Category Archives: MMA

mixed martial arts, MMA, New England Fights

LUPO AND HART BOTH LOOKING TO GET IN THE WIN COLUMN AT NEF 32

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Lewiston, Maine (January 3, 2018) – New England Fights (NEF) returns to Lewiston onSaturday, February 3, 2018 with the fight promotion’s next mixed-martial-arts event, “NEF 32: Super Saturday.”  Earlier today, NEF announced the addition of an amateur lightweight bout to the card.  Stacy Lupo (0-1) will take on David Hart (0-2) at a fight weight of 155-pounds.

Stacy Lupo made his NEF cage debut in the summer of 2016, facing fellow forty-something athlete Dr. Steve Bang (1-1).  Lupo and Bang went deep into the third round in a grueling, back-and-forth battle before Bang was able to finish the fight by TKO.  Prior to stepping in the cage that night, Lupo, a former wrestler at Nokomis Regional High School in Newport, Maine, already had more than three decades worth of martial arts experience.  He holds black belts in both Taekwondo and Shotokan karate.  Lupo competed in amateur boxing and kickboxing in the 1980s and 1990s.  Currently, he is a member of The Outlet based in Dexter, Maine and also operates Lupo’s Mid Maine Karate.

“I’m very unhappy with my first showing in the MMA ring,” said Lupo. “I feel I let down my fans and my students. I’m hoping to redeem myself in this next match. I heard Mr. Hart wants a stand-up fight, and that’s what I’m hoping for too. I’d like to showcase my skills, so I look forward to February 3rd.”

Like his opponent, David Hart is also looking for his first victory in the MMA cage.  He made his debut last summer at “NEF 30” in Bangor in a losing effort against Zach Faulkner (1-0).  Hart took Faulkner into the second round before getting submitted.  He returned a few weeks later at “NEF 31” in Portland and lost again via submission against 56-year-old Gary Carr (1-0).  Now, Hart is looking forward to testing his striking skills against another striker in the form of Lupo.  Hart represents Kenney’s MMA of Lisbon, Maine.

“I look forward to fighting in Lewiston,” said Hart. “Lupo looks like a tough opponent and has good striking. I am up to the challenge and want to get my first win and the first win for Kenney’s MMA. It will be a great fight.”

NEF’s next mixed-martial-arts event, “NEF 32: Super Saturday,” will see the company make its return to the Androscoggin Bank Colisee in Lewiston, Maine.  The event is scheduled to take place on Saturday, February 3, 2018.  Tickets are on-sale now online atwww.TheColisee.com.

About New England Fights

New England Fights (“NEF”) is a fight events promotions company. NEF’s mission is to create the highest quality events for Maine’s fighters and fans alike. NEF’s executive team has extensive experience in combat sports management, events production, media relations, marketing, legal and advertising.

mixed martial arts, MMA, New England Fights

BOYINGTON RETURNING TO NEF CAGE AFTER TWO-YEAR ABSENCE

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Lewiston, Maine (December 29, 2017) – New England Fights (NEF) returns to Lewiston on Saturday, February 3, 2018 with the fight promotion’s next mixed-martial-arts event, “NEF 32: Super Saturday.”  Earlier today, NEF announced the addition of a professional catchweight bout to the card.  Bruce “Pretty Boy” Boyington (14-11) has signed to face Taylor Trahan (7-8) at a fight weight of 150-pounds.

The fight will be the first for Boyington in the NEF cage since February 2016 when he successfully defended the NEF Lightweight Title against Jon Lemke (7-8).  It was Boyington’s third defense of the belt since winning it in the late summer of 2014.  After the Lemke defense, Boyington relinquished the championship in order to sign with the World Series of Fighting (WSOF).

While he has fought on many of the largest stages in the world over the past two years, including Madison Square Garden in New York City and halfway across the globe in Russia, Boyington is looking forward to his homecoming and the opportunity to once again fight before his many Maine fans.

“Man, I couldn’t possibly be more excited to get inside the NEF cage, where I have molded my career, built my fan base and learned so much about myself over the years,” said Boyington.  “I am so hungry to entertain people that I can guarantee everyone will want to see what’s going down! I live for this, and on February 3rd, there will be some of the best MMA that has ever been on display from the State of Maine, and I’m grateful and humbled by the opportunity.  My opponent is a respectable guy that I believe loves to fight and I want that in there.  I wish him the very best in preparation, and I thank (NEF owners) Matt (Peterson) and Nick (DiSalvo) once again for providing me a platform.”

Boyington currently owns and operates Boyington’s Taekwondo of Bangor, Maine.  He also trains with Young’s MMA in the same city.

Taylor Trahan is a familiar face to NEF fans.  He has competed twice for the promotion in the past.  Trahan submitted Matt Denning (5-7) in the first round of their meeting at “NEF 25.”  He returned to Maine just weeks later at “NEF 26” in a losing effort to Aaron Lacey (4-1).  Trahan is coming off a win over Conor Barry (3-2) last month in New Hampshire.  He represents Team Link of Hooksett.

“I’m looking forward to returning to NEF,” said Trahan.  “They always put on a good show and treat the fighters right. I’m really looking forward to fighting Bruce.  He definitely is the most experienced fighter I’ll be going up against so far.”

NEF’s next mixed-martial-arts event, “NEF 32: Super Saturday,” will see the company make its return to the Androscoggin Bank Colisee in Lewiston, Maine.  The event is scheduled to take place on Saturday, February 3, 2018.  Tickets are on-sale now online at www.TheColisee.com.

M-1, mixed martial arts, MMA, Russia

M-1 Arena grand opening and M-1 Challenge 100 to highlight 21st season for M-1 Global

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In January the new M-1 Arena is scheduled to open in Saint Petersburg
SAINT PETERSBURG, Russia (December 29, 2017) — The grand opening of the state-of-the-art M-1 Arena in Saint Petersburgh, in addition to the celebration of M-1 Challenge 100 later in 2018, will highlight M-1 Global’s 21st season.
Plans in 2018 also include more events, expansion into new countries and, as the No. 2 MMA organization in the world, to keep giving its fans world-class competition, entertaining match-ups, innovative developments and even a few surprises.
M-1 Global president Vadim Finkelchtein discussed a few of these subjects (see below) prior to the holidays.
Can you tell us about the new M-1 Arena?
VF: “M-1 Arena is an absolutely unique structure seating a maximum of 3000. It is built in the form of the Colosseum, stone and wood, with an incredible dome made of glulam, which gives the place perfect acoustics. Not only can we promote sporting events, but also music concerts. M-1 Arena allows us to have even more events and realize new ideas like, for example, a reality show. M-1 Arena will be multifunctional but martial arts will be the main form of entertainment held there.”
M-1 Challenge was more international last year in terms of showcasing more fighters from different countries like USA, Portugal, UK, Canada, South Korea, China, etc.  Do you plan to expand your fighter base even more this year and, if so, what countries are you targeting for fighters?
VF: “Usually, we hire fighters from countries where our events are being broadcasted. If we have new contracts with the countries from where we don’t have representative fighters, or only have a few of them, we are going to increase their number. The same for countries where we’ve held events because fans desire to see the local athletes fighting in the Rage. We give them an opportunity to see that.”
With the success of female MMA stars around the world do you plan to add a female division in 2018?
VF: “One day we will probably create a female division in M-1 Global. Right now, though, we don’t have enough strong female fighters to do it, yet. As soon as we are ready to make this happen, it will be done, but we don’t want to open a new division just to check the box. We want the best fighters to compete at the highest level.”
M-1 Global is closing in on your 100th M-1 Challenge event.  Do you plan to promote your 100th event in 2018?  If so can you provide any additional information about when, where, special plans, etc.
VF: M-1 Global has already promoted more than 200 events, including 85 M-1 Challenges, which was created in 2008. I think that this event will happen either in Saint-Petersburg or in Moscow, but we still have a lot of time left and a dozen other events before it. We are going to take care of it a bit later.”
M-1 has developed fighters who’ve moved on to the UFC and other organizations.  How do you feel about that trend?  Does it frustrate you that you to spend time building a fighter and then have him move on, or do you look at it as a compliment that M-1 Global develops fighters who can compete in the UFC and any other organization?
VF: “We can consider this situation from different perspectives. I’m not happy to let my best fighters go, of course, but it is what it is, and we are not ready to compete with UFC yet. Sometimes our fighters leave us. From another perspective, we are happy that our fighters who leave keep winning fights and become the top competitors in other promotions. It proves that the level of M-1 Global fighters is equal to the level of UFC fighters. The top athletes who left M-1 Global for UFC are in top positions there and other promotions don’t have such results. Other organization may make their fighters popular but, as soon as they move to UFC, they start losing and get released.
“Our company is probably the second MMA promotion in the world and when some fighters move to the strongest league on the planet, they take a step forward, which I like much better than when they move to weaker promotions than M-1 Global just to make more money.”
Any plans to do anything different this year than in the past, outside of the grand opening of the M-1 arena and possible 100th event?
VF: “The main difference will be that we are going to have our own home, M-1 Arena, which means we will be able to hold even more events. We’d like to have two events each month, 24 events a year. We opened our own TV channel (M1global.tv) and next year, MMA fans from former Soviet Republics will have an opportunity to watch all the fights. Using our iOS and Android App, viewers from all over the world can watch old and new fights right now, and next year we are going to make it even better. We are also going to create our own studio to produce different content, probably a new reality show with fighters from different countries.”
Will you have showcase M-1 Medieval fights this coming year?
VF: “Apparently, we will have some medieval fights in 2018, but the only issue is that we have a lot of fighters under contract, so it is not easy to find a place for M-1 Medieval fights on our cards. We make knight fights in regions where they are popular, like in Ingushetia and Finland in 2017, because fans demonstrated to us that they want to see them. I hope one day we’ll have more resources for them.”

INFORMATION:
Twitter & Instagram:
@M1GlobalNews
@Vadim_finkelchtein
@M1Global
Facebook:
boxing, FNU Combat Sports Show, mixed martial arts, MMA, Rich Bergeron, Tom Padgett, Tony Penecale, UFC

FNU Combat Sports Show: Year End Special

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Tom, Tony and Rich discuss the week’s boxing and MMA news, kick around the idea of Floyd Mayweather, Jr. facing CM Punk in the Octagon, and preview the upcoming events for this weekend. UFC 219 features an amazing matchup of the top female fighters in the world in Holly Holm and Cris “Cyborg” Justino. Tony also invites us to his fantasy football championship parade in Philadelphia.

Listen live here:

FITETV, mixed martial arts, MMA, Rizin FF

RIZIN FIGHTING FEDERATION WORLD GRAND PRIX 2017

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RIZIN FF World Grand Prix 2017 PPV
Dec. 29 Weights
Dec. 29 & 31 LIVE on PPV from Japan

  OFFICIAL DEC. 29TH WEIGHTS
FIGHT ORDER
RED
BLUE
１ 

(10min/1R, 5min/2R)
RIZIN MMA rules
75.0 kgs (Elbow allowed)
SATORU KITAOKA
75.0kgs / 165 lbs.
KIICHI KUNIMOTO
75.0kgs / 165 lbs.
２ 

(5min x 3R)
Female MMA rules
57.0 kgs
SHIZUKA SUGIYAMA
57.0kgs / 125 ½ lbs.
KANA WATANABE
56.95kgs / 129 ½ lbs.
３ 

(5minx3R)
RIZIN MMA Special rules
KIZAEMON SAIGA
62.60kgs / 138 lbs.
KAI ASAKURA
62.70kgs / 138 lbs.
４

 
(5min x 3R) 61.0 kgs

Bantanweight GP
Reserve Match
ANTHONY BIRCHAK
60.85kgs / 134 lbs.
JAE HOON MOON
60.95kgs / 134 lbs.
５

 

(10min/1R, 5min/2R)
RIZIN MMA rules
66.0 kgs
HIROYUKI TAKAYA
65.95kgs / 145 lbs.
AZJAVKHLAN BAATAR
65.75kgs / 144 ½ lbs.
６

 

(5min x 3R)
Female MMA rules
70.0 kgs (Elbow allowed)
KING REINA
70.0kgs / 154 lbs.
CINDY DANDOIS
68.60kgs / 151 lbs.
７
(10min/1R, 5min/2R)
RIZIN MMA rules
93.0 kgs (Elbow allowed)
JIRI PROCHAZKA
92.95kgs / 204 ½ lbs.
KARL ALBREKTSSON
92.40kgs / 203 ½ lbs.
８ 
(3min x 3R)

Female MMA Special rules
95.0 kgs
GABI GARCIA
107.70kgs / 237 lbs.
SHINOBU KANDORI
73.75kgs / 162 ½ lbs.
９ 

(5min x 3R) 61.0 kgs
Bantanweight GP QF1
KHALID TAHA
60.85kgs / 134 1/s lbs.
TAKAFUMI OTSUKA
61.0kgs / 134 ½ lbs.
１０
(5min x 3R) 61.0 kgs
Bantanweight GP QF2
KEVIN PETSHI
60.80kgs / 134 lbs.
SHINTARO ISHIWATARI
61.0kgs / 134 ½ lbs.
１１

 

(5min x 3R) 61.0 kgs
Bantanweight GP QF3
IAN MACCALL
60.45kgs / 133 lbs.
MANEL KAPE
60.40kgs / 133 lbs.
１２

 

(5min x 3R) 61.0 kgs
Bantanweight GP QF4
KYOJI HORIGUCHI
60.75kgs / 133 ½ lbs.
GABRIEL OLIVEIRA
61.0kgs / 134 ½ lbs.
 
DEC. 31st RIZIN WORLD GRAND PRIX MATCHES
(Men’s Bantamweights – semifinals & final & Women’s Super-Atomweights final)
SPECIAL HEAVYWEIGHT ATTRACTION
Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic (35-11-0, 27 KO/TKO, 5 SUB), Croatia
vs.
Tsuyoshi Kosaka (27-19-2, 8 KO/TKO, 6 SUB), Japan
LIGHTWEIGHTS
Takanori “The Fireball Kid” Gomi (18-6-0, 13 KO/TKO, 6 SUB), Japan
vs.
Yusuke Yachi (18-6-0, 5 KO/TKO, 1 SUB), Japan
WOMEN FLYWEIGHTS
Shinju “Juju” Auclair (1-0-0, 1 SUB), USA
vs.
Chelsea LaGrasse (pro debut), USA
Kickboxing
Yamato Fujita, Japan vs. Mitsushisa Sunabe, Japan
Tenshin Nasuikawa, Japan vs. TBA
(all fights & fighters subject to change)
WHAT:               RIZIN FF World Grand Prix 2017 Pay Per View
WHEN:              Friday, Dec. 29, 2017 – 1 a.m. ET / 10 p.m. PT
                          Sunday, Dec. 31, 2017 — 5:00 a.m. ET / 2:00 a.m. PT
WHERE:           Saitama Super Arena * Saitama City, Japan
 
PROMOTER:    RIZIN FF
LIVE AIRING: The Dec. 29 and 31 (1 a.m. /10 p.m. PT start) will be live-streamed worldwide (excluding Japan on the FITE.TV platforms for $19.99 or the two-day RIZIN Pack special offer for only $29.99. Fans may simply download the FITE app – free to download from iTunes and Google Play – and then cast the fight to the big screen by using the instant stream-to-TV function. The FITE app works with any Wi-Fi connected television around the world, iOS and Android devices, as well as streaming devices such as Roku, Chromecast and more. Fans may also watch the fights live on the FITE website at www.fite.tv from any computer.
Integrated Sports Media will distribute via cable and satellite PPV on New Year’s Eve (Dec. 31 – 5:00 a.m. ET / 2:00 a.m. PT start) extravaganza live in North America via iN Demand, Vubiquity, and DISH in the U.S., as well as on SaskTel and Telus in Canada, for a suggested retail price of only $19.95.
ANNOUNCERS: “Showdown” Joe Ferraro and former MMA fighter Frank Trigg
INFORMATION:
Twitter: @FiteTV, @IntegratedPPV
LFA, mixed martial arts, MMA

LFA KICKS OFF 2018 IN SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA WITH LFA 30

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MAIN EVENT:
“CURTIOUS”
CURTIS MILLENDER
vs.
“THE PHOENIX”
NICK BARNES
 
WELTERWEIGHT WAR
 
 
CO-MAIN EVENT:
 
MEXICO’S SUBMISSION ACE
FERNANDO PADILLA
vs.
BRAZIL’S BJJ BLACK BELT
TALISON SOARES
 
FEATHERWEIGHT SHOWDOWN
 
FRIDAY, JANUARY 12th LIVE on AXS TV
COSTA MESA HALL at the OC FAIRGROUNDS 
COSTA MESA, CALIFORNIA
 
Tickets are on sale NOW through CageTix.com/LFA
LAS VEGAS, Nevada – Legacy Fighting Alliance (LFA) CEO Ed Soares announced the promotion will kick off 2018 with an action-packed event in southern California.
The main event of LFA 30 will feature the long-awaited clash between southern California kingpins and top LFA welterweights “Curtious” Curtis Millender and Nick “The Phoenix” Barnes. LFA 30 – Millender vs. Barnes takes place Friday, January 12th at the Costa Mesa Hall at the OC Fairgrounds in Costa Mesa, California. The entire main card of LFA 30 – Millender vs. Barnes will be televised live and nationwide on AXS TV at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT.
“I’m excited to kick off 2018 by bringing LFA back to southern California”, stated Soares. “Curtis Millender and Nick Barnes are coming off big wins in LFA headlining bouts where they won in enemy territory. Now they get to face each other in the main event of LFA 30 on their home turf in a perfect headliner to start the new year.”
Tickets for LFA 30 – Millender vs. Barnes are available for purchase NOW at CageTix.com/LFA.
Millender (13-3) returns home to the building where he fought and won his first seven fights. The Orange County juggernaut is looking to build off a perfect 2017 where he won three fights, including back-to-back LFA headliners. His most recent win came via highlight reel Head Kick KO in the main event of LFA 24. Millender will meet Barnes (12-2) in a long-awaited showdown between two of southern California’s finest. The welterweight stars started their careers in the southern California regional circuit, moved on to Bellator, and will finally meet in the main event of LFA 30. Barnes, like Millender, is coming off an impressive win in an LFA headliner this past August at LFA 20.
While the main event will feature a rivalry between two of the top welterweights in LFA, the co-main event will feature a rivalry between two of the LFA featherweight division’s most talented jiu-jitsu practitioners.
Fernando Padilla (10-1) put the division on notice in October, when he submitted longtime RFA vet Darrick Minner with a Triangle-Armbar in the first round of their co-main event bout at LFA 25. Padilla, who is a 10th Planet Jiu-Jitsu brown belt, has now won 90% of his fights by first round stoppage. He will now face a man equally dangerous on the ground when he meets Talison Soares (9-2) in the co-main event of LFA 30. Soares is a jiu-jitsu black belt from the famed Checkmat BJJ team who has made a name for himself competing in his native Brazil. Soares has a 100% finishing rate in the nine bouts he has won and will now make his international debut in the co-main event of LFA 30.
Currently Announced Main Card (Televised on AXS TV at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT):
 
Main Event | Welterweight Bout (170 lb)
– Curtis Millender (13-3) vs. Nick Barnes (12-2)
Co-Main Event | Featherweight Bout (145 lb)
– Fernando Padilla (10-1) vs. Talison Soares (9-2)
Flyweight Bout (125 lb)
– Maikel Perez (4-1) vs. Charlie Alaniz (11-2)
Middleweight Bout (185 lb)
– Craig Wilkerson (7-3) vs. Jordan Wright (8-0)
Welterweight Bout (170 lb)
– Christian Aguilera (8-4) vs. Maycon Mendonça (6-3)
Bantamweight Bout (135 lb)
– Vince Cachero (3-0) vs. TBD
In September 2016, Legacy FC and RFA officials announced that they would be merging to form the premier developmental organization in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) starting in January 2017. RFA and Legacy FC have launched the careers of over 150 athletes that have reached the pinnacle of MMA by competing in the UFC.
LFA 30 will serve as the second LFA event to take place in the state of California after the merger. RFA hosted eight events inside “The Golden State” before the merger. The entire main card of LFA 30 will be televised live and nationwide on AXS TV at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT.
Please visit LFAfighting.com for bout updates and information. LFA is on Facebook at Legacy Fighting Alliance. LFA is also on Instagram at @LFAfighting and Twitter at @LFAfighting.
mixed martial arts, MMA, Rizin FF

RIZIN on FITE – a year in the making

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RIZIN’s closing 2017 with two live events on FITE this Friday the 29th and Sunday the 31st. After a whole year of action- packed events and a multi – PPV tournament it is time to see the culmination of it all.
Things are getting hotter than ever with the full line-up already known as well as the two special guests who will join: Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic and Takanori “The Fireball Kid” Gomi.
Each show is $19.99 Two-show pack available for only $29.99. Streams live on FITE worldwide outside of Japan.

2-Day Pack: RIZIN Fighting Federation World Grand-Prix 2017

RIZIN Fighting Federation World Grand-Prix 2017: 2nd Round
29th of December Fight card:
Satoru Kitaoka vs Strasser Kiichi
Shizuka Sugiyama vs Kana Watanabe
Kizaemon Saiga vs Kai Asakura
Anthony Birchak vs Jae Hoon Moon
Hiroyuki Takaya vs Azjavkhlan Baatar
KING Reina vs Cindy Dandois
Jiri Prochazka vs Karl Albrektsson
Gabi Garcia vs Shinobu Kandori
Khalid Taha vs Takafumi Otsuka
Kevin Petshi vs Shintaro Ishiwatari
Ian McCall vs Manel Kape
Kyoji Horiguchi vs Gabriel Oliveira
 
RIZIN Fighting Federation World Grand-Prix 2017: Final Round
31st of December Fight card:
McCall/Kape vs Horiguchi/Oliveira
Otsuka/Taha vs Petshi/Ishiwatari
Rena Kubota vs. Irene Cabello
Maria Oliveira vs. Kanna Asakura
Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipović vs. Tsuyoshi Kosaka
S. Nozawa-Auclair vs. Chelsea LaGrasse
Takanori “The Fireball Kid” Gomi vs. Yusuke Yachi
Mitsuhisa Sunabe vs. Yamato Fujita
Tenshin Nasukawa vs Yuta Hamamoto
Plus GP Final Match-up’s
 
All fights and fighters are subject to change.
mixed martial arts, MMA, New England Fights

EWER WILL TRY TO MAKE CHAMPIONSHIP HISTORY AT NEF 32

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Lewiston, Maine (December 28, 2017) – New England Fights (NEF) returns to Lewiston on Saturday, February 3, 2018 with the fight promotion’s next mixed-martial-arts event, “NEF 32: Super Saturday.” Earlier today, NEF announced the addition of a professional championship bout to the card. CJ Ewer (3-0) will meet Kemran Lachinov (5-2) for the vacant NEF MMA Professional Welterweight Title.

 

 

The bout will put Ewer in a unique position – to hold titles simultaneously in two weight divisions. It is a feat that has been attempted but never accomplished in NEF. Ewer is the reigning professional middleweight titleholder of the organization. He captured that title with a victory over Mike Hansen (5-8) last summer at “NEF 30” in Bangor, Maine. It took Ewer less than two minutes to finish Hansen with an arm triangle choke. The win not only earned Ewer the middleweight title but also a nomination for “2017 Submission of the Year.” Should Ewer emerge victorious over Lachinov on February 3, he will stand atop both the welterweight and middleweight divisions. He represents Young’s MMA of Bangor.

 

 

“My opponent is fierce with a granite jaw and an iron will,” said Ewer. “He’s by far the toughest fighter I’ve faced, and there will be a lot of pressure going into this fight given that it’s a title fight. I always rise to the level of competition and promise you’ll see the best, most prepared CJ you’ve ever seen.”

 

 

Kemran Lachinov is a seven-year veteran of the New England MMA scene. He is also a two-fight veteran of the Bellator cage where he remains undefeated. Lachinov is currently riding a three-fight win streak which began in early 2017. He will look to continue that success into 2018 starting with his bout against Ewer. Lachinov represents Team Link of Ludlow, Massachusetts.

 

 

NEF’s next mixed-martial-arts event, “NEF 32: Super Saturday,” will see the company make its return to the Androscoggin Bank Colisee in Lewiston, Maine. The event is scheduled to take place on Saturday, February 3, 2018. Tickets are on-sale now online at www.TheColisee.com.

M-1, mixed martial arts, MMA, Russia

M-1 Global’s 20th anniversary a smashing success in 2017

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M-1 Global president Vadim Finkelchtein
SAINT PETERSBURG, Russia (December 27, 2017) — M-1 Global celebrated its 20thanniversary in style this past year, reestablishing itself as the preeminent mixed-martial-arts organization in Europe and Russia.
M-1 promoted 13 Challenges in 2017, 11 across Russia, as well as one each in China and Finland. Fighters from around the world competed including MMA superstars such as Sergey Kharitonov and Alexander Shlemenko, as well as rising stars Alexey Kunchenko and Artem Frolov.
M-1 Global founder and president Vadim Finkelchtein reviewed the 2017 season, answering a series of questions below:
Overall, how do you evaluate the 2017 M-1 Challenge season in terms of achievements and accomplishments as a promotional company?
VF: “First of all, we increased the number of events. Some were even rated among top 5 monthly sporting events on television, which is really an incredible achievement. We’ve almost finished building our new M-1 Arena and produced our own M-1 Be Strong Protein milkshake.”
You promoted events in different countries this past year like Finland.  Was M-1 embraced by those fans and, if so, why do you think so?
VF: “We held our first event in Finland and it was really successful. M-1 Challenge 82took place in Hartwall Arena, one of the largest venues in Finland, located in the capital of Helsinki. Many fans came to watch our promotion’s debut in that country and it became one of the biggest MMA events in Finland history. Scandinavia is a very interesting region for us. We have many fighters from Finland and next year we are going to hold another event there.
“We also had a big event in Harbin, China, which was a part of cultural program of Economic Forum. Many VIP visitors and thousands of fans gathered to watch the fights and it was a superb event. China is a prospective MMA market and we are going to work further, featuring more fighters from this country, and promote one or two event a year there.
“Next year, we are going to promote even more events in other countries, planning to hold M-1 Challenge shows in Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Turkey, China, Finland, Germany and the USA.”
What was the M-1 highlight of the year?
VF: “This past year we had a lot of remarkable events and fights, so it’s very difficult to choose just one highlight. If I had to choose, the rematch between Alexander Shlemenko and Brandon Halsey was the highlight of the year. Thousands of people in Saint Petersburg on June 1st came to see the rematch and that liver-kick Alexander delivered made the crowd go crazy. In the first fight, Brandon won in 35 seconds, so Alexander wanted to revenge fast and it took him just 25 seconds. That was unbelievable and unforgettable!”
Compared to past years in what areas did M-1 improve in 2017?
VF: “Each year we have more high-level fighters and that is the main difference. MMA has been developing around the world and the competition is always getting tougher. Only the best fighters receive an opportunity to sign a contract with M-1 Global. We have an opportunity to choose the best fighters, increasing the level of fights, to make it impossible to predict the winners in advance. Furthermore, we increased the number of events and TV coverage with some new TV contracts worldwide.”
This was your 20th year.  When you started 20 years ago did you envision the success M-1 has had in MMA?
VF: “I could not imagine MMA would become so popular. I went through the entire MMA evolution and the past 20 years I’ve been working on the promotion to make it better each year. The path was not easy because many years ago this kind of sport was considered criminal. Many called it fights without rules and I had to work hard to make people think about it as a legitimate sport.”
M-1 added the flyweight division this past year.  Why and was it successful in the eyes of fans?
VF: “Flyweight fighters can produce incredible performances. It was necessary for us to create this division because we knew that there were lot of good flyweight fighters. They wanted to fight in M-1 and we made it happen. We already have the first champion and a several tough contenders. In 2018, the flyweight division will be very interesting.”
M-1 CHALLENGE CHAMPIONS
HEAVYWEIGHT (265 lbs., 120,2 kg)
VACANT
LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT (205 lbs., 93,0 kg)
VACANT
MIDDLEWEIGHT (185 lbs., 83,9 kg)
 
Artem Frolov (10-0-0 (M-1: 7-0-0), Russia
WELTERWEIGHT (170 lbs., 77,1 kg)
 
Alexey Kunchenko (17-0-0 (M-1: 9-0-0), Russia
LIGHTWEIGHT (155 lbs., 70,3 kg)
 
Damir Ismagulov (14-2-0 (M-1: 9-1-0), Russia by way of Kazakhstan
FEATHERWEIGHT (145 lbs., 65,8 kg)
 
Khamzat Dalgiev (10-1-0 (M-1: 7-1-0), Russia
BANTAMWEIGHT (135 lbs., 61,2 kg)
 
Movsar Evloev (8-0-0 (M-1: 8-0-0), Russia
 
FLYWEIGHT (125 lbs., 56,7 kg)
 
Aleksander Doskalchuk (8-1-0 (M-1: 3-4-1), Ukraine
INFORMATION:
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mixed martial arts, MMA, New England Fights, women's MMA

2017 ROOKIE OF THE YEAR RETURNING TO THE CAGE AT NEF 32

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Lewiston, Maine (December 27, 2017) – New England Fights (NEF) returns to Lewiston onSaturday, February 3, 2018 with the fight promotion’s next mixed-martial-arts event, “NEF 32: Super Saturday.”  Earlier today, NEF announced the addition of an amateur women’s bantamweight bout to the card.  Jayda “Lil Killah” Bailey(1-0) is scheduled to face Amanda Gallo (0-1) at a fight weight of 135-pounds.

Jayda Bailey made headlines this year when she became the youngest athlete to ever compete in a sanctioned MMA fight in Maine.  A mere eight days after her 18th birthday, the legal minimum age for an MMA participant in the state, Bailey put together a dominant performance in her debut against Danae Dostie (0-1) at “NEF 31.”  It took her just over 90-seconds to pound out a TKO victory.  So impressive was the win that it earned Bailey a nomination for “Rookie of the Year.”  The fans agreed and voted the Hermon, Maine teenager as the recipient of the award.  Bailey is currently a member of Young’s MMA of Bangor.  This summer, upon graduation from high school, she plans to relocate to Albuquerque, New Mexico where she will join Jackson Wink MMA Academy – home to many top UFC stars.

“I can’t wait to step into the cage again and display my abilities,” said Bailey.  “I look to get better every time I fight, and I’m excited to be facing a new challenge.”

That new challenge will come in the form of Amanda Gallo.  Gallo trains with Robson Moura Nations United (RMNU) based in Tampa, Florida.  She made her cage debut in the fall of 2016 against Laine Orabona (2-2) on a fight card in Georgia.  The thrilling contest went the distance and saw Gallo lose a very close split decision on the judges’ scorecards.  She will come to Maine looking for the first win of her young career.

NEF’s next mixed-martial-arts event, “NEF 32: Super Saturday,” will see the company make its return to the Androscoggin Bank Colisee in Lewiston, Maine.  The event is scheduled to take place on Saturday, February 3, 2018.  Tickets are on-sale now online atwww.TheColisee.com.