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 Versus Vendetta XXIII – 25th August (Knights Court – London)
Brought to you by VERSUS in association with Gti 1337 "Win with Style"
Fight One – Howard Wolowitz (15-10) v Beau Oxer (7-4) - 145lb
A suitable nick name for Howard Wolowitz would be "Mr Fantastic" with his ability to mould into any weight class and to look so comfortable fighting at that weight. Wolowitz has fought at 135, 145, 155, 170 and has taken on all comers in several open weight contests. Fighting out of the "The Rat Cage" here in London, Wolowitz has learnt his trade off some top notch coaching staff and is able to apply what he learns against some tough training partners such as the two time NCAA Division 1 wrestler Jean Stephens. Oxer is a renowned former pro boxer and a winner of the prestigious Copenhagen Golden Gloves tournament which then lead to Oxer sparring with the legendary Danish boxer Mikkel Kessler. This being said Wolowitz will be confident enough to stand with Oxer but I’m sure if he wants to get a finish here then he will run the pipe and look to deliver a beautiful dragon su-play and work for submissions from there. Oxer has brought in the Chad national wrestling team to work on his takedown defence but will this be enough? Classic grappler vs. striker opener here at VERSUS.
Fight Two - Jack Ovaltrades (14-9) v Brewster Burns (31-23) - 135lb
Yes, the ultra feared BJJ Black Belt Jack Ovaltrades is involved in the second fight of the evening. Ovaltrades built a reputation in the back streets of Amsterdam fighting for money under the nick name of "Toquinho" which simply means tree stump. Without question Jack's street version of BJJ is so suited to MMA with Jack already massing 10 wins via submission which helped Jack top win the Versus 135lb title back in April this year. However, since he lost the title he has been on the wrong end of some tough losses and this fight against the Veteran Brewster Burns might as well be a Monday Night Raw Pink Slip on a Pole match! Now we have all seen the fights on YouTube where Brewster Burns notched up a 12-0 record in the "illegal" QFC fights but as a professional Brewster has had some mixed results. With a 50% record in Versus Brewster is currently lying in MMA Purgatory and the pressure will be on to deliver the win. No doubt we have two tough mothers right here ready to put it all on the line once that bell rings.
Fight Three - Joe Bell (15-10) v Hernan Cortes (18-7) - 135lb
Our third fight of the evening will be a slobber knocker! Both Joe Bell and Hernan Cortes love to throw down in the centre of the cage and I have no reason to think that this fight will be any different. The smartly dressed "conquistador" Hernan Cortez has never been knocked out in his 25 fight career and Joe Bell has vowed that he will be the first man to separate Cortez from his senses. A tough ask considering Cortez has exchanged leather with bigger, stronger opponents in the Featherweight Division before coming here to the Bantamweight Division of VERSUS. One things for sure someone will have a loss against their VERSUS record and it will be a tough loss to swallow as no doubt the winner here will take the unofficial crown as the toughest SOB in the VERSUS Bantamweight Division.
Fight Four - Donatello Crizanto (12-7) v Peter Pelayo (6-3) - 155lb
Since his move to one of London’s most prestigious gyms, GTi 1, Peter Pelayo has put together four straight wins of which the last two have come against game VERSUS opponents. If Playa is to continue this tear he will have to get past the Spaniard Donnatello Crizanto. No easy task you say? I would have to agree, Crizanto is becoming a bit of a veteran of VERSUS which really makes him a yardstick for all the 155lb newcomers. A win over Crizanto almost guarantees to unlock the big oak door that separates you from the top ten lightweights in the division. However, Donnatello himself isn't far away from unlocking this door and back to back wins wouldn't harm his credentials. Let's talk styles, Crizanto loves to throw a few European uppercuts from the clinch position and has an excellent defensive grappling to keep him there. Playa will look to keep his distance and this will allow him to step up the SCUD missile like striking which consists of over hand rights disguised by mustard gas jabs which wear the opponent down.
Fight Five - Ray Hardy (18-12) v Trevor Robertson (20-10) - 135lb
"Adi Purush", that's Mike Tycoon who is the creator of the universe and can never do anything wrong? Until now.... Reports have been coming out of Fight club UK that Mike has been at the gym all week putting his fighter Trevor Robertson through his paces making him do burpees, bastards, split lunges, inverted dips and 25km runs with Mike on his back!! And to make things worse we believe that Trevor has been carrying an injury through his training camp and who knows what energy Trevor will have come fight night. Hardy has stated that he has a job to do and all these rumours about his opponent’s brutal training camp will not affect his well being. A fully fit Trevor Robertson would make a real go at this but a 75% fit Robertson will struggle if he doesn't end it in the first round. The lethal leg kicks of Hardy will definitely come into play early doors so I hope Trevor's corner man brings a pin with him to pop those nasty wilts we are going to see between rounds. Good luck to both fighters.
Fight Six – Hatsu Matsu (9-3) v Johnny Roastbeef (16-6) – 205lb
Yes it’s THE Johnny Roastbeef; you know the one off that documentary about MMA and he is finally here amongst the big boys of VERSUS. A lot of fighters didn’t like the fact he was paid $1,000 to do the documentary and there was a long line outside Edward Bangers office of hungry fighters wishing to be the first to take on Roastbeef. After a gruelling seven hour rock, paper scissors tournament Hatsu Matsu won the right to face Johnny at VERSUS VENDETTA XXIII. Both fighters like the ground and pound fighting style with Matsu the more accomplished wrestler but Roastbeef can make you tap out from the bottom which will make this fight extremely interesting. Will we see these two fighters keep the fight on the feet??
BET BRADSTONE ODDS – Matsu 1.85 Roastbeef 1.96
Fight Seven – Soloman van der Vaart (24-12) v Nikolai Rysakov (11-1) – 170lb
Soloman promised so much when he first hit the scenes in VERSUS having fought for titles in numerous organisations beforehand, but after his debut loss for the welterweight title against Up Loaded it hasn’t been all plain sailing. A recent return to form has given Soloman the chance to put a dent in the almost unblemished record of Nikolai Rysakov (Currently 11-1) who is touted to be a big thing from his management team out of the Circle of Bosses. Rysakov has been stacking up the wins in devastating fashion, nine knockouts from his eleven wins. Soloman has only really been stopped by the best that’s including Elite striker Remy LeBeau and Rysakov surely cannot be considered in that company yet?
BET BRADSTONE ODDS – Vaart – 2.00 Rysakov 1.82
Fight Eight – Up Loaded (20-8) v Joonatan Valasvatsa (12-8) – 170lb
It’s always nice to see the Hall of famer Up Loaded on a VERSUS card and it’s also nice to see him fighting at his most comfortable weight at 170. Now Up Loaded had a wake up call last time out and he should now realise that these young hungry fighters that have looked up to him in the past are now gunning for his scalp. A win over Up Loaded can lead to great things and that is something Joonatan will be thinking of when he steps inside the cage. However, morale is at an all time low for Joonatan with back to back losses against moderate opponents, some people are even questioning why he deserves this shot against Up Loaded, especially being aired across the globe on Pay Per View, let’s see if he can prove them wrong.
BET BRADSTONE ODDS – Loaded 1.46 Valasvatsa 2.74
Co – Main Event – Llewelyn Carter (17-6) v Adam Vymiatajec (13-4) – 265lb
My favourite fight on the card, you can’t beat a classic heavyweight brawl especially when both dudes can throw it down with style. The former VERSUS heavyweight champion needs to recover from back to back losses if he is to climb back into a rematch with Kane Williams. However, this won’t be easy with his Alliance team mate facing him from across the cage; “Bang Bang” Adam Vymiatajec is also looking for a return match with the current VERSUS heavyweight champion. Both men have Elite level boxing, gorilla like strength in the clinch and both have excellent anti grappling skills. These two fighters are soooo evenly matched it going to be like two North ends of a magnet trying to touch each other. It going to come down to who wants it more, who has the engine to keep them consistent over the fight, man if this was a five round affair I think the world would just detach its self from its polar orbit and just disappear into space. And this fight is on Pay Per View goddammit!!!
BET BRADSTONE ODDS – Carter 1.96 Vymiatajec 1.85
Main Event – Gustaf Lindback (12-4) v Mr Azure (18-3) – 145lb Title
Now if there was any two men you wanted to project the fair fight nature of VERSUS on a Pay Per View format then it would be these two men. Easy the perfect fight to show off the versatility of the lower divisions by having two pound for pound greats who have demonstrated their skills over three weight classes. The 145lb title is Lindback’s last title having previously losing the 135lb crown to the number one Bantamweight in the World Alex Vargas. Lindback must give everything in this fight because he alone knows what a struggle it is to get a title shot in this extremely competitive division. Having proven that he can hang with a heavier fighter, Lindback won’t find the former welterweight experience an advantage for his opponent; in fact Lindback has gone on the record to say that he is the more conditioned fighter for a five round fight. Mr. Azure is making his debut at 135, but there are no concerns coming out of the Gti2 camp about “Blueys” conditioning, in fact many of Azure’s training partners have said that he is in the best condition they have ever seen, but they would say that. Is Azure a better wrestler? Will Lindback be able to assert his nasty top game? I love a fight with plenty of questions to answer, and we will get these answers if we pay the £15 for the Pay Per View this Saturday at 18:00.
BET BRADSTONE ODDS – Lindback 1.90 Azure 1.90
That’s all folks, I cannot wait for this event, and I’m practically wetting myself with excitement. So order the dominoes, get the wife booked into a hotel because you’re going to be screaming at the television as the adrenaline takes over as this testosterone fuelled Pay Per View fight fest takes over your Saturday night.
About VERSUS
VERSUS really is the home of fair fights and is London's fastest growing fight organisation. Since our first show on October 15th 2011 we have grown dramatically in both size and popularity and are now firmly established in London's top 10.
Matchmaking at VERSUS is not just about looking at hype ratings, I really try to make fights that are competitive and winnable for both fighters so that fighter records are earned in VERSUS and not built on a diet of tin cans.
With GTI 1337 as a merchandising partner, every VERSUS fighter who has a slot available will be offered a meaningful sponsorship deal. GTI 1337 have designed several great sets of VERSUS fightwear to add to their already impressive product range, so go check out their fantastic designs in the GTI 1337 store in London
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