An on-again, off-again rematch between welterweight standouts Thiago “Pitbull” Alves and Jon Fitch has once again been postponed. The planned bout, which has already been pushed back on three occasions, will now take place at UFC 117. MMAFighting.com first reported on the change.
The latest postponement stems from recent surgery that Alves underwent in order to correct a minor irregularity in his brain. The issue was discovered during pre-fight testing for his scheduled rematch with Fitch at UFC 115. Fitch went on to defeat late replacement Ben “Killa B” Saunders.
Raging Wolf Women’s Flyweight Champion Alexis Davis will return to action on May 8th when she defends her title against late replacement Tonya Evinger. The bout, to be contested at 135 pounds, will headline RW 7: “Mayhem In The Mist 3” in Niagara Falls, New York.
A 195-pound catchweight between former EliteXC Middleweight Champion “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler and former Strikeforce 205-pound champ Renato “Babalu” Sobral will headline Strikeforce: “Live” at the Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, California. Sherdog.com first reported on the June 16th matchup.
Japanese superstar Norifumi “Kid” Yamamoto will no longer compete on the upcoming Strikeforce St.Louis: “Heavy Artillery” card. Strikeforce CEO Scott Coker confirmed the news today and stated that Yamamoto may be a part of Dream.14 on May 29th in Saitama, Japan.
Just one month before it was set to begin, a proposed eight-man DREAM Light Heavyweight Grand Prix has been cancelled. The opening round of the tournament was scheduled for Dream.14 on May 29th, but will no longer take place. Sports Illustrated’s Josh Gross first reported on the cancellation.
Following his recent bout in DREAM, former UFC Heavyweight Champion Josh “The Babyfaced Assassin” Barnett will return to action for the newly formed Impact Fighting Championship promotion on July 10th in Brisbane, Australia. Barnett will face Brazilian brawler Geronimo “Mondragon” dos Santos in a bout that was first reported by Tatame earlier today.
A 114-pound bout between rising star Mika “Future Princess” Nagano and Team Hellboy prospect Celine Haga has been added to the upcoming Jewels: “Eighth Ring” event on May 23rd. MMARising.com can exclusively report that verbal agreements are in place and an official announcement confirming the fight should follow in the coming days.
DREAM officials confirmed today that the upcoming Dream.14 event on May 29th will mark the return of the promotion’s White Cage. The cage, which is comprised of interwoven fish netting, was first used last year at Dream.12 and will once again be paired with a format of three, five-minute rounds.