Russian MMA promotion to make medieval-style knight fights a regular feature

M-1 Global's knight bouts have been so popular that they might start putting on medieval events.

M-1 Global initially started running knight bouts featuring fighters sword-batlling each other while donning full suits of armour, as filler between MMA bouts in August. However, the response to the gimmick has been so positive that the Russian promotion has genuinely considering putting on series of events filled with knight bouts in the future. M-1 president Vadim Finkelchtein has been delighted with the overwhelming support for the full-contact jousting fights. He suggested that these fights could feature more heavily in future events.

I liked the fans' reaction when we did it for the first time in St. Petersburg at M-1 Challenge 50. They seemed to really like it. They were impressed and supported the knights. So, I thought it was worth continuing.

At that time, the knight fight was to fill the pause between the undercard and main card fights. If we find enough fighters to make enough fights, we will have a separate medieval show with its own weight categories, title fights and champions.

The fights will take place in M1's version of the Octagon known as a "rage",  a cross-between a ring and a cage with six sides. However, given the nature of knight fights, the bouts could realistically happen anywhere including in outdoor arenas.

The rules of the contests are simple, the swords must be blunt and headbutts, submission holds and strikes to the back of the neck, spine, feet and ankles are all prohibited.

Hat-tip to MMA Fighting