KSW 44 has been announced for June 9 at the Ergo Arena in Gdansk, Poland. The first confirmed bout is a battle between KSW juggernauts; Karol Bedorf vs. Mariusz Pudzianowski.
The promotion announced the bout on Tuesday.
💥💥💥 BOOM! 💥💥💥
Mariusz Pudzianowski 🇵🇱 zmierzy się z Karolem Bedorfem 🇵🇱 w walce wieczoru #KSW44!🎟️ Bilety w przedsprzedaży na https://t.co/WFluZ9vD1Y!
🗓️ 9 czerwca
🏟️ ERGO ARENA
🇵🇱 Sopot/Gdańsk, Polska pic.twitter.com/jY7x8vBU9t— KSW (@KSW_MMA) April 10, 2018
Karol Bedorf (14-3) proudly held KSW heavyweight gold for about three years after winning the title at KSW 24 in 2013. He went on to defend his title against the likes of James McSweeney, Rolles Gracie, and Michal Kita before dropping it to Fernando Rodrigues Jr. at KSW 37 in 2016.
After the title loss, the 34-year-old Bedorf sat out for all of 2017 nursing an injury, but is now back and looking to reclaim his throne on top. To do that, he will first need to get past Mariusz Pudzianowski.
Mariusz Pudzianowski (12-5, 1NC) is a former world-renowned strongman competitor who has since carved up a very solid reputation for himself in the MMA world. After a four-fight win streak between 2013 and 2015, Pudzianowski dropped two-straight. Losing by TKO against Peter Grahan, and submission against Marcin Rozalski.
Since then, however, he has won three straight. Including finishes over Popek Monster and fellow strongman Tyberiusz Kowalczyk, and most recently a decision win over Jay Silva at KSW 40 in October of 2017.
