MILWAUKEE’S DUKE ROUFUS RETURNS TO HIS KICKBOXING ROOTS IN A GLORIOUS WAY

Historic Eagles Club Grand Ballroom Hosts NAFC "Knockout Kings" ROAD TO GLORY

April 11, 2013 (Milwaukee, WI, USA) Few names are as synonymous with professional Kickboxing than Milwaukeean Duke Roufus. As well, even fewer Americans are as well-versed in the Thai art of kickboxing, or Muay Thai, as Duke Roufus.

So it came as no surprise when representatives of international kickboxing promotions powerhouse Glory Sports International contacted Duke in early 2013 looking for his assistance in helping Glory establish itself in the United States.

What was surprising, however, was the fact that one of the cities targeted in Glory's plans was Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and they wanted Duke to promote their ROAD TO GLORY 8-Man Kickboxing tournament in his hometown.

It was Glory's understanding that Milwaukee was regarded as a true hotbed for combat sports in the U.S., and Duke Roufus was the main driving force behind that image.

With lifelong international connections bringing the parties together, Duke was humbled at the opportunity to work with such a prestigious organization, and even more humbled at the fact they wanted to bring their exciting brand of stand-up fighting to southeastern Wisconsin.

After months of planning and coordination between Milwaukee-based North American Fighting Championship (NAFC) and Glory executives, Duke Roufus is pleased to announce professional Muay Thai and Kickboxing will return to Milwaukee's historic Eagles Club Grand Ballroom, 2401 W. Wisconsin Ave., Saturday, May 11, 2013. CONCEDE, Speedy Metals and Roufusport present NAFC "Knockout Kings" ROAD TO GLORY USA. Doors open and the undercard starts at 5:00 pm, while the main card begins at 7:30 pm.

This highly-anticipated show returns Duke to his roots of combat sports, the smash-mouth stand-up game of professional Muay Thai and kickboxing, where the lifelong martial artist is a former 4-Time World Heavyweight Champion.

Showcasing some of the best fighters from across Wisconsin and the Midwest, PLUS top fighters flying in from across North America for the ROAD TO GLORY USA 8-man Lightweight tournament (with a top prize of $20,000.00 going to the winner), makes this one of the most unique ring sports events ever produced in Milwaukee.

ROAD TO GLORY USA is kicking off it's promotions with six events in America over the first five months of 2013, including the May 11th show in Milwaukee's Eagles Club.

In addition to top regional talent battling each other in prestige bouts, each ROAD TO GLORY USA event will consist of a one-night, single-elimination, 8-man tournament in one of Glory's six weight divisions. ROAD TO GLORY Milwaukee will showcase the country's top Lightweight (-155 lbs) Kickboxers who will be awarded a total purse of $42,000.00.

The Milwaukee ROAD TO GLORY USA tournament champion will advance to the next level of the global tournament and be offered a one-year contract to fight for Glory internationally.

Highlights of ROAD TO GLORY USA, operated by GSI (Glory Sports International), will be distributed to over 90 countries by GSI's media partner Total Sport Asia (http://www.totalsportsasia.com/). 

The Glory World Series (www.gloryworldseries.com) is the world's premier kickboxing fighting league, staging events across the globe and offering up to $1,000,000.00 in prize money to the winners of 16-man 'Grand Prix' tournaments, which are open to only the best fighters in each weight class. The fight series also includes eight-man tournaments and events with traditional, single bouts.

Advance priced tickets can be purchased online at http://nafc.tv/kokingsticketing.php, The Rave Eagles Club Box Office, by calling 414-967-7767 or from any fighter appearing on the card. Regular priced tickets will also be available at the door.

VIP Front Row $100.00 ($110.00 door), Reserved VIP Ringside, VIP Balcony and VIP Stage $60.00 ($70.00 door) and General Admission $35.00 ($40.00 door).

A complete bout lineup will be announced shortly. Featured prestige bouts showcasing high-end North American talent have already been announced, including:

Muay Thai Lightweight -155
Landon Simmons (Cooper’s Gym-Detroit, MI) Mike vs Tom Grimmer (Roufusport-Milwaukee, WI)

Muay Thai Middleweight -185
“Bam Bam” Bryce Franck (Roufusport-Rockford, IL) vs Tim “The Arch Angel” Nixon (Team No Quit-Manistique, MI)

Kickboxing Super Heavyweight +230
Reese Shaner (Waukesha MMA-Waukesha, WI) vs Demian Decorah (Chosen Few-Madison, WI)

Muay Thai Bantamweight -135
Josh Kasee (Oneida Boxing Club-Oneida, WI) vs Boontieng Phetvixay (Yamatah Muay Tai-Milwaukee, WI)

Kickboxing Lightweight -155
Benni Izairi (Yamatah Muay Thai-Milwaukee, WI) vs Dwight Anderson (Gracie Barra-Kenosha, WI)

Muay Thai Lightweight -155
Gustavo “Sidewayzzz” Rodriguez (De La Rosa Submission Wrestling-Rockford, IL) vs Jon Henderson (Canadian Fighting Center-Winniepg, Manitoba, Canada)

If you like your entertainment non-stop, action packed and in your face, then you'll want to make sure you're seated ringside Saturday, May 11th at NAFC "Knockout Kings" ROAD TO GLORY USA.

Join fighters and fans afterward at the "Knockout Kings" Post Fight Party at Brewski's Sports Club, 304 N 76th St, Milwaukee. Remember to take the shuttle to and from the fights from Brewski's, located directly across the street from Roufusport MMA Academy.

NAFC "Knockout Kings" ROAD TO GLORY is presented by CONCEDE, Speedy Metals and Roufusport MMA Academy and is sponsored by Brewski's Sports Club, Combat Corner, Curtis Ambulance, Elevation Training Mask,ExpressMilwaukee.com, FM 102.1, Grit Mouthguards, On The Border, Shepherd Express, UWM Army ROTC, WCGV My24 Milwaukee, WSSP Sports Radio 1250 AM, WI Athletic Club and Workout Boss.

For more information, visit http://NAFC.tv or call (414) 967-7767.

About NAFC

North American Fighting Championship is operated by famed fight trainer Duke Roufus and his business partner and producer Scott Joffe. Roufus is one of the most recognizable Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) and striking coaches in North America, and is considered to be one of the top trainers of Muay Thai kickboxing outside of Thailand. Roufus also runs the Roufusport Fight Club team, which includes UFC stars Anthony “Showtime” Pettis, Alan Belcher, Erik “New Breed” Koch, Pascal “Panzer” Krauss, Chico "King" Camus and Bellator World Welterweight Champion and US Olympic Wrestler Ben Askren.

In addition to producing Muay Thai and Kickboxing events, NAFC creates and produces MMA events that feature combatants who have fought in the UFC and other top level organizations, as they take on local fighters looking to make it to the next level. Current and former UFC fighters who have fought on past NAFC and Gladiators Fighting shows (the NAFC’s predecessor) include current the UFC's Anthony “Showtime” Pettis and Chico Camus, former UFC Middleweight Champion Dave Menne, Tim Boetsch, "Danny Boy" Downes, Ben Rothwell, Pat Barry, Jesse Lennox, Bart “Bartimus” Palaszewski, Jason “Dynamite” Dent, Rex Holman, Joe Doerksen, Dan Bobish, Ryan “The Lion” Madigan, Josh “Heavy” Hendricks and Sherman “The Tank” Perdergarst.

DIBELLA LOOKING FOR BREAKOUT PERFORMANCES ON SEPT 29TH HBO BOXING AFTER DARK TRIPLE-HEADER

New York, NY (8/30/12) - On Saturday, September 29, DiBella Entertainment presents the HBO Boxing After Dark triple-header, live from the MGM Grand at Foxwoods, in Mashantucket, CT. Headlining the card will be Worcester, Massachusetts' Edwin "La Bomba" Rodriguez (21-0, 14KO's) defending his USBA super middleweight championship against New Jersey knockout artist Jason "El Monstruo" Escalera (13-0-1, 12KO's). In the televised co-feature, Luis "Orlandito" Del Valle (16-0, 11KO's) faces his toughest opponent to date when he squares off against former world champion Vic Darchinyan (37-5-1, 27KO's) for the vacant NABF super bantamweight title. Opening up the televised portion of the card will be former two-division undefeated world champion Zsolt Erdei (33-0, 18KO's) taking on Isaac Chilemba (19-1-1, 9KO's) in a key light heavyweight matchup. The card is promoted by DiBella Entertainment, in association with Joe DeGuardia's Star Boxing and Gary Shaw Productions. HBO begins live coverage at 9:30PM ET/PT. The triple-header is being called "Road to Glory" and the name is quite fitting as each fight carries heavy implications. It is just the second time that the top-rated Rodriguez will see airtime on the network (first in the main event), and it is a first for Escalera, Del Valle, Chilemba, and Erdei. Together the five fighters have a combined record of 102-1-2, with the lone fighter on the card sporting more than one loss being the veteran and former three-time world champion Darchinyan. Lou DiBella, President of DiBella Entertainment (DBE), has a knack for signing good young talent. DiBella guided the career of Andre Berto from his pro-debut to his first championship. He was also was the only promoter who was willing to take a shot at a then unknown Argentinean, Sergio Martinez. So when this past year's ESPN Boxing's Prospects to Watch List, compiled by esteemed writer Dan Rafael, came out, it was little surprise that several DBE-promoted fighters topped the list. DiBella sees championship material and expects big things in the careers from each of the DBE fighters on the card, and for that reason he feels there could be not one, not two, but three separate breakout performances on September 29.       Below is a closer look at each match-up. EDWIN RODRIGUEZ VS. JASON ESCALERA The 27-year-old Dominican-native Rodriguez, lives in Worcester, MA, but has been training in Houston with renowned trainer Ronnie Shields for his past three fights. The 2005 United States Amateur Champion and 2006 National Golden Glove Champion has gradually climbed the super middleweight world rankings since turning pro in early 2008. Rodriguez is currently rated as the IBF #4, WBC #4 and WBA #8 super middleweight in the world. Rodriguez is coming off an impressive 10-round unanimous decision over fellow contender Donovan George that was shown live on HBO. Rodriguez hopes an impressive showing against Escalera will propel him into his first world title opportunity. The Puerto Rican Escalera, also 27 years old, calls Union City, NJ, his home. With devastating power in both hands, Escalera has the ability to end a fight in the blink of an eye. Like Rodriguez, Escalera also turned pro in early 2008, after winning the New Jersey Golden Gloves Light Heavyweight Championship in 2007. The only blemish thus far on Escalera's record is an eight-round split decision draw against fellow prospect Nick Brinson back on May 18 of this year. LUIS DEL VALLE VS. VIC DARCHINYAN From 2004-2007, while Del Valle was tearing through the amateur ranks, picking up a number of regional and national championships (http://boxrec.com/media/index.php?title=Human:450099), Darchinyan, already a pro for four years, was the king of the flyweights. Darchinyan won the first of his three world titles by stopping longtime IBF champion Irene Pacheco on December 16, 2004. Darchinyan defended that title six times, before being knocked out by Nonito Donaire in 2007. By 2008, Darchinyan had moved up in weight to claim the IBF super featherweight title. On November 1, 2008, Darchinyan became the undisputed champion, knocking out Cristian Mijares, to add the WBC and WBA belts to his collection. Seven months before Darchinyan fought Mijares, the Puerto Rican Del Valle made his pro debut scoring a third-round KO over Ray Rivera in Atlantic City. After starting his career campaigning in the featherweight and super featherweight divisions, Del Valle has since begun the gradual drop down to super bantamweight. Del Valle is currently rated #4 in the WBA featherweight ratings, #10 in the WBO and #13 in the WBC super bantamweight ratings. A win over Darchinyan, for the vacant NABF title, will allow Del Valle to crack the top 10 of the super bantamweight rankings. On the other hand, Darchinyan knows that this could be his last chance at reclaiming another world championship and will undoubtedly be leaving it all on the line come fight night. ZSOLT ERDEI VS. ISAAC CHILEMBA From 2004-2009, Erdei ruled the light heavyweight division, defending his WBO title 11 times. In 2009, Erdei moved up in weight to challenge WBC Cruiserweight Champion Giacobbe Fragomeni. Despite giving up 17 pounds, Erdei won a majority decision. Soon after that, Erdei retired. The retirement didn't last long though, as Erdei returned a year later making his U.S. debut under new promoter DiBella Entertainment. Erdei was scheduled to challenge IBF Light Heavyweight Champion Tavoris Cloud last year, but was forced to withdraw after suffering an injury in training camp. Now Erdei is back, healthy and rested, and ready to make another run at light heavyweight supremacy. In his way stands the IBF #5, WBC #6, WBA #13, and WBO # 14 rated Chilemba. The 25-year-old South African Chilemba's lone loss came way back in 2007. The only other blemish on Chilemba's record is a 12-round split decision draw to highly regarded, undefeated super middleweight contender Thomas Oosthuizen (also promoted by DBE). Chilemba is coming off his most impressive victory to date, a dominant 10-round decision victory over former world title challenger Edison Miranda. Chilemba currently holds six victories over previously undefeated fighters and is confident that September 29 will make lucky number seven. "Road to Glory" is the highly anticipated HBO Boxing After Dark tripleheader, featuring some of the brightest young fighters in all of boxing looking to continue on their respective paths toward world championships. The card will take place on Saturday, September 29, at the MGM Grand at Foxwoods. The event is promoted by DiBella Entertainment, in association with Joe DeGuardia's Star Boxing and Gary Shaw Productions. All three bouts will be aired on HBO's Boxing After Dark beginning at 9:30 p.m. ET/PT Tickets are on sale now and can be purchased through the Foxwoods MGM Grand box office by calling (800) 200-2882. Tickets are priced at $45, $75, $100 and $200.