Tag: WSOF

World Series Of Fighting Following UFC Into NYC This December

WSOF 36

The World Series of Fighting will follow on the heels of the UFC, bringing MMA to New York City this December.

Announced during Saturday night’s WSOF 32 card on NBC Sports Network, WSOF 36 will take place from Madison Square Garden on New Year’s Eve.

Here is the complete release from the promotion:

On the heels of the historic and long-awaited passage of legislation making professional Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) bouts legal in New York State, World Series of Fighting (www.WSOF.com) tonight announced that it will bring its star-studded, championship fight series to Madison Square Garden along with a live broadcast of the show on NBC, on Saturday, December 31, pending the approval of the New York State Athletic Commission.

“We are thrilled to have the opportunity to bring our exciting, world championship live event series to The Big Apple, where fans have been anxiously waiting for years, for live, professional MMA action to be able to happen in their city,” said World Series of Fighting CEO Carlos Silva tonight, during the live NBCSN telecast of WSOF32: Moraes vs. Hill II.

“We have been working diligently,” continued Silva, “with the staff at the New York State Athletic Commission as well as the executives at Madison Square Garden to complete all of the necessary steps to make this historic and great event happen on New Year’s Eve.”

Participating fighters and featured matchups for the New Year’s Eve extravaganza at Madison Square Garden are being worked on by World Series of Fighting President Ray Sefo, and will be announced soon.

The event will mark the second live World Series of Fighting broadcast on NBC, which has also been airing one hour, taped programs featuring a collection of the league’s top fights and highlights, twice annually since 2013. To date, the league has aired 31 live events on NBCSN.

WSOF 36

The World Series of Fighting will follow on the heels of the UFC, bringing MMA to New York City this December.

Announced during Saturday night’s WSOF 32 card on NBC Sports Network, WSOF 36 will take place from Madison Square Garden on New Year’s Eve.

Here is the complete release from the promotion:

On the heels of the historic and long-awaited passage of legislation making professional Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) bouts legal in New York State, World Series of Fighting (www.WSOF.com) tonight announced that it will bring its star-studded, championship fight series to Madison Square Garden along with a live broadcast of the show on NBC, on Saturday, December 31, pending the approval of the New York State Athletic Commission.

“We are thrilled to have the opportunity to bring our exciting, world championship live event series to The Big Apple, where fans have been anxiously waiting for years, for live, professional MMA action to be able to happen in their city,” said World Series of Fighting CEO Carlos Silva tonight, during the live NBCSN telecast of WSOF32: Moraes vs. Hill II.

“We have been working diligently,” continued Silva, “with the staff at the New York State Athletic Commission as well as the executives at Madison Square Garden to complete all of the necessary steps to make this historic and great event happen on New Year’s Eve.”

Participating fighters and featured matchups for the New Year’s Eve extravaganza at Madison Square Garden are being worked on by World Series of Fighting President Ray Sefo, and will be announced soon.

The event will mark the second live World Series of Fighting broadcast on NBC, which has also been airing one hour, taped programs featuring a collection of the league’s top fights and highlights, twice annually since 2013. To date, the league has aired 31 live events on NBCSN.

WSOF Signs Jesse Brock To Multi-Fight Contract

Jesse Brock New

The World Series of Fighting has come to terms on a new fight contract with bantamweight contender Jesse Brock.

Brock, 22-8 in his career, is expected to make his promotional debut in the coming months.

“We are very excited to welcome Jesse Brock to our stable of world-class athletes,” said World Series of Fighting president Ray Sefo. “Jesse is a true performer who has taken on some of the best fighters in his weight class, and he has clearly earned the opportunity to contend in our bantamweight division.”

Brock most recently fought for Bellator, picking up his sixth consecutive victory with a third-round rear-naked choke stoppage of Olly Bradstreet in May. Prior to that he fought for Ressurection Fighting Alliance and Front Street Fights.

Of his 22 career wins, nine have been submission victories and four have been either knockouts or TKOs.

Brock’s resume includes bout with Joe Murphy, Caol Uno, Tyson Nam, UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson, Jimmie Rivera and Donald Cerrone.

Prior to entering into MMA, Brock competed for Boise State University on the wrestling mats where he was a two-time Pac-10 conference champion.

Jesse Brock New

The World Series of Fighting has come to terms on a new fight contract with bantamweight contender Jesse Brock.

Brock, 22-8 in his career, is expected to make his promotional debut in the coming months.

“We are very excited to welcome Jesse Brock to our stable of world-class athletes,” said World Series of Fighting president Ray Sefo. “Jesse is a true performer who has taken on some of the best fighters in his weight class, and he has clearly earned the opportunity to contend in our bantamweight division.”

Brock most recently fought for Bellator, picking up his sixth consecutive victory with a third-round rear-naked choke stoppage of Olly Bradstreet in May. Prior to that he fought for Ressurection Fighting Alliance and Front Street Fights.

Of his 22 career wins, nine have been submission victories and four have been either knockouts or TKOs.

Brock’s resume includes bout with Joe Murphy, Caol Uno, Tyson Nam, UFC flyweight champion Demetrious Johnson, Jimmie Rivera and Donald Cerrone.

Prior to entering into MMA, Brock competed for Boise State University on the wrestling mats where he was a two-time Pac-10 conference champion.

Video: Watch Rousimar Palhares Get Knocked Out In Italy

Controversial disgraced welterweight Rousimar Palhares is currently suspended by the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) for holding onto another submission for too long and gouging the eyes of Jake Shields at last year’s WSOF 22, after which he was unceremoniously stripped of his WSOF 170-pound title and suspended by the promotion. Yet that didn’t stop “Toquinho”

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Controversial disgraced welterweight Rousimar Palhares is currently suspended by the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) for holding onto another submission for too long and gouging the eyes of Jake Shields at last year’s WSOF 22, after which he was unceremoniously stripped of his WSOF 170-pound title and suspended by the promotion.

Yet that didn’t stop “Toquinho” from competing at today’s (Sat., May 21, 2016) Venator FC 3 from Milan, Italy, where he took on Emil Meek because he had to “pay the bills” (as his manager Alex Davis put it). The fight didn’t work out in the lethal grappling wiz’s favor, however, as his early telegraphed takedown attempt was capitalized upon by “Valhalla” with a barrage of elbows and follow-up punches that got the massive upset stoppage in just 45 seconds.

Check it out courtesy of Zombie Prophet right here:

In other action, Jason “Mayhem” Miller was submitted by new opponent Mattia Schiavolin after missing weight for his originally scheduled middleweight title bout against Luke Barnatt, who knocked out replacement opponent Stefan Croitoru on the card, by an alarming 24 pounds:

Also on the card, PRIDE veteran Remy Thierry Sokoudjou knocked out longtime UFC competitor Matt Hamill in 37 seconds:

The post Video: Watch Rousimar Palhares Get Knocked Out In Italy appeared first on LowKick MMA.

WSOF Adds Phil Hawes To Active Roster, Puts Him On June Card

WSOF 31

Phil Hawes was denied in his bid to become the next Ultimate Fighter.

Now, he’ll get his chance at finding success in the World Series of Fighting.

The promotion announced that they have signed Hawes, unbeaten in his middleweight career, to a contract. He will face Joshua Key at WSOF 31 next month.

Below is the complete press release:

World Series of Fighting (WSOF.com) has signed undefeated middleweight (185 pounds) prospect Phil Hawes (3-0) to an exclusive, multi-year promotional agreement.

A product of the famed Jackson-Winklejohn camp in Albuquerque, N.M., the 6-foot, 27-year-old Hawes who hails from Little Ferry, N.J., will make his promotional debut against Joshua “The Prince of MMA” Key (6-11, 2 NC) on the live, five-bout NBCSN telecast (9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT) of WSOF31: Ivanov vs. Copeland, at Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, Conn. on Friday, June 17.

“Phil is one of the most exciting, young prospects in the sport of MMA, so we are excited to welcome him to the World Series of Fighting family, and we look forward to seeing how his career develops under our promotion,” said World Series of Fighting President Ray Sefo.

The matchup with Key will be Hawes’ first start since 2014, his professional debut year when he ran to three straight victories, the first two by way of TKO and the third – a first round victory over Brandon Collins on October 18 – by way of armbar submission.

A 2009 junior college national wrestling champion for Iowa Central Community College, the alma mater of UFC champion and Jackson-Winklejohn teammate Jon “Bones” Jones, Hawes has been described by Jones as having “limitless” potential.

Priced from $39.99, tickets for WSOF31: Ivanov vs. Copeland are on sale at WSOF.com and Foxwoods.com.

Doors at The Grand Theatre at Foxwoods Resort Casino will open at 5 p.m. ET, and the first preliminary card bout will begin at 6 p.m.

In the main event of the live NBCSN telecast, reigning world heavyweight champion Blagoy Ivanov (13-1) will risk his title against Josh “Cuddly Bear” Copeland (13-1).

In the lightweight (155 pounds) co-main event, superstars Jason “The Kansas City Bandit” High (19-5) and Mike “The Martian” Ricci (11-4) will square off with their division’s number one contender ranking at stake.

WSOF 31

Phil Hawes was denied in his bid to become the next Ultimate Fighter.

Now, he’ll get his chance at finding success in the World Series of Fighting.

The promotion announced that they have signed Hawes, unbeaten in his middleweight career, to a contract. He will face Joshua Key at WSOF 31 next month.

Below is the complete press release:

World Series of Fighting (WSOF.com) has signed undefeated middleweight (185 pounds) prospect Phil Hawes (3-0) to an exclusive, multi-year promotional agreement.

A product of the famed Jackson-Winklejohn camp in Albuquerque, N.M., the 6-foot, 27-year-old Hawes who hails from Little Ferry, N.J., will make his promotional debut against Joshua “The Prince of MMA” Key (6-11, 2 NC) on the live, five-bout NBCSN telecast (9 p.m. ET/6 p.m. PT) of WSOF31: Ivanov vs. Copeland, at Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, Conn. on Friday, June 17.

“Phil is one of the most exciting, young prospects in the sport of MMA, so we are excited to welcome him to the World Series of Fighting family, and we look forward to seeing how his career develops under our promotion,” said World Series of Fighting President Ray Sefo.

The matchup with Key will be Hawes’ first start since 2014, his professional debut year when he ran to three straight victories, the first two by way of TKO and the third – a first round victory over Brandon Collins on October 18 – by way of armbar submission.

A 2009 junior college national wrestling champion for Iowa Central Community College, the alma mater of UFC champion and Jackson-Winklejohn teammate Jon “Bones” Jones, Hawes has been described by Jones as having “limitless” potential.

Priced from $39.99, tickets for WSOF31: Ivanov vs. Copeland are on sale at WSOF.com and Foxwoods.com.

Doors at The Grand Theatre at Foxwoods Resort Casino will open at 5 p.m. ET, and the first preliminary card bout will begin at 6 p.m.

In the main event of the live NBCSN telecast, reigning world heavyweight champion Blagoy Ivanov (13-1) will risk his title against Josh “Cuddly Bear” Copeland (13-1).

In the lightweight (155 pounds) co-main event, superstars Jason “The Kansas City Bandit” High (19-5) and Mike “The Martian” Ricci (11-4) will square off with their division’s number one contender ranking at stake.

Rousimar Palhares Signs On For MMA Return, WSOF Says Not So Fast

Although controversial former WSOF welterweight champion Rousimar Palhares is currently suspended until August 2017 for holding onto a fight-ending submission on Jake Shields at last year’s WSOF 22, that apparently isn’t going to stop the brutalizing grappler from at least attempting to return to the cage. A report has arrived from MMA Fighting today (March 22, 2016)

The post Rousimar Palhares Signs On For MMA Return, WSOF Says Not So Fast appeared first on LowKick MMA.

Although controversial former WSOF welterweight champion Rousimar Palhares is currently suspended until August 2017 for holding onto a fight-ending submission on Jake Shields at last year’s WSOF 22, that apparently isn’t going to stop the brutalizing grappler from at least attempting to return to the cage.

A report has arrived from MMA Fighting today (March 22, 2016) that Palhares has signed on to face Emil Meek at May 21’s Venator FC 3 from Italy. The promotion’s president Frank Merenda, who defended oft-troubled middleweight Jason Miller (another fighter preparing to fight for him) just last week, came back with the suggestion that Palhares has been ‘unfairly’ under fire for holding onto submissions too long:

“Rousimar is a great champion who has often found himself unfairly under fire for excessive holding [alleged or real] after opponents have tapped out. But anyone who knows him knows that he is a good guy who never wants to hurt anyone. He’s a hard worker, a serious and respectful guy who genuinely loves the world of combat sports. Above all, he has a real desire to redeem himself in front of everyone and show that he is not the “monster” that everyone talks about.”

rousimar palhares vs jon fitch

The proposed fight will supposedly serve as the Venator FC 3 main event and will be for the promotional welterweight title.

Regardless of the public perception of Palhares (which is clearly not good), however, the fact remains that he is suspended by the Nevada State Athletic Commission (NSAC) until August 1, 2017, and WSOF head man Ray Sefo said he is still under contract with them:

“If he takes the fight in May,” Sefo stated, “that’s a violation of his World Series of Fighting contract that is still active. He was suspended by the athletic commission but being suspended doesn’t mean you’re released from your contract.”

That would make sense, but Palhares’ manager Alex Davis apparently believes that they can do what they please and fight in Italy despite being the ones who were found in violation of the rules.

Jump to the following page to read his manager’s brash response to WSOF…

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Aljamain Sterling Announces New UFC Contract

Well, the free agency saga regarding No. 5-ranked bantamweight Aljamain “The Funk Master” Sterling has now come to an end. Appearing on today’s (February 15, 2016) edition of the MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, Sterling announced that he had indeed resigned with the UFC, the world’s largest MMA promotion, after tons of speculation that he

The post Aljamain Sterling Announces New UFC Contract appeared first on LowKick MMA.

Well, the free agency saga regarding No. 5-ranked bantamweight Aljamain “The Funk Master” Sterling has now come to an end.

Appearing on today’s (February 15, 2016) edition of the MMA Hour with Ariel Helwani, Sterling announced that he had indeed resigned with the UFC, the world’s largest MMA promotion, after tons of speculation that he would be heading to Bellator or even World Series of Fighting (WSOF).

At 26 years old, Sterling is undoubtedly one of the bantamweight division’s brightest prospects, but apparently he had felt as if he wasn’t offered a fair deal ahead of his most recent fight, a submission victory over Johnny Eduardo last December in Las Vegas.

That being said, he fought out his contract and tested the waters.

After nearly two months of dealing with free agency, Sterling appears to have received what he wanted from the UFC, and the Serra-Longo product will now be spending the foreseeable future inside of the Octagon.

“I’m 100 percent happy with my decision,” Sterling said. “I think I got a better deal for myself than I would have had.”

“The Funk Master” is currently undefeated at 12-0 in his professional career, and has won all four of his Octagon bouts including three by way of finish.

Possibly one fight away from a shot at gold in the contender scarce bantamweight division, Sterling’s next fight will be pivotal to his title hopes.

Who would you like to see “The Funk Master” meet next?

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