Tag Archives: Costa Mesa

LFA, mixed martial arts, MMA

LFA BRINGS WOMEN’S FLYWEIGHT TITLE FIGHT  TO SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

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LFA 54 – MAZO vs. YARIWAKI

MAIN EVENT:

LFA WOMEN’S FLYWEIGHT CHAMPION
SABINA “COLOMBIAN QUEEN” MAZO
vs.
LFA WOMEN’S FLYWEIGHT TITLE CHALLENGER
CAROLINE “JAPA” YARIWAKI
WOMEN’S FLYWEIGHT WORLD TITLE FIGHT
FRIDAY, NOVEMBER 16th LIVE on AXS TV
LIVE at COSTA MESA HALL
OC FAIR & EVENT CENTER
COSTA MESA, CALIFORNIA
Tickets are on sale NOW through LFAtix.com

LAS VEGAS, Nevada – LFA CEO Ed Soares announced today that LFA will return to southern California in November with a women’s flyweight title fight headlining LFA 54.

 

 

 

The main event of LFA 54 will bring a highly-anticipated women’s world title fight to Orange County. The headliner will see undefeated LFA women’s flyweight champion Sabina “Colombian Queen” Mazo defend her title against BJJ black belt and Brazilian stalwart Caroline “Japa” Yariwaki. LFA 54 – Mazo vs. Yariwaki takes place Friday, November 16th at Costa Mesa Hall at the OC Fair & Event Center in Costa Mesa, California. The entire main card will be televised live and nationwide on AXS TV at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT.

 

 

 

“I am excited to bring the LFA women’s flyweight championship to southern California”, stated Soares. “This will be our sixth show in my home state of California.  Sabina Mazo is excited to defend her title in her adopted hometown after she recently had an opponent pull out just a few days before her last fight. Mazo will now face top Brazilian prospect Caroline “Japa” Yariwaki at LFA 54.”

 

 

 

Tickets for LFA 54 – Mazo vs. Yariwaki are available for purchase NOW at LFAtix.com.

 

 

 

Mazo (5-0) is the 21-year-old LFA women’s flyweight champion. The Colombian wunderkind signed with LFA when she was 19-years-old and took the MMA world by storm in 2017. She burst on to the global scene three weeks after her 20th birthday at LFA 9. This happened when she knocked out 82nd Airborne Army veteran Jamie Thorton with a jaw-dropping head kick that went viral on mainstream media and MMA media outlets alike. The Kings MMA product doubled-down in her sophomore appearance for LFA by knocking out Minnesota National Guard member Linsey Williams with a nearly identical first round head kick at LFA 23. The “Colombian Queen” finally received her crown this past April. The title winning performance came courtesy of a unanimous decision over Shannon Sinn at LFA 37, which saw Mazo provide a brilliant display boxing and clinch work, as well as her signature Muay Thai skills. The Medellín, Colombia native now looks to begin her reign as champion with another masterful performance at LFA 54.

 

 

 

Yariwaki (7-2) will be making her highly-anticipated international MMA debut after building a name for herself in her home country of Brazil. The 31-year-old is a second degree black belt in Jiu-Jitsu that just celebrated seven years of being a black belt in her country’s most famous martial art on October 7th. Her head coach is her husband Werique Silva, who is a black belt in the Chinese martial art of Sanda. Yariwaki has a purple belt in Sanda and has used her well-rounded skill set to gain a reputation as a relentless finisher in her native Brazil. The Strong Team co-founder made her professional debut in 2016 and has earned 7 wins in her career, while finishing 86% of those opponents. Yariwaki is known by her nickname “Japa”, because she was born in Brazil to Japanese descendants just like fellow Belém, Brazil native Lyoto Machida. Yariwaki will look to follow her fellow Belemense’s success in the sport by capturing LFA gold. History will also be made at LFA 54 as Mazo vs. Yariwaki will be the first women’s bout to headline and LFA event.

 

 

Currently Announced Main Card (Televised on AXS TV at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT):

 

 

 

 

 

Main Event | Women’s Flyweight Title Bout (125 lb)

– Sabina Mazo (5-0) vs. Caroline Yariwaki (7-2)

 

 

 

 

 

In 2017, RFA and Legacy FC merged to form LFA, the premier developmental organization in Mixed Martial Arts. The combined forces of LFA launched the careers of over 140 athletes that have reached the pinnacle of MMA by competing in the UFC. In May 2018, the promotion joined the London Trust Media Holdings group of companies.

 

 

 

LFA 54 will be the sixth LFA event to take place in the state of California. RFA hosted eight events inside “The Golden State” before the merger. The entire main card of LFA 54 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.

LFA, mixed martial arts, MMA

LFA STARTS 2018 WITH 1-2-3 PUNCH!

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LFA 30 MAIN EVENT:
“CURTIOUS”
CURTIS MILLENDER
vs.
“THE PHOENIX”
NICK BARNES
WELTERWEIGHT WAR
FRIDAY, JANUARY 12th LIVE on AXS TV
COSTA MESA HALL AT OC FAIR GROUNDS
COSTA MESA, CALIFORNIA
TICKETS ON SALE 12-11-17 AT CAGETIX.COM
LFA 31 MAIN EVENT:
“THE WOLFMAN”
BOBBY MOFFETT
vs.
KNOCKOUT SENSATION
THANH LE
INTERIM FEATHERWEIGHT WORLD TITLE
FRIDAY, JANUARY 19th LIVE on AXS TV
COMERICA THEATRE
PHOENIX, ARIZONA
 TICKETS ON SALE 12-11-17 AT COMERICATHEATRE.COM
LFA 32 CHAMPIONSHIP DOUBLEHEADER:
“ALL IN”
BRENDAN ALLEN
vs.
“FLUFFY”
ANTHONY HERNANDEZ
MIDDLEWEIGHT WORLD TITLE
+
“SUPERMAN”
RYAN SPANN
vs.
“THE SPARTAN”
ALEX NICHOLSON
LIGHT-HEAVYWEIGHT WORLD TITLE
FRIDAY, JANUARY 26th LIVE on AXS TV
GOLDEN NUGGET HOTEL & CASINO
LAKE CHARLES, LOUISIANA

TICKETS ON SALE NOW AT TICKETMASTER.COM

LAS VEGAS, Nevada – Legacy Fighting Alliance (LFA) CEO Ed Soares announced the promotion will kick off 2018 with a 1-2-3 punch in January with a trio of star-studded shows in California, Arizona, and Louisiana.

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 Costa Mesa Hall at  OC Fair Grounds in Costa Mesa, California.
The following week, LFA heads to Arizona with a fierce interim featherweight title fight in the Valley of the Sun. In the main event, former RFA title challenger and BJJ black belt Bobby “The Wolfman” Moffett battles knockout sensation Thanh Le for the LFA interim featherweight title. LFA 31 – Moffett vs. Le takes place Friday, January 19th at the Comerica Theatre in Phoenix, Arizona.
LFA caps the month of January with a pair of title fights in southern Louisiana. In the main event, former LFA title challenger Brendan “All In” Allen faces top undefeated prospect Anthony “Fluffy” Hernandez for the vacant LFA middleweight title. In the co-headliner, red-hot Ryan “Superman” Spann will lock horns with UFC vet Alex “The Spartan” Nicholson for the inaugural LFA light-heavyweight title. LFA 32 – Allen vs. Hernandez takes place Friday, January 26th at the Golden Nugget Hotel & Casino in Lake Charles, Louisiana.
The entire main card of all three of these events will be televised live and nationwide on AXS TV at 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT.
“I’m excited to kick off 2018 with three straight weeks of LFA action across the country”, stated Soares. “Curtis Millender and Nick Barnes are coming off big wins in LFA headliners and will meet in the main event of LFA 30 in southern California on January 12th. The following week, we head to Arizona with top contenders Bobby Moffett and Thanh Le meeting for the interim featherweight title in the main event LFA 31. We finish the month with two title fights at LFA 32 in southern Louisiana. Brendan Allen faces Anthony Hernandez for the vacant middleweight title in the main event and Ryan Spann will take on Alex Nicholson for the inaugural light-heavyweight title in the co-headliner.”
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.
The main event of LFA 31 is a fight that casual fans and MMA purists alike are salivating over. It pits a rugged and accomplished BJJ black belt in Moffett (10-2) against one of the most dynamic strikers in all of MMA in Le (7-1) with the LFA interim featherweight title on the line. On paper, this is a textbook grappler vs. striker bout at its highest form. However, both men bring so much more to the table than what their respective martial arts backgrounds represent. Moffett, who trains out of The MMA Lab, has shown a willingness to throw down with anyone, while Le trains with BJJ wunderkind and UFC star Ryan Hall in northern Virginia.
LFA will conclude its busy month of January with a pair of title tilts in southern Louisiana. LFA standout and Louisiana native Allen (8-2) will get a second shot at LFA gold after going five rounds with current UFC star Eryk Anders for the inaugural LFA middleweight title in June. Allen quickly rebounded six weeks later with a submission win in the co-main event of LFA 18. He will face another highly-touted undefeated prospect for the title. This time it comes in the form of the northern California destroyer Hernandez (5-0). The man known as “Fluffy” has finished everyone he has faced inside the first round.
The co-main event of LFA 32 will crown the inaugural LFA light-heavyweight champion. Spann (12-5) is a former Legacy FC title challenger that will look to capture LFA gold in front of his home crowd. “Superman” is riding considerable momentum heading into this fight after dispatching a pair of top contenders in the first round of his last two bouts at LFA 23 and LFA 27. He will face Nicholson (10-4) who has been a man on fire since his four-fight run with the UFC ended in May. The Florida native has been a tour de force since then as he looks to make his way back. In the past two months, “The Spartan” has knocked out three quality opponents in grand total of 3 minutes and 28 seconds.
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. Legacy FC and RFA have launched the careers of over 150 athletes that have reached the pinnacle of MMA by competing in the UFC.
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.
boxing

Michael Farenas to make comeback on Fight Club OC card June 1st

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COSTA MESA, CA (May 2, 2017) – They say it’s never is too late to start a comeback, and for  lightweight contender Michael Farenas (44-5-4, 33 Kos), the comeback starts Thursday, June 1
st when he enters the ring for the first time in nearly two years. The eight-round bout will take place on Roy Englebrecht’s “Fight Club OC” show in The Hangar at the OC Fair & Event Center in Costa Mesa, CA.
Having fought some of the top Jr. lightweight out there over the past five years, which include Yuriorkis Gamboa, Jose Padraza, and Fernando Beltran to name a few, Farenas believes he still has some gas left in his tank.
“It’s been a long journey to get back in the ring, but now that time has come,” said Michael Farenas. “I’m in great shape and I feel my skill and experience will help me on my comeback.”
Will new managers Bill Halkias and Germaine Gillies crafting his career and new trainers Marvin Somodio and Jesse Arevalo in his corner, the new look Farenas will have another opportunity to march toward a world title.
“This bout will take place at one hundred and forty pounds, but my plan is to campaign at lightweight,” said Farenas, who fought Takashi Uchiyama for the WBA World super featherweight title. “I know with hard work, I can make another run toward another world title.”
Under new management and a new trainer, “Hammer Fist” as he is called, will look to bring that Filipino fighting spirit back to his career.
Tickets for the Thursday, June 1st Fight Club OC show in The Hangar at the OC Fair & Event Center in Costa Mesa, CA are on sale at www.fightcluboc.com.
mixed martial arts, RFA

RAONI BARCELOS vs. JAMAL PARKS BJJ BLACK BELT MEETS ALL AMERICAN WRESTLER IN FEATURE BOUT AT RFA 23 

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RFA 23 – MURPHY vs. WARE
MAIN EVENT:
JOE MURPHY vs. TERRION WARE
LIGHTWEIGHT WORLD TITLE
CO-MAIN EVENT:
GABRIEL CHECCO vs. JOE HENLE
MIDDLEWEIGHT SHOWDOWN
FEATURE FIGHT:
RAONI BARCELOS vs. JAMAL PARKS
FEATHERWEIGHT BOUT
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 6th LIVE ON AXSTV
Live at The Hangar at the OC Fair & Event Center in Costa Mesa, California
Tickets on Sale through  CageTix.com/RFA

In MMA, like most sports, there is an old adage that was made popular by actor Will Smith that states, “If you stay ready, you don’t have to get ready.” That is one of the principles that Oklahoma native and blue chip MMA prospect Jamal Parks lives by. Parks put those words of wisdom into full effect this past week. Just five days removed from his fifth career MMA victory in five contests, Parks eagerly accepted the next challenge presented to him in his already spectacular athletic career.

That challenge came when undefeated RFA star Sam Toomer was forced off of next week’s RFA 23 card in Costa Mesa, California with an injury sustained late in his training camp. Toomer was set to face Raoni Barcelos, who is one of the most highly-touted featherweight prospects in MMA. Barcelos is the son of 7th degree jiu-jitsu black-and-red belt Laerte Barcelos and has been groomed for greatness in combat sports since the age of two. That left many wondering who would be able to step up and challenge the Brazilian wunderkind adequately on such short notice.

The answer to that question comes in the form of Parks, who is used to competing against elite athletes in wrestling and looks to continue the long legacy of Oklahoma State wrestlers who have blossomed into MMA stars. That list includes Randy Couture, Johny Hendricks, Daniel Cormier, Mark Muñoz, Jake Rosholt, Jared Rosholt, Shane Roller, Mo Lawal, as well as RFA vets Steve Mocco and Tyler Shinn.

“This is a great opportunity and I’m ready to light it up,” stated an excited Parks, who is now set to travel to southern California this week to participate on the biggest stage of his promising MMA career.

Parks was a three-time high school state wrestling champion in Oklahoma, while attending Union High School in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He then wrestled alongside Jared Rosholt and Shinn at Oklahoma State and became an NCAA Division I All-American his senior season. The proud Oklahoma State Cowboy then turned his attention to MMA after graduating and has seen his hand raised five times in five contests. However, this Friday will see him compete on national television (AXS TV) and international television (The Fight Network) for the first time. He will also be facing the toughest test of his career in Barcelos.

You see, Barcelos is not your typical jiu-jitsu black belt. He is also an accomplished wrestler having once been a member of the Brazilian National Wrestling Team. Barcelos, who received his jiu-jitsu black belt at age 20, also won a Brazilian national title in freestyle wrestling the same year. Barcelos is also the main training partner to UFC featherweight kingpin Jose Aldo. That pedigree is enough to scare away many potential opponents even with a full training camp to prepare. However, Parks fresh off his fifth win and newly signed multi-fight deal with RFA, feels he is more than ready for the challenge and is eager to participate in the most high-stakes MMA bout of his career.Parks and Barcelos meet in a featherweight bout on the main card of RFA 23 – Murphy vs. Ware onFriday, February 6th. The event takes place at The Hangar at the OC Fair & Event Center in Costa Mesa, California. The main card will be televised nationwide on AXS TV and internationally on The Fight Network at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT.

 

Please visit RFAfighting.com for bout updates and information. RFA is also on Facebook at Facebook.com/RFAfighting, Instagram at @RFAfighting, and Twitter at @RFAfighting.
Tickets for RFA 23 Murphy vs. Ware are available at CageTix.com/RFA, prices range from $55.00 to $105.00.
Special 14-person All-You-Can Drink VIP SUITES can be reserved by calling 310-951-0867.

About RFA:
RFA is a professional mixed martial arts promotion that gives rising stars and top contenders the opportunity to prove their talent to fans and leaders in the industry. The RFA presents up to 10 fights annually around the United States including Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Denver and Milwaukee. RFA can be seen live in over 40 million homes nationally through its television deal with AXS TV. Based in Las Vegas, Nevada, RFA is one of the most active and respected MMA organizations in the fastest growing sport in the world. (The Octagon, Ultimate Fighting Championship®, UFC®, and the eight-sided competition mat and cage design are registered trademarks owned exclusively by Zuffa, LLC. All rights reserved).
About AXS TV Fights:
AXS TV Fights is renowned for its universally recognized Friday Night Mixed Martial Arts and Kickboxing events. As Your Home For MMA, AXS TV utilizes an expansive network of promotions from the United States, Canada, and Europe. And Asia to broadcast more LIVE fights than any other television network. “The Voice” Michael Schiavello and five-time MMA world-champion Pat Miletich provide viewers expert play-by-play, in-depth fighter coverage, and extensive analysis to each fight card. AXS TV broadcasts world-class LIVE fight events from RFA, Lion Fight, Legacy FC, and MFC every Friday night at 7 p.m. PT / 10 p.m. ET.