I am not just a brawler, says Africa's Muhamed Juma ahead of PFL Challenger Series

Cape Town — Egypt-based Muhamed Juma is relishing the thought of pitting his skills against some of the toughest light heavyweight mixed martial artists in the world.

The athlete who — through his father — has South Sudanese roots has set his sights firmly on winning a potentially life-changing Professional Fighters League contract in the PFL Challenger Series starting this weekend.

The PFL Challenger Series will see athletes from across the globe compete for eight (regular season or developmental) contracts in one of the biggest MMA promotions in the world.

The inaugural series kicks off on the 18th of February with the men’s light heavyweight division at Universal Studios in Orlando, Florida.

Branded as a brawler by the PFL, former UAE Warriors’ Juma (8-2) will take on the current Legacy Fighting Alliance’s (LFA) middleweight and light heavyweight champion, Josh Silveira (7-0) in one of four light heavyweight bouts set for the weekend.

When asked if he finds the term “brawler” an apt description of his skillset, Juma stated that the world will see exactly what he is, come fight night.

“I am not just a brawler. Sometimes you need to be aggressive in this sport, adapt an animal instinct, but this is a big fight and I will showcase all my techniques if needed, too. I will prove that I am a real martial artist,” says Cairo-based Juma who trains out of Black Bulls Team under the tutelage Ahmed Faress.

Prior to his last fight which saw him lose to Sofiane Boukichou (6-4) in the UAE Warriors last October, Juma was riding on a 8-fight win streak with 90 percent of those fights being in the Heavyweight division.

When asked if his drop down to 93 kilogram division was a tactical move for better performance considering that the