Top Featherweight Prospect Signs with Ultimate Fighting Championship
NEW YORK–AMMA,(BUSINESS WIRE)– Alliance MMA, Inc. (“Alliance MMA” or the “Company”) (NASDAQ:AMMA), the only publicly-traded professional mixed martial arts (MMA) company that unifies elite regional promotions and aspiring MMA champions, announced today that SuckerPunch Entertainment, the fighter management division of Alliance MMA, signed another top prospect, Dan Ige, to the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) this past weekend.
The newly signed Ige is slated to compete in the UFC 145 lb. division alongside reigning UFC World Featherweight Champion Max Holloway, a fellow Hawaiian and long-time SuckerPunch client. This most recent acquisition brings the total number of fighters currently fighting for the UFC, under SuckerPunch management, to 20.
“I set a goal to fight in the UFC by 2017, but we had some major hurdles to overcome before they were willing to recognize me as a legitimate prospect,” said Ige. “I can’t thank the management team at SuckerPunch enough for always believing in me, never giving up during injuries, and making sure I gained the best possible experience on the regional circuit. As I transition to becoming a UFC athlete, I know I’ll keep receiving the same quality career guidance that got me here in the first place.”
Ige who has a professional record of 8-1, most recently claimed victory over previously undefeated Luis Gomez during Week 3 of “Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series” which airs on UFC Fight Pass, the digital streaming platform of the UFC.
SuckerPunch Entertainment Client Victorious at UFC Fight Night 120
The action-packed weekend continued for SuckerPunch Entertainment as client Karl “Baby K” Roberson was victorious in his UFC debut at UFC Fight Night 120 during which his opponent submitted in just 3:41 into the first round. In addition to Roberson, UFC Fight Night 120 also featured SuckerPunch client Angela “Overkill” Hill who competed in her sixth UFC appearance.
UFC Champion Max Holloway Gets New Opponent
UFC Featherweight Champion Max Holloway will now be defending his title against Jose Aldo as the UFC 218 Main Event on Saturday, December 2, 2017, in a live Pay-Per-View broadcast. Max is on an 11-fight winning streak which includes stoppage victories over former UFC Champions Anthony Pettis and Jose Aldo. The upcoming UFC 218 card in Detroit also features fellow SuckerPunch clients Felice Herrig, Paul Felder and Sabah Homasi.
SuckerPunch Entertainment has played an integral role in managing the careers of seven UFC World Champions, two Bellator World Champions, and over 50 regional champions. “We are always striving to produce the next world champion, and to cultivate top prospects at the early stages of their career, said Brian Butler-Au, SuckerPunch Managing Partner. “Identifying promising talent, then guiding and building their careers, culminated in ten of our clients performing in season 1 of ‘Dana White’s Tuesday Night Contender Series’ on UFC Fight Pass.”
Alliance MMA Growth Through Acquisition
In addition to SuckerPunch Entertainment and CageTix, the Company’s electronic ticketing platform, Alliance MMA currently operates branded regional MMA events in 13 of the top 30 Nielsen Designated Market Areas (DMA), including each of the top five. With the goal of unifying elite regional promotions and fostering the development of aspiring MMA champions, the Company produces professional MMA events through New Jersey-based Cage Fury Fighting Championships, Washington-based Combat Games MMA, Indiana-based Hoosier Fight Club, Tennessee-based V3Fights, Maryland-based Shogun Fights, Ohio-based Iron Tiger Fight Series, Florida-based Fight Time Promotions, Georgia-based National Fighting Championship, Southern California-based SoCa Fights, and Nebraska-based Victory Fighting Championship.
About Alliance MMA, Inc.
Alliance MMA (NASDAQ:AMMA) is a professional mixed martial arts (MMA) company that brings together the best regional productions. Alliance MMA’s mission is to identify and cultivate the next generation of fighters and champions for the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) and other premier MMA promotions.
With some of the world’s leading MMA promotions under the Alliance MMA umbrella, the organization aims eventually to host in excess of 125 events per year, showcasing more than 1,000 fighters. Alliance MMA is also dedicated to generating live original sports media content, attracting an international fan base, and securing major brand sponsorship revenue for live MMA events, digital media, and Alliance MMA fighters.
MMA is the world’s fastest-growing sport with worldwide fans of approximately 300 million according to sports marketing research firm Repucom. MMA is a full contact sport that allows a wide range of fighting techniques, including striking and grappling from various martial arts and disciplines including boxing, wrestling, Brazilian jiu jitsu, karate, and Muay Thai. Professional MMA fights are legal and regulated by state athletic commissions in all 50 states.
Alliance MMA, Inc. was incorporated in 2015 for the purpose of acquiring businesses that engage in the promotion of mixed martial arts (MMA) events. In 2016, the company completed an initial public offering that culminated in a listing on the NASDAQ stock exchange. Alliance MMA is the only mixed martial arts promotion company that is publicly-traded.
For more information, visit www.alliancemma.com.
Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the federal securities laws. These statements relate to anticipated future events, future results of operations or future financial performance. In some cases, you can identify forward-looking statements by terminology such as “may,” “might,” “will,” “should,” “intends,” “expects,” “plans,” “goals,” “projects,” “anticipates,” “believes,” “estimates,” “predicts,” “potential,” or “continue” or the negative of these terms or other comparable terminology. Actual results may differ materially from historical results or those indicated by these forward-looking statements as a result of a variety of factors including, but not limited to, those discussed under the heading “Risk Factors” in our Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2016 filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission on April 17, 2017. Alliance MMA encourages you to review other factors that may affect its future results in its other filings with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
