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It’s a slower weekend in our immediate coverage area, but there are a host of events that we’ve covered in the past taking place, along with fighters we’ve followed closely throughout the years. There’s also a wealth of great fights featuring some of the best fighters in the area, making this the first marquee weekend of 2015.
There are just two events in our “official” coverage area – Turf Wars 23 in Northern Kentucky and V3 Fights in Memphis – but there are also notable events in Eastern Pennsylvania (Gladiators of the Cage), North Carolina (Fight Lab 43), and West Virginia (Caged Power 10).
As always, be sure to check back right here on BluegrassMMA.com early next week four results and recaps from all of the weekend’s action.
This weekend’s lineup:[/tps_header]
[tps_title]Turf Wars 23[/tps_title]
January 24th – Florence, KY
MMA returns to Northern Kentucky, as Turf Wars 23 is set to go down at Turfway Park in Florence. The card features a pro/am lineup, including three pro bouts. In the headliner, Billy “Mojo” Horne (12-4) will look for his fifth straight win and a potential crack at a national organization when he faces the fast-rising Steven Bell (3-3). There have been rumors that Horne is on the cusp of a shot with a big organization, especially after his dominant performance over Donta Wade in his last outing. Bell has been impressive in his last four bouts, winning three of them and getting his record back to .500. A win over Horne would certainly raise some eyebrows on a local and national level, but he’s an underdog here.
Bellator veteran Shaun Asher (7-1), one of the most popular fighters in the Cincinnati area, will also return from a short-lived retirement when he faces Kelly Pennington (2-7). This will be Asher’s first fight since November 2013, while Pennington looks to snap a five-fight losing streak. Both fighters are in a lot of fights that end early, so don’t expect this one to last long.
The third pro bout will feature the return of Charlie Stanford (5-3) to Northern Kentucky, as he is set to face Latral Perdue (1-8). Stanford is 5-0 as a pro when fighting near his hometown of Cincinnati.
A pair of titles will also be on the line on the amateur side of things, with both the bantamweight and lightweight straps up for grabs. At bantmaweight, popular 38-year-old fighter Scott Wegman (6-2) will return from injury to compete in his first title fight, as he takes on Zach Baker (4-0) at 135 pounds. And at lightweight, Evan Samad (7-1) will defend his title against Stephen Scott (5-1).
This is set to be one of the biggest Turf Wars cards ever, and Wegman joined BluegrassMMA Live earlier this week to talk about his fight and the card as a whole. You can also check out Juan Valle’s Top 5 reasons why you should be at Turf Wars 23.