Desert Force MMA Championship
Company typePrivate
IndustryMixed martial arts promotion
FoundedOctober 10, 2 (2-10-10)
FounderZaid Mirza,[1] Mohammad Mirza, Zaid Abu-Soud
Headquarters
Amman
,
Jordan
ParentX-Sports Management, LLC

Desert Force Championship (DFC) was a mixed martial arts promotion company in the Arab world, which held most of the top-ranked Arab MMA fighters in the region.[2][3] The championship has held ten televised events and presided over approximately 100 matches.[4] DFC currently airs on MBC Action on a bi-monthly basis.[5] In 2010 Desert Force launched the “Elimination Series”, a single-elimination tournament for Arab MMA fighters competing to become the first regional MMA title belt holders in 7 respective weight classes. Fighters from across the Middle East have competed in 7 weight classes, namely Bantamweights, Featherweights, Lightweights, Welterweights, Middleweights, Light-Heavyweights and Heavyweights; each class enforcing the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts. Participating countries include: KSA, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Kuwait, Jordan, Iraq, Bahrain, Palestine, Syria, Lebanon, Egypt, Morocco, Tunisia.[6] In recent years DFC fights have been officially refereed by MMA referee Yves Lavigne.[7][8][9][10]

Current champions

Division Upper weight limit Champion Since Title defenses
Bantamweight 61 kg (134.5 lb) Jordan Nawras Abzakh September 5, 2016 (Desert Force 24) 0
Middleweight 84 kg (185.2 lb) Lebanon Mohammed Karaki December 7, 2015 (Desert Force 19) 0
Welterweight 77 kg (169.8 lb) Tunisia Mounir Lazzez March 23, 2015 (Desert Force 16) 0
Lightweight 70 kg (154.3 lb) Morocco Mohammed Treki March 23, 2015 (Desert Force 16) 0
Featherweight 66 kg (145.5 lb) Saudi Arabia Aziz Julaidan December 15, 2014 (Desert Force 14 - Al Academiya 2 Finale) 0
Welterweight 77 kg (169.8 lb) Lebanon Ahmed Labban November 15, 1991 (Desert Force 15 - Al Academiya 3 Finale) 0

Events

Country Event title Location Date
Egypt Egypt Desert Force 19 - Egypt Shooting Club Stadium, Cairo 2015-12-07
Lebanon Lebanon Desert Force 18 - Lebanon Ghazir Stadium, BEIRUT 2015-08-18
Jordan Jordan Desert Force 17 - Homecoming Al-Hussein Youth City Boxing Arena - Amman 2015-05-25
Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia Desert Force 16 - Saudi Arabia Green Halls - Riyadh 2015-03-23
United Arab Emirates UAE Desert Force 15 - Abu Dhabi FGB Arena 2015-02-09
Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia Desert Force 14 - Al Academiya 2 Finale KSA Venue Jeddah 2014-12-15
United Arab Emirates UAE Desert Force 13 - Abu Dhabi FGB Arena 2014-08-25
Jordan Jordan Desert Force 12 Al-Hussein Youth City Boxing Arena - Amman 2014-04-28
Bahrain Bahrain Desert Force 11 Bahrain Khalifa Sports City Arena, Manama 2014-03-07
Jordan Jordan Desert Force 10 - Al Academiya Finale Al-Hussein Youth City Boxing Arena - Amman 2014-01-27
United Arab Emirates UAE Desert Force Dubai AUD Knights Arena 2013-10-17
Jordan Jordan Desert Force - 2013 Grand Prix Finals Al-Hussein Youth City Boxing Arena -Amman 2013-06-15
Jordan Jordan Desert Force - 2013 Grand Prix Semifinals Al-Hussein Youth City Boxing Arena - Amman 2013-03-07
Jordan Jordan Desert Force - Round 2 on MBC Action Al-Hussein Youth City Boxing Arena - Amman 2012-12-14
Jordan Jordan DFC - Desert Force 5 Amman National Orthodox Club Gymnasium 2012-09-07
Jordan Jordan Desert Force 4 - Middle East Grand Prix Amman National Orthodox Club Gymnasium 2012-03-30
Jordan Jordan Desert Force 3 - Elimination Series: Knockout Round Amman National Orthodox Club Gymnasium 2010-09-30
Jordan Jordan DFC - Desert Force 2 Amman National Orthodox Club Gymnasium 2011-05-19
Jordan Jordan DFC - Desert Force 1 Amman National Orthodox Club Gymnasium 2010-09-08

Weight divisions

Weight class name Upper limit
in pounds (lb) in kilograms (kg)
Bantamweight 135 lb 61 kg
Featherweight 145 lb 66 kg
Lightweight 155 lb 70 kg
Welterweight 170 lb 77 kg
Middleweight 185 lb 84 kg
Light Heavyweight 205 lb 93 kg
Heavyweight 265 lb 120 kg

Desert Force Academy

The Desert Force Academy is a 13 episode reality TV series that started airing in November 2013 on MBC Action. The series follows the lives of 16 amateur Arab MMA fighters training and fighting for a chance to hold the Desert Force title for their respective weight.[2][11][12]

In the second season there was a big change and surprises in the fighters test, before it was only organize matches between fighters and the winner get the opportunity to participate. But in the second season they will train the fighters in military base for five days and who will survive will participate.

References

  1. ^ "Interview With Desert Force Founder Zaid Mirza Who Plans To Expand from the Middle East to Las Vegas - MMAmania.com". mmamania.com. Retrieved March 22, 2014.
  2. ^ a b "Desert Force MMA Championship kicks off on MBC Action | Rapid TV News". rapidtvnews.com. Retrieved March 22, 2014.
  3. ^ "Desert Force is finding its MMA niche in the Middle East | The National". thenational.ae. Retrieved March 22, 2014.
  4. ^ "Desert Force Championship Fights, Fight Cards, Videos, Pictures, Events and more". sherdog.com. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
  5. ^ "MBC.net - Desert force – MBC Action". mbc.net. Archived from the original on February 10, 2014. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
  6. ^ "The First Arab MMA Championship of its kind in the Middle East concludes in Amman - ArabsMMA". arabsmma.com. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
  7. ^ "browser - Please update to a modern browser". arabsmma.com. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
  8. ^ "Bahrain News Agency | Bahrain to host Desert Force MMA Championship". bna.bh. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
  9. ^ "Gulf Daily News » Local News » Bahrain set to host Desert Force Championship". gulf-daily-news.com. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
  10. ^ "Desert Force "Al Academiya" Finale Results: Fakhreddine Victorious After Thabet Suffers Knee Injury | The Flying Knee MMA". theflyingkneemma.com. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
  11. ^ "Google Translate". translate.google.jo. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
  12. ^ "Desert Force Martial Arts championship concludes in Amman | Sports | Ammon News". en.ammonnews.net. Retrieved March 16, 2014.
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