Ace martial arts player and Coach Aaqib Majeed from south Kashmir district of Anantnag will become the first J&K player to officiate in the upcoming Matrix Fight Night (MFN) 6 that will be held in Dubai.
Matrix Fight Night, founded by Bollywood actor Tiger Shroff and his sister Krishna Shroff, will be held from September 24, 2021 at Palazzo Versace Dubai. MFN 6 is set to be a stacked fight card, with solid fights in the cage.
Aaqib, who is the founder of Foundation for Sports Learning and Development (FSLD), said that he had to undergo specialized training and quality practical and written tests to be a part of the officiating panel of MFN. “I am really happy that I have been selected in the officiating panel of the sixth edition of MFN. It is an international sporting event that is viewed by millions of people across the world… being a part of it is very special,” he said.
The south Kashmir youth — who has won medals in various state, national and international martial arts tournaments during the last eight years — said that he is the first martial arts player from J&K to be selected as a referee in such a prestigious international tournament. “I have been participating in state, national and international martial arts tournaments from last over eight years.
Youth in south Kashmir were not attracted to this form of sports. But, I’m happy that during the last over four years, my team and I have been able to popularize martial arts in south Kashmir. We (FSLD) have academies in all four districts of south Kashmir where hundreds of students, including girls, practice martial arts,” he said.
Aaqib further said that he is planning to start full-fledged Mix Martial Arts (MMA) training centres in all districts of the valley, where players will be trained for events like MFN. “We will provide a platform to young martial arts players to showcase their talent and get selected for MFN tournaments in the near future,” he added.
