This weekend’s Cage Fury Fighting Championships 52 event in Atlantic City will be monumental for mulitple reasons, including a judging experiment that will see three judges placed in sound-proof booths away from the crowd to avoid any possible hometown bias.
The fight card features two title fights, including a main event where lightweight champion Darrell Horcher (11-1) will defend against Stephen Regman (5-1).
Many believe that Horcher should already be in the UFC, as the Bellator veteran has reeled off four straight wins since signing with CFFC just under two years ago. He’ll defend his 155-pound title for the first time since winning it with a third round stoppage over Jordan Stiner at CFFC 45 in February. The only loss for “The Saint” was to current UFC fighter Philippe Nover.
Regman could be Horcher’s stiffest test to date, as the 24-year-old Team Tiger Schulman product has won five bouts in a row after losing his pro debut. He has three (T)KO victories, and most recently submitted Stiner with a guillotine choke at CFFC 50 in July.
A second title will also be on the line, as UFC veteran Nick Pace (6-3) will square off against the undefeated Ricky Bandejas (5-0) for the bantamweight title.
Pace will compete for the first time since being cut by the UFC after a loss to Miguel Torres in 2011. The 28-year-old is also a Tiger Schulman product and has earned four stoppage wins, including three submissions. Despite not competing in MMA, Pace has still been busy, as he competed in a GLORY kickboxing match in 2013, earning a win over current UFC fighter Levan Makasvhili.
“I was never good with assessing other fighters,” Pace said in an article on CFFC.tv. “I know what I can do and he knows what he can do. That’s the reason we fight, to decide who’s better. I’d say for the CFFC to choose this fight between us, I’m guessing he’s good. My prediction, I don’t make predictions. I make things happen.”
The 23-year-old Bandejas is one of the best prospects in the sport, as as he trains with UFC veteran Nick Catone and is 5-0 with all of his fights coming under the CFFC banner.
“Nick Pace having a UFC experience does not intimidate me in anyway,” exclaimed Bandejas, who also said he’s excited for the opportunity to finally be able to focus on MMA with a full training camp. “I train with some of best in the world on a daily basis and if anything, it gets me pumped to train and work very hard every time I am in the gym.”
A six-fight main card will air on the CBS Sports Network, but you can also watch a stream of the preliminary bouts on GFL by clicking here.
CFFC 52 takes place at the Borgata Hotel & Casino in Atlantic City on Halloween night.
Official CFFC 52 card
Main Card (CBS Sports Network)
Stephen Regman vs Champ Darrell Horcher – for lightweight title
Nick Pace vs Ricky Bandejas – for bantamweight title
Levon Maynard vs Sam Oropeza
Jared Gordon vs Bill Algeo
Katlyn Chookagian vs Sijara Eubanks
Dave Marfone vs Justin Bonitatis
Preliminary Card (GFL.tv)
Tim Williams vs Walter Howard
Jay Haas vs Scott Heckman
Sergio Da Silva vs Matthew Lozano
Tony Gravely vs Pat Sabatini
Dwayne Holman vs Andrew Aguilar
*card subject to change