Champion vs. Champion headlines Titan FC 44, Shorty Torres moving up
Champion vs. Champion headlines Titan FC 44, Shorty Torres moving up
Titan FC 44 To Feature Flyweight Champion Jose “Shorty” Torres Facing Bantamweight Title Holder Farkhad Sharipov In A Battle For The 135lb. Championship. The Two Will Meet on May 19th At The Brand New Pembroke Pines City Center In Pembroke Pines, FL. Watch Titan FC 44 Live & Exclusively on UFC Fight Pass.
Pompano Beach, FL. – For the first time in Titan FC history, one fighter will look to hold two titles in two different weight classes concurrently, as flyweight champion Jose Torres takes on bantamweight champion Farkhad Sharipov in the main event of Titan FC 44. The event will take place on May 19 from the Pembroke Pines City Center and will air live and exclusively on UFC Fight Pass.
Sharipov was part of a four man bantamweight tournament that began at Titan FC 40 in August. He defeated Bruce Lutchmedial via split decision and went on to face Andrew Whitney in the finals at Titan FC 42, where captured the title via unanimous decision. Torres, one of MMA’s top prospects, won the title via second round KO over Abdiel Velasquez at Titan FC 40. He then defeated UFC veteran Pedro Nobre via first round TKO at Titan FC 43.
In an exciting match-up of former Titan FC champions, Kurt Holobaugh will face Gesias “JZ” Cavalcante in a battle for the Titan FC interim lightweight championship. Holobaugh, a former featherweight champion made the move up to 155 after dropping the title to Andre Harrison. He returned at Titan FC 39 and has since defeated Luciano dos Santos and Yosdenis Cedeno. Cavalcante captured the lightweight belt with a first round KO over Pat Healy at Titan FC 39, but subsequently lost it to Fredy Assuncao at Titan FC 40. He rebounded at Titan FC 42 with a unanimous decision victory over Robert Turnquest.
“The bantamweight match-up between Farkhad Sharipov, the Titan FC bantamweight champion and our flyweight champion Jose “Shorty” Torres, pits two of the best fighters on our roster in one of the biggest fights in company history,” said COO Lex McMahon. “Sharipov is a very exciting veteran, while Shorty Torres is a rising star trying to blaze his own trail to the UFC by following the blue print set by Conor McGregor and becoming a two division champion. Titan FC 44 will also feature an interim lightweight title fight between JZ Cavalcante and Kurt Holobaugh. As a fan of MMA, I’m beyond excited for JZ vs Holobaugh and am certain this will be a Fight of the Year candidate in all of MMA, not just Titan FC.”
