10 October Tussles Worth Watching
In an effort to bring more attention to the global stage of mixed martial arts, this list does not focus on major North American-based promotions such as the Ultimate Fighting Championship, Bellator MMA and the World Series of Fighting ...
Mansour Barnaoui thirsts for two-division glory.
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Buchinger has rattled off eight straight wins since his failed encounter with Conor McGregor under the Cage Warriors Fighting Championship banner in 2012. The 29-year-old Slovakian last fought at M-1 Challenge 56 on April 10, when he put away Aliyar Sarkerov with second-round punches at the Aquarium Sports Arena in Moscow. A Team MMA Spirit representative, Buchinger has delivered 24 of his 29 carrier victories by knockout, technical knockout or submission and holds wins against Bellator Season 8 featherweight tournament winner Magomedrasul Khasbulaev and UFC veterans Mairbek Taisumov and Steven Ray.
Barnaoui has won four in a row, all of them finishes, since he
dropped a three-round unanimous decision to the undefeated Islam
Makhachev in 2013. Like Buchinger, the 23-year-old Frenchman
has proven to be a potent finisher: 11 of his 12 victories have
resulted in stoppages.
The Buchinger-Barnaoui championship showdown is but one outside-the-major-MMA-bubble matchup worth monitoring during the month of October. Here are nine more:
Resurrection Fighting Alliance 31
Oct. 9 | Las Vegas
Frausto was near the top of the female MMA food chain in late 2010, when she ended the undefeated run of Japanese legend Megumi Fujii and claimed the Bellator women’s strawweight championship. After subsequent wins over Karina Hallinan and Casey Noland, her record stood at 12-1. However, consecutive losses to Jessica Eye, Jennifer Maia and Vanessa Porto led to her exiting the mixed martial arts scene in favor of kickboxing. Frausto will make her first appearance inside the cage since Dec. 7, 2013, when she battles the once-beaten MMA Lab export Jones-Lybarger under the Resurrection Fighting Alliance flag. Jones-Lybarger will enter the match on a three-fight winning streak.
Tech-Krep Fighting Championship “Prime Selection Final”
Oct. 9 | Krasnodar, Russia
One of the top heavyweight prospects in a sport in desperate need of them, Goltsov will defend his Tech-Krep title against Strong Style Fight Team’s Hawk. The 24-year-old champion is on a 10-fight tear that includes wins over Brett Rogers, Peter Graham and James McSweeney. Goltsov sports seven first-round finishes among his 15 career victories and has not lost since he submitted to an Akhmed Sultanov heel hook more than three years ago. Hawk, who has fought primarily in the Ohio-based North American Allied Fight Series organization, has won six of his past eight bouts.
One Championship 31
Oct. 9 | Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
Svirid will put the One Championship middleweight crown on the line for the first time against the undefeated Bigdash and will do so on the strength of a 10-fight winning streak. The 29-year-old Kazakhstani export captured the One Championship belt with a stunning 17-second technical knockout on Leandro Ataides in November. Svirid suffered his only professional loss in his April 2011 debut. Bigdash, 31, has finished all seven of his opponents.
M-1 Challenge 62
Oct. 10 | Sochi, Russia
Vasilevsky, he of the gaudy 26-3 record, will look to get back on track against Ray, six months after he relinquished the M-1 Global middleweight championship in a rear-naked choke submission to Ramazan Emeev. The setback put an end to Vasilevsky’s nine-fight winning streak and marked the first time the four-time combat sambo world champion had been finished. Tiger Muay Thai’s Ray has won seven of his last eight fights, a unanimous decision loss to World Extreme Cagefighting and UFC veteran Brock Larson the only misstep.
(+ Enlarge) | Photo: Taro Irei/Sherdog.com
Motoya has won six straight.
Deep 73 Impact
Oct. 17 | Tokyo
Motoya will defend the Deep flyweight championship for the first time against the seasoned Kojima at Korakuen Hall. The 26-year-old Motoya has rattled off six straight wins -- an extended run of success that includes an armbar submission of Yoshiro Maeda, a technical knockout on former Resurrection Fighting Alliance champion Matt Manzanares and unanimous decisions over reigning King of Pancrase Kiyotaka Shimizu and onetime Cage Rage titlist Masakazu Imanari. Kojima will enter the match on the heels of a five-fight winning streak. Twenty of his 27 career bouts have gone the distance.
Gladiators of the Cage 19
Oct. 24 | Cheswick, Pa.
Cherico and Landwehr will do battle for the vacant Gladiators of the Cage featherweight crown. One of the top prospects on the East Coast, the once-beaten Cherico rebounded from his stunning 37-second guillotine choke submission loss to Bellator alum Brian Kelleher with a second-round technical knockout on Darby Halferty at a Pinnacle Fighting Championships event on May 9. The Pittsburgh-based featherweight has spent time training at both American Top Team and Team Alpha Male. The 27-year-old Landwehr has pieced together a three-fight winning streak since his unanimous decision defeat to D’Juan Owens in 2013.
CES MMA 31
Oct. 30 | Lincoln, R.I.
The undefeated Spicely has built a nice resume inside the CES MMA organization and undoubtedly has the attention of talent evaluators in the UFC, Bellator and World Series of Fighting. “The Dream Catcher” has put away his last six opponents in the first round and last appeared at CES MMA 29 on June 12, when he took care of Harley Beekman with an armbar in 4:30. Johnson has delivered 12 of his 13 career victories by submission. His resume includes 13-, 15-, 18-, 27-, 33-, 35- and 48-second finishes: Bellator Season 9 middleweight tournament winner Brennan Ward and “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 11 graduate James Hammortree were among the victims.
KSW 32
Oct. 31 | London
Two of Europe’s most prized young talents have been paired under the KSW banner. Gamrot has raced out to a 9-0 record and last competed at KSW 30 on Feb. 21, when he dispatched American Top Team’s Rodrigo Cavalheiro Correia with third-round punches in his native Poland. The 24-year-old Pole holds a 2013 victory against “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 9 finalist Andre Winner. Yet another promising fighter to come out of the North Caucasus region, Piraev, 23, has registered five straight wins, four of them finishes, since his July 2014 encounter with Luiz Cado Simon ended in a draw.
Cage Fury Fighting Championships 52
Oct. 31 | Atlantic City, N.J.
Horcher will put his Cage Fury Fighting Championships lightweight title on the line against Regman in the CFFC 52 headliner. The 28-year-old Horcher has compiled a stellar 11-1 record, with his only setback coming in a decision loss to Phillipe Nover at Bellator 95 in 2013. He has won all four of his fights since and last appeared at CFFC 45 on Feb. 7, when he blasted through Jordan Stiner with a third-round head kick and follow-up punches. Operating out of the Team Tiger Schulmann camp, Regman will enter the cage on a five-fight winning streak.
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