ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (January 28, 2016) – M-1 Global’s first event of 2016 is shaping up as a potential blockbuster with the announcement of the second M-1 Challenge bantamweight elimination fight for M-1 Challenge 64 on February 19 at Olympic Stadium in Moscow.

Antun “Killer” Racic, of Croatia, will face Ukrainian Vitaly Branchuk for right to fight for the vacant M-1 Challenge bantamweight championship. The survivor will advance to the championship round against the winner of the previously announced M-1 Challenge bantamweight semifinal eliminator, also part of the M-1 Challenge 64 card, between Pavel Vitruk ((12-2-0, M-1: 6-2-0) and undefeated Kazakhstan-native Sergey Morozov(6-0-0, M-1: 2-0-0). Vitruk is a Ukrainian-born fighter who lives and trains out of St. Petersburg, Russia.

The main event pits three-time Bellator champion Alexander “Storm” Shlemenko (51-9-0, M-1: 2-0-0) and former M-1 Challenge middleweight and light heavyweight titlist Vyacheslav Vasilevsky (27-3-0, M-1: 10-1-0) in the semifinals of the M-1 Global Grand Prix Middleweight Tournament.

In the co-feature, newly signed Alexander “Drago” Volkov (24-6-0, M-1: 8-3-0), of Russia, takes on Estonian challenger Denis Smoldaraev (11-1-0, M-1: 7-1-0) for the vacant M-1 Challenge heavyweight championship.

Racic (18-6-1, M-1: 6-2-0) is coming off of an impressive win by decision versus Alexei Nevzorov last September at M-1 Challenge 61. The powerful Croatian, who is a standout grappler, is dropping down to fight as a bantamweight.

Branchuk (20-5-0, M-1: 0-1-0) will be fighting in his second M-1 Global event, the first two years ago at M-1 Challenge 45, in which he lost a decision to Yunus Evloev. The 24-year-old Branchuk is riding a seven-fight win streak. Known as a strong striker, he has knocked out 10 of his opponents.

M-1 Challenge 64 will be streamed live from Moscow in high definition on www.M1Global.TV. Viewers will be able to watch the preliminary fights and main card by logging on to register at www.M1Global.TV. Fans may watch all of the action on their computers, as well as on Android and Apple smart phones and tablets.

INFORMATION:

Upcoming Events: Feb. 19 – M-1 Challenge 64 in Moscow, Russia; Mar. 4 – M-1 Challenge 65 in St. Petersburg, Russia

www.M1Global.tv
www.mixfight.ru
www.wmmaa.org

Twitter & Instagram:

@M1GlobalNews
@VFinkelchtein
@M1Global

Facebook:

www.facebook.com/M-1-GlobalNews
USA MEDIA CONTACT:
Bob Trieger, Full Court PRESS, 978.590.0470, bobtfcp@hotmail.com, @FightPublicist

ABOUT M-1 GLOBAL: Founded in 1997, M-1 Global has established itself in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) as the premier entity for discovering and developing the world’s next-generation of superstar fighters. With its office in St Petersburg, Russia, the M-1 brand has staged more than 170 events worldwide, including M-1 Selection, M-1 Challenge, M-1 Global and M-1 Global HWGP events, in addition to co-promoting Strikeforce events and M-1 Global on the U.S. network, Showtime. Captivating live, television and broadband audiences with its superior production values and match-ups, M-1 Global events have featured some of the sport’s top names, including legendary heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko, Andrei Arlovski, Gegard Mousasi, Alistair Overeem, Keith Jardine, Ben Rothwell, Melvin Manhoef, Sergei Kharitonov, Aleksander Emelianenko, Roman Zentsov, Yushin Okami, Mike Pyle, Denis Kang, Martin Kampmann, Amar Suloev, Chalid Arrab and Stephan Struve. 2015 was another sensational year of world-class competition with a full calendar of Challenge events fueled by a talent-rich contention system ranking M-1 Global Champions among the greatest fighters in the sport.

ABOUT M-1GLOBAL.TV: Enjoy MMA action now in high definition brought to you by M-1Global.tv, offering only the best fights from M-1 Global and other MMA organizations. M-1Global.tv is a great platform developed specifically to bring together the most exhaustive fight video database. It also provides an easy and intuitive interface, helping everyone to start using the platform in no time while avoiding any spoilers. Besides watching the past fights on demand at any time convenient to the customer, viewers are able to enjoy the action LIVE, all available to M-1Global.tv users through a low-priced month to month digital subscription. Your world of action. Anytime!

Las Vegas – UFC® announced today that its card on Saturday, Feb. 6 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas will now air live on FS1 and be headlined by a five-round welterweight bout between former champion Johny Hendricks and the dynamic Stephen “Wonderboy” Thompson.

Originally scheduled as UFC 196 live on Pay-Per-View, the fight card was moved to FS1 following the loss of the heavyweight title fight between champion Fabricio Werdum and Cain Velasquez, as both competitors were forced out of the bout due to injuries.

Now, fans can enjoy an action-packed card including Roy Nelson vs. Jared Rosholt, Ovince Saint Preux vs. Feijao Cavalcante, Joseph Benavidez vs. Zach Makovsky, and Josh Burkman and KJ Noons live on FS1 on Saturday, Feb. 6. The full bout order is available at UFC.com.

The main card for UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: HENDRICKS vs. THOMPSON will air live on FS1 at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT, with prelims also airing on FS1 at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT. The UFC FIGHT PASS® Early Prelims, headlined by Mickey Gall vs. Mike Jackson, will begin at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT.

With the shift, the lightweight title fight between champion Rafael Dos Anjos and featherweight champion Conor McGregor on Saturday, March 5 in Las Vegas will now be called UFC® 196: DOS ANJOS vs. McGREGOR. The March 5 Pay-Per-View event also features UFC women’s bantamweight champion Holly Holm taking on Miesha Tate.

Fans seeking ticket refunds based on the changes to the Feb. 6 card can do so at the point of purchase.

Visit the UFC® Press Portal for information and content to support your UFC coverage.

About UFC®

UFC® is a premium global sports brand and the largest pay-per-view event provider in the world. Headquartered in Las Vegas with offices in London, Toronto, Sao Paulo and Singapore, UFC produces more than 40 live events annually that consistently sell out some of the most prestigious arenas around the globe. UFC programming is broadcast in over 150 countries and territories to more than one billion TV households worldwide in 21 different languages. UFC FIGHT PASS®, a digital subscription service, delivers exclusive live events, thousands of fights on-demand and original content to fans around the world. For more information, visit UFC.com and follow UFC at Facebook.com/UFC, Twitter and Instagram: @UFC.

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (January 27, 2016) – M-1 Global president Vadim Finklechtein has announced contract extensions for M-1 featherweight champion Ivan “Buki” Buchinger, former M-1 Challenge light heavyweight titlist Stephan “T-800” Puetz and top American featherweight contender Lee “American Bulldog” Morrison.

“We’ve prolonged the contract with M-1 Global veteran fighters Buchinger, Puetz and Morrison,” Finkelchtein said. “We constantly work on our roster to have the best possible fighters.”

Buchinger (30-4-0, M-1: 5-0-0), the 29-year-old from Slovakia, captured the vacant M-1 Challenge featherweight title in 2014, via a fourth-round knockout of Tural Raginov at M-1 Challenge 52. In his last fight this past October, Buchinger successfully defended his title with a unanimous decision over current M-1 Challenge lightweight champion Mansour “Tarzan” Barnaoui at M-1 Challenge 62.

Puetz (13-2-0, M-1: 4-1-0), fighting out of Germany, is an electrifying fighter who won the M-1 Challenge light heavyweight champion in 2014, taking a decision from Viktor Nemkov at M-1 Challenge 46. Puetz successfully defended his title twice in 2014 against Luis Fernando Miranda (SUB2 – choke) and Valery Mykasnikov (KO/TKO2 – punches). In 2015, Puetz took on previously undefeated M-1 Challenge heavyweight champion Marcin Tybura, who lost in three rounds due to a severely broken nose at M-1 Challenge 57. In his most recent fight this past December at M-1 Challenge 63, Puetz lost his title belt in a rematch with Nemkov by way of a decision.

Morrison (13-6-0, M-1: 2-3-0) is a popular featherweight contender out of Okanogon, Washington. The gutsy 29-year-old (pictured below on right) has notable M-1 Global decision wins over Pavel Vitruk and Mikhail Malyutin.

Upcoming Events: Feb. 19 – M-1 Challenge 64 in Moscow, Russia; Mar. 4 – M-1 Challenge 65 in St. Petersburg, Russia

Information

www.M1Global.tv
www.mixfight.ru
www.wmmaa.org

Twitter & Instagram:

@M1GlobalNews
@VFinkelchtein
@M1Global

Facebook:

www.facebook.com/M-1-GlobalNews
USA MEDIA CONTACT:
Bob Trieger, Full Court PRESS, 978.590.0470, bobtfcp@hotmail.com, @FightPublicist

ABOUT M-1 GLOBAL: Founded in 1997, M-1 Global has established itself in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) as the premier entity for discovering and developing the world’s next-generation of superstar fighters. With its office in St Petersburg, Russia, the M-1 brand has staged more than 170 events worldwide, including M-1 Selection, M-1 Challenge, M-1 Global and M-1 Global HWGP events, in addition to co-promoting Strikeforce events and M-1 Global on the U.S. network, Showtime. Captivating live, television and broadband audiences with its superior production values and match-ups, M-1 Global events have featured some of the sport’s top names, including legendary heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko, Andrei Arlovski, Gegard Mousasi, Alistair Overeem, Keith Jardine, Ben Rothwell, Melvin Manhoef, Sergei Kharitonov, Aleksander Emelianenko, Roman Zentsov, Yushin Okami, Mike Pyle, Denis Kang, Martin Kampmann, Amar Suloev, Chalid Arrab and Stephan Struve. 2015 was another sensational year of world-class competition with a full calendar of Challenge events fueled by a talent-rich contention system ranking M-1 Global Champions among the greatest fighters in the sport.

ABOUT M-1GLOBAL.TV: Enjoy MMA action now in high definition brought to you by M-1Global.tv, offering only the best fights from M-1 Global and other MMA organizations. M-1Global.tv is a great platform developed specifically to bring together the most exhaustive fight video database. It also provides an easy and intuitive interface, helping everyone to start using the platform in no time while avoiding any spoilers. Besides watching the past fights on demand at any time convenient to the customer, viewers are able to enjoy the action LIVE, all available to M-1Global.tv users through a low-priced month to month digital subscription. Your world of action. Anytime!

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (January 26, 2016) – Reigning M-1 Challenge middleweight champion Ramazan Emeev will take on Brazilian challenger Maiquel “Big Rig” Falcao in the second M-1 Grand Prix middleweight eliminator, March 4 at M-1 Challenge 65, in Moscow.

The first M-1 Grand Prix match of 2016 is set in the middleweight division as three-time Bellator champion Alexander “Storm” Shlemenko (51-9-0, M-1: 2-0-0) takes on former M-1 Challenge middleweight and light heavyweight titlist Vyacheslav Vasilevsky (27-3-0, M-1: 10-1-0)at M-1 Challenge 64, February 19 at Olympic Stadium in Moscow.

The winners of Shlemenko vs. Vasilevsky and Emeev vs. Falcao will advance to the M-1 Grand Prix middleweight championship later this year.

“We tried to get the strongest middleweight fighters and did a great job to give fans the most spectacular match-ups,” M-1 Global president Vadim Finkelchtein said. “Every single fight is intriguing in M-1 Grand Prix. I can’t guess how these fights will end up. Every single fighter has his advantages. Therefore, I think all of these fights are 50-50.”

Emeev (13-3-0, M-1: 7-1-0), the 2015 M-1 Global Fighter of the Year, is a two-time M-1 Challenge middleweight champion. Born in Azerbaijan but fighting and training out of Markaxhkala, Russia, Emeev originally captured the vacant M-1 Challenge middleweight crown in 2012 at M-1 Challenge 35, winning a decision over Mario Miranda. Emeev successfully defended his title in a rematch five months later with Miranda, who was stopped via strikes in the third round at M-1 Challenge 38.

In his next title defense, Emeev lost his title belt at M-1 Challenge 51 as Vasilevsky won by fourth-round stoppage via punches. Seven months later in a rematch, Emeev defeated Vasilevsky by first round submission (choke), and the champion defended his title this past December at M-1 Challenge 63, when American challenger Fioravanti Luigi was unable to continue fighting after two rounds.

Falcao may be making his M-1 Global debut at M-1 Challenge 65, however, the Brazilian black belt holder is a veteran of 43 professional MMA bouts with 23 knockouts. The 34-year old Falcao split two fights with Vasilevsky and he was stopped by Shlemenko in the second round at Bellator 69.

M-1 Challenge 64 & 65 will be streamed live from Russia in high definition on www.M1Global.TV. Viewers will be able to watch the preliminary fights and main card by logging on to register at www.M1Global.TV. Fans may watch all of the action on their computers, as well as on Android and Apple smart phones and tablets.
USA MEDIA CONTACT:
Bob Trieger, Full Court PRESS, 978.590.0470, bobtfcp@hotmail.com, @FightPublicist

ABOUT M-1 GLOBAL: Founded in 1997, M-1 Global has established itself in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) as the premier entity for discovering and developing the world’s next-generation of superstar fighters. With its office in St Petersburg, Russia, the M-1 brand has staged more than 170 events worldwide, including M-1 Selection, M-1 Challenge, M-1 Global and M-1 Global HWGP events, in addition to co-promoting Strikeforce events and M-1 Global on the U.S. network, Showtime. Captivating live, television and broadband audiences with its superior production values and match-ups, M-1 Global events have featured some of the sport’s top names, including legendary heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko, Andrei Arlovski, Gegard Mousasi, Alistair Overeem, Keith Jardine, Ben Rothwell, Melvin Manhoef, Sergei Kharitonov, Aleksander Emelianenko, Roman Zentsov, Yushin Okami, Mike Pyle, Denis Kang, Martin Kampmann, Amar Suloev, Chalid Arrab and Stephan Struve. 2015 was another sensational year of world-class competition with a full calendar of Challenge events fueled by a talent-rich contention system ranking M-1 Global Champions among the greatest fighters in the sport.

ABOUT M-1GLOBAL.TV: Enjoy MMA action now in high definition brought to you by M-1Global.tv, offering only the best fights from M-1 Global and other MMA organizations. M-1Global.tv is a great platform developed specifically to bring together the most exhaustive fight video database. It also provides an easy and intuitive interface, helping everyone to start using the platform in no time while avoiding any spoilers. Besides watching the past fights on demand at any time convenient to the customer, viewers are able to enjoy the action LIVE, all available to M-1Global.tv users through a low-priced month to month digital subscription. Your world of action. Anytime!

23 January 2015 – Changsha, China: The largest sports media property in Asian history, ONE Championship™ (ONE), brought the packed crowd at the Changsha Stadium to the edge of their seats with spectacular world-class mixed martial arts action at ONE WUJIE: DYNASTY OF CHAMPIONS (CHANGSHA). Bibiano “The Flash” Fernandes showcased why he is ONE Championship’s most dominant champion to date with a beautiful submission victory by Kimura over top Filipino bantamweight Kevin “The Silencer” Belingon in the night’s main event.

Visit the official ONE WUJIE: DYNASTY OF CHAMPIONS (CHANGSHA) photo gallery by clicking: https://www.dropbox.com/sh/ivh34n9pza3q94o/AADwuMwRg-gnDecd5AIBoQyTa?dl=0

In the main event of the evening, ONE Bantamweight World Champion Bibiano “The Flash” Fernandes retained his title with a first round submission win over Team Lakay’s Kevin “The Silencer” Belingon. Fernandes nullified Belingon’s supposed striking advantage by going straight for the takedown. After passing Belingon’s guard and moving into side control, Fernandes worked an armbar attempt into a Kimura, forcing the tap.

In the Changsha Bantamweight Tournament Final bout, Ma Hao Bin quickly locked in a Guillotine choke from against the cage to put opponent Bu Huo You Ga to sleep in just a little over a minute into the first round. Ma wasted no time in looking for the submission which he used to win in the semi-final bout, squeezing tightly until Bu Huo was out. With the victory, Ma Hao Bin was crowned Changsha Bantamweight Tournament champion.

Beijing Featherweight Tournament champions Li Kai Wen and Yang Sen showcased their complete martial arts arsenal in a high-level three round battle. Li stormed out of the gates full of aggression but Yang defended well against the onslaught. When the fight hit the ground, Yang controlled a lot of the action but Li was able to do some damage of his own. After three very close rounds, Li earned a hard-fought unanimous decision in an entertaining matchup of tournament champions.

A determined Muin Gafurov went three rounds in an intense back-and-forth battle against the extremely talented Toni “Dynamite” Tauru of Finland. Gafurov stayed on top of the action, beating Tauru to the punch on numerous occasions while attempting various submissions on the ground. In the third round, Tauru used his toughness to hang in there with Gafurov but Gafurov was able to gain mount position, raining down punches from the top to force the referee to call a halt to the contest.

Riku Shibuya of Tokyo, Japan dominated Roy “The Dominator” Doliguez of the Philippines over three rounds to win by unanimous decision. Shibuya completely outclassed Doliguez both on the feet and on the ground, where he did the most work. Although Doliguez tagged Shibuya with some crisp body punches, Shibuya took him down at will and did all his damage from top position, earning the unanimous decision verdict.

Sung Ming Yen of Hsinchu, Taiwan defeated Sunoto of Jakarta, Indonesia within a minute of round one by executing a single move to perfection. After a brief feeling out process, Sunoto lunged in looking to strike. Sung kept his distance and grabbed onto a standing Guillotine choke, pulling guard and squeezing until Sunoto had no choice but to tap out.

Wu Ze raised his arms in celebration as he secured a sensational technical knockout win over Zhang You Liang in just one round. Wu, known for his athletic striking techniques, used his superior grappling to control Zhang on the ground. After attempting various submissions, Wu then opted to put his ferocious striking on full display, landing a plethora of technical ground kicks to claim the victory.

In the Changsha Bantamweight Tournament Alternate bout, Tang De Pan scored an explosive knockout victory via Suplex over 19-year old Zhou Biao. Zhou attempted two standing Guillotine chokes, both of which were nullified by Tang’s exceptional wrestling. Zhou was knocked out on the second Suplex and referee Olivier Coste stopped the bout.

Freestyle wrestling champion Ma Hao Bin advanced to the Changsha Bantamweight Final bout with an easy victory over opponent Wu Ting Shen. Ma took the fight to the ground on the first opening and swiftly transitioned into a Guillotine choke. With the hooks in deep, Ma left Wu with no option but to tap out.

Greco-Roman wrestling specialist Bu Huo You Ga made quick work of opponent Cai Chang Bo to kick off ONE WUJIE: DYNASTY OF CHAMPIONS (CHANGSHA), winning the Changsha Bantamweight Tournament Semi-Final bout. Bu Huo shot in successfully for a takedown and abruptly took Cai’s back before securing the choke in round one.

Official results for ONE WUJIE: DYNASTY OF CHAMPIONS (CHANGSHA)
ONE Bantamweight World Championship bout: Bibiano Fernandes defeats Kevin Belingon by Submission (Kimura) at 4:04 minutes of round 1
Changsha Bantamweight Tournament Final bout: Ma Hao Bin defeats Bu Huo You Ga by Submission (Guillotine Choke) at 1:08 minutes of round 1
Featherweight bout: Li Kai Wen defeats Yang Sen by Unanimous Decision
Bantamweight bout: Muin Gafurov defeats Toni Tauru by TKO (Strikes) at 1:17 minutes of round 3
Flyweight bout: Riku Shibuya defeats Roy Doliguez by Unanimous Decision
Bantamweight bout: Sung Ming Yen defeats Sunoto by Submission (Guillotine Choke) at 0:31 minutes of round 1
Flyweight bout: Wu Ze defeats Zhang You Liang by TKO (Strikes) at 4:17 minutes of round 1
Changsha Bantamweight Tournament Alternate bout: Tang De Pan defeats Zhou Biao by Knockout at 0:59 minutes of round 1
Changsha Bantamweight Tournament Semi-Final bout: Ma Hao Bin defeats Wu Ting Shen by Submission (Guillotine Choke) at 0:27 minutes of round 1
Changsha Bantamweight Tournament Semi-Final bout: Bu Huo You Ga defeats Cai Chang Bo by Submission (Reverse Head and Arm Choke) at 2:26 minutes of round 1

In case you missed the action log on to www.onefc.com/livestream for the full replay of the fights at only US $9.99.

For more updates on ONE Championship™, please visit www.onefc.com and follow Twitter and Instagram @ONEFCMMA and Facebook at www.facebook.com/ONEFCMMA

About ONE Championship™
ONE Championship is the largest sports media property in Asian history. Headquartered in Singapore, the world’s most exciting mixed martial arts organization hosts the best Asian mixed martial artists and world champions, all signed to exclusive contracts, on the largest media broadcast in Asia. ONE Championship™ has partnered with FOX and STAR Sports for an unprecedented 10-year cable television deal with a coverage that spans 70+ countries across the world.

Toronto – Fight Network, the world’s premier 24/7 television channel dedicated to complete coverage of combat sports, presents a pair of stacked live mixed martial arts events this Saturday, Jan. 23, beginning at 6:30 a.m. ET with a live broadcast of ONE Championship: Dynasty of Champions from Changsha, China. Later, at 10 p.m. ET, Fight Network presents World Series of Fighting 27: Future Champs live from the FedEx Forum in Memphis, Tenn.

ONE: Dynasty of Champions will air live exclusively across Canada, while WSOF 27 will be televised in Canada and globally in over 30 countries across Europe, Africa and the Middle East.

Headlining ONE: Dynasty of Champions, bantamweight beltholder Bibiano Fernandes (18-3) battles Kevin Belingon (13-4) in a five-round affair. Other featured bouts include a bantamweight clash between undefeated Tajikistan native Muin Gafurov (9-0) and Finnish standout Toni Tauru (10-2-1), a flyweight matchup pitting Filipino prospect Roy Doliguez (6-2) against Japan’s Asuka Mikami (5-1), plus Kai Wen Li (4-2) throws down with Sen Yang (2-0) in an all-Chinese featherweight attraction.

Meanwhile, WSOF 27: Future Champs showcases a bevy of top prospects, as the light heavyweight main event features heavy-handed finisher Teddy Holder (9-2) taking on undefeated Russian Shamil Gamzatov (9-0). In the co-feature, Luiz Firmino (18-6) steps in as a late replacement for Mike Ricci in a lightweight bout opposite Caros “The Future” Fodor (10-4). Rounding out the main card, Jaleel Willis (5-0) meets Chauncey Foxworth (2-0) in a showcase of unbeaten welterweights, while Jorge Medina (4-2) squares off with Bryce Mitchell (4-0) in the lightweight opener.

In addition, Fight Network is the Canadian destination for UFC live events, library content, specials and series, including UFC Unleashed, UFC Now, UFC Ultimate Insider and classic UFC PPV events.

This Sunday, Jan. 24 at 9 p.m. ET, catch a full encore presentation of UFC 167: St-Pierre vs. Hendricks from November 2013 in Las Vegas, featuring Canadian legend Georges St-Pierre’s last appearance in the world-famous Octagon as he defends his welterweight title against top contender Johny Hendricks, plus Rashad Evans meets Chael Sonnen, Robbie Lawler battles Rory MacDonald and Tyron Woodley faces Josh Koscheck.

For a full listing of Fight Network’s broadcast schedule, please visit www.fightnetwork.com, follow us on Twitter @fightnet, become a fan on Facebook and visit us on Instagram @fightnet.

AS VEGAS (January 21, 2016) –World Series of Fighting (WSOF.com) and Talk2Legends (Talk2Legends.com) today announced an unprecedented partnership that will allow fans to chat live on their iPhone devices with some of their favorite Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) athletes and other celebrity talent, using the latter company’s new mobile app.

The partnership will commence on Saturday, Jan. 23 when over two dozen figures from the World Series of Fighting universe will be available for video chat sessions with fans during the WSOF27: Firmino vs. Fodor event that will air live on NBCSN at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT from the FedExForum in Memphis, Tenn.

Available for download in the App Store, the Talk2Legends app also allows fans to share completed chat sessions with friends on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

“The partnership between World Series of Fighting and Talk2Legends will enable a fan experience that is unmatched in sports, for a reasonable cost,” said Talk2Legends CEO Ryan Hermansky.

“On January 23, continued Hernansky, “fans will be able to simultaneously watch WSOF27 and get opinions from legends, such as Bas Rutten and Chael Sonnen, and world champions like David Branch and Marlon Moraes.”

“We are thrilled to partner with Talk2Legends and be able to give fans the opportunity to get to know their favorite fighters on a very personal, one-on-one basis,” said World Series of Fighting President, six-time world champion and two-time Hall of Famer Ray Sefo.

Using the Talk2Legends app, fans can purchase credits for video chat sessions, review the list of MMA celebrities that will be available for a five-minute, one-on-one video chat session on January 23, and book sessions based on the talent’s availability that is provided on screen.

The athletes and other celebrity participants have the option of donating revenue they earn in exchange for their participation, to a charity or non-profit foundation of their choice.

The following talent will be available for video chat sessions during WSOF27:

On-air and other talent

Chael Sonnen – Color commentator and retired MMA superstar
Bas Rutten – Color commentator and legendary MMA champion
Ray Sefo – World Series of Fighting President and six-time world champion
Jacob “Stitch” Duran – World Series of Fighting cutman and
Andrea Lowell – Playboy Radio hostess and World Series of Fighting round card girl
Joey Varner – World Series of Fighting roving reporter
Jazz Securo – World Series of Fighting ring announcer
Emily Miller – World Series of Fighting round card girl

World Series of Fighting athletes

David Branch – Reigning light heavyweight and middleweight champion
Justin “The Highlight” Gaethje – Reigning, undefeated lightweight champion
Lance Palmer – Reigning featherweight champion
Marlon Moraes – Reigning bantamweight champion
Jon Fitch – Welterweight superstar
Jake Shields – Welterweight superstar
Jason High – Lightweight superstar
Phoenix Jones – Lightweight rising star
Robbie “Problems” Peralta – Featherweight knockout artist
“Notorious” Nick Newell – Retired lightweight phenom
Mike “Mak” Kyle – Former light heavyweight championship challenger
Joseph Barajas – WSOF28 main event competitor
Patrick Walsh – Light heavyweight prospect
Clifford Starks – Middleweight star
Colton Smith – Lightweight standout and The Ultimate Fighter winner
Mike Corey – Featherweight star
Steve Kozola – Undefeated lightweight star

The Talk2Legends app is expected to be available for Android devices in February.

ABOUT WORLD SERIES OF FIGHTING

“World Series of Fighting” (WSOF) is a worldwide premier professional Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fight promotion dedicated to delivering the best action-packed fights for fight fans by producing the best possible match-ups between elite fighters from around the world. For more information please visit WSOF.com and follow “World Series of Fighting” on Twitter @MMAWorldSeries. WSOF and World Series of Fighting are registered trademarks of MMAWC, LLC.

Las Vegas – The UFC® returns to Pittsburgh for the first time in five years as one of the sport’s most successful and popular fighters makes his debut in a new weight division. Fresh off competing for the lightweight title, Donald “Cowboy” Cerrone will fight at welterweight for the first time in his UFC career when he takes on Tim Means, Feb. 21 at CONSOL Energy Center. The event will air on FS1.

Cowboy (28-6, 1 NC; fighting out of Albuquerque, New Mexico) will make his debut at 170 lbs. after competing at 155 lbs. and most recently challenging lightweight champion Rafael dos Anjos for the title (Dec. 19, 2015). Cowboy has won eight of his last nine bouts, including eight consecutive victories over Evan Dunham, Adriano Martins, Edson Barboza, Jim Miller, Eddie Alvarez, Myles Jury, Benson Henderson and John Makdessi, dating back to Nov. 2013. He has won 15 fights by submission and five by KO during his career.

Will Cowboy be able to continue his success competing against bigger fighters? That will be the question that is answered when he goes up against the veteran Means. Also a native of Albuquerque, albeit a different gym, Means (25-7-1) has won four of his last five bouts, including an impressive second-round TKO of John Howard that earned him a Performance of the Night bonus. At 6’2”, Means will be taller and have a longer reach than most of Cowboy’s past opponents, and his tremendous cardio and precise technique will make for an intriguing matchup against Cowboy’s outstanding Muay Thai and submission skills.

Two hard-hitting middleweights will set the table for the main event when #12 Derek Brunson (14-3; fighting out of Wilmington, North Carolina) squares off against #14 Roan Carneiro (20-9; fighting out of Atlanta, Georgia). Brunson is riding a three-fight winning streak and has won five of his last six bouts, with his last three victories coming over highly touted opponents Sam Alvey, Ed Herman and Lorenz Larkin. An impressive victory could propel Brunson into the top 10.

At 37, Carneiro is also focused on making a run for a top-10 ranking, coming off an impressive first-round submission win over Mark Munoz. Born in Rio De Janeiro, Brazil, Carneiro has nine career first-round finishes, and a resume that includes three wins by knockout and nine by submission. A second consecutive victory could earn Carneiro a shot against a top-10 opponent.

Additional bouts include:
· No. 11 bantamweight John Lineker (26-7; Paranagua, Parana, Brazil) takes on undefeated Cody Garbrandt (7-0; Sacramento, Calif.), who launched his professional MMA career while living in Pittsburgh

· No. 8 featherweight Dennis Bermudez (15-5; Lindenhurst, New York) vs. Tatsuya Kawajiri (35-8-2; Ibaraki, Japan)

· Brandon Thatch (11-3; Denver, Colo.) vs. Siyar Bahadurzada (21-6-1; Boca Raton, Fla.)

· A lightweight bout featuring James Krause (22-7; Lee’s Summit, Missouri) vs. Shane Campbell (12-3; Kelowna, British Columbia, Canada)
· Alex Garcia (13-2; Montreal, Quebec, Canada) vs. Sean Strickland (16-1; Corona, Calif.)

· Women’s bantamweights Marion Reneau (6-2; Visalia, Calif) vs. Ashlee Evans-Smith (3-1; Laguna Hills, Calif.)

· Chris Camozzi (22-10; Lakewood, Colo.) vs. Joe Riggs (41-16, 1 NC; Glendale, Ariz.)

· Middleweight Daniel Sarafian (10-5; Sao Paulo, Brazil) vs. Oluwale Bamgbose (5-1; New York, NY)

· Trevor Smith (13-6; Tukwila, Wash.) vs. Leonardo Augusto Guimaraes (11-1; Salvador, Bahia, Brazil)

· A women’s bantamweight bout between Sarah Moras (4-3; Kelowna, BC, Canada) and Lauren Murphy (8-2; Glendale, Ariz.)

· Anthony Hamilton (14-4; Albuquerque, N.M.) vs. Shamil Abdurakhimov (15-3; Dagestan, Russia)

· Bryan Barberena (10-2; Glendale, Ariz.) vs. Jonavin Webb (8-0; Marlton, New Jersey)

For the latest information on additional bouts for this event, please visit www.ufc.com. All bouts live and subject to change.

UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: COWBOY vs. MEANS will air live on FS1 at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT on Sunday, Feb. 21, with the prelims kicking off the evening on FS1 at 7 p.m. ET/4 p.m. PT and on UFC FIGHT PASS® at 5:15 p.m. ET/2:15 p.m. PT.

Visit the UFC® Press Portal for information and content to support your UFC coverage.

Tickets for UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: COWBOY vs. MEANS go on sale Friday, Jan. 22 at 10 a.m. ET and are priced at $185, $125, $90, $75 and $50. Tickets are available for purchase at www.ticketmaster.com. Ticket sales are limited to eight (8) per person. To charge by phone with a major credit card, call Ticketmaster at (800) 745-3000. Tickets are also available at the Dick’s Sporting Goods Box Office at CONSOL Energy Center. Ticket prices do not include applicable service charges.

UFC Fight Club® members will have the opportunity to purchase tickets to this event Wednesday, Jan. 20 at 10 a.m. ET via the website www.ufcfightclub.com. A special Internet ticket pre-sale will be available to UFC newsletter subscribers Thursday, Jan. 21 starting at 10 a.m. ET. To access this presale, users must register for the UFC newsletter through UFC.com.

About UFC®

UFC® is a premium global sports brand and the largest pay-per-view event provider in the world. Headquartered in Las Vegas with offices in London, Toronto, Sao Paulo and Singapore, UFC produces more than 40 live events annually that consistently sell out some of the most prestigious arenas around the globe. UFC programming is broadcast in over 150 countries and territories to more than one billion TV households worldwide in 21 different languages. UFC FIGHT PASS®, a digital subscription service, delivers exclusive live events, thousands of fights on-demand and original content to fans around the world. For more information, visit UFC.com and follow UFC at Facebook.com/UFC, Twitter and Instagram: @UFC.

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (January 20, 2016) – M-1 Global President Vadim Finkelchtein recently announced the relaunching of its popular series, M-1 Grand Prix Tournament.

“We’ve been preparing this a long time and now we’re happy to officially announce our 2016 M-1 Grand Prix Tournament,” Finkelchtein said. “This has been a very popular format and fans are always excited about it. This time we will feature a 4-man tournament, rather than the usual 8-man pairings, because the 4-man version is faster and more entertaining. We don’t want to bore people with long expectation periods and lessen the risk of occasional injuries and fighter changes in the tournament.”

The first M-1 Grand Prix match of 2016 is set in the middleweight division as three-time Bellator champion Alexander “Storm” Shlemenko (51-9-0, M-1: 2-0-0) takes on former M-1 Challenge middleweight and light heavyweight titlist Vyacheslav Vasilevsky (27-3-0, M-1: 10-1-0)at M-1 Challenge 64, February 19 at Olympic Stadium in Moscow.

“Well, we were choosing between several offers from different promotions,” explained Shlemenoko’s manager Alexey Zhernakov. “In the end, we came to the conclusion that M-1 Grand Prix participation is the most interesting option for us at the moment. Alexander is still under Bellator’s exclusive contract. Therefore, we had to negotiate with Bellator, which kindly allowed us to sign with M-1 Global. We expect Alexander Shlemenko to take part in major M-1 Challenge events as they are always organized at a high level and broadly covered by the media.”

M-1 Challenge 64 will be streamed live from Moscow in high definition on www.M1Global.TV. Viewers will be able to watch the preliminary fights and main card by logging on to register at www.M1Global.TV. Fans may watch all of the action on their computers, as well as on Android and Apple smart phones and tablets.
USA MEDIA CONTACT:
Bob Trieger, Full Court PRESS, 978.590.0470, bobtfcp@hotmail.com, @FightPublicist

ABOUT M-1 GLOBAL: Founded in 1997, M-1 Global has established itself in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) as the premier entity for discovering and developing the world’s next-generation of superstar fighters. With its office in St Petersburg, Russia, the M-1 brand has staged more than 170 events worldwide, including M-1 Selection, M-1 Challenge, M-1 Global and M-1 Global HWGP events, in addition to co-promoting Strikeforce events and M-1 Global on the U.S. network, Showtime. Captivating live, television and broadband audiences with its superior production values and match-ups, M-1 Global events have featured some of the sport’s top names, including legendary heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko, Andrei Arlovski, Gegard Mousasi, Alistair Overeem, Keith Jardine, Ben Rothwell, Melvin Manhoef, Sergei Kharitonov, Aleksander Emelianenko, Roman Zentsov, Yushin Okami, Mike Pyle, Denis Kang, Martin Kampmann, Amar Suloev, Chalid Arrab and Stephan Struve. 2015 was another sensational year of world-class competition with a full calendar of Challenge events fueled by a talent-rich contention system ranking M-1 Global Champions among the greatest fighters in the sport.

ABOUT M-1GLOBAL.TV: Enjoy MMA action now in high definition brought to you by M-1Global.tv, offering only the best fights from M-1 Global and other MMA organizations. M-1Global.tv is a great platform developed specifically to bring together the most exhaustive fight video database. It also provides an easy and intuitive interface, helping everyone to start using the platform in no time while avoiding any spoilers. Besides watching the past fights on demand at any time convenient to the customer, viewers are able to enjoy the action LIVE, all available to M-1Global.tv users through a low-priced month to month digital subscription. Your world of action. Anytime!

REDWOOD CITY, Calif. – January 20, 2016 – One of the most iconic athletes of all time is coming to EA SPORTS™ UFC® 2. Electronic Arts Inc. (NASDAQ: EA) announced today that Mike Tyson will make his mixed martial arts debut as an unlockable fighter when the game comes out starting March 15, 2016. Fans who pre-order EA SPORTS UFC 2 will get instant day-one access to Tyson, and all players can unlock him by progressing in the game and making it to the Hall of Fame in Career Mode. The former undisputed heavyweight boxing champion of the world packs the strongest punching power of any fighter in the game and will fight across two different weight classes: light heavyweight and heavyweight. For a first look at the former champ in EA SPORTS UFC 2, watch the Mike Tyson reveal video.

“When you think about the most devastating fighters of all time, Mike Tyson is either around, or at the top of everyone’s list. It’s fun to think that if MMA was as popular back when he was competing as it is today, you might have seen Tyson put on four ounce gloves and step into the Octagon®,” said Creative Director Brian Hayes. “This is one of those great ‘what ifs’ that we get to create when making a game like EA SPORTS UFC 2.”

Two versions of Tyson are coming to the game: “Iron” Mike Tyson based on his climb to stardom and string of invincible fights in the eighties; and “Legacy” Mike Tyson, developed with the end of his illustrious career in mind. Fans who pre-order the standard edition of EA SPORTS UFC 2 will get day-one access to “Iron” Mike Tyson. Those who opt for the Deluxe Edition will receive both “Iron” Mike as well as “Legacy” Mike Tyson. Both versions are available to unlock by progressing in the game.

“As a huge fan, I’m honored to be part of EA SPORTS and explore the world of mixed martial arts,” said Mike Tyson. “I follow UFC very closely and it’s going to be very cool to see how I would stack up against these amazing MMA athletes.”

EA SPORTS UFC 2 takes the franchise’s stunning character likeness and animation to another level, adds an all-new Knockout Physics System and authentic gameplay features, and introduces the biggest ever roster of real-world fighters in a MMA game who will step back into the Octagon on Xbox One and PlayStation®4. Full feature and mode details can be found at http://easports.com/ufc/features.

Fans excited to step into the Octagon® can pre-order EA SPORTS UFC 2 and get day-one access to three legendary fighters: UFC Hall of Famer and three-time King of Pancrase, Bas Rutten; Japanese MMA legend, “The Gracie Hunter” Kazushi Sakuraba; and Mike Tyson.* The deluxe edition of the game also includes up to $60 of UFC Ultimate Team™ Premium Packs**. For pre-order information, visit http://easports.com/UFC/buy.

EA SPORTS UFC 2 is developed in Burnaby, British Columbia by EA Canada, and will be available on March 15 in North America and March 17 worldwide on Xbox One and PlayStation 4. EA Access*** members can play the full game before it’s released for a limited time and get 10% off the digital version of the game on Xbox One. Fans should keep an eye on the website, as well as the EA SPORTS UFC Facebook and Twitter pages to make sure they’re always up-to-date on the latest and greatest news.

EA SPORTS™ is one of the leading sports entertainment brands in the world, with top-selling videogame franchises, award-winning interactive technology, fan programs and cross-platform digital experiences. EA SPORTS creates connected experiences that ignite the emotion of sports through videogames, including Madden NFL football, EA SPORTS™ FIFA, NHL® hockey, NBA LIVE basketball, Rory McIlroy PGA TOUR® golf, SSX™ and EA SPORTS UFC®.

For more information about EA SPORTS, including news, video, blogs, forums and game apps, please visit www.easports.com to connect, share and compete.

* Internet connection and EA Account required. Must be 13+ to create an account. Offer restrictions apply. Please see www.easports.com/ufc/game-and-offer-disclaimers for details.

**ADDED VALUE CALCULATED BASED ON AN UFC ULTIMATE TEAM PACK PRICE OF $2.00 AT GAME LAUNCH. PRICES MAY CHANGE. Offer restrictions apply. Please see www.easports.com/ufc/game-and-offer-disclaimers for details.

***CONDITIONS, LIMITATIONS AND EXCLUSIONS APPLY. SEE EA.COM/EAACCESS/TERMS AND EA.COM/EAACCESS FOR DETAILS.

About Electronic Arts
Electronic Arts (NASDAQ: EA) is a global leader in digital interactive entertainment. The Company delivers games, content and online services for Internet-connected consoles, personal computers, mobile phones and tablets. EA has more than 300 million registered players around the world. In fiscal year 2015, EA posted GAAP net revenue of $4.5 billion. Headquartered in Redwood City, California, EA is recognized for a portfolio of critically acclaimed, high-quality blockbuster brands such as The Sims™, Madden NFL, EA SPORTS™ FIFA, Battlefield™, Dragon Age™ and Plants vs. Zombies™. More information about EA is available at www.ea.com/news.

EA SPORTS, Ultimate Team, SSX, The Sims, Dragon Age, Plants vs. Zombies and Battlefield are trademarks of Electronic Arts Inc. and its subsidiaries. Ultimate Fighting Championship®, Ultimate Fighting®, UFC®, The Ultimate Fighter®, Octagon Girls®, Submission®, As Real As It Gets®, Zuffa®, Octagon® and the eight-sided competition mat and cage design are registered trademarks, trade dress or service marks owned exclusively by Zuffa, LLC and affiliated entities in the United States and other jurisdictions. All other marks referenced herein may be the property of Zuffa, LLC or other respective owners. Any use of the preceding copyrighted program, trademarks, trade dress, or other intellectual property owned by Zuffa, LLC is strictly prohibited without the express written consent of Zuffa. All rights are hereby expressly reserved. John Madden, NFL, NHL, NBA, PGA TOUR and FIFA are the property of their respective owners and used with permission. Xbox is a trademark of the Microsoft group of companies. “PlayStation” is a registered trademark of Sony Computer Entertainment Inc.

About UFC®

UFC® is a premium global sports brand and the largest pay-per-view event provider in the world. Headquartered in Las Vegas with offices in London, Toronto, Sao Paulo and Singapore, UFC produces more than 40 live events annually that consistently sell out some of the most prestigious arenas around the globe. UFC programming is broadcast in over 150 countries and territories to more than one billion TV households worldwide in 21 different languages. UFC FIGHT PASS®, a digital subscription service, delivers exclusive live events, thousands of fights on-demand and original content to fans around the world. For more information, visit UFC.com and follow UFC at Facebook.com/UFC, Twitter and Instagram: @UFC.

LAS VEGAS (January 19, 2016) –World Series of Fighting (WSOF.com) announced today that reigning bantamweight (135 pounds) champion Marlon Moraes will make the third defense of his coveted title against fast-rising star Joseph Barajas at Next Level Sports Complex in Garden Grove, Calif. on Saturday, Feb. 20, live on NBCSN at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT.

In the bantamweight co-main event at WSOF28, Timur “Lucky” Valiev will put his 10-fight win streak on the line against fellow rising star Chris “El Guapo” Gutierrez, who is unbeaten in his last 7 starts.

Priced from $39.99, tickets for WSOF28: Moraes vs. Barajas go on sale tomorrow, Wednesday, Jan. 20, at 10 a.m. PT, at WSOF.com.

“Beginning with Marlon Moraes, the top dog in the division, the 135-pound superstars are going to be out in full force with a lot at stake at WSOF28,” said World Series of Fighting President Ray Sefo.

Marlon Moraes vs. Joseph Barajas

The prolific, 27-year-old Moraes (15-4-1) of Nova Friburgo, Brazil retained his crown for the second time on August 1, 2015, submitting Sheymon Moraes with a rear-naked choke in the third round (3:46) of their matchup.

Since the inaugural World Series of Fighting event on November 12, 2012 when he earned a split decision over decorated superstar Miguel Torres, Moraes, a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt and former Muay Thai champion, has been unstoppable defeating several seasoned adversaries along the way, including Tyson Nam, Cody Bollinger, Josh Hill and Josh Rettinghouse, whom Moraes defeated by way of unanimous decision to become the first-ever World Series of Fighting bantamweight kingpin on March 29, 2014.

Barajas (12-1) of Vista, Calif. is coming off his World Series of Fighting debut on November 20, when he scored a third round (4:06) TKO (punches) on Erik Villalobos at WSOF25.

Beginning with his professional debut on February 20, 2011 when he submitted Robert Carlos with a triangle choke in the first round (1:32) of action, Barajas was perfect for over two years, running to 10 consecutive wins, a streak that culminated with his explosive, first round (:51) TKO (punches) of Leonte King on September 21, 2013.

Timur Valiev vs. Chris Gutierrez

Fighting out of the famed Jackson-Winklejohn camp, the 26-year-old Valiev (10-1) of Makhachkala, Dagestan, Russia has remained undefeated since his second professional start on July 22, 2011, and has racked up four consecutive wins under the World Series of Fighting banner in his last four efforts.

In the first of two appearances in the decagon cage in 2015, Valiev scored a devastating, first round (1:39) TKO on Ed West with a barrage of elbow strikes and punches at WSOF19 on March 28. Valiev closed out the year with a unanimous decision victory over Tito Jones at WSOF23 on September 18.

The number one ranked bantamweight in the state of Oklahoma, Gutierrez (8-1-1) of Greenville, Texas is a ferocious, 24-year-old striker who has earned five of his eight professional career wins by way of TKO, with each of the five finishes having come with an onslaught of punches.

Gutierrez is coming off his second straight, unbeaten year as a professional, claiming two wins in 2015. In his last start, he earned a unanimous decision over Bendy Casimir on August 22.

Additional WSOF28 bouts will be announced soon.

ABOUT WORLD SERIES OF FIGHTING

“World Series of Fighting” (WSOF) is a worldwide premier professional Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fight promotion dedicated to delivering the best action-packed fights for fight fans by producing the best possible match-ups between elite fighters from around the world. For more information please visit WSOF.com and follow “World Series of Fighting” on Twitter @MMAWorldSeries. WSOF and World Series of Fighting are registered trademarks of MMAWC, LLC.

ABOUT NBCSN
NBCSN, part of the NBC Sports Group, is dedicated to serving passionate sports fans. Now in more than 85 million homes, the Emmy Award-winning network is the cable television home of the Summer and Winter Olympics, National Hockey League (NHL) – including two games of the Stanley Cup Final — Premier League, Formula One, IndyCar, Tour de France, the 34th America’s Cup, and beginning in 2015, NASCAR. In addition, NBCSN features college football, college basketball, college hockey, cycling, outdoor programming, horse racing surrounding the Triple Crown and Breeders’ Cup, Fight Night boxing, Ironman, the Dew Tour and USA Sevens Rugby. The network is also home to original programs such as Costas Tonight, NFL Turning Point, Pro Football Talk, The Dan Patrick Show, and NASCAR America. NBCSN is distributed via cable systems and satellite operators throughout the United States.

Las Vegas – The Ultimate Fighter® will put mixed martial arts’ global dominance on display again as UFC® strawweight champion Joanna Jedrzejczyk will coach opposite No. 1 contender Claudia Gadelha. The coaches will lead a group of eight light heavyweights and eight strawweights who will compete for a UFC contract and the title of The Ultimate Fighter.

The Ultimate Fighter®: Team Joanna vs. Team Claudia will kick-off on FS1 on Wednesday, April 20 with a two-hour season premiere airing at 10 p.m. ET as 32 competitors fight for one of 16 slots – eight in each weight class – available to be coached by two of the sport’s best. The season will continue with 11 one-hour shows Wednesdays at 10 p.m. ET. The series is the highest rated and most watched original program since the network’s inception in August 2013.

Poland’s first UFC champion, Jedrzejczyk (11-0, fighting out of Olsztyn, Poland) stormed onto the scene in 2014 with her first Octagon® appearance. Since then, she’s gone on to win five straight, won the strawweight title, cemented her place on the top pound-for-pound list and is widely considered as one of the best strikers in the sport. She’ll now lend her expertise to the next generation of athletes who hope to follow in her footsteps and one day wear UFC gold themselves.

Gadelha (13-1, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) trains at the renowned Nova Uniao gym, home to former champions Jose Aldo & Renan Barao. The Brazilian jiu-jitsu specialist hopes to get another crack at current strawweight champion, Jedrzejczyk, who provided Gadelha with the only blemish on her record – a three-round split decision loss in late 2014. Their contrasting styles should provide for an entertaining season between the two teams. The Brazilian’s comfort zone is on the canvas and will provide a stark contrast to the Pole’s highly skilled striking attack brings a completely different skillset to the show.

The series culminates on live on FS1 Friday, July 8 in Las Vegas as part of International Fight Week and will be headlined by Jedrzejczyk and Gadelha in a championship bout for the strawweight world title.

###

About UFC®
UFC® is a premium global sports brand and the largest pay-per-view event provider in the world. Headquartered in Las Vegas with offices in London, Toronto, Sao Paulo and Singapore, UFC produces more than 40 live events annually that consistently sell out some of the most prestigious arenas around the globe. UFC programming is broadcast in over 150 countries and territories to more than one billion TV households worldwide in 21 different languages. UFC FIGHT PASS®, a digital subscription service, delivers exclusive live events, thousands of fights on-demand and original content to fans around the world. For more information, visit UFC.com and follow UFC at Facebook.com/UFC, Twitter and Instagram: @UFC.

About FOX Sports

FOX Sports is the umbrella entity representing 21st Century FOX’s wide array of multi-platform US-based sports assets. Built with brands capable of reaching more than 100 million viewers in a single weekend, FOX Sports includes ownership and interests in linear television networks, digital and mobile programming, broadband platforms, multiple web sites, joint-venture businesses and several licensing partnerships. FOX Sports includes the sports television arm of the FOX Broadcasting Company; FS1; FS2; Fox’s 22 regional sports networks, their affiliated regional web sites and FSN national programming; FOX Soccer Plus and FOX Soccer 2Go; FOX Deportes and FOX College Sports. In addition, FOX Sports also encompasses FOX Sports Digital, which includes FOXSports.com, FOX Sports GO, Whatifsports.com and Yardbarker.com. Also included in the Group are FOX’s interests in joint-venture businesses Big Ten Network and BTN 2Go, as well as licensing agreements that establish the FOX Sports Radio Network.

Eddie Alvarez won a split decision over former Lightweight champion Anthony Pettis.

Alvarez was cut around his left eye in round two from a punch and his nose in round three. Alvarez got the vitory on the strength of his takedowns.

Alavrez won two cards 29-28 while Pettis took a card 29-28.

Alavrez, 155.5 lbs of Philadelphia is 27-4. Pettis, 155.5 lbs of Milwaukee, WI is 18-4.

Travis Browne scored a 3rd round stoppage over Matt Mitrione in a Heavyweight bout.

Browne poked Mitrione in the eye in round one with his pinky and again with the thumb in round two. Mitrione said he was seeing double. In round three, Browne slammed Mitrione down to the ground and pounded on him until the fight was stopped at 4:09.

Mitrione had a grotesque swelling over his right eye.

Browne, 238 lbs of San Diego, CA is now 18-3-1. Mitrione, 249 lbs of Indianapolis, IN is 9-5.

Francisco Trinaldo won a 3-round unanimous decision over Ross Pearson in a Lightweight bout.

Pearson was cut over his right eye in round three.

Trinaldo, 155.5 lbs of Brasilia, BRA won by scores of 30-27 twice and 29-28 is now 19-4. Pearson, 155 lbs of San Diego, CA is 20-10-1.

Patrick Cote scored a 2nd round stoppage over Ben Saunders in a Welterweight bout.

Cote landed a series of uppercut that put Saunders to the ground. Cote was all over Saunders with hammerfists and the bout was stopped at 1:14 of round two.

Cote is 23-9. Saunders is 19-7-2.

Ed Herman scored a 2nd round stoppage over Tim Boetsch in a Light Heavyweight bout.

In round two, Herman landed a knee that sent Boetsch down to the ground. After a few punches the bout was stopped.

Herman is now 24-11-0-1. Boetsch is now 18-11.

Chris Wade scored a 1st round choke out over Mehdi Baghdad in a Lightweight bout.

Wade had Baghdad down and got him a rear-naked choke and Baghdad tapped out at 4:30.

Wade, 155.5 lbs of Islip, NY is 11-1. Baghdad, 156 lbs of Los Angeles, CA falls to 11-3.

Luke Sanders remained undefeated by choking out Maximo Blanco in the first round of their Featherweight bout.

Sanders landed a straight left that sent Blanco to the canvas and quickly got him in a choke that made Blanco tap at 3:38.

Sanders, 145.5 lbs of Nashville, TN is 11-0. Blanco, 146 lbs of Tokyo, JAP is 12-7-1-1.

Rob Font stopped Joey Gomez in round two of their Bantamweight bout.

Font was dominant in round one. In round two, he landed a huge flurry of punches that was started by a left hook. Font was all over Gomez and landed barrage of punches that sent Gomez down and the fight was stopped at 4:13 of round two.

Font is 12-1. Gomez is 6-1.

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (January 17, 2016) – M-1 Global has officially announced the launching of the 2016 M-1 Grand Prix Middleweight Tournament series. The first match will be a showdown at M-1 Challenge 64, February 19 at Olympic Stadium in Moscow between three-time Bellator champion Alexander “Storm” Shlemenko and former M-1 Challenge middleweight and light heavyweight titlist Vyacheslav Vasilevsky

The dream battle between Russian favorites Shlemenko (51-9-0, M-1: 2-0-0) and Vasilevsky (27-3-0, M-1: 10-1-0), featuring two of the most respected strikers in the middleweight division, strengthens an already explosive M-1 Challenge 64 card that includes an M-1 Challenge heavyweight title fight.

M-1 Global’s newly-signed Alexander “Drago” Volkov (24-6-0, M-1: 8-3-0), of Russia, battles powerful Estonian challenger Denis Smoldaraev (11-1-0, M-1: 7-1-0) for the vacant M-1 Challenge heavyweight championship.

Known as one of the strongest and most popular fighters in Russia, Schlemenko has knocked out 29 opponents, while the equally dangerous Vasilevsky is a five-time combat Sambo World Champion.

M-1 Challenge 64 will be streamed live from Moscow in high definition on www.M1Global.TV. Viewers will be able to watch the preliminary fights and main card by logging on to register at www.M1Global.TV. Fans may watch all of the action on their computers, as well as on Android and Apple smart phones and tablets.

Another previously announced main card match is a M-1 Challenge bantamweight semifinal eliminator, Pavel Vitruk (12-2-0, M-1: 6-2-0) facing Sergey Morozov (4-0-0, M-1: 2-0-0) with the winner advancing to fight for the vacant M-1 Challenge bantamweight title with the victor of a soon-to-be announced second title eliminator

Information

www.M1Global.tv
www.mixfight.ru
www.wmmaa.org

Twitter & Instagram:

@M1GlobalNews
@VFinkelchtein
@M1Global

Facebook:

www.facebook.com/M-1-GlobalNews

TORINO (Jan. 15, 2015) – New details were revealed this afternoon regarding the co-promotion between Bellator MMA and Oktagon Kickboxing. The partnership is set to take place on April 16, 2016, when the two combat sports promotions join forces at the Pala Alpitour in Torino, Italy.

Oktagon Kickboxing President Carlo Di Blasi was joined at Comune Di Torino this afternoon by several of the world-class fighters slated to take part in the highly anticipated event including Alessio Sakara and Brian Rogers who will face one another in a light heavyweight MMA match up. Also in attendance this afternoon was Dutch knockout machine Melvin Manhoef, who will be competing in a kickboxing match up, and mixed martial artists Danilo Belluardo of Milan and Anastasia Yankova of Russia.

Although they were not in attendance at today’s press conference, it was announced that one of MMA’s most promising young prospects, A.J. McKee will be fighting Belluardo, and kickboxing standouts Raymond Daniels and Kevin Ross will be competing as well on April 16.

The event will feature both Bellator MMA and Oktagon Kickboxing bouts, with the Bellator MMA portion airing in the United States on SPIKE. Exact broadcast information and fight card will be announced in the near future.
Bellator MMA President Scott Coker was unable to be in Italy for this announcement, but added: “We are beyond excited to be announcing the participation of these incredible athletes alongside Carlo Di Blasi. This is an incredible indication of the amazing show that we are putting together, and there is so much more to come!”

Oktagon Kickboxing President Carlo Di Blasi said: “When Scott Coker confirmed me of the coming of Bellator MMA in the Olympic city of Turin with Oktagon kickboxing I immediately thought this is actually the biggest hit ever in European history of fighting sport.

“The expectations are really high and I am sure the spectators at venue and on TV will keep this enthusiasm during the whole show.”

On April 16, Italy’s own Alessio Sakara will be making his first appearance for Bellator MMA and looking to build upon his first-round TKO victory this past September. “Legionarius” has competed at 185-pounds for a majority of his nearly 14-year career but going forward the 34-year-old will be facing opponents at light heavyweight. With wins against Joe Vedepo, Thales Leites, and James Irvin already on his record, Sakara will have plenty to fight for when he enters the fray in front of a partisan crowd on April 16. It’s worth noting that Sakara has also taken professional boxing tilts, compiling a record of 8-1 with six wins coming by way of knockout.

Sakara’s opponent Rogers recently moved up in weight classes, making the jump from 185 to 205-pounds. The 31-year-old Strikeforce veteran has been competing under the Bellator MMA banner since 2011 and has had 11 fights along the way. Most recently, “The Professional Predator” finished Virgil Zwicker via arm-triangle choke, putting the exceptional roster of Bellator MMA light heavyweights on notice. Now, the Denver, CO. based slugger looks to add to his impressive record of finishing fights when competes for the first time in 2016.

The 20-year-old McKee undoubtedly has the attention of everyone in the MMA world after a 3-0 start to his career, and for good reason. The son of respected MMA veteran, Antonio McKee, A.J. fights with fearlessly aggressive, unorthodox approach that results in pure excitement and has fans and media alike clamoring for more. He will be facing Belluardo (5-1), who is sure to have the Italian fans in full support of his effort.

With his stoppage of up-and-coming Bellator MMA middleweight contender Hisaki Kato at the conclusion of 2015, the 39-year-old Manhoef has proven once again that he has plenty left in the tank. “No Mercy” has competed in more than 100 professional bouts during his combat sports tenure, with more than 50 of his victories coming by way of knockout. Look for that trend to continue when the dangerous striker returns to action in Northern Italy.

It’s easy to classify Anastasia Yankova as “just another pretty face,” but the 24-year-old Russian Muay Thai Champion has the fighting skills to more than match her good looks. Undefeated thus far in her budding MMA career, the Moscow native has attacked the limbs of both her opponents and earned early submission stoppages, piquing the interest of promotions around the globe. Ultimately, the Akademiya Box product recently signed a long-term contract with Bellator MMA, which continues to build out its impressive women’s flyweight division.

The 35-year-old Ross is a highly regarded American Muay-Thai kickboxer. Ross has racked up a slew of championships during his 52-fight career, including the WBC Muay-Thai USA welterweight title, the WBC Muay-Thai International Super-lightweight title and the Lion Fight Super Lightweight Championship. Known also as “The Soul Assassin,” Ross is working on a transition into the sport of MMA.

Daniels is a multi-time champion karate fighter who made a name for himself under the now defunct World Combat League banner. A confident, explosive striker who owns some of the most highlight-reel worthy knockouts in kickboxing history, Daniels has only been defeated four times in over 29 appearances while competing in some iteration of combat sports. Now, “The Real Deal” looks to showcase why he proudly wears the acronym “G.O.A.T.” on the back of his tights when he fights in Torino, Italy on April 16.

2015 was a record-shattering year for the Scott Coker-led Bellator promotion. The success was powered by several major events including “Bellator 138: Unfinished Business,” which generated 2.9 million viewers and “Bellator: Dynamite 1,” which set company records for attendance and gate. The April 16 event in Torino marks Bellator’s first-ever event overseas, but it won’t be the last, as the promotion has announced plans for additional international events in London and Israel slated for later this year.

About Bellator MMA:
Bellator MMA is a leading Mixed Martial Arts organization featuring many of the best fighters in the world. Under the direction of veteran fight promoter Scott Coker, Bellator is available to nearly 500 million homes worldwide in over 140 countries. In the United States, Bellator can be seen on Spike, the MMA television leader. Bellator MMA is comprised of an executive team that includes top industry professionals in television production, live event orchestration, fighter development/relations, venue procurement, sponsorship creation/development, international licensing, marketing, advertising, publicity and commission relations. Bellator is based in Santa Monica, California and owned by entertainment giant Viacom, home to the world’s premier entertainment brands that connect with audiences through compelling content across television, motion picture, online and mobile platforms.

About Spike:
Spike is available in 98.7 million homes and is a division of Viacom Media Networks. A unit of Viacom (NASDAQ: VIA, VIAB), Viacom Media Networks is one of the world’s leading creators of programming and content across all media platforms. Spike’s Internet address is www.spike.com and for up-to-the-minute and archival press information and photographs, visit Spike’s press site at http://www.spike.com/press. Follow us on Twitter @spiketvpr for the latest in breaking news updates, behind-the-scenes information and photos.

About Oktagon:
Oktagon was created by Carlo Di Blasi in 1996. At its beginning the show was dedicated to free fight, the name that was given initially to MMA (Mixed Martial Arts). Other disciplines such as Kickboxing, Muay Thai and Savate were gradually added from the early 2000’s onwards. During the last 20 years Oktagon has reached a huge popularity, both in Italy and abroad, creating many superstars in the process including Bellator welterweight Paul Daley as well as The Petrosyan brothers (Giorgio and Armen), Robin Van Roosmalen, Valentijn Overeem, Rico Verhoeven and Artem Levin.

Toronto – Fight Network, the world’s premier 24/7 television channel dedicated to complete coverage of combat sports, presents the first live Resurrection Fighting Alliance broadcast of 2015 this Friday, Jan. 15 at 10 p.m. ET, as RFA 34: Velickovic vs. Smith emanates from 1stBank Center in Broomfield, Colorado. The event will be headlined by a welterweight title fight between Serbian sensation Bojan “Serbian Steel” Velickovic (12-3) and former RFA welterweight champion Benjamin Smith (15-3).

RFA 34: Velickovic vs. Smith will be broadcast live on Fight Network in Canada and globally in over 30 countries across Europe, Africa and the Middle East. The domestic U.S. broadcast airs on AXS TV.

In addition to the Velickovic vs. Smith headliner, the co-main event will see Colorado native Adam Stroup (10-2) and former RFA title challenger John Poppie (6-2) meet in a middleweight showdown.

The main card of RFA 34 will also include a pair of RFA and Colorado fan favorites in the light heavyweight division, as Cody Mumma (8-2) looks to ride the momentum of three consecutive KO victories when he faces fellow RFA vet Jeremy Kimball (11-5), who will be entering this contest fresh off a lightning fast KO victory of his own.

In the bantamweight division, six-time UFC vet Hugo “Wolverine” Viana (8-3) and two-time RFA vet Zac “The Anointed Warrior” Riley (3-3) will share the RFA Octagon together, plus Brian Camozzi (4-2) makes his long awaited RFA debut when he faces Tyler Milner (7-2) in a welterweight contest, while the main card gets started in the featherweight division with a pair of top prospects eager to make their national television debuts, as Cory Sandhagen (1-0) collides with Andrew Tenneson (3-0).

Live action returns to Fight Network just two days later with a special presentation of the UFC Fight Night™: Dillashaw vs. Cruz prelims on Sunday, Jan. 17 at 8 p.m. ET, airing exclusively in Canada. In featured prelim action, battle-tested French-Canadian warrior Patrick Cote (22-9) seeks his third straight triumph at 170 pounds when he takes on Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt Ben Saunders (19-6-2). Other bouts include a light heavyweight showcase pitting Tim Boetsch (18-9) against Ed Herman (22-11, 1NC), a lightweight matchup between red-hot New Yorker Chris Wade (10-1) and highly touted newcomer Mehdi Baghdad (11-3), plus Venezuelan knockout artist Maximo Blanco (12-6-1, 1NC) looks to make it four straight against undefeated bantamweight newcomer Luke Sanders (10-0).

For a full listing of Fight Network’s broadcast schedule, please visit www.fightnetwork.com, follow us on Twitter @fightnet, become a fan on Facebook and visit us on Instagram @fightnet.

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (January 14, 2016) – Another potentially explosive match has been added to an already top heavy-loaded M-1 Challenge 64, taking place February 19 at Olympic Stadium in Moscow, as Pavel Vitruk takes on Sergey Morozov in a special M-1 Challenge bantamweight semifinal eliminator.

The M-1 Challenge 64 headliner finds newly M-1 Global-signed Alexander “Drago” Volkov (24-6-0, M-1: 8-3-0), of Russia, against powerful Estonian challenger Denis Smoldaraev (11-1-0, M-1: 7-1-0) for the vacant M-1 Challenge heavyweight championship.

In the co-feature, M-1 Challenge lightweight champion Mansour “Tarzan” Barnaoui (12-3-0, M-1: 2-2-0), fighting out of Paris, defends his title against Belarussian challenger Artiom Damkovsky (20-9-0, M-1: 10-6-0)

M-1 Challenge 64 will be streamed live from Moscow in high definition on www.M1Global.TV. Viewers will be able to watch the preliminary fights and main card by logging on to register at www.M1Global.TV. Fans may watch all of the action on their computers, as well as on Android and Apple smart phones and tablets.

A native of Ukraine fighting out of St. Petersburg, Vitruk (12-2-0, M-1: 6-2-0) is coming off back-to-back losses to American Lee Morrison by decision at M-1 Challenge 55 and Max Coga by third-round decision at M-1 Challenge 58. Representing the famed Alexander Nevsky Club in St. Petersburg, Vitruk has a strong Muay Thai foundation. After fighting exclusively as a featherweight, Vitruk has decided to drop down one weight class and compete as a bantamweight.

Pavel Vitruk (R) displays his effective jab to set-up his other moves

The 26-year-old Morozov (4-0-0, M-1: 2-0-0) is coming off a pair of impressive second-round stoppages via punches over Andy Young at M-1 Challenge 59 and Rijitigala Amu at M-1 Challenge 53. The Kazakh is a hot bantamweight prospect who is equally comfortable on his feet or on the ground.

Morozov is shown here ready to unload on his opponent

The winner of Vitruk vs. Morozov will advance to fight the victor from a soon-to-be announced second title eliminator for the vacant M-1 Challenge bantamweight title.

Information

www.M1Global.tv
www.mixfight.ru
www.wmmaa.org

Twitter & Instagram:

@M1GlobalNews
@VFinkelchtein
@M1Global

Facebook:

www.facebook.com/M-1-GlobalNews
USA MEDIA CONTACT:
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ABOUT M-1 GLOBAL: Founded in 1997, M-1 Global has established itself in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) as the premier entity for discovering and developing the world’s next-generation of superstar fighters. With its office in St Petersburg, Russia, the M-1 brand has staged more than 170 events worldwide, including M-1 Selection, M-1 Challenge, M-1 Global and M-1 Global HWGP events, in addition to co-promoting Strikeforce events and M-1 Global on the U.S. network, Showtime. Captivating live, television and broadband audiences with its superior production values and match-ups, M-1 Global events have featured some of the sport’s top names, including legendary heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko, Andrei Arlovski, Gegard Mousasi, Alistair Overeem, Keith Jardine, Ben Rothwell, Melvin Manhoef, Sergei Kharitonov, Aleksander Emelianenko, Roman Zentsov, Yushin Okami, Mike Pyle, Denis Kang, Martin Kampmann, Amar Suloev, Chalid Arrab and Stephan Struve. 2015 was another sensational year of world-class competition with a full calendar of Challenge events fueled by a talent-rich contention system ranking M-1 Global Champions among the greatest fighters in the sport.

ABOUT M-1GLOBAL.TV: Enjoy MMA action now in high definition brought to you by M-1Global.tv, offering only the best fights from M-1 Global and other MMA organizations. M-1Global.tv is a great platform developed specifically to bring together the most exhaustive fight video database. It also provides an easy and intuitive interface, helping everyone to start using the platform in no time while avoiding any spoilers. Besides watching the past fights on demand at any time convenient to the customer, viewers are able to enjoy the action LIVE, all available to M-1Global.tv users through a low-priced month to month digital subscription. Your world of action. Anytime!

13 January 2016 – Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: The largest sports media property in Asian history, ONE Championship™ (ONE) together with Tune Talk, will launch the second event of 2016 in style as the promotion heads back to Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on 29 January for ONE: CLASH OF HEROES. In the main event featuring a Malaysia Warrior Bout, hometown hero Ev “E.T.” Ting squares off with one of the Philippines’ finest in Eric “The Natural” Kelly.

CEO of ONE Championship, Victor Cui stated, “2016 is going to be such a phenomenal year for mixed martial arts in Asia and we’re doing our best to put together the most exciting fights for fans all across the world. Ev Ting has really proven that homegrown Malaysian mixed martial artists can go toe-to-toe with the best in the world and will now face his sternest test against one of the best fighters in his division in Eric Kelly.”

Tickets for ONE: CLASH OF HEROES are available at www.AirAsiaRedTix.com.

26-year-old Ev “E.T.” Ting is one of Malaysia’s most promising young talents. His exceptional 10-3 record has come against solid opposition. Fresh off a Guillotine Choke submission victory in his last bout, Ting is known to be a ferocious striker with a well-rounded ground game making him a complete fighter. Ting will look to play off the energy of his hometown crowd when he takes on the Philippines’ Eric Kelly.

Eric “The Natural” Kelly of Baguio City, Philippines is undoubtedly one of the most talented fighters to come out of the country. With just one defeat on his professional record, Kelly has decimated opponents inside the cage with his ability to secure fight-ending finishes. Of his twelve victories, nine have come by submission. Kelly has long been due for a title shot but will have to get past Malaysia’s Ev Ting first to continue in his quest for ONE Championship gold.

Team Lakay veteran lightweight standout Eduard “Landslide” Folayang has long been among the elite mixed martial artists in the Philippines. Folayang continues his stellar career with wins over some of the most highly-regarded opponents. Since his previous fight, the 32-year old has added an improved grappling game to go with his great Wushu base. Folayang will now pit his skills against Japan’s Tetsuya Yamada next.

Tetsuya Yamada of Kanigawa, Japan is a promising young lightweight with a penchant for spectacular finishes. The 25-year-old has finished 12 of his 15 wins either by submission or by highlight reel knockout and will look to replicate his success when he makes his debut inside the ONE Cage against the Philippines’ Eduard Folayang.

Jake Butler has firmly established himself as one of the top light heavyweights in the division. He has a highlight reel of victories by exciting finishes, and possesses some of the best wrestling in the sport having honed his skills as captain of the Princeton wrestling team. Butler is unstoppable when he utilizes his signature wrestling techniques, but he has also improved his striking skills by training with Muay Thai world champions in Asia. Butler’s next challenge will be against Japan’s Tatsuya Mizuno.

Tatsuya Mizuno is a mixed martial arts veteran from Tokyo, Japan. Mizuno’s good mix of stoppage and submission wins lends to the fact that both his striking and his grappling skills are well-rounded and highly effective. He’s never in a boring fight and always competes with decisive victory in mind. At 34-years of age, Mizuno looks to continue his career against the fast-rising Jake Butler.

Geje “Gravity” Eustaquio of the famed Team Lakay of Baguio City, Philippines is a highly-skilled Wushu practitioner. He breaks down opponents with well-placed combinations and impeccable timing. Eustaquio’s lightning quick strikes have seen him successful against high-level opponents despite two recent setbacks. Eustaquio now looks to get back on track as he takes on Saiful Merican.

Saiful “The Vampire” Merican of Malaysia is happy to compete in front of his hometown crowd in Kuala Lumpur. The 27-year old flyweight is an explosive striker who starts out fast, looking to end fights early. He’s had success inside the ONE Cage and will now look to continue his winning ways against the Philippines’ Geje Eustaquio.

Hard-hitting Sami Amin of Cairo, Egypt is a bantamweight contender with a solid professional mixed martial arts record of five wins, two losses and one draw . He’s fought once inside the ONE Cage, against Fransino Tirta in 2014 but came up short. He now looks for redemption as he returns to ONE Championship to face Samir Mrabet.

Samir Mrabet of Brussels, Belgium is undefeated as a mixed martial artist at three wins with no losses. Mrabet owns a knockout and a submission win to his credit, including a victory in his ONE Championship debut last 2013. Mrabet now returns to the ONE Cage after over two years away from professional competition to take on Sami Amin.

At just 21-years of age, Keanu Subba is a former amateur MMA champion and is one of the most promising young talents on ONE Championship’s roster. Victorious in his debut for the promotion, Subba brought the crowd to the edge of their seats with a first round stoppage of Florian Garel. Subba will look to replicate the victory by taking on Rayner Kinsiong next.

Rayner Kinsiong of Sabah, Malaysia is known for his tenacity and grit inside the cage. Never one to back down from a good scrap, Kinsiong has poured his heart and soul into martial arts and it’s evident in the way he goes out and tries to put on a show for the crowd. Kinsiong will face the toughest test in his career when he takes on Keanu Subba.

Christian Lee, younger brother of Singapore’s MMA darling Angela “Unstoppable” Lee, made a successful debut inside the ONE Cage last December with a first round TKO of Cambodia’s David Meak. Lee impressed with his relentless offense, leading to the stoppage of Meak just under a minute into the matchup. Lee now looks for the same success when he returns to the cage against Mahmoud Mohamed.

Mahmoud Mohamed of Cairo, Egypt is a mixed martial artist with a 3-2-1 professional MMA record. The Egyptian has competed solely in his home country but will be making his way overseas for this first time now in his ONE Championship debut. He’ll take on one of the promotion’s fastest rising stars in young Christian Lee.

20-year old middleweight prospect Agilan “Alligator” Thani of Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia is unbeaten as a professional mixed martial artist, with two wins inside the ONE Cage. All three of the wins on his record have come either by knockout or by submission as the young star is making his presence felt the welterweight division. Thani will face the returning James Kouame next.

James Kouame of Ontario, Canada last competed for ONE Championship back in 2013, when he was finished by highly-regarded Jake Butler via submission. Kouame seeks redemption inside the ONE Cage now more than two years later, this time against Agilan Thani.

As part of the Facebook Livestream of preliminary bouts, Reant Febriza Rainir and Saygid Guseyn Arslanaliev will do battle while female MMA athletes, Jenny Huang and Amira Badr will lock horns inside the ONE Cage.

For more updates on ONE Championship™, please visit www.onefc.com and follow Twitter and Instagram @ONEFCMMA and Facebook at www.facebook.com/ONEFCMMA

About ONE Championship™
ONE Championship is the largest sports media property in Asian history. Headquartered in Singapore, the world’s most exciting mixed martial arts organization hosts the best Asian mixed martial artists and world champions, all signed to exclusive contracts, on the largest media broadcast in Asia. ONE Championship™ has partnered with FOX and STAR Sports for an unprecedented 10-year cable television deal with a coverage that spans 70+ countries across the world.

Las Vegas – UFC® featherweight champion Conor McGregor will look to make history on Saturday, March 5 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas when he moves up to challenge UFC lightweight champion Rafael Dos Anjos for the 155-pound title.

McGregor will look to become the first fighter in history to hold UFC world titles in two different weight classes simultaneously when he challenges the red-hot Brazilian champion.

Plus, women’s bantamweight champion Holly Holm puts her world title on the line for the first time against second-ranked Miesha Tate in the co-main event. The undefeated Holm became a household name at UFC® 193 when she knocked out previously unbeaten Ronda Rousey. The former boxing champion looks to keep her perfect record intact when she meets Tate, who is riding a dominant four-fight win streak.

Tickets for UFC® 197: DOS ANJOS vs. McGREGOR, presented by EA SPORTS UFC® 2, go on sale to the general public on Friday, Jan. 22. Ticket information will be made available soon.

UFC® 197: DOS ANJOS vs. McGREGOR will air live on pay-per-view at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT on Saturday, March 5.

LAS VEGAS (January 12, 2016) –A re-injury of his hip has forced Mike “The Martian” Ricci to withdraw from his scheduled World Series of Fighting (WSOF.com) main event bout with Caros “The Future” Fodor (10-4), who will now face streaking Blackzilians ace Luiz “Buscape” Firmino (18-6) under co-main event status at WSOF27, live on NBCSN at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT from the FedExForum in Memphis, Tenn. on Saturday, Jan. 23.

Originally billed as the co-main event, the light heavyweight (205 pounds) contest between heavy-handed finisher Teddy Holder (9-2) of Bartlett, Tenn. and undefeated Shamil Gamzatov (9-0) of Makhachkala, Russia has been elevated to the main event.

“Our entire team wishes Mike Ricci a full and speedy recovery, and hopes to see him return soon,” said World Series of Fighting President Ray Sefo.

“Luiz Firmino, no stranger to our decagon cage,” continued Sefo, “is truly a courageous warrior for stepping up on such short notice to compete against a fellow star like Caros Fodor. We commend Luiz for doing so and look forward to seeing him back in action.”

The 33-year-old Firmino of Joao Pessoa, Paraiba, Brazil is riding a five-fight win streak. His last two victories – a unanimous decision over Jacob Volkmann on October 26, 2013 and a unanimous decision over Tyson Griffin on June 21, 2014, both came under the World Series of Fighting banner.

Prior to the victory over Volkmann, Firmino earned an impressive, five-round unanimous decision over Luis “Baboon” Palomino, who has since gone on to challenge reigning, undefeated champion Justin “The Highlight” Gaethje twice for the World Series of Fighting lightweight title.

A veteran of professional MMA since the young age of 18, Firmino also boasts notable wins over prolific striker “Diamond” Ryan Healy and submission expert Toby Imada, both of whom Firmino defeated by way of unanimous decision.

Tickets for WSOF27 start at just $39.99, and are on sale at WSOF.com, all Ticketmaster locations, ticketmaster.com, the FedExForum Box Office, or by phone at (800) 745-3000.

A three-bout preliminary card will stream live on an embeddable video player on WSOF.com, beginning at 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT.

For more information, visit fedexforum.com, ‘like’ FedExForum on Facebook or follow on Twitter (@FedExForum).

MAIN CARD

Light Heavyweight Main Event: Teddy Holder vs. Shamil Gamzatov
Lightweight Co-Main Event: Caros Fodor vs. Luiz Firmino
Welterweight Bout: Jaleel Willis vs. Chauncey Foxworth
Featherweight Bout: Jorge Medina vs. Bryce Mitchell

PRELIMINARY CARD

Welterweight: Justin Hartley vs. Wade Johnson
Lightweight: Zach Underwood vs. Jason Williams
Lightweight: Alvin Williams vs. Wes Sharp

ABOUT WORLD SERIES OF FIGHTING
“World Series of Fighting” (WSOF) is a worldwide premier professional Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fight promotion dedicated to delivering the best action-packed fights for fight fans by producing the best possible match-ups between elite fighters from around the world. For more information please visit WSOF.com and follow “World Series of Fighting” on Twitter @MMAWorldSeries. WSOF and World Series of Fighting are registered trademarks of MMAWC, LLC.

ABOUT NBCSN
NBCSN, part of the NBC Sports Group, is dedicated to serving passionate sports fans. Now in more than 85 million homes, the Emmy Award-winning network is the cable television home of the Summer and Winter Olympics, National Hockey League (NHL) – including two games of the Stanley Cup Final — Premier League, Formula One, IndyCar, Tour de France, the 34th America’s Cup, and beginning in 2015, NASCAR. In addition, NBCSN features college football, college basketball, college hockey, cycling, outdoor programming, horse racing surrounding the Triple Crown and Breeders’ Cup, Fight Night boxing, Ironman, the Dew Tour and USA Sevens Rugby. The network is also home to original programs such as Costas Tonight, NFL Turning Point, Pro Football Talk, The Dan Patrick Show, and NASCAR America. NBCSN is distributed via cable systems and satellite operators throughout the United States.

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (January 12, 2016) – M-1 Challenge middleweight champion Ramazan Emeev has been named M-1 Global’s 2015 Fighter of the Year.

Russian welterweight Alexey Kunchenko was selected as “Prospect of the Year,” while M-1 Challenge 63 was the M-1 Global “Event of the Year.”

Emeev (13-3-0, M1: 7-1-0), fighting out of Russia, was a runaway winner as “Fighter of the Year,” garnering 84.5-percent of the votes to easily outdistance runner-up Viktor Nemkov (23-5-0, M-1: 14-4-0), the reigning M-1 Challenge light heavyweight champion.

In 2015, Emeev won both of his M-1 fights with his title-winning submission (choke) of defending champion Vyacheslav Vasilevsky in the opening round of their rematch last April at M-1 Challenge 56, and first title defense this past December 4th at M-1 Challenge 63 when American challenger Luigi “The Italian Tank” Fioravanti was unable to answer the bell for the third round.

(L-R) Emeev pounds Fioravanti

Kunchenko (12-0-0, M-1: 4-0-0), the undefeated Russian, defeated “Prospect of the Year” runner-up Adam “Beard” Yandiev and third-place finisher Raul Tutarauli (6-3-0, M-1: 3-0-0). Kunchenko won all five of his fights in 2015, highlighted by his opening-round stoppages of Dez Parker at M-1 Challenge 57 and Alexandre Ramos at M-1 Challenge 62.

(L-R) Kunchenko vs. Ramos

M-1 Challenge 63 was headlined by the highly entertaining rematch between defending M-1 Challenge light heavyweight champion Stephan Puetz, of Germany, and Nemkov, of Russia, in the latter’s victory by five-round decision. Emeev’s triumph over Fioravanti was the M-1 Challenge 63 co-feature. M-1 Challenge 56, headlined by Emeev’s title-winning performance against Vasilevsky, was “Event of the Year” runner-up.

Nemkov (R) strikes Puetz in M-1 Challenge 63 “Event of the Year”

LAS VEGAS (January 11, 2016) –World Series of Fighting (WSOF.com) announced today that the highly-anticipated showdown between reigning, undefeated lightweight (155 pounds) champion Justin “The Highlight” Gaethje and number one contender Brian Foster will take place at the Budweiser Events Center in Loveland, Colo. on Saturday, March 12, live on NBCSN at 9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT.

Priced from $39.99, tickets for WSOF29: Gaethje vs. Foster go on sale tomorrow, Tuesday, Jan. 12 at 9 a.m. MT at WSOF.com and ComcastTix.com.

“This is a fight between two phenomenal athletes who are at the top of their games right now and whose fighting spirits are bound to make it an all-out war in the cage that will see the better man that night walk away as world champion,” said World Series of Fighting President Ray Sefo.

One of the most dominant competitors on the World Series of Fighting roster whose fearless, go-for-broke style has captured the hearts of fans worldwide, the 27-year-old Gaethje (14-0) of Safford, Ariz. is coming off the third defense of his coveted title in which he scored an explosive, second round (4:30) TKO (punches) of rival Luis “Baboon” Palomino in a rematch between the two prolific stars, on September 18.

Six months prior, Gaethje and Palomino engaged in an epic, see-saw slugfest that saw Gaethje emerge victorious by way of TKO (leg kicks and punches) in the third round (3:57) that has since been nominated for “Fight of the Year” at the eighth annual Fighters Only World MMA Awards ceremony that takes place on February 5.

To date, Gaethje has claimed a total of eight wins in the World Series of Fighting decagon cage, with seven of those wins having come by way of (T)KO. He was crowned the league’s inaugural lightweight kingpin after finishing Richard Patishnock by way of first round (1:09) TKO (punches and elbows) at WSOF8 on January 18, 2014.

Foster (25-8) of Sallisaw, Okla. earned his title shot on November 20 when the 31-year-old, decorated veteran staged a heroic effort, fighting three times in one night to win World Series of Fighting’s first-ever, one-night tournament featuring the top eight athletes in the league’s stacked lightweight division.

After suffering a first round (1:46) submission (heel hook) defeat to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu ace Joao Zeferino, Foster experienced a stroke of luck, advancing to the tournament’s semifinal stage of competition in place of an injured competitor, and capitalized on the opportunity by defeating Palomino via second round (4:19) TKO (punches) and Zeferino via second round (4:51) KO (punches) in a championship stage rematch, to claim first prize and a shot at Gaethje’s title.

A 10-year veteran of the sport, Foster has produced notable victories over Brock Larson, Forrest Petz and world top 10 ranked welterweight (170 pounds) superstar Matt Brown, whom Foster conquered by way of second round (2:11) submission (guillotine choke) on November 20, 2010.

Additional WSOF29 bouts will be announced soon.

ABOUT WORLD SERIES OF FIGHTING
“World Series of Fighting” (WSOF) is a worldwide premier professional Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fight promotion dedicated to delivering the best action-packed fights for fight fans by producing the best possible match-ups between elite fighters from around the world. For more information please visit WSOF.com and follow “World Series of Fighting” on Twitter @MMAWorldSeries. WSOF and World Series of Fighting are registered trademarks of MMAWC, LLC.

ABOUT NBCSN
NBCSN, part of the NBC Sports Group, is dedicated to serving passionate sports fans. Now in more than 85 million homes, the Emmy Award-winning network is the cable television home of the Summer and Winter Olympics, National Hockey League (NHL) – including two games of the Stanley Cup Final — Premier League, Formula One, IndyCar, Tour de France, the 34th America’s Cup, and beginning in 2015, NASCAR. In addition, NBCSN features college football, college basketball, college hockey, cycling, outdoor programming, horse racing surrounding the Triple Crown and Breeders’ Cup, Fight Night boxing, Ironman, the Dew Tour and USA Sevens Rugby. The network is also home to original programs such as Costas Tonight, NFL Turning Point, Pro Football Talk, The Dan Patrick Show, and NASCAR America. NBCSN is distributed via cable systems and satellite operators throughout the United States.

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia (January 11, 2016) – M-1 Global has announced its signing of undefeated Russian welterweight prospect Alexey Kunchenko (12-0-0, M-1: 4-0-0) to an exclusive promotional contract.

The 31-year-old Kunchenko, fighting out of Tyumen, Russia, has a Muay Thai foundation. Representing the Boets Club, Kunchenko has nine knockouts, along with two submission and one decision victory.

At M-1 Challenge 62 last October, Kunchenko stopped Alexandre Ramos in punches in the third round. (Below see picture of Kunchenko kicking Ramos)

Information

www.M1Global.tv
www.mixfight.ru
www.wmmaa.org

Twitter & Instagram:

@M1GlobalNews
@VFinkelchtein
@M1Global

Facebook:

www.facebook.com/M-1-GlobalNews
USA MEDIA CONTACT:
Bob Trieger, Full Court PRESS, 978.590.0470, bobtfcp@hotmail.com, @FightPublicist

ABOUT M-1 GLOBAL: Founded in 1997, M-1 Global has established itself in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) as the premier entity for discovering and developing the world’s next-generation of superstar fighters. With its office in St Petersburg, Russia, the M-1 brand has staged more than 160 events worldwide, including M-1 Selection, M-1 Challenge, M-1 Global and M-1 Global HWGP events, in addition to co-promoting Strikeforce events and M-1 Global on the U.S. network, Showtime. Captivating live, television and broadband audiences with its superior production values and match-ups, M-1 Global events have featured some of the sport’s top names, including legendary heavyweight Fedor Emelianenko, Andrei Arlovski, Gegard Mousasi, Alistair Overeem, Keith Jardine, Ben Rothwell, Melvin Manhoef, Sergei Kharitonov, Aleksander Emelianenko, Roman Zentsov, Yushin Okami, Mike Pyle, Denis Kang, Martin Kampmann, Amar Suloev, Chalid Arrab and Stephan Struve. 2015 was another sensational year of world-class competition. Its 2016 calendar of Challenge events will soon be announced, fueled by a talent-rich contention system, ranking M-1 Global Champions among the greatest fighters in the sport.

ABOUT M-1GLOBAL.TV: Enjoy MMA action now in high definition brought to you by M-1Global.tv, offering only the best fights from M-1 Global and other MMA organizations. M-1Global.tv is a great platform developed specifically to bring together the most exhaustive fight video database. It also provides an easy and intuitive interface, helping everyone to start using the platform in no time while avoiding any spoilers. Besides watching the past fights on demand at any time convenient to the customer, viewers are able to enjoy the action LIVE, all available to M-1Global.tv users through a low-priced month to month digital subscription. Your world of action. Anytime!

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (Jan. 8th, 2016) – Another CES MMA title is heading to The Buckeye State.

Cincinnati’s Chris Curtis captured the CES MMA Welterweight Title Friday night at Twin River Casino in the main event of “CES MMA XXXII,” stopping defending champion Gil Freitas with a series of unanswered strikes at the 3-minute, 13-second mark of the opening round live on AXS TV, becoming the third Ohio-born fighter to win one of the promotion’s titles.

The heavy-handed Freitas (18-6) began to unload on Curtis (13-4, 5 KOs) midway through the round, but Curtis stood his ground and answered with a right uppercut to the chin, momentarily stunning Freitas. With an opportunity to finish the fight, Curtis quickly became the aggressor, landing a right hand to the liver that sent Freitas to the canvas. Curtis immediately pounced on Freitas and landed a flurry of rights and lefts, forcing referee Kevin MacDonald to stop the fight.

Curtis has now won four consecutive fights and seven of his last eight. He’s the third CES MMA champion born in Ohio, joining UFC vets Julian Lane and Dominique Steele. Freitas, making his first title defense since winning the belt in October, lost for the first time in five fights.

In the most bizarre finish of the night, Ryan Sanders (10-7, 2 KOs) of Bangor, Maine, a late replacement on the main card, earned the win over Providence, R.I., lightweight Luis Felix (14-9) when Felix was forced to verbally tap following an injury to his right knee at the 1:46 mark of the second round.

Felix looked sharp in the opening round and briefly had Sanders hurt early in the second, but Sanders caught him with a knee against the cage and took Felix to the canvas. As the two began jockeying for position, Felix twisted his knee and immediately tapped.

“I heard it pop,” Felix said. “The pain just shot through my leg.”

The only consolation for Felix is he retains his CES MMA Lightweight Title, which was not on the line Friday since his original opponent, Waylon Lowe, was forced to withdraw from the fight two weeks ago, leaving Felix and Sanders fighting at a catch weight of 160 pounds in a scheduled three-round non-title bout.

Tennessee heavyweight Ashley Gooch (9-4) pulled off an upset against Josh Diekmann (15-7) of New London, Conn., in his first appearance with CES MMA, forcing Diekmann to tap due to a rear naked choke at the 4:30 mark of the opening round.

The two traded blows early with Gooch remaining wary of Diekmann’s strong overhand right. Gooch eventually got the takedown, took Diekmann’s back and delivered a series of blows, including a hard right elbow to the rib cage, before locking in the choke in the closing seconds of the round. Friday’s fight was Diekmann’s first in 11 months while Gooch has now won his last seven after starting his career 2-4.

Fresh off an upset win over Dinis Paiva in October in his AXS TV debut, Cumberland, R.I., featherweight Kody Nordby (6-3) added another impressive victory to his resume, submitting Derek Shorey (3-3) of Maine via triangle choke 41 seconds into the opening round. Five of Nordby’s six wins have come by first-round stoppage, including the last three under the promotional guidance of CES MMA.

Kyle Bochniak (6-0) of Gloucester, Mass., also won in impressive fashion – his third victory on AXS TV – by submitting Taylor Trahan (5-5) of Whitefield, N.H., via rear naked choke 3:58 into the opening round in a bloody featherweight battle. Bochniak rocked Trahan early, opening a cut over Trahan’s left eye, and continued to pepper him with strikes. Trahan landed some clean shots of his own, but eventually fell the canvas, where Bochniak applied the choke to earn his sixth win in six fights, all with CES MMA.

Unbeaten Abington, Mass., featherweight Manny Bermudez (4-0) remained unbeaten on Friday’s main card and scored his second win on AXS TV, submitting Evan Parker (5-4) of Worcester, Mass., at 1:43 of the opening round via rear naked choke. Parker tried to trade blows with Bermudez, but got busted up quickly and taken to the canvas, where Bermudez put his superior ground game to use.

Providence’s Keenan Raymond (3-2, 1 KO), a late addition to the lineup, highlighted the preliminary card with a knockout win over Cortland, N.Y., welterweight Ryan Todd (0-1). Raymond caught Todd with a left hook early in the second round, followed by a knee to the chin, sending his opponent to the canvas and forcing MacDonald to stop the bout at the 58-second mark.

Also on the prelim card, Centereach, N.Y., featherweight Mak Kelleher (1-2) earned his first win as a pro in his third try, rallying to beat South Boston’s James Murrin (3-4) in a bloody three-round war. Murrin came out strong in the opening round and nearly finished the fight in the second with a series of hammerfists, but Kelleher dominated the third, opening a cut on Murrin’s forehead that left both fighters a bloody mess. Kelleher earned the unanimous decision, 29-28, on all three scorecards.

Flyweight Devin Baxter (2-0) of Bellingham, Mass., also scored a win on the preliminary card and remained unbeaten by submitting Joshua Ricci (0-1) of Whitesville, N.Y., via rear naked choke at 3:02 of the third round. In a battle of unbeaten, Syracuse, N.Y., flyweight Luay Ashkar (2-0) outlasted Nick Iaciofano (2-1) of Providence to earn a 29-28, 29-28, 30-27 unanimous decision win.

Middleweight Pat McCrohan (2-0) of Beverly, Mass., rallied to keep his unbeaten record intact in the final bout of the prelims, winning the last two rounds over Boston’s Mike Rodriguez (2-1) to earn a 29-28 unanimous decision on all three scorecards.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (Jan. 7th, 2016) – When asked to step up on just two week’s notice and face reigning CES MMA Lightweight Champion Luis Felix on the nationally televised main card of “CES MMA XXXII,” Ryan Sanders didn’t even have to think twice.

“There was no second guess, no second thought,” said Sanders, a native of Bangor, Maine. “In this sport, you have an opportunity like this only once in a career and you have to jump at it.”

Sanders (9-7, 1 KO) will face Felix in a three-round non-title fight at a catch weight of 160 pounds on Friday night’s main card, which airs live on AXS TV beginning at 10 p.m. ET. The Sanders-Felix is one six televised bouts on the main card and a major step up for Sanders, who’s won two consecutive fights and three of his last four.

“I just think this fight just fell into my lap for a reason and I’m going to make the most of it. I have no pressure on me. All the pressure’s on Luis,” Sanders said. “He has to show up. It’s his hometown. It’s his backyard. All I have to do is just go in there and fight, so all the pressure’s on him. I’m just looking for a good fight, hoping to entertain the fans and put on a show and let CES know I’m here to fight, too.”

Asked if the pressure of performing in front of his loyal fan base against an opponent with nothing to lose would unnerve him, Felix (14-8, 5 KOs) just shook his head and smiled.

“There’s no pressure, man. This is just another fight for me,” said the Providence, R.I., native, who captured the CES MMA title in August with a win over champion Julian Lane. “It’s like the last 22. I’ve been the main event before. I feel great.”

Friday will be Felix’s fifth consecutive appearance on AXS TV. The first ended in a stunning loss to Lane in one of the most highly publicized bouts in CES MMA history. Felix then narrowed his inner circle and began simplifying his training. Heeding the advice of his longtime coach, Vic Fagnant, Felix traveled less during camps, working with only a handful of coaches and peers instead of spreading himself thin.

“We’ve had the same camp for the last three so we stayed pretty consistent with that. I’ve seen a lot improvement in the last three fights. They’re all wins, so why change anything?” Felix said.

“What I have here with coach Vic and [Greg] Rebello and then going up to Boston and training with [Mark] Dellagrotte and the guys at Sityodtong, that, in itself, is enough variety for what I need to see. It’s consistent and over at Sityodtong we get all different guys from different places coming to get work up there.

“I’ve been blessed to have these two spots and to be able to get enough work just from there instead of having to go all over the place like we did before.”

Their backgrounds might be different, but Felix and Sanders are competing for exposure and the opportunity to showcase their abilities in front of a worldwide audience.

“I’m just looking at it as another fight. It’s a different fight, a different opponent, a different name on the cage, but it’s just another fight at the end of the day,” Sanders said. “If it opens up doors, great. If it doesn’t, so be it. The chance to fight for CES is an awesome opportunity and I’m just going to go out there and bang and put on a show and see what happens.

“I’m not in the greatest shape of all the time, but I definitely was getting ready for a fight so I was definitely in shape, which is why it was an easy decision to make. Like I said, Luis is a stud and I want to fight the studs, so this is a huge opportunity for me.”

Tickets for “CES MMA XXXII” are still available at $40.00, $55.00 and $100.00 and can be purchased online at www.cesmma.com, www.cagetix.com/ces, www.twinriver.com or www.ticketmaster.com, by phone at 401-724-2253/2254, or at the Twin River Casino Players Club. All fights and fighters are subject to change.

Also featured on the main card of “CES MMA XXXII,” reigning CES MMA Welterweight Champion Gil Freitas (18-5, 6 KOs) makes his first title defense in a five-round bout against Cincinnati’s Chris Curtis (12-4, 4 KOs), who aims to become the third Ohio-born fighter to capture one of the promotion’s titles, joining a list that includes UFC vets Lane and Dominique Steele.

Groton, Conn., heavyweight and four-time Bellator vet Josh Diekmann (15-6, 11 KOs), now in his 11th year as a pro, battles fellow knockout artist Ashley Gooch (8-4, 6 KOs) of Nashville, Tenn.; and rising featherweight Kyle Bochniak (5-0, 2 KOs) makes his second appearance on the televised main card as he puts his undefeated record on the line against Taylor Trahan (5-4) of St. Johnsbury, Vt.

Rounding out the main card is a featherweight showdown between unbeaten Manny Bermudez (3-0, 1 KO) of Abington, Mass., and Evan Parker (5-3, 1 KO) of nearby Worcester. None of Bermudez’s previous three opponents made it out of the first round and the 5-foot-6 submission specialist is looking to make it 4-for-4 against the game Parker, who choked out Pete Rogers Jr. in his CES MMA debut in June.

The preliminary card features five additional bouts. South Boston featherweight James Murrin (3-3, 2 KOs) faces Mak Kelleher (0-2) of upstate New York and Providence’s Keenan Raymond (2-2) battles newcomer Ryan Todd of Cortland, N.Y.

Also on the preliminary card, middleweights Pat McCrohan (1-0, 1 KO) of Beverly, Mass., and Boston’s Mike Rodriguez (2-0, 2 KOs) put their unbeaten records and knockout streaks on the line against one another and flyweight David Baxter (1-0) of Bellingham, Mass., makes his CES MMA debut against newcomer Joshua Ricci of Whitesville, N.Y. Providence’s Nick Iaciofano (2-0, 1 KO) battles Luay Ashkar of Syracuse in a three-round flyweight bout.

For more information on “CES MMA XXXII” visit www.cesmma.com, follow @CESMMA on Twitter and Instagram and “like” the official CES MMA Facebook fan page.

LINCOLN, R.I. (Jan. 7th, 2016) – Listed below are weights for all the participants in Friday’s nationally televised “CES MMA XXXII” fight card live on AXS TV from Twin River Casino. Preliminary bouts begin at 7 p.m. with the televised main card scheduled for 10.

GIL DE FREITAS
Ludlow, Mass. (San Paulo, Brazil)
18-5, 6 KOs
171

CHRIS CURTIS
Cincinnati, Ohio
12-4, 4 KOs
170 ½

LUIS FELIX
Providence, R.I.
14-8, 5 KOs
160

RYAN SANDERS
Bangor, Maine
9-7, 1 KO
160

JOSH DIEKMANN
Groton, Conn.
15-6, 11 KOs
239

ASHLEY GOOCH
Murfreesboro, Tenn.
8-4, 6 KOs
262

KYLE BOCHNIAK
Gloucester, Mass.
5-0, 2 KOs
150

TAYLOR TRAHAN
Whitefield, N.H.
5-4
151 ½

KODY NORDBY
Cumberland, R.I.
5-3
144

DEREK SHOREY
Dover-Foxcroft, Maine
3-2, 2 KOs
145

MANNY BERMUDEZ
Abington, Mass.
3-0, 1 KO
145

EVAN PARKER
Worcester, Mass.
5-3, 1 KO
146

PAT MCCROHAN
Beverly, Mass.
1-0, 1 KO
185

MIKE RODRIGUEZ
Boston, Mass.
2-0, 2 KOs
186

NICK IACIOFANO
Providence, R.I.
2-0, 1 KO
124

LUAY ASHKAR
Syracuse, N.Y.
1-0, 1 KO
124

JAMES MURRIN
South Boston, Mass.
3-3, 2 KOs
144

MAK KELLEHER
Centereach, N.Y.
0-2
145

DAVID BAXTER
Bellingham, Mass.
1-0
126

JOSHUA RICCI
Whitesville, N.Y.
Pro debut
124

KEENAN RAYMOND
Providence, R.I.
2-2
172

RYAN TODD
Cortland, N.Y.
Pro debut
178

Dublin born Jamie ‘The Nuisance’ Kavanagh, childhood friend of UFC sensation Conor McGregor, can’t wait to fight in front of his hometown crowd again when he returns to the National Stadium on Saturday 6th February.

Red hot Kavanagh, who racked up over 180 wins in his amateur career, walked into Dublin’s Crumlin Boxing Gym at the tender age of 10 and never looked back. It was here that the 25 year-old first trained and sparred alongside Irish megastar Conor ‘The Notorious’ McGregor.

“His fighting skill is brilliant but I think his mind set in what he does both inside and outside the octagon is inspirational,” said Kavanagh.

“The way he dominates his opponents mentally and physically is something that I look up to and I’ll be looking to implement that into my game. Half of the time he has his opponents beaten before they’ve even had the weigh-in.”

Thousands of Irish fans flocked to Las Vegas to witness McGregor dispose of Jose Aldo in just 14 seconds and Kavanagh is hoping he’ll receive similar support on his return to Dublin. After five years learning his craft as a pro in the gyms of the US west coast, the former world youth silver medallist is looking to make a name for himself in Dublin.

He said: “There’s no better bunch to be fighting in front of. I can’t wait to get back over there, the reception I received last time was out of this world. It’s my hometown so that’s where I want to base myself, If I’m going to build a following anywhere Dublin is where it’s going to be.”

“Conor is probably the biggest fighter in the world right now, the Irish people have really taken to him and the support he receives is incredible. Having a crowd get behind you can make a hell of a difference so I’m hoping there’s going to be another big turnout for my fight.”

Kavanagh aims to kick off his 2016 campaign with another explosive win when he fights over six rounds in an international lightweight contest against an opponent to be announced and the Irishman is excited for the year ahead.

He added: “I’m feeling in top condition ahead of my next fight, I’ve been working a bit with Mark Tibbs recently focusing on my groundwork. 2016 is all about progressing and launching myself on to that next level.

Ticket prices are from €25, €40, €60, €80, €100 and €150 and are on sale at www.tickets.ie

The Channel Of Champions, BoxNation, will televise live and exclusive on Sky 437/HD 490, Virgin 546, Freeview 255 and Talk Talk 415. Subscribe at www.boxnation.com Or watch online at Livesport.tv and via iPhone, iPad or Android.

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (Jan. 7th, 2016) — Chris Curtis has had several chances at his “big break” in mixed martial arts, but something always got in the way, whether it was an untimely injury or his own stubborn insistence on upholding the tough-guy bravado often associated with combat sports.

As he approaches his 29th birthday later this year, Curtis (12-4, 4 KOs) is ready for another shot at the breakthrough victory every fighter dreams of when he faces hard-hitting CES MMA Welterweight Champion Gil Freitas (18-5, 6 KOs) live Friday night on AXS TV on the main card of “CES MMA XXXII” at Twin River Casino.

“I firmly believe this is going to be my big opportunity, if not with this fight, then shortly thereafter” said Curtis, a Cincinnati, Ohio native with 16 pro fights and nearly a decade’s worth of experience under his belt.

“This is huge. Fighting on AXS TV? This is what you want as a fighter. CES MMA is known nationwide. They’re now everywhere as a feeder to the UFC now. This is going to be my big step.”

Having been down this road before, Curtis is better equipped to handle the pressure of fighting on the sport’s biggest stage. He describes himself a reformed “headcase” who used to train nonstop, ignoring his body whenever it told him to take him a break.

“It was always, ‘Go, go, go!'” he said. “Then I’d end up with injuries. I always felt I had to outwork the other guy. Now I realize I’m a human being, not a cartoon character. Your body has limits.

“I’m older and wiser now. I understand there are times you need to take a day off. The holidays this year, Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s, were light for me. I should be 100 percent healthy for this fight for the first time in a long time.”

Two years ago, Curtis got the call to participate in Bellator’s short-lived reality television series, Fight Master, with the winner advancing to the promotion’s welterweight tournament. As always, Curtis trained hard, probably to the point of exhaustion, then tore the posterior cruciate ligament in his knee just three days before his first fight while stuffing a takedown in practice.

“Story of my life,” he said.

With limited mobility, Curtis lost his first and only fight to Eric Scallan and never advanced past the entry round, but his reunion with former foe Tom Gallicchio, who happened to be one of the 32 fighters competing to make it on Fight Master, led to a career-changing move.

Gallicchio, a member of Team Quest MMA who fought and defeated Curtis in 2011, constantly pressed Curtis to train with him in California. When he got the call from CES MMA to fight for a title on national TV, Curtis took him up on his offer and actually moved in with Gallicchio this recent during training camp to prepare for Friday’s showdown with Freitas.

It was a real-life Rocky Balboa-Apollo Creed storyline, two fighters who once stood toe-to-toe against one another now working with each other thousands of miles away from their comfort zone to take down a seemingly invincible opponent, a description that suits Freitas to a T these days. It was also a chance for Curtis to broaden his horizons beyond the city limits of Cincinnati.

“This was important career-wise for me,” Curtis said. “I need to be around guys as hungry as I am. When you train together with the same people every day it becomes routine. It becomes a habit. It’s just too familiar. It’s like being a big fish in a small pond.

“Going out there to California in a room of high-caliber guys you don’t know, that’s what sharpens you as a fighter. It’s like taking the ax to that iron and sharpening it. It was a painful, but awesome, experience.”

As for Freitas, the Brazilian welterweight now training with Team Link out of Ludlow, Mass., he’s become a household name in recent months with two overpowering wins on AXS TV, knocking out George Sheppard in August and submitting Chip Pollard in October.

Once the best-kept secret in regional MMA, Freitas is no longer an unknown commodity. His raw power – two knockout wins in his last three fights with CES MMA – is a frightening proposition for anyone who stands on the other side of that cage, but Curtis doesn’t’ seem too concerned about winding up on the receiving end of a hard right hand.

“He’s a dangerous guy, but it’s not 1996 anymore. Everyone has power. Everyone is technical,” he said. “I’m not afraid of anyone’s power. I’ve always fought guys who hit hard, but I know my own ability. I can stand toe-to-toe with anybody.”

Stopping short of making any predictions, Curtis added, “Watch me fight and watch Gil fight. We’re not going 25 minutes. He doesn’t want to hang around for 25 minutes and neither do I.”

In addition to dethroning Freitas on live television, Curtis also has the opportunity to add another chapter to a strange statistical anomaly by becoming the third Ohio-born fighter to win a CES MMA title, joining a list that includes UFC vets Julian Lane and Dominique Steele. Perhaps one day he can add that elusive prefix to his name, too. He’s as ready as he’ll ever be.

Tickets for “CES MMA XXXII” are priced at $40.00, $55.00, $100.00 and $125.00 (VIP) and available for purchase online at www.cesmma.com, www.cagetix.com/ces, www.twinriver.com or www.ticketmaster.com, by phone at 401-724-2253/2254, or at the Twin River Casino Players Club. All fights and fighters are subject to change.

The main event features a lightweight showdown between reigning CES MMA Lightweight Champion Luis Felix (14-8, 5 KOs) of Providence, R.I., and Bellator vet Ryan Sanders (9-7, 1 KO) of Bangor, Maine, in a three-round non-title bout.

Also featured on the main card of “CES MMA XXXII,” Groton, Conn., heavyweight and four-time Bellator vet Josh Diekmann (15-6, 11 KOs), now in his 11th year as a pro, battles fellow knockout artist Ashley Gooch (8-4, 6 KOs) of Nashville, Tenn.

Rising featherweight Kyle Bochniak (5-0, 2 KOs) makes his second appearance on the televised main card as he puts his undefeated record on the line against Taylor Trahan (5-4) of St. Johnsbury, Vt., and undefeated bantamweight Rico DiSciullo (5-0, 2 KOs) of Peabody, Mass., faces 21-fight vet Lionel Young (6-15) of Boston.

The preliminary card features six additional bouts, starting with a featherweight showdown between unbeaten Manny Bermudez (3-0, 1 KO) of Abington, Mass., and Evan Parker (5-3, 1 KO) of nearby Worcester. None of Bermudez’s previous three opponents made it out of the first round and the 5-foot-6 submission specialist is looking to make it 4-for-4 against the game Parker, who choked out Pete Rogers Jr. in his CES MMA debut in June. South Boston featherweight James Murrin (3-3, 2 KOs) faces Mak Kelleher (0-2) of upstate New York and Providence’s Keenan Raymond (2-2) battles newcomer Ryan Todd of Cortland, N.Y.

Also on the preliminary card, middleweights Pat McCrohan (1-0, 1 KO) of Beverly, Mass., and Boston’s Mike Rodriguez (2-0, 2 KOs) put their unbeaten records and knockout streaks on the line against one another and flyweight David Baxter (1-0) of Bellingham, Mass., makes his CES MMA debut against newcomer Joshua Ricci of Whitesville, N.Y. Providence’s Nick Iaciofano (2-0, 1 KO) battles Luay Ashkar of Syracuse in a three-round flyweight bout.

For more information on “CES MMA XXXII” visit www.cesmma.com, follow @CESMMA on Twitter and Instagram and “like” the official CES MMA Facebook fan page.

LAS VEGAS (January 6, 2016) –World Series of Fighting (WSOF.com) announced today a trio of preliminary card bouts that will complete its lineup for WSOF27 at the FedExForum in Memphis, Tenn. on Saturday, Jan. 23, live on NBCSN at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT.

The three preliminary card bouts will stream live on an embeddable video player on WSOF.com and precede the four-fight, live NBCSN telecast that will be headlined by a lightweight (155 pounds) showdown between rival stars Mike “The Martian” Ricci (11-4) of Montreal, Quebec, Canada and Caros “The Future” Fodor (10-4) of Kirkland, Wash.

Topping the undercard bill will be a welterweight (170 pounds) matchup between Wade “The Hammer” Johnson and Justin Hartley.

The 25-year-old Johnson (9-1) of Bradford, Ark. is looking to notch his third consecutive victory after scoring a quick, first round (1:30) TKO (punches) on Lawrence Purifoy on September 26.

Hartley (3-1) of Nashville, Tenn. is seeking his second straight win following a second round (4:42) submission (rear-naked choke) of Sedric Johnson on June 20. To date, all of Hartley’s wins have come by way of submission.

In one of two lightweight (155 pounds) preliminary card contests, Zach “Thunderwood” Underwood (13-6) of Memphis will take on Jason Williams (4-7) of Columbus, Miss. while, in the other, Alvin Williams (2-2) of Memphis will collide with Wes Sharp (0-1) of Fayetteville, Ark.

Tickets for WSOF27 start at just $39.99, and are on sale at WSOF.com, all Ticketmaster locations, ticketmaster.com, the FedExForum Box Office, or by phone at (800) 745-3000.

In the light heavyweight (205 pounds) co-main event, heavy-handed finisher Teddy Holder (9-2) of Bartlett, Tenn. will battle undefeated Shamil Gamzatov (9-0) of Makhachkala, Russia.

Gamzatov, the number two ranked light heavyweight in the Ukraine, has yet to be taken past the second round of a fight, while Holder has earned all nine of his professional career wins by way of (T)KO or submission.

For more information, visit fedexforum.com, ‘like’ FedExForum on Facebook or follow on Twitter (@FedExForum).

MAIN CARD

Lightweight Main Event: Caros Fodor vs. Mike Ricci
Light Heavyweight Co-Main Event: Teddy Holder vs. Shamil Gamzatov
Welterweight Bout: Jaleel Willis vs. Chauncey Foxworth
Featherweight Bout: Jorge Medina vs. Bryce Mitchell

PRELIMINARY CARD

Welterweight: Justin Hartley vs. Wade Johnson
Lightweight: Zach Underwood vs. Jason Williams
Lightweight: Alvin Williams vs. Wes Sharp

ABOUT WORLD SERIES OF FIGHTING
“World Series of Fighting” (WSOF) is a worldwide premier professional Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fight promotion dedicated to delivering the best action-packed fights for fight fans by producing the best possible match-ups between elite fighters from around the world. For more information please visit WSOF.com and follow “World Series of Fighting” on Twitter @MMAWorldSeries. WSOF and World Series of Fighting are registered trademarks of MMAWC, LLC.

ABOUT NBCSN
NBCSN, part of the NBC Sports Group, is dedicated to serving passionate sports fans. Now in more than 85 million homes, the Emmy Award-winning network is the cable television home of the Summer and Winter Olympics, National Hockey League (NHL) – including two games of the Stanley Cup Final — Premier League, Formula One, IndyCar, Tour de France, the 34th America’s Cup, and beginning in 2015, NASCAR. In addition, NBCSN features college football, college basketball, college hockey, cycling, outdoor programming, horse racing surrounding the Triple Crown and Breeders’ Cup, Fight Night boxing, Ironman, the Dew Tour and USA Sevens Rugby. The network is also home to original programs such as Costas Tonight, NFL Turning Point, Pro Football Talk, The Dan Patrick Show, and NASCAR America. NBCSN is distributed via cable systems and satellite operators throughout the United States.

Las Vegas – UFC® today announced Nakisa Bidarian as the organization’s new Chief Financial Officer effective January 4, 2016. Formerly UFC’s Executive Vice President of Strategy and Business Ventures, Bidarian will now focus on key financial initiatives, strategic goals, and supporting the organization’s overall growth by guiding business decisions and analyzing their financial components.

“Nakisa has been a key contributor to UFC’s success throughout the last four years since he joined the organization,” UFC Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Lorenzo Fertitta said. “His diverse finance and strategy experience, coupled with the impact he has had with the organization, make him an ideal candidate for the CFO position.”

“I’m excited and humbled to accept this new opportunity with UFC,” Bidarian said. “The organization is coming off a record year in 2015, and I am confident that the finance, accounting and strategy teams will continue to deliver at the highest level and help to take the organization to new heights.”

Bidarian was formerly responsible for Group Strategy which includes Corporate Development, Strategic Planning, Research, Analytics, and several joint ventures, including UFC GYM. Under his leadership, UFC made significant strides in improving internal processes to improve its operating model. Bidarian has also championed the evolution of UFC’s people management practices, ensuring the organization continues to invest in its team members.

Prior to joining UFC, Bidarian led international real estate and hospitality investment and asset management for Mubadala Development Company, a multi-billion dollar sovereign investment company. Before Mubadala, he was an investment banker at Morgan Stanley and Citigroup, specializing in merger and acquisitions. Beginning his career at Accenture, Bidarian advised global financial institutions on financial and performance management. Bidarian received a Bachelor of Arts degree in financial economics from the University of Waterloo and a Master of Business Administration from Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth, where he graduated as a Tuck Scholar.

About UFC®

UFC® is the premier mixed martial arts (MMA) organization and largest pay-per-view event provider in the world. Headquartered in Las Vegas with offices in London, Toronto, Singapore and Sao Paulo, UFC produces more than 40 live events annually that consistently sell out some of the most prestigious arenas around the globe. UFC programming is broadcast in 158 countries and territories to over one billion TV households worldwide in 21 different languages. The UFC has a multi-year broadcast agreement with FOX in the U.S., which annually includes four live events broadcast on the FOX network, as well as The Ultimate Fighter® reality television show and thousands of hours of programming on FOX Sports 1 and FOX Sports 2. In 2014, UFC launched UFC FIGHT PASS®, a digital subscription service that is available throughout the world with exclusive live events, thousands of fights on-demand and original content. The UFC organization also licenses over 100 UFC GYM® locations, and owns UFC.TV® (offering live event broadcasts and video on-demand around the world), UFC FIT® (an in-home fitness and nutrition program), UFC Magazine, and has a videogame franchise with EA SPORTS, UFC Fight Club®, UFC Fan Expo®, UFC branded apparel, DVDs and Blu-rays and Topps Trading Cards. For more information, visit UFC.com and follow UFC at Facebook.com/UFC, Twitter and Instagram: @UFC.