Month of December came with excitement for youths in combat sporting activities in the South-West as the Oduduwa Fighting Championship opened a window of opportunity for young talents and professional fighters across the six states of Oyo, Osun, Ogun, Ondo, Ekiti and Lagos to showcase their talents and experience in the ring.
For the youths in combat sports who graced the occasion, it was a rare experience close to the challenge created in the MMA fighting championships, courtesy of the OFC and partners (Kakanfo Inn and Conference Centre, Club XS).
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In the word of the President and Founder, Oduduwa Fighting Championship, Commissioner Preye Dolapo Preboye, OFC as an organisation came to fill the void that saw raw talents wasting away and engaging in unproductive lifestyles such as hooliganism and criminalities in communities.
In an interview with Oyo Reporters, Preboye said, “When OFC comes to a town near you it’s like the American Football Super Bowl is in town. We shall become the hot sporting ticket in town by creating the best fighting atmosphere and business management.
“The OFC goal is to boost and improve numbers. The engagements we are creating are targeted at multiplicity of issues towards curbing crime and hooliganism, improving tourism and the IGR of businesses of cities and states, especially in the South-West.”
At the OFC Fighters Call on Tuesday, December 21, several scores of fighters showed up to be counted. And, subsequently, on December 26, 2021, Boxing Day, the young and professional fighters, clad with the standard MMA fighting kits, clashed in the rings at the Race Course, Lekan Salami Sports Complex, Adamasingba, Ibadan.
Preboye said that the engagement of youths in combat sporting activities in the South-West would help in boosting the Internally Generated Revenues of the zone just as it would engage the unemployed youth productively.
He stressed that the initiative had begun to open new opportunities for the younger generation to showcase their skills by channeling their energies aright.
Noting also that it would help in diverting their attention from social vices, Preboye said, “We are here for fighters call. We are attracting amateurs and professionals from the six South-West states. We have boxing in the children segment. The children are from age 7 and above. They are here for the trial, and we also have segment for adults from age 18 and above.
“Our aim is to see that Ibadan can host the big event at the stadium as well as at Kakanfo Inn and Conference Centre. The objective is to keep the MMA fighters and the boxers busy on weekend basis.
“In Ibadan, we have fighters from Molete, Iwo Road, Gate, Oke-Ado, Mokola Hilltop and Ologuneru. We are currently putting them in the ring to see how good they are. We want to create a ranking system, like having the best fighter in under 15, and other categories, so we are working with the local boxing clubs to achieve that.
“I am 100 per cent sure that we can boost the state IGR through sporting activities if it is properly organised. For instance, in order for us to have an event like this, we hired a graphic designer, a printing company, and a catering company because we are giving those fighters food. We hired security, medical personnel and cleaners that we are paying on a weekly basis. There is going to be incentive for the winners at the end of the activities.”
One of the fighters from Focus Martial Art, Ile-Ife, Osun State, Sodiq Suliaman Abobajo, described the experience as very wonderful, adding that it was an opportunity to showcase their talents.
Abobajo stated that “There are lots of fighters at the grassroots that are good but don’t have the opportunity to showcase their talents. I believe this would give us opportunity to become who we want to be.”
