The Pacific X-Treme Combat is noted for providing a platform for fighters to make it into the UFC, and on Friday night, as the promotion hosts its 44th installment at the UOG Fieldhouse in Guam, another solid line-up filled with starlets and veterans alike, will be on show with matchmakers Joe Silva and Sean Shelby looking on with great interest with pending UFC contracts by their sides.
The main event features a scintillating match-up between PXC’s Swedish star Zebaztian Kadestam (5-1) and highly touted prospect, Josh Calvo (8-3), for the vacant Welterweight title.
Kadestam has been on fans’ radar for sometime now, and is somewhat of a specimen with his rampant Muay Thai style. He is considered, for the most part, a stand-up fighter, with his stellar striking skill-set complimenting him well in all his six pro MMA appearances thus far. The Swede is also a protege of one Ole Laursen, a fighter, himself, who’s no stranger to classic striking battles in the Asian MMA circles. Kadestam cemented a place in the title picture after boasting TKO victories over Ronald Jhun and Ross Ebanez in 2013.
He originally had plans to make his pro Boxing debut this month, but scratched them in favor of fighting for the belt.
Now Calvo, meanwhile, has strong ties with the CEO of the promotion, but don’t for one second even come close to thinking that’s the reason why he’s in this title match-up. The 25-year-old has racked up a decent record of 2-0 since linking up with the PXC ranks, and has been nothing short of impressive in his performances. With six of his eight wins coming by way of submission, Calvo’s submission prowess may give Kadestam something to contend with in this match-up of polar opposite styles.
In the co-main event, an intriguing Featherweight encounter commences between Sikjitsu stand-out Ryan Mulvihill (11-4), and Krazy Bee native, Yusuke Yachi (11-4).
Both fighters share similar records but it’ll be Yachi who will be looking to use his experience under the PXC flag to garner a victory. After a defeat in his promotional debut against Toby Misech, Yachi recorded his first win in PXC with a decision win over Kyle Reyes at PXC 42 in February. The 24-year-old former Shooto champ, who trains with the likes of Kotetsu Boku, Kyoji Horiguchi and Issei Tamura among others, has only suffered a single defeat since 2011.
Mulvihill, meanwhile, is a submission ace with the majority of his wins coming by way of submission. The Spokane, Washington native is set for his PXC debut off a loss in his previous outing under the King of the Cage banner, which snapped a six fight winning run. Mulvihill definitely adds more depth to PXC’s ever expanding Featherweight division, and with notable triumphs over Harris Sarmiento and interestingly, the aforementioned Toby Misech, he is expected to be a huge force to be reckoned with soon enough.
A drop to 125-lbs and a fresh start might be what former PXC Bantamweight champ Crisanto Pitpitunge (5-3) needs as he locks horns with Saipan’s Josh Duenas.
The Team Lakay product racked up four straight victories en route to claiming the promotion’s 135-lbs title, but losses to Michinori Tanaka and Han Bin Park has since sent the Filipino fighter on a downward spiral. Now, with a drop to Flyweight, ‘The Slugger’ will be hoping to re-establish his status as one of the top fighters in the promotion. Furthermore, with the recent improvement and surge in Team Lakay’s grappling game, Pitpitunge may very well shine in his new weight class.
Duenas is 0-2 in PXC thus far, and with a 4-4 record, suffice to say, he has had a Jekyll and Hyde run. The Trench Tech native is yet to score some consistency having experienced mixed success, and will be looking to register his first victory in the PXC win column when he welcomes his counterpart to the 125-lbs ranks.
Troy Bantiag (5-3) vs. Kyle Aguon (6-4) at Bantamweight and Josh Sapinoso (0-0) vs. Kyle Reyes (4-2) at 145-lbs make up the rest of the main card. The prelims, on the other hand, will carry four contests.
A Lightweight tilt between Frank Camacho and Chuji Kato was originally slated for the event but was scrapped on the day of the weigh-ins, after Camacho reportedly suffered a last minute injury.
As with previous PXC events, you catch the entire main card, free of charge, on LIVESTREAM.
Here’s a re-cap of Friday’s line-up in Guam below:
MAIN CARD
- Josh Calvo vs. Zebaztian Kadestam (For vacant PXC Welterweight Championship title)
- Ryan Mulvihill vs. Yusuke Yachi
- Josh Duenas vs. Crisanto Pitpitunge
- Kyle Aguon vs. Troy Bantiag
- Kyle Reyes vs. Josh Sapinoso
PRELIMS
- Han Seul Kim vs. Eric Michael Fought
- Tomo Maesawa vs. Cortney Casey
- McKlane Alfred vs. Mark Nuique
- Robin Eclavea vs. Jeff Mesa
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