More updated and stories regarding the new year of amateur mma in the province coming soon!

Vaughan’s premier MMA Academy, Matador Mixed Martial Arts School is defined through the combination of disciplines including Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Muay Thai, Wrestling, Boxing, Kickboxing, Submission Grappling, Boot Camp Conditioning, Sparring, MMA Training and Kids BJJ & MMA. Located in the heart of Toronto’s GTA, along the border of Woodbridge and Brampton at the intersection of Hwy 27 & Hwy 7. The 2000 square foot training space is equipped with wall to wall premium mats, punching bags and some of the latest MMA training equipment, pull up bars, TRX systems, our new rock climbing wall and much more! Matador MMA Academy strives to provide its students with the best training in every aspect of the industry starting from its highly skilled instructors and their high level training. We strive to provide ... Read More »]]>
Address: 7500 Hwy 27, Unit 22, Vaughan, Ontario
Telephone: 905.605.7276
Website: www.matadormma.com 

Vaughan’s premier MMA Academy, Matador Mixed Martial Arts School is defined through the combination of disciplines including Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Muay Thai, Wrestling, Boxing, Kickboxing, Submission Grappling, Boot Camp Conditioning, Sparring, MMA Training and Kids BJJ & MMA. Located in the heart of Toronto’s GTA, along the border of Woodbridge and Brampton at the intersection of Hwy 27 & Hwy 7. The 2000 square foot training space is equipped with wall to wall premium mats, punching bags and some of the latest MMA training equipment, pull up bars, TRX systems, our new rock climbing wall and much more! Matador MMA Academy strives to provide its students with the best training in every aspect of the industry starting from its highly skilled instructors and their high level training. We strive to provide the best service and training from beginning to end, our professional instructors and friendly staff are pleased to help you on your journey of self-expression whether it’s training to compete or just physical fitness.

The RBC Centre and its’ electric crowd would see the preliminary card open with welterweight action as highly-touted Kyle Post (0-1) made his professional debut in a loosing effort against Scott Hudson (1-1) who gained the win by TKO with a series of unanswered strikes on the mat. Next to the cage were featherweights as “The Monster” Kyle Nelson (2-0) lived up to his nickname steamrolling Joe Petahtegoose (0-1) defeating the Michigan ... Read More »]]> On October 19, Sarnia played host to the Score Fighting Series for the second time with a star-studded card that featured a meeting of Canadian veterans as former WEC, IFL and Bellator competitor Chris Horodecki faced off with tough as nails Brad Cardinal in the main-event. All in all the night would consist of twelve bouts across four weight classes, plus a 150-pound catch weight in the main event.

The RBC Centre and its’ electric crowd would see the preliminary card open with welterweight action as highly-touted Kyle Post (0-1) made his professional debut in a loosing effort against Scott Hudson (1-1) who gained the win by TKO with a series of unanswered strikes on the mat. Next to the cage were featherweights as “The Monster” Kyle Nelson (2-0) lived up to his nickname steamrolling Joe Petahtegoose (0-1) defeating the Michigan product by way of first round armbar. The evening continued with a welterweight collision between submission specialist Josh Taveirne (3-3) and the heavy handed Brett Biederman (1-3), in the end it would be the submission specialist Taveirne who picked up the victory with a crushing second round rear-naked choke. For the first time in Ontario history flyweights would meet in the cage as top Canadian prospects Malcom Gordon (1-0) and Tyler Kirk (0-1) each made their professional debuts but it was the Adrenaline Training Centre product, Gordon, who made it a night to remember to begin his career as he stormed Kirk from the opening bell and finished with a textbook armbar to pick up a very impressive first round submission victory. Two tough lightweights next took Centre stage as Sarnia’s own Joel Paquette (1-1) put a halt to Hamilton product Allan Wilson’s (2-1) momentum as he overcame some tough moments early in the first round to overwhelm Wilson’s defenses and earn a TKO victory with just 10 seconds remaining in round 1. The feature attraction on the preliminary card focused on lightweight crowd pleasers as Jason Meisel (4-1) picked up the biggest victory of his young career defeating Eric Attard (4-4) in a highlight reel unanimous decision that could be described as “razor-thin”. The two warriors split the first two rounds with Attard owning the first while Meisel took a decided edge in the second, the third was as intense as any deciding round the Score Fighting Series had ever seen as Meisel may have secured the fight with a late cage assisted sweep into some devastating ground and pound until the sound of the buzzer.

Moving onto the main card, Adrenaline Training Centre product Jesse “The Ghost” Gross (7-3) dropped to featherweight and brought the crowd to its feet with an absolutely dominating TKO victory over Seiji Sugiman-Marangos (5-2) with the stoppage coming with just 1 second remaining in the second round. The win stops a three fight loosing skid for Gross and showed some of his incredible potential to be star in the sport. Returning to the Score Fighting Series for the first time since his war with UFC veteran Forrest Petz, welterweight Sergej Juskevic (12-7-2) met up with fellow veteran Gerald Meerschaert (15-6) however the meeting would not get past the first round as Juskevic reversed an attempted Meerschaert takedown andturned it into a devastating kneebar that left Meerschaert no other option then to tap and allow Juskevic to show that he is back and better then ever. Unfortunately the night wasn’t all fun as lightweight submission specialist and BJJ wizard Jorge Britto (12-9-2) took the first two rounds from opponent Tony Hervey (16-12) in impressive fashion coming back from being rocked at the beginning of both and displaying his incredible ground game but following the second round Britto would succumb to an arm injury and would not be able to continue giving Hervey a TKO win due to opponent’s injury.

The night moved onto the great triple main event that the Score Fighting Series was able to put together. First it was Duke Roufus protégé Rick Glenn (12-2-1) who faced off with rising featherweight star and Score Fighting Series veteran Lyndon Whitlock (7-3). Although Whitlock was able to close distance and effectively attack the lankier Glenn at times, the height and reach advantage was just too much for Whitlock to overcome as Glenn spent the better part of three rounds systematically picking Whitlock apart from the outside and landing effective strikes in series. In the third round Glenn would send Whitlock to the canvas following up with a barrage of punches and knees that ended the fight half way through the round and picking up yet another impressive TKO victory. Sarnia native and beloved Canadian MMA star John “Haggis Basher” Fraser (11-4) picked up a statement victory in his return to the featherweight division as he spent the first two rounds consistently putting WEC veteran Tyler Toner (14-5) on his back and landing effective ground and pound. In the third round a desperate Toner was able to thwart Fraser’s ground and pound, land a sweep and work some offense of his own but in the end it just wasn’t enough as the hometown hero, Fraser, made it two in a row for himself in Sarnia once again bringing the crowd to their feet.

The Main Event of the evening featured the fighter that had been featured for much of the build to the event as Adrenaline Training Centre veteran Chris Horodecki (18-4-1) brought his wealth of experience at the highest levels to the cage against tough veteran Brad Cardinal (16-8). Horodecki was looking to bounce back from an uncharacteristically subpar run in Bellator and early in the first round it looked like he was well on his way, staying loose in the striking game and forcing Cardinal to stay on his bicycle. Then a clash of heads opened a brutal gash over the left eye of Horodecki and although he finished out the round, at the break the cut was declared too dangerous for Horodecki to continue, ending what should have been his triumphant return far too early with the fight being declared a No Contest.

In the end, the Score Fighting Series’ return to Sarnia was a tremendous success and produced a night of fights that will be hard to top when SFS returns to Hamilton on November 23rd for SFS 7: Mein vs. Petz as Strikeforce veteran and young Canadian star Jordan Mein will face off with UFC veteran Forrest Petz. Undefeated Hamilton native Josh Hill will also return to the cage to defend his incredible streak when he takes on WEC veteran Rafael Rebello in what will be yet another great night for MMA in the province of Ontario.

takes next major step forward

Toronto, Ontario –The Ultimate Fighting Championship® is pleased to announce that Bill S-209, an Act to remove the Criminal Code prohibition on mixed martial arts, has now been introduced into the House of Commons by Member of Parliament Massimo Pacetti. Ryan Leef, Member of Parliament and Chair of the MMA Caucus, was one of many other prominent MP’s to second the bill.

First introduced into the Senate by Senator Bob Runciman and then subsequently approved in June 2012, the private member’s bill must pass through three readings in the House of Commons before receiving Royal Assent.

“This is another big step forward for the sport of mixed martial arts in Canada,” said UFC® Director of Canadian Operations Tom Wright. “We’re thankful for the work ... Read More »]]> Bill to amend the Criminal Code to formally legalize MMA in Canada

takes next major step forward

Toronto, Ontario –The Ultimate Fighting Championship^® is pleased to announce that Bill S-209, an Act to remove the Criminal Code prohibition on mixed martial arts, has now been introduced into the House of Commons by Member of Parliament Massimo Pacetti. Ryan Leef, Member of Parliament and Chair of the MMA Caucus, was one of many other prominent MP’s to second the bill.

First introduced into the Senate by Senator Bob Runciman and then subsequently approved in June 2012, the private member’s bill must pass through three readings in the House of Commons before receiving Royal Assent.

“This is another big step forward for the sport of mixed martial arts in Canada,” said UFC^® Director of Canadian Operations Tom Wright. “We’re thankful for the work Senator Runciman and MP Ryan Leef have done over the past year. With the support of Massimo Pacetti today, we’re yet another step closer to providing a consistent legislative framework for Canada and its provinces.”

The proposed bill is an amendment to Section 83(2) of the Criminal Code of Canada, regulating prize fighting. The suggested amendmentwould clarify the propriety of promoting mixed martial events throughout Canada. The current section 83 of the Criminal Code has not been updated since 1934.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship^®

Universally recognized for its action-packed, can’t-miss events that have sold out some of the biggest arenas and stadiums across the globe, the UFC^® is the world’s premier mixed martial arts organization. Owned and operated by Zuffa, LLC, headquartered in Las Vegas,Nevada, and with offices in London, England, Toronto, Canada and Beijing, China, UFC^® produces more than 30 live events annually and is the largest Pay-Per-View event provider in the world.

In 2011, the UFC burst into the mainstream with a landmark seven-year broadcast agreement with FOX Sports Media Group. The agreement includes four live events broadcast on the FOX network annually, with additional fight cards and thousands of hours of programming broadcast on FOX properties FX and FUEL TV. This includes the longest-running sports realityshow on television, The Ultimate Fighter^®, which now airs on FX.

In addition to its reach on FOX, UFC programming is broadcast in over 150 countries and territories, to nearly one billion homes worldwide, in 20 different languages. UFC content is also distributed commercially in the United States to bars and restaurants through Joe Hand Promotions. The UFC also connects with tens of millions of fans through itswebsite, UFC.com, as well as social media sites Facebook and Twitter. UFC President Dana White is considered one of the most accessible and followed executives in sports, with nearly two million followers on Twitter.

Ancillary UFC businesses include best-selling DVDs, an internationally distributed UFC magazine, the best-selling UFC Undisputed^® video game franchise distributed by THQ, UFC GYM^®, UFC Fight Club affinity program, UFC Fan Expo^® festivals, branded apparel, trading cards, and JAKKS Pacific articulated action figures.

GET YOU TICKETS or WATCH LIVE ON TE SCORE TELEVISION NETWORK!! Friday Oct 19. 2012

It had been a fight a long time in the making and with Nick Denis (11-3), Mitch Gagnon (8-2) and Roland Delorme (8-2) all signing on with the UFC leaving Hill and Fraser as the last remaining top talents at 135 in Canada. With so much riding on the fight the seats at Hamilton Place were packed in hopes they would see the hometown kid make good ... Read More »]]> On August 25, The Score Fighting Series brought their 5^th promotional offering to Hamilton Place where the promotion has had plenty of success before. This time the show had much more excitement about it locally as one of Hamilton’s own “Gentleman” Josh Hill (9-0) would take one half of the main-event slot against long time Canadian veteran John “Haggis Basher” Fraser (10-4) to decide who is the best Canadian bantamweight outside of the UFC.

It had been a fight a long time in the making and with Nick Denis (11-3), Mitch Gagnon (8-2) and Roland Delorme (8-2) all signing on with the UFC leaving Hill and Fraser as the last remaining top talents at 135 in Canada. With so much riding on the fight the seats at Hamilton Place were packed in hopes they would see the hometown kid make good on his tremendous talents and earn a place in the UFC.

The weekend didn’t start so great for The Score Fighting Series however as weigh-ins brought about potential problems for the show. The original 12 fight card was trimmed to 10 as a pair of feature fights were lost when Hamilton combatants Lyndon Whitlock & Will Romero both lost their opponents to conditions beyond their control. Lyndon Whitlock (7-2) was set to face off with Brazilian turned Canadian Fernando Vieira (7-2) but failed medicals on the part of Vieira forced the bout to be cancelled and forced the Hamiltonian Whitlock off the show. Will Romero (8-3) meanwhile was set to continue the upward swing in his career following three straight victories split between Bellator and the Score Fighting Series and was facing the biggest test of his career against Strikeforce veteran David “Tarzan” Douglas (8-4) but with the fight set for the featherweight division and a 146lbs limit, Douglas came in well over weight at 150lbs and left no choice but to cancel a second feature.

However by Saturday night and bell time the woes from Friday were long forgotten and The Score Fighting Series, including their first live broadcasted main card, provided quite possibly their best card yet. The night started off with a hotly contested welterweight bout between local welterweight prospects Jeff Sharkey (2-2) & Rob “The White Dragon” Thomas (0-1) who made his professional debut at the show. Although both fighters fought heart & soul, when it went to the judges only one could be declared victorious, and by a razor thin split decision it was Jeff Sharkey who got a big win on a big stage and evened his professional record.

From there a catchweight contest would take place at 140lbs between newcomer Eric Montgomery (2-0) and Instinct MMA favourite Frank Marques (2-1). Marques came into the fight the favourite after recording a pair of wins under the Instinct banner in impressive fashion to open his career but it was Eric Montgomery who would put his stamp on the night when he caught Marques with a perfectly placed knee that busted the nose of Marques wide open and forced the referee to halt the bout at 4:20 of the 1^st round.

Third fight of the night saw electric lightweight strikers Adam “Maverick” Assenza (2-1) & Taylor “The King” Solomon (3-5) go toe to toe inside The Score cage. The first round looked to have belonged to Solomon but from there the Burlington native Assenza turned the tide, erasing the height and reach advantages that the larger Solomon had by pushing the pace and consistently mixing in his wrestling with striking. It looked to be one round a piece going to the third with both men tiring but willing to go out on their shields they left it all in the cage. Following a third round that looked much like the second, Adam Assenza was declared the winner via split decision.

Welterweights were featured in the fourth fight of the night as the undefeated Ryan Dickson (5-0) made quick work of Chris St. Jean (5-4). Following an early takedown, the jiu-jitsu specialist Dickson worked his way into mount and unleashed an uncharacteristic barrage of punches that earned the grappling savant his first TKO victory and made a serious statement to the top-10 welterweights in Canada that Ryan Dickson is the real deal.

Headlining the pre-show was a lightweight tilt that featured a contrast in styles as the slick grappling savant Jason Saggo (7-1) took on the explosive striker “Atomic” Eric Attard. In a fight that was broken down to Attard’s high end muay-thai against Saggo’s high end jiu-jitsu it was the grappling of Saggo that would win the day. Although Attard was able to successfully fight off the takedown at the beginning of the round he would eventually succumb to Saggo’s pressure and Saggo would use the opportunity to sink in a fight ending rear-naked choke at 3:24 of the first round.

The first live Score Fighting Series main card got underway with a lightweight bout between highly touted Caledonia prospect Jason Meisel (3-1) and Windsor’s fast rising Kyle Prepolec (5-1). A strong first round for Meisel went wrong when he landed an accidental groin kick on Prepolec while looking for the inside thigh. Prepolec took the full five minutes allotted to attempt to recover from the accidental foul but appeared to be out of the fight as he could barely stay standing, walking with a noticeable limp. When the fight hit the ground, Meisel looked to stack up Prepolec and go for a finish but Prepolec used a slick transition to catch Meisel’s head & arm and locked up a fight ending triangle choke at 2:58 of round 2.

Next to the cage were the biggest competitors of the night as middleweights Elias “The Spartan” Theodorou (5-0) took on Simon “The Mutant” Marini (9-5). After a pair of jovial video introductions and entertaining walkouts, the two middleweights began by trading heavy strikes but soon closed the distance and turned the fight into a clinch fight with both men battling for position and using effective dirty boxing to attempt to gain an advantage. It wasn’t until the end of the third round that the two tired warriors tried to swing to the bell and although Simon Marini put forth a brilliant effort that will no doubt earn him another shot with The Score Fighting Series, he would fall just short as Elias Theodorou would earn the unanimous decision victory and remain undefeated picking up his fifth career win.

The first and unfortunately only featherweight action of the night, following the pair of cancelled bouts, was next to the cage when Duke Roufus protégé Rick Glenn (11-2-1) took on Tristan Johnson (7-3) in a border battle. Even with Bellator Welterweight Champion Ben Askren coaching on the “Gladiator” from cageside, Glenn started slowly as Tristan Johnson took the initiative from the opening bell. Using his tremendous speed and brilliant boxing Johnson peppered the Wisconsin native on route to a solid first round. The second was a different story however as Glenn found his range and used his slight reach advantage to get Johnson off balance and stun the Nova Scotia native before taking the fight to the ground. Although Johnson survived onslaught after onslaught with his great chin, “The Gladiator” broke through the granite and earned himself a big TKO win at 4:26 of the second round. Following the victory Glenn proceeded to call out Canadian featherweight Chris Horodecki (18-4-1) for a main event attraction at The Score Fighting Series 6 on October 19^th in Sarnia.

The co-main event of the evening also featured problems at the weigh-ins as top lightweight prospect Alex Ricci (5-1) came into the bout slightly heavy, stepping on the scales at 156.8lbs but his opponent, Adrenaline & Team Tompkins’ striking savant Jesse Ronson (11-2) was by no means going to let his chance pass by for another statement win. Ronson agreed to accept 20% of Ricci’s purse and the fight was on. The pre-fight videos featured some heavy trash talk as Ricci claimed that Ronson’s striking was not on his level and that he was going to use Ronson as a stepping stone, while Ronson countered that his striking wasn’t on Ricci’s level but it was three levels higher as well as promising to make Ricci pay for missing weight. Ronson began with that motive right from the opening bell, as he quickly gained his range on the longer Ricci and landed smashing southpaw hooks as well as traditional orthodox power shots that ended up sending Ricci to the canvas near the end of the first frame. Into the second Ronson’s dominance continued but Ricci showed incredible heart, trading at times with “The Body Snatcher” and even landing some power of his own but Ronson would continue to land punches in bunches and punish both the chin and body of Ricci. By the third round it was apparent that Ricci would need a hail mary effort and he indeed left it all in the cage, walking through Ronson power punches in a quest to finish the Adrenaline product. Ronson however continued to frustrate Ricci, continuously landing stinging jabs and power to both body and head. Ricci would attempt a successful takedown at the end of round three but it was just too little too late, as the crowd chanted “UFC! UFC!” Ronson was awarded the unanimous decision victory, the eleventh of his career and sixth in a row.

For the main event, the chants of “UFC! UFC!” only got louder as Hamilton’s favorite fighter Josh Hill (9-0) made his way to the Hamilton Place Cage for the most anticipated in Score Fighting Series and Ontario MMA history as he faced off with the legendary John “Haggis Basher” Fraser (10-4). With both men vying for a shot at UFC glory, it was Hill that would make the first impact with a heavy takedown that forced Fraser into his realm. Hill would use his classic offense landing ground and pound that devastated the legend and cut him open over the right eye. When the bell rang to end the round it had clearly been the first frame Hill was looking for. Fraser would not be deterred and on the bell of the second round he would come out quick, using his fast yet unorthodox striking to land a pair of quick stinging jabs that momentarily forced the juggernaut Hill onto his heels but as Fraser opened up to chase down the young star, Hill landed another solid takedown and made the second round even better then the first by achieving mount position and continuously reigning down blows onto the legend who would refuse to give up and even came close to cinching in a kimura from the bottom on a pair of occasions. Battered and worn Fraser started the third round the same as the second, trying to give Hill a run for his money on the feet, but once again opportunity knocked at Hill’s door and he landed his third strong takedown of the night from there “Gentleman” Josh showed why he deserved to be the next man to receive a call from the UFC as he landed more devastating ground and pound and almost finishing the legendary bantamweight as the bell rang.

When all was said and done and with a sold-out Hamilton Place crowd chanting “UFC! UFC!” Josh Hill would have his hand raised for the ninth consecutive time and with a win in the biggest fight in Score Fighting Series history one would have to assume it is just a matter of time until Sean Shelby or Dana White picks up the phone to invite Ontario’s best and brightest for a trip to the Octagon.

TITLE BOUT — BELFORT STEPS IN

Toronto, Ontario, Canada – In another turn of events, the Ultimate Fighting Championship® confirmed today thatLyoto Machida turned down the opportunity to faceJon Jones for the light heavyweight title at UFC® 152 in Toronto and that BrazilianVitor Belfort has agreed to step into his place.UFC® 152: JONES vs. BELFORT is set to take place at Air Canada Centre, in Toronto, Canada, on Sept. 22.

In other UFC® 152 news, Dan Miller has been forced out of his fight with Toronto’s Sean Pierson due to a medical issue with his son. The UFC® will look for a replacement for Miller. Also, added to the card is a welterweight bout betweenCharlie Brenneman andKyle Noke, which was originally scheduled for UFC® 151.

Tickets forUFC® 152 are on sale nowand available at the ... Read More »]]> MACHIDA TURNS DOWN CHANCE AT LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT

TITLE BOUT — BELFORT STEPS IN

Toronto, Ontario, Canada – In another turn of events, the Ultimate Fighting Championship^® confirmed today thatLyoto Machida turned down the opportunity to faceJon Jones for the light heavyweight title at UFC^® 152 in Toronto and that BrazilianVitor Belfort has agreed to step into his place.UFC^® 152: JONES vs. BELFORT is set to take place at Air Canada Centre, in Toronto, Canada, on Sept. 22.

In other UFC^® 152 news, Dan Miller has been forced out of his fight with Toronto’s Sean Pierson due to a medical issue with his son. The UFC^® will look for a replacement for Miller. Also, added to the card is a welterweight bout betweenCharlie Brenneman andKyle Noke, which was originally scheduled for UFC^® 151.

Tickets forUFC^® 152 are on sale nowand available at the AirCanada Centre Box Office, by calling Ticketmaster at 1-855-985-5000 or online atwww.ticketmaster.ca. Tickets are priced at $550, $425, $375, $300, $250, $200, $150, $125, $85 and $60, and do not include applicable service charges.

The updated bout order for UFC^® 152 is as follows:

Welterweight Bout – Charlie Brenneman vs. Kyle Noke

Bantamweight Bout – Walel Watson vs. Mitch Gagnon

Welterweight Bout – Simeon Thoresen vs. Seth Baczynski

Featherweight Bout – Marcus Brimage vs. Jimy Hettes

Welterweight Bout – TBD vs. Sean Pierson

Lightweight Bout – Evan Dunham vs. T.J Grant

Light Heavyweight Bout – Vinny Magalhaes vs. Igor Pokrajac

Main Card

Featherweight Bout – Charles Oliveira vs. Cub Swanson

Light Heavyweight Bout – Vladimir Matyushenko vs. Matt Hamill

Middleweight Bout – Brian Stann vs. Michael Bisping

Flyweight Championship (5 rounds) – Demetrious Johnson vs. Joseph Benavidez

Light Heavyweight Championship (5 rounds) – Vitor Belfort vs. Jon Jones

UFC^® 152: JONES vs. BELFORT, presented byAssassin’s Creed III, Igniting the Revolution on October 30^th, will be available live on Pay-Per-View at 10 p.m. EST/7 p.m. PST on UFC.TV, iN DEMAND, DirecTV, DISH Network, Avail-TVN, and in Canada on Shaw Communications, Bell TV, Sasktel and Viewer’s Choice Canada for a suggested retail price of $44.99 US/$49.99 CAN for Standard Definition and $54.99 US/$59.99 CAN for High Definition.

For more information orcurrent fight news, visitwww.ufc.com. All bouts live and subject to change

TORONTO, August 20, 2012 – The Score Fighting Series (SFS) today announced a deal which sees US-based television network AXS TV become a broadcast partner for its live MMA events.

AXS TV, the largest independently owned and operated network, is the premier television destination with the best events in pop culture, biggest acts in music, and hottest breaking news and trends in entertainment. The network’s AXS TV Fights is renowned for its Friday Night Mixed Martial Arts and Kickboxing LIVE events.

The Score Fighting Series is a live MMA promotion owned and run by Score Media, which also operates theScore Television Network, a national sports specialty service providing news, information, highlights and live events to more than 6.6 million homes across Canada.

The new deal will see SFS ... Read More »]]> - First event to be broadcast live on Friday October 19^th from Sarnia, Ontario

TORONTO, August 20, 2012 – The Score Fighting Series (SFS) today announced a deal which sees US-based television network AXS TV become a broadcast partner for its live MMA events.

AXS TV, the largest independently owned and operated network, is the premier television destination with the best events in pop culture, biggest acts in music, and hottest breaking news and trends in entertainment. The network’s AXS TV Fights is renowned for its Friday Night Mixed Martial Arts and Kickboxing LIVE events.

The Score Fighting Series is a live MMA promotion owned and run by Score Media, which also operates theScore Television Network, a national sports specialty service providing news, information, highlights and live events to more than 6.6 million homes across Canada.

The new deal will see SFS bouts broadcast as part of AXS TV Fights’ programming, beginning October 19^th when the series comes to the RBC Centre in Sarnia, Ontario.

Video: The Score Fighting Series announcement on “Inside MMA” with theScore’s Mauro Ranallo and AXS TV’s Kenny Rice and Bas Rutten.

SFS promoter Brendan Fyfe said: “AXS TV Fights is a major MMA torchbearer and we are extremely pleased to be working with them. This partnership is validation for all the hard work we have put into our matchmaking, events and production and will generate greater exposure for our fighters and sponsors. This is a great day for The Score Fighting Series and for Canadian MMA.”

MMA has been a core sport for theScore for many years. Respected MMA commentator Mauro Ranallo is theScore’s lead fight correspondent, with MMA programming televised weekly by theScore across Canada.

Many notable fighters have participated in The Score Fighting Series since its first official event in June 2011, including Canadian standouts Jordan Mein, Antonio Carvalho, Chris Clements, John Alessio, Josh Hill and John Fraser and non-Canadian talent such as Marius Zaromskis, Rich Clementi, Forrest Petz, Thierry Sokoudjou, Ryan Healy, Luigi Fioravanti, Brett Cooper and Daron Cruikshank.

The Score Fighting Series adds to AXS TV’s already robust LIVE MMA fight broadcasts, which includes world-class events from Legacy Fighting Championship, Titan Fighting Championship, XFC, Maximum Fighting Championship, BAMMA and It’s Showtime.

“This a big win for AXS TV Fights fans, The Score Fighting Series and MMA fighters,” said AXS TV Fights CEO Andrew Simon. “The addition of The Score Fight Series bolsters AXS TV’s reputation for broadcasting more LIVE MMA than any other network while also bringing more attention to SFS.”

The Score Fighting Series plans to run six or more shows over the next 12 months on AXS TV. Starting with the October 19^th event, the main cards of all future SFS events will be seen live on theScore and AXS TV.

The Sarnia event will be headlined by Canadian MMA standout Chris Horodecki, who trains out of the Adrenaline Training Centre in nearby London, Ontario.  His opponent and other match-ups will be confirmed shortly.  Meanwhile, The Score Fighting Series’ next event, which takes place in Hamilton, Ontario on Saturday, August 25^th, will be streamed globally on thescore.com, with the main card televised live on theScore in Canada, starting at 9:00pm EST.

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TORONTO, August 14th 2012 – The final fight for the upcoming The Score Fighting Series (SFS) event in Hamilton, Ontario has been confirmed. Hamilton native Lyndon Whitlock will face his toughest test to date in a featherweight match-up against BJJ blackbelt Fernando Vieira.

Vieira (7-2) is a three-time BJJ world champion and recently moved to Toronto from Brazil in order to teach at the Evolucao Thai MMA School. He currently works out under Mauricio “Veio” Amado and has trained with many of Brazil’s top fighters, including Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, Anderson Silva, Wanderlei Silva and the Nogueira brothers. Vieira has four finishes via submission and his only two losses have come against very high level competition in Ultimate Fighter winner Diego Brandao and top ranked Bellator featherweight Patricio “Pitbull” ... Read More »]]>

• 12 fights confirmed for August 25^th event in Hamilton, Ontario

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TORONTO, August 14^th 2012 – The final fight for the upcoming The Score Fighting Series (SFS) event in Hamilton, Ontario has been confirmed. Hamilton native Lyndon Whitlock will face his toughest test to date in a featherweight match-up against BJJ blackbelt Fernando Vieira.

Vieira (7-2) is a three-time BJJ world champion and recently moved to Toronto from Brazil in order to teach at the Evolucao Thai MMA School. He currently works out under Mauricio “Veio” Amado and has trained with many of Brazil’s top fighters, including Mauricio “Shogun” Rua, Anderson Silva, Wanderlei Silva and the Nogueira brothers. Vieira has four finishes via submission and his only two losses have come against very high level competition in Ultimate Fighter winner Diego Brandao and top ranked Bellator featherweight Patricio “Pitbull” Freire.

Fernando Vieira

“I’m very excited to have this opportunity to be participating in The Score Fighting Series,” said Vieira.  “My recent move to Toronto has been a major change in my life and a difficult adjustment at times, but I am more focused than ever. I am grateful for all the unwavering support from around the world and I hope to give the fans an exciting, memorable fight against Lyndon Whitlock.”

Whitlock (7-2) is a very well rounded fighter and the definition of a finisher, with all seven of his wins coming in the first round (4 SUBS, 3 T/KOs). He has been both the hammer and the nail in The Score Fighting Series but has learned from both experiences. After losing via first round TKO to Tristan Johnson in October, Whitlock rebounded with a highlight reel KO of Corey Houston in March. Whitlock credited the Houston win to learning to relax in the cage and waiting for an opportunity to finish.

Lyndon Whitlock KOs Corey Houston (photo: Peter Chatterton)

The key to victory in his fight against Vieira will be “punches to the face”, according to Whitlock. He added: “I think for me to win this fight I have to make it a scrap. I’m going to get out there and put my hands on him.

“There is a saying after one punch a black belt turns into a brown belt, after two punches a purple belt.  Whether we are on the ground or on our feet, I’m going to be making his belt levels drop!”

There are now 12 confirmed fights for the August 25^th card at the Hamilton Place Theatre. A proposed fight between Rory McDonell and Mike Sledzion has been dropped due to injury to McDonell.

• John Fraser vs Josh Hill
• Alex Ricci vs Jesse Ronson
• Tristan Johnson vs Rick Glenn
• Will Romero vs David Douglas
• Lyndon Whitlock vs Fernando Vieira
• Jason Meisel vs Kyle Prepolec
• Elias Theodorou vs Simon Marini
• Jason Saggo vs Eric Attard
• Ryan Dickson vs Chris St. Jean
• Adam Assenza vs Taylor Solomon
• Frank Marques vs Eric Montgomery
• Robert Thomas vs Jeff Sharkey

Every fight on the card will be streamed live on theScore.com and, for the first time ever, fights from the main card will be carried live on theScore Television Network starting at 9:00pm EST. Tickets start at $30 and are available at Ticketmaster.ca.