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World Championship Fighting today announced that former Olympian and undefeated MMA fighter Rick Hawn is scheduled to fight New Jersey native Tom Gallicchio in the Co-Main event of WCF 9, which takes place Friday, Feb. 26 from the Shriner’s Auditorium in Wilmington, MA.

   Hawn is a four time national champion in Judo, and finished in the top 10 at the 2004 Olympics. He trains under both Jimmy Pedro and Mark Dellagrotte, and has started his MMA career at a blistering pace, going 5-0 is less than a year. Gallicchio has won 7 out of his last 8 fights, and has the majority of his wins by submission. He represents a step up in competition for Hawn, and the crowd is sure to love this one.

   Also added to WCF 9 is a classic striker vs. grappler match up between fan favorite Jamie Campbell and Colin Schrader. Both fighters are undefeated, and both intend to keep it that way on February 26. Campbell was last in action at WCF 3 when he knocked out Jose Valentin in the first round. Schrader makes his much anticipated WCF debut, but has won his 2 pro fights by submission.

   As previously announced, the card is headlined by Mike “The Beast” Campbell vs. Marc Stevens. WEC Veteran Mike Campbell is fresh off a win at WCF 8, and is 7-2 overall with 2 first round TKO wins for World Championship Fighting. Campbell is moving down to his optimal fight weight of 155 pounds to take on his toughest opponent to date at 155. Stevens is a dominant wrestler with fantastic ground and pound, and was 4-0 in 2009 (12-4 overall) with big wins over Hitalo Machado and “Mr. Big” Al Buck. Stevens is currently ranked #2 in New England at 155 lbs. and he looks to continue his rise to the top on February 26, but standing in his way is “The Beast.”

The current fight card is as follows:

Mike Campbell (Sit Yod Tong) vs. Marc Stevens (Jui-Jitsu Nation)

Rick Hawn (Sit Yod Tong) vs. Tom Gallicchio (Bombsquad)

John Benoit (Renzo NH) vs. Noah Weisman (BJJ Revolution)

Dan Bonnell (Renzo NH) vs. Cesario de Souza (Dragon Lair)

Mike Zichelle (MMAT Center) vs. Stephen Stengel

Jamie Campbell (Execution) vs. Colin Schrader (Bombsquad)

Dan Simmler (Simmler BJJ) vs. Robby Roberts (Brute Force)

Matt Martin (USMMA) vs. Peter Cole (Bombsquad)

Nelson Gaipo (Dragon Lair) vs. Matt Johnson (SSSF)

Carlos Lovato (Premier Fight Team) vs. Guillermo Echuaca (Zulu)

Joel Ly (Guy Chase) vs. Steve Beck

… driving home from Marlborough will post a story when I get back to NY … Don Carlo Clauss upsets Calvin Kattar at first ever XCFL… Saul Almeida and Vaca Moreno become first ever XCFL Champions! 

RESULTS

 XCFL 145 Championship

Saul Almeida def. Chris Grandmaison by Unanimous Decision.

XCFL 205 Championship

Alexandre ‘Vaca’ Moreno def. Roger Brackett by Submission (Guillotine) R1.

Don Carlo Clauss def. Calvin Kattar by Split Decision.

Tateki Matsuda def. Bill Walsh by TKO 2:21 R1.

Ray Shawdee def. Travis Lerchen by Submission (RNC) 3:10 R1.

Steven Skrzat def. Tony Bowman by KO :23 R1.

Samual Almeida def. John Daniels by Submission (RNC) :46 R1.

Eric Fama def. Doug Sonier by Submission (RNC) R1.

Mario Cardia def. Joel Choquet by KO :50 R1.

AMATEUR

Ray Ruben def. Mike Lee by Submission (Armbar) 2:18 R1.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship will return to the Garden State on March 27 for the first time since UFC 78 in 2007. The city and site are the same: Prudential Center - Newark, N.J. and once again NJ fight fans will be thrilled to see homebred talent in the Octagon.

At UFC 78, Frank Edgar of Toms River, N.J., delighted the crowd with a unanimous decision over Spencer “The King” Fisher and at UFC 111, expect local fans to stand up for Jim Miller of Sparta, N.J., as he takes on Canadian submission specialist Mark Bocek.

Also scheduled to be apart of the fight card are Frank Mir and Shane Carwin in a battle for the interim heavyweight title as well as a welterweight title bout between current 170-pound champion George St. Pierre and British born knockout artist Dan Hardy.

Nate Diaz will make a move to welterweight after losing a split decision to Gray Maynard, and plans to debut at 170 against Rory Markham on the UFC 111 fightcard. In addition, Martin Kampmann will face Ben Saunders and Ricardo Almeida, another New Jersey native will take on TUF veteran Matt Brown.

Our site will continue to update fans as changes to the fight card become available.

by Kevin Roddy

PHILADELPHIA, Pa. — Aaron Meisner came to fight on Jan. 23 at Locked in the Cage 2 in Northeast Philadelphia. A native to city of brotherly love, Meisner is usually busy firing knees from the clinch but instead last Saturday infront of a packed house at the John M. Perzel Community Center he was all submissions. Meisner passed through the guard of Marcus Ajain like a squid and moved right to mount. He dropped a few straights and preceded to take a rear naked choke. The choke was powerful enough to make the Ohio native tap in the first minute of the fight. Timmy Williams, who was also a fan favorite finished up a water tight triangle and got a submission himself with only five seconds left in the first round. The fastest pace of the night was set by the 135 pounders; Jeff Cressman and Joe Finneran, who brawled for a long 15 minutes. There were a handful of notable fighters in attendance including Philly’s own Anthony “Cheesesteak” Morrison – who recently fought against former WEC Featherweight Mike Brown – and Eddie Alverez, who’s recognized around the world for his fights in Bodog, DREAM and now Bellator. Last but not least, fans were also happy to see another former WEC champ in Jamie Varner.

Here are my picks…

Chris Leben def. Jay Silva by UD

Brad Blackburn def. Amir by TKO

Tom Lawler def. Simpson by Submission

Efrain Escudera def. Evan Dunham by Submission

Nick Diaz def Gray Maynard by Submission.

-DZNUTZ

Tonight on VS, Anthony Morrison a.k.a. “Ant Mo” will make his WEC debut against former WEC Featherweight Champion Mike Brown. Morrison is a native of Philadelphia, Pa., and rose through the MMA ranks with many storied battles on Atlantic City’s boardwalk.

  A former Cage Fury Fighting Championship contender, he once challenged current UFC vet Jim Miller for his CFFC Lightweight title, but lost by submission after beginning the bout with this super slam shown above.

Morrison will definitely have his hands full tonight, but if he avoids breaking his hand or trying any unorthodox spinning backfists, he may succeed where Urijah Faber failed.

GOOD LUCK to Anthony Morrison from your friends at MMAphotography.com.

also apart of the WEC fightcard will be none other than Deividas Taurosevicius whose taking on Mackens Semeriez (who submitted Wagney Fabiano not too long ago). Taurosevicius has never been submitted and his only 2 losses have come by unanimous decision to RYAN SCHULTZ and FRANK EDGAR.

Dec. 18, 2009 

LionHeart Management and Zinkin Entertainment are proud to announce that MMA Fighter Phil “Mr. Wonderful” Davis has signed a multi fight contract with the UFC.  The date of his first fight in the UFC is not set, but is expected to be sometime in the near future.  Phil Davis, a former 4X Division I NCAA All American and 2008 NCAA Champion for Penn State is currently 4-0 as a professional fighter at light heavyweight and has been training full time since March 2008.  He currently splits training time between the Alliance Training Center in San Diego and with the American Kickboxing Academy (AKA) in San Jose, CA and will compete at light heavyweight for the UFC.

“I am extremely excited and happy to have this opportunity.  When I went to Penn State to wrestle in college my entire focus was to be the best wrestler in the country and to be an NCAA Champion,” said Davis. “After college, when I decided to start training MMA, it was to become the best fighter in the world.  Fighting for the UFC will enable me to do accomplish that goal.”

Dec. 16, 2009

RUTLAND, Vt. — story to follow shortly…

RESULTS

Brad Snyder def. Nick Gerardi by Submission (armbar) R1.

Dave Rath def. Brandon Weimbolt by Submission (arm triangle) R1.

* Heavyweight John Incledon from Hudson Valley Jiu-Jitsu made weight and showed up, but his opponent Bob Sanville could not be found at the time of the fight.

Tristen Umsteader def. Chris Gallipo by Submission (armbar) R1.

Matt Secor def. Chris Abuso by Submission (RNC) R1.

Justin Pierpoint def. Joe Jaques by tapout due to strikes R1.

Manny Millian def. John Mabb by TKO R1.

Jeff Keyes def. Tim Patterson by Submission (guillotine) R2.

Corey Barber def. Travis John by Submission (guillotine) R1.

Scott Reyell def. Andrew Britt by KO R1.

Mike LaDuke def. John Hollister by Submission (North-South choke) R1.

According to www.bostonherald.com/sports, a two-year process was completed yesterday when Gov. Deval Patrick signed a bill into law that will regulate MMA. Massachusetts is the 42nd state to regulate the sport.

The bill previously had passed by overwhelming votes in both the House and Senate. MMA fights now will fall under the authority of the State Athletic Commission.

“It was just a big celebration here,” said Marc Ratner, the UFC vice president of regulation and governmental affairs. “We’re very bullish on the Northeast and Massachusetts. We’re as excited to come to Boston as any city.”

Ratner said he already placed a call to the TD Garden to confirm the dates the UFC has been holding. Ratner predicted a show in July or August.

Local UFC fighters, such as Dover’s Kenny Florian, are angling to get on the Boston card.

The regulation doesn’t apply only to the UFC. Local shows also will fall under the new guidelines. Joe Cavallaro, the president of World Championship Fighting, believes regulation will be beneficial for local promotions.

“Those people that have never been to a fight before, after they get a chance to go to the UFC, they’re going to be dying to see the fights live again because its like no other sport in the world,” Cavallaro said. “It will open up a whole new door for us.”

 [The above story was written by Dan Duggan and can be read in its entirety at www.bostonherald.com/sports ]

PLYMOUTH — Remember the name — Christian Morecraft — because this guy will undoubtedly be apart of the Ultimate Fighting Championships’ heavyweight division in no time at all. What other carries half his career wins by submission? The pure size of this man is frightening and while most big men look awkward jumping guard or going for submissions, Morecraft looks lethal, like he might one day remove a head or limb by accident.

 With a win by RNC over Josh Diekmann now behind him, Morecraft’s best remaining competition looks to CFX Heavyweight Champion Lee Beane and Pat Bennett, a new name on the scene who won his pro debut at CFX Battle Under the Stars with a 60-second TKO over Jullian Coutinho.

It’s been awhile since the Northeast could boast about some legitimate competition in the heavyweight class, but with the emergence of Morecraft, Bennett and Beane this year, everyone’s eager to find out just who is the baddest big man around.

Christian Morecraft def. Josh Diekmann by RNC :56 R1.

Rigo Dominicci def. Justin Hammerstrom by Unanimous Decision.

Mike Mulligan def. Eric Foley by TKO 1:57 R1.

Chris Cape def. Todd Chattelle by RNC 2:00 R1.

Steve Dunn def. Glenn Reaves by north-south choke :46 R1.

Shawn Galano def. Jimmy Sullivan by TKO :09 R1.

Brett Oteri def. Robbie Roberts by tapout to submission 4:03 R1.

Jason Sarbacker def. John Daniels by TKO :17 R1.

Chris Bagge def. Artie Mullen by TKO :37 R1.

Greg Mendes def. Matthew McCusker by TKO 1:22 R1.

Lionel Young def. Alex Camarao by RNC 2:43 R1.

 Dan Ford def. Matt Johnson by TKO :31 R2.

J.P. White def. Andy Robertson by TKO 2:49 R1.

Brad Conley def. Jay Fillippini by TKO :19 R1.

James Malvesti def. Jeff Lyon by kimura 1:54 R1.

Nate Robichaud def. Lee Randolph by TKO 1:53 R1.