We are just a few days before World Cup Of Mixed Martial Arts has their debut into the world of MMA. They will be invading Foxwood Resorts and have a unique, exciting approach. They have teams of fighters built up around the world that will faceoff against each other. Very Olympic-like and in a few years they will have the big finals. They will be hosting the events worldwide and it will be available online stream on their website for what appears to be $24.95. They have 10 solid fights lined up for their first show and it is packed with some excellent fighters from New England. They had some injuries and fight card changes but Dave Borelli, the matchmaker did a fine job on finding great replacements. Tickets are still available at the venue or by visiting here. Let me break down the card for you and talk about the matchups.
Cleon Hoggard vs. Brandon Fleming
Cleon Hoggard will be making his professional debut against Brandon Fleming at 145lbs. Cleon trains with Team Dow. Cleon was 1-2 amateur and had his one win by tko to punches. He lost a decision and one from submission. Brandon Fleming trains out of SSSF and has a record of 1-0 professionally. Brandon made his professional debut after having a stellar amateur career for Bellator. He took on PJ Davis and won with a first round submission. I don't know alot of background on Cleon but I know that Brandon is a great wrestler. If Brandon can get his takedowns, then it could be a long night for Cleon or end early with a submission. Cleon will be looking to impress everyone and I have no doubt he will be ready for a big battle.
Revel Revera vs. Patrick Walsh
Revel Rivera will be fighting Patrick Walsh in a heavyweight bout. Pedro is the brains behind Breeding Ground and will be making his pro debut. I couldn't find much data on Rivera but I know he is 3-1 as an amateur. Pat trains with Wai Kru and in fact he is a coach there. From what I gathered on the mma database, Pat is very well rounded and was 5-2 amateur. I don't see this fight lasting very long so don't get your popcorn or blink during this fight!
Rute Frias vs. Jessica Rackozy
In a women's bout, WCMMA has Rute Frias against Jessica Rackozy. Rute is fighting out of Portugal and will be making her pro debut. I wasn't able to find anything on Rute but I know that she was supposed to fight Suzie Montero but that was scratched and now Jessica stepped in. Jessica is from Ontario Canada and has a 1-3-1 record. She has lost to Zoila Gurgel and Felice Herrig who are damn good female fighters. This is going to be a great female battle that you won't want to miss.
Paulo Durao vs. James Reese
Paulo Durao is fighting James Reese in a lightweight bout. Paulo is on fighting out of Portugal and will be making his amateur debut. I was not able to dig up any information on mixedmartialarts.com or Sherdog. Grr, this is starting to be a common theme on this card LOL. His opponent James Reese has a professional record of 7-3 and is fighting out of the USA. He has 3KO and 4 submission wins and is with American Top Team. He has lost one decision, one submission and one by ko. I would guess this fight is going to be great ground battle.
Falco Neto vs. Shaun Dillon
In a middleweight bout Falco Neto will be fighting Shaun Dillon. Falco is fighting out of Portugal and has a record of 4-3. He has two ko, one sub and one decision victory. For his three losses he lost all 3 via submission. His opponent Shaun is on Team USA and has been training with American Top Team. He will be making his amateur debut. This is real close matchup and can really go anywhere so I can't predict. How do you all see it going??
Nino Mendes vs. Steve Skrzat
In the second heavyweight bout of the evening Nino Mendes will be taking on Steve Skrzat. Nino is fighting out of Portugal and will be making his pro debut. Steve, according to sherdog.com is 5-5. He has four knockout victories and one decision. He lost all five of his fights from way of the fist. I see this fight going only one way and that is knockout! Steve has the upper hand in the experience but then again not much is known about Nino so we will all find out Saturday. Good luck Steve and make us proud!
Yao Hongang vs. Dave LaChappelle
In a featherweight bout Yao Hongang will be fighting Dave LaChappelle. This fight will be part of the tournament and will be five rounds. Yao is on Team China and has a record of 7-3. I was not able to find much about Yao but I did find that he has two decision victories. Dave is fighting out of the USA and has a record of 1-0. His first win was against Chris Cole where he won from a ref stoppage in round 1. I think this is going to be a real close matchup that could come down to a decision.
Yang Sai vs. Brett Oteri
In a middleweight bout they have Yang Sai against Brett Oteri. Yang is fighting out China and has a record of 5-3. This fight will also be five rounds. He has 3 KO and two submission victories. For his 3 losses, they came via one submission, ko and decision. Brett, his opponent has put up a great career so far with a record of 10-3. He trains with Connor's MMA and is very well rounded. He has 1 KO, 6 Sub and 3 decision victories. For his 3 losses they were 1 from punches and two submissions. They were to Todd Chattelle, Matt Lee and Ryan Quinn. This is another close battle but I see it going to the ground. Make us proud Brett!!
Alexy Oleinik vs Mike Stewart
For the last heavyweight bout of the evening, they have Alexy Oleinik against Mike Stewart. Alexy has a crazy record of 37-9 and is fighting out of Russia. Out of his 37 wins 30 of them came via submission. His opponent Mike Stewart has a record of 8-3 and fights for USA from New York. Mike has 3KO and 5 submission victories. He is a great wrestler and can grind out wins. I have seen him fight for CES a few times and fight some tough fighters. Well he is in another tough fight here. I see this being an outstanding ground battle and it is going to come down to who can execute and get their takedowns. You got this Mike!!
Yand Jianping vs. Billy Jones
The last fight of the evening is in the lightweight division between Yand Jianping and Bill Jones. Yand is fighting out of China and has a record of 5-3. He has two KO and 3 Submission victories in his career. His opponent Bill will be fighting out of The Shop and from the USA. He has a record of 11-6 and has 3 KO, 4 SUB and 2 decision according to Sherdog. Bill is very well rounded and will definitely show them what New England fights are made of! I think this fight is again going to be a ground battle. What a perfect way to end their first show. Best of luck to you Bill.
That wraps up this teaser for you guys. On paper some of the fights here may seem mismatched but it is very challenging to match up a fighter from Portugal to a USA fighter because it is hard to gauge their skills. I am curious to see how our New England fighters will fare out in this unique promotion. I think they will do just fine and make us all proud. Well it is my bedtime so I am going to quit while I am ahead. Til next time folks!
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