Peshawar taxi driver and fellow coach sustain MMA training with little official support

PESHAWAR: Muhammad Ibrahim, a taxi driver from Kurram tribal district, is balancing his daily livelihood with coaching mixed martial arts on the outskirts of Peshawar, where he and other trainers say the sport is being kept alive largely through personal commitment rather than institutional backing.

Ibrahim spends his mornings driving through the city and later trains young fighters at a small MMA club. His involvement in combat sports began in 2004, when he joined a karate academy at the age of 12. He later trained in Bando, a Burmese martial art, and also developed his boxing skills at the Peshawar Sports Complex. With no dedicated MMA academy in the provincial capital at the time, he travelled to different places to build his training across multiple disciplines.

Speaking about those early years, Ibrahim said he met a fellow student, Ismail, during karate training, who now operates an MMA club in Nothia. He also said the sport has not received institutional help.

“I met another student, Ismail, at the karate academy. He now owns an MMA club in Nothia,” Ibrahim said.

“There has been no support from either the provincial or federal governments", he added.

The efforts of local trainers recently led to an MMA competition at the Peshawar Sports Complex. The event, was only possible after an Afghan supporter contributed Rs1 million.

Coaches say resources remain limited

At Ibrahim’s academy, around 40 students train on a regular basis. He charges Rs1,500 a month, which he said is only enough to meet basic costs.

“It is a small setup, but MMA is my passion, so I continue,” he said.

His friend Ismail Khan runs a larger academy. Until a few months ago, Ismail was selling samosas and pakoras in the morning to keep his small training setup running when student numbers were low. After shifting to a rented facility, the number of trainees at his club has risen to 50.

Ismail said children should ideally begin MMA at the age of eight or nine, adding that it takes nearly six years to master the sport. He also pointed to parental concerns over injuries.

“The ideal age to start MMA is eight or nine. It takes almost six years to master it,” Ismail said. “But it is also a dangerous hobby that can lead to injuries, which is why parents are naturally hesitant.”

Calls for competitions and training camps

Both coaches said many of their students come from low-income households. They said preparing for championships requires a proper diet for at least a month, costing a minimum of Rs15,000, which many families find difficult to manage.

Ismail said there is a need for a structured competition pathway, beginning with inter-club contests and moving to district-level events, but added that such arrangements are not taking place.

“There should be inter-club competitions to identify talented players, followed by district-level events, but none of this is happening,” Ismail lamented.

The fighters have urged the Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa Sports Department and the federal government to support MMA in the same way as other sports. Ibrahim said official training camps and regular competitions could help improve the abilities of young athletes in the province.

“Government should organise training camps to polish the skills of these players and hold regular competitions,” Ibrahim said.

“There is no shortage of talent in Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, only the lack of official support", he added.