AFTER steadily carving a name for itself in mixed martial arts, Bahrain-based BRAVE Combat Federation is girding to add to its offering professional boxing.

Veteran of 34 live events that were held in more than a dozen different countries since opening shop in September 2016, BRAVE is looking to have pro boxing in its portfolio of offerings in line with its goal of further enhancing the standing of combat sports in the world, apart from shoring up its own brand.

“The vision of His Highness Shaikh Khaled bin Hamad Al Khalifa (founder) is to develop combat sports internationally. Now we are combining the two biggest combat sports in the world,” said BRAVE CF president Mohammed Shahid in announcing their pro boxing plans.

“BRAVE CF’s aim is to globalize them and lift everyone involved with it, fighters, managers, fans, journalists, and promoters. That laser-focused vision we’ve had to take mixed martial arts to new heights can be expected with BRAVE CF in boxing,” he added.

The promotion said more details on its plans to go into boxing would follow in the coming days.

BRAVE has hosted shows in established markets for combat sports such as Brazil and England, while also giving the first taste of international MMA action to the continent of Africa, as well as countries such as India, Pakistan, Kazakhstan, Saudi Arabia, and Colombia.

The Philippines is well represented in the organization, with Filipino MMA bantamweight fighter Stephen “The Sniper” Loman the reigning champion in his division. His Team Lakay teammate Jeremy “The Juggernaut” Pacatiw, meanwhile, has the most bouts in BRAVE with 10. — Michael Angelo S. Murillo