RUF Nation will conclude its Road To ONE heavyweight tournament at RUF 47 on Saturday, May 14.
The Road To ONE: Heavyweight Tournament Finals will headline an electrifying 13-bout card at The Celebrity Theatre in Phoenix, Arizona.
3 Reasons To Watch RUF 47
Amateur and professional mixed martial arts contests are set to warm up the crowd before heavyweight finalists Tra’Von “Yimaz Wildman” Butler and “T-Bone” Terrance Jean-Jacques take to the cage to end the evening with a bang.
The pay-per-view spectacle will give fans an enjoyable night of MMA action that will culminate in its main event victor winning a life-changing contract with ONE Championship.
Here are three reasons to check out one of the hottest regional promotions in the United States on May 14.
The “Road To ONE” Finals
The highlight of RUF 47 will undoubtedly be the final of the Road To ONE heavyweight tournament.
Both Tra’Von “Yimaz Wildman” Butler and “T-Bone” Terrance Jean-Jacques come from a wrestling background, but they are decidedly different in other facets of the game.
“Yimaz Wildman” is a highly aggressive athlete who pushes the pace and instantly closes the distance with his strikes to work in his grappling.
“T-Bone” is more methodical with his approach to his takedowns, in part because of the cardio advantage he brings into his bouts.
The clash of styles and personalities makes for an exciting conclusion to a high-stakes tournament, and with the winner set to score a six-figure contract with ONE, this is sure to be a barnburner.
Hungry Amateurs
RUF 47 will feature six professional bouts, but the action doesn’t start there. Before the pros take to the cage, there will be seven amateur bouts that will give fans a glimpse at some rising MMA talent – and a chance to spot the stars of tomorrow.
“For me, personally, I love watching the amateur fights because these are guys that are hungry, right? These are guys that are looking to make their name. You’re really seeing somebody that’s at the entry-level of their career,” said RUF Nation’s Jeff Gutowski.
“You’re going to see certain mistakes that they’ve made. You’re going to see growth in people that have been in the cage before. And you’re going to see them go from their first amateur fight to their second or third fight.
“So top to bottom on this card, there’s no match where I’m like, ‘I don’t really want to watch that.’ All of these matches are exciting to see because all of these people have different personalities that are coming into the cage.”
Nonstop Action
One of the joys of any RUF Nation event is its structure. The promotion isn’t tied to commercial breaks and other imposing media elements that can draw out the action, so fans are in for a fast-paced night of martial arts excitement from the very first bell.
There are no lulls to the action, meaning the crowd gets extraordinary bang for their buck.
“Our events go so seamlessly. It’s one fight right after another, right after another. And it is just nonstop for two to three hours of fighting. The event is so dialed in that there’s hardly any time to breathe. You may have time to get a beer, here and there, but it will completely blow your mind from beginning to end,” said RUF VP of Operations Adrian Romo.
RUF 47 takes place on Saturday, May 14, in Phoenix, Arizona. Tickets can be purchased via etix.com, and it will stream live via pay-per-view on RUFNation.com.
