Under Armour Philippines Hosts Brandon "The Truth" Vera Meet and Greet Event for Filipino MMA Fans

As a big fan of mixed martial arts as well as sporting brand Under Armour, it was a no-brainer to attend the Brandon Vera Meet and Greet event at the UA brand house in Bonifacio Global City.

Fil-Am mixed martial arts competitor Brandon "The Truth" Vera recently paid a visit to the Under Armour brand house in Bonifacio Global City for a meet and greet activity with fans, and to promote his upcoming fight at ONE Championship: Spirit of Champions.

  

Scheduled on December 11th and to be held at the SM Mall of Asia Arena, Spirit of Champions' main event is a five-round heavyweight bout between Vera (13-7) and Paul "Typhoon" Cheng (5-1) of Taipei, Taiwan. The winner will emerge as ONE's inaugural world heavyweight champion.

ONE Championship: Spirit of Champions Main Event

At the time of the meet and greet event at Under Armour, Vera was still slated to face "Chopper" Chi Lewis Parry (6-0), an undefeated U.K.-based mixed martial artist who ignited a war of words with The Truth over social media several months ago. It eventually led to the booking of a fight between the two, but due to the reported failure of Chopper to submit medical requirements, Cheng has been slated to replace him on a week's notice.

Hosting the meet and greet event was regarded sports host and commentator Anthony Suntay, who introduced The Truth to the crowd outside the UA Store. From there, Brandon addressed his fans, sharing how he sees his supporters in the Philippines as family, and is intent on putting on a show for all of them and hopefully win the title on December 11th.

After providing a little more detail regarding his upcoming bout, Brandon gamely signed ONE Championship: Spirit of Champions posters for fans in attendance, and true to his statement regarding family, taking photos with fans as if he was one of their own.

  

  

Brandon Vera is one of two Filipino mixed martial artists currently servings as UA brand ambassadors. The other is Mark "Mugen" Striegl, who happens to also be competing in the co-main event of the December 11 fight card. 

   

Local personalities representing the brand include Gretchen Ho, and the previously mentioned Anthony Suntay.

Notable Under Armour ambassadors also include current NBA MVP Stephen Curry, movie star and former World Wresting Entertainment (WWE) Champion Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, and former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) welterweight champion Georges "Rush" St. Pierre.

To learn more about Under Armour,visit www.underarmour.com.ph.

For more on the upcoming ONE Championship: Spirit of Champions card, visit www.onefc.com. Tickets can be purchased at SMTickets.com.

ONE Championship Announces Events for the Remainder of 2015. Will the Manila Card Be Where Eric Kelly Fights Again?

 ©ONE Championship

Two day prior to their Kingdom of Warriors card held in Yangon, Myanmar last July 18, mixed martial arts promotion ONE Championship announced the dates of six upcoming events which will fill out the remainder of 2015. Shows have been booked to take place in Shanghai, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Macau, and the promotion’s base of Singapore.

Pinoy fight fans can look forward to ONE closing out the year as they always do on December 11^th, where the promotion will once again hold a card in Manila.

While the Singapore-based promotion is known to prominently feature homegrown fighters of the country they are currently holding an even in, the recently announced schedule now begs the question, is this where we see the return of Pinoy fighter Eric “The Natural” Kelly?

Eric Kelly declared the victor versus Rob Lisita at "War of Dragons."
 ©ONE Championship.

Kelly was last seen gracing the ONE cage July of last year, at ONE's "War of Dragoons" event, where he took on “Rutless” Rob Lisita and earned an impressive come-from-behind victory against the elite Australian mixed martial artist. In the fight, Kelly submitted Lisita after a brutal war, where he effectively earned a performance bonus, and what was then a guaranteed title shot for the ONE Featherweight title.

Unfortunately, the injured nose Kelly sustained in the fight against Lisita prevented him from being medically cleared to challenge then-champion Koji Oishi later that August. By the time he was ready to contend, a new champion had emerged in Jadamba Narantungalag, who originally replaced the injured Kelly as contender months before.

Slated to be the title bout for the December 2014 “Warriors Way” card of ONE in Manila, Kelly's shot did not push through due to a failure in contract negotiations. Reports have indicated that Kelly was unsatisfied with the low fight purse offered, which was reported to be significantly lower than that of other top fighters.

Due to the impasse, Kelly had remained inactive in MMA, and it was then thought that his contract with ONE had expired in March. However, it seems it was merely put on hold, and numerous news outlets have reported in this past week that the fighter is eager to finish the said contract.

It has yet to be determined if it will be finished via a buyout or termination, or if Kelly will compete in whichever number of fights remain. Most fight fans in the Philippines would unquestionably want to see Kelly compete again, especially if it were in the December 2015 card of ONE Championship.

For now however, we wait, and hope that “The Natural” finds himself in the best situation possible, both from a financial and competitive standpoint.

It's Official: "The Filipino Wrecking Machine" Will Compete in UFC Fight Night Manila

© UFC

At the official on-sale event for UFC Fight Night Manila, it was announced that "The Filipino Wrecking Machine" Mark Munoz (13-6) will compete at the May 16 event against "The Big Slow" Luke Barnatt (8-2). Munoz was last seen in the Octagon at UFC 184, where he unfortunately dropped a submission loss to UFC-returnee Roan Carneiro.

That would serve as the third straight defeat for Munoz, as he was also previously defeated by Lyoto Machida and Gegard Mousasi. For many pundits it seemed like this would be it for the former Oklahoma State University wrestling standout.

The Filipino Wrecking Machine... doing some... well... wrecking. ©UFC

However. there is "Filipino" in "The Filipino Wrecking Machine" for a reason, and Mark would not go out until getting to fight for his fans and relatives in his homeland. With that said, we can all expect Mark Munoz to rely on his amateur wrestling work ethic and Filipino tenacity to pull out all the stops in getting this next win.

A win, apparently, that will be his last. It was also reported during the event that this will be Mark Munoz's final fight in the Octagon.

The warrior that he is, what could be his final win will not be easy to get. His opponent, Luke Barnatt, has also lost his last two, and a fight scheduled for April 4th with fellow The Ultimate Fighter alum Clint Hester was cancelled due to Hester suffering a foot injury.

Luke Barnatt. ©UFC

Standing at 6-feet-6-inches, Barnatt was introduced to taekwondo at age 15, but mostly competed in wrestling before training mixed martial arts. Prior to his recent two losses, Barnatt won eight straight, and on the heels of a fight cancellation, can be expected to wanting to play spoiler in Munoz's homeland retirement fight.

At the UFC Manila On-Sale Event / © Karl Vernon

***As a person who's had the honor and pleasuer of meeting Mark Munoz on three separate occasions, I wish nothing but the best for Mark in May and beyond. He's one off the most affable guys one can meet, always gracious to his fans despite how insanely popular he is. So thanks Mark, and I'll undoubtedly be rooting for you in everything you do.

UFC Fight Night Manila is scheduled for May 16 and will happen at the SM Mall of Asia Arena. The main event is a five-round featherweight bout between Frankie "The Answer" Edgar and "The California Kid" Urijah Faber.

#UFCManila: What We Know So Far

Last January 29, sports and online media was set abuzz with the announcement that an Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) card was to be held in the Philippines. While the fights for the card was not announced along with the event, the excitement in the county was immediately palpable as fans began to speculate who the featured fighters would be.

Would the "Filipino Wrecking Machine" Mark Munoz be competing on the card despite being booked in a February 28th fight with Roan Carneiro? How many Pinoy fighters will be featured on the card? Who is the broadcast team that will call the action? Will Bruce Buffer be the announcer?

Fast forward 2 weeks, and we have some really exciting answers.


The Answer vs The California Kid

For the main, event,  Frankie "The Answer" Edgar (18-4-1) takes on the "The California Kid" Urijah Faber (32-7-0). Edgar, the former UFC Lightweight Champion, last fought in Novemeber, when he put away Cub Swanson in the main event of UFC Fight Night: Edgar vs.Swanson. Winning via neck crank at 4:58 of the fifth round, Edgar's victory earned the record of latest submission in a UFC fight, and on top of the victory got him a performance bonus for the night.

Faber on the other hand, was last seen gracing the Octagon last December, earning a submission victory over Francisco "Cisco" Rivera. The victory put "The California Kid" in a tie with Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira for most total submission finishes for a fighter in the combined history of the UFC, Strikeforce, World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC), and Pride Fighting Championship (Pride FC).

With Edgar currently a featherweight contender, and Faber having been the long time Featherweight Champion of the WEC, the Fight Night Manila main event has the makings of a mixed-martial arts Featherweight version of "The Thrilla in Manila".



The Usual Suspects


It wouldn't be an MMA event in the Philippines without Pinoy fighters on the card. Not surprisingly, the first to make it to the May fight card is a fighter from Team Lakay, arguably the best fight camp the country. Team Lakay's Roldan Sangcha-an (4-1-0) is scheduled to face Guam-based Jon "The Heat" Delos Reyes (7-4-0), whose also happens to be Filipino. Delos Reyes was last seen in the Octagon last September, falling to Kyoji Horiguchi via TKO.

Sangcha-an on the other hand, made his UFC debut last June, dropping a decision to Richie Vaculik at UFC Fight Night: Te Huna vs. Marquardt. With both fighters looking to turn their fortunes around, Manila looks to be the perfect venue for one to finally get a UFC win. Fans can expect a total war to be waged between the Mountain Province-based local hero and the Guam-raised Filipino as they scrap for that highly coveted W.

UFC: Fight Night Manila will also be the return of Jon "Super Saiyan" Tuck (8-2-0) to the Philippine fight scene. He was last seen in the country competing at Pacific Xtreme Combat 28 in 2011, knocking out Tristan Arenal in the first round. Tuck's success has been a little inconsistent in the big dance however, as he's alternated wins and losses in his four UFC fights. With the return to familiar stomping grounds, Tuck will look to get back on the win column.

It wont be easy however, as he is slated to face Tae Hyun Bang. While not having fought in six months, Bang (17-8-0), is coming off an impressive knock out of Kajan Johnson at UFC 174. With the long lay-off, it can be expected that he will be raring to repeat his previous success.


The complete list of fights for UFC Fight Night Manila (so far):

Frankie Edgar vs Urijah Faber (5 Round featherweight bout)

Bang Tae-Hyun vs Jon Tuck (lightweight bout)

Roldan Sangcha-an vs Jon Delos Reyes (flyweight bout)

Zhang LiPeng vs Kajan Johnson (lightweight bout)

Nolan Ticman vs Yao ZhiKui (flyweight bout)

Roger Zapata vs Li JingJiang (welterweight bout)


For the moment, Mark Munoz is not slated on to be the card, but he did mention in an interview that after he's through with his February 28th bout in Los Angeles, he'd like a ticket to the dance in Manila.

While it will be a little longer before it's known if "The Filipino Wrecking Machine" will or will not be part of what is already a great card for UFC Manila in May, fans can be happy with the reports that part-Filipina ring girl Arianny Celeste may also be working the event.

UFC Fight Night Manila is scheduled for May 16, 2015 and will take place at the SM Mall of Asia Arena. For tickets, visit SMTickets.com. For updates on the event, visit UFC.com and BallsChannel.tv.

All photos property of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

PXC Set to Kick Off 2015 with Laban MMA in Baguio City

As both fans and competitors will attest, 2014 was indeed a banner year for Philippine mixed martial arts. While news and events eventually slowed down as the year came to a close, it seems Pinoy fighters and fans are now ready to pick up where 2014 left off.

First up for 2015 is the announcement of Pacific Xtreme Combat taking its Laban MMA series to Baguio City. Home to arguably the Philippines' best fight camp, Team Lakay, Baguio and the rest of the Cordillera region is known as great source of raw and undiscovered combat sports talent.

With Laban MMA serving as an MMA development league, it makes perfect sense that it starts the new year off in the City of Pines. While the PXC has yet to announce an official fight card, the first Laban MMA event of 2015 is already slated to take place on February 28 at the Baguio Convention Center.

The fight night coincides with the city's annual Panagbenga Flower Festival, so plenty of people will be looking to attend and catch a glimpse of the region's top MMA prospects. To avoid missing all the action, interested parties can begin purchasing tickets at SM Tickets outlets.

Pinoy Fighters Kelly and Donayre Looking to Roar Back in ONE FC's Next Malaysia Event

ONE Fighting Championship, recognized as Asia's largest Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) organization, is living up to it's billing by once again holding a large fight card in the region. On October 17, the organization returns to Kuala Lumpur's Stadium Putra for ONE FC: Roar of Lions.

The event will be headlined by a featherweight bout between undefeated Marat Gafurov and hard-hitting "Ruthless" Rob Lisita. In the co-main event, Pinoy fighter Edward Kelly squares off against Malaysia's own Ev Ting.

ONE FC: Roar of Tigers

The younger brother of Featherweight contender Eric Kelly, Edward (5-1) made his ONE FC debut last December in an unfortunate loss to Brazilian Herbert Burns. While that bout resulted in the sole defeat of his career, the fighter training out of MuayFit Puchong in Malaysia and Lakay Central Gym in Baguio City, Philippines is approaching his upcoming bout with a great sense of urgency as he'll have his hands full with Ev Ting.

Edward Kelly vs. Ev Ting

The likely home crowd favorite, Ting sports a current record of 7-2, and is riding a wave of momentum. He won his last bout in devastating fashion, earning a TKO victory over Yuji Shimada in the first round of their ONE FC: Era of Champions bout last June.

Vaughn Donayre vs. Peter Davis

Also on the ONE FC: Roar of Lions card, Pinoy fighter Vaughn "The Spawn" Donayre will be looking for a quick turnaround by squaring off against Malaysian MMA star Peter Davis. A Cebu-native currently based in Dubai, Donayre made his debut for the promotion just last August, suffering a submission lose to Mohammed Walid. The former mechanical engineer aims for his first win in ONE FC by taking on Peter Davis.

Sporting a pro record of 8-3, Davis has won his last two bouts. His latest came by way of TKO over Olivier Coste at ONE FC: War of Nations last March. Considered the face of MMA in Malaysia, the Wuji Chuan exponent and part-time actor and model will look to extend his momentum and expand his celebrity by earning a win against "The Spawn." Donayre on the other hand, will look to be true to his reputation by putting up exciting fights and always looking for the finish, and will likely be looking to put away Davis the instant he has the opportunity.

Catch ONE FC: Roar of Tigers live on October 17 at  Kuala Lumpur's Stadium Putra. The  event is also available for purchase and live viewing at www.ONEFC.com.

Pinoy Fighter Rolando Gabriel Dy will compete for the PXC's Bantamweight Title

Guam - On October 24th, Guam’s Kyle Aguon and the Philippine’s Rolando Gabriel Dy will compete for the vacant PXC Bantamweight Title. After an unsuccessful attempt at taking the title last year, Kyle Aguon returns to the PXC cage looking to bring the belt home. Rolando Dy will look to continue his great run of form in the PXC cage and further solidify himself as one of the PXC’s top Filipino fighters.

PXC 45 courtesy of the PXC

Here's a look at the official PXC 45 fight card:

Bantamweight Championship: Kyle Aguon vs Rolando Dy (135lbs)

Kyle Reyes vs Alex Volkanovski (145lbs)

Brogan Walker vs Yoojin Jung (125lbs)

Toby Misech vs Trevin Jones (135lbs)

Ricky Camp vs Mark Abelardo (135lbs)

Mike Sanchez vs Scotty Eclavea (125lbs)

Darren Uyenoyama vs Shane Alvarez (125lbs)

Tyrone Jones vs Hong Sung Chan (155lbs)

McKlane Alfred vs Vince Masga (125lbs)

 Check out the PXC's website for more information.

"Gravity" Looks to Make History at ONE FC: Rise of the Kingdom

On September 12, 2014, ONE Fighting Championship is set to make its promotional debut in the country of Cambodia with ONE FC: Rise of the Kingdom. To headline the promotion's foray into its third new venue in as many months will be a battle between Pinoy fighter Geje "Gravity" Eustaquio, and Brazilian competitor Adriano "Black Diamond" Moraes. The five-round main event will be for the inaugural ONE FC Flyweight Championship.

Geje "Gravity" Eustaquio

Eustaquio, who currently holds a record of 6-2, earned his way to the title fight by defeating Japanese fighter Kentaro Watanabe via unanimous decision at ONE FC 17. A member of the famed Team Lakay, "Gravity" is looking to add to his team's history of inaugural champions, as teammate Honorio "The Rock" Banario had also won the inaugural ONE FC Featherweight Championship in early 2013.

ONE FC: Rise of the Kingdom

Making Pinoy MMA history will be easier said than done however, as Eustaquio will have to overcome a game Adriano Moraes to become the first ever Flyweight title holder. "Black Diamond", who owns an overall pro-MMA record of 11-1, earned his shot at the title by submitting Japanese fighter Kosuke Suzuki via triangle choke at the same card in Jakarta, Indonesia where Eustaquio earned his shot.

To provide well wishes to “Gravity” as he embarks on the biggest fight of his pro-MMA career, Pinoy fight fans can do so on his official Facebook fan page, as well as Team Lakay’s.

ONE FC: Rise of the Kingdom will be happening this Friday, September 12th, at the Koh Pick Theater in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. For ticketing information or to know where to watch on television and online, visit www.ONEFC.com

Team Lakay Fighters Ready for Combat at PXC 44

While most Pinoy MMA fans will be paying close attention to Roldan Sangcha-an as he makes his Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) debut in Auckaland, New Zealand, "The Executioner" will not be the only Pinoy fighter going in for combat over the weekend. Crisanto Pitpitunge (5-3) and Troy Bantiag (5-3), Sangcha-an's teammates from Team Lakay, will have their own bouts at PXC 44 this June 27th across the pond in Guam.


'The Slugger" Starting Road Back to the Title 

Duenas vs. Pipitunge. Photo property of PXC.

Pipitunge, a former Pacific Xtreme Combat bantamweight champion, will be facing Josh Duenas (4-4) of Saipan in a three-round flyweight affair. With his most recent PXC outing resulting in a third-round submission lost at the  hands of Han Bin Park at PXC 41, fans can expect "The Slugger" to be looking to bounce back in dominant fashion and get his name back into title contention.

Duenas has evenly split the wins and losses of his total eight pro fights, with the most recent being a victory by way of submission. Despite the slightly lower win percentage, it must be taken not of that all four of Duenas' victories have come in the form of a stoppage. While a true challenge, Pinoy MMA fans can expect Pipitunge to go into battle in true Team Lakay fashion, backed by months of hardwork and an exceptional unwillingness to yield.


Bantiag Hunting for Big Win

Aguon v. Bantiag. Photo property of PXC.

Like Pipitunge, Bantiag will for the first time be competing outside of the Philippines, taking on Guam’s Kyle Aguon. While "The Hunter" will likely not have the live crowd's support going up against a Guam-based competitor, many can expect Bantiag to be fighting with a great sense of urgency as he looks to snap a two-fight losing skid with a victory in a bout with title implications.


Despite his last fight being a loss, Aguon last competed against current bantamweight champion Michinori Tanaka, and a win against Bantiag will immediately get him back in title contention. With different, yet both high, stakes in the fight for both competitors, many expect the great blend of speed and skill commonly associated with the lighter weight classed to be on full display for this bout.

Pacific X-Treme Combat 44.

Pacific X-treme Combat 44

Pacific Xtreme Combat 44 will be held on June 27 at the UOG Filedhouse in Mangilao, Guam, headlined by a five-round bout between Josh Calvo and Zebaztian Kadestam for the vacant PXC Welterweight Championship.

Another Team Lakay Standout Set to Make Octagon Debut

On June 28th, another exceptional Pinoy fighter will be making his debut in mixed martial art's biggest stage. Roldan Sangcha-an, a mixed martial artist from the famed Team Lakay, will have his first fight in the Ultimate Fighting Championship, taking on former TUF contestant Richie Vaculik in a three-round featherweight affair. The fight will be part of the preliminary card of UFC Fight Night 43: "Marquardt vs Te Huna", which will be held at the Vector Arena in Auckland New Zealand.

Roldan Sangcha-an

With a record of 4-0 as a pro, all victories of which came by way of stoppage, Sangcha-an was slated to fight for the Pacific Xtreme Combat (PXC) Featherweight title. That fight would eventually fall through, as Sangcha-an's opponent would have to withdraw after suffering an injury in training.

Tale of the Tape. Photo property of the UFC.

True to the adage good things come to those who wait and all things happen for a reason, Sangcha-an is now set to grace the Octagon for the very first time, and the third Team Lakay fighter to do so.

He takes on Richie "Vas" Vaculik (9-2), a former contestant of The Ultimate Fighter: The Smashes, the season of the hit series in which Australian fighters were pit against those of England. During the show, Vaculik competed as a lightweight, but has since moved to the flyweight division, dropping his sole UFC bout to Justin Scoggins via TKO.

UFC Fight Night: Te Huna vs. Marquardt

Catch all the action of UFC Fight Night: Te Huna vs. Marquardt on June 28, 6:30pm Manila time, only on Balls Channel.

Mark Muñoz Recovery Ahead of Schedule and Back to Full Training

Mark Muñoz is back on track in his quest for the UFC Middleweight Championship held with an iron grip by Champion Anderson “The Spider” Silva.

In his tweet from last Feb. 28, 2012, The Filipino Wrecking Machine enthusiastically declared to the MMA world the following good news "Gr8 news given by Dr Kvitne @kerlanjobe! I could start training!!!!!! I'm back!!!! 1 month ahead of schedule! Yeah boyeeeeee!!!"

Muñoz was disappointed when his fight versus Chael Sonnen, originally scheduled for last Jan. 28 at UFC on Fox 2 in Chicago, was dropped due to his elbow injury. Still, he maintained a positive attitude throughout his ordeal. He even came to visit the Philippines last February in part of his injury.

The US national champion wrestler revealed during his press conference in Metro Manila, Philippines on Feb. 19, “For me, this [injury] has been a blessing in disguise…it’s given me an opportunity to rest. I’m feeling a lot better and I’m coming back as Mark Munoz 2.0, The Filipino Wrecking Machine upgraded.”

He also shared that he’s been doing some light training, training around the injury.

Significantly this time, though, it appears that he can increase his training back to how ti should be, as his elbow is fast healing and recovering—if it isn't 100% yet.

Muñoz believes that despite the injury that routed of his scheduled bout against Sonnen, destiny remain kind and he believes he'll get his chance at the middleweight title before this year ends. (The title will be defended by Silva against Sonnen this coming June in UFC 147.)


Muñoz was also asked “You really believe you’ll fight for the title within this year—not by next year—even if you were sidelined by that elbow injury and would be ready to fight only by June?"

“This year,” He replied without hesitation and with unwavering conviction.

A half year still remains after Silva vs. Sonnen takes place, and whoever will be holding the much-coveted title when the dust clears after UFC 147 in Sau Paulo, Brazil will have enough time left to entertain a upgraded, and more efficient Filipino Wrecking Machine.