BRAVE CF: Rolando Dy ready for tough road to title shot

Rolando Dy. Photo from BRAVE Combat Federation

MANILA, Philippines—Rolando Dy is looking to keep his momentum going from a strong 2020 onto a potential title match this 2021.

BRAVE CF’s 2020 Fighter of the Year scored two impressive victories against the promotion’s top lightweight contenders in John Brewin and Maciej Gierszewski and he’s now looking to enter the stacked championship picture.

“If BRAVE CF thinks I have to prove it again, then so be it. I am a fighter, and my job is to fight and win fights. Like I said in the past, line them up and I will keep knocking them down. It’s that simple,” said Dy (14-9).

His path to a fight against champion Amin Ayoub (15-4) is full of obstacles, though, with the French titleholder already dealing with a queue of contenders.

Ahmed Amir (11-3-1) is one of the promotion’s top contenders since joining in 2016 and is seen as Ayoub’s next opponent.

The Butcher barged into the title picture after defeating Cian Cowley and Yousef Wehbe with the Egyptian grappler announcing his intent for a title shot when he crashed the BRAVE CF 44 weigh-ins.

Abdisalam Kubanychbek (16-2) is also keen on getting the strap away from Ayoub. The Kyrgyzstan fighter is riding a nine-fight winning streak with seven of those wins ending via either submission or knockout.

Then there’s England’s Sam Patterson (6-1-1) who is on a five-fight winning streak, including a win over UFC veteran Felipe Silva.

“I’m excited for 2021. I know this year has a lot in store for me and my team. I can’t wait to get back inside the cage,” said Dy.