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 Empire 45 - 2nd June 2013
Empire is back in LA once again this weekend to bring you the Empire 45 pay per view live from the Memorial Collusueum on Sunday 2nd June 2013. Here's a breakdown of the forthcoming matchups.
Gristle McThornbody v Ignatius Reilly
The Main Event is a showdown between Empire newcomer Gristle McThornbody and Empire Openweight Tournament winner Ignatius Reilly in a contest which will go a long way towards deciding the next Light Heavyweight Contender to challenge for Smokudju Womba's crown. McThornbody made an impressive Empire debut at the beginning of May at Empire 40 wining a unanimous decision over former champion Moses Diggs showcasing his all round striking game which is likely to be his weapon of choice when he takes on Reilly and will be confident of becoming the next number one contender. The Empire Openweight tournament winner Ignatius Reilly is currently on a ten-fight unbeaten streak and has shown a diverse striking game and a love for the clinch in his career so far. Reilly came out on top in the OW final defeating Ambrose with a combination of talent and heart and he knows if he can match that performance against McThornbody he'll have a great chance of coming out on top in the fight.
Pat McDermot v Randal Pritchard
The Co-Main Event sees Middleweight Champion Pat McDermot defend his title against Randal Pritchard. McDermot is fresh off a hard fought draw with Light Heavyweight Champion Smokudju Womba in a fight that easily could have went either way and is ready to defend his title for the first time after successfully reclaiming the belt from Boba Fett all the way back at Empire 28 with two victorious super fights coming in between the showdown with Womba. McDermot is unbeaten in six fights and with his Elite striking came and hard hitting style he'll be confident of steam rolling his way through Pritchard on route to a successful title defence and a potential KOTN award. With almost nothing to lose Randal Pritchard takes up the challenge of dethroning the champion, currently 5-0 under the Empire banner including 3 successive finishes Prtichard will be trying to match the champion blow for blow with his own powerful striking but given his questionable chin and the durability of McDermot he'll certainly have an uphill task on his hands and given his recent super fight defeat to Matt Murdock over in Syndicate it remains to be seen whether or not Prtichard can truly compete with the world's elite.
Doc Chillum v Dave Bower
Dave Bower looks to defend his freshly earning Welterweight title for the first time after defeating former champion Sam Hall at Empire 42 in an impressive unanimous decision win. Bower is on a five-fight winning streak and with an incredibly well rounded style that sees him ready to compete wherever the fight takes place he'll be more than a match for anybody with 16 of his victories coming before the final buzzer with TKO and Submission wins shared equally with 8 a piece. His challenger will be none other than Doc Chillum, widely regarded as one of the best Welterweights in the world and is a multiple time winner of the NFC Welterweight title and held the belt until the company's recent closure. While not quite as well rounded as the champion, Chillum possesses a strong defensive ground game and will look to relentlessly attack with strikes from a standing and clinch position as he makes his Empire debut and immediately goes looking for gold.
Oscar Amazon v Budo Rei
Our fourth fight sees two of the finest strikers in the Heavyweight division go head to head as Budo Rei takes on Oscar Amazon with both men desperate for a win to continue their way back up the rankings and build towards a potential title shot. We're expecting a stand-up war in this one with neither fighter likely to choose to take it to the ground, Amazon will be confident of using his power to really test the chin of Rei and perhaps break up some of the tissue damage that Rei has suffered in the past causing him to be quite the bleeder but with Amazon having been stopped by strikes 7 times himself Budo Rei will feel he has every chance of turning the lights out on Oscar Amazon.
Jeff Munster v Theoran Fleury
In another Heavyweight contest Jeff Munster takes on relative newcomer Theoran Fleury in another exciting bout which could end at any moment. Munster appears to be a late peaker and is currently in the finest form of his career having reeled off five successive and impressive victories in the Empire Heavyweight division utilising his explosive takedowns and outstanding top game to break his opponents will and earn the victory. No slouch in the striking department Munster also possesses some technically proficient Boxing and will be looking to use that to set up his takedowns and take Fleury into his world. Standing in his way will be Theoran Fleury who will be eager to rebound from his promotional debut defeat to Oscar Amazon and will feel he has all of the tools to make it a difficult night for Munster. Fleury likes nothing more to attack with precision and power, utilising his diverse striking game and unlike most he'll be more than ready to compete on the ground, should Munster implement his usual top game approach, having won three previous bouts by way of submission. Fleury will have a huge reach advantage in this one and will be looking to keep Munster at distance and attack with submissions using his long limbs should it hit the mat and will be ready to pounce on the smallest of openings with 9 of his 10 victories coming by way of stoppage.
Jase Newson v Angelito Barraquinha
In the Welterweight division the well rounded Jase Newson will be looking to earn the first win of his Empire career by mixing up his powerful striking and accurate ground and pound. Newson has had a tough start to his career having drawn once and lost once to the former number one welterweight in the world, Patrick Jane. He'll be looking to turn that around and move his way back up the rankings as he takes on Angelito Barraquinha. Having won his previous two bouts in Empire, Barraquinha will be eager to continue on the winning path and put himself in the mix for a future title shot, with an extremely technical striking game both in the clinch and from standing he'll be looking to pick his shots carefully and use his sizeable reach advantage to earn another win here.
Peter Tosh v Big Pox
In the Middleweight division Pete Tosh takes on Big Pox in a Grappler vs Striker contest. Tosh has won his last two bouts in Empire and will be looking to take Big Pox down to the mat and use his dominant top game to pound away and pass the guard opening up the opportunity for submissions and perhaps a finishing blow on the mat. Meanwhile Big Pox will be keen to keep the fight standing where he can work his hard hitting Elite striking game as he goes hunting for a win having lost three of his four previous Empire bouts.
Luke Fluke v Aiden ORielly
In the first of three Lightweight bouts on the card Luke Fluke takes on Aiden ORielly in what should be an exciting bout between two long term veterans of the sport. Luke Fluke looks to have the edge on paper in the striking department and will be looking to use his punches and kicks to keep ORielly at bay and earn himself his first victory under the Empire banner following a close split decision loss to former champion Happy Day. ORielly has a powerful striking game of his own and will be more than happy to compete standing, however, his real advantage may come on the ground with his powerful takedowns and ferocious ground and pound from the top position, making him a tough encounter for any man.
Calogero Anello v Hidalgo Montoya
Also in the Lightweight division Calogero Anello takes on Hidalgo Montoya in an intriguing matchup, notably because it's Montoya's first fight in over 7 months with his last fight taking place at Empire 2 in a victorious bout over George Robertson. Montoya is known for using his precision elite striking to set up the takedown and outgrapple his opponents and work for a submission with eight victories coming by way of submission in his MMA career. Anello will be looking to continue on winning ways having one his last fight at Empire 41 against Ip Man and will be looking to keep this fight standing and work his powerful boxing and deadly leg kicks when he takes on the returning warrior.
Mason Dixie v Gustav Graves
In a late bout added to the card Mason Dixie takes on Gustav Graves in a rematch of the Empire 30 bout which saw Dixie grab the win after earning the TKO stoppage late in the second round. Dixie will be looking once again to keep the fight standing and work towards a finish with his strong striking where as Graves unsuccessful in the last bout in dragging the fight to the mat will be looking to get the takedown this time around and work his strong top game to try and even things up in the win department.
As always you can bet on the event at Empire Betzone
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