Whole lot of fights this week, and a lot to look out for.
Packed. That’s what this weekend is. No better word for it but that. Sure, there’s a lot of dreck out there, but there’s some quality and curious/intriguing fights to at least take note of. The fun thing here is that there are some great prospects to look out for, but also a
For a sport that has no off-season, things really get ramped up this week. UFC, Bellator and KSW all have events, and next week will also be a busy one. But there’s always movement and potential for excitement outside of that, and we’re gonna do a deep dive into that.
SteelFist Fight Night (no, this is not a fictional name in a dystopian future) lights up the Union Event Center in Salt Lake City, UT with a lightweight title on the line. Former World Series of Fighting talent Lucas Montoya (8-4) faces former UFC fighter “Cassius“ Clay Collard (16-8). This will be Montoya’s first fight since 2015, where he lost a fight due to a forearm injury. Collard’s gone 2-1 since his UFC days, dropping his last fight against Darrick Minner.
Former Bellator and Invicta fighter Katlyn Neil (3-3) faces former Invicta fighter Shannon Sinn (5-7) on this card as well.
SteelFist Fight Night: March Madness starts at 7:00pm EST this Friday.
South Florida’s MMA scene has been producing a wealth of prospects as of late, and this week’s Island Fights event might just give us more of that. Former Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series contestant Mike Davis (6-1) may not have won on the big show when he fought current UFC talent Sodiq Yussuf. He bounced back to brutalize Elvin Brito in December, and now faces Mexico’s Carlos Guerra (3-1).
Featherweight Chase Hooper (6-0, 1 draw) meets Sky Moiseichik (9-5, 2 no contests), who has a kill-or-be-killed approach.
Island Fights 54 starts at 7:30pm EST on Friday night, streaming live on UFC Fight Pass.
LFA keeps churning out prospects as well, and has a men’s interim bantamweight title on the line between Vincent Cachero (6-0) and current interim flyweight champion Casey Kenney (10-1, 1 draw)who mysteriously ended up ranked at #15 in the UFC’s rankings listing. Kenney is just that talented, with wins over legit talent on the regional scene including former UFC fighter Roman Salazar. Cachero’s a sneaky fighter that loves to engage and has a knack for chokes.
It’s a great fight, and a great main event for any LFA card, as both are prospects with bright futures and a lot of skill. No way this fight doesn’t end up being fun.
LFA mainstay Levi Mowles (10-4) meets Turkey’s Ahmet Kayretli (8-2), and Valerie Soto (2-1) will have a stiff test ahead against talented grappler Vanessa Demopoulos (1-1).
LFA 62: Kenney vs Cachero starts on Friday night at 10:00pm EST on AXS TV, as usual.
Night owls might end up with a special treat, as Eternal MMA puts on a showcase down under. Southport, Queensland plays host to this event, with a flyweight title fight at the top between ACB vet Shannon Ross (11-4) and Paul Loga (5-3). Both are riding three fight win streaks, and neither is afraid to get into a dogfight.
This card also features a clash between two former UFC talents, as Ben Wall (9-7, 1 draw) faces England’s Mike Wilkinson (9-4) at lightweight.
Eternal MMA 42 starts at 4:00am Saturday morning, and is available for purchase over at Fite.TV for $14.99.
Germany’s GMC also has an interesting set of bouts, with former M-1 champion Stefan Puetz challenging for the light heavyweight title against former UFC and ACB fighter Joachim Christensen (14-7).
European veterans Ivan Musardo (25-12, 1 draw) faces former Ultimate Fighter contestant Nordin Asrih (27-10, 1 draw) for the 165lb title as well.
GMC 19 starts at 1:00pm EST for those of us on this side of the Atlantic.
Caged Aggression MMA pitches their tent in Davenport, Iowa on Saturday night, with another battle of UFC vets between Eric Wisely (32-9, 1 draw) against Mike Santiago (21-12) for their lightweight title.
Another championship match will be on this card, with longtime vet Jason Louck (19-13) facing Sengoku and Bellator vet Dan Hornbuckle (24-9) for the welterweight strap.
Caged Aggression 24: Champion’s Night 2 takes place Saturday night starting at 6:00pm.
Shooto continues their staggered 30th Anniversary celebration with a show this Saturday night/Sunday morning, although there’s no titles to be contested or major ramifications here. It’s all action bouts and some odd prospect fights through and through, as well as some fighters with lopsided records facing each other in hopes of putting on a good show.
Bantamweights Tomoya Hirokawa (9-6) and former Road to UFC contestantn Tatsuya Ando (9-2) are set to square off, with Hirokawa having a few great finishes in his pocket, while Ando has durability and a consistent well-rounded game to outlast and outwork his opponents.
Brutal striker Taison Naito (9-6, 1 draw) engages in featherweight antics against Ryoji Kudo, another hard-hitting fighter with a do or die attitude.
Shooto 30th Anniversary Round 2 begins at 2:00am Saturday night into Sunday morning.