Category Archives: DAZN

BELLATOR 206: MOUSASI vs. MACDONALD WEIGH-IN RESULTS & PHOTOS

 

  

EVENT AIRS EXCLUSIVELY ON DAZN TOMORROW AT 9 P.M. ET / 6 P.M. PT

 

 

WEIGH-IN PHOTOS | WEIGH-IN VIDEO HERE

  

Complete Bellator 206 Weigh-in Results:

Middleweight World Title Main Event: Gegard Mousasi (184.4) vs. Rory MacDonald (184.9)

Heavyweight Co-Main Event: Quinton “Rampage” Jackson (254.4) vs. Wanderlei Silva (226.9)

Welterweight World Grand Prix First Round Bout: Douglas Lima (170) vs. Andrey Koreshkov (169.3)

Featherweight Main Card Bout: Aaron Pico (145.7) vs. Leandro Higo (145.1)

Women’s Strawweight Main Card Bout: Keri Taylor-Melendez (116) vs. Dakota Zimmerman (115.6)

Featherweight Main Card Bout: Gaston Bolanos (145.2) vs. Ysidro Gutierrez (145.3)

 

Preliminary Card:

160-Pound Catchweight Preliminary Bout: Adam Piccolotti (159.1) vs. James Terry (160)

Featherweight Preliminary Bout: Jeremiah Labiano (144.9) vs. Justin Smitley (144.2)

Women’s Featherweight Preliminary Bout: Amber Leibrock (145.4) vs. Arlene Blencowe (145.3)

Featherweight Preliminary Bout: Josh San Diego (139.2) vs. Joe Neal (139.9)

Bantamweight Preliminary Bout: Cass Bell (136) vs. Ty Costa (136)

Bantamweight Preliminary Bout: Isaiah Gonzalez (135.8) vs. Khai Wu (136)

Featherweight Preliminary Bout: Jacob Ycaro (145.3) vs. Ignacio Ortiz (144.9)

Featherweight Preliminary Bout: Laird Anderson (145.8) vs. Ahmed Abdelaziz (147.3)*

Light Heavyweight Preliminary Bout: Chuck Campbell (205.6) vs. Joseph Ramirez (202.4)

Lightweight Preliminary Bout: Anthony Figueroa Jr. (156) vs. Samuel Romero (156)

 

*Missed weight

CURTIS ‘50 CENT’ JACKSON AND BELLATOR MMA ANNOUNCE COMPREHENSIVE PARTNERSHIP FEATURING A NEW APPAREL LINE AND CHAMPAGNE SPONSORSHIP

 

 

‘50 Cent’ and Le Chemin du Roi Champagne to Give the Winner of the Bellator Welterweight World Grand Prix One Million Dollars

 

LOS ANGELES – Bellator MMA, a global combat sports leader owned by Viacom, has joined forces with entertainment superstar and business mogul Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson on an extensive partnership and licensing deal featuring a new apparel line based upon Jackson’s popular “Get The Strap” trademark and integrating Jackson’s elite champagne brand, Le Chemin du Roi in future Bellator events.

 

 

 

A passionate and knowledgeable MMA fan, Jackson has already agreed to re-invest a portion of his deal by offering one million dollars in cash to the winner of the upcoming Bellator Welterweight World Grand Prix that will air exclusively on DAZN.

 

 

 

“We are thrilled to partner with such a legendary icon who has been a friend to the Bellator family for quite some time. The “Get The Strap” apparel line is just the beginning of many joint ventures we will explore together,” said Scott Coker, President of Bellator MMA.

 

 

 

“I am excited to partner with the Bellator Viacom franchise. Mixed martial arts yields some of the most action-packed events in the world. I’m excited for people to see how I plan to shake up MMA with the integration of my ‘Get The Strap’ trademark as well as my luxury champagne Le Chemin du Roi.” said Jackson.

 

 

 

Leveraging his viral “Get The Strap” moniker, Bellator and Jackson will launch a global apparel line that will be fashionable and edgy, with distinctive attitude.

 

 

 

Also, Jackson’s popular new champagne, Le Chemin du Roi, will become fully integrated into Bellator events from in-arena signage to mat placements and more.

 

 

 

“Bellator has a roster filled with some of the most charismatic athletes in the world,” adds Jackson.  “As my relationship with Bellator deepens, you will see me moving into fighter management opportunities that will allow me to integrate top stars into both scripted and unscripted projects across the Viacom networks, as well as the other outlets I have access to.”

 

 

 

About Curtis “50 Cent” Jackson 

50 Cent, born Curtis James Jackson III, is an award-winning rapper, entrepreneur, actor and producer from Queens, New York. Recognized as one of the most talented and prolific music artists of his time, the Grammy Award winner rose to fame with his record-shattering debut album, Get Rich or Die Tryin’ and has since sold more than 30 million albums worldwide and been awarded numerous prestigious accolades. Jackson has leveraged his star power to cross over with unparalleled success as an entrepreneur, actor and producer. From Get Rich or Die Tryin’ being one of the fastest selling albums in history to creating one of the most influential deals in hip-hop with the sale of Vitaminwater, Jackson continues to break records. He currently has the critically-acclaimed #1 show on Starz, “Power,” in which he not only co-stars but also serves as executive producer and director leading into season six.

 

 

 

Jackson has carved out a thriving television and film career. In 2005, he founded G-Unit Film & Television, Inc. which has produced a wide variety of content across numerous platforms and sold a myriad of shows to various networks. Among these is “Power,” which premiered in June 2014. Starz and Lionsgate extended Jackson & G-Unit Film & Television, Inc’s overall deal to develop new projects for the network, including “Tomorrow, Today,” based on a screenplay penned by Jackson and the “BMF” project.  Additional credits include the variety show “50 Central” on BET and two dramas for Sony Crackle “The Oath,” the networks most-watched new original series and “RPM,” which is currently in development. Jackson’s successful film career has included roles in several blockbusters: most recently “Den of Thieves” co-starring opposite Gerard Butler, which Jackson has signed on to produce the sequel along with Butler, Antoine Fuqua’s boxing drama “Southpaw,” alongside Jake Gyllenhaal and “Spy” with Melissa McCarthy.  Jackson will also reprise his role in “Escape Plan 2.”

 

 

 

The exceptional businessman serves as CEO of G-Unit Records, which he founded in 2003 and has since signed a host of multi-platinum artists. Jackson continues to dominate the charts with hits like the recently released “Still Think I’m Nothing,” and he is continuously recording new music.

 

 

 

Jackson continues to extend his brand, which encompasses a broad spectrum of businesses including: footwear and apparel, fragrance, video games, publishing, headphones, Le Chemin du Roi champagne, vodka, health drinks, Casper mattresses and supplements.

 

 

 

Jackson was represented on this deal by Stephen J. Savva and Eric Feig.

GUSTAVO LOPEZ REPLACES LEVY MARROQUIN IN  COMBATE AMERICAS  WORLD BANTAMWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP MAIN EVENT AGAINST JOSE ALDAY  

Former world championship challenger Gustavo Lopez (Pictured below) will replace Levy Marroquin in the Combate Americas bantamweight world championship main event bout tomorrow, Friday, Sept. 14, live on DAZN, Univision and Univision Deportes Network.

LIVE ON DAZN, UNIVISION, & UNIVISION DEPORTES NETWORK
FROM PHOENIX, ARIZ. TONIGHT, FRIDAY, SEPT. 14

FLYWEIGHT CO-MAIN EVENT:
TRACY CORTEZ VS. KAREN CEDILLO

FEATURED LIGHTWEIGHT BOUT: 
RAFA “GIFTED” GARCIA  VS. LARUE “THE CANNIBAL” BURLEY

Tickets for “Combate Americas: Marroquin vs. Alday” on sale now

PHOENIX – September 13, 2018 – Combate Americas today announced that former world championship challenger Gustavo Lopez (8-3) will challenge Jose “Pochito” Alday (11-3-1) in the premier Hispanic Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) sports franchise’s bantamweight (135 pounds) world championship main event in Phoenix tomorrow, Friday, Sept. 14.

Alday’s original world championship opponent, Levy Marroquin (11-2) of Monterrey, Mexico, was forced to withdraw from the commitment due to symptoms of influenza detected by the Arizona Boxing Commission physician, Dr. Ken Ota.

The much-anticipated, world championship event’s three-fight main card airs live on television in Spanish in the U.S. on both Univision (12 a.m. ET/PT) and Univision Deportes Network (UDN) (12 a.m. ET/9 p.m. PT)

The complete, nine-bout fight card airs in its entirety on DAZN, the live and on-demand sports streaming platform, in English in the U.S. and Canada, beginning with the first preliminary card bout, at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT.

The 29-year-old Lopez of Las Vegas, Nev. via Yakima, Wash. is a five-time Combate Americas veteran who, in his last start under the promotional banner, notched an impressive, first-round (2:34) submission (guillotine choke) of Steve Swanson, the brother of MMA superstar Cub Swanson, in the main event of Combate Americas’ debut event in Mexico City, Mexico.

A member of MMA legend Randy Couture’s Xtreme Couture fight camp in Las Vegas, Lopez has produced all of his victories in La Jaula, the Combate Americas cage, by way of (T)KO or submission.

Lopez previously challenged fellow star John “Sexi Mexi” Castaneda for the vacant Combate Americas world bantamweight championship on October 14, 2016, but was stopped via fourth round (2:24) TKO (punches) by Castaneda in an epic, see-saw battle. Because Castaneda failed to make weight for the fight, he was not awarded the title.

Alday, who will celebrate his 27th birthday tomorrow, is a native of Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico and resident of Tucson, Ariz., coming off his career-best victory to date, a split decision win over Castaneda in the main event of the historic, first, live Univision and UDN simulcast of MMA action with “Combate Estrellas I” in Los Angeles, Calif. on April 13.

Priced from $30, tickets for “Combate Americas: Marroquin vs. Lopez” are on sale at CelebrityTheatre.com and Ticketon.com.

Doors at Celebrity Theatre open at 5 p.m. PT, with the first preliminary bout will beginning at 7 p.m.

DAZN AND COMBATE AMERICAS (MMA) SIGN LANDMARK MULTIYEAR DISTRIBUTION DEAL IN U.S. AND CANADA 

DAZN and Combate Americas have announced a landmark, multiyear rights agreement that will bring Combate Americas live MMA action to fans in English in the U.S. and Canada.  MMA superstars Gilbert “El Nino” Melendez (below right) and Julianna “The Venezuelan Vixen” Pena (below left) will call the action alongside play-by-play announcer Max Bretos.

First Fight: Marroquin vs. Alday Bantamweight World Championship Bout on Friday, Sept. 14 

Gilbert Melendez, Julianna Peña and Max Bretos to Call the Action on DAZN

NEW YORK, Sept. 13, 2018 – DAZN, the live and on-demand sports streaming platform, today announced a landmark, multiyear rights agreement with Combate Americas, the premier Hispanic Mixed PhoeMartial Arts (MMA) sports franchise. The deal will bring a minimum of 13 fight nights per year to DAZN.

Beginning with this weekend’s card headlined by Levy Marroquin vs. Jose “Pochito” Alday, DAZN will be the exclusive home of Combate Americas’ English-language broadcasts in the United States and Canada. The Marroquin vs. Alday bout will stream live from Phoenix on DAZN at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT on Friday, Sept. 14.

Calling the action inside “La Jaula” – the Combate Americas cage – will be MMA superstars Gilbert “El Niño” Melendez and Julianna “The Venezuelan Vixen” Peña, alongside play-by-play announcer Max Bretos.

Combate Americas is a fast-rising MMA organization known for its action-packed fights and growing audience within the sport. This monumental deal will bring Combate Americas to English-language viewers for the first time.

“We are thrilled to be in partnership with an innovative and global entertainment leader like DAZN, and to be able to showcase the fast-paced, aggressive and in-your-face style of fighting that Combate Americas offers and that, 25 years after I launched the UFC, has re-defined MMA as ‘Mucha Mas Accion,'” said Campbell McLaren, Combate Americas CEO.

“We continue to break new ground in this sports industry, and this deal speaks directly to our pursuit of reaching new heights.”

“Chapter one of DAZN’s entrance into the U.S. market is focused on combat sports,” said Joseph Markowski, DAZN SVP, North America. “And with 80 percent of Combate Americas’ fights ending in a stoppage, we are excited to bring that type of action to fight fans.”

Following the announcement of deals across Matchroom Boxing, Bellator MMA, and the World Boxing Super Series, the Combate Americas deal puts the number of fight nights per year on DAZN at 80+.

The winner of the bantamweight (135 lbs.) matchup between Marroquin, who hails from Monterrey, Nuevo Leon, Mexico and Alday of Tucson, Ariz. by way of Hermosillo, Sonora, Mexico, will be crowned the first Mexican MMA world champion in history as well as the first world champion in Combate Americas’ history.

Fans can sign up for DAZN for only $9.99 per month by registering at DAZN.com or by downloading the DAZN app on a wide range of connected devices, including smart TVs, PCs, smartphones, tablets, and game consoles. For more information, fans can follow DAZN’s U.S. social channels: @DAZNUSA on Facebook, @DAZN_USA for Twitter, and DAZN_USA for Instagram.

*Cards subject to change.

ABOUT DAZN
DAZN is a global live and on-demand sports streaming service created by fans, for fans, that is leading the charge to provide access to sports anytime, anywhere. DAZN guarantees no long-term contract, no bundles, just one affordable price for access to all of the service’s sports on connected devices including Smart TVs, smartphones, tablets and games consoles. DAZN is currently available in Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Japan, Canada, and Italy, and just launched for $9.99 a month in the U.S. – where it is set to become a must-have for fight fans, with 80+ fight nights already lined up from Matchroom Boxing, Bellator MMA, the World Boxing Super Series, and Combate Americas.

FEDOR EMELIANENKO MEETS CHAEL SONNEN IN SEMIFINALS OF BELLATOR HEAVYWEIGHT WORLD GRAND PRIX AT NYCB LIVE, HOME OF THE NASSAU VETERANS MEMORIAL COLISEUM ON LONG ISLAND SATURDAY, OCT. 13

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TICKETS FOR BELLATOR 208: FEDOR VS. SONNEN ON SALE THIS FRIDAY, JULY 27

 

 

LOS ANGELES – The greatest heavyweight of all time Fedor Emelianenko (37-5, 1 NC) will battle the trash-talking Chael Sonnen (31-15-1) in the second semifinal of Bellator’s Heavyweight World Grand Prix. The highly anticipated matchup will emanate from NYCB LIVE, home of the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, N.Y., a mere 24 hours after Matt Mitrione takes on Ryan Bader on the opposite side of the bracket.

 

 

 

Tickets for Bellator 208: Fedor vs. Sonnen are available 24-hours early through a special Bellator Nation pre-sale running exclusively on Thursday, July 26. Tickets will go on sale to the general public Friday, July 27 at 10 a.m. ET and can be purchased at the NYCB LIVE box office, as well as Ticketmaster and Bellator.com. Please note that tickets are not available at the box office on the first day of public on sale.

 

 

 

The event will be broadcast LIVE on Paramount Network at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT on Saturday, October 13 and will stream LIVE on DAZN, while preliminary action will stream on Bellator.com and globally on the Bellator Mobile App. Additional bouts will be announced in coming weeks.

 

 

 

Fighting out of Stary Oskol, Belgorod Oblast, Russia, Fedor will enter the Bellator MMA cage for the second time this year, and third time overall, when he takes on Sonnen in the Bellator Heavyweight World Grand Prix semifinals on Saturday, Oct. 13. The sambo fighter looks to build off of his impressive knockout victory over Frank Mir (18-12) at Bellator 198, which came just 48 seconds into the bout. A former PRIDE FC Heavyweight Champion and PRIDE 2004 Heavyweight World Grand Prix Champion, “The Last Emperor” now has his eyes set on the Bellator MMA Heavyweight belt; a title that he is merely two wins away from. With 28 of his 37 career victories ending in a finish, Emelianenko will undoubtedly pursue yet another highlight-reel knockout when he squares off with “The American Gangster” for a place in the World Grand Prix final.

 

 

 

Hailing from West Linn, Ore., Sonnen is fresh off his first-round victory over “Rampage” Jackson at Bellator 192 in the opening round of the Bellator Heavyweight World Grand Prix earlier this year. With other notable wins over the likes of Wanderlei Silva, Michael Bisping and “Shogun” Rua already under his belt, Sonnen now hopes to add the legendary Fedor to his brilliant resume of renowned victories. After jumping up in weight class to compete in the biggest tournament in the promotion’s history, the former University of Oregon wrestler doesn’t seem to have lost a step. Sonnen will look to join the select few who have ever been able to dethrone Emelianenko when he enters the cage on Oct. 13 at NYCB LIVE.

 

Updated Bellator 208: Fedor vs. Sonnen Fight Card:

 

 

Heavyweight World Grand Prix Semifinal Bout: Fedor Emelianenko (37-5, 1 NC) vs. Chael Sonnen (31-15-1)

 

*Card subject to change.

 

****

FNU Combat Sports Show: UFC Fight Night Recap, Pacquiao vs. Matthysse still on, “Big Rig” Retires

This week on the FNU Combat Sports Show, we discuss the latest news in MMA and boxing, recap the past week’s events and preview the upcoming events this week. We also discuss Walter “2 Guns” Wright winning his main event fight against Mark DeLuca a couple days after we interviewed him last week. Wright’s split decision win came in part due to a persistent jab that frustrated DeLuca and left him bloodied, bruised and exhausted by the final bell. Of course bringing up this fact gets us all going on the absolute necessity of the jab in any combat sports fighter’s toolbox.

Among the news we touch on:

The rumors about Manny Pacquiao’s next fight with Lucas Matthysse being in jeopardy, Manny and his team say everything is on track.

Johny “Big Rig” Hendricks retires (also forgot to mention Rashad Evans retired as well).

 

The latest cast for The Contender Series, set to return this August featuring 16 up and coming young boxers in the 160-pound division.

 

Lyoto Machida’s defection from the UFC to Bellator and Bellator’s blockbuster deal with DAZN, a streaming service working to take over new markets this year, including the US and Italy.

 

Here is the link to our full broadcast:

 

https://www.dropbox.com/s/fhh628mp15en9md/tomtonyrichjune282018.mp3?dl=0

BELLATOR & DAZN SIGN NINE-FIGURE, MULTI-YEAR DISTRIBUTION DEAL

 

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LIVE SPORTS STREAMING PLATFORM TO DELIVER SEVEN EXCLUSIVE STAR-STUDDED BELLATOR MMA EVENTS PER YEAR

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CHAMPION VS. CHAMPION – GEGARD MOUSASI-RORY MACDONALD MIDDLEWEIGHT TITLE FIGHT, PLUS ‘RAMPAGE’ JACKSON-WANDERLEI SILVA IV HIGHLIGHT FIRST EVENT ON SEPT. 29 FROM SAP CENTER AT SAN JOSE

 

LOS ANGELES – Bellator, a leading global combat sports franchise owned by Viacom, home to the world’s premier entertainment brands, and DAZN, the world’s largest dedicated live sports streaming service and part of Perform Group, today announced a multi-year landmark distribution agreement.

 

 

 

The nine-figure deal will feature seven exclusive stacked fight cards per year on DAZN and another 15 that are simulcast across Paramount Network and DAZN. All fights will stream in any country where DAZN is available. As part of the platform’s global expansion, DAZN will launch in the U.S. and Italy in 2018, with the service already live in Canada, Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Japan.

 

 

 

“The exciting new partnership with DAZN is a game-changer for Bellator,” said Bellator President Scott Coker. “The investment will enable us to continue expanding our roster with free agents that make sense, so we can put on PPV-worthy fight cards that fans want to see. Plus, on DAZN’s worldwide platform, our fights will be seen live for the first time to new audiences around the globe.”

 

 

 

“It’s simple; fans want to see great fighters in competitive fights so we’ve handed the keys to Scott Coker and his venerable team to go out and recruit even more top-level talent to further stack Bellator fight cards and build on their success,” said DAZN CEO James Rushton.  “With the combination of this investment and our recent announcement to bring more than 30 nights of boxing to the platform annually, DAZN will be a must-have for fight fans in the U.S.”

 

 

 

“The DAZN partnership speaks to the incredible growth of Bellator into a global sports powerhouse and high-valued franchise in the Viacom portfolio,” said Kevin Kay, President, Paramount Network, TV Land and CMT.

 

 

 

The deal begins with an epic event on Saturday, Sept. 29 from SAP Center at San Jose. The card features a highly anticipated middleweight title fight pitting Gegard Mousasi (44-6-2) against Rory MacDonald (20-4), who is moving up a weight class for a title shot against the 185-pound champ, along with the fourth fight in the legendary rivalry between Quinton “Rampage” Jackson (37-13) and Wanderlei Silva(35-13).

 

 

 

Also included on Sept. 29, will be the opening fight of Bellator’s first-ever Welterweight World Grand Prix, which will feature eight of the best welterweight fighters on the planet. The Bellator Welterweight World Grand Prix will be a major component of the first year of the multi-year agreement between Bellator and DAZN.

 

 

 

An exclusive online presale for this event takes place tomorrow, June 27 through Thursday, June 28, with tickets going on sale to the general public on Friday, June 29 at 10 a.m. PT. Tickets start at just $30 and will be available at the ThreatMetrix Ticket Office at SAP Center at San Jose, as well as Bellator.com and Ticketmaster.

 

 

 

The event will air live on DAZN at 10 p.m. ET/7 p.m. PT. Additional bouts will be announced in the coming weeks.  DAZN, which now streams 15,000 live events and 100 million hours of sports content globally each year, will be available in the U.S. this September with exact pricing and dates being announced this summer.

 

 

 

Mousasi vs. MacDonald:

 

 

 

Gegard Mousasi impressed in his promotional debut over former Bellator middleweight champion Alexander Shlemenko, a win that earned him a shot at Rafael Carvalho, where 185-pound gold was on the line. Now, after a decisive victory against Carvalho at Bellator 200, Mousasi will defend his crown against Rory MacDonald, entering the bout with his current unbeaten streak at seven fights. “The Dreamcatcher,” who trains out of The Netherlands, holds one of the most impressive resumes in all of the sport, at one time winning the STRIKEFORCE light heavyweight title, as well as the DREAM light heavyweight and middleweight titles.

 

 

 

Over the last several years, “The Red King” Rory MacDonald has become the most popular Canadian mixed martial artist due to his classic stand-up wars and wins over some of MMA’s best in Paul Daley, Nate Diaz, Tyron Woodley, B.J. Penn and Demian Maia. Bellator’s welterweight champion joined the Viacom-owned promotion in 2016 and went on to defeat Douglas Lima for the welterweight title at Bellator 192. Now, the Tristar Gym-trained fighter sets his sights on winning gold in not one, but two separate weight classes.

 

 

 

“Rampage” vs. Silva:

 

 

A six-fight veteran of Bellator, “Rampage” Jackson’s legendary career has seen him compete against some of the top names in the sport, generating a loyal army of fans along the way. The former PRIDE and UFC champion is the proud owner of many epic highlight reel slams and knockouts that he has racked up throughout his epic battles with the likes of Chuck Liddell, Dan Henderson, “King Mo,” Kevin Randleman and, perhaps most-notably, his trilogy with fellow Bellator athlete Wanderlei Silva, who he now meets at heavyweight on Sept. 29.

 

 

Wanderlei Silva’s wars with “Rampage,” Tito Ortiz, Mirko Cro Cop, Vitor Belfort, Dan Henderson, Kazushi Sakuraba, Chuck Liddell and Michael Bisping remain some of the more memorable bouts in MMA history. “The Axe Murderer” is far from ready to close the book on his illustrious career, returning to action against a man he has already competed against three times before. In addition to the PRIDE middleweight title, Silva’s trophy case includes awards for “Fight of the Year” (2003, 2004, 2007), KO of the Year (2008) and multiple “Fight of the Night” awards. Most recently, the Brazilian native made his Bellator debut against Chael Sonnen in the main event of Bellator: NYC.

 

 

Updated Bellator Fight Card:

 

Middleweight World Title Bout: Gegard Mousasi (44-6-2) vs. Rory MacDonald (20-4)

 

Heavyweight Feature Bout: Quinton “Rampage” Jackson (37-13) vs. Wanderlei Silva (35-13)

 

Welterweight World Grand Prix First Round Bout

 

 

*Card subject to change.