Lance Palmer to defend world featherweight title

Tickets for WSOF 26 on sale Friday, Oct. 16 at 10 a.m. PST

LAS VEGAS (Oct. 14, 2015) – World Series of Fighting (WSOF) will head toThe Chelsea inside The Cosmopolitan of Las Vegas for the first time ever with a star-studded, world championship event featuring the long-awaited return of Tyrone “King of the Ring” Spong as well as a title defense by reigning featherweight champion Lance Palmer, on Friday, Dec. 18, live on NBCSN at9 p.m. EST / 6 p.m. PST.

Spong (2-0 MMA, 2-0 boxing, 74-7-1, 1 NC, 46 KO’s kickboxing) of Boca Raton, Florida via Paramaribo, Suriname will face off with an opponent to be determined, and Palmer (10-1) will put his belt on the line against the winner of the WSOF 24 matchup between Alexandre Almeida (16-5) of Manaus, Brazil and Saul Almeida (18-5) of Boston, Mass.

Tickets to WSOF 26 go on-sale Friday, Oct. 16 at 10 a.m. PST. Priced at $119, $69 and $39, tickets will be available for purchase at www.cosmopolitanlasvegas.com , www.WSOF.com or www.ticketmaster.com.

“We are looking forward to making our debut at one of the finest venues in the fight capital of the world, and to another historic night of MMA action with the return of both Tyrone Spong, one of the sport’s hottest commodities, and Lance Palmer, a prolific world champion,” said World Series of Fighting PresidentRay Sefo.

At age 30, Spong’s appearance will bring an end to the phenom’s absence from competition that was prompted by a broken leg that he sustained in the kickboxing ring in April 2014.

A veteran of 87 professional bouts collectively across MMA, kickboxing and boxing, the one-of-a-kind Spong, who began his career as a protégé of retired K-1 kickboxing legend Ernesto Hoost, has devoted his life to becoming the first fighter to capture a major world championship in each combat sport.

Palmer, a member of superstar Urijah Faber’s Team Alpha Male fight squad, will risk his title for the second time since the 27-year-old seized the coveted championship from rival Rick “The Gladiator” Glenn in the co-main event of WSOF 16 on Dec, 13, 2014.

With the third round (3:09) submission (rear-naked choke) victory over Glenn, Palmer snapped Glenn’s incredible, unbeaten run that spanned 13 fights over four years.

Palmer, who owns six wins by way of submission, successfully defended his belt for the first time on June 5, forcing battle-tested veteran Chris Horodeckito tap out from a neck crank in the first round (4:28) of action.

Additional matchups for WSOF 26 will be announced soon. The card is subject to change.