The International Mixed Martial Arts Federation (IMMAF) has announced the nominees for Junior Athlete of the Year, and Team Bahrain and KHK MMA are well represented.
Number one junior welterweight Murad Guseinov is among the nominees, representing Bahrain, while Muhammad Mokaev, the number one pound-for-pound junior amateur fighter in the world, is representing KHK MMA.
Both Guseinov and Mokaev fight out of KHK MMA, the team created by His Highness Shaikh Khaled bin Hamad Al Khalifa to give out opportunities to worthy young fighters who have come through the amateur system to represent their countries in the amateur circuit as well as going on to become professional stars.
Mokaev has made the jump to the professional ranks this year, amassing worldwide attention and impressing with a string of fine bouts, remaining undefeated. He represents KHK MMA and Great Britain and Dagestan as a professional.
Welterweight Guseinov, meanwhile, became the junior world champion last year in Bahrain and currently sits at the top of the rankings in his weight-class. Murad has also been recognised in the pound-for-pound rankings, as the number 3 junior fighter in the world. In addition to that, he also won the gold medal in the IMMAF European Championship, making him one of the biggest young amateurs in the world.
In the coming days, IMMAF will continue to announce the nominees for other awards as more Team Bahrain athletes are expected to join Murad and Muhammad.
The awards function will take place online this year and winners are to be announced on December 11.