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UFC RETURNS TO GERMANY FOR UFC 122
 (PRESS
RELEASE) -- The Ultimate Fighting Championship® organisation returns
to Germany on November 13 when UFC 122 emanates from
König-Pilsener-Arena in Oberhausen.
In the high-stakes main event, mixed martial arts legend Vitor ‘the
Phenom’ Belfort will face Japanese powerhouse Yushin ‘Thunder’ Okami
in a three-round contest to determine who will challenge for the UFC
Middleweight Championship in 2011.
UFC 122 is the first UFC event to take place in Germany since the
world’s premier combat sports organisation made its mainland Europe
debut in Cologne last June.
UFC Managing Director of International Development Marshall Zelaznik
said: “We are glad to be coming back to Germany with UFC 122 and to
reward our loyal UFC fans in Germany. Both Vitor Belfort and Yushin
Okami are one win away from a shot at the UFC Middleweight Title and
are coming to Germany with a great deal to win and lose. This is a
sporting event with tremendous international significance, and we
are delighted to have been able to bring this event to Oberhausen.”
Marek Lieberberg of MLK, the UFC’s promotional partner in Germany,
said: “We are excited to bring the world’s most popular combat sport
back to Germany, following our great event last summer. Mr Belfort
and Mr Okami are two of the greatest martial artists in the world
and this is an excellent main event attraction. Vitor holds a black
belt in judo as well as jiu-jitsu and has competed as a professional
boxer while Yushin is an outstanding martial artist in his own
right.”
Tickets for UFC 122 are priced at €225, €145, €85, €65 and €45 and
will be available on Monday, September 20 to UFC Fight Club members
from Tuesday 21 to UFC and MLK Newsletter subscribers and to the
general public from Wednesday 22 September. Tickets will be
available from eventim.de, the arena box office and Bundesweite
Ticket Hotline: 01805 – 570 000.
Please note tickets are only available to over 18s, and that ID will
be checked at the arena on the night.
Former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Vitor Belfort, 19-8 a career
which began in 1996, has earned his reputation as one of the greats
in his sport. The 33-year-old from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, has spent
a decade and a half travelling the world and defeating a who’s who
of mixed martial arts; ‘The Phenom’ holds wins over the likes of
Tank Abbott, Wanderlei Silva, Kazushi Sakuraba, Randy Couture, and
Matt Lindland, and he most recently stopped Rich Franklin in just
three minutes.
Rightly considered a pioneer of MMA, Belfort believes he is also the
future of the 185lbs middleweight division, and knows victory in
Germany will put him in striking distance of becoming only the third
man to ever win UFC world titles in two different weight divisions.
“It is a joy to go to other parts of the world and fight for fans
there,” said Belfort. “I am here to regain my legacy as one of the
best fighters in the world. I’ve accomplished so many things in my
career, but I am always happy to be in the gym and working on
getting better.
“The German fans will see a 100% performance from me against Okami.
I am looking for the knockout, I always look for the knockout. I
know Okami is the type of guy who can bang a little and also has
that judo style, but I am on a mission to be the UFC Champion once
again.”
Obe of the most feared fighters in the middleweight division since
his UFC debut win over Alan Belcher four years ago, Kanagawa, Japan,
native Yushin Okami, 26-5 in MMA, is finally in a position to force
his way into title contention. ‘Thunder’ already holds victories
over Mike Swick, Evan Tanner, Dean Lister and most recently Mark
Munoz, and he knows a win over an icon like Belfort will cement his
status at the top contender at 185lbs.
“I’m looking forward to the opportunity to fight a great like Vitor
Belfort in the main event of a big card,” said Okami. “Vitor Belfort
is still kind of my idol, so I am very excited. He will bring out
the very best in me. Belfort is a great fighter but I feel I have
certain advantages I can use in the fight. I will shock MMA fans
around the world with my performance.”
Further bouts for UFC 122 will be announced shortly.
About the Ultimate Fighting Championship® - www.ufc.com
Owned and operated by Zuffa, LLC, and headquartered in Las Vegas,
USA with offices in London, England, UFC® produces over 30 live
arena events around the world. The world’s largest Pay-Per-View
provider, UFC programming is distributed in the United States on
Viacom, Inc.’s Spike TV and on Comcast, Inc.’s Versus network and
ESPN, Sky Sports and Channel FIVE in the UK. UFC content is
distributed commercially through Joe Hand Promotions in the U.S. and
Canadastar in Canada. Globally, UFC programming is broadcast in 147
countries, territories and jurisdictions, reaching 430 million homes
worldwide, in 19 different languages. Ancillary businesses now
include UFC.com with over 6 million unique visitors per month, the
best-selling UFC Undisputed videogame franchise distributed by THQ,
UFC Gym™, UFC Fight Club affinity program, UFC Fan Expo™ festivals,
branded apparel, trading cards, articulated action figures and other
media including best-selling DVDs and a bimonthly magazine.
Ultimate Fighting Championship®, Ultimate Fighting®, UFC®, The
Ultimate Fighter®, Submission®, As Real As It Gets®, Zuffa®, The
Octagon™ and the eight-sided competition mat and cage design are
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dress and/or service marks owned exclusively by Zuffa, LLC and
licensed to its affiliated entities and other licensees in the
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herein may be the property of Zuffa, LLC, its affiliates or other
respective owners.
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