Hattan Alsaif continued her impressive career start with another quickfire win in her latest cage outing tonight.
The PFL Championship event in Riyadh saw a number of big fights take place, including six World title bouts with $1million prizes for the winners. But one of the biggest reactions of the night came for the atomweight amateurs in the middle of the MENA portion of the card.
Alsaif is one of the most popular fighters in the region, given her unique standing as the first woman from Saudi Arabia to fight on a major MMA promotion. She is now 3-0 in her amateur career after switching from Muay Thai where she was a world champion, with all three victories coming by way of knockout.
Hattan Alsaif lands vicious KO in third PFL outing
After two quickfire victories, the first of which landed her a Guinness World Record, Hattan Alsaif knew she would need her A-Game in Riyadh. With more eyes than ever watching as the Global Season reached its conclusion she took on the debuting Lilia Osmani.
Osmani had missed weight by 2.4lb, which for 105lb atomweights is a significant amount from their overall frames. This meant the bout was moved to a 109lb catchweight, but Alsaif didn’t seem to be overly concerned.
The unassuming Osmani made a big impression early, showing off some solid striking as she pushed for a quick finish. But the more experienced Alsaif held her composure, and managed to get off some big shots of her own.
A rowdy Saudi Arabian crowd cheered the 23-year-old with every move she seemed to make throughout the contest. And they were rewarded with a massive knee halfway through the second that sent Osmani to the canvas.
As is standard in amateur contests, the referee stepped in very quickly to stop the bout, leading to massive applause in the venue. Alsaif remains undefeated as she begins her career, and moves on to her next challenge.
Hattan Alsaif was inspired to get into MMA by Conor McGregor and Jon Jones
To speak to her, one would never know that Hattan Alsaif was inspired to make the move to MMA by some of the sport’s biggest trash talkers. She is a relatively quiet invididual, who admittedly enjoys the opportunity to unleash in the cage.
Alsaif was a world champion Muay Thai fighter before coming into the cage under the PFL banner. And she says she was motivated to make the transition by watching the likes of Conor McGregor and Jon Jones make their marks in the UFC octagon.
“This is my first year in MMA and I’m glad for beginning in the sport because my transfer from Muay Thai was really something,” she told Bloody Elbow in an exclusive chat. “But I was really proud and happy to do this.
“Conor McGregor is my favorite fighter, but I have more than only one favorite fighter in MMA. I have a couple of fighters that are my favorite because I enjoy striking and I can see that Conor McGregor striking is the best.
“Also Abdullah Al-Qahtani is the best, and Jon Jones, you saw the last fight his back kick against Stipe Miocic? Amazing. So I do love a couple of fighters.”
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