(Newell takes the Black Assassin for a ride at WSOF 4. / Photo via Sherdog)
Undefeated lightweight and all-around good guy Nick Newell (10-0, nine wins by first-round stoppage) has booked his next assignment in World Series of Fighting, following his successful debut against Keon Caldwell in August. The promotion has confirmed that Newell will face 7-2 MFC veteran Sabah “The Persian Warrior” Fadai at WSOF 7, December 7th at the PNE Agrodome in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada.
Sabah Fadai is a 28-year-old B.C. native who hasn’t competed since a first-round triangle-choke victory against Cody Krahn at MFC 35 in October 2012. Fadai’s two fights before that resulted in a no-contest (after Fadai illegally kneed Diego Bautista at MFC 33) and a decision loss to Mukai Maromo at MFC 31. Though all of Fadai’s wins have come by stoppage, he’s only been victorious once in the last three years.
Newell left the XFC earlier this year specifically to pursue fights against top free agents and UFC veterans. So far, that hasn’t happened during his stint with the WSOF. Though Newell’s win over Caldwell was supposed to clinch him a spot in a lightweight tournament where he’d potentially face off against higher-profile vets like Gesias Cavalcante and Dan Lauzon, his match against Fadai is a non-tournament bout. We’ve reached out to Newell and WSOF officials about the current status of the lightweight tournament, and we’ll update you as soon as we know more.
WSOF 7 will mark World Series of Fighting’s first card in Canada, and will feature Anthony Johnson vs. Mike Kyle in the main event, as well as the rescheduled middleweight bout between Jesse Taylor and Elvis Mutapcic, which was canceled at WSOF 5 due to a pharmaceutical-related misunderstanding.