Serbian national team member Nemanja Blagojević once again confirmed that he currently has no equal in amateur MMA, winning the gold medal at the World Championship in the up to 97 kg category, convincingly and dominantly, without at any point leaving a dilemma as to who is the best fighter on the planet in his age group.
At the championship in Al Ain, Blagojević seemed almost unreal: three opponents, three quick victories, almost without receiving a serious blow. In the group stage, he first eliminated Nikolozi Džamašvili of Georgia in just 29 seconds with an anaconda choke, then Stefan Kuhn in 36 seconds – with the same technique, a signature that is already his recognized weapon.
In the final, he was awaited by Yurii Hunder of Ukraine, but even he could not stop the Serbian wonder. The fight entered the second round, but only briefly – after a tactically mature first segment, Blagojević seized the opportunity and finished the fight with a Von Flue choke technique, after only 47 seconds. It was a champion’s move, recognizable only to those who think several moves ahead in a fight.
With this title, Nemanja confirmed his status as the most promising Serbian fighter of the younger generation. After last year’s golds at the World and European Championships, as well as silver from this year’s continental championship where the Ukrainian’s victory came after a controversial referee’s decision, Blagojević once again showed that he has fully matured mentally and physically and is above the competition in his category.
A special weight is given to his success by the fact that less than a month before the start of the championship, there was a change in rules and the introduction of a new weight category up to 97 kilograms, to which he had to move from the previous 120. Without any drama and without looking for excuses, Nemanja dropped to a lower category, adapted, and proved that he is a champion in every sense of the word.
Besides Blagojević, young Vasilija Borovićanin also won gold in Al Ain, triumphing in the up to 67 kg category, so Serbia returns from this championship richer by two titles of world champions. This increased the total number of medals won by the Serbian national team at European and world competitions since 2022 to 33, and in 2025 alone, we have already reached 13 medals, even before the senior selection has even stepped onto the world championship which awaits us in Georgia in September.
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Source: Serbian Times, Photo: MMA Federation of Serbia