So, you think the end of the world in near? Not quite! And there is still one more month until the real last Sunday is upon us. So get back to the cage and start fighting! At the Hard Knocks this time we have a welterweight feast with the best 6 170lbs of the island fighting on the top 3 fights of the evening. Let's look at the top 5 fights of this event:
#6 Dylan Carter v Fedor Sokolov
Carter was fuming after getting submitted by and losing his belt to Bones. He had a great run winning over former top middleweight Gerson and then stealing the belt from the Dutch juggernaut De Houtman. Carter is a danger to any opponent and he'll look for a quick win to earn a rematch against Bones or De Houtman. Sokolov had a rough patch losing 3 in row including losses to both Bones and De Houtman. Since then he put together a 3 fight winning streak never surpassing the 4 minute mark of the first round. This is a fight with title aspirations but could also mean that a loss would leave either of them out of contention.
#7 Luciano Andrade v Demitrious Dalby
Andrade, the Brazilian clinch fighter who is a fan of traditional tycoon apparel, has announced he will drop to middleweight after this fight. That's more bad news for the boys from the previous fight. Since dropping two in a row including a loss against Muriel(the master lightheavyweight) he has gone on a 3 fight winning streak against impressive competition. A win here will put him into play for a title shot in either weightclass. His opponent, Dalby, maybe lacks the killer instinct to be a true champion. 4 of his 5 wins with us have been by decision and a couple of losses to Spilbergen and Ki Won are leaving him in a gatekeeper position. Nevertheless, he's one of the more experienced guys here and you can never sleep on him.
#8 Luk Yuha v Teppo Tavi
And here we go with the welterweights. Yuha has dropped 2 of his last 3 but those losses were against the boys going for the title tonight. The Croatian has a 7-3 record and has been at the elite of the division since the beginning so don't count him out at any time. His opponent, Tavi from Finland, has only tasted loss against the champ and perenial contender Hetfield. He's 7-2 so this is an incredibly even matchup and while Luk has a boxing base, Teppo has a MT base. A lot on the line here, especially for Tavi who might just get a shot if all the stars align for him.
#9 Co Main Event - Johnny Hetfield v Alexander Stubb
Hetfield has been the most difficult challenger for the champ. He's gone to the 5th round twice and on his last attempt he got the losing side of a split decision. This said, since he's coming of a loss he'll need more than just a win here to get another shot. He's still the best boxer in the Leftovers though. Stubb, champion at the Highland Challengers vanquished Austin Radovan in his Leftovers debut. He's an exciting fighter who has never seen a decision on his 9 fights having lost only once. He's another clinch fighter who can also fight at a distance. In a division looking for fresh contenders, Stubb may be awarded the next shot with an impressive display here. But before that he has to beat the dutchman who has been demolishing everyone not named Palmier so far.
#10 Main Event - Fernardu Palmier v Temoodschin Khan - 170lbs Title
Palmier has been so successful than his name is even announced on the official MMA Tycoon Facebook page. He's the island most dominant fighter from this season and he might even surpass former greats like Barney Gumble or Pedro Lazaro. Not much to say about the clinch übermaster hailing from modest Malta. Khan, a exciting kickboxer from Mongolia, has an 8-3 record including a win against Yuha and a loss against Hetfield. His gameplan consists of decapitating his opponents with his legs but I fear that if the distance gets closed, he'll become a play toy for Palmier. Anyway, these are your 25 mins of fame, Khan, so make it count!
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