David Gonzalez
This past weekend I stepped into the AllStars Gym in Waiblingen for the fifth edition of AllStar Contenders. The card was stacked: 36 scheduled bouts across MMA, K1, boxing, and Muay Thai. Serdar’s AllStar Team alone sent 21 fighters into competition, and the evening main card delivered 12 fights that kept the room buzzing from the first walk-in to the final decision.
The gym was packed to the walls. Not the polite kind of full either. The loud kind. The kind where you feel every reaction travel through the crowd, where a clean combination makes people jump, and a deep shot attempt triggers that sharp inhale from everyone who knows exactly what it costs to fight for underhooks when your lungs are already burning.
Walk-Ins That Actually Mean Something
One thing I genuinely loved: every fighter got a proper walk-in with their own music. It sounds simple, but it matters. It is a small moment of dignity before the chaos, and it tells the fighter: you are not just “up next,” you are seen!
People outside the sport sometimes treat amateur and semi-pro shows like a stepping stone, like the result matters less because the names are not famous yet. But anyone who has ever trained knows the truth. You cannot fake the courage it takes to step into a cage.
You are making a public decision to be judged in real time. Your cardio, your composure, your technique, your toughness, your ego, and your preparation are about to be tested in front of teammates, coaches, family, strangers, and the one opponent who came to take something from you. There is no hiding once the door closes. You have to walk forward anyway, even when your mind is screaming that there are easier ways to spend a Saturday night.
That is why the walk-in matters. It is not a showy extra. It is the last deep breath before the fight starts demanding answers.
My recurring note for future reports: The Cage Door Moment
@sustainhealth All Star Contender newcomer fight night #mma #mmagermany ♬ Ready – Official Sound Studio
There is a sound that cuts through everything at local events. Not the music, not the crowd, not even the corners shouting instructions. It is the moment the cage door shuts. One second you are still a person with a life outside the fight. The next second you are a fighter with a job to do.
That moment is where confidence shows up, or where it breaks. And it is where I will keep looking in future reports, because it reveals who came prepared to be uncomfortable.
Fight Highlight: Enrico Weber Announces Himself in MMA
A standout MMA debut came from Enrico Weber of AllStars Germany, who faced Sebastian Harting from KSN Gym. Weber has put his kickboxing gloves down and committed to MMA, and he entered the cage with a clear shift in energy.
I last saw him back in April 2025 when he was still competing in K1. Since then, the step forward has been obvious. It was not only his movement and tactical choices, but his presence. The way he carried himself before the fight had that locked-in focus that usually comes from either hard lessons or serious ambition. In this case, it looked like both.
Weber punctuated his first MMA outing in the best possible way: a first-round submission finish after just 81 seconds. A debut is one thing. A debut where you make a statement that early is another.
Post-fight interview: Coach Arbias on the plan, the Thailand trip, and what comes next
SHM: Going into this one, what was the main focus in preparation?
Coach Arbias: “We built the camp around always having an answer in wrestling and on the ground. We expected the opponent to look for early takedowns because Enrico’s kickboxing record is strong, so we prepared for that scenario. With his 13 and 0 kickboxing background, he already had a lot of competition experience. It was more about technical adjustment than learning how to handle the moment.”
SHM: He came back from a training trip to Thailand shortly before the fight. How did that impact his transition into MMA, and what does this debut tell you?
Coach Arbias: “The transition into MMA was smooth because he approached it the right way. The Thailand trip accelerated that development even more. Getting the first MMA win by submission in round one is a clear statement. From now on, opponents will have to think twice about shooting takedowns.”
That last line is important. If your opponent believes you are only dangerous on the feet, they will test your hips early. A fast submission changes that narrative immediately. It forces hesitation, and hesitation is where strikers start landing with real confidence.
Fight Highlight: Jeremy Mancera Forces the Finish at 84 kg
Another major moment came in the MMA bout at 84 kg: Jeremy Mancera of AllStars Germany against Nurdoolot Uranov from Process Academy Stuttgart.
Early on, Mancera had to work. After takedown exchanges put him in tense positions, he stayed calm, built his base, and found ways out. Once he created space, he started taking control with targeted strikes. Uranov defended well and did not give away much, which made every improvement in position feel earned rather than gifted.
Then came the turning point at the end of round one. In the final second, Mancera landed a hard slam. Uranov struggled to get back up afterwards, but he showed grit and continued. Still, 38 seconds into the second round, the referee stepped in to stop the contest.
From cageside, the stoppage debates are always complicated because they live in seconds and angles. What is clear is that Uranov’s ability to return and keep fighting showed real will. Respect to him and to Process Academy for bringing a tough, well-prepared opponent into that room.
Coach’s assessment: why fluid MMA wins
SHM: What did you take away from Jeremy’s performance against a strong opponent?
Coach: “Jeremy faced a technically very strong opponent. But this fight showed something important: in MMA, it is not the specialist who wins. It is the fighter who can switch between disciplines fluently and stay calm while doing it.”
That is the difference between knowing techniques and being able to fight. Transitions decide everything. If you can strike without panicking about the takedown, scramble without panicking about the strike, and keep your head while the pace climbs, you become very hard to beat.
My take: cardio, strength endurance, and the ability to stay sharp late
To me, the decisive factor here was endurance, especially strength endurance. Mancera kept pushing through the first round and still had enough left to turn up the intensity right at the horn, which is where many fighters mentally start looking for their corner. The slam at the end of the round did not come from luck. It came from having the gas tank to explode when the opponent expects you to ease off.
Main Event: Hasan Hajharojev vs Flavio Kamara, Experience vs Composure
In the main event, Hasan Hajharojev of Lobos Fightclub faced 18-year-old Flavio Kamara from AllStars Germany. On paper it looked like a classic contrast: the older, experienced wrestler against the younger athlete still building his record. In the cage, it played out exactly like that at first, but with a twist that says a lot about Kamara’s ceiling.
Hajharojev controlled much of the first two rounds with pressure and wrestling-driven tempo. He was the one pushing the positions, forcing reactions, making it a fight in the places where wrestlers like to live. But what impressed me was how often Kamara refused to give him clean entries. He defended wave after wave of takedown attempts, stayed disciplined, and did not panic when the clinch exchanges got heavy.
Offensively, Kamara picked his moments. He landed strikes here and there, enough to remind Hajharojev that he could not simply run downhill without paying a price. The fight was competitive in the details, even if the optics of control can lean the scorecards in one direction.
Post-fight insight: Kamara’s coaches on the matchup and the lesson
SHM: What was the biggest takeaway from Flavio’s main event performance?
Coaches: “Flavio fought a much older and very experienced wrestler from the Austrian Bundesliga. Even though his own strengths are in grappling, he adapted, shifted the fight into striking, and defended every takedown attempt.
“At times he let the opponent lead the fight, and that can look negative to judges on the scorecards. There was also an illegal knee to the head. But for an 18-year-old, it was still a very strong performance, and a fight that is more valuable for his development than a quick finish win.”
That is a real coach’s perspective. Sometimes a tough, structured fight against experience gives a young athlete more than an easy stoppage. It exposes what still needs polishing, it tests decision-making under fatigue, and it forces the fighter to learn how to win minutes, not only moments.
From where I stood, both men delivered. Hajharojev showed why wrestling and pressure are a problem for anyone, and Kamara showed the kind of composure you cannot teach quickly. I am looking forward to seeing both of them back in the cage soon.
Closing Thoughts
AllStar Contender 5 felt like what regional combat sports should be: structured, loud, respectful, and hungry. You could sense that for many athletes this was not just a bout, it was a checkpoint. Proof that the hours in the gym translate into something real when the lights are on and the crowd is close enough to hear you breathe.
And that is the part I will keep coming back to. Not just who won, not just how they won, but what happens in that moment when the cage door closes and the fighter has to meet themselves in public.
A final thank you to Coach Serdar Karaca for putting on a strong event and for giving me the chance to experience it live. Nights like this are where the next generation gets built, and it was a privilege to be there.
