Weekly Mixed Martial Arts and Kickboxing News – 04/19/2013
By PDG Staff
UFC on FOX 8 – Fight Card Update
This week the UFC informed FOXSports.com that a fight between Germaine de Randamie and Julie Kedzie has been added to UFC on FOX 8 on July 27th. According to UFC officials, the fight announcement coincides with Kedzie getting medically cleared this week to resume MMA activities. Kedzie tore the labrum in her left shoulder in her last fight, a bout she lost to Miesha Tate via submission at Strikeforce – Rousey vs Kaufman last August.
UFC on Fox 8
July 27, 2013
KeyArena
Seattle, Washington
Melvin Guillard (30-12-2) vs. Mac Danzig (21-10-1)
Rory MacDonald (14-1) vs. Jake Ellenberger (29-6)
Tarec Saffiedine (14-3) vs. Robbie Lawler (20-9-1)
Danny Castillo (15-5) vs. Bobby Green (20-5)
Julie Kedzie (16-11) vs. Germain de Randamie (3-2)
Duke Roufus Returning to Kickboxing Roots with GLORY
Few names are as synonymous with professional Kickboxing than Milwaukeean Duke Roufus. As well, even fewer Americans are as well-versed in the Thai art of kickboxing, or Muay Thai, as Duke Roufus. So it came as no surprise when representatives of international kickboxing promotions powerhouse Glory Sports International contacted Duke in early 2013 looking for his assistance in helping Glory establish itself in the United States.
What was surprising, however, was the fact that one of the cities targeted in Glory’s plans was Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and they wanted Duke to promote their ROAD TO GLORY 8-Man Kickboxing tournament in his hometown. It was Glory’s understanding that Milwaukee was regarded as a true hotbed for combat sports in the U.S., and Duke Roufus was the main driving force behind that image. With lifelong international connections bringing the parties together, Duke was humbled at the opportunity to work with such a prestigious organization, and even more humbled at the fact they wanted to bring their exciting brand of stand-up fighting to southeastern Wisconsin.
After months of planning and coordination between Milwaukee-based North American Fighting Championship (NAFC) and Glory executives, Duke Roufus is pleased to announce professional Muay Thai and Kickboxing will return to Milwaukee’s historic Eagles Club Grand Ballroom, 2401 W. Wisconsin Ave., Saturday, May 11, 2013. CONCEDE, Speedy Metals and Roufusport present NAFC “Knockout Kings” ROAD TO GLORY USA. Doors open and the undercard starts at 5:00 pm, while the main card begins at 7:30 pm.
This highly-anticipated show returns Duke to his roots of combat sports, the smash-mouth stand-up game of professional Muay Thai and kickboxing, where the lifelong martial artist is a former 4-Time World Heavyweight Champion. Showcasing some of the best fighters from across Wisconsin and the Midwest, PLUS top fighters flying in from across North America for the ROAD TO GLORY USA 8-man Lightweight tournament (with a top prize of $20,000.00 going to the winner), makes this one of the most unique ring sports events ever produced in Milwaukee.
ROAD TO GLORY USA is kicking off it’s promotions with six events in America over the first five months of 2013, including the May 11th show in Milwaukee’s Eagles Club. In addition to top regional talent battling each other in prestige bouts, each ROAD TO GLORY USA event will consist of a one-night, single-elimination, 8-man tournament in one of Glory’s six weight divisions. ROAD TO GLORY Milwaukee will showcase the country’s top Lightweight (-155 lbs) Kickboxers who will be awarded a total purse of $42,000.00. The Milwaukee ROAD TO GLORY USA tournament champion will advance to the next level of the global tournament and be offered a one-year contract to fight for Glory internationally.
A complete bout lineup will be announced shortly. Featured prestige bouts showcasing high-end North American talent have already been announced, including:
Muay Thai Lightweight -155: Landon Simmons vs. Tom Grimmer
Muay Thai Middleweight -185: “Bam Bam” Bryce Franck vs. Tim “The Arch Angel” Nixon
Kickboxing Super Heavyweight +230: Reese Shaner vs. Demian Decorah
Muay Thai Bantamweight -135: Josh Kasee vs. Boontieng Phetvixay
Kickboxing Lightweight -155: Benni Izairi vs. Dwight Anderson
Muay Thai Lightweight -155: Gustavo “Sidewayzzz” Rodriguez vs. Jon Henderson
ONE FC Announces Three More Fights for ONE FC: Rise to Power
ONE Fighting Championship has announced three additional bouts for ONE FC: Rise to Power. Kevin Belingon will battle Masakatsu Ueda in the final of the Bantamweight Grand Prix. The winner will get a shot at the ONE FC Bantamweight Title. Plus, Eduard Folayang is back in action against MMA veteran Kamal Shalorus and fan favorite Phil Baroni will return to the famed ONE FC cage to take on the KO artist from Japan, Nobutatsu Suzuki. All the action takes place live on 31 May from the MOA Arena in Manila, Philippines.
The Bantamweight Grand Prix Final is also set and both fighters are ready to showcase their skills in Manila to earn a shot at the biggest Bantamweight title belt in Asia. Bantamweight GP Finalist Kevin Belingon is a Filipino MMA champion and one of the best MMA fighters ever to emerge from the Philippines. It took him a few fights to become accustomed to competing inside the ONE FC cage but once he found his rhythm, the result was spectacular as he blasted through Yusup Saadulaev and Thanh Vu in less than a round to earn a slot in the Bantamweight Grand Prix Final. Known as “The Silencer” because he prefers to let his fists and feet do the talking, Belingon is a Wushu specialist with fast hands and devastating low kicks. He says that he is in the best shape of his life and nothing can stop him from earning a shot at the coveted ONE FC Bantamweight World Championship Title. His opponent is a veteran who is not at all concerned about fighting on Belingon’s home soil on 31 May.
Masakatsu Ueda is a Bellator veteran and former Shooto Featherweight Champion, a belt he defended successfully three times. He has an outstanding 17-2-2 record which makes him one of the best Bantamweights in the world. He was a very successful college wrestler who won numerous national wrestling competitions in Japan as well as the all Japan Shooto Grappling Championship. A very well-rounded fighter, he submitted MMA legend Jens Pulver at ONE FC: Kings & Champions to earn a slot in the final of the Bantamweight Grand Prix. Ueda understands the magnitude of this fight and knows very well that Belingon will be the toughest test of his career.
A Lightweight bout that is sure to get the crowd on their feet will pit Filipino MMA legend Eduard Folayang against UFC veteran Kamal Shalorus. Manila’s favorite slugger Phil Baroni will be back in action on 31 May when he battles up and coming Japanese mixed martial artist Nobutatsu Suzuki. ONE FC: Rise to Power is headlined by a ONE FC Featherweight World Championship bout between reigning champion Honorio “The Rock” Banario against number one contender Koji Oishi and pound-for-pound king Bibiano Fernandes taking on Koetsu Okazaki for the ONE FC Bantamweight Interim Title.
Metamoris Pro II Invitational: Shinya Aoki vs. Kron Gracie
Metamoris founder Ralek Gracie announces the Metamoris Pro Jiu Jitsu Invitational II, staged live in Los Angeles at the historic Pauley Pavilion on June 9th and broadcast online via stunning HD live stream. The second event in the promotion’s history returns with another blockbuster card featuring six matches contested by world-class practitioners of Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. The unique format combining 20-minute single-round matches with no points encourages fighters to actively seek submissions.
Metamoris distills competitive Brazilian Jiu Jitsu to its purest form. The Metamoris Pro II Invitational is a proving ground for the best in the world to test their skills, stamina and heart, and deliver the fans an unprecedented viewing experience in the process.
The scheduled fight card is headlined by Kron Gracie, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu world champion coached by his father mixed martial arts pioneer and PRIDE champion Rickson Gracie, as he takes on DREAM lightweight champion, ONE FC lightweight champion, former WAMMA lightweight champion and former Shooto welterweight champion, Shinya Aoki.
The card also includes three-time world champion and 2009 ADCC world champion Braulio Estima taking on five-time World Cup champion Rodolfo Vieria, 2011 ADDCC world champion and 2012 World Cup gold medalist Andre Galvao will face Rafael Lovato Jr., the second American in history to win the Brazilian National Jiu-Jitsu Championship as a black belt. Metamoris Pro Jiu Jitsu Invitational II will be broadcast live via pay-per-view for $19.95 through metamoris.com.
CBS Sports Network and GLORY Sign TV Agreement To Showcase World’s Premier Kickboxing Action
Glory Sports International and CBS Sports Network have reached an agreement to showcase action from the world’s premier kickboxing league, beginning with the star-studded GLORY 7 event in Milan, Italy on Saturday, April 20. The CBS Sports Network telecast of the nine-bout GLORY 7 Milan kickboxing event from Mediolanum Forum, headlined by a showdown between world No. 1 ranked lightweight (154 pounds/70 kilograms) Giorgio Petrosyan (75-1, 35 KOs) of Italy and fellow sensation Hafid El Boustati (67-7-3, 18 KOs) of The Netherlands, will air at 1:00 a.m. ET/10:00 p.m. PT on Sunday, April 21 (Same day delay).
“We look forward to expanding our relationship with CBS Sports Network, a tremendous national sports television platform, and bringing U.S. sports fans some of the hardest-hitting, world-class kickboxing action featuring elite martial arts fighters from around the world,” said GLORY Sports International CEO Andrew Whitaker.
GLORY action on CBS Sports Network continues from Ariake Coliseum in Tokyo, Japan with a one-night, eight-man, single-elimination tournament in GLORY’s featherweight (143 pounds/65 kilograms) division that airs Sunday, May 5 at 2:00 a.m. ET/11:00 p.m. PT (Same day delay). In addition to the tournament, several Superfights, including a heavyweight rematch between all-time great Jerome Le Banner (73-21-2, 59 KOs) of France and Muay Thai champion Koichi (26-8-1, 15 KOs) highlight the card. Additional CBS Sports Network telecast dates of GLORY events will be announced soon.
Transgender Fighter Fallon Fox To Debut On AXS TV with CFA
AXS TV will broadcast “AXS TV Fights: Championship Fighting Alliance 11” LIVE Friday, May 24 at 9:00pm ET / 6:00pm PT from the Bank United Center in Miami, Florida. The event will mark the national television debut of transgender fighter Fallon Fox as she meets Allanna Jones in the semi-finals of the CFA Women’s Featherweight Tournament. Additionally, veteran heavyweights Valentin Overeem and Mike Kyle will collide in the main event of the evening.
Fox’s recent reveal that she had gender reassignment surgery has made headlines and created heated discussions throughout the sports community from organizations, writers and athletes. AXS TV’s Inside MMA has reported on the topic in depth, including one-on-one interviews with Fox and UFC champion Ronda Rousey.
“Fallon Fox’s story transcends the MMA community and has led to spirited debate on the topic of transgender athletes involvement in professional sports. AXS TV is proud to provide her and all the CFA fighters the opportunity to compete in front of a national television audience,” said Andrew Simon, CEO AXS TV Fights.
Four additional bouts will round out the televised card: Luis Palomino vs. Robert Washington, Alexis Vila vs. Czar Sklavos, Mike King vs. Oscar Delgado, and Sean Soriano vs. Elvin Brito for the CFA Interim Featherweight Title.
Best of Pride FC: Heath Herring vs. Giant Silva
Bellator Adds Vladimir Matyushenko to 205-Pound Roster
At 42 years old, Vladimir Matyushenko has seen it all. From earning three submission victories in one night, to taking down opponents like Antônio “Little Nog” Nogueira, Travis Wiuff, Pedro Rizzo and Jason Lambert. Armed with one of the best wrestling backgrounds in the sport, “The Janitor” has signed with Bellator MMA, and will debut soon live on Spike TV.
“Vladimir is a fighter I’ve watched for years. He’s an exciting fighter with an incredible wrestling background and a great pedigree in our sport. When the opportunity presented itself and we had the chance to have him join the Bellator family it was a very easy decision to make,” Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney said. “With our Champion Attila Vegh sitting at the top of the mountain right now, and with guys like Emanuel Newton, Mikhail Zayats and King Mo coming on strong, the light heavyweight division for Bellator continues to evolve and Vladimir should fit in perfectly to that mix.”
“Bellator is one of the biggest promotions in the world, and to be associated with them is an honor,” Matyushenko said. “I am optimistic and excited to work with Bellator. The amount of respect and honor I felt from Bjorn and the entire Bellator team was tremendous, and getting into the Bellator cage and cementing my legacy as a Bellator World Champion is the only thing on my mind.”
Lion Fight Brings Back Yodsanklai Fairtex and Kevin Ross vs. Matt Embree for Lion Fight 10
Scott Kent, the owner of the largest Muay Thai promotion in North America, Lion Fight, today announced his star-studded card for the July 26th event “LION FIGHT 10,” which will take place from the Joint inside the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas and live on AXS TV.
Kent confirmed that Yodsanklai Fairtex has inked a contract to headline LION FIGHT 10, and stated that a long-awaited fight between Kevin Ross vs. Matt Embree will be the co-main event. He also revealed more of the talent-rich card stacked with the best Muay Thai fighters in world including Joe Schilling, Malaipet Sasiprapa, and Ognjen Topic and the rising star of women’s Muay Thai, Tiffany Van Soest, whom Kent signed to a long-term contract, will take on Lucy Payne at LION FIGHT 10.
Yodsanklai Fairtex, a fighter with worldwide popularity and legendary status in the Muay Thai community, made his Lion Fight debut earlier this year at LION FIGHT 8. He fought France’s Gregory Choplin in the main event, winning in the third round by KO. Fairtex was thrilled with his experience in America and fighting on live national TV via Lion Fight’s deal with AXS TV. He now returns to Las Vegas ready to take on whomever Lion Fight puts in front of him.
In the Lion Fight 10 co-main event, Kevin Ross returns to the ring looking for his third consecutive Lion Fight win after back-to-back victories over Bernie Mendieta at LION FIGHT 9 and Chris Kwiatkowski at LION FIGHT 8. Also under a long-term contract with Lion Fight, Ross is a two-time WBC Muay Thai Champion and will be facing Canadian Muay Thai prodigy Matt Embree. The live card also features the return of 28-year old 6’2” Joe Schilling, the hugely popular fighter based in Southern California against a yet to be named opponent. Tiffany “Time Bomb” Van Soest, who remains undefeated (5-0) will take on Lucy Payne in a women’s bantamweight bout. Adding to the fully stacked live card are bouts featuring Malaipet Sasiprapa and Ognjen Topic. Opponents for each will be announced soon.
World Series of Fighting 3: Fitch vs. Burkman
World Series of Fighting will hit The Joint at Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas with a stacked world-class Mixed Martial Arts event, headlined by a welterweight rematch between superstars Jon Fitch (24-5) of Fort Wayne, Ind., and Josh “The People’s Warrior” Burkman (25-9) of Salt Lake City, Utah, on Friday, June 14, live on NBC Sports Network, beginning at 11 p.m. ET/8 p.m. PT.
In the light heavyweight co-main event, hard-hitting, 27-year-old Tyrone “King of the Ring” Spong (1-0) of Boca Raton, Fla., via Suriname, a decorated champion and veteran of 77 professional kickboxing bouts, will make his much-anticipated, second start under MMA rules against fellow KO artist Angel “The Dream” DeAnda (11-2) of Oakdale, Calif. DeAnda has scored TKOs in 10 of his 11 career victories, including his last four starts.
Also slated for battle on the four-bout TV card is heavyweight rising star and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Rolles Gracie (8-1) of Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, who will face off with Dave Huckaba (21-4) of Sacramento, Calif. Undefeated prospect Justin Gaethje (8-0) of Denver, Colo., fresh off a first round (2:27) TKO (doctor stoppage due to cut) of J.Z. Cavalcante at the World Series of Fighting event on March 23, will collide with Brian Cobb (20-7) of Bakersfield, Calif., in a lightweight contest. In his last effort at the first World Series of Fighting event, Cobb took a split decision over Ronys Torres.
In preliminary card action, battle-tested submission specialist John Gunderson (34-14) of Houston, Tex. will be pitted against Dan “The Upgrade” Lauzon (16-4) of Bridgewater, Mass. in a lightweight scrap. All 16 of Lauzon’s professional career victories have come by way of TKO or submission. Fellow undefeated prospects Krasimir Mladenov (8-0) of Borica, Bulgaria and Kendrick Miree (5-0) of Atlanta, Ga., will square off at middleweight.
King of the Cage to Enter Philippines for First Event
Fresh off their recent announcement of entering the Philippines furthering its global expansion, KOTC announced today that it will hold its first live event in the Prestigious Mall of Asia Arena July 5th in Manila. Terry Trebilcock, CEO for King of the Cage states “It’s exciting to be hosting our first event in the 20,000 seat arena in the Mall of Asia. We will actually beat the NBA into the Philippines. They are scheduled to hold their first event at the same venue in the fall of 2013”.
With 2 undefeated world champions headlining the card, 11-0 Sean Strickland from USA at 84 kilos and 5-0 Lowen Tynanes, a Philippino/Hawaiian at 73 kilos) and a TV deal to be announced shortly, KOTC looks to carry on its tradition of hosting world class entertainment to yet another country. The show will have 11 professional fights, with 2 world titles, and will promote a minimum of 10 fighters that are from the Philippines. The event on July 5th will be broadcast live or delayed in over 50 countries.
ONE FC Signs Former CFL Lineman Paul Cheng for Heavyweight Division
ONE Fighting Championship has signed an exclusive six-fight deal with former B.C. Lions’ defensive tackle Paul Cheng. Cheng, 34, was originally from Taiwan but came to Canada when he was nine. After playing in the CFL and working as a financial consultant, he has taken on MMA and currently holds a record of 3-1, including his recent win over Ryan Hunter with an impressive first round knockout.
With his 6’3” 256 pounds frame, he would be joining ONE FC’s Heavyweight division where world-class, marquee fighters such as Andrei Arlovski and Tim Sylvia compete in. Cheng recalls watching the two fighters fighting back in 2006. “There’s a distinct possibility that I might be getting onto the cage with one of those guys pretty soon,” he said with wonder in his voice.
GLORY 6 Istanbul – Highlight Video
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Cage Warriors 53: Glasgow – Full Event Video
Re-live all the action from the main card at Cage Warriors 53, which took place at the Kelvin Hall in Glasgow, Scotland on Saturday, April 13, 2013 (available until midnight BST on April 23, 2013).
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