The fight card for Evecon Raju 19, the largest MMA event in the Baltics, is now complete. At the event taking place at Tondiraba Ice Hall, Estonian fighters will face athletes from five different countries: Finland, Norway, Poland, Romania, and Brazil.
Tõnissaar: evenly matched fights and high-level action
According to Evecon Raju head promoter Ott Tõnissaar, fans can expect closely contested fights and an extremely exciting fight night. “Maikel Astur is facing a proper main event-level opponent, a man who has finished almost all of his wins early and is clearly hungry when stepping into the cage. Kristjan Tõniste is making his return in a fight where he also has the chance to shine as a striker, as his opponent is tough. The bout between Yevhenii Kabanets and Brazil’s Lucas Tavares will be a real highlight,” Tõnissaar commented on the pro card.
Estonia vs Finland amateur card
“The amateur card this time has a clear theme: Estonia versus Finland. At the moment, nearly all of our best amateurs are on the card, and they will face very solid Finnish opponents. Finland has around ten years more MMA history than we do, and they have had fighters competing in the UFC – so we will see worthy and intense matchups,” Tõnissaar added.
Norwegian fighters added last
The final additions to the fight card were two Norwegian fighters. One of them, Vebjørn Jørgensen Dyreng (0-1), will face striking specialist Dmitry Salamatin, who is making his MMA debut. The other Norwegian, Steffen Rossevatn (2-1), will face Allan Volosatõh, who knocked out his opponent in 23 seconds at the previous Raju event.
Ten fights in the cage
There will be a total of ten fights in the cage, including three amateur bouts between Estonian and Finnish fighters and seven professional rules bouts.
Maikel Astur (EST) vs Robert-Alexandru Constantin (ROU)
Kristjan Tõniste (EST) vs Cristiano Cruz (BRA)
Allan Volosatõh (EST) vs Steffen Rossevatn (NOR)
Raigo Kutsar (EST) vs Oskar Herczyk (POL)
Yevhenii Kabanets (UKR) vs Lucas Tavares (BRA)
Mateusz Rybak (POL) vs Riku Urholin (FIN)
Dmitry Salamatin (EST) vs Vebjørn Jørgensen Dyreng (NOR)
Silver Tagu (EST) vs Henri Pyyny (FIN)
Rasmus Jõgi (EST) vs Aleksi Janne Sahlberg (FIN)
Mattias Lehtsaar (EST) vs Elmeri Suominen (FIN)
Ivo Linna will walk Astur to the cage
Maikel Astur, who is preparing for the main event, will be accompanied to the cage by Ivo Linna with the traditional song “Eestlane olen ja eestlaseks jään.”
360-degree arena experience
This edition of Raju will take place in a renewed format – the arena setup offers a 360-degree experience, with the cage placed in the center of Tondiraba Ice Hall so that the audience surrounds the action from all sides. According to the new arena layout, visitors with a regular ticket will also have access to the floor and get closer to the fighters than ever before. Fighters will enter the cage from floor level, directly through the crowd, giving fans a unique opportunity to witness the walkouts from a completely new angle and capture the moment themselves.
Fan bar and large screen setup
To keep visitors in the middle of the atmosphere throughout the entire evening, a new fan bar will also be located on the floor. The goal of this setup is to bring the audience into the heart of the action both visually and atmospherically. The event can also be followed on large screens suspended from the ceiling, ensuring detailed visibility throughout the arena.