This Weekend’s Fight Preview:
Friday, July 22nd 2016
Bellator 159: Caldwell vs. Taimanglo
Bellator returns after a highlight filled event in London last week that left Evangelista Cyborgs cranium smashed in by Michael Venom Page.
This week, featherweights face-off in the main event as Darrion Caldwell (8-0) looks to continue his unbeaten streak against veteran fighter Joe Taimanglo (22-6-1).
Caldwells last fight was in March, where he submitted former champion Joe Warren at Bellator 151 via rear naked choke within three minutes of the first round. Taimanglo is on a three-fight win streak, looking to extend his run to four.
Also on the card is the return of former UFC star Melvin Guillard (32-16-0), who faces David Rickels (17-4-0) in a lightweight battle.
Guillard is currently on a three-fight losing streak. His last loss was a second-round destruction at the hands of Derek Campos in his native Houston last February at Bellator 149. A loss against Rickels would be his third for Bellator and probably signal his walking papers from the organization.
Catch all the action of Bellator 159 live from the Kansas Star Arena in Wichita, Kansas on Spike TV tonight at 9:00pm EST / 6pm PST
Saturday, July 23rd 2016
UFC Fight Night: Holm vs. Shevchenko
Former UFC womens bantamweight champion Holly Holm returns to the Octagon, facing Russian fighter Valentina Shevchenko.
Both women have boxed professionally and kickboxed, while also now being MMA fighters. Holm shocked the world as the first woman to beat Ronda Rousey in the second round of UFC 193,winning the coveted bantamweight title.
She lost the title in the next outing against Miesha Tate, who submitted her in the fifth and final round at UFC 196.
Shevchenko has one win and one loss, both via decision, in her two UFC appearances with her last loss coming from current UFC womens bantamweight champion Amanda Nunes, also at UFC 196 in March.
Watch all the action live from the United Center in Chicago, Illinois on Fox at 8pm EST / 5pm PST.
Boxing
Terence Crawford vs. Viktor Postol
Unbeaten WBO junior welterweight champion Terence Crawford takes on fellow unbeaten WBC junior welterweight Viktor Postol live from Las Vegas.
Although this fight has gone under the radar, it is a tremendous matchup with implications of meeting Manny Pacquiao in November.
Postol is trained by Pacman coach Freddie Roach at the Wild Card Boxing Club in Los Angeles. The Ukranian has fought only three times in the U.S. However, this will be his first time in Las Vegas and on pay-per-view.
Crawford, the rising talent from Omaha, Nebraska, is trying to solidify his greatness through hard work and little talk. He notoriously speaks loudest with his fists and is attempting to unify the titles in a run at Pacquiao.
If successful, Crawford could receive the elevated stature Tim Bradley did when he came out of relative obscurity to beat Manny Pacquiao and solidify himself on PPV. However, this outing is expected to do low numbers both in the arena and on television, as a fight only die-hard boxing fans can truly appreciate it.
Watch it live from the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas on HBO pay-per-view at 9pm EST /6pm PST.
Premier Boxing Champions: Fabian Maidana vs. Jorge Maysonet
Fabian Maidana (9-0) battles Puerto Rican slugger Jorge Maysonet (13-1) in another exciting main event.
The younger brother of two-time world champion, Marcos Maidana, he kicked off his career with five victories in six months, the latter four wins coming by knockout – three in the first round, one in the second.
Maidana then added two more swift stoppages before ratcheting up the level of competition and earning a pair of eight-round unanimous decisions over Peter Oluoch and Andres Gabriel Amarilla.
Maysonet is the 26-year-old son of 1984 Olympian Jorge Maysonet Sr. He won his first 11 fights via KO before dropping an eight-round unanimous decision to Gabriel Tolmaiyan in April 2013.
Maysonet has since rebounded with a pair of victories, the most recent being a four-round unanimous decision over Juan Rivas in May 2015.
Catch all the action from the Scottish Rite Auditorium in San Antonio, Texas live on NBC Sports Network at 8:30 p.m. ET / 5:30 p.m. PT.
