South Africa-based Zimbabwean mixed martial arts (MMA) star Nicholas Hwende keeps knocking on the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) door after he beat Nkosi Ndebele to win the Brave Combat Federation (CF) Bantamweight world title in Bahrain last week.
Hwende, a former champion in the South Africa- based MMA franchise Extreme Fighting Championship (EFC), secured a unanimous decision victory, which solidified his position as one of Africa’s premier MMA athletes.
And while he is basking in the glory of winning the Brave CF championship, Hwende continues to have one eye on making it onto the the lucrative US-based franchise, UFC.
"It feels great beating Nkosi ( Ndebele). It was an awesome thing and here I am now, I am the champion, so I am feeling great, I am feeling good and excited. It's something that I am really enjoying — being a champion. It is an awesome achievement for me," Hwende said in an exclusive interview with this publication.
"I am happy with what I achieved in 2024. I didn't think that I would be a champion but for me the target was to get UFC but I couldn't. So I was like what's next and they offered me championship matches. As number one contender I won and I have become a champion now.
"But the big goal is not just to defend the belt, yes I will defend it but the goal is to go to UFC and become a champion there. I am still hungry and now I believe I can do it. In the meantime I will enjoy myself in Brave waiting for the opportunity to go to UFC.
"The fight itself was not tough you know, and the idea that I might lose was tough but I prepared very well for the fight. I didn't want to get injured in the fight. I went in there just to show that I can strike with the best striker, that was my game plan. I could also wrestle him just to win. It was not just a matter of just going in there, punch the guy and win, but showcasing my skills and prove that I can handle anyone in the cage.
"The first one was a wrestler I had to handle and this one was a striker I had to handle. I didn't want to just go in there to win, but I wanted to prove a point that I can stand toe-to-toe with any big boy," the Gokwe-born fighter said.
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Popularly known as Gokwe Boy during his days in EFC, Hwende landed the EFC title for the first time after defeating Brazilian Gian Souza back in August 2022.
Hwende went on to defend his EFC title several times, but the dream has always remained to reach the UFC.
BRAVE CF is the largest mixed martial arts promotion organisation from the Middle East, based out of the Kingdom of Bahrain.
Founded in 2016 with the support of His Highness Shaikh Khaled bin Hamad Al Khalifa, the organisation seeks to develop a worldwide sports media platform which unifies nations via the honouring of competitive sports, while elevating athletes to champion status.
BRAVE CF has proudly featured mixed martial artists from 80 nations located in five continents.
