A light heavyweight slugfest between knockout artist Anthony “Rumble” Johnson (15-4) and slugger Mike “MAK” Kyle (20-9-1) headlines World Series of Fighting’s return to Revel Casino Hotel’s Ovation Hall in on New Jersey’s Revel Atlantic City on Sept. 14.
Anthony Johnson vs. Mike Kyle headlines World Series of Fighting 5
The contest serves as the main event of “World Series of Fighting 5: Johnson vs. Kyle,” which airs live on NBC Sports Network and marks the promotion’s second visit to the world-class venue.
Tickets for the fight card, which start at just $29, go on sale this Friday, July 19, at 10 a.m. ET at all Ticketmaster locations, Ticketmaster.com and charge-by-phone at (800) 745-3000.
With 23 knockout victories between them, both Johnson and Kyle are fierce strikers capable of downing any foe with a single blow.
Johnson, of Boca Raton, Fla., made his World Series of Fighting debut at the promotion’s very first event and delivered a “Knockout of the Year” candidate finish of the durable D.J. Linderman. The 29-year-old Blackzilians product returned to action in March and scored a convincing decision win over former Ultimate Fighting Championship heavyweight titleholder Andrei Arlovski.
Johnson now returns to the light-heavyweight division on the strength of a five-fight win streak and quickly is establishing himself as one of World Series of Fighting’s most dynamic athletes.
Meanwhile, Kyle is a 12-year veteran of the sport who hails from one of MMA’s most-respected fight camps, American Kickboxing Academy. A resident of San Jose, Calif., Kyle is no stranger to the spotlight and has stepped in the cage against a who’s who list of MMA’s top fighters in two weight classes, including Paul Buentello, Rafael “Feijao” Cavalcante, James Irvin, Gegard Mousasi, Antonio “Bigfoot” Silva Krzysztof Soszynski and Fabricio Werdum, among others
Kyle fought most recently in May, when he needed just 21 seconds to score a knockout win over 86-fight veteran Travis “Diesel” Wiuff.
World Series of Fighting 5 features a five-fight main card in addition to a full lineup of preliminary contests. Additional bouts will be announced in the coming weeks.
The live, two-and-a-half-hour NBC Sports Network telecast of the World Series of Fighting 5 main card begins at 9 p.m. ET. The night’s preliminary bouts stream live on World Series of Fighting’s official website, WSOF.com, beginning at 6:30 p.m. ET.