Malik Mawlayi - A History Of Violence

The first question that anyone unfamiliar with MMA tends to want to ask a fighter is ‘isn’t that dangerous?’ For fighter Malik Mawlayi, who will be in action at Martial Combat 9 this month, the answer to that question is an emphatic ‘no’. 

Mawlayi experienced more than his fair share of danger as a child growing up in war torn Afghanistan. Explosions and gun fire were part of every day life and Mawlayi was only 11 when he and his family were forced to flee the country in fear for their lives. Although it was almost two decades ago Mawlayi still has distinct memories of his childhood there,  

“The war was just a normal thing for me and it is still a normal thing for many Afghans. I was born in war and you get used to it. My father was a doctor at Kabul University. The government at that time thought that my father was against them even though he was just a neutral, normal doctor. My father ended up in jail couple of times and we knew our lives were in danger if we did not leave the country,” he said.  

After escaping from Afghanistan the family spent a couple of years in India before moving to Sweden, a country they have called home to this day. It was during this period that the teenage Mawlayi began to develop an interest in martial arts,  

“I started actually started training in 1993 but I have been fond of martial arts since I was a kid in Afghanistan. I don’t know why I have this fascination with fighting, perhaps it has something to do with my childhood but I don’t have a complete answer. It just keeps me calm and gives me discipline in my life,” he said

The term ‘fighting’ can cover anything from a real war in which people actually die to the closely controlled and comparatively safe environment of a sanctioned MMA fight. Whether as an unwilling spectator or an actual participant Mawlayi has experienced both ends of this spectrum,  

“I remember everything from the war with Russians. There were bombs exploding almost every day and you could hear the gun shots everyday. You could also hear the long distance rockets firing from the mountains in to Kabul and you knew one could hit your house.”  

"I was scared to go to the cinema or take the bus with some of my family members because there were bombs exploding everywhere. I didn’t go to school for the last few months in Afghanistan because a couple of Rockets hit Ghazi Adi school where I studied and it was closed” he said.  

While Mawlayi might still have vivid memories of war he is no longer living in fear. As a civilian he once walked around in the knowledge that he would be utterly defenceless should a stray Mujahideen rocket hit. As an MMA fighter he has developed all the tools he needs with which to defend himself in the cage.  

Mawlayi first started training in Taekwondo and now holds a black belt in this discipline. A well traveled fighter, he first made the journey to Brazil in 2003 to study grappling and submission wrestling. He would go on to become a highly decorated grappler and a purple belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.  

He had his first MMA fight in 2005 and put together a string of submission wins which saw him claim the title of Scandinavian Shooto Champion. Mawlayi’s grappling exploits brought him to the attention of Martial Combat veteran Ole Laursen, owner of the Legacy Gym in Thailand. He invited him to train in Thailand and Mawlayi has spent the last couple of years studying Muay Thai and helping Laursen with his ground game.  

It was Mawlayi’s grappling skills which secured him an emphatic win on his Martial Combat debut. He was up against American Muay Thai specialist Cyrus Washington but Mawlayi was able to submit him early in the opening round to win a Martial Combat Superbelt.

He will be looking to put on a similar performance against Arthit Hanchana at Martial Combat 9. Mawlayi is hoping to establish himself as a force to be reckoned with in the lightweight division with a second consecutive win. To do so he will need to overcome the challenge of the Thai fighter who possesses both Muay Thai and submission skills.  

Mawlayi has been preparing for this fight in Sweden. He had previously been based in Thailand but after his victory at Martial Combat 4 he moved back to his adoptive home with his Thai fiancée. They are now married and expecting their first child later this year. While fatherhood has forced him to take his fighting career more seriously he has also had to make some major sacrifices,  

“The prospect of becoming a father has given me even more discipline as well as responsibility. It has not been easy though. In Thailand I was a full time fighter and living in the gym with all the other fighters. In Sweden I am working a night shift as a translator for incoming Afghani and Somali kids in a refugee camp. I wish I could be a full time fighter, but I have got to pay the bills,” he said.  

While Mawlayi might not have had the luxury of a full time training camp the impending birth of his son means he will not be short of motivation for this fight. Mawlayi’s father took his family out of Asia and into to Sweden so they could be far away from the fighting. Little could he have known that almost twenty years later his son would travel in the opposite direction to fight in order to make a better life for his own young family.