Malaysia’s Adam gets a crack at MMA title fight

GEORGE TOWN: Kelantan coach Bojan Hodak has reiterated that he is fully focused on the Red Warriors’ Malaysia Cup title defence and has not thought about joining another team.

Rumours have been rife on social media that the Croatian, who led Kelantan to the FA Cup title this year, will be joining Premier League new boys Penang next season.

Hodak, who also led Kelantan to the Super League, FA Cup and Malaysia Cup treble during his maiden season last year, dismissed the connection saying this is not the first time that he has been linked with another Malaysian League team.

“First, it was Selangor. Then, T-Team and now, Penang. There is no basis for these rumours. The Penang connection could have come because I own a house there.

“My family and I usually spend our Sundays unwinding and relaxing in Penang,” explained Hodak.

“I have a job to do with Kelantan. Right now, there is nothing else on my mind except preparing the team for the quarter-finals against JDT (Johor Darul Takzim).”

The quarter-final first leg at the Larkin Stadium tomorrow will be the first meeting between the two sides since the FA Cup final on June 29.

Kelantan had dominated the cash-rich southerners in the final and won 1-0, courtesy of a Mohd Norfarhan Mohamad goal.

But Hodak is cautious about the Red Warriors’ chances in the two-leg quarter-finals.

“The Malaysia Cup quarter-finals will be a completely different game from the FA Cup final. We cannot expect an easy ride over JDT because they are a quality side with many current and former internationals,” warned Hodak.

However, the Croatian is pleased with his team, who are peaking at the right time after a slow start to the Malaysia Cup competition.

The defending champions routed Pahang 4-0 last Saturday to emerge champions in the tough Group C, which also featured Negri Sembilan and Terengganu.

Hodak is also happy that his strike force, led by Indra Putra Mahayuddin and Nigerian Dickson Nwakaeme, who netted a hat-trick against Pahang, have found their scoring touch.

“My players have hit their stride in our last few matches and we want to keep the momentum going in Johor this weekend. JDT have not posted any convincing results in their last two matches but I have toldmyplayers to be wary as past results and form do not matter much in the knockout phase.”

In this year’s Super League, JDT beat Kelantan 2-0 in Johor Baru and held the Red Warriors to a 1-1 draw in Kota Baru. KUALA LUMPUR: A Malaysian stands the chance of being crowned the first Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) welterweight champion as Adam “Shogun” Shahir Kayoom has been given a title shot at the ONE Fighting Championship ( ONE FC): Warrior Spirit, presented by Tune Talk at Putra Stadium on Nov 15.

The headlining fight card for the inaugural ONE FC Welterweight World Championship title will see Adam, the most decorated Malaysian on the roster and the first Malaysian to be given a title-fight, square off against Japan’s knockout specialist Nobutatsu Suzuki.

The fight is probably one of the most highly-anticipated bouts in ONE FC history with Adam, a 36year-old black belt in Brazilian jiujitsu, karate and taekwondo and Muay Thai champion with a 4-1-0 fight record, taking on the veteran Kyokushin karate black belt Suzuki, also 36, who comes into the fight with a 10-1-0 fight record.

“We are coming back to the capital of Malaysia to put on one of the greatest fight cards in Asian MMA history and we will finally settle the question ofwhodeserves to be called the top welterweight fighter on the planet,” announced ONE FC CEO Victor Cui during the Tune Talk and ONE FC CEO luncheon and MOU signing ceremony at the Pressroom in Bangsar Shopping Complex yesterday.

“It’s a huge fight for Adam ... and for Malaysia. It’s the first time a Malaysian is getting a ONE FC title shot.

“Adam’s a legitimate fighter, a great guy, great family man and he’s got the credibility to be a world champion. And for it to take centrestage in Kuala Lumpur is phenomenal,” he added.

Besides that, ONE FC has announced the renewal of their partnership with local mobile operator Tune Talk as the official telco.