MMA Live’s Debut Undergoes Some Major Changes
Matt MacGrath steps in on short notice once again. (photo by Sonja Beliveau)
Sometimes, someone else’s misfortune is someone else’s opportunity. That’s just how Halifax’s own Matt MacGrath must feel. MacGrath, who has been vocally searching out a fight, finally gets what he’s been looking for as he is now set to take on UFC and Pride veteran Marcus Aurelio. The Titan MMA trained fighter replaces a disappointed Cory MacDonald, who steps aside due to undisclosed personal reasons. Cagepotato.com were the first to report the change in opponent.
That’s not all. MMA Live had the distinguished honor of promoting the first ever sanctioned female fight in Ontario but unfortunately Julia Budd has been called back into the Strikeforce fold. Attempts by MMA Live to find a suitable opponent for Anna Barone were unsuccessful. Now Barone is scheduled to make her promotional debut on the July 2 card where she will meet BJJ specialist Sheila Bird.
Lastly, the rumored bout between rising star Louis-Philippe Carle and TUF 9 cast member Frank Lester has hit the scrap heap as well. Carle, who suffered a rotator injury prior to his fight with Dean Amasinger this past April, still hasn’t fully recovered from the damage. Interestingly enough, Carle was also replaced by MacGrath in April against Amasinger. MacGrath used pressure and wrestling to repeatedly take down the Englishman to earn a unanimous decision victory.
Now it ain’t all bad. MMA Live will still make their debut May 19 at the John Labatt Centre with a stellar main event as number eight ranked Welterweight Ryan Ford meets former UFC title contender Karo Parisyan. Also, number one ranked Bantamweight Nick Denis takes on WEC veteran Kyle Dietz.
Loading ...
Go MacGrath!
I’m confused….isnt it May 19th?
Isn’t this another Dave Mair project? I wonder if those fights were even signed. The whole main card except the Denis fight could be scrapped by the end of it considering that Karo Parisyan is a Hack and a drug addict. At least Nick Denis vs. Kyle Dietz has a decent chance at going through.
There are some really good people involved in this one. Tony Lee is a gentleman and a hard worker. And Brad Jones is a highly respected guy from the promotion business.
They brought an experienced matchmaker in for the main event, and Tony and Jones worked on Denis Dietz and the MacGrath fight. So those are all solid.
Lee and Jones are good people and working hard to put on a great show in London.
It’s going to be very interesting to see where Parisyan is at. If he comes in shape and refocussed it should be an interesting main event.
MMA Live has been a great organization to deal with. Very professional. Whenever a fight has been told to Top MMA News by MMA Live, its always been 100% confirmed by the fighters.
Disappointed they lost Budd, but still a very good card.
Changed the date from July 16 to May 19, slight typo there my apologies.
i’m gonna call this right now. matt macgarth will get his wish. karo will pull out of his fight for some reason, and they’ll bump matt up to fight ford.
go macgrath. ford is a criminal loser.