Adrian Bartosinski had to work through a rough night at the office to remain KSW Welterweight Champion.
Returning after suffering his first-ever pro loss in a non-title fight last year, Bartosinski dug deep for five rounds against rival Andrzej Grzebyk to walk away with a unanimous decision win on Saturday night. The performance closed out KSW 105, which took place at the PreZero Arena in Gliwice, Poland.
In a scrappy 25-minute clash that many praised afterward as an instant classic, Bartosinski endured an early injury and the aggressive stand-up style of Grzebyk, primarily using his control on the ground to walk away with a scorecard victory.
The fight opened with a hectic first frame where the welterweights engaged in a back-and-forth slugfest on the feet. It was easily one of the hardest parts of the fight to score, as both connected with thudding blows – but neither went down.
Early in the bout, the English broadcast caught wind of an issue which would create extra adversity for Bartosinski’s performance. While in between rounds, they suspected that a potential bicep injury for the champ. Bartosinski confirmed afterward that he had tweaked his arm early in the contest.
Bartosinski found his first bit of meaningful control in the second round, taking Grzebyk down early in the frame. After minutes of grinding away from a top position, the champ pulled guard in hopes of securing a guillotine choke. He was unsuccessful with the submission, allowing Grzebyk to close the round on top, although notably not giving him enough control to steal the round on any of the official scorecards.
Grzebyk’s best round arguably was the third, stinging Bartosinski with his shots in scrappy stand-up exchanges. Cardio became a clear factor in the fight by this point, with the output of both fighters dropping significantly.
While Bartosinski was ahead on scorecards after three rounds, he hadn’t done enough to secure a win. Despite visibly being tired after a tough 15 minutes of battle, Bartosinski had to find some extra energy within him to prevail in the championship rounds.
Relentless wrestling from Bartosinski swept him both the fourth and fifth rounds on scorecards and allowed him to remain champ.
Grzebyk shut down numerous attempts by the champ to get the fight down, but Bartosinski would keep coming forward with more and more shots until they hit the mat. His success in the late rounds finished the fight on a strong note for Bartosinski, giving him a clear victory after struggling early on.
For the first time in his career, Bartosinski was looking to come back from a pro defeat. The previously untouchable Polish figure suffered a massive upset at KSW’s 100th show last November, getting submitted by veteran Mamed Khalidov in a non-title fight up at middleweight.
Bartosinski’s win last weekend puts that shocking loss behind him and continues a dominant title reign he has put together in the promotion since 2023. Previous victories in his run include a kneebar win over Igor Michaliszyn and one of the few losses on Salahdine Parnasse’s record.
Former FEN champ Grzebyk was not only aiming to claim his first-ever KSW title, but was fighting to avenge a past loss on his record. He previously met Bartosinski back in 2022, getting submitted at KSW 67.
Grzebyk secured a second shot against him this weekend after piecing together four wins in recent months.
Earlier in the night, 2017 “World’s Strongest Man” winner Eddie Hall starched Mariusz Pudzianowski in a 30-second freakshow fight. Here are the quick results from KSW 105:
Main Card (1:00PM EDT / 7:00PM CEST) (KSW PPV)
Bout 9: Adrian Bartosinski def. Andrzej Grzebyk via Decision, Unanimous (KSW Welterweight Championship)
Bout 8: Artur Szpilka def. Errol Zimmerman via Submission, Arm Triangle Choke (RD 1, 1:49)
Bout 7: Artur Szczepaniak def. Igor Michaliszyn via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 2:40)
Bout 6: Eddie Hall def. Mariusz Pudzianowski via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 0:30)
Bout 5: Kacper Koziorzebski def. Madars Fleminas via Decision, Split
Bout 4: Augusto Sakai def. Szymon Bajor via Decision, Split
Bout 3: Laura Grzyb def. Gabriela Hristea via Decision, Unanimous
Bout 2: Adam Niedzwiedz def. Marcin Krakowiak via Submission, Omoplata (RD 1, 2:53)
Bout 1: Denis Gorniak def. Michal Turynski via TKO, Strikes (RD 1, 4:29)
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