Press Release

MMA BIG SHOW PRESENTS LOCAL FAVORITES CHRIS BENNETT, MOJO HORNE, AND TJ BALL
AS THEY PUT IT ALL ON THE LINE AT “ALL OR NOTHING”

Event to take place live at Belterra Casino Resort & Spa on July 17th

Indiana (USA): MMA Big Show, one of the top fight promotions in the Midwest, will present its next exciting event, “ALL OR NOTHING,” which will take place on July 17th at Belterra Casino Resort & Spa in Indiana. In the main event, big-time local favorite Mojo Horne (7-2) will face one of his toughest tests to date, as he tangles with extremely experienced American Top Team product Lucas Lopes (19-8, fifteen finishes). Also featured on the card will be rising young local prospect “The Samurai” Chris Bennett (0-1 pro, 18-1 amateur), as he attempts to capture his first pro win from Brad Smith (1-1). Another notable local showcased on the fight card will be T.J. Ball (1-1), who will be looking to increase his pro experience against Danny “The Hammer” Surface (3-2). And making his return to Big Show will be Scott Cornwell (1-1), who made his Big Show debut last fall against UFC veteran Junie “The Lunatic” Browning (4-3). Tickets for “ALL OR NOTHING” are priced at $25, $45, and $75, and are available through Ticketmaster, as well as http://www.mmabigshow.com/. 21 and over only, please.

A training partner of Rich Franklin and a former MMA Big Show Middleweight Champion, Mojo Horne was glad to put 2009 behind him, as he suffered the first losses of his pro career. However, he ended the campaign on a high note, as he submitted Kevin Barkdull in the first round at November’s “ONSLAUGHT” event. Now back to his winning ways, Horne is looking to target his title once again in 2010. Standing in his way will be extremely experienced veteran Lucas Lopes. A veteran of 27 MMA fights, Lopes has
fought well-known competitors Sean Salmon and StrikeForce fighter Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos, and has defeated UFC welterweight contender Thiago Alves and former UFC fighter Antonio “Samuray” Mendes. Lopes is on a four-fight winning streak, including two straight wins in StrikeForce. Lucas is coming off a KO victory over Robert “Bubba” McDaniel, who previous defeated Mojo via ref stoppage after Horne’s nose was broken. This is Mojo’s opportunity to, in a way, avenge his loss to McDaniel, and come out ahead of a highly experience ATT fighter. Certainly, this will be a difficult test for Horne, but he’s ready to go out there and prove that not only can he beat a veteran like Lopes, he is deserving of a shot at “his” belt. “I’m hoping that if I win this fight, that I’ll be able to fight for my title again. From there, once I get my title back, Jason says he has some plans for me. So I’m excited about that.” What does he think about facing a competitor like his opponent? “I’ve seen some footage on him. He looks like more of a standup fighter. Don’t know much about his ground. The fight footage on him doesn’t show much about the ground. But I’m a firm believer in fighting the fight, not the fighter. So I’m just gonna go in there and do my thing.” And to the fans, Mojo had this to say: “I’m going to do my best for you guys, as I always do. Hopefully, I get the KO or submission, and everyone get’s their money’s worth.”

“The Samurai” Chris Bennett built a name for himself with MMA Big Show fans with his incredibly exciting fights. A real crowd-pleaser, he turned professional earlier this year after piling up eighteen amateur victories. Bennett, currently a 0-1 as a pro, is looking to rebound after a devastating loss to American Top Team’s Tony Simms and prove that he’s a serious contender against Brad Smith at “ALL OR NOTHING.” Additionally, T.J. Ball will be fighting the very tough Danny “The Hammer” Surface, who will be making his pro debut. Both fighters recently dropped to 185 lbs. from their former heavyweight status. As a result, this is going to be a war between two muscle-packed fighters looking to dominate.

Fearsome fighter Scott Cornwell put on a show in the main event of Big Show’s “ONSLAUGHT” in November of 2009. is a Cincinnati native who started learning Tae Kwon Do at the age of three under Master David Huffstutler. As a teenager, Cornwell quickly progressed through the ranks, and currently holds a 3rd degree black belt, winning several local and national tournaments. He also had a very impressive high school wrestling career, where he competed for multiple national teams in freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling. His amateur mixed martial arts career began in 2007 while training under 4th degree black belt and renowned MMA instructor Rob Gerhardt, and he won his first five amateur fights, amassing an impressive record of 7-2. In preparation for his pro debut, Scott began additional training with Rod Housley at Team Vision while continuing to train and teach at Hamilton-Fairfield Tae Kwon Do. In short, Scott is an excellent striker and wrestler, and is well-versed in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.

Fans can bet on these fights through the MMA Big Show iPhone Fantasy Better, and can also watch the event LIVE on R&R Channel 354 on DirecTV at 8 PM EST on the 17th.

In addition, the Big Show Gym, a 19,000 square foot MMA & Fitness Facility will be opening on June 27th in Eastgate Mall in Batavia, OH. This new facility will opening softly on the 27th and will host a grand opening event approximately 30 days later, once all of the equipment and build-out has been completed. This gym will feature a full strength and cardio center, full MMA cage (the actual MMA Big Show Cage), BJJ mats, Muay Thai center, and will host a multitude of training and group classes such as Extreme Fitness Boxing, Zumba, yoga, aerobics and much more. Please visit http://www.bigshowgym.com/ for more information.

The MMA Big Show is currently looking for both national sponsors for its live national broadcasts as well as the gym.

The full fight card for “ALL OR NOTHING” includes:

Mojo Horne vs. Lucas Lopes
T.J. Ball vs. Danny Surface
Chris Bennett vs. Brad Smith
Scott Cornwell vs. James Baumgardner
Brendon Hampton vs. Josh Curry
Tyler Riley vs. Shannon Casey
Trevor Riley vs. Chris Anness
Joe Pegg vs. Marcus Lewis
Dave Coghlan vs. Eric Grifford
Jordan Seals vs. Jimmie Allen
Nikolas Hoobler- Scherff vs. Korey Comptan
TJ Wash vs. Dallas Rice
BJ Wulff vs. Justin Bruster
Shannon Powell vs. Phil Colston
Denver Myers vs. John Risley
Kirk Miller vs. Dom Steele
William Kimrey vs. Ryan Holubek
Michael Ormes vs. David Smallwood
Vic Sims vs. Colt Helton

Fight card is subject to change.

SAN DIEGO (July 8, 2010) – Two-time UFC heavyweight champion Tim “Maine-iac” Sylvia takes on former UFC and Strikeforce heavyweight title challenger, Paul “The Headhunter” Buentello, in the main event for the vacant Powerhouse World Promotions (PWP), LLC Heavyweight Championship, August 14 on Pay Per View live from Bren Events Center in Irvine, California.

“War on the Mainland,” presented by Powerhouse World Promotions, is being distributed by Integrated Sports Media at 10:00PM ET/6:00PM PT in North America on cable and satellite Pay-Per-View via iN Demand, DIRECTV, Avail-TVN and DISH Network, as well as Viewer’s Choice, Bell TV and Shaw PPV in Canada, for a suggested retail price of only $29.95. It will also be available in the United Kingdom via Primetime Live. The PPV card will also be streamed live on Internet PPV outside of the United States, Canada and United Kingdom by going to www.WarontheMainland.com and registering.

“This event started as a training clinic that we’re still holding August 8 in San Diego,” PWP CEO Brian Manna explained. “It’s a full day, training clinic – MMA, Jiu-Jitsu, striking, boxing kicking, etc. – at Manna’s Martial Arts in San Diego. Tony Martinez (President of Powerhouse) suggested we do a show. We discussed it with members of our team – Joe Moreira, Carlos Palomino, Rodolfo Gonzalez and Burdett Streeter – as well as Doug Jacobs (Integrated Sports Media) and (associate) Benny Ricardo. Pay per view made it an easier sell and we were able to raise capital for the show. Now, people from all over the world will be able to watch our show.

“The depth of our field is unmatched. We not only wanted to make sure that we had three really good fights like we do, but to insure that all of the fights on this show would feature high quality fighters, as well as competitive, entertaining matches. These fights are all very well matched from top to bottom. All of us (Team PWP) are old-school martial artists. We stepped into the ring against anybody that was put in there; the type of show we’re putting on August 14th and few like it exist today in MMA for the public.”

Sylvia (26-6-0), fighting out of Bettendorf, Iowa, is coming off of an impressive second-round submission of 5-time World’s Strongest Man, Mariusz “Dominator” Pudzianowski. During his sensational career, Sylvia (6-8, 300 lbs.) has defeated many of the world’s top MMA heavyweights and super heavyweights – Andrei Arlovski (2) Brandon Vera, Jeff Monson, Wes Sims, Ricco Rodriguez, Mike Whitehead (2), Ben Rothwell and Jason Lambert.

Buentello (6-2, 250 lbs.), fighting out of Amarillo, Texas, has notable victories against “Tank” Abbott, Gary Goodridge, Justin Eilers, Mike Kyle and Kirill “Baby Fedor” Sidelnikov.

Sylvia-Buentello is one of three PWP title fights (5 X 5, all other fights are 3 X 5). Former WEC titlist Jason “The Punisher” Lambert (24-11-0) faces 8-time Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu champion Allan Goes (17-3-0) for the vacant PWP Light Heavyweight title belt, while former UFC title challenger Thales Leite (17-3-1) fights Strikeforce veteran Falinko “Niko” Vitale (27-9-0) for the PWP Middleweight crown.

In a Special Lightweight Attraction, former UFC lightweight champion Jens “Little Evil” Pulver (22-13-1), one of the most popular MMA fighters in the world, meets Diego “El Nino” Garijo (4-1-0).

Also fighting on “War on the Mainland” are Brazilian middleweight Gustavo “Ximu” Machado (18-8-1) vs. Rick Reeves (10-3-0), Mexican welterweight Jorge “The Naked Man” Ortiz (16-5-1) vs. veteran Terry Martin (19-8-0), and California lightweights Joao Silva (3-0) vs. Erin Beach (1-0). All fights and fighters are subject to change.

“We’re hitting the ground running,” Manna added. “People all over the world want to fight with us. We’re not interested in signing fighters to long-term contracts. We’re interested in the fighters being self-sufficient and stable. Burdett is a financial advisor and one of our goals is to aid fighters to become more aware of how to make their financial future more stable.”

Tickets, ranging from $35.00 to $110.00 reserved and $110.00 to $295.00 on the floor, are on sale at the Bren Event Center Box Office (10 AM/PT-6 PM/PT, Mon-Fri), going on line to www.bren.uci.edu or www.ticketmaster.com, or by calling 1.949.824.5000.

Doors open at 5:00 PM/PT, first bout 6:15 PM/PT, first PPV bout 7 PM/PT – 10 PM/ET. Go to www.WarontheMainland.com or www.bren.uci.edu for additional information.

Vendor opportunities and sponsorships are available by calling 1.858.798.1541.

Weigh-ins for Saturday's DREAM.15 event took place today in Saitama, Japan.

Lightweight champion Shinya Aoki and fellow co-headliner Tatsuya Kawajiri both made weight, though light-heavyweight grand-prix participant Jake O'Brien missed weight on his first attempt.

DREAM.15 takes place Saturday at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama,
Japan. The event airs live in the U.S. on HDNet (3 a.m. ET).

Click here to view the embedded video.

Former number one welterweight contender Jon Fitch is looking to move back into title contention this August 7, 2010 at the Oracle Arena in Oakland, California, United States when he takes on high level welterweight fighter Thiago Alves in a long awaited rematch. While Fitch has won 12 of his 13 fights in the Octagon, he’s been less than thrilling at times for the fans, with his last 8 fights going by way of decision. His lone loss was to UFC Welterweight Champion Georges St. Pierre. Still the highlight video’s well done.

Main Card

Middleweight Championship bout: Anderson Silva vs. Chael Sonnen
Welterweight bout: Jon Fitch vs. Thiago Alves
Lightweight bout: Clay Guida vs. Rafael Dos Anjos
Welterweight bout: Matt Hughes vs. Ricardo Almeida
Heavyweight bout: Roy Nelson vs. Junior Dos Santos

Preliminary Card

Light Heavyweight bout: Thiago Silva vs. Tim Boetsch
Welterweight bout: Dustin Hazelett vs. Rick Story
Heavyweight bout: Stefan Struve vs. Christian Morecraft
Welterweight bout: Johny Hendricks vs. Charlie Brenneman
Welterweight bout: Ben Saunders vs. Dennis Hallman
Light Heavyweight bout: Rodney Wallace vs. Stanislav Nedkov

Damian Grabowski

CHICAGO (July 8, 2010) — Bellator Fighting Championships announced today that the nationally televised mixed martial arts promotion will return to the Windy City for a Season 3 event at the historic Chicago Theatre on Aug. 19th.

Bellator 25 will mark the Chicago landmark’s second-ever mixed martial arts event — the first being Bellator 14 which took place on April 15, 2010. The Bellator 25 card will feature two quarterfinal fights in both the Season 3 Heavyweight and Women’s World Championship tournaments.

Headlining the Fox Sports Net event will be undefeated heavyweight sensation Damian “The Polish Pitbull” Grabowski who will make his U.S. debut in a quarterfinal heavyweight world championship tournament fight against knock-out artist Scott Barrett.

Grabowski, who was considered one of the top heavyweight free agents in the world before signing with Bellator, boasts a perfect 13-0 pro record. The Polish Pitbull has not only finished each of his opponents by TKO or submission, but not one of his opponents has yet to see the third round of a fight. His spectacular tenacity was on full display in April 2009, when he competed in a one-night, 16-man heavyweight tournament in an Austrian promotion that featured no-time-limit bouts. Grabowski dismantled each of his four opponents, winning the tournament with his longest fight lasting only 3:48 into the second frame. In his most recent fight last month Grabowski TKO’d the highly regarded heavyweight Michal Kita in the first round.

Barrett, who owns a four-fight win streak coming into the tournament, fought earlier this year at Bellator 19 where he knocked out formerly undefeated Ty Lee just 2:25 into Round 1.

Bellator 25 will also include an opening-round fight in Bellator’s World Championship Women’s Tournament featuring Zoila “The Warrior Princess” Frausto and the world’s No. 6-ranked flyweight, undefeated Jessica Pene.

Frausto was added to the tournament after she shocked the MMA world recently at Bellator 23 with her stunning KO of the world’s top-ranked and heavily favored Rosi Sexton. Sexton was subsequently forced out of the tournament due to a 60-day medical suspension from the Kentucky Boxing and Wrestling Authority. Pene debuted for Bellator in May 2009 with a first round TKO against Tammie Schneider at Bellator 5. Her unblemished record also features a submission victory over fellow tournament participant and No. 8 world ranked 115 pounder, Angela Magana.

In other action, Aisling Daly, the best female mixed martial artist in Ireland and the world’s No. 3-ranked 125 lbs. woman, will drop down to 115 lbs. to face 13-5 submission ace and No. 3-ranked flyweight Lisa Ward in the opening round of the World Championship Women’s Tournament. The 22-year-old Daly will make her U.S. MMA debut backed by a pristine 9-0 record, while Ward enters the fight with one win already coming under the Bellator banner. Just two weeks ago at Bellator 22, she dismantled Stephanie Frausto with a slick rear naked choke 2:01 into the first round.

The Bellator Season 3 Heavyweight and Women’s World Championship Tournaments begin Aug. 12 and will once again be televised LIVE in primetime every Thursday night on FOX Sports Net and during special weekend highlight shows on NBC, Telemundo and the cable network mun2.

For more information, visit Bellator.com, follow Bellator on Twitter @BellatorMMA or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Bellator.

Tickets are priced at $100, $75, $50, and $35, and go on sale at Ticketmaster.com beginning this Saturday, July 10th, at 12 noon.

HESKETT NAMED WRESTLING COACHFormer Ohio State Assistant, Four-Time All-American Joins Black Knights
 
WEST POINT, N.Y.  – Joe Heskett, a four-time All-American, national champion and former U.S. World Team member who spent the past four years as an assistant at Ohio State University, has been named the head wrestling coach at Army Athletics Director Kevin Anderson announced.Heskett, a 2001 graduate of Iowa State University, replaces Chuck Barbee who resigned following his 10th season to pursue other interests.
 
“I am very excited to have one of the young talents in collegiate wrestling as our head coach,” said Anderson. “Joe comes highly recommended from Athletic Director of the Year Gene Smith of Ohio State has unmatched credentials on the mat and his passion and dedication to the sport should pay immediate dividends. He has continued to advance his career and we are confident he can lead us to wins over Navy, EIWA Championships and national qualifiers.”
 
Heskett, who won the 165-pound national championship in 2002, is the ninth head coach in program history.
 
"Life will often surprise us with outstanding opportunities,” said Heskett. “I am humbled and honored to be able to lead and represent the Army wrestling program. I am inspired by what West Point represents and I graciously accept the challenge to mentor and motivate the cadet-athletes, improve their technical and tactical skills on the mat and to beat Navy. I would like to thank my family, Kevin Anderson, the West Point search committee, specifically Associate Athletic Director Gene McIntyre for his time and energy and the entire USMA athletic department."
 
Heskett, the eighth four-time All-American at Iowa State, graduated with a degree in speech communications and a career record of 143-9.
 
He was a three-time national finalist, winning one championship and finishing second and third. Heskett captured three Big 12 Championships, won the prestigious Midlands event on three occasions and graduated third on Iowa State’s all-time wins list.
 
Following his decorated collegiate career, Heskett earned a spot on the 2007 U.S. World Team after winning the U.S. Nationals and U.S. World Team Trials. He represented the United States at the ’07 World Championships in Baku, Azerbaijan with a fifth-place finish. He dropped a tough, three-period battle with a two-time world champion from Russia in the semifinals before wrestling back to finish fifth and was one of five wrestlers to qualify at his weight for the Olympics. Earlier that summer, he won a silver medal at 163 pounds at the 2007 Pan American Games.Less than a week after returning from the World Championships, Heskett was forced to retire from competitive wrestling due to an injury and joined the Ohio State staff.Hired as the volunteer assistant in 2006, Heskett was training for the Olympics while assisting in recruiting, team academic support, cultivating donor and alumni relations and other operational duties. Shortly after his competitive retirement, he was promoted to full-time assistant on Tom Ryan’s staff as the chief recruiter. In addition to his work on the mat, Heskett also assumed responsibility for practice plans, academic progress and community service initiatives.
 
During his tenure at Ohio State, Heskett helped the Buckeyes to four top-10 team finishes at the NCAA Tournament, three NCAA champions and 15 All-Americans. He played a large role in securing the nation’s top recruiting class in 2006 and helped sign a host of top prospects.
 
Heskett began his coaching career at Cal Poly University where he was the head assistant wrestling coach an also earned his master’s degree with honors in Educational Leadership with an emphasis in Athletic Administration. He assisted in all facets of the program, including fundraising, and helped the Mustangs to their highest NCAA placement in nearly 20 years.
 
Leadership and leadership training is another passion of Heskett’s. He was Iowa State’s representative at the NCAA Leadership Conference, a board member of the Children’s Body Image, a former member of the Major Ray Mendoza Leadership Fund and an Ambassador and Public Awareness Speaker for the Ohio State Medical Center. He is the founder and Chief Visionary Officer for h Leadership in Columbus, Ohio, a firm with an array of industry expertsA native of Akron, Ohio, Heskett and his wife Tara have two daughters, Olivia and Ava, and are expecting a son in late July. They will reside at West Point.

M-1 Global’s Vadim Finkelstein is pulling no punches in telling both Strikeforce and the MMA world that his number one fighter, Fedor Emelianenko is ready and will fight in either October or November, regardless of what Scott Coker(CEO of Strikeforce) wants. Finkelstein certainly took a very direct approach when talking to LowKick about a potential Fedor Vs. Werdum fight as opposed to Fedor Vs. Overeem:

“We are ready to fight against anyone, but everyone agrees that the most interesting fight right now is the rematch against Fabricio Werdum. We have one fight left on our contract, so if Strikeforce want to extend it – they should listen to our opinion. Fedor will fight again sometime between October and November. I’ll repeat that again: the only thing fans want to see is Fedor vs Werdum II. Fabricio himself said that he would like to rematch Fedor in Russia. It’s great, but this fight will not happen in Russia…. I can really feel that the rating makers on the US websites really wanted Fedor Emelianenko to suffer from his first “real” defeat. They now have Fedor on the Third Place, and the first is Brock Lesnar. Question: Who’s Brock Lesnar? He has only five professional fights, and one defeat. He is a marketable fighter because of his WWE past. They sell-out 60,000 stadiums for that crap, which no one would even consider watching in Russia. That’s why Brock Lesnar is popular. As for Fedor, he is not a marketable fighter – he’s just the best. He destroyed everyone during 10 years. He has 31 victories.”

Very direct words indeed, and you gotta love the he’s just the best line. Seems like M-1 is turning up the heat for a rematch and an attempt to clear the blemish from Fedor’s record.

Fresh off his TKO win in Strikeforce Challengers last week, SportFight founder and MMA superstar Matt “The Law” Lindland has put together yet another adrenaline-pumping night of mixed martial arts action at the Theater of the Clouds on Saturday, July 10th at 7p. SportFight XXVIII: Boiling Point will offer up a stacked fight card featuring some of the most skilled and exciting athletes from both the Northwest and beyond.

This installment of SportFight will also have a distinct international flavor, featuring two top Brazilian fighters: the nephew of Hermes Franka—Lucca Franka taking on Japanese sensation Eddie Matsuura.

There will be two belts on the line at Middle Weight, Casey Manrique takes on Damian Dantibo.

For the Heavy Weight Title, Daniel Stewart of Team Quest Faces the California sensation DJ Linderman.
“I don’t think I’ve ever had this much talent on a card before,” says Lindland, President of SportFight, LLC. “We’re flying in some top international fighters, in addition to some of the best free agent fighters out there. We’re talent deep, and we’re heavyweight deep. On paper, this could be one of the better shows that we’ve had.

“Top Matchups: Main Event – Heavy Weight Championship

Daniel Stewart (5-1), Team Quest/Newport, OR vs. DJ Linderman (7-1), Yreka, CA

“I like this heavy weight match-up – both these guys have power in both hands and they can both wrestle,” noted Matt Lindland. “This fight will be action packed. It’s scheduled for five rounds but don’t plan on this fight going to the judges’ card.”

Co-Main Event-Middle Weight Championship

Casey Manrique faces Damian Dantibo in this action-packed match-up as these two undefeated fighters meet up for the SportFight Middle Weight title

Fight Card: Main Event – Heavyweight Championship Heavyweight

Daniel Stewart (5-1), Team Quest/Newport, OR vs. DJ Linderman (7-1), Yreka, CA

Co-Main Event–Middleweight Welterweight
Casey Manrique (5-0), Springfield, OR vs. Damian Dantibo (5-0), Eugene, OR

Lightweight
Lucca Franka, Fortaleza-Brazil VS Eddie Matsuura, Omiya Japan fighting out of Fisticuffs Gym

Middle weight
Ray Armstrong, Battle Ground, WA VS John Clift Milwaukie, OR

More fights TBA

About SportFight
Founded in 2003 by Matt Lindland and Randy Couture, SportFight is the leading mixed martial arts promotion in the northwestern United States. Together with its subsidiary brands, “Proving Grounds” and “Clash at the Casino,” SportFight has produced more than 30 live MMA events in Oregon, Nevada and Colorado.

SportFight was Oregon’s first sanctioned mixed martial arts promotion and has served as a showcase for many of the sport’s emerging stars and best-known veterans, such as Sean Sherk, Rameau Thierry Sokoudjou, Jeff Monson, Chris Leben, Ed Herman, Gesias “JZ” Calvancanti, Paul Daley, Chael Sonnen and Dennis Hallman. Furthermore, SportFight has graduated fighters to every major MMA organization, including the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Pride FC, K-1, the International Fight League, BodogFIGHT and Elite XC.

Check out SportFight TV every Saturday at 10 pm on Comcast SportsNet. SportFight has an extensive library of event footage and highlight compilations that are available on DVD at Wal-Mart, Hollywood Video and many other retail locations. For more information, visit HYPERLINK “http://www.sportfight.tv.\” www.sportfight.tv.

Tickets are priced at $132, $48, $35 & $20. Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased at the Rose Quarter Box Office (M-F 10a 5p), all participating Safeway/ TicketsWest outlets, by calling 877.789.ROSE (7673), or at ComcastTIX.com. For more information please visit RoseQuarter.com. Prices do not include service charges. For Groups of 10 and more please call 503.963.4400. To receive event notices, pre-sale opportunities, discounts and prizes join our free Rose Quarter CyberClub at RoseQuarter.com.

Tom Watson has a unique opportunity within the Maximum Fighting Championship.

Already a top-ranked contender for the MFC’s middleweight title and one of the most-potent strikers in the entire organization, Watson is in position to become something that the MFC has never had before – a truly international star.

Because of his mass appeal and social media accessibility, Watson has become a popular figure in his native England and in both countries where he trains – the United States and Canada. His Canadian fan base in particular has grown exponentially thanks in large part to his appearance at MFC 24: Heat XC but Watson is far from forgotten in his homeland or in the U.S.

While the MFC has featured countless fighters over the years in prominent roles and as home-town favorites, Watson has the chance to become the first fighter to have international drawing power.

“I’ve always had a bit of a following in the U.K. due to the fights I’ve been involved in,” explained Watson, who will sport a 12-3 record going into his expected clash at MFC 26 in September.

“It was great to see the Canadian fans appreciate the humor of my (ring) entrance at MFC 24 and I hope to give them more of the same in September. I have been training in America for over three years now so that has helped my exposure in the States as well.”

At MFC 24, Watson strutted to the ring to funky soul music all while sporting a gorilla mask in homage to his nickname “Kong.” But what’s a stylish ring entrance worth if you don’t back it up with some substance when the bell rings? Watson certainly did that, scoring a near-lethal head-kick knockout of Travis Galbraith. The first-round sudden stoppage is most definitely a candidate for the MFC’s Knockout of the Year and instantly put Watson on the map as a contender and budding star.

That convincing win was Watson’s seventh straight positive verdict and was a resounding debut, both in the organization and on North American soil. Watson will get his chance to show the world his talents at MFC 26 when he steps into the ring for the first time on HDNet Fights.

“(Against Galbraith) I remember being thoroughly prepared for a jiu-jitsu battle and didn’t really train too much striking too be honest,” recalled Watson. “But years’ of hard work is always there and as soon as it landed I knew it was over. No one can take my kicks clean on the jaw and not get knocked out. My coach Eric O’Keefe put together a great game plan. We knew what Galbraith’s moves would be and the rest fell into place.”

And so did Galbraith, with a crashing face-first thud to the canvas. Should Watson come away from MFC 26 with another victory tucked securely into his back pocket, he has been assured of a crack at the MFC’s middleweight crown – an emblem that has only been worn once before when Patrick Cote took the honor way back at MFC 9 in March 2006.

“Of course it won’t be easy but nothing worth doing in life is easy. I came into the MFC with the belief that I would become champion. I will achieve this goal,” declared Watson, who is hoping the road to the title goes straight through Drew McFedries – his potential opponent at MFC 26.

“I really hope it is McFedries as for sure he will come and stand and bang with me. I have never been knocked out in 50 fights but he has big power so for the fans that is a great fight. I have no doubt I can do whatever it takes to win and put myself forward to fight whoever the MFC decides.”

One thing for sure with Watson, whatever fights await him, he will undoubtedly do his best at creating as much hype as possible and even fire off a few verbal jousts at his foe. It’s just ingrained in British fighters that part of their job is to heat up the pre-fight antics with some ribbing – good-natured or not. While some in the martial arts world frown on that behavior, it’s a necessary part of the business both for the fighter and the organization to stand out in the crowded world scene.

Like his good friend Paul Daley, Watson isn’t shy about tossing out the quote-worthy lines, shooting them out like a stiff jab.

“Not all British fighters are like that … just the good ones!”

California USA Wrestling Joins the Fight to Save the UC Davis Wrestling Program
 
Fresno, CA – June 28th, 2010 – California USA Wrestling Inc. announced today that they have joined forces with the National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA) to help financially support the fight to reinstate the University of California, Davis wrestling program. The California USA Wrestling Board of Directors recently donated $20,000 to the cause.
 
Duane Morgan, state chair for California USA Wrestling, had this to say, “Wrestling programs throughout the state of California have taken a big hit over the past six months. Due to the elimination of the UC Davis wrestling program, the student-athletes are essentially left with very few options to stay within the state and wrestle at the Division 1 level. We chose to partner with the NWCA in an effort to help formulate a plan that not only translates into the reinstatement of the wresting program at UC Davis, but that also serves as a long term solution for the remaining college wrestling programs in California.”
 
In April, UC Davis abruptly announced that they were eliminating the wrestling program, and three other intercollegiate sports programs, effective July 1, 2010. The $20,000 donation made to the NWCA, by the California USA Wrestling Board of Directors, is an effort to help sustain an ongoing attempt to reinstate the UC Davis Wrestling program, and to help maintain existing Division 1 wrestling programs in the state of California.  Should UC Davis drop the wrestling program as announced, there will be no remaining collegiate wrestling programs in the University of California system.
 
UC Davis head wrestling coach, Lennie Zalesky, issued a public statement within hours of the announcement stating that the wrestling program had been eliminated. According to Zalesky, in the fall of 2009, he was informed by personnel at the University, that no matter what may come to be, football and wrestling were safe at UC Davis, yet the wrestling program was cut without any notice to the student body, student-athletes, coaching staff or coach Zalesky. Further, UC students were not allowed to attend the press conference announcing the elimination of the program.
 
According to Chancellor Linda Katehi, dropping athletics teams and losing opportunities for student-athletes is regrettable but necessary. However, neither Chancellor Katehi, any university administrators or Athletic Director Greg Warzecka ever discussed the prospect of eliminating the sports programs with the students, student-athletes or the coaching staff, despite the fact that the sports programs are largely funded from self-imposed student fees.
 
Mike Moyer, the executive director of the NWCA, feels that despite the financial situation California continually finds itself in, solutions may be better found with the active involvement of all parties.  Moyer stated, “To purposely ignore the student body, student-athletes and the coaching staff, and to ignore the student initiative, in which the student body agreed to a self imposed fee for sports programs, are disrespectful and irresponsible.”

 
Moyer also expressed his gratitude to California USA Wrestling, “The NWCA would like to personally thank Duane Morgan and the entire California USA Wrestling Board of Directors for their support. Their financial contribution is a testament to their continuous resolve to protect the interests of the wrestling community inCalifornia.”
 
The UC Davis wrestling program had the second highest fund-raising numbers (behind football) over the last three years (averaging $65,000/year), the highest alumni/donor support, and one of the most profitable per contest gates of any sport at UC Davis. This specific criterion was supposed to be examined when determining which programs to retain. The elimination of the UC Davis sports programs, which includes wrestling, as well as men’s and women’s swimming, currently effects 73 female and 80 male student-athletes.
 
About California USA Wrestling Inc.:
 
California USA Wrestling Inc. (CA-USAW) is a non-profit corporation that promotes amateur wrestling in many forms to Californians of all ages. California Wrestling is an affiliate of USA Wrestling in Colorado Springs, the national governing body for international-style amateur wrestling in the United States. They are the designated representatives for USA Wrestling in the State of California. CA-USAW educates the California public in both collegiate and international wrestling styles. In addition, the organization conducts and sponsors well-planned wrestling activities, including wrestling camps, clinics and tournaments, and other related programs in order to improve the quality of California wrestling at all competitive levels. 

About The National Wrestling Coaches Association (NWCA):
The National Wrestling Coaches Association, established in 1928, is a professional organization dedicated to serve and provide leadership for the advancement of all levels of the sport of wrestling with primary emphasis on scholastic and collegiate wrestling programs. The membership embraces all people who are interested in amateur wrestling. The NWCA, through its organizational structure, promotes communication, recognition achievement, recommends rules and regulations, sponsors events and serves as an educational and informational source. Additionally, the NWCA strives to foster the sportsmanship and integrity that are the cornerstones of athletic competition.