Halloween is this Friday night and while that may have scared off the UFC and Bellator from doing events this weekend, the Titan Fighting Championships returns with a strong offering.
Titan FC 31 emanates from the USF Sun Dome in Tampa, Florida as the promotion makes its first trip to the sunshine state. This is the fifth Titan event under CEO Jeff Arosnon and along with crowing an inaugural lightweight champion the promotion also features the debut of a former pound for pound kingpin. Here are 5 Reasons to tune into Titan FC 31 on Friday.
Canadian Champion?
Going 2-0 since his UFC release last year, Montreal’s Mike Ricci now looks to add the Titan FC lightweight title to his resume as he battles Yoshiyuki Yoshida for the vacant championship. The 28-year-old Tristar fighter stopped Jorge Gurgel back in February – in his Titan debut- and then won a dominant decision over UFC veteran George Sotiropoulos this past August – at Titan FC 27 – to earn his shot at the title. Most pundits will remember his opponent Yoshida for all the wrong reasons. During his UFC tenure, the Japanese fighter – who was competing in the welterweight division at the time – was on the receiving end of two highlight reel knockout losses against Josh Koscheck and Anthony Johnson. Since leaving the UFC, Yoshida has gone 7-1 including a three-fight win streak since dropping down to lightweight. Should Ricci emerge victorious not only would he become the inaugural 155-pound champion, but a win would also make a strong case for his return to the UFC.
Torres tangles with The Predator
Former WEC bantamweight champion Miguel Torres makes his promotional debut Friday as he battles fellow Titan newcomer Desmond “The Predator” Green. Once considered one of the best pound-for-pound fighters – during his championship rein in the WEC – Torres had a lackluster UFC run going 2-2 and was subsequently released from the promotion. He didn’t fare any better when he signed with World Series of Fighting, going 0-2 and questions began to emerge if Torres should hang up his gloves. Since leaving WSOF, the 33-year-old has won three-straight and has seemingly found a new home in the featherweight division. A win over an up and comer like Green would certainly silence those critics pushing for his retirement. Speaking of Green, he was surprisingly released from Bellator this past September despite making it to the featherweight tournament finals last season. In preparation for this bout, Green moved from New York to join the world famous Tristar Gym in Montreal. Out of loyalty to Torres – who trained at Tristar during his UFC tenure – head coach Firas Zahabi will not be cornering Green for this fight. The victor in this bout will likely get the winner of Kurt Holobaugh and “Tonito Furia” who are slated at some point next year to fight for the vacant Titan 145-pound title.
Big in Japan
In one of the more underrated fights on the card, undefeated DEEP heavyweight champion Ken Hasegawa makes his North American debut -and a drop to 205-pounds – when he fights IFL veteran Matt Thompson. The Japanese import has half of his wins by stoppage, including three knockouts. At just 27-years-old, Hasegawa could be a nice blue-chip prospect for Titan, should he emerge victorious on Friday night. His opponent, the 34-year-old Thompson, has won five-straight fights including a win over UFC veteran Jake Rosholt. While Hasegawa is undefeated, Thompson has the edge in experience with 28-fights under his belt compared to just 8 for the Kingdom Enhgeiz product. An impressive victory for either fighter could land them a shot at current 205-pound champion Vinny Magalhaes.
Prospect Watch
A pair of up and coming fighters duke it out in the welterweight division as Hayder “Hulk” Hassan faces Felipe “Balboa” Portela. Hassan is a product of the prestigious American Top Team camp in Florida that also boasts UFC standouts Hector Lombard, Robbie Lawler and Thiago Alves. The 32-year-old has only gone the distance once in his career and looks to add his fifth career knockout victory on Friday. His opponent Portela is a one-time Strikeforce Challengers veteran and boasts four submission victories in nine-career fights. This is a classic striker versus grappler match and with Titan having their unique $5,000 finish bonus, don’t expect this one going the full three-rounds.
Road to Redemption
Welterweight Tyler Stinson looks to erase the memory of his last fight at WSOF 9 in March – a first round knockout loss to Josh Burkman – when he meets former M1 champion Jose Figueroa. Prior to the loss, the Strikeforce and Bellator veteran Stinson was on a four-fight win streak. The 30-year-old Figueroa meanwhile comes into this bout on a three-fight win streak, including back to back stoppage victories over Nissen Osterneck and Dominique Steele. A statement win for either fighter could earn a matchup with top Titan welterweight Matt Riddle.
Here is the full Titan FC 31 event:
MAIN CARD
– Mike Ricci (10-4) vs. Yoshiyuki Yoshida (17-6)
– Desmond Green (12-3) vs. Miguel Torres (43-7)
– Ken Hasegawa (8-0-1) vs. Matt Thompson (19-9)
– Dave Courchaine (18-6) vs. Cody Pfister (11-3-1)
– Jose Figueroa (13-6) vs. Tyler Stinson (27-10)
PRELIMS
– Brock Jardine (9-4) vs. Steve Montgomery (7-2)
– Scott Barrett (15-4) vs. Wes Combs (20-5)
– Joe Barajas (10-0) vs. Sirwan Kakai (10-2)
– Hayder Hassan (5-1) vs. Felipe Portela (8-1)
– William Sizemore (0-0) vs. Matt Wagy (2-2)
– Mike Bruno (11-7) vs. Kamrin Naville (7-7)
– Romario da Silva (23-12-1) vs. TBA
– Michael Graves (3-0) vs. Rafael Souza (6-2)