John Gotti III forced to withdraw from CES MMA 59
Injury sidelines unbeaten welterweight John Gotti III for CES 59
Fan-favorites Rebello, Paiva highlight UFC FIGHT PASS lineup at Twin River
Unbeaten welterweight John Gotti III has been forced to withdraw from his scheduled bout at CES MMA 59 next Friday at Twin River Casino Hotel due to injury.
Aiming for his fifth win in as many fights, the Oyster Bay, NY, native was set to face Floridian Marcos Lloreda. Gotti III (4-0, 4 KOs) had previously racked up four wins over the past year and a half since making his professional debut, including a 1-minute, 36-second knockout victory at CES 56 in Connecticut. An eye injury will keep him sidelined until further notice.
“He’s brokenhearted,” Gotti III’s father and manager, John Gotti Jr., said of his son. “He had an amazing training camp. We had [UFC veteran] Dante Rivera in this camp with us and he brought in some UFC fighters to train with John. He helped get John in top shape.
“Saturday was when he had the problem with the eye. We thought it would be good in two days, but it is a viral infection. It’s a complete different protocol now. The kid is heartbroken. He wants to fight. He put so much energy into this. He’s a warrior. He’d fight with one arm if he could.”
The show rolls on October 25 for the east coast’s No. 1 promotion as fan-favorites Greg Rebello (25-9, 16 KOs), Dinis Paiva (12-7, 7 KOs) and unbeaten light heavyweight William Knight (5-0, 5 KOs) highlight a loaded lineup streaming live on UFC FIGHT PASS®.
The Connecticut-born Knight fights for the first time since signing a development deal with the UFC following his win over Herdem Alacabek in Week 8 of the Dana White’s Contender Series. He battles Marvin Skipper (4-2) of Myrtle Beach, SC.
Rebello, the reigning CES MMA World Heavyweight champion from Providence, RI, faces Parnell Davis (9-6, 1 KO) of Iowa, and the East Providence, RI, native Paiva returns in a featherweight showdown against New Jersey’s Tim Dooling (8-5, 3 KOs) of New Jersey.
