FEATHERWEIGHT TITLE FIGHT

IGEU KABESA VS DANIEL HENRY

Plus
ELVIS MOYO VS MICHAEL VERMEULEN
MARTIN VAN STADEN VS CHRISTIAN HOLLEY
WESSEL MOSTERT VS TONY MUSTARD
GORDON ROODMAN VS GEORGI GEORGIEV

And
PIERRE BOTHA VS SIZWE MNIKATHI
CONRAD SEABI VS MUTUALE BASAMBOMBO
ANICET KANYEBA VS OKOSSO OSSOKO
YUSUF HASSAN VS DEVON CRONJE
POPE DJEMBO VS TAYLA KENNEDY
BOKANG MASUNYANE VS LUTHANDO BIKO

 

Johannesburg, South Africa – Earlier today, twenty-two of the world’s toughest athletes faced-off with each other at the official EFC 57 weigh-in, ahead of the organisation’s bumper first event of the year tomorrow night.

EFC 57 is headlined by the grudge rematch for the featherweight title between the undefeated champion, Igeu ‘Smiley’ Kabesa and the Scottish challenger and former champion, Danny Henry. The main card is brim filled with athletes who can deliver fight of the night performances.

Henry lost his championship to Kabesa when they first met almost exactly a year ago at the very same venue. Now the Scot is out for vengeance and determined to reclaim what he believes is rightfully his. Meanwhile, Kabesa’s confidence nearly failed him during the morning’s weigh-in and pre-medical checks, when he came in 750 grams overweight. EFC official’s and doctors cited that he was not allowed to cut any more weight to preserve his health. Even though Kabesa failed to make weight, the bout remains a title fight. Kabesa’s failure to make weight added more fuel to an already intense rivalry between the two.

“I promised the fans something and they are gonna get it tomorrow,” confidently stated the champion Kabesa in his interview. The Scotsman stated, “You can expect me to go home with the belt again.” Henry continued, “Sorry South Africa.”

In the penultimate fight of the night, former title challenger Elvis Moyo faces Michael Vermeulen with a potential title shot for the victor. Moyo is fresh off one of the most memorable heavyweight fights in the organisation’s history, while Vermeulen is riding a massive four-fight winning streak.

Spain’s Christian Holley makes his EFC debut tomorrow night and has a massive task facing him in South African MMA legend, Martin ‘The Punisher’ van Staden. This will be van Staden’s first fight at lightweight, who looks to be in fantastic shape with no evident side effects from the weight cut. Both men have exemplary finishing rates and are known for their heavy punching power, making an action packed bout an absolute certainty.

Undefeated South African heavyweight Wessel ‘Wess Express’ Mostert goes up against England’s knockout artist Tony ‘Oosh’ Mustard in the second heavyweight bout on the main card. Both of these men boast a 100% finish rate in fights they have won, making fireworks a distinct possibility.

Opening the card is South African fan favourite Gordon ‘Rage’ Roodman up against Bulgaria’s powerful Georgi ‘The Bulgarian Beast’ Georgiev. Two men that are relentless in their pursuit of the perfect KO, are sure to deliver on the night.

Three athletes failed to make weight. Tayla Kennedy, Conad Seabi and Igeu Kabesa all received financial penalties.

The official EFC 57 weigh-in results are as follows:

Fight 1: Bantamweight
Bokang Masunyane 60.45kg
Luthando Biko 60.95kg

Fight 2: Lightweight
Pope Djembo 69.80kg
Tayla Kennedy 70.60kg

Fight 3: Bantamweight
Yusuf Hassan 60.60kg
Devon Cronje 60.80kg

Fight 4: Catchweight
Anicet Kanyeba 72.15kg
Okosso Ossoko 73.10kg

Fight 5: Welterweight
Conrad Seabi 78.15kg
Mutuale Basambombo 77.10kg

Fight 6: Lightweight
Pierre Botha 69.75kg
Sizwe Mnikathi 70.10kg

Fight 7: Catchweight
Gordon Roodman 85.55kg
Georgi Georgiev 85.70kg

Fight 8: Heavyweight
Wessel Mostert 120.00kg
Tony Mustard 113.00kg

Fight 9: Lightweight
Martin van Staden 69.85kg
Christian Holley 70.00kg

Fight 10: Heavyweight
Elvis Moyo 117.00kg
Michael Vermeulen 113.60kg

Fight 11: Featherweight Title Fight
Igeu Kabesa 66.75kg
Danny Henry 66.00kg

EFC 57: Kabesa vs Henry 2, presented by www.BetXchange.com on Saturday 4 March 2017 at Carnival City, Johannesburg. Tickets are on sale at www.computicket.com, and the 5 main card bouts will be broadcast live on kwesesports.com (Sub-Saharan Africa), Kwesé Free Sports (Kenya & Rwanda) and live in South Africa on SABC 3 starting at 21:00 (CAT). Full broadcast details available on www.efcworldwide.com.