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Fight Network Presents MMA Tripleheader Friday, June 17 with WSOF, Hard Knocks & RFA
Toronto - Fight Network, the world’s premier 24/7 multi-platform channel dedicated to complete coverage of combat sports, presents an action-packed mixed martial arts tripleheader this Friday, June 17, beginning with a live 9 p.m. ET broadcast of World Series of Fighting 31: Ivanov vs. Copeland from Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, Conn., followed by Hard Knocks Fighting 50 live from Calgary, Alberta, Canada’s Century Casino at 11 p.m. ET. Finally, RFA 39: Barcelos vs. Moffett will air via short tape delay from Indiana’s Hammond Civic Center at 2 a.m. ET.
All three cards will air on Fight Network across Canada and globally in over 30 countries in Europe, Africa and the Middle East. The live presentation of Hard Knocks Fighting 50 will also air on Fight Network in the U.S. on Cablevision’s Optimum TV, CenturyLink, Suddenlink Communications, Grande Communications, Shentel Cable, Armstrong Cable and other select carriers, as well as digitally on Roku, Apple TV and Amazon Fire TV.
Headlining the live World Series of Fighting lineup, reigning kingpin Blagoy Ivanov (13-1) defends the WSOF heavyweight title against Josh “Cuddly Bear” Copeland (13-1). In the lightweight co-main event, superstars Jason “The Kansas City Bandit” High (19-5) and Mike “The Martian” Ricci (11-4) will square off with the No. 1 contender ranking at stake. Rounding out the star-studded main card, undefeated Jackson-Winkeljohn middleweight prospect Phil Hawes (3-0) makes his promotional debut against Joshua “The Prince of MMA” Key (6-11, 2NC), battle-tested warrior John “Doomsday” Howard (23-12) will face late replacement “Mad” Mike Arrant (15-10) in a middleweight bout, plus Luis “Baboon” Palomino (24-12) returns to the featherweight division for a scrap with former title challenger Sheymon Moraes (8-1).
The live broadcast of Hard Knocks Fighting 50 is topped by a bantamweight championship showdown pitting red-hot Jesse Arnett (10-4) against surging Michigan Top Team representative Mike Hernandez (10-2). In other action, Stephanie Essensa (2-1) battles Brazil’s Paula Baack (2-4) in a women’s strawweight tilt, Josh Griffin (3-4) meets Trenton Rowell (3-4) in a middleweight affair, Leo Xavier (3-0-1) takes on Thomas Richardson (3-0) in a clash of undefeated welterweights and TJ Laramie (3-1) throws down with Brad Katona (3-0) in a bantamweight bout.
RFA’s first trip to Chicagoland will feature RFA featherweight champion Raoni Barcelos (9-1) defending his title for the first time against local favorite Bobby “The Wolfman” Moffett (8-1). The event will also feature a featherweight encounter between Luis Saldana (11-4) and Mike Santiago (17-9), a middleweight matchup pitting undefeated Joseph Gigliotti (7-0) against Daniel Vizcaya (9-3), a light heavyweight bout between Jordan Johnson (4-0) and Shaun Asher (11-2-1), a bantamweight fight between unbeaten prospects Ode Osbourne (3-0) and Antonio Sanchez (2-0), plus a welterweight homecoming for Deray Davis (7-2-1), as he welcomes Bobby Nash (7-1) into enemy territory.
The live action continues on Fight Network across Canada on Saturday, June 18, as the UFC FIGHT NIGHT®: MACDONALD vs. THOMPSON prelims emanate from TD Place Arena in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada for the first time. In featured preliminary bouts kicking off at 8:30 p.m. ET, preceded by a live pre-show at 7:30 p.m. ET, Toronto native Jason Saggo (11-2) takes on Brazil’s Leandro Silva (19-2-1, 1NC) in a lightweight matchup, Latvian-Canadian powerhouse Misha Cirkunov (11-2) welcomes Moldova’s Ion Cutelaba (11-1, 1NC) to the sport’s biggest stage for a light heavyweight showdown, slick Brazilian jiu-jitsu specialist Tamdam McCrory (14-3) faces Polish veteran Krzysztof Jotko (17-1) in a middleweight clash, plus bantamweights Chris Beal (10-2) and Joe Soto (15-5) will kick off the televised festivities with a bang. Following Saturday’s main card, Fight Network will broadcast the live post-fight press conference in its entirety.
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