A welterweight bout between former two-division UFC champ “The Prodigy” B.J. Penn and final WEC Welterweight Champion “The Natural Born Killer” Carlos Condit is in the works for October. While not set, the tentative fight could take place at UFC 137 on October 29th in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Both Penn and Condit had publicly campaigned for the matchup on Twitter earlier this week. Penn was previously been set to rematch Jon Fitch at UFC 132, but injuries forced the fight’s cancellation. Instead, Penn may now face the surging Condit, who has won four straight fights inside the Octagon.
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Strikeforce and BodogFIGHT veteran Carina “Beauty But The Beast” Damm will next compete at Iron Man Championship 10 on July 21st in Salinópolis, Pará, Brazil. She will face Muay Thai champion Valentina Shevchenko, who has competed just twice in MMA and last fought in late September.
Damm has drawn criticism for frequently facing inexperienced opponents in her bouts in Brazil, and the matchup with Shevchenko marks Damm’s sixth straight fight in the country against an opponent with fewer than three MMA fights. Damm, a 22-fight veteran, ended a three-fight losing streak in May.
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Former Shooto and Sengoku champion Hatsu Hioki will make his Octagon debut against George Roop at UFC 137 on October 29th in Las Vegas, Nevada. The promotion officially announced the bout today. Hioki vacated his Shooto title and began negotiations with the UFC at the end of May.
The Japanese star has lost just once in his last 14 bouts, in a controversial Split Decision against Michihiro Omigawa in late 2009, and holds recent victories over former Sengoku titleholders Masanori Kanehara and Marlon Sandro. Roop has earned knockout wins in two of his last three fights.
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An eight-woman featherweight tournament will begin on September 11th in Tokyo, Japan to determine the first Jewels Featherweight Queen Champion at 48 kilograms. The tournament, which will conclude on December 17th, was officially announced during Jewels: “15th Ring” in Tokyo tonight.
Among those participating will be final Valkyrie Flyweight Champion Yasuko “Ikuko” Tamada and Naho “Sugi Rock” Sugiyama, as well as other veteran fighters such as Misaki Takimoto and Sachiko “Sachi” Yamamoto. Jewels crowned its first champion with a similar tournament late last year.
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Leading all-female promotion Jewels showcased its biggest event tonight with Jewels: “15th Ring” at Shinjuku FACE in Tokyo, Japan. The card was headlined by a Jewels vs Valkyrie Special Rules bout between Jewels rep Saori “Shooting Star” Ishioka and veteran Yuka “Vale Tudo Queen” Tsuji.
The co-feature also matched Jewels against Valkyrie, as South Korea’s Seo Hee Ham faced Valkyrie champ “V.V” Mei Yamaguchi, while Megumi “Mega Megu” Fujii rematched Mika “Future Princess” Nagano in another featured matchup. MMARising.com has live play-by-play for tonight’s card.
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A lightweight bout between former two-time HERO’s champion Gesias “JZ” Cavalcante and Lyle “Fancy Pants” Beerbohm has now been added to the upcoming Strikeforce: “Fedor vs Henderson” card on July 30th in Hoffman Estates, Illinois. The promotion officially announced the fight today.
Cavalcante most recently fought to a No Decision with powerhouse wrestler Justin “The Silverback” Wilcox in June after Wilcox was accidentally poked in the eye early in the second round. Beerbohm, meanwhile, will be looking to rebound after suffering back-to-back losses; the first of his career.
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A middleweight matchup between former title challenger Chael Sonnen and military veteran “All American” Brian Stann is in the works for UFC 136. The planned event is targeted for October 8th at the Toyota Center in Houston, Texas. Heavy.com was first to report on the bout earlier this afternoon.
Sonnen returns to UFC action after a suspension imposed by the California State Athletic Commission. The embattled wrestler was suspended after providing contradictory statements regarding his testosterone replacement therapy, and was also convicted of money laundering earlier this year.
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After an undisclosed injury forced Alexandre “Cacareco” Ferreira out of the upcoming UFC 134 event in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, Rousimar “Toquinho” Palhares has received a new opponent. Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt Dan Miller has stepped in to face the leglock master on the August 27th card.
The UFC officially announced the change today, though details of Ferreira’s ailment were not disclosed. Palhares has won four of his last five fights, with the defeat coming against Nate “The Great” Marquardt. Miller’s two-fight winning streak ended when he was decisioned by Marquardt in March.
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