The Ultimate Fighting Championships (UFC) is set to make a stop in Winnipeg on December 16 at Bell MTS Place, and a great card is expected.
"We're pretty thrilled to be coming back to Winnipeg," said David Shaw, Senior Vice-President of International and Content. "We have a pretty rabid MMA fan base all across Canada. We want to make sure we're taking our sport to the West and all the way to Atlantic Canada. The last event we had in Winnipeg was fantastic, it was sold out and couldn't have gone better. It was a no-brainer to come back to Winnipeg."
Included in the event is the Main Event featuring former welterweight champion and No.1-ranked contender Robbie Lawler as he battles with one-time lightweight titleholder and No. 5 ranked welterweight Rafael dos Anjos.
"Whether you're a hardcore UFC fan, a casual one, or not really one at all, but you like sports, you know we're in for a very entertaining fight," said Shaw. "It's going to be thrilling and dynamic. We will also be announcing some fights over the coming weeks that we believe fans will enjoy."
Some other fights included in the event are as followed:
No.3 ranked Glover Teixeira (26-6, fighting out of Danbury, Connecticut, USA by way of Sobralia, Minas Gerais, Brazil) faces No.8 Misha Cirkunov (13-3, fighting out of Toronto, Canada by way of Riga, Latvia).
No.11-ranked light heavyweight Antonio Rogerio Nogueira (22-7, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) squares off with No.15 Jared Cannonier (10-2, fighting out of Anchorage, Alaska, USA)
No.11-ranked Tim Elliott (15-8-1, fighting out of Lee's Summit, Missouri, USA) takes on Justin Scoggins (11-4, fighting out of Spartanburg, South Carolina, USA)
Chad Laprise (13-2, fighting out of Chatham, Ontario, Canada) looks to continue his momentum at welterweight against dynamic striker Galore Bofando (5-2, fighting out of London, England by way of Democratic Republic Congo)
Talented kickboxer John Makdessi (14-6, fighting out of Montreal, Canada) locks horns with heavy-hitting Abel Trujillo (15-6 1NC, fighting out of Boca, Raton, Florida, USA)
Tristar Gym’s Nordine Taleb (13-4, fighting out of Montreal, Canada by way of St. Tropez, France) meets Sambo specialist Sultan Aliev (14-2, fighting out of Coconut Creek, Florida, USA by way of Dagestan, Russia)
Italian prospect Alessio Di Chirico (10-2, fighting out of Rome, Italy) faces dangerous striker Oluwale Bamgbose (6-3, fighting out of New York City, USA) in a middleweight bout
In a battle of knockout artists, Vitor Miranda (13-6, fighting out of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) welcomes Dana White's Tuesday Night Contender Series standout Julian Marquez (6-1, fighting out of Las Vegas, Nevada, USA)
More:
"We are just about to release pricing in the next couple days," said Shaw. "Tickets go on sale Next Friday, October 20 at 10:00 a.m. If you're a UFC Fight Club Member, you can purchase tickets on Wednesday, October 18 at UFCFightClub.com. Ticket prices will be released soon, and all fans will be able to pick them up either on Wednesday, or Friday."
The event on December 16 kicks off at 7:00 p.m.
