Kevin Ruart, 32, has earned his second victory in the Bahrain-based mixed martial arts promotion BRAVE Combat Federation. Fighting out of Paris, France by way of Geneva, Switzerland, he was one of the winners at “BRAVE CF 36.”

Featuring five MMA matches, “BRAVE CF 36” took place at Berăria H in Bucharest, Romania on July 27, 2020. In the co-main event of the evening, Ruart fought Ion Surdu, 25, of Moldova and Romania in the welterweight division.

Early on, Surdu was keen on getting the upper hand as he used his leg kicks and jabs to keep Ruart at bay. On more than one occasion, the Moldovan-Romanian contender seemed to rock his French-Swiss opponent, who managed to keep his composure.

It appeared that the round was going Surdu’s way until Ruart went for the kill with a combination that knocked his opponent down and then followed up with hammer fists. After being outclassed by Surdu for most of the first frame, Ruart landed a picture-perfect combination separating the Moldovan-Romanian contender from his senses.

The referee put a stop to the welterweight contest after 3 minutes and 14 seconds in the first round. Ruart knocked out Surdu via punches, which marked the first professional MMA loss of the latter.

It was the fourth time Ruart knocked out an opponent in a professional MMA bout. Winning at “BRAVE CF 36” improved his professional MMA record to 9 wins and 3 losses.

After the bout, Ruart said he was prepared for his younger opponent’s fast start. The Geneva resident said he would like to face off against reigning BRAVE CF Welterweight World Champion Jarrah “The Jordanian Lion” Al-Selawe, 26, of Amman, Jordan.

Surdu now has 10 wins and 1 loss. The Moldovan-Romanian MMA fighter made his BRAVE CF debut at “BRAVE CF 36.”

BRAVE CF held “BRAVE CF 36” in partnership with Real Xtreme Fighting (RXF). A total of 12 countries were represented namely Austria, Canada, France, Ireland, Latvia, Moldova, Poland, Northern Ireland, Romania, Sweden, Switzerland and Trinidad and Tobago.

Stoute solely represented both France and Switzerland. While solely representing Moldova, Surdu was one of the three representatives of the host country .

In the main event of the evening, kickboxer Cristi Constantinov, 23, of Bucharest made his professional MMA debut and BRAVE CF debut. He was submitted by Todd “The Black Hulk” Stoute, 36, of Trinidad and Tobago and Canada at a catch weight of 104kg.

On December 7, 2019, Ruart made his BRAVE CF debut at “BRAVE CF 31” at the Sibaya Casino in Durban, South Africa where he knocked out Ibrahim “Ibra Kumite” Mane, 31, of France. Two days before “BRAVE CF 36” fight night, I asked the French-Swiss MMA fighter what makes the Bahrain-based MMA promotion different from the previous promotions he competed in.

“It is a lot more professional, a lot more international,” Ruart said of BRAVE CF. “Everything is set up perfectly so we, the fighters, we just have to think about the fights. (We just need to) fight good and that’s it and the organization takes care of everything so that’s a really good thing for the fighters.”

Ruart was born in Paris to a father is from Guadalupe and a mother from Martinique. He eventually moved to Switzerland where he started his MMA training.

After winning two BRAVE CF bouts consecutively, Ruart is ready to challenge reigning BRAVE CF Welterweight World Champion Jarrah “The Jordanian Lion” Al-Selawe, 26, of Amman, Jordan. The Jordanian champion redeemed the belt from Abdoul “The Conqueror” Abdouraguimov, 23, of France and Russia in their rematch at “BRAVE CF 27” at the Mubadala Arena in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates on October 4, 2019.