OKTAGON 66 Results: Engizek and Peňáz progress in Tipsport Gamechanger opening round

OKTAGON 66 went down this past Saturday night, February 1, in front of a sold-out crowd of over 14,000 fans to begin our unrivalled 2025 European MMA schedule. The PSD Bank Dome in Düsseldorf, Germany, was filled to the rafters and a host of domestic talent rose to the occasion on an evening where eight of the eleven matchups ended in a stoppage.

In the main event, Kerim Engizek (22-4) defeated Kamil Oniszczuk (10-5) by unanimous decision to get his hand raised in the €1 million Tipsport Gamechanger tournament opening round. The reigning middleweight champion sent the crowd absolutely wild as soon as he set foot in the arena and adapted well to his very late change in opponent to seal a convincing victory over fifteen minutes. The proud Turk now awaits April 26 when he will place himself on the quarterfinal bracket at the conclusion of the first round.

Lom-Ali Eskiev (23-7, 1NC) overcame danger in the first frame to stop Wanderley Junior (17-10) by TKO in their lightweight co-headliner. The UFD Gym product has been one of the best talents in Europe for some time and landed some punishing blows in the second round to reaffirm his position at the top of the division. Junior’s stock only rose despite the loss due to his impressive showing against a quality opponent after stepping in on just hours’ notice.

In a European MMA Champions League opening round bout, Matěj Peňáz (10-1) passed the toughest test of his career to date with flying colours by finishing David Zawada (19-11) by TKO at 4:42 into the fight. Zawada managed to hold his adversary against the cage for periods of the bout, but it was ‘Money’ who looked incredibly dangerous whenever the pair exchanged strikes at distance. A flurry of punches badly hurt Zawada so the referee called off the contest and Peňáz remained undefeated in the promotion, advancing to the final eight.

Deniz Ilbay (8-1)stoppedVladimír Lengál (7-4) during round two of their thrilling feature featherweight bout which earned him ‘Performance of the Night’ honours. Tamerlan Dulatov (2-0) had a successful OKTAGON MMA debut by submitting Ghith Ighzawi (0-1) after just 16 seconds at a 80kg/176lbs catchweight which became the quickest submission in promotional history.

Elsewhere on the card, Hojat Khajevand (8-4)landed a vicious knockout on Kennedy Rayomba (6-4) in a Tipsport Gamechanger reserve bout. An unlikely star emerged from the first fight of the night when 48-year-old single mum of three, Danielle Misteli (4-4), survived an early onslaught to rally and submitSara Luzar Smajić (4-3) at bantamweight.

OKTAGON 66 Results
 
Main Card
 
Main Event
Tipsport Gamechanger Opening Round
Kerim Engizek (22-4) defeated Kamil Oniszczuk (10-5) by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) to advance in the middleweight tournament
 
Co-Main Event
Lightweight
Lom-Ali Eskiev (23-7, 1NC) defeated Wanderley Junior (17-10) by TKO (punches) at 4:45 of round two
 
Tipsport Gamechanger Opening Round
Matěj Peňáz (10-1) defeated David Zawada (19-11) by TKO (punches and knee) at 4:42 of round one to advance in the middleweight tournament
 
Featherweight
Deniz Ilbay (8-1) defeated Vladimír Lengál (7-4) by knockout (knee and punches) at 0:35 of round two
 
Welterweight
Cihad Akipa (8-2) defeated Matouš Kohout (11-9) by unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
 
Tipsport Gamechanger Reserve Bout
Hojat Khajevand (8-4) defeated Kennedy Rayomba (6-4) by knockout (punches) at 2:20 of round one to advance to the ‘Lucky Loser’ voting
 
Preliminary Card
 
Featherweight
Daniel Solaja (3-1) defeated Raphael Federico (5-1) by unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
 
Welterweight
Emir-Can Al (2-1) defeated Viktor Kováč (0-1) by TKO (punches) at 3:47 of round one
 
Catchweight (80kg/176lbs)
Tamerlan Dulatov (2-0) defeated Ghith Ighzawi (0-1) by technical submission (guillotine choke) at 0:16 of round one
 
Welterweight
Zoran Solaja (3-1) defeated Lukáš Eliáš (4-1) by TKO (punches) at 1:34 of round one
 
Bantamweight
Danielle Misteli (4-4) defeated Sara Luzar Smajić (4-3) by submission (rear naked choke) at 2:30 of round two

OKTAGON MMA are back in less than three weeks as the opening round of the €1 million European MMA Champions League continues at OKTAGON 67. Piotr Wawrzyniak, Mick Stanton, Marek Mazúch, Andreas Michailidis and more will see who can advance to the quarterfinal stage of the continent’s biggest tournament. Sam Creasey will defend his flyweight title for the first time against Beno Adamia and David Kozma hopes to begin his climb back to the welterweight belt when he takes on Robert Pukač.

Roberto Villa

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.