By TXMMA Staff
HOUSTON, TX, November 8, 2013 – It’s good news for professional MMA fans in Houston as the city is set for another rendition of Texas’ top pro MMA league this Friday night, November 15th with Legacy Fighting Championship 25 scheduled for the Houston Arena Theater.
Hailed as one of the stronger cards in recent memory, LFC 25 features a much-anticipated title matchup in the lightweight division between defending champion Jorge “Macaco” Patino and upstart Carlos Diego Ferreira in what could determine the next Texas fighter to get called up to the UFC following former Legacy FC champion Will Campuzano getting called up to fight Sergio Pettis at UFC 167 just yesterday.
As for the rest of Legacy Fighting Championship 25, the undercard also features another notable appearance with 2008 US Olympics Gold Medalist Henry Cejudo fighting in Legacy for the second time versus an experienced opponent in Humberto Deleon. Cejudo debuted recently at Legacy FC 24 in Dallas with a unanimous decision over Ryan Hollis and will be looking to continue building in this one versus the Bushi Ban based Houstonian.
The rest of the card features some other strong matchups, including South Texas (STFC) champion Frank Trevino making his much anticipated Legacy debut opposite Houston’s hometown favorite Lester Batres and much more.
Check out the complete Legacy Fighting Championship 25 fight card below and read for some additional analysis on some of the fighters and matchups worth tracking on this Houston MMA fight card.
- 155 lbs.: Jorge “Macaco” Patino (34-13) vs. Carlos Diego Ferreira (8-0) *TITLE
- 125 lbs.: Humberto Deleon (6-5) vs. Henry Cejudo (4-0)
- 170 lbs.: Lester Batres (3-1) vs. Frank Trevino (10-0)
- 170 lbs.: Jon Harris (8-3) vs. Artenas Young (9-6)
- 185 lbs.: Jon Kirk (16-12) vs. Larry Crowe (6-3)
- 170 lbs.: Kaileb Cummins (2-0-1) vs. Charlie Ontiveros (3-1)
Legacy Fighting Championship 25 – Preliminary Card
- 155 lbs.: Justin Reiswerg (5-3) vs. Mark Garcia (2-6)
- 170 lbs.: Melvin Jordan (1-1) vs. Patrick Hutton (4-6)
- 145 lbs.: Eric Valdez (2-1) vs. Agrimar De Santos (debut)
- 170 lbs.: Steven Rodriguez (1-1) vs. Devin Christopherson (3-0)
Top Five Storylines to watch at Legacy Fighting Championship 25
Championship match between Macaco and Ferreira might have bigger implications
As the defending Legacy FC lightweight champion and also a fighter who has been active fighting in his native Brazil, Jorge ‘Macaco’ Patino is on one hell of a warpath. He’s won his last seven fights in a row dating back to 2011 and is showing no signs of slowing down despite his 40 years of age. Meanwhile his opponent Carlos Diego Ferreira has also been on a mission heading into this fight. He’s won his first 8 pro fights heading into next Friday night and has similar goals in mind as his veteran opponent.
Separated by 12 years of age, both guys are looking to possess the belt but even more, both guys are seeking a shot at making it up to the UFC. Patino has been trying for awhile but skeptics might think he’s “too old.” As for Ferreira, he’s almost there but needs one more win to prove he truly belong and Macaco is that guy. So here they are, holding the keys to each other’s destiny in what could be the most highly-anticipated fight of the year.
Olympic Gold Medalist Henry Cejudo to face another experienced test
When US Olympian Henry Cejudo debuted last month in Dallas, Legacy fans may have expected to see a grind-it-out wrestler who preferred to dominate with his mat skills. Instead they got a scrappy and tenacious fighter who had no qualms about throwing high kicks and the like on his feet.
With that first win (over Ryan Hollis) now out of the way, Cejudo will now be looking at a quick turnaround at LFC 25 when he takes on Humberto Deleon, a Legacy and Strikeforce native who also doesn’t mind exchanging on the feet while supporting complementary submission skills.
It should be a great fight between these two and one that we’re definitely looking at as a FOTN candidate.
Highly-touted South Texan Frank Trevino debuts vs. underrated Lester Batres
It’s not often somebody debuts in any promotion with a record of 10-0 but that’s exactly what the RGV’s Frank Trevino will be doing this Friday when he takes on Lester Batres. A two division champion in the South Texas Fighting Championships (STFC), Frank already holds wins over respected opponents like Corey Bellino and Joseph Daily but many people (read: Houstonians) think of Lester as the first real challenge for a man who once started as a bloated up heavyweight before working his way down in weight while going up in skill.
For his past, Trevino indeed respects Lester but thinks of him as an opponent with a predictable style and one that he’s better at in all areas. If he proves that to be the case look for this RGV native to have a bright future in MMA moving forward.
Artenas “Machine Gun” Young overcoming loss to step into the cage
It was just recently (within the last two weeks) that Houston’s Artenas “Machine Gun” Young suffered personal loss in the worst way, losing his biggest fan and mother to the heavens. A devoutly religious person, Artenas has mourned the loss of his mom but also believes God has a plan and that she would want him to go on with his and go on to capture victory in the cage at LFC 25.
In this fight at Legacy FC 25 the 9-6 Young will be facing fellow Houston MMA vet Jonathan “Hulk” Harris, a fighter looking for his second win in a row over one of his most experienced opponents yet.
Larry “Tae-Kwon” Crowe looking to reestablish himself as a contender
Another fighter worth notice on the Legacy FC 25 main card is Larry Crowe. Although coming off a loss to Bubba Bush at LFC 21, it’s worth noticing that both his recent losses since 2011 come to champions, with the other one being to Jeff Rexroad way back at LFC 9.
This time around Larry will be facing quite the seasoned opponent in Jon Kirk, an area vet that’s been fight since the dawn of modern Texas MMA back at those old Renegades shows in 2005. He certainly won’t be an easy opponent for Larry as he looks to make his way back up the ladder but he will be one that will serve as a great barometer for where his future lies in the sport.
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