Enrico Cortese Gets Wish To Fight In Home Country At BRAVE CF 52

With the roar of a passionate home crowd behind him, it is no secret that Italian powerhouse Enrico “The Killing Machine” Cortese wants to showcase the nation’s mixed martial arts excellence against Rustam Chsiev of Russia.

The 23-year-old Vicenza native will make his third promotional appearance in a pivotal middleweight match-up against the highly-touted Russian grappler Rustam Chsiev in the co-main event of BRAVE CF 52: Bad Blood in Milan, Italy on August 1st.

With a professional record of 7-2 with three wins via knockout and three by submission, he has captured the hearts and imaginations of the Italian audience with his high energy, immense creativity, and unpredictable in-cage style.

However, Cortese hasn’t had the luxury of competing in front of a hometown crowd since 2019 when he inked an exclusive multi-fight deal with the Bahrain-based outfit. Though his countrymen haven’t seen him strut his wares live, he is riding high on an impressive streak overseas.

“The Killing Machine” has won two matches in a row, beating French stalwart Jorick Montagnac by way of unanimous decision in his promotional debut at BRAVE CF 30 in September 2019 before authoring a quick stoppage victory over Romania’s Claudiu Alexe ten months later.

Now the wait is finally over for Cortese and his countrymen as he returns home to take on Chsiev in the organization’s much-awaited maiden foray into Milan next month.

Having the hometown advantage for the first time in two years, Cortese looks to get a highlight-reel finish and give the fans a night to remember.

“I want to go out and win emphatically, and let it inspire people. I think it’s great that BRAVE CF is bringing world-class mixed martial arts to Italy. I am truly grateful to be part of this and to be on this historic card. I can’t wait,” he said.

“When I think of Italy, I think of my hometown and my friends. Italy is home. I’m very proud to represent my country on the global stage and I hope I can show it to the world in action this coming August.”

But it won’t be a walk in the park for Cortese as a tough test awaits him in the form of Chsiev, who is coming off a triumph over Brendan Lesar at BRAVE CF 50 last April and also eyes to extend his winning streak to three bouts at the Italian’s expense.

The winner of the middleweight encounter between Cortese and Chsiev could get a future date with BRAVE CF Middleweight World Champion Mohammad “The Latest” Fakhreddine, who vies for the BRAVE CF Light Heavyweight World Championship against Mohamed Said Maalem in the headliner of the same card.

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Roberto Villa is the CEO, Founder, Executive Writer, Senior Editor of FightBook MMA. Has a passion for Combat Sports and also a podcast host for Sitting Ringside. He’s also a former MMA fighter and Kickboxer.