WSOF Announces Two More Star-Studded Events For April 10 and June 5
WSOF Announces Two More Star-Studded Events For April 10 and June 5
WORLD SERIES OF FIGHTING
COMES OUT SWINGING
TWO MORE LIVE NBCSN TELEVISED, STAR-STUDDED EVENTS ANNOUNCED FOR APRIL 10 AND JUNE 5
at Foxwoods Resort Casino on Friday, April 10;
Plus: Melvin Guillard vs. Ozzy DugulubgovWSOF 21: Yushin Okami battles Ryan Ford
at the Edmonton Expo Centre on Friday, June 5
Plus: Smealinho Rama defends world heavyweight title against
Fedor conqueror Blagoi IvanovAll tickets go on sale Friday, February 13
LAS VEGAS (February 12, 2015) – World championship Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) promotion World Series of Fighting (WSOF.com) is set to roll out two more mega-fight cards with WSOF 20 at Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, Conn. on Friday, April 10, and WSOF 21 at the Edmonton Expo Centre in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada on Friday, June 5, WSOF President Ray Sefo announced tonight on the live NBCSN telecast of WSOF 18.
Priced from $39.99, tickets for WSOF 20, headlined by a light heavyweight tournament showdown between inspirational competitor Matt “The Hammer” Hamill (11-5) and submission expert Vinny “Pezao” Magalhaes (12-7, 1 NC), go on sale on Friday, February 13 at 11:00 a.m. EST, at Ticketmaster.com.
In the WSOF 20 lightweight (155 pounds) co-main event, Melvin “The Young” Assassin Guillard (32-14-2, 2 NC) will collide with fellow hard-hitting, KO artist Ozzy Dugulubgov (6-2).
Priced from $50, tickets for WSOF 21, highlighted by a welterweight (170 pounds) tilt between Yushin “Thunder” Okami (30-9) and Ryan “The Real Deal” Ford (22-5), go on sale at on Friday, February 13 at 12:00 p.m. MST, at Ticketmaster.com.
The WSOF 21 co-main event will feature reigning world heavyweight champion Smealinho “The Prince” Rama (9-1) defending his crown against Sambo wrecking machine and Judo black belt Blagoy Ivanov (11-1).
WSOF 20: Hamill vs. Magalhaes
Deaf since birth, the 38-year-old Hamill, the subject of a 2010 biographical film The Hammer, has overcome all types of odds during his life, winning three NCAA national wrestling championships and, later, conquering a host of rival MMA stars, including Tito Ortiz, Tim Boetsch, Keith Jardine and Mark Munoz,
Magalhaes, a 30-year-old, multi-time Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu world champion fighting out of Las Vegas, Nev., is looking to notch his third consecutive victory after scoring a first round (3:12) submission (rear-naked choke) on Jorge Gonzales on July 19, 2014, and a fourth round (:36) submission (guillotine choke) on Jason Brilz on Sept. 26, 2014.
The matchup between Hamill and Magalhaes represents the second bout in the initial stage of the recently announced WSOF multi-event tournament that will crown its winner the promotion’s first-ever world light heavyweight champion.
The winner of the Hamill-Magalhaes bout will square off with the winner of the other first stage matchup between Thiago Silva (16-3, 2 NC) and Ronny Markes (15-3) that headlines WSOF 19 at Comerica Theatre in Phoenix, Ariz. on Saturday, March 28, live on NBCSN.
Guillard of New Orleans, La., is aiming to rebound from a hard-fought, split decision loss to undefeated Justin Gaethje at WSOF 15 on Nov. 15, 2014. Prior to that, Guillard, a prolific finisher with brutal power, defeated Gesias “J.Z.” Cavalcante by way of second round (2:36) TKO (punches and elbows) at WSOF 11 on July 5, 2014.
Despite owning a fraction of the professional experience as Guillard, the 26-year-old Dugulubgov of Hackensack, N.J. has already earned the right to face the upper echelon of opponents in the sport’s lightweight division, decisively defeating three of his first four WSOF opponents.
In his last start, Dugulubgov scored a thunderous, third round (1:38) KO (punch) on Keon Caldwell at WSOF 13 on Sept. 13, 2014.
The live NBCSN telecast of WSOF 20 begins at 9:00 p.m. EST/6:00 p.m. PST on Friday, April 10.
Doors at the Grand Theater at Foxwoods Resort Casino open at 5:00 p.m. EST, and the first preliminary bout begins at 6:00 p.m.
Additional bouts for WSOF 20 will be announced soon.
WSOF 21: Okami vs. Ford
Both Okami of Kawasaki, Kanagawa, Japan and Ford Edmonton, will look to return to the win column after suffering defeats at the hands of world champion David Branch and submission ace Jake Shields, respectively.
Okami, a 33-year-old former top 10 world ranked contender, is a 12-year veteran of the sport who has earned 50 percent of his victories by way of (T)KO or submission. He boasts victories over a host of fellow marquee competitors, including Hector Lombard, Nate Marquardt, Mark Munoz and Alan Belcher.
At 32 years old, Ford brings nearly 8 years of professional experience to the cage, including stoppages of Karo Parisyan and Pete Spratt. Ford recently ran to six consecutive wins, five by way of (T)KO or submission, before being submitted by Shields with a rear-naked choke in the first round (4:29) of their meeting.
At 22 years of age, Rama, who hails from Calgary, Alberta, Canada, became the youngest fighter in history to win a major world MMA championship after he decimated Derrick Mehman by way of first round (:51) TKO (punches) at WSOF 14 on October 11, 2014, will put his title on the line for the first time and seek his fourth consecutive win. To date, he has claimed all but one of his victories by way of (T)KO or submission.
Ivanov is a 28-year-old native of Sofia, Bulgaria and a 2008 World Sambo Championships gold medalist. En route to his first place finish, Ivanov defeated retired, former pound-for-pound MMA king Fedor Emelianenko in the semifinal stage of the tournament.
In 2012, Ivanov survived a stabbing attack that left him in the intensive care unit of a Bulgarian hospital. He miraculously returned to MMA competition in 2013, and reeled off four straight wins, three by way of first round submission.
The live NBCSN telecast of WSOF 21 begins at 9:00 p.m. EST/6:00 p.m. PST on Friday, June 5.
Doors at the Edmonton Expo Centre open at 3:00 p.m. MST, and the first preliminary bout begins at 4 p.m.
Additional bouts for WSOF 21 will be announced soon.
