Tag Archives: Bobby Cooper

LFA, mixed martial arts, MMA

LFA RETURNS TO MINNESOTA WITH LIGHTWEIGHT SHOWDOWN LFA 41 – MOISÉS vs. PETERSON

April 12, 2018 FNU47 Leave a comment

MAIN EVENT:

THE FINAL RFA LIGHTWEIGHT CHAMPION

THIAGO MOISÉS

vs.

“THE ADMINISTRATOR”

JEFF PETERSON

LIGHTWEIGHT SHOWDOWN

FRIDAY, JUNE 1st LIVE on AXS TV

LIVE at the MINNETONKA BALLROOM

inside the new

MYSTIC LAKE CENTER

PRIOR LAKE, MINNESOTA

Tickets are on sale NOW through MysticLake.com

HOUSTON, Texas – Legacy Fighting Alliance (LFA) CEO Ed Soares announced today that LFA will return to Minnesota on the first day of June with a lightweight showdown between the final RFA lightweight champion and a surging upset artist.

The main event of LFA 41 will feature the return of the final RFA lightweight champion Thiago Moisés when he faces the division’s biggest upset machine Jeff “The Administrator” Peterson. LFA 41 – Moisés vs. Peterson takes place Friday, June 1st at the Minnetonka Ballroom inside the new Mystic Lake Center in Prior Lake, Minnesota. The entire main card will be televised live and nationwide on AXS TV at 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT.

“I am excited to bring LFA back to the Minnetonka Ballroom inside the state of the art Mystic Lake Center”, stated Soares. “We brought four LFA events to Mystic Lake last year. LFA 41 will be the second of four live nationally televised MMA events to take place inside Mystic Lake’s new world-class facility in 2018. Mystic Lake has been a great partner and will now host the return of Thiago Moisés when he faces Jeff Peterson on June 1st.”

Tickets for LFA 41 – Moisés vs. Peterson are available for purchase NOW at MysticLake.com.

Moisés (9-2) recently turned 23-years-old, but has long been considered one of the most exciting lightweight prospects in the world. The Brazilian dynamo submitted Javon Wright in his RFA debut at RFA 28. The win earned Moisés a shot at RFA gold in his next outing at RFA 35. Moisés used this opportunity to secure one of the most memorable submission wins in MMA history. He executed an electrifying and ultra-rare Helicopter Armbar to submit David Castillo. The submission made him the second youngest champion in RFA history, went viral on the internet, and earned him a nominee for “Submission of the Year” at the annual World MMA Awards.

Moisés then defended his RFA lightweight title twice. The first title defense came against Jamall Emmers at RFA 38. The win came with UFC President Dana White sitting cageside and was featured on the seventh episode of Dana White: Lookin’ for a Fight. The second title defense came against Zach Freeman in Freeman’s hometown at RFA 44. During that fight, Moisés broke his hand. The American Top Team product still managed to cruise to a Unanimous Decision victory, but he missed nearly a year of action waiting for his surgically repaired hand to heal. Moisés then re-injured his hand vying for the inaugural LFA lightweight title last summer at LFA 17. Now the BJJ black belt is back and ready to remind the world, that when he is at 100%, he is the top lightweight prospect in the world.

Peterson (9-4) is currently riding an impressive six-fight win streak and hasn’t tasted defeat in over three years. However, the Alliance MMA product really started to make a name for himself last year after signing with LFA. Peterson did this by winning all three of his fights for the promotion against heavily favored opposition. The first win came against top undefeated prospect Bobby Lee via Unanimous

Decision at LFA 12. The second win came against local fan favorite Brandon Jenkins via Split Decision at LFA 20. The third and biggest win came against longtime Bellator star and fellow U.S. Marine Mike Richman via Unanimous Decision in the co-main event of LFA 29.

Now the 28-year-old known as “The Administrator” will be looking to add the final RFA lightweight champion to his list of upsets. This is the next necessary step he will need to take if the Peterson regime plans on taking over as the new ruling administration atop the LFA lightweight division. He has gotten to this point by defying the odds. Peterson has administered his rugged, no-nonsense style of fighting to upset an undefeated prospect, a local favorite, and a popular vet. Now he will up the ante by facing his biggest test to date. When the opening betting odds are released for this fight, expect Peterson to once again be the underdog. He wouldn’t want it any other way. That is where he thrives. A devil dog, seen as an underdog, in a prime time headlining fight is a scary thing. Oorah.

Currently Announced Main Card (Televised on AXS TV at 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT):

Main Event | Lightweight Bout (155 lb)

– Thiago Moisés (9-2) vs. Jeff Peterson (9-4)

Co-Main Event | Lightweight Bout (155 lb)

– Killys Mota (10-0) vs. Bobby Lee (8-1)

Featherweight Bout (145 lb)

– Nate Jennerman (11-3) vs. Kevin Croom (18-8)

Welterweight Bout (170 lb)

– Ben Neumann (12-5) vs. Bobby Cooper (14-7)

Bantamweight Bout (135 lb)

– Raufeon Stots (9-1) vs. Emeka Ifekandu (6-0)

In September 2016, RFA and Legacy FC officials announced that they would be merging to form LFA. This new powerhouse promotion would serve as the premier developmental organization in the sport of Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) starting in January 2017. RFA and Legacy FC have launched the careers of over 130 athletes that have reached the pinnacle of MMA by competing in the UFC.

LFA 41 will be the seventh LFA event to take place in the state of Minnesota. RFA and Legacy FC hosted a combined nine events in the “Land of 10,000 Lakes” before the merger. Six of those events took place under the RFA banner inside the Mystic Lake Casino Hotel. The entire main card of LFA 41 will be televised live and nationwide on AXS TV at 9 p.m. ET / 6 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.

Bellator, mixed martial arts, MMA, Spike TV

CHEICK KONGO INCHES PAST VINICIUS SPARTAN IN ‘BELLATOR 150’ MAIN EVENT ON SPIKE

February 28, 2016 FNU47 Leave a comment

COMPLETE BELLATOR 150 PHOTOS HERE

MULVANE, Kan. (February 26, 2015) – A week removed from the most watched Bellator MMA event in company history, the Scott Coker-led promotion returned to action on SPIKE with “Bellator 150: Kongo vs. Queiroz,” an event that delivered five spectacular main card fights.

In the evening’s main event, Cheick Kongo (24-10-2) intelligently managed the distance between he and Vinicius Spartan (8-4), kicking and jabbing his way to a split decision victory (30-27, 28-29, 29-28).

Spartan did have his moments during the heavyweight encounter, securing takedowns in rounds two and three, followed by a knockdown late. But in the end, Kongo received the benefit of the doubt from the Kansas-appointed judges. The Frenchman has now won two straight, and improved to 6-2 overall under the Bellator MMA banner.

It only took David Rickels (17-4) three minutes and 49 seconds to finish Bobby Cooper (12-6) in front of a sellout crowd at Kansas Star Arena on Friday. Both men had their moments during the action, but after a knee to the body dropped Cooper to his knees, “The Caveman” pummelled his foe with hammerfists until referee John McCarthy called a stop to the action.

Kendall Grove (23-15) stopped Francisco France (13-4-1) with a vicious punch 35 seconds into the second round, winning by knockout. The victory was an emotional one for “Da Spyder,” who recently lost his brother and made it clear his performance was dedicated to his late sibling. Grove has now won three of his last four tilts, all via finish.

Chuka Willis (7-2) handed Gaston Reyno (5-1) the first defeat of his mixed martial arts career on Friday, winning via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27). The scrap went back-and-forth over the course of 15 minutes, with multiple submission attempts and knockdowns by both men. But in the end – much to the delight of the partisan crowd – Willis earned the nod.

Former Shamrock FC Flyweight Champion Rebecca Ruth (6-1) defeated Lena Ovchynnikova (10-4) via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28) in the opening main card fight at “Bellator 150: Kongo vs. Queiroz.” For “Ruthless” the win is the first of her career via the judges’ scorecards and extended her current winning streak to four straight.

Preliminary Card Results:

Kyle Noblitt (2-0) defeated David Hammons (1-2) via TKO (punches)

Rome Lindsay (5-5) defeated Marcio Navarro (14-12) via TKO (punches) 2:30, R1

Chris Harris (5-0) defeated Julian Marquez (2-1) via unanimous decision (29-28, 30-27, 30-27)

Andre Fialho (6-0) defeated Manny Meraz (7-2) via knockout (punches) :29, R1

Gregory Babene (17-11) defeated Brandon Farran (12-11) via submission (rear-naked choke) 3:37, R1

Thai Clark (6-0) defeated Deron Carlis (4-2) via unanimous decision (29-28 x3)

Bellator, mixed martial arts, MMA, Spike TV

ILLNESS REMOVES MARCOS GALVAO FROM CARD, CHEICK KONGO VERSUS VINICIUS QUEIROZ PROMOTED TO MAIN EVENT SLOT

February 26, 2016 FNU47 Leave a comment

MULVANE, Kan. (February 25, 2015) – Over the course of fight week, Marcos “Loro” Galvao (17-6-1) has been battling an illness. After consulting physicians, Bellator officials have decided to to pull him from his Bellator MMA Bantamweight Title defense against former champion Eduardo Dantas (17-4).

After making weight inside Kansas Star Arena at 10 a.m. CT, Dantas was paid his show money. The fight will be rescheduled in the near future.

As a result, Cheick Kongo (23-10-2) against Vinicius Queiroz (8-3) will now serve as the headliner and David Rickels (16-4) versus Bobby Cooper (12-5) is the new co-main event. Rounding out the SPIKE-televised card will be a middleweight attraction pitting Kendall Grove (22-15) against Kiko France (13-3-1), the Bellator MMA debut of Lena Ovchynnikova (10-3), when she fights Rebecca Ruth (5-1) and Gaston Reyno (5-0) – fresh off his new exclusive multi-fight contract with Bellator MMA – will fight against Chuka Willis (6-2).

“Bellator 150: Kongo vs. Queiroz,” airs live on Spike at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT, while preliminary bouts will stream live on Bellator.com and The Bellator Mobile App.

Complete “Bellator 150: Galvao vs. Dantas 2” Fight Card:

Bellator MMA Heavyweight Main Event: Cheick Kongo (23-10-2) vs. Vinicius Queiroz (8-3)

Bellator MMA Lightweight Co-Main Event: Dave Rickels (16-4, 1 NC) vs. Bobby Cooper (12-5)

Bellator MMA Middleweight Feature Bout: Kendall Grove (22-15) vs. Francisco France (13-3-1)

Bellator MMA Featherweight Feature Bout: Gaston Reyno (5-0) vs. Chuka Willis (6-2)

Bellator MMA Flyweight Feature Bout: Lena Ovchynnikova (10-3) vs. Rebecca Ruth (5-1)

Preliminary Card:

Bellator MMA Heavyweight Feature Bout: David Hammons (1-1) vs. Kyle Noblitt (1-0)

Bellator MMA Middleweight Feature Bout: Brandon Farran (12-10) vs. Gregory Babene (16-11)

Bellator MMA Welterweight Feature Bout: Manny Meraz (7-1) vs. Andre Fialho (5-0)

Bellator MMA Middleweight Feature Bout: Chris Harris (4-0) vs. Julian Marquez (2-0)

Bellator MMA Lightweight Feature Bout: Marcio Navarro (14-11) vs. Henry Lindsay (4-5)

Bellator MMA Featherweight Feature Bout: Thai Clark (5-0) vs. Deron Carlis (4-1)

Bellator MMA Lightweight Feature Bout: Jason Witt (7-2) vs. Jonathan Gary (11-6)

Bellator, mixed martial arts, MMA, Spike TV

‘BELLATOR 150: GALVAO VS. DANTAS 2’ THIS FRIDAY – UPDATED FIGHT CARD INFORMATION

February 23, 2016 FNU47 Leave a comment

Click above for “What to Watch: Gavao vs. Dantas”

SANTA MONICA, Calif. (February 22, 2015) – This Friday, Bellator MMA brings a world championship matchup between two highly skilled mixed martial arts practitioners when bantamweight champion Marcos “Loro” Galvao (17-6-1) defends his strap against former champion and former friend and training partner, Eduardo “Dudu” Dantas (17-4) at “Bellator 150: Galvao vs. Dantas 2.

The event emanates from the Kansas Star Arena in Mulvane, Kansas this Friday, February 26, and airs live on Spike at 9 p.m. ET/8 p.m. CT, while preliminary bouts will stream live on Bellator.com and The Bellator Mobile App. Tickets for “Bellator 150: Galvao vs. Dantas 2,” which start at just $27, are on sale now at KansasStarEventCenter.com or Ticketmaster.com, as well as the Kansas Star Arena box office.

In addition to the title fight, a heavyweight co-main event of Cheick Kongo (23-10-2) against Vinicius Queiroz (8-3) will anchor the number two spot. Also on the card, Kendall Grove (22-15) takes on Francisco “Kiko” France (13-3-1), hometown favorite David Rickels (16-4, 1 NC) will return to action against Bobby Cooper (12-5), plus the Bellator MMA debut of newly signed women’s flyweight Lena Ovchynnikova (10-3), who takes on Rebecca Ruth (5-1).

“Loro,” who has fought for world-renowned promotions the likes of World Extreme Cagefighting and Shooto since 2003, will be competing for the 11^th time under the Bellator MMA banner. The 34-year-old is presently in the midst of a four-fight winning streak and has emerged victorious in seven of his last eight scraps. In his last outing, Galvao finished Joe Warren at “Bellator 135: Warren vs. Galvao” via submission to win his first-ever championship and fulfil a promise he made to his mother before her unfortunate passing.

Meanwhile, Dantas will be looking to duplicate the success he had against Galvao in their first meeting, which resulted in a second-round knockout at “Bellator 89.” Last May, the 27-year-old Nova Uniao product dispelled of Mike Richman via unanimous decision at “Bellator 137: Halsey vs. Grove.” The Bellator Season 5 Bantamweight Tournament winner is looking to become a two-time bantamweight champion come October 23.

Kongo will be making his eighth appearance under the Bellator MMA banner, looking to add to his impressive promotional mark of 5-2. The Parisian native has fought a who’s who in the mixed martial arts landscape, with notable wins against Mirko Cro Cop, Pat Barry, Matt Mitrione, and Alexander Volkov already on his record. In his last outing – which just so happened to be inside the Kansas Star Arena — Kongo impressively defeated Volkov via unanimous decision.

After nearly two years out of action, Queiroz returned to the Bellator MMA cage against Ewerton Teixeira at “Bellator 139: Kongo vs. Volkov,” defeating his fellow Brazilian opponent via second round arm-triangle choke. “Spartan” hopes to plant the seeds for a busy 2016 with the matchup against Kongo, where a win can undoubtedly place him in the midst of the heavyweight title picture.

Grove capped off 2015 with an emphatic knockout of Joey Beltran at “Bellator 143: Warren vs. Davis,” in September. The winner of“The Ultimate Fighter: 3,” has fought professionally since 2003 for promotions all around the world, notably ProElite and UFC. This will be “Da Spyder’s” sixth appearance under the Bellator MMA banner as he hopes to climb back towards a 185-pound title shot – he competed for the gold last year against Brandon Halsey.

A veteran of Strikeforce, “Kiko” France has strung together a five-fight winning streak as of late, most recently handing the formerly undefeated Ben Reiter the first loss of his young career at “Bellator 146: Kato vs. Manhoef.” It’s safe to classify the 33-year-old Arizona native as a “submission specialist,” with 12 of his 13 wins as a professional coming by way of making his opponent tap.

A Bellator MMA event in Mulvane, Kansas just wouldn’t be the same without “The Caveman,” who will return to action for the first time since competing against Michael Chandler this past November. Rickels always comes ready to put on a show, whether it’s on his way to the cage, or when he’s taking on a who’s who of Bellator MMA lightweight talent. The 27-year-old will be making his 16^thappearance under the promotional banner.

The last time Bobby Cooper fought inside the Kansas Star Arena, he took home a closely contested split decision victory over“Bellator 147” co-headliner Pablo Villaseca. Now, “Super Duper” will look to move to 3-0 under the Bellator MMA banner when he faces Rickels in hostile territory. It’s worth noting that the Missouri native has only lost twice in his last eight MMA appearances.

Hailing from Ukraine, Ovchynnikova will enter the fray fresh off a new exclusive, multi-fight contract with Bellator MMA. “Hunter” has previously fought the likes of Joanne Calderwood and at only 28-years-old has already competed professionally since 2006. Now, Ovchynnikova looks to solidify herself as a top contender in the budding women’s flyweight division on February 26 against a tough foe in Ruth.

“Becky” Ruth was undefeated in 2015, winning all three of her matchups by technical knockout under the Shamrock Fighting Championships banner. The lone loss on the Missouri native’s record came against Resurrection Fighting Alliance champion Jocelyn Jones-Lybarger, via controversial split decision.

Complete “Bellator 150: Galvao vs. Dantas 2” Fight Card:

Bellator MMA Bantamweight Title Main Event: Marcos Galvao (17-6-1) vs. Eduardo Dantas (17-4)

Bellator MMA Heavyweight Co-Main Event: Cheick Kongo (23-10-2) vs. Vinicius Queiroz (8-3)

Bellator MMA Lightweight Feature Bout: Dave Rickels (16-4, 1 NC) vs. Bobby Cooper (12-5)