The bracket is officially set for the SENSHI 33 Grand Prix, as eight fighters will battle through a one-night tournament on Saturday, Sep. 5, in Varna, Bulgaria.
The eight-man field will compete at 95 kilograms, with the eventual winner potentially having to survive three fights in one night to leave Bulgaria as the new SENSHI Grand Prix champion.
Four quarterfinal bouts will open the tournament before the winners return later in the evening for the semifinals. The final two fighters standing will then meet with the Grand Prix title on the line.
One of the biggest names in the field is Bulgaria’s Eduard Aleksanyan, who enters the tournament as the reigning SENSHI European champion at 90 kilograms. Known as “Mr. Action,” Aleksanyan will move up to 95 kilograms in an attempt to add another SENSHI championship to his résumé.
Aleksanyan will begin his tournament run against Romania’s Yuri Farcas.
Elsewhere in the opening round, Portugal’s Iuri Fernandes meets Moldova’s Alexandru Burduja, while Tunisia’s Sharif Ben Mabrouk squares off with Turkey’s Emin Özer. Italy’s Ramon Quirini and Germany’s Ali Nasir complete the opening-round bracket.
The one-night format leaves little room for error. Winning once will only guarantee another fight, with the four opening-round winners advancing to the semifinals before two emerge to compete for the championship.
SENSHI has also prepared for the possibility of injuries or other changes to the bracket by booking two reserve bouts.
One fighter worth watching in the reserve field is Argentina’s Pablo Molina, a three-time KWU SENSHI World Cup for Amateurs champion. Molina captured his third World Cup title in July after defeating three opponents across two days.
He will face Mike Kena of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in one reserve contest. Germany’s Agon Bellaqa takes on Nigeria’s Dirrick Binnendijk in the other.
SENSHI 33 will also feature a third-place fight, adding another wrinkle to a tournament in which the reserve fighters could be called upon at multiple stages depending on how the bracket unfolds.
With eight tournament entrants, four reserve fighters and three potential fights standing between the eventual winner and the trophy, SENSHI 33 will crown its new 95-kilogram Grand Prix champion in Varna on Sep. 5.
SENSHI 33 Grand Prix Opening Round
95 kg: Yuri Farcas (Romania) vs. Eduard Aleksanyan (Bulgaria)
95 kg: Iuri Fernandes (Portugal) vs. Alexandru Burduja (Moldova)
95 kg: Sharif Ben Mabrouk (Tunisia) vs. Emin Özer (Turkey)
95 kg: Ramon Quirini (Italy) vs. Ali Nasir (Germany)
SENSHI 33 Grand Prix Reserve Bouts
95 kg: Mike Kena (DR Congo) vs. Pablo Molina (Argentina)
95 kg: Agon Bellaqa (Germany) vs. Dirrick Binnendijk (Nigeria)