The east coast’s largest MMA promotion, the XFC announced that it has signed a bout between submission ace Patricia Vidonic and the always explosive Felice Herrig for XFC 17: Apocalypse. The bout will take place in Jackson, TN at the Oman Arena, in the promotion’s first show in West Tennessee. Fans will be treated to two of the top women fighters in the world on April 13th, when the XFC cage hosts another classic striker vs. grappler matchup that will be featured live on HDNet.
With a disappointing decision loss to decorated wrestler Carla Esparza at XFC 15, Felice Herrig (5-4) is looking to rebound at ‘Apocalypse’ and get back to her winning ways. Herrig is one of the most dynamic strikers in Women’s MMA, with a solid background in Muay Thai and kickboxing. In fact, ‘Lil Bulldog’ was the IKF Woman’s Bantamweight North American Champion in 2005 and 2006 and won the Pro Muay Thai United States Bantamweight Title in 2008. Now training under Jeff Curran in Crystal Lake, IL Herrig has quickly evolved as a mixed martial artist and has more submission victories than knockouts. With the bad taste in her mouth from December, you can expect a focused Herrig in the XFC cage in April.
Standing in Herrig’s way is Patricia Vidonic. Like Herrig, Vidonic is coming off a close decision loss to Jessica Aguilar. The Montana native came out on the wrong side of a unanimous decision earlier this month against one of the top pound for pound women fighters in the world. Before the setback, Vidonic was riding high off a career best five fight win streak. Now, she is looking to start a new streak of her own against the popular fan favorite.
According to XFC President John Prisco, Vidonic vs. Herrig could be the fight of the night. “Patricia and Felice is going to be a war”, explained Prisco. “Both of these women are top of the food chain. Now, Patricia Vidonic isn’t a household name but she has quietly built a reputation around the country as one of the toughest women fighters around”, said Prisco. “Her last three wins were all by submission. She has held titles and taken all comers. Patricia isn’t one of these fighters that takes easy fights and pads her record. She just went toe to toe with Jessica Aguilar last week. She came up short when it went to the judges, but she almost caught Aguilar in a couple of submissions. Patricia is the real deal, I know she’s hungry and sees Felice as someone who is in her way. This is a big fight for both ladies and Women’s MMA. I’m proud to have both of these women on the XFC card in Jackson.”
XFC 17: Apocalypse will take place at the Oman Arena in Jackson, TN on April 13th and will air live on HDNet. Tickets are on sale now through the OfficialXFC website & Ticketmaster. VIP tables are also available through XFC Corporate. To learn more about the XFC, please visit www.officialxfc.com, “Like” them on Facebook (/officialxfc) and “Follow” the promotion on Twitter (@officialxfc).
