SRINAGAR: Chief Minister Omar Abdullah on Monday felicitated Jammu and Kashmir martial arts fighter Owais Yaqoob with a cash award of Rs 1 lakh in recognition of his impressive performances on the international stage.
Yaqoob, a native of Murran village in Pulwama, recently defeated Delyan Georgiev at BRAVE Combat Federation 107. Georgiev is a training and sparring partner of UFC champion Ilia Topuria.
The victory added to Yaqoob’s growing profile in international MMA and came as he continues to pursue his ambition of making it to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC).
Born in 1998, Yaqoob started training in Taekwondo and kickboxing around 2012 and went on to win more than a dozen national medals in different martial arts disciplines. He later moved his focus to MMA and began competing internationally.
His professional career had a difficult beginning. He lost his debut bout by third-round submission at Matrix Fight Night 11 in New Delhi in 2023. Following the defeat, he travelled to Dagestan, Russia, to work on his wrestling and ground game.
The training helped him return stronger, with Yaqoob subsequently recording victories in India, Kazakhstan and China. He also became the first fighter from Jammu and Kashmir to compete and win under the BRAVE Combat Federation banner.
Away from professional competition, Yaqoob has worked to develop martial arts at the grassroots level. He founded the Lion’s Den Martial Arts Academy in Pulwama in 2015, which has trained more than 200 young athletes.
Yaqoob’s long-term target remains a place in the UFC, where he hopes to represent India on the sport’s biggest stage.
The Rs 1 lakh award announced by the Chief Minister comes in recognition of his recent international achievements.
