The latest in my series of “What To Watch For”, shines a spotlight on MFL 16. Montreal Fight League has been on the scene for over two and a half years now. Quebec MMA is a fruitful scene overall and MFL has been providing a great platform for French Canadian as well as Ontario-based martial artists alike.
MFL’s 16th installment goes down Saturday, January 25th at 681 ste-Philomene in the village of Oka, Quebec (northern bank of Ottawa river/ northwest of Montreal). There are multiple title fights (MMA and K1), Muay Thai and BJJ, as well as top-notch amateur MMA prospects. The start time is 6:00 pm EST and will broadcast on Fite TV.
MFL 16
Matthew Cooper vs Tylor Freeman (155 lbs MMA Title)
The belt is vacant and these two are hungry for the accolade. Both men are ranked in Tapology’s top ten for Canada and Quebec respectively. This is Munda Jiu-Jitsu versus Tristar; London, Ontario versus Quebec. Cooper has a 3-0 record to Freeman’s 4-2.
Freeman snapped a two-fight losing streak in his last bout with a guillotine choke win. Cooper has back to back knockout victories in his last couple outings. On paper this looks to be an interesting stylistic matchup. The high stakes will surely inspire impassioned performances from both which I theorize will translate to an entertaining fight for fans.
Karim Hemniene vs Forrest Ayers (145 lbs MMA Title)
Hemniene has a 1-0 amateur MMA record with a KO victory in his sole outing. But it’s been over a year since he last competed so it will be curious to see the skillset he’ll bring to the cage. Ayers, on the other hand, has a 6-0 amateur MMA record and has collected three submission wins across that stretch. Will Hemniene’s striking proficiency win the day or will Ayers notch another submission victory in honor of Munda BJJ?
The fun thing with amateur MMA though is that, Hemniene could score the sub and Ayers could very well score a knockout. You never quite know what fighters are going to bring at this level and guys are evolving at such rapid rates nowadays. The stylistic variations are equal parts fun and unpredictable to observe.
Montreal Fight League
Neil Touisi vs Jessie McPhee (145 lbs K1 Title).
The belt is vacant here and this is another classic Ontario vs Quebec prizefight. McPhee has a 1-0 record in amateur MMA as well as a 1-0 amateur Muay Thai record. This will be his inaugural foray into K1 kickboxing. This will not be Tousi’s first time competing under K1 rules. Tousi is riding a three-fight win streak in kickboxing competition and also has emerged victorious from prior Muay Thai action.
Remaining bouts on MFL 16
Steven Szabo vs Zen Bruckschwaiger – 155 Muay Thai
Fabrice Ferland vs Yann Jacolin – 185 BJJ
Julien Nyquill vs Lee Sanders – 240 MMA
Skylar Synesael vs Antoine Gingras – 240 MMA
Trey Senior vs Gordon Cunningham – 205 MMA
Oliver Belanger vs Rapheal Quinn – 170 MMA
Jamesky Bastien vs Charbel Azar – 170 MMA
Russell Granados vs Brandon Bilmour – 170 MMA
Steven Stewart vs Francessco Lepore – 170 MMA
Corey Festa vs Philippe Jolicoeur – 170 MMA
Ryan Hollenbeck vs Austyn Lizotte – 155 MMA
Matthew Paradis vs Olivier Poisson – 145 MMA
Claude Lidji vs Tyson Johnson – 145 MMA
Liam Gallagher vs Kelvin Krause – 135 MMA
Tommy Morrisson vs Isaiah Sharpe – 125 MMA
Marianne Poulin vs Mylene Lortie – 125 MMA
