With new 4-Event Partnership, PXC Opens 2016 Philippine MMA with a Bang

Like it had in the past, Guam-based mixed martial arts promotion Pacific Xtreme Combat (PXC) opens up the year for Philippine MMA with the first locally staged event for 2016. What makes this year different from the others however, is the promotion's newly formed partnership with Solaire Resort and Casino.

© Pacific Xtreme Combat

The partnership will see the 5-star hotel and casino host all four of the promotion’s 2016 events in the Philippines at its luxurious Grand Ballroom, which has a seating capacity of 1,258, including an elevated premium section. Solaire and PXC look to give Pinoy fight fans with a VIP experience not yet seen in local MMA.

Also included in the unprecedented partnership is the introduction of Solaire Sportsbook. In venue betting stations, Solaire Sportsbook allows fans in attendance to place bets on their favorite fighters during live fight cards.

Two Titles on the Line to Open 2016

To start off the new partnership and the New Year, on January 16, PXC will hold PXC 51, which will see two of the promotion’s top prizes on the line. 

© Pacific Xtreme Combat

In the main event, Pinoy fighters will clash as Team Lakay’s Crisanto Pipitunge (8-3), will square off against Team Capanay’s Jinel Lausa (5-2) for the PXC Flyweight Championship.

In the co-main event, Kyle Aguon of Guam will battle Kwan Ho Kwak of Taiwan for the PXC Bantamweight title. 

Pinay fighter Gina Iniong (3-2), also of Team Lakay, will also participate in the year-opening event, taking on the debuting Vanessa Fernandez (2-1) of Spain in an Atomweight bout.

The rest of card features several Pinoy Fighters squaring off with each other or with international competitors.

Tickets to PXC 51 are availabale via SM Tickets and Ticket World.

Under Armour Philippines Hosts Brandon "The Truth" Vera Meet and Greet Event for Filipino MMA Fans

As a big fan of mixed martial arts as well as sporting brand Under Armour, it was a no-brainer to attend the Brandon Vera Meet and Greet event at the UA brand house in Bonifacio Global City.

Fil-Am mixed martial arts competitor Brandon "The Truth" Vera recently paid a visit to the Under Armour brand house in Bonifacio Global City for a meet and greet activity with fans, and to promote his upcoming fight at ONE Championship: Spirit of Champions.

  

Scheduled on December 11th and to be held at the SM Mall of Asia Arena, Spirit of Champions' main event is a five-round heavyweight bout between Vera (13-7) and Paul "Typhoon" Cheng (5-1) of Taipei, Taiwan. The winner will emerge as ONE's inaugural world heavyweight champion.

ONE Championship: Spirit of Champions Main Event

At the time of the meet and greet event at Under Armour, Vera was still slated to face "Chopper" Chi Lewis Parry (6-0), an undefeated U.K.-based mixed martial artist who ignited a war of words with The Truth over social media several months ago. It eventually led to the booking of a fight between the two, but due to the reported failure of Chopper to submit medical requirements, Cheng has been slated to replace him on a week's notice.

Hosting the meet and greet event was regarded sports host and commentator Anthony Suntay, who introduced The Truth to the crowd outside the UA Store. From there, Brandon addressed his fans, sharing how he sees his supporters in the Philippines as family, and is intent on putting on a show for all of them and hopefully win the title on December 11th.

After providing a little more detail regarding his upcoming bout, Brandon gamely signed ONE Championship: Spirit of Champions posters for fans in attendance, and true to his statement regarding family, taking photos with fans as if he was one of their own.

  

  

Brandon Vera is one of two Filipino mixed martial artists currently servings as UA brand ambassadors. The other is Mark "Mugen" Striegl, who happens to also be competing in the co-main event of the December 11 fight card. 

   

Local personalities representing the brand include Gretchen Ho, and the previously mentioned Anthony Suntay.

Notable Under Armour ambassadors also include current NBA MVP Stephen Curry, movie star and former World Wresting Entertainment (WWE) Champion Dwayne "The Rock" Johnson, and former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) welterweight champion Georges "Rush" St. Pierre.

To learn more about Under Armour,visit www.underarmour.com.ph.

For more on the upcoming ONE Championship: Spirit of Champions card, visit www.onefc.com. Tickets can be purchased at SMTickets.com.

ONE Championship Announces Events for the Remainder of 2015. Will the Manila Card Be Where Eric Kelly Fights Again?

 ©ONE Championship

Two day prior to their Kingdom of Warriors card held in Yangon, Myanmar last July 18, mixed martial arts promotion ONE Championship announced the dates of six upcoming events which will fill out the remainder of 2015. Shows have been booked to take place in Shanghai, Jakarta, Kuala Lumpur, Macau, and the promotion’s base of Singapore.

Pinoy fight fans can look forward to ONE closing out the year as they always do on December 11^th, where the promotion will once again hold a card in Manila.

While the Singapore-based promotion is known to prominently feature homegrown fighters of the country they are currently holding an even in, the recently announced schedule now begs the question, is this where we see the return of Pinoy fighter Eric “The Natural” Kelly?

Eric Kelly declared the victor versus Rob Lisita at "War of Dragons."
 ©ONE Championship.

Kelly was last seen gracing the ONE cage July of last year, at ONE's "War of Dragoons" event, where he took on “Rutless” Rob Lisita and earned an impressive come-from-behind victory against the elite Australian mixed martial artist. In the fight, Kelly submitted Lisita after a brutal war, where he effectively earned a performance bonus, and what was then a guaranteed title shot for the ONE Featherweight title.

Unfortunately, the injured nose Kelly sustained in the fight against Lisita prevented him from being medically cleared to challenge then-champion Koji Oishi later that August. By the time he was ready to contend, a new champion had emerged in Jadamba Narantungalag, who originally replaced the injured Kelly as contender months before.

Slated to be the title bout for the December 2014 “Warriors Way” card of ONE in Manila, Kelly's shot did not push through due to a failure in contract negotiations. Reports have indicated that Kelly was unsatisfied with the low fight purse offered, which was reported to be significantly lower than that of other top fighters.

Due to the impasse, Kelly had remained inactive in MMA, and it was then thought that his contract with ONE had expired in March. However, it seems it was merely put on hold, and numerous news outlets have reported in this past week that the fighter is eager to finish the said contract.

It has yet to be determined if it will be finished via a buyout or termination, or if Kelly will compete in whichever number of fights remain. Most fight fans in the Philippines would unquestionably want to see Kelly compete again, especially if it were in the December 2015 card of ONE Championship.

For now however, we wait, and hope that “The Natural” finds himself in the best situation possible, both from a financial and competitive standpoint.