When fighters are given their release from a major North American MMA promotion like the UFC or Bellator – unless they’re a major star – they often fall into obscurity on the regional/overseas circuit unless they rack up a few wins and end up signing with one of the aforementioned promotions. In this regular feature for MMAOddsBreaker.com, I take a look at some regional/overseas MMA matchups for the month of September and rather than listing off the top fights outside these major organizations, I highlight some familiar names that you might recognize on upcoming fight cards.
ONE Championship: Shanghai- September 2nd (Shanghai, China)
Ben Askren (16-0) vs. Zebaztian Kadestam (9-3)
ONE welterweight champion Askren looks to keep his undefeated record intact when he takes on Sweden’s Kadestam. Asken is coming off a first-round submission victory over Agilan Thangalapani for ONE Championship in May. The 33-year old hasn’t competed twice in one year since 2014. Kadestam meanwhile is 2-2 in his last four fights, including a third-round TKO victory over Luis Santos back in May.
Rebel FC 6: China vs. The World – September 2nd
Shannon Rich (56-84) vs. Wenbo Liu (9-7-1)
46-year old PRIDE veteran Rich looks for just his second win in his last six fights as he battles Wenbo Liu. Rich fought twice for PRIDE FC, losing both times to Kazushi Sakuraba and Daisuke Nakamura. Liu has lost two of his last three fights, including a unanimous-decision setback to Nikolay Savilov back in April.
LFA 22 – September 8th (Broomfield, Colorado)
Gilbert Smith (12-6) vs. Andrew Kapel (11-6)
TUF 25’s Smith looks for his first win since October 2015 when he faces Kapel in a 180-pound catchweight bout. Smith was featured on TUF 25 Redemption and in exhibition bouts earned a unanimous-decision win over Seth Baczynski while losing to Dhiego Lima later on in the show. The 35-year old looks to avoid three straight losses for the first time in his career. Kapel has won three of his last four fights, including a first-round submission victory over Adam Stroup in his last bout.
TKO 40: Denouement – September 8th (Montreal, Quebec)
Maiquel Falcao (38-10) vs. Strahinja Gavrilovic (6-4)
Fight Night Medicine Hat 4 – September 9th (Medicine Hat, Alberta)
Johnny Bedford (23-13-1) vs. Jesse Arnett (12-4)
In a matchup that was slated to take place last October, UFC veteran Bedford faces Arnett in the main event. Bedford had his four-fight win streak snapped in his last fight, losing by third-round submission to Jimmy Flick at LFA 16. The 34-year-old has gone 4-1 since he was released from the UFC in 2014. Arnett hasn’t lost a fight since April 2014 and carries a nine-fight win streak into this matchup. “Big Cat” has stopped eight of his nine opponents during that run.
Joe Riggs (45-17) vs. Mike Hill (9-4-1)
Former UFC title challenger Riggs looks for his fifth straight win when he takes on TUF 16’s Hill. Since he left the UFC last year, Riggs has finished all of his opponents during his four-fight run. The 34-year old has won five of his last six fights. Hill is coming off a draw with Maksim Butorin at Fight Nights Global 70 which put his record at 2-2-1 in his last five fights. The 30-year old moves up to middleweight for the first time in his career.
Chris Kelades (10-3) vs. Keegan Oliver (6-5)
Former UFC flyweight Kelades looks to make it two in a row when he takes on fellow Canadian Oliver. Kelades is coming off a unanimous-decision win over Tyler Shinn at LFA 18 last month, which was his first win since 2015. The 36-year old looks for back-to-back wins for the first time since 2014. Oliver has won three straight fights, including a unanimous-decision win over Kevin Kellerman at XFFC 15 back in July.
Sarah Kaufman (18-4) vs. Montserrat Alvarez (3-3)
Former Strikeforce bantamweight champion Kaufman aims for back-to-back victories when she takes on Alvarez. The 31-year-old was released from the UFC in 2015 following back-to-back losses against Alexis Davis and Valentina Shevchenko. She’s since rebounded with a unanimous-decision win over Jessy Rose-Clark at Battlefield Fighting Championships in Korea this past March. Alvarez has lost two of her last three fights and will be making her North American debut.
Pro FC 63 – September 10th
Rodney Wallace (26-15-1) vs. Konstantin Gluhov (31-17)
UFC veteran Wallace looks to snap a three-fight losing streak when he takes on Gluhov. The 35-year old American is just 1-5 in his last six fights and will look to avoid four straight losses for the first time in his career. Gluhov had his three-fight win streak snapped in his last fight, losing via unanimous decision to Kleber Silva at M-1 Challenge 81 in July.
Next Level Fight Club – September 16th (North Carolina)
Alex Nicholson (7-4) vs. Demoreo Dennis (6-4)
Former UFC middleweight Nicholson competes for the first time since his release as he battles LFA veteran Dennis. Nicholson went 1-3 in the UFC, earning a win over Devin Clark and suffering losses to Misha Cirkunov, Sam Alvey and most recently Jack Hermansson at UFC Fight Night 109 in May. The 27-year-old has never lost three straight fights in his professional career. Dennis is coming off a unanimous-decision setback to Dontale Mayes at LFA 9 in April, which snapped a two-fight win streak. The 29-year-old is 2-2 in his last four fights.
M-1 Challenge 83: Ragozin vs Halsey – September 23rd
Brandon Halsey (9-3) vs. Mikhail Ragozin (8-2)
Former Bellator middleweight champion Halsey looks to shake a three-fight losing streak when he takes on 25-year-old Ragozin. After capturing the Bellator middleweight strap in 2015, the 30-year-old has gone 1-3, with all three of his setbacks coming by stoppage. Halsey moves up to the light heavyweight division for the first time in his career. Meanwhile, Ragozin has won back-to-back fights by knockout and has only lost once since 2015.
ACB 68 – September 23rd (Sheffield, England)
Scott Askham (14-4) vs. Luke Barnatt (13-4)
A pair of UFC veterans clash in the main event of ACB 68 as Askham takes on Barnatt in a middleweight affair. Askham heads into this matchup coming off two straight losses to Jack Hermansson and Brad Scott while competing for the first time since his UFC release. Barnatt rebounded from his loss to Mamed Khalidov with a first-round knockout over Max Nunes at ACB 63 in July.
Unfied MMA 32 – September 29th (Edmonton, Alberta)
Shane Campbell (12-6) vs. Mike Scarcello (9-3-1)
UFC veteran Campbell makes the first defense of his Unified MMA lightweight title against 27-year old Scarcello. Campbell heads into this matchup on a two-fight win streak (both finishes), including a third-round submission victory over former champion Tristan Connelly at Unified MMA 31 in June. The 29-year old will look to make it three wins in a row for the first time since 2015. Scarcello hasn’t lost since 2013 and heads into this matchup on a six-fight win streak. The Hayabusa Training Centre product is coming off a win over CES MMA veteran Lenny Wheeler by first-round submission at Unified MMA 29 in December.
Is there a notable MMA veteran competing this month that I missed? Or is there a matchup that has been changed? Hit me up on Twitter @LynchOnSports, and I’ll add it in or fix it up. Thanks.
