Karim Henniene: PFL Africa’s Rising Star

Karim Henniene: Entering the World of MMA

Karim Henniene, like many mixed martial artists, found his way to the sport via another form of combat. Judo was Karim Henniene’s path to the cage. “I began my career of Martial arts by learning judo as of a very young age. In high-school, I did partake in many altercations or fights with other students prior to controlling my emotional state. I quickly realized that what I appreciated was in fact the art, technique and strategy behind the sport. It became clear that my talent and passion could be utilized for the sport as opposed to recreationally,” Karim Henniene told MMASucka.

Karim Henniene’s Route of Perfection

Henniene has yet to taste defeat in any stage of his mixed martial arts career. As an amateur, he earned a perfect 5-0 record with two championships. In August 2019, Karim Henniene earned a fourth-round submission to capture the Nova Fight League featherweight championship. In January of the following year, he would continue to show his dominance, earning a split-decision win over the then-undefeated champion Forrest Ayers, earning the Unified MMA featherweight title.

Two years and eight months after earning his final amateur crown, Karim Henniene would make his professional debut in September 2022, defeating Alex Gluzman by unanimous decision. Henniene’s next two professional bouts would also be against unbeaten opponents, defeating both in March 2023 and January 2024, respectively. After his unanimous decision win over Mitch Strazzella in November 2024, Henniene’s next cage appear would be under the bright lights of PFL.

Karim Henniene: Entering the PFL Stage

Originally set to make his PFL debut against the undefeated Antero dos Santos at PFL Africa 1: Cape Town 2025, dos Santos would pull out, putting dangerous striker Asiashu Tshitamba in the crosshairs of Henniene. Using his superior takedown game, Karim Henniene earned the split-decision nod. Though many considered it a close fight, Henniene’s execution of his gameplan, but the contest firmly in his control, “It wasn’t close. I followed my coach’s game plan that worked perfectly. The next fight will be executed differently in such a way whereby ‘close’ will not be a part of anyone’s vocabulary regarding my performance against my opponents,” stated Henniene.

Bright Future For Canada’s Own

On October 18, 2025, the PFL Africa tournament will continue with semifinal action with PFL 3 Rwanda. The night’s main event will feature lightweight tournament action with Patrick Ocheme battling Abdul Razac Sankara. More importantly to Henniene, the night’s co-main event will feature the other side of his bantamweight bracket with Nkosi Ndebele taking on Simbarashe Hokonya. Ndebele is a former Brave CF champion, who is currently 9-3. Hokonya is undefeated with a record of 6-0 with a wealth of experience fighting in Africa, naming for EFC Worldwide.

With Karim Henniene’s skill set and ability to dictate the pace of the bout, it is very likely we see Henniene remain undefeated, en route to earning the prestigious PFL Africa bantamweight tournament championship, which will be crowned sometime at the end of 2025. So what does the undefeated star have in store for fans on October 18th? “Fans can expect a banger. We are both explosive, but I’m better everywhere. This time I’m unleashing everything. So he’s going down in one!” said Henniene.