Press Release – (January 11th.13) The UK’s premier Mixed Martial Arts promotion, BAMMA, is proud to announce a Middleweight bout between Leeroy Barnes and Steve Watson to the preliminary card for BAMMA 12, which takes place at Newcastle’s Metro Radio Arena on Saturday 9th March 2013.
Tickets are on sale now from www.BAMMA.com, www.metroradioarena.co.uk and http://www.kililive.com/BAMMA
Leeroy Barnes impressed fans at BAMMA 8 when he pushed then champion, Jack Marshman, the full distance; and again at BAMMA 9 when he submitted UK veteran, Matt Ewin. At BAMMA 10, it took Denniston Sutherland three rounds and a decision to secure the victory over Barnes. Barnes went on to defeat Micky Burns by Guillotine Choke at Made 4 the Cage in December.
Sunderland’s Steve Watson presents a professional record of 4-1-0, with all of his wins achieved in the first round and his one loss against Eugene Fadiora (12-1-0) at Made 4 the Cage last year.
Leeroy Barnes said:
“I’m really looking forward to fighting in Newcastle. I have a lot of friends and support in the area, and in the North East fight fans are some of the best. I appreciate Watson stepping in after my original opponent pulled out. I’ve seen him fight a couple of times and he’s capable but he obviously thinks I’m the kind of fighter he can prepare for in 3 weeks. I am not and he will learn this the hard way when I attack him on March 9th. I’m coming to prove a point and fans can expect it to be explosive. ”
Steve Watson said:
“I’m looking forward to facing another top 20 ranked fighter on one of the best shows in England in my home town. I’ll be going for a Knock Out or Submission, so Leeroy, look out!”
Follow @leeroybarnes and @BAMMAUK on Twitter.
BAMMA 12 FIGHT CARD
WITH MORE FIGHTS TO BE ANNOUNCED
WELTERWEIGHT BOUT
MATT VEACH VS. JIM WALLHEAD
LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT BOUT
MAX NUNES VS. MARCIN LAZARZ
BAMMA LONSDALE BRITISH LIGHTWEIGHT TITLE BOUT
CURT WARBURTON VS. STEVIE RAY
BRITISH WELTERWEIGHT TITLE CONTENDERS FIGHT
BOLA OMOYELE VS. WAYNE MURRAY
LIGHTWEIGHT BOUT
LUKE NEWMAN VS. RYAN SCOPE
HEAVYWEIGHT BOUT
DARREN TOWLER VS. CALLUM COOK
MIDDLEWEIGHT BOUT
KEVIN THOMPSON VS. SCOTT ASKHAM
MIDDLEWEIGHT BOUT
LEEROY BARNES VS. STEVE WATSON
About BAMMA:
BAMMA (The British Association of Mixed Martial Arts) is a premier European MMA organization that launched in June 2009 with the aim of delivering Mixed Martial Arts events that fully capture the entertainment and sporting prowess on display in the world’s fastest growing sport. To achieve this aim, BAMMA brought together a team of skilled individuals with a wealth of combined experience across Television Production, Event Organisation and Mixed Martial Arts. BAMMA’s combination of arena sized venues, stunning fight cards and exceptional production values has led to BAMMA’s position as one of Europe’s most recognisable MMA brands. With a highly experienced team each BAMMA event always delivers a highly anticipated and unique Mixed Martial Arts experience.
About Lonsdale:
Firmly established as the leading brand of fight sports equipment and clothing, Lonsdale is steeped in over 50 years of fight history. From humble London origins the Lonsdale brand quickly became the hallmark of both boxing and MMA champions throughout the world, with its legendary quality and authenticity.
It is no coincidence fights legends Tom ‘Kong’ Watson, Muhammad Ali, “Marvellous” Marvin Hagler, Lennox Lewis, Mike Tyson, Joe Calzaghe and Ricky Hatton have all trained and fought in Lonsdale.
About Safe MMA
SAFE MMA is a not for profit organisation established to improve the safety of MMA fighters in the UK. Under the Safe MMA banner, the medical centre provides a secure, centralised and confidential database for fighter medical records; and coordinates affordable, standardised blood and medical tests for all registered fighters. Additionally, SAFE MMA members will have access to advice from leading world experts in sports medicine.
UK promotions Cage Warriors, BAMMA and UCMMA united to help found the project and have agreed that from 1st January 1013 all fighters on their cards must be registered to SAFE MMA and undergo annual medical tests and bi-annual blood tests. The promotions have agreed only to use fighters that are deemed medically safe to fight under the SAFE MMA (green light) system and not to use fighters that are suspended due to injuries, such as concussion, or who are overdue for blood tests, for example. Additionally, the promotions have pledged to have medical professionals carry out pre- and post-fight tests with all results to be submitted to the confidential medical database at 76 Harley St. Medical data will never be transmitted to anyone but SAFE MMA will be able to give a rapid and all-hours service to inform authorised promotions of who is medically safe to fight and who needs to be rechecked, at the time of enquiry. Visit www.safemma.co.uk for further information.