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 December 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.
Babilon MMA 2 – Dec. 2nd (Legionowo, Poland)
Paweł Pawlak (12-3) vs. Adam Niedźwiedź (5-2)
Former UFC welterweight Pawlak looks to make it two-straight wins for the first time since 2013 when he takes on fellow Polish fighter Niedzwiedz. Since he was released from the UFC in 2015, the 28-year old has gone 1-1. Meanwhile Niedzwiedz has won back-to-back fights heading into this matchup.
TKO 41- Dec, 8 (Montreal, Quebec)
Jesse Ronson (18-8) vs. Derek Gauthier (8-7) – Vacant lightweight title
UFC veteran Ronson looks for his fourth win in a row when he battles Gauthier in a rematch from earlier this year. Ronson already defeated Gauthier in April with a third-round TKO win and is coming off a submission victory over his teammate Jeremie Caponoy at ACB 72. Gauthier is 1-3 in his last four fights and will be looking for just his second win since 2011.
LFA 28 – Dec. 8 (Dallas Texas)
Damon Jackson (12-2-1) vs. Thai Clark (7-0)
UFC veteran Jackson looks for his fourth win in his last five fights when he battles undefeated Clark in a featherweight affair. Jackson has gone 3-1 since he was released from the UFC in 2016. Clark competes for the first time since October 2016 and will be making his LFA debut.
Primus FC – Dec. 9 (Woodward Oklahoma)
Houston Alexander (17-15-1) vs. Rakim Cleveland (17-9-1)
Former UFC light heavyweight Alexander looks for revenge as he faces Cleveland in a rematch from their encounter in April. Alexander is 1-5 in his last six fights including a first-round TKO setback to Cleveland at Primus FC in April. The 45-year-old will be looking for just his second win since 2014. Cleveland meanwhile is coming off a No Contest against Vitaly Shemetov at The Legend King Championship 3 in September.
Rob Emerson (19-12) vs. David Sachs (10-4)
TUF 5’s Emerson looks for his third win in his last four fights when he takes on Sachs. Emerson lost his Victory FC bantamweight title to Raufeon Stots at Victory FC 56 in April which snapped his two-fight win streak. The 36-year-old is 2-2 in his last four fights. Sachs had his four-fight win streak snapped in his last bout when he was defeated by Dimitri Waardenburg at TKO 38 in April.
Jamie Yager (8-4) vs. Tyler Jackson (10-7-1)
TUF 11’s Yager looks for his first three-fight win streak since 2011 when he takes on Canadian Jackson. Yager is coming off back-to-back wins including a submission victory over Jesse Merritt at CXF 6 in February. Jackson competes in the U.S. for the first time in his career and hasn’t competed since November 2014.
Fury FC 20 – Dec. 9 (San Antonio, Texas)
Pete Spratt (25-23) vs. Washington Luiz (3-3)
46-year-old UFC veteran Spratt returns to the cage for the first time since 2013 when he battles Luiz. Spratt heads into this matchup on a two-fight skid, including a first-round TKO loss to Tim Means at Legacy FC 23 in September 2013. Luiz is coming off a split decision loss to Danny Ageday at Fury FC 20 and has lost two of his last three fights.
Fight Nights Global 81 – Dec. 15 (Omsk, Russia)
Levan Makashvili (14-2-1) vs. Alexander Matmuratov (8-3)
Former UFC featherweight Makashvili looks to extend his winning streak to five-straight when he battles Russian fighter Matmuratov. The 28-year-old is coming off a unanimous decision win over Jack McGann at Fight Nights Global 62 in March. Matamuratov ha won back-to-back fights and looks for his first three-fight win streak since 2014.
BAMMA 33 – Dec . 15 (Newcastle, England)
Mickael Lebout (16-7-3) vs. Ryan Scope (10-1)
UFC veteran Lebout looks to extend his unbeaten streak to four-straight when he faces UK fighter Scope. Lebout has gone 2-2-1 since he was released from the UFC in 2015. Scope meanwhile is coming off the first loss of his career when he was submitted by Lewis Long at M4TC: Carnage in February.
Unified 33 – Dec. 15 (Edmonton, Alberta)
Shane Campbell (13-6) vs. Stephan Beaumont (9-2)
Former UFC lightweight Campbell makes the second defense of his United title in a rematch against fellow Canadian Beaumont. Campbell has remained undefeated since he was released from the UFC last year and has finished his last three opponents. Beaumont is riding a two-fight win streak and has fought just twice since 2014.
LFA 29 – Dec. 15 (Prior Lake, Minnesota)
Chico Camus (18-7) vs. Ricky Simon (10-1)
Former UFC bantamweight Camus looks for his fifth win in a row when he takes on top bantamweight prospect Simon. Since he was released from the UFC in 2015, Camus has gone 4-0, most recently defeating former Titan FC title challenger Andrew Whitney by unanimous decision at No Mercy 8 in September. Simon is coming off a split decision win over Donavon Frelow at Dana White’s Contender Series 5 and is riding his own three-fight win streak.
Mike Richman (18-7) vs. Jeff Peterson (8-4)
Former Bellator standout Richman looks to get back on the winning track when he takes on LFA veteran Peterson. Richman fought for the first time since 2015 (due to a PED suspension) earlier this year and came up short in a unanimous decision loss to ATT product Lazar Stojadinovic at LFA 2. “The Marine” looks for his first win since November 2014. Peterson meanwhile heads into this matchup on a five-fight win streak.
Fights Nights Global 82 – Dec. 16 (Gtskz, Russia)
Vitaly Minakov (20-0) vs. Tony Johnson Jr. (11-3)
Former Bellator heavyweight champion Minakov looks to keep his unblemished record intact when he battles fellow Bellator vet Johnson Jr. Minakov has won back-to-back fights this year over DJ Linderman and most recently former UFC title challenger Antonio Bigfoot Silva. Johnson Jr, has won four of his last five fights including a first-round TKO victory over Baga Agaev at Fight Nights Global 68 in June.
CFFC 69 – Dec. 16 (Atlantic City, New Jersey)
Dan Spohn (16-5) vs. Anton Berzin (5-2)
One-time UFC veteran Spohn aims to make it five in a row when he takes on fellow DWCS competitor Berzin. Spohn defeated Angel DeAnda by first-round submission at Dana White’s Contender Series 2 but surprisingly wasn’t offered a contract. He faces Berzin who lost a split decision to Kennedy Nzechukwu at Dana White’s Contender Series 7, which snapped his two-fight win streak.
Road FC 45 – Dec. 23 (Seoul, South Korea)
Seo Hee Ham (18-8) vs Jinh Yu (6-2)
Former UFC strawweight Ham defends her Atomweight title against American Jinh Yu. Ham went 1-3 in the UFC defeating Cortney Casey and loses to Joanne Calderwood, Bec Rawlings and Danielle Taylor. Yu has won four of her last five fights and will be making her Road FC debut.
ACB 77 Moscow – Dec. 23 (Moscow, Russia)
Cory Hendricks (4-1) vs. Konstantin Erokhin (9-3)
Hendricks competes in his second-straight fight for ACB when he battles Erokhin in a heavyweight matchup. Hendricks lost at The Ultimate Fighter 23 Finale to Josh Stansbury and was subsequently released from the promotion. He bounced back with a first-round TKO win over Evgeny Egemberdiev at ACB 69 in September. Erokin meanwhile competes for the first time since 2015 when he was released from the UFC after losing two straight fights to Viktor Pesta and Gabriel Gonzaga.
RIZIN Fighting World Grand Prix 2017: 2nd Round – Dec. 29 (Saitama, Japan)
Ian McCall (13-5-1) vs. Manel Kape (7-1)
McCall competes for the first time since January 2015 when he battles 24-year-old Kape. McCall has had six fights cancelled between his last fight and this upcoming matchup. He’ll also be making his RIZIN debut. Kape hasn’t lost since April 2014 and heads into this matchup on a five-fight win streak.
Anthony Birchak (12-5) vs. Je Hoon Moon (10-10)
UFC veteran Birchak looks to snap a two-fight skid when he takes on Moon. Birchak is coming off back-to-back losses to Tatsuya Kawajiri and Takafumi Otsuka. Moon meanwhile has lost three of his last four fights.
Kyoji Horiguchi (20-2) vs. Gabriel Oliveira (10-0)
Former UFC title challenger Horiguchi moves up to the bantamweight division to take on undefeated Brazilian Oliveira. Horiguchi has won five-fights in a row since losing to Demetrious Johnson at UFC 186. Oliveira is coming off an impressive TKO win over Tatsuya Kawajiri in his promotional debut.
RIZIN Fighting World Grand Prix 2017: Final Round – Dec. 31 (Saitama, Japan)
Mirko Filipović (35-11-2) vs. Tsuyoshi Kosaka (27-19-2)
UFC/PRIDE veteran Filipovic competes for the first time since December 2016 when he battles Japanese heavyweight Kosaka. “Cro Cop” has won six-fights in a row by stoppage. Kosaka has fought just twice since 2007 and has lost two of his last three fights.
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.
