LAS VEGAS (Június 15, 2016) -World Series of Fighting (WSOF.com) ma bejelentette, hogy Thiago Meller has withdrawn from his scheduled welterweight (170 font) harcában John “Doomsday” Howard (23-12), akik most szembesülnek“Mad” Mike Arrant (15-10) in a middleweight (185 font) bout at the much-anticipated WSOF31: Ivanov vs. Copeland world championship doubleheader Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) esemény, él NBCSN (9 p.m. ÉS/6 p.m. PT) re Foxwoods Resort Casino Mashantucket, Conn. tovább Péntek, Június 17.

Ezenkívül, veretlen Marcus Surin (3-0) of Stamford, Conn. has been tabbed to step in for Sam Watford A tervek szerint könnyűszerkezetes (155 font) preliminary card contest against Christian “The Terminator” Torres (0-0) of Endicott, Y..

Originally hailing from Orlando, Fla., Az 5 láb 9, 28-year-old Arrant, a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu brown belt, resides in Las Vegas, where he is a member of legendary champion Randy “The Natural” Couture’s Xtreme Couture fight squad.

Arrant is looking to return to the win column following a unanimous decision defeat in his last start on August 7, 2015, at the hands of two-time UFC veteran Brock Jardine.

Prior to the loss, Arrant had reeled off six consecutive victories, five of which he produced in the first round, by way of (T)KO vagy benyújtása. A mai napig, 12 az ő 15 professional wins have been finishes.

During the six-fight win streak, Arrant seized his first championship – regional promotion SteelFist Fight Night’s welterweight title – with a first round (5:00) WHO (retirement) a Carl Dieckmann Július 12, 2013.

Like Arrant, the 5-foot-7, 33-year-old Howard boasts a phenomenal finish rate with 15 az ő 23 professional victories having come by way of (T)KO vagy benyújtása.

Howard will make his promotional debut with World Series of Fighting following a second stint with the UFC that spanned seven fights and included wins over Uriah Hall-, Siyar Bahadurzada és Cathal Pendred.

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

Doors at The Grand Theatre at Foxwoods Resort Casino will open at 5 p.m. ÉS, and the first of seven preliminary card bouts will begin at 5:45 p.m.

A teljes előzetes küzdelem kártya patak élőben egy beágyazható videó lejátszó WSOF.com.

In the main event of the five-bout, élni NBCSN tv-közvetítés, reigning World Series of Fighting heavyweight champion Blagoy Ivanov (13-1) will put his title on the line against Josh “Cuddly Bear” Copeland (12-3).

A könnyű együttes fő esemény, szupersztárok Jason "A Kansas City Bandit" Nagy (19-5) és Mike "The Mars" Ricci (11-4) will square off with their division’s number one contender ranking at stake.

WSOF31: IVANOV VS. COPELAND

Főkártya (Élőben a NBCSN)

World Series of Fighting Heavyweight Championship Main Event:
Blagoy Ivanov (Bajnok) vs. Josh Copeland (Kihívó)

Könnyű, Co-Main Event:
Jason Nagy vs. Mike Ricci

Középsúlyú: John Howard vs. Mike Arrant
Featherweight: Luis Palomino vs. Sheymon Moraes
Középsúlyú: Phil Hawes vs. Josh Key

ELŐZETES KÁRTYA (Élőben WSOF.com)

Könnyű: Tom Marcellino vs. Devin Powell
Heavyweight: Juliano Coutinho vs. Justin Willis
Heavyweight: Tyler King vs. Lorenzo Hood
Váltósúlyú: Robert Fonseca vs. Sean Lally
Könnyű: Bruce Boyington vs. Saul Almeida
Bantamweight: Rodrigo Almeida vs. Ben Pierre-Saint
Könnyű: Marcus Surin vs. Christian Torres