HOUSTON, TX, June 29, 2012 – The next exciting edition of the Legacy Fighting Championship on AXS TV Fights (formerly HDNet) is nearing with Legacy 12 coming up two weeks from today on Friday, July 13th.
There’s cause for excitement both at the local level and on the national landscape with Mick Maynard putting together some very intriguing matchups and showcasing some of Legacy’s promising young talents on this card.
Main Event features Top Texas Flyweight Clash
To begin at the very top of the card, we have long-awaited flyweight bout everybody has been waiting for in Will Campuzano taking on Chad Robichaux for the Legacy flyweight championship.
This bout was originally set to feature DFW’s Will Campuzano taking on Houston MMA representative Steve Garcia in a championship bout and rematch of an earlier bout the two had at King of Kombat awhile back. Unfortunately Garcia had to pull due to injury and now Will gets to face Chad Robichaux in a bout everybody has wanted to see for a long time.
With a four bout stretch that includes Jonathan Mackles and former Bellator champ Zack Makovsky in addition to Sandoval and Campuzano, it seems Robo has done his part in silencing the critics claiming he ducks top opponents that were so prevalent earlier in his career. A win over an opponent like Campuzano on July 13th would go a long ways towards validating Chad’s claim that he belongs in the UFC flyweight division.
For his part, Will Campuzano has got his own points to prove in this bout against Robichaux, someone he’s wanted to face for a long time. The 26 year old fighting out of DFW’s Mohler camp has already gone on to accomplish some things on the national level with mixed success in the WEC and UFC but those bouts were contested at bantamweight. Making the drop to 125 lbs. ever since the UFC announced it would be featuring that division, Will now has 2 wins with 2 finishes in his last two bouts as a flyweight – including an exciting 3rd round KO by knee in hjis last bout against Josh Sampo just last month. With a win over Robichaux in this main event, Campuzano will make his own case to get into the UFC’s flyweight division that much stronger.
Jay Hieron and Robert Drysdale make Legacy debuts
Former IFL, UFC, and Strikeforce fighter Jay Hieron will be making his Legacy debut on July 13th. He was last seen fighting for Bellator and lost only one bout before asking for his release, a close split decision to champion Ben Askren. That bout snapped a 10-fight win streak by the “Thoroughbred” but he will be looking to get right back on the saddle when he takes on former Legacy 170 lbs. champ Mike “The Greek” Bronzoulis, who willing going into this one fresh off a win against Danny Salinas at UWF.
Meanwhile, another prominent fighter nationally will be making his own Legacy debut in the ADCC and multiple-time BJJ world champion Robert Drysdale. He will finally be making his Legacy debut when he takes on “Hurricane” Ike Villanueva in what could amount to a classic striker vs. grappler clash.
Here’s an interview we conducted with Drysdale regarding the bout.
Best of the Rest
There are a ton of other fights to look forward to on a card that has the potential to be Legacy’s best ever yet – and that’s saying a lot.
Completing the main card are bouts featuring some high-skilled strikers in two divisions.
First there’s Artenas “Machine Gun” Young taking on Tim Mousel protégé Noel Ligon at middleweight. With the dearth of depth in this division, the winner of this bout could march their way up the ladder of contention with a victory here.
At lightweight, the always exciting Rey Trujillo will test his chops against Austin-based based Nick “The Ghost” Gonzalez, a longtime veteran of the MMA scene with bouts at Strikeforce and K-1 to his credit.
Notable fighters on the untelevised portion of the Legacy 12 card slated for the Arena Theater on Friday, July 13th include up and coming young lightweight Justin Reiswerg and former Legacy 155 lbs. champion Ray Blodget.
Here is the full card below at last glance.
Current Fight Card
Main Event: Will Campuzano vs. Chad Robichaux – Flyweight (125 lbs) Championship
Mike Bronzoulis vs. Jay Hieron (170 lbs)
Robert Drysdale vs. Isaac “Ike” Villanueva (205 lbs)
Artenas Young vs. Noel Ligon (185 lbs)
Nick Gonzalez vs. Rey Trujillo (145 lbs)
LEGACY 12 – PRELIMINARY CARD
Justin Reiswerg vs. Cris Rucker (155 lbs)
Ray Blodget vs. Scotty Juarez (155 lbs)
Jason Carter vs. Jared Chaffee (135 lbs)
Jeremy Morris vs. Levi West (170 lbs)
Mark Garcia vs. Charles Ontiveros (170 lbs)
Lester Batres vs. Edgar Verdin (170 lbs)