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 UNFC62: Reznick Vs Page is set to ignite before Japanese fans this Friday June 12 at Shinjuku Indoor Arena. Tokyo’s premier MMA organization brings you a packed card, stuffed to the brim with exciting fights which ends with two highly anticipated title bouts.
Sun-Tzu covers the event and brings you the latest and hottest fighting merchandise Tokyo has to offer, so check the various stands available when you hit the venue.
UNFC’s fans love a good stand-up battle, and this event will set Tokyo ablaze with the amount of talent on offer. The main card is so talent rich, a battle between two top 10 heavyweights headlines the undercard.
Because it’s so dense with UNFC’s finest, this preview is a third longer than usual.
Let’s get into the nitty gritty and check out what’s on offer.
[Main Event] (205 lbs) [c] Reznick v #3 Page – Light-Heavyweight Title Fight
Saying Trevor Reznick (15-4) is one of UNFC’s biggest draws is an understatement. Having headlined over half of the events he has appeared in since joining, his 12th fight with Tokyo’s finest will be the 7th time UNFC’s #1 P4P fighter has been in the main event.
Of the other 5 fights the light-heavyweight champ has been in, 4 were in the co-main event. The only time he wasn’t in a main or co-main event bout was at UNFC #18, the same night he walked away with the KO of the night award.
On top of his ability to pull in crowds, the Montreal born Convicted Inc fighter will be seeking his 11th win whilst contracted to UNFC. It’ll put him equal second with Hector Camacho and Shintaro Nomo on the ‘Most wins in org’ list.
And if history repeats itself and the win is another TKO, it will be Reznick’s 11th with Japans #1 fighting promotion and he will edge a little closer to the #1 spot (currently 2nd) on the ‘Most KO wins in org’ list, the top spot held by Frank Nicolosi (12).
Reznick has been in great form since becoming the UNFC light-heavyweight champ in January, when he took the title from Ragnar Danneskjöld at UNFC 36 in a come-from behind TKO victory. It was the second win in the Canadian’s current 5 fight win streak, which includes a co-main event win over Silent Bob at TMC Round 1 of Insanity’s Tycoon MMA Championships.
Reznick, 24, has won 8 of his last 10 fights thanks to his solid striking and clinchwork. The DJs Locker gym trainee utilizes his world class Muay Thai by effectively using his kicks when standing at range, yet he really dominates in the clinch, where he combines his Muay Thai and good grappling.
Last time out, Reznick successfully defended his title against Marlo Karlo in the organizations best rated and highest grossing ticket revenue event, making it the second time he’s proved the belt is best hanging around his waist. Against the challenger this Friday he’ll be looking for the same outcome.
His opponent is Chesney Page (14-4), a former Last Man Standing open-weight champion who comes into his third fight undefeated with UNFC and is seeking his third straight win.
The Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu brown belt is more known for his submission game, but does have 4 TKO finishes to his name. These include his first two fights since joining UNFC that both ended by head kick TKO’s. One was over Cortland Cartwright and the latest a follow-up repeat first round TKO over #6 ranked light-heavyweight Nikolay Burdyalov at UNFC57.
Whilst with LMS, Page ran up a 10-2 record which included 8 submission finishers (kneebar, 3x kimura, guillotine, triangle, Americana, armbar), 6 first round stoppages, a 7 fight win streak whilst also nabbing himself 10 ‘Of the night’ awards (2 Fight of the night, 7 Sub of the night, 1 KO of the night).
The UK native and Amsterdam resident trains under Gary Coffey with Araba Fenice gym, where he continues to hone his strong all-round skillset. Heavy handed natural KO power, lethal leg kicks, powerful takedowns and excellent Muay Thai are what await Reznick in their title fight.
Page currently occupies the #3 contender spot for the 205 lbs title and is sitting in the #12 spot on UNFC’s P4P list, yet a win this weekend will propel him into the top 10 on the P4P list. Given his ability to demolish his opponents with 9 first round finishes out of 14, he has a surprisingly good chance against Japan’s #1 light-heavyweight fighter.
Chesney Page has shown he is a real force on the ground and can pull out wins whether off his own takedowns or after being taken down. He also uses his natural knock out ability to rattle and finish his opponents and has nearly 10 first round finishes to his name.
Trevor Reznick is one of the best with his hands, and has been able to pull off some of the most exciting striking finishers the fans have seen. No matter the round, the champ keeps his cool and executes his game-plan till he gets an opening and finishes strong.
This will be an exciting fight. The champ has shown his Muay Thai stand-up can rival anyone ballsy enough to test it and Page is coming off 2 head kick TKO wins. If things get to the ground though, the challenger does have the superior skillset here and could seriously dominate and get another submission victory to his record, and let’s not forget the gold.
It’ll be one hell of a main event and there is a good chance we may see a new 205 lbs champion emerge with an event rating to rival Reznick’s best rated event so far.
[Co-Main Event] (265 lbs) [c] Nicolosi v #2 Big Baby – Heavyweight Title Fight
Heavyweight champion Frank Nicolosi (16-6) is also looking to defend his title for the third time and win his 5th straight. If he does, it’ll be his 13th with UNFC Tokyo and extend his UNFC legacy with another strike on the ‘Most wins in org’ (12) and ‘Most KO wins in org’ (12) lists.
“Fearless” will equal Meguru Takayanagi on 16 appearances with UNFC when he steps into the familiar cage this Friday. At just 24, he’s been a consistent stand-up threat, having finished all but 1 opponent in his 16 wins.
His last victory was against recent rival Paul OConnell. He beat him for the second time when he defended his UNFC heavyweight title at UNFC59 after initially taking it from him at UNFC52. The Evolution Fight Clan fighter’s Muay Thai striking was just too much for the challenger, once again.
Nicolosi has won his last 10 of 12 fights and has lost only three times in his last 18 appearances, interestingly, twice to American Vidar Nord. The Italian has his camp with NexGen Fight Team and is without a doubt UNFC’s premier striker.
The champ’s Muay Thai shouldn’t be ignored, with great elbows and dangerous knees his Thai clinch is a consistently effective go-to weapon in his arsenal. His wrestling should also be noted, having a strong grappling game to compliment his deadly striking.
Fearless is going up against someone more skilled on the ground in Big Baby, so this title defence definitely isn’t a given.
John Big Baby (10-5) will step into the UNFC cage for the first time when he meets the heavyweight champ for a chance to upset the division and take the title in his first Tokyo outing whilst recording his 3rd straight win.
“Bones” had a strong start to his career, streaking to 6 straight in his native Amsterdam with now closed WarZone and eventually tallying 8-4 overall. The Exiled alliance fighter finished all of his opponents in his winning WarZone bouts (4x Subs, 4x TKO’s) and earned himself 2 Fight of night, 2 Sub of the night and 1 KO of the night awards.
The next stop for Big Baby was Las Vegas, the fighting capital, and then named Worldwide Fighting Championship for 3 fights (2-1) in their super-heavyweight division before making the trip to Japan to compete in UNFC’s 265 lbs division.
Although the 25 year old has yet to make an appearance, he is the current #2 heavyweight contender with UNFC in a fairly understocked division. Bones sits at #34 on Tokyo’s P4P fighter rankings and might be considered a heavy underdog coming into this co-headliner title bout.
Big Baby trained under Ezer Cohen and The Exiled Stand Up – Amsterdam heading into this fight. If his finishers are anything to go by, he has a fairly rounded MMA ability. He’s known for his powerful takedowns and great low kicks, yet he neglects the former for the latter and has had a tendency to stand and trade more than shoot and pound.
Both fighters prefer to stand, yet like the main event fight the challenger does have a notable advantage on the ground with a BJJ brown belt. Nicolosi has solid all round striking and grappling, and if he gets Big Baby into a clinch war he’ll be fighting on his terms toward another title defence.
Bones though, has the balls to stand and trade with even a striker as prominent as Nicolosi. If things do hit the mat, the challenger’s submission wins and BJJ experience should be evidence enough that he has the advantage.
Nicolosi is a definite favourite in this 265 lbs title bout, but anything’s possible. Big Baby has less to lose and this should make for another cracking fight.
(145 lbs) #9 Johnson v #7 Smith
Dave Johnson (9-4) is looking to bounce back from a unanimous decision loss to Shogun Iron Tyson in a great competitive strikers battle at UNFC57. He’s looking for his 8th win since he started this run with UNFC 10 months ago.
“The Machine” was on a 3 fight win streak before he faced Tyson and was starting off his career hot, winning 4 straight. He’s only ever had back-to-back losses once, one of which included a main event title shot against Ferdinand Cortes at UNFC31.
Johnson, 22, has only fought with the one organization since turning pro and has recorded victories over some of UNFC’s lower ranked fighters, yet has come up short against the likes of Ferdinand Cortes (#6) and Jake Vos (#11), both first round losses.
The Barbadian fights under the banner of The Exile and trained with Tōshi gym heading into this important fight. He possesses a solid all round game, emphasized by his good grappling and low kicks, excellent Muay Thai and solid boxing.
He’ll need to be on his game as he’s facing another top 15 ranked featherweight in near career best form, in Peter Smith.
Peter Smith (12-4) will enter this bout pursuing his 5th straight win, 13th overall and enters his fifth fight after changing managers and endeavouring to give 2015 a red hot go. The American has done just that, after a shaky start with UNFC.
A loss to Avon Barksdale in his Tokyo debut, followed by a no contest against Jake Voss after being unable to successfully cut weight. Since the change of management, Smith is undefeated under the tutelage of Freddy Krueger and the backing of The Bomb Squad.
The New Yorker is closing in on his best ever form when he recorded a 5 fight win streak fighting with Steel Penn – ICON. Smith’s time with the New York fighting organization consisted of 11 fights and a record of 8-3. 6 of his 8 SPNY wins were finishers (5 subs, 1 TKO), 3 in the first round and 2 netted him the Sub of the night award.
Smith, 24, now trains with Ultimate MMA Training Center out of Tokyo and has good wrestling and great elbows which his opponent will need to be wary of. He’s got a solid all round game and a brown belt in BJJ, his 6 sub wins a testament and warning to anyone thinking of taking things south.
Peter Smith really likes to mix it up when he fights, more so now under his new instruction. There’s really no weakness in his game and he likes to utilize all his talent when he steps into the cage, his recent form a great career revival and arguably close to the best we’ve seen of him.
Dave Johnson likes to flirt between his stand-up and ground and pound, able to takedown his opponents quite effectively and administer his Machine like striking.
This bout will be another great main card fight between two featherweights looking to push forward and become a top 5 contender in the 145 lbs division. A strong win for either fighter will certainly bring them to the fringes, if not into the upper strata.
Based on Smith’s current form he has the momentum and ability to be pegged as a slight favourite here. Johnson needs to be at his very best if he’s to have his hand raised.
(185 lbs) #8 LeBeau v #5 Opdauhl
Remy LeBeau (4-3) is making his UNFC main card debut after wins against Ole Bighead and James Howlett in his first two appearances in the prelims of UNFC52 & UNFC57. The Hitokiri-13 backed Dutch fighter will win 4 straight if things go his way.
“Gambit” started well with a debut win in his only fight with New Age Cage Fighting in London, then slid to 3 straight losses when he moved his fighting to LA and Silent Fighting Championship. A win in his last fight with SFC gave him some much needed confidence before he hit up his third continent, Asia, and the UNFC.
LeBeau has 2 TKO finishes (strikes, punches), 1 KO (punches), has forced 1 opponent to tap (arm triangle) in his 4 wins and is yet to have any of his fights go to the judges.
The NexGen Fight Team member is the only Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt in the main card yet has world class boxing and good solid wrestling that he can lean on and utilize, and has done just that during this streak.
Although he has the ground credentials, he’s found it a little tough to complete his takedowns and his opponent will be his toughest yet.
Terry Opdauhl (9-3) is coming off a title shot loss to Bruce Wayne at UNFC57. The #5 ranked middleweight contender is in the hunt for his some good form and his 3rd UNFC win.
“Ludacris” smashed his way through the competition at Royal Fighting Championship in Australia, leaving undefeated after a 7-0 record. All were KO/TKO finishes including 5 first rounders, which all happened in his first 5 pro MMA bouts.
Upon landing in Tokyo, his first appearance was a decision victory over Ondrej Rigo at UNFC37. He has since lost 3 of 4 coming into this fight to the likes of the 185 lbs champ Bruce Wayne, twice, and Brandon Marshall.
The American still calls Australia home and as with his upcoming opponent, fights for Hitokiri-13. The Homunculus Alembic gym is where he’s spent time preparing to face LeBeau and he will bring his good wrestling, lethal high kicks and BJJ brown belt to the battle.
Both middleweights are ranked in the top 10 in the division, so this should be a good fight that both have an equal chance of winning. LeBeau has been impressive lately and Opdauhl will be trying to regain a slice of his former dominance.
Opdauhl has 8 TKO victories out of a possible 9 and LeBeau 3 out of a possible 4, so even though both have the BJJ training behind them it may be a standing affair. The Dutchman has also had trouble with his takedown offence as of late, so unless Opdauhl chooses to roll around it could be a back and forth strikers delight with a finish to match.
(205 lbs) #14 Li-Taylor v #13 Raunio
Roy Li-Taylor (12-6) is a UNFC vet who appeared on and won his debut fight at the second event organized under the UNFC name, UNFC001. He’s currently hit a rough patch and will be trying to find the form that lead to a 12-3 pro MMA start.
Before his 3 fight losing skid, the Canadian beat Ricardo Gaarlandt at UNFC41 by TKO for his last win. He’s currently listed on UNFC’s ‘Most wins in org’ list at equal fifth with 9 and equal sixth on UNFC’s ‘Most fights in org’ list with 13.
Li-Taylor recently changed his management team, Arseniy Fedorov of Legion of Doom taking on the task of re-igniting the career of one of UNFC’s great fighters. He trains with Peter Smith at Ultimate MMA Training Center in Tokyo and has some good wrestling and dangerous Muay Thai strikes to employ come fight time.
He faces Rauli Raunio (6-3) who enters his debut with UNFC also on a slight drop in form after a strong start to his fighting career. It will be the fourth company the 25 year old has given his services to, and he’ll be fixing to keep his perfect TKO finish percentage alive (100%) when he steps into the UNFC cage.
“Hermo” fought with Helsinki’s Evil 9 and Infinity, then London’s Claymore Elite Combat before bringing his talent to Japan. He’s another fighter under a change of management and will be heading into his fifth fight under Pablo Spezziale.
The Finish born, LA resident trains with Heavy Metal gym and is backed by LA‘s The Consortium. His boxing is world class, grappling is of a high standard and since the change in management he’s started to add ground and pound to his arsenal.
Raunio gets the red carpet treatment with his debut fight against one of UNFC’s grizzled in Li-Taylor. It’s a statement fight for both, one looking to remind Japanese fans of his talent and the debutant wanting to let his new fans and the rest of the light-heavyweight division know he means business.
Like other bouts on the main card, one has superior BJJ skills and that’s Raunio, whereas Li-Taylor has fought in twice as many bouts. Both have shown by their finishes they prefer to strike their opponents into oblivion, so this main card opener should be a doozy.
Rest of the undercard:
(265 lbs) #10 Cross Furia (4-1) v #7 Maximus (5-2)
(205 lbs) Peacock (10-6) v Horn (3-0)
(170 lbs) #11 Dy No Mite (4-5) v #13 Garcia (5-0)
(185 lbs) Maellard (4-1) v Suzaski (6-6-1)
(205 lbs) Merel (5-2) v Silvennoinen (9-8)
Undercard notables:
- Top 10 heavyweights Dante Cross Furia and DJ Maximus battle it out; DJ Maximus is trying for 6 straight first round KO/TKO wins
- Drew Peacock debuts against Horn; Klas Horn is undefeated with 3 wins
- Two top 15 welterweights fight when DJ Dy No Mite faces Gabriel Garcia; Gabriel Garcia is undefeated after 5
- Seppo Silvennoinen is looking to halt a losing streak, he’s currently lost 5 straight
UNFC62: Reznick Vs Page is brought to you by:
Sun-Tzu. Fight gear spawned from the greatest battles on earth, the cotton for generations punched to perfection by shaolin monks to outlast mankind.
Coming Up:
UNFC63: Camacho Vs Mitchell @ Shinjuku Indoor Arena on June 13
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