At 21, Nigerian mixed martial artist Jane Osigwe has added an important victory to her career, defeating Moroccan sambo fighter Sanaa Mandar by unanimous decision at PFL Africa: Morocco in Casablanca on Saturday. The result at the Mohammed V Sports Complex settled a rivalry that had remained unresolved after their first encounter ended without an officially recognised winner.
The contest was fought at catchweight, with Osigwe earning scores of 29-28, 29-27 and 29-28 from the three judges. Her performance, marked by striking accuracy and composure under pressure, secured a verdict in her favour and gave the Nigerian fighter a conclusive result against an opponent she had previously faced in controversial circumstances.
The history between the pair stretches back to AKO 10 in Abuja, where Osigwe was initially declared the unanimous-decision winner and awarded the Women’s Bantamweight Interim Championship. That result, however, did not stand. Following an official review by the Unified World MMA (UWMMA), scoring controversies prompted the decision to be overturned to a No Contest, leaving the outcome of the encounter officially unresolved.
The reversal transformed a completed bout into unfinished business and provided the backdrop for their return to competition. Their Casablanca meeting was consequently billed as “unfinished business”, reflecting the lingering dispute surrounding the earlier result and the expectation that a rematch would provide a clearer sporting conclusion.
Osigwe delivered that conclusion with a performance that earned the backing of every judge. Rather than allowing the controversy surrounding their previous meeting to define the rivalry, she secured a fresh verdict on the strength of her showing inside the cage.
The victory further establishes the Nigerian as one of Africa’s promising young mixed martial arts prospects. Her success at PFL Africa: Morocco also brings an end to the uncertainty surrounding her contest with Mandar, giving the 21-year-old a resounding result on a major continental platform and strengthening her growing reputation in the sport.
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