Counter-Strike legend JarosĹ‚aw “pashaBiceps” JarzÄ…bkowski isn’t just a decorated esports star and a popular streamer anymore, he’s also a pro MMA fighter.
The former Virtus.pro sniper and current Team Liquid streamer stepped into the cage with bodybuilding YouTuber Michał “Owca” Owczarzak at the High League 2 event in Krakow. Not only did he make the walk, but pashaBiceps scored a strong second-round knockout victory over Owca.
Both men were making their pro MMA debuts in the fight and it showed. There was wild striking aplenty but both men clearly wanted to put on a show, which isn’t always guaranteed in these sorts of celebrity contests.
The bout was effectively watching a bull go against a matador, with both men trading roles periodically. This made for a frantic fight with a few wince-worthy moments.
pashaBiceps got the better of things however. A late knockdown in round one where a looping right hand from pashaBiceps landed on Owca as he tried to rope-a-dope back and spelled the beginning of the end.
The fight went into round two. Owca managed to shake out the cobwebs and brought the action to pashaBiceps at points. Over-aggression proved to be Owca’s undoing, however, with pashaBiceps catching him with a short right hand as he lunged in. The punch stunned Owca and pashaBiceps seemed to feel it, following him to the cage and landing another right to force a submission to strikes.
pashaBiceps’ victory was immediately met with an outpouring of support from CSGO fans and personalities. A slew of former opponents including Keith “NAF” Markovic, Marcelo “coldzera” David, and Lukas “gla1ve” Rossander all sent their congratulations on social media.
pashaBiceps’ MMA debut and the fascination surrounding it follows a number of other high-profile combat sports contests in recent years.
Though boxing, MMA, and pro-wrestling are all on an uptick right now, boxing and MMA are seeing huge crossover appeal when it comes to both fans and competitors.
The 2019 boxing match between YouTubers Logan Paul and KSI opened the floodgates when it came to novelty bouts. This has grown in a big way in the two years since. There have been novelty cards pitting social media platforms against one another, as well as aged boxers coming out of retirement for one last payday. This hit a new level with Logan Paul’s brother Jake Paul, who has multiple controversial knockout wins over ex-MMA champions.
It’s unknown whether pashaBiceps will stick around for any length of time in MMA. Either way, he put on one of the best showings in the space so far.
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