Nasratullah Akhonzada, an Afghan mixed martial arts (MMA) fighter, announced that he is prepared to attend an event in Russia in March hosted by the Absolute Championship Akhmat (ACA) organization.
“I am ready overall. I promise I will raise the Afghanistan flag at the event--in the world’s second-largest MMA organization,” said Akhondzada.
Akhondzada said that despite limited facilities in Afghanistan, he hopes to perform well.
“We are not capable of traveling to Thailand, Dagestan, or to other countries to practice, but even though we have fewer facilities, we trust in God that we will achieve a good result,” said Akhondzada.
Ahmad Khalid Karimi, Akhondzada's coach, said the fighter will enter the ring with new combat strategies.
Another Afghan MMA fighter, Abdul Azim Badakhshi, has also announced a fight abroad.
Badakhshi wrote on Facebook that he is expecting a match in Bahrain on March 11. Soon he will share the "fight card" with his fans, he said.
Badakhshi was defeated by his Russian rival, Akhmed Magomedov, last November.
Also, Mohammad Nasrat Haqparast, the only Afghan representative in the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) organization, will face Don Madge from South Africa in March in the US city of Las Vegas.
Haqparast is a well-known Afghan MMA fighter who is currently living in Germany.