Five Reasons to Watch Titan FC 34

While the UFC has put on four events in the span of a week, the Titan Fighting Championships returns with a strong card of their own this Saturday on UFC Fight Pass. Along with four championship matchups, this event also features a number of UFC veterans and up and coming prospects. Here are five reasons to tune into Titan FC 34 UFC Audition?  UFC veteran Kurt Holobaugh makes the first defence of his Titan FC featherweight title as he battles undefeated Bellmore Kickboxing product Andre “The Bull” Harrison. Holobaugh earned the Titan FC 145lb championship by defeating former champion Desmond Green at Titan FC 33 by unanimous decision. Since his UFC release in 2013, the 28-year old has remained undefeated going a perfect 5-0. Harrison is coming off an impressive unanimous decision victory over Cody Bollinger in his last outing at Titan FC 33 to improve his overall record to 9-0.  Look for both of these fighters to look for this finish as the winner of this contest could be headed to the UFC.   Future of the Bantamweight Division Undefeated Titan FC bantamweight champion Brett Johns goes into enemy territory Saturday night against hometown favourite Anthony Gutierrez. Johns passed his Titan FC debut with flying colours this past March, defeating Wael Watson by 2nd round submission to capture the promotions 135lb title. Looking to keep his unblemished record in tact, he faces a dangerous opponent in Gutierrez who sports an impressive 6-1 record . “Sharkbait” is coming off a highlight reel knockout victory over Austin Lyons at Titan FC 33, which was his sixth finish is seven career bouts. With five career decisions between the two of them in 18 career bouts, don’t expect this contest hitting the judges scorecards.   Short Notice Spotlight  Factory X product Marcus Edwards gets the biggest test of his career Saturday night, when he meets Titan FC lightweight champion Pat Healy. Edwards replaces Mike Ricci, who had to pull out of this title fight due to injury. Edwards has lost just once in his last seven bouts, with his only blemish coming to UFC lightweight Shane Campbell in a catchweight fight. Healy is coming off a split decision victory over Kurt Kinser where he captured the promotions 155lb title. Healy has the clear edge in experience, having 51 career bouts [compared to Edwards 13] but the 26-year old has finished five of his last seven oppoents. Fans can expect an all out war, as neither of these fighters are afraid to stand and trade over the five round affair.   Inaugural Flyweight Title Up for Grabs  Tim Elliott competes for the first time since his UFC release when he meets fellow UFC veteran Iliarde Santos for the promotions 125lb championship. Elliott is on the first three fight losing streak of his career, but those losses were against top UFC flyweights Ali Bagautinov, Jospeh Benavidez and Zach Makovsky. Santos snapped his three fight losing streak in his Titan FC debut back in March, defeating Nick Honstein by decision at Titan FC 33. With the flyweight division as a whole fairly thin on talent, look for both of these fights to make a statement, as they look to inch closer to a UFC return.   Former WSOF competitors collide  Freddy Assuncao returns to the cage for the first time since January 2014 when he meets fellow WSOF veteran Cody Bollinger. Injuries and contract issues with WSOF have kept the ATT Atlanta product on the sidelines for the the last year, but he remains one of the top featherweight fighters with an 8-1 record. Bollinger is coming off a disappointing loss to Andre Harrison at Titan FC 33 where he lost by unanimous decision, but has won four of his last six bouts. Expect both fighters to put on a ‘Fight of the Night” performance, as the winner of this matchup could fight for the Titan FC featherweight title next.   Here’s the full Titan FC 34 Lineup Pat Healy (31-20, 1NC) vs. Marcus Edwards (10-3) – Lightweight Title Fight  Kurt Holobaugh (14-2) vs. Andre Harrison (9-0) – Featherweight Title Fight Brett Johns (11-0) vs. Anthony Gutierrez (6-1) – Bantamweight Title Fight  Tim Elliott (10-6-1) vs. Iliarde Santos (28-9-1, 1NC) – Flyweight Title Fight  Jose Landi-Jons (29-15) vs. Zak Bucia (13-6) Cody Bollinger (17-4, 1NC) vs. Freddy Assuncao (8-1) Jason Witt (6-2) vs. Isaac Vallie-Flagg (15-6-1) Phil Hawes (3-0) vs. Lucas Rota (10-5) Desmond Green (14-4) vs. Vince Eazelle (9-1) William Joplin (12-10) vs. Andrew Whitney (11-4) Dakota Cochrane (18-9) vs. Mike Bruno (12-7) Cody Peterson (3-1) vs. Joseph Fuk (3-2)

Written by James Lynch

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