Ruach Hashem Gordon needed all three rounds and the judges' scorecards, but he got the job done — outpointing Moldovan Muay Thai fighter Maximus Bejenuta on Monday night at Menora Mivtachim Arena in Tel Aviv, as the Gordon brothers' own promotion staged its debut event on home soil.
The card, billed as GFN 1: Israel vs. the World and organised by the brothers together with Yaniv Kaminski, marked the first time all three fighting Gordons — Ahavat Hashem, Ruach Hashem and Kibedy — appeared on the same bill, each matched against an international opponent in Muay Thai and kickboxing bouts.
In the main event, the youngest brother, Ahavat Hashem Gordon, faced former ONE Championship flyweight king John Lineker, while Kibedy Gordon also picked up a win by knockout elsewhere on the card.
Ruach's fight went the distance. Bejenuta, a stubborn opponent who according to ONE.co.il's report worked his low kicks and pressed forward when he sensed he was behind late on, could not turn the fight around, and the judges scored it unanimously for the Israeli after three rounds and fifteen minutes.
By the outlet's account, Gordon controlled the pace from the opening round with repeated low kicks to Bejenuta's lead leg and a sharp elbow combination late in round one, leaving his opponent visibly marked by round two. Bejenuta raised his output in the third as he searched for a finish, but Gordon defended calmly and kept working behind his combinations to close out the win.
"Thanks to faith and hard work this happened. I want to thank everyone — your support helped me greatly," Gordon said afterwards, quoted by Sport5.
He also spoke about the road back to the ring. "It was a difficult year for me personally, with almost no fights, and I searched to rediscover myself. It wasn't simple at all. Although I didn't finish the fight with a knockout as I wanted, I proved to everyone who I am, and I'm very proud."
It was Gordon's second win in a row after that quiet stretch, following an earlier victory over Hussein Dolo on a UTMA card as he worked his way back to full fitness and form.
Bejenuta is no journeyman gatekeeper: the 24-year-old Moldovan made his ONE Championship debut in April at Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, where he lost by TKO to Tomyamkoong Bhumjaithai, giving Monday's result some added weight for a fighter still building his record.
The Gordons — sons of American-born chiropractor Azriel Gordon and Hong Kong-born mother Chaninat Hashem, who converted to Judaism — have become one of the more recognisable families in Israeli combat sports, with the trio fighting under the Team Gordon Fighters banner out of the Silapa Thai Gym. GFN's organisers have described the venture as an attempt to build an annual, internationally produced fight night in Israel.
