World Series of Fighting 9 main-card lineup complete with the addition of three new bouts

  

March 29 event in Las Vegas gets Josh Burkman vs. Tyler Stinson, Ozzy Dugulubgov vs. Johnny Nunez and Mike Corey vs. Shane Kruchten

LAS VEGAS (Feb. 11, 2014) - The five-fight, NBCSN-televised main card for World Series of Fighting 9 is now complete with the addition of three new contests, including welterweights Josh "The People's Warrior" Burkman (26-10) vs. Tyler "The Evolution" Stinson (27-9), lightweights Ozzy Dugulubgov (5-1) vs. Johnny Nunez (4-0) and featherweights Mike Corey (12-3-1) vs. Shane Kruchten (11-2).

The three new bouts join a pair of previously announced championship matchups at "World Series of Fighting 9: Carl vs. Palhares," which takes placeMarch 29 at Las Vegas' Hard Rock Hotel & Casino.

"We were already excited for this card with our welterweight champion Steve Carl facing Rousimar Palhares and Marlon Moraes facing Josh Rettinghouse for our inaugural featherweight title," World Series of Fighting President Ray Sefo said. "But now we're adding a big welterweight fight with two fan favorites in Josh Burkman and Tyler Stinson, as well as two key bouts that could see some of our developing contenders make a big statement in the lightweight and featherweight divisions.

"This card should be absolutely fantastic."

Tickets for World Series of Fighting 9, which start at just $39, are on sale now at Ticketmaster.com. Tickets can also be purchased at The Joint box office or by phone at (800) 745-3000. The night's featured fights air live on NBCSN at9:30 p.m. ET (6:30 p.m. PT local time) following preliminary bouts that stream on World Series of Fighting's official website, WSOF.com.

Burkman, of Salt Lake City, returns to the decagon following a failed October attempt to claim the World Series of Fighting's inaugural welterweight belt. The loss put an end to Burkman's impressive five-fight winning streak that included World Series of Fighting victories over MMA notables Jon Fitch, Aaron Simpson and Gerald Harris.

Meanwhile, Stinson, who's based in Denver, made his World Series of Fighting debut in January, earning a hard-fought TKO win over Valdir Araujo. The 28-year-old Stinson now boasts four consecutive wins and makes his first main-card appearance for the promotion.

Dugulubgov, who trains with Renzo Gracie's team in New York, seeks his third straight World Series of Fighting victory. After outpointing Chris Wade at World Series of Fighting 2, Dugulubgov scored an impressive submission victory over Andrew Osborne with a second-round Achilles lock at September's World Series of Fighting 5 event and now owns a four-fighting winning streak.

Nunez, who's based at Las Vegas' Syndicate MMA, made his pro debut in 2012 and has gone unbeaten at 4-0 with three stoppages. The impressive prospect now makes his World Series of Fighting debut.

Corey, a Team Curran fighter based in Chicago, fights for the first time under the World Series of Fighting banner. Seven of his 12 career wins have come by way of stoppage, including six submissions. The 29-year-old looks to rebound from a disappointing April loss but was unbeaten in his seven prior appearances.

Kruchten, a San Diego-based fighter who trains at The Arena, lost the first two fights of his pro career. However, he has since rebounded with 11 straight wins, including nine victories by stoppage. He now makes his World Series of Fighting debut, as well.

 

About "World Series of Fighting" (WSOF)

"World Series of Fighting" (WSOF) is a world wide premier professional Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fight promotion dedicated to delivering the best action-packed fights for fight fans by producing the best possible match-ups between elite fighters from around the world. For more information please visit WSOF.com. Follow "World Series of Fighting" on Twitter @MMAWorldSeries and "World Series of Fighting" President Ray Sefo @SugarRaySefo.

About NBC Sports Network

NBC Sports Network, part of the NBC Sports Group, is dedicated to serving passionate sports fans. Now in more than 80 million homes, the network is the cable television home of the Summer and Winter Olympics, National Hockey League (NHL), Major League Soccer (MLS), IZOD IndyCar Series, Tour de France and the 34th America's Cup, and beginning in 2013, the Premier League and Formula One. In addition, NBC Sports Network features college football, college basketball, college hockey, outdoor programming, horse racing surrounding the Triple Crown and Breeders' Cup, Fight Night boxing, Ironman, the Dew Action Sports Tour and USA Sevens Rugby. The network is also home to original programs such as Costas Tonight, The Crossover, NFL Turning Point, Pro Football Talk and The Dan Patrick Show. NBC Sports Network is distributed via cable systems and satellite operators throughout the United States.

About Hard Rock Hotel & Casino

Hard Rock Hotel & Casino is Las Vegas' off-strip playground, just minutes and less than three miles from McCarran International Airport. The premier destination entertainment resort is owned by Brookfield Real Estate Finance Fund II and managed by WG-Harmon, LLC, a subsidiary of Warner Gaming, LLC.  Built in 1995, the property completed a $750 million expansion in 2010. Hard Rock Hotel & Casino offers an energetic entertainment and gaming experience with the services and amenities associated with a boutique luxury resort hotel. The property is known for its innovative nightlife and music scene where acts such as The Rolling Stones, Bon Jovi, Paul McCartney, Incubus, Foo Fighters, Carlos Santana, Mötley Crüe and Guns N' Roses have all performed.  Features of the property include an 11-story Casino Tower with 640 guest rooms, 17-story Paradise Tower with 490 rooms and suites and the all-suite HRH Tower with 359 suites, eight spa villas and seven penthouse suites; 72,000 square feet of casino space featuring Peacock High-Limit gaming and Asian gaming amenities; 80,000 square feet of flexible meeting and convention space; more than $4 million in rare music memorabilia; Body English Nightclub; Reliquary Water Sanctuary, Spa & Salon; 4.5 acres of tropical pool paradise housing world-famous pool parties REHAB Sunday and RELAX Monday; live music/entertainment venues The Joint and Vinyl; Hart & Huntington Tattoo Co.; restaurants Culinary Dropout, Nobu, The Ainsworth, 35 Steaks + Martinis, Pink Taco, Mr. Lucky's Café and 福Fú; a state-of-the-art fitness center and trendsetting retailers John Varvatos, Affliction, Love Jones, Rocks The Jewelers and Rock Paper Photo. For room availability and additional information call 800.HRD.ROCK (800.473.7625) or visit hardrockhotel.com. Follow Hard Rock Hotel & Casino on Facebook, Twitterand Instagram for the latest news and updates.

Curran stops Warren to become new Featherweight Champion while “Popo,” Sandro, Corey and Straus progress to the Bellator Featherweight Semifinals at Bellator 60

CHICAGO, Ill. (March 9, 2012) — Pat Curran and Joe Warren promised fireworks in their main event Featherweight Title Fight, but it was Curran who stopped the former Champion Warren in one of the most entertaining Bellator bouts seen in recent memory. The quarterfinals of the Bellator Season Six Featherweight Tournament are in the books as well as four tournament participants punched their tickets to the semifinal round. “Popo” Bezerra, Marlon Sandro, Mike Corey, and Daniel Straus all picked up victories at The Venue at the Horseshoe Casino in Hammond, Indiana LIVE on MTV2 and in HD on EPIX.

“What a night here at The Venue here in Hammond,” said Bellator Chairman & CEO Bjorn Rebney. “With a sellout crowd in Bellator’s backyard, Pat Curran cemented his name as one of the best featherweights on the planet and is our new Bellator Featherweight Champion.”

The last time the Bellator Featherweight Championship changed hands, it was Joe Warren stopping Joe Soto at Bellator 27. Pat Curran, the Bellator Summer Series Featherweight Tournament Champion, was looking to capitalize on his second tournament championship with a victory in the main event at Bellator 60. The first round opened up at a feverous pace, with both featherweights exchanging blows. After hurting Warren with an onslaught of punches and knees, Curran pursued “The Baddest Man on the Planet” looking for the finish. Warren, however, showed why he is the defending Bellator Featherweight Champion, as he found a way to avoid being finished. In the second round, it was Warren who controlled the fight with his Greco Roman wrestling for a majority of the round and seemed to be building some momentum in his favor. When the third round started, Pat Curran came out energized. After landing a knee to the chin of Warren, Curran followed up with a barrage of strikes that forced the referee to stop the fight.

With the victory, Pat Curran becomes the new Bellator Featherweight Champion as he stops Joe Warren with strikes and improves his record to 17-4 while the former Bellator Champion Warren drops to 7-3 and 5-2 under the Bellator banner.

In the opening round of the featherweight quarterfinals, Bellator veteran Daniel Straus was hoping his second run at a featherweight tournament championship would end with his hand raised in victory. Undefeated Bellator tournament newcomer Jeremy Spoon was looking to keep his perfect record intact while spoiling the return of Straus. It was a closely contested fight through the first two rounds, with Straus controlling the striking and Spoon controlling the clinch. In the third round, Spoon appeared to be the more aggressive fighter, but Straus again landed the more significant strikes. When the judges rendered their decision, it was Daniel Straus that walked away with the unanimous decision victory.

With the win, Daniel Straus improves his record to 18-4 and advances to the second round of the Bellator Season Six Featherweight Tournament. Jeremy Spoon loses for the very first time in his professional MMA career as his record falls to 12-1 with an outstanding effort.

When Bellator Featherweight Tournament Fighter Wagnney Fabiano injured himself in training, Ronnie Mann was left without an opponent. Illinois native Mike Corey saw an opportunity to face one of the best featherweights on the planet, and decided to step in on short notice. The first round saw plenty of action as both Mann and Corey landed shots that dropped their opponent. Corey was able to finish the round on top with some ground and pound. In the second round, Corey was able to secure a takedown and spent the majority of the time in a dominant position despite submission attempts from Mann. The third round looked similar to the second. Corey was able to get Mann to the canvas and deliver relentless ground and pound until the final bell sounded.

When the scorecards were read, Mike Corey walked away with a well-deserved unanimous decision victory and will move on to the semifinals of the Bellator Season Six Featherweight Tournament. He improves his record to 12-2 while Ronnie Mann drops to 21-4 as a professional.

Bellator Featherweight Tournament favorite Marlon Sandro was looking to make a statement in his second stint in a Bellator Tournament. Tournament newcomer Roberto Vargas was looking to score the biggest win of his career. The fight started off as an exciting back-and-forth affair that saw both fighters land clean shots. However, Sandro was able to overwhelm the less experienced Vargas with strikes that dropped him. After some ground and pound, Sandro was able to get the hooks in and submit Vargas with a rear naked choke at 3:35 of the first round.

Marlon Sandro improves his record to 21-3 and 4-1 under the Bellator banner. Roberto Vargas loses for just the second time in his professional MMA career.

In the first quarterfinal fight of the Bellator Season Six Featherweight Tournament, Alexandre “Popo” Bezerra came in as a favorite over late replacement, Kenny Foster. From the opening bell, “Popo” showed exactly why. Utilizing an array of head kicks and leg kicks was able to dominate Foster in the first round. In the second round, Foster came out with better footwork and appeared have learned from his striking mistakes in the first round, however Foster attempted a takedown that was stuffed from “Popo.” Bezerra was then able to get Foster’s back and slip in a rear naked choke that forced Foster to tap.

“Popo” improves his record to 13-1 and moves on to the semifinal round of the Bellator Season Six Featherweight Tournament. Foster, who drops his fourth straight fight, falls to 9-6 in his professional career.

For more information, visit Bellator.com, follow Bellator on Twitter @BellatorMMA or on Facebook at www.facebook.com/Bellator

About Bellator Fighting Championships

Bellator Fighting Championships is a Mixed Martial Arts promotional company headquartered in Chicago. Bellator’s founder/CEO, Bjorn Rebney, is an experienced fighting sports and entertainment professional with a deep commitment to the purity and integrity of the sport of MMA and its athletes. Bellator Fighting Championships’ executive team is comprised of top industry professionals in the areas of live event production, television production, fighter relations, venue procurement, sponsorship creation/development, international licensing, marketing, advertising, publicity and commission relations.