Cage Warriors 61 set for November in Russian republic of Dagestan

Cage Warriors Fighting Championship continues to branch out beyond its England home base, and now will add Dagestan to its list of host countries.

The promotion will visit the Russian republic in November for what is expected to be Cage Warriors 61, promotion sources on Thursday told MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com). An official announcement of the event is expected later today.

Cage Warriors 61 will take place at Ali Aliev Arena near the Dagastan capital city of Makhachkala. The main card of the event will stream live to North American viewers on MMAjunkie.com following prelims on Facebook.

Dagestan has produced a pair of current UFC standouts in Khabib Nurmagomedov (20-0 MMA, 4-0 UFC) and Rustam Khabilov (16-1 MMA, 2-0 UFC). The republic has a population nearing 3 million.

Although it will be Cage Warriors’ first visit to Dagestan, it won’t be its first visit to that region of the world. Cage Warriors 58 next month is set for the Russian republic of Chechnya, which borders on Dagestan. Three weeks prior to Cage Warriors 61, Cage Warriors Fight Night 9 will take place in Bahrain.

Cage Warriors CEO Graham Boylan said in a statement that Dagestan President Ramazan Abdulatipov and Prime Minister Mukhtar Medjidov helped pave the way for the promotion to visit the republic.

“I’m very excited to be bringing Cage Warriors to Dagestan later this year,” Boylan stated. “I want to show my appreciation to both President Ramazan Abdulatipov and Prime Minister Mukhtar Medjidov, without whom this event would not be possible. Both men are passionate about MMA and are helping to develop the sport in Dagestan. I’m delighted and privileged to have them investing in Cage Warriors, for this event and beyond.

“Dagestan has an excellent reputation in the sport of MMA. Its fighters are highly respected in the best promotions in the world and we’ll be mixing them with some of our best U.K. and European talent to put on what’s guaranteed to be a memorable event, packed with top-quality fights from start to finish.”

Cage Warriors has not yet announced any fights for the card.

For the latest on Cage Warriors 61, stay tuned to the MMA Rumors section of the site.

(Pictured: Graham Boylan)