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 HARDCORE Fighting Championship
HFC 4 - O'Donnelly vs Barbosa
Event Preview
Hello again HARDCORE MMA fans!! We are on the dawn of the first ever HFC event post SMASH merger! This is an exciting time for me and should be for all of our managers as well! The old regime is out and we usher in a new era into the HFC and it all gets kicked off tonight!
Lets jump right into the fights!
Prelims:
Rocketfingers vs Bonifacio
Our first bout of the night features Johnny Rocketfingers (1-0) squaring off against Luigi Bonifacio (2-3) in a lightweight showdown between two young fighters looking to make their mark in the HFC!
Rocketfingers is a ground game specialist with wonderful wrestling skills and holds a purple belt in BJJ. He's been training and says he's ready to go and was chomping at the bit for a fight, so a fight he got! He won his amateur QFC fight against opponent Ricky Jones in brutal fashion where he TKO'd his opponent in the first round via vicious ground and pound. I'm sure he will be looking for more of the same in his first professional HFC bout to announce to all lightweights that he's arrived! Heeeeerrrreeee's Johnny!!
Bonifacio (2-3) had a rough start to his career going only 1-3 in is amateur fights in the QFC, but has since turned it on pulling off two strait wins including his SMASH debut against Jake Tate.
Bonifacio is a superb boxer and has solid MT with some wrestling background. He's a natural striker, but won his last fight via submission... well, that's what the stat line shows at least. The reality is, he beat his opponent into submission, literally. After pouncing on top of Tate, he unleashed holy hell on Tates face until Tate actually tapped out to quit the fight.
This is sure to be a fun fight to watch to kick off the evening of HFC 4!
Silva vs Happiest
Our second fight of the evening pits Rickson Silva (2-0) against Happier Happiest (4-4) in a middleweight showdown.
Silva has two impressive MMA wins under his belt, first against Holden Gracie via arm-bar, and recently against Manu Tau via kimura in the first round of the HFC championship series tournament. Silva couldn't wait to get back into the cage again, and asked for a fight between rounds of the tournament. He is a machine on the ground with superb wrestling and a black belt in BJJ, and always looking for a fight! This man is HARDCORE!
"Happy" is a fighter who has had what can only be described as an average career. He had a 2-2 record in his amateur career in QFC, a 2-2 record in his professional career in Madness MMA, and has now found himself in the HFC looking to jump start his MMA career. What we have seen from Happy is that he will fight, win or lose, and he will not give up. I'm sure he will have extra motivation coming into this fight against the young, confident Silva, so that he can get his career turned in the right direction for good this time.
Who will win this fight? The crafty 27 year old veteran or the young and confident Silva? Stay tuned to HFC to find out!
Miz vs Douglas
Our final preliminary fight of the evening showcases Fits "Lit" Miz (5-3-1) and Keon "Pound Dog" Douglas (3-0). These two heavyweights are ready to rumble, and at a combined 490lbs, a rumble it will be!
Miz is a pretty balanced fighter having trained in all aspects of his game, but he hasn't focused on any one area in particularly. He's had a very unstable career to date, bouncing in and out of the amateur ranks, holding a 5-1 amateur record in the QFC and a 0-3 professional career between SAFO and SMASH.
Miz has shown flashes of excellence and an ability to lock in some quick submissions, and he'll be looking for more of the same as he squares off against the young up and comer, Douglas.
"Pound Dog" comes into this fight flying high as he rides a 3 fight win streak, all by (T)KO!
He won his first, and only, amateur fight with a nasty KO over Chris Sarik li, and joined SMASH to follow that KO up with two TKO victories over Clarke and Bennett. Sitting at 3-0 and taking on Miz, Pound Dog is looking to bump his record to 4-0 and start to toss his name around the discussion for a potential title fight. Pound Dog is a superb boxer with a strong wrestling game. He's defiantly proven he can throw down and mow down anyone in front of him, and there's no doubt in his mind that he will do so again tonight!
Main Cards
Bob vs Bisping
Big Bob (1-0) in a Bantamweight throw-down against Chael "Bigman" Bisping (5-2) kicks off our main card events tonight. This fight on paper looks like it should go to Bisping due to his experience and record, but "Big" Bob plans to spoil the paper readers and show that he may be an underdog, but he can tap out anyone from under or on top of them.
With respectable wrestling and a brown belt in BJJ, Bob is a grappler who knows how to finish. He dominated his amateur QFC fight with a guillotine choke out in only 25 seconds. If Bisping isn't careful, Bob could lock in a submission on him too!
Bisping is a striker, pure and true. He's a respectable boxer and possibly even better wrestler, while holding a blue belt in BJJ. He has plenty of tools to handle the fight on the ground, but has preferred to keep the fight standing as he's finished all of his fights by way of (T)KO.
Despite Bisping's 5-2 record, I've heard rumors out of his gym that his moral isn't where it should be. He just hasn't had his head in the game as of late. I don't know what's going on over there, but maybe he just needs a win to boost his moral.
If his head isn't in the game when he steps into the ring tonight, however, Big Bob will look to take full advantage and send him tappin' and packin' quickly.
Soprano Jr vs Sparrow
Battle of the superstars!! err.. on the big screen at least... Tony Soprano Jr (1-0) squares off against Jack Sparrow (4-1) in this heavyweight bout.
Soprano grew up around the waste business and will be looking to waste no time in laying waste to his opponent tonight! Jr is pretty balanced but not specifically strong in any particular style of fighting. He's a respectable boxer with some MT and wrestling training and holds a blue belt in BJJ. He won his only amateur QFC fight via unanimous decision, but will be looking to get a finish in his first professional MMA bout in the HFC.
"Captain" Jack Sparrow is way to savvy to allow that to happen. With his 4-1 MMA record, he has proven time and again that he will do whatever he needs to pull off a win. Another 1-0 amateur record fighter who turned pro, just as Soprano, but has since popped off 3 professional wins with his only loss in a title bout against former SMASH champion Bizihwaeile.
He's got some power in those hands as all 3 of his victories came from TKO, the last two via cuts that forced the doctors to stop the fight. The man can punch, and when he hits, it lands solid. Soprano better hope he's got a granite chin for this one!
Von Ryan vs Bessant
Our co-main event of the evening is a welterweight bout between Von Ryan (7-4) and John Bessant (10-4). These two fighters are both veterans and both no stranger to winning.
Bessant is a wonderful MT fighter with solid boxing and superb wrestling skills at his disposal. A versatile fighter who has taken home two FotN awards and coming off a heart breaking loss in the 3rd round of the Island tournament. A former Island champion, Bessant is looking to rise to the top of the HFC welterweight division by coming away from this showdown with his hands raised in victory.
Von Ryan might have something to say about that. Although not quite as seasoned as Bessant, with a 7-4 record, Von Ryan is still a winner and definitely no joke. He had a title fight in the islands too, but wasn't able to take the belt. With a round 2 exit in the island season ending tournament, Von Ryan has been waiting for his chance to step back into the spotlight and improve upon his record. With superb boxing, a purple belt in BJJ and some MT and wrestling training, he may just have the tools to do just that.
This will be a war, ladies and gentlemen! Ah, hell.. who am I kidding, we're HARDCORE in here, nothing gentle about us! These two fighters will be putting their island status behind them as they turn to the future to see where they stack up in the competition of the HFC.
Main Event:
O'Donnelly vs Barbosa
And now, the moment you've all been waiting for! Our main event of the evening is a title fight for the HFC Lightweight championship of the world between Shay O'Donnelly (12-2) and Daniel Barbosa (6-1)!
Our first fighter, Barbosa, is a wonderful MT fighter with some decent boxing and wrestling skills. He also holds a purple belt in BJJ. Former SMASH champion, winning the belt from Shay O'Donnelly with a Guillotine submission that earned him FotN. He went on to defend the title in his next fight, and lost the belt to Jewel Diaz in his last fight.
With the merger and change of ownership within the company, Diaz abandoned his belt and left SMASH to join Madness MMA, so the belt was vacated. It's only fitting that the previous champ is one of the fighters to face off to crown the next HFC Lightweight champion!
His opponent, none other than Shay O'Donnely, also former SMASH champion. "ShaDo" is a wonderful boxer with very respectable wrestling, and knows how to use his skills to win. With a 12-2 record, O'Donnely is the most decorated fighter in the HFC Lightweight division. He is riding a 4 fight win streak and his last loss was the fight against Barbosa that cost him the championship. He has his eyes set on revenge as he will be looking to avenge one of his only two losses, and loss of his belt, by KOing Barbosa to strap that gold back around his waist.
This fight will be one for the ages, my friends! So be sure to tune into HFC 4 - O'Donnely vs Barbosa to watch these gladiators throw down and show the world what the HARDCORE Fighting Championship is all about!
Stay HARDCORE!!!
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