 ST. PETERSBURG, Rusland (Januari 26, 2016) – Reigning M-1 Challenge middleweight champion Ramadan Emeev will take on Brazilian challenger Maiquel “Big Rig” Falcao in the second M-1 Grand Prix middleweight eliminator, Maart 4 bij M-1 Challenge 65, in Moskou.
The first M-1 Grand Prix match of 2016 is set in the middleweight division as three-time Bellator champion Alexander “Storm” Shlemenko (51-9-0, M-1: 2-0-0) takes on former M-1 Challenge middleweight and light heavyweight titlist Vyacheslav Vasilevsky (27-3-0, M-1: 10-1-0)bij M-1 Challenge 64, Februari 19 in het Olympisch Stadion in Moskou.
The winners of Shlemenko vs. Vasilevsky and Emeev vs. Falcao will advance to the M-1 Grand Prix middleweight championship later this year.
“We tried to get the strongest middleweight fighters and did a great job to give fans the most spectacular match-ups,” M-1 Global president Vadim Finkelchtein zei. “Every single fight is intriguing in M-1 Grand Prix. I can’t guess how these fights will end up. Every single fighter has his advantages. Daarom, I think all of these fights are 50-50.”
Emeev (13-3-0, M-1: 7-1-0), de 2015 M-1 Global Fighter of the Year, is a two-time M-1 Challenge middleweight champion. Born in Azerbaijan but fighting and training out of Markaxhkala, Rusland, Emeev originally captured the vacant M-1 Challenge middleweight crown in 2012 bij M-1 Challenge 35, winning a decision over Mario Miranda. Emeev successfully defended his title in a rematch five months later with Miranda, who was stopped via strikes in the third round at M-1 Challenge 38.
In his next title defense, Emeev lost his title belt at M-1 Challenge 51 as Vasilevsky won by fourth-round stoppage via punches. Zeven maanden later in een rematch, Emeev defeated Vasilevsky by first round submission (choke), and the champion defended his title this past December at M-1 Challenge 63, when American challenger Fioravanti Luigi was unable to continue fighting after two rounds.
Falcao may be making his M-1 Global debut at M-1 Challenge 65, echter, the Brazilian black belt holder is a veteran of 43 professional MMA bouts with 23 knock-outs. The 34-year old Falcao split two fights with Vasilevsky and he was stopped by Shlemenko in the second round at Bellator 69.
M-1 Challenge 64 & 65 zal live worden gestreamd vanuit Rusland in high definition opwww.M1Global.TV. Kijkers kunnen de voorlopige gevechten en belangrijkste kaart bekijken door in te loggen op registreren op zal zijn www.M1Global.TV. Fans kunnen alle van de actie te bekijken op hun computer, alsmede op Android en Apple smartphones en tablets.
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