11-2)
Welterweight – Krystian Kaszubowski (7-1) vs. Aleksandar Rakas (15-7)
Bantamweight – Sebastian Przybysz (5-2) vs. Lemmy Krusić (20-6)