A couple of bouts have been added to the DREAM.18 fight card, that’s set to go down on New Year’s Eve alongside ‘GLORY 4 TOKYO’ at the Saitama Super Arena situated in Tokyo, Japan.
Georgi Karakhanyan (19-3-1) will face veteran Hiroyuki Takaya (17-9-1) in a Featherweight tilt, while American Will Brooks (7-0) contests Japanese sensation Satoru Kitaoka (30-11-9) in a lightweight bout.
These match-ups were confirmed by DREAM officials on Tuesday, and first announced by MMAJunkie.com.
Georgi Karakhanyan went 2-2 under the Bellator banner, before garnering the Tachi Palace Fights Featherweight Championship back in December last year. The 27-year-old Russian-native is on a 5-fight win streak that includes a successful title defense over Micah Miller at Tachi Palace Fights 14.
Takaya, in the meantime, is on a 2-fight win streak. With a resume that includes wins over the likes of Bibiano Fernandes, Chase Beebe and Joachim Hansen, the Japanese fighter is no slouch by any standards. A DREAM and WEC veteran, Takaya is a former Featherweight title-holder in DREAM, having won the strap against Bibiano Fernandes at Dynamite!! 2010.
Satoru Kitaoka has won 5 of his last 6 bouts and is a veteran of 50 professional fights. The popular Japanese fighter recently trained in Singapore, at the famed Evolve MMA, alongside grappling maestro Shinya Aoki. Kitaoka is also a former Sengoku Lightweight Champion.
Will Brooks may be heading into enemy territory, but the 26-year-old will be entering his bout with all to gain and nothing to lose. Despite an unscathed record of 7-0, experience will certainly lie in the corner of Kitaoka.
Keep it locked to MMASucka.com for more news and updates regarding DREAM.18.
As it stands, here’s the updated fight card:
- Shinya Aoki vs. Antonio McKee (For DREAM Lightweight strap)
- Bibiano Fernandes vs. Yoshiro Maeda
- Denis Kang vs. Melvin Manhoef
- Hiroyuki Takaya vs. Georgi Karakhanyan
- Phil Baroni vs. Hayato Sakurai
- Will Brooks vs. Satoru Kitaoka
