By Andreas Georgiou
Surinamese kickboxer Redouan Cairo is considered to be a future star of the sport. With a 4-3 record in Superkombat, ‘The Spartan’ now turns his attention to Ali Cenik, as both men face off on September 27th as Superkombat make their debut in Almere, Netherlands live on Eurosport.
Ali Cenik is currently in a slump, having only won two of his last six fights, however these include losses to world class talent Mladen Brestovac and Ismael Lazaar. Most recently he is coming off a defeat to Superkombat Super-Cruiserweight champion Andrei Stoica.
“I’ve seen that fight and I must say that It looked like Ali was holding back a little bit. Andrei did what he is good at, explosive combinations and didn’t take too many risks. He has a hard head and I admire that.
Ali has fought several fighters in our weight division and has shown that he is a good opponent and can manage against different styles of fighting”
Both men will clash on September 27th at the Topsportcentrum in Almere, but Cairo already has his sights set on his next opponent.
“If I beat Ali then I think it’s time to fight Andrei Stoica again for the Superkombat title, but my mind is on Ali now so I will see what happens after the fight. And yes I am calling Stoica out for a title fight.”
Cairo reached the final of the 2013 Superkombat grand prix, but lost out to Frank Munoz after the fight went to an extension round. This is his second loss to Munoz, having previously fallen to the Spaniard back at World Grand Prix III in 2011, and Cairo has admitted that Munoz may be his Kryptonite.
“Yes, Frank Munoz. A unorthodox fighter with a messy style, yet can make it difficult for one to fight against. ‘Kryptonite’ is a good description for my performance against him. Both fights I was in a wrong state of mind, not eager to win or be better than him.
It is no excuse whatsoever but mentally he was stronger than me on that point and that’s why he won twice. Even though we train at the same gym, if there is a next time I will win for sure!”
Superkombat, who are hugely dominant in their home market of Romania, make their debut in The Netherlands. Cairo stated his excitement towards Superkombat expanding into new markets.
“It is a great honour and privilege to perform on a world stage and show what I’m made of. It’s more than fighting, it’s representing our beautiful sport in front of the Dutch crowd and the whole world through (the TV deal with) Eurosport.
To gain more exposure and respect as a fighting organisation it’s a positive move to go abroad and do shows in representative countries, but Superkombat already had shows in: Italy, Brazil, Montenegro, Croatia or Austria. I’m very happy that I have the occasion to fight under the Superkombat flag in Netherlands.”
Having already fought some of the sport’s top competitors, at the age of 31, Cairo has been tested to a great degree inside the ring, however he stated he is always ready for the next big challenge.
“There is always a fighter to fight in the world of combat. I will not say that it’s hard to find a opponent for a challenge because I haven’t fought them all. It’s like the art of war: Never bring your guard down because before you know it you have to fight again and again.”
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Photo Credit: SuperKombat
