Combate Global and Univision have announced plans for a special one-night, eight-man tournament to take place in the bantamweight division. The event will happen Saturday, May 29.
This marks the first-ever one-night, eight-man MMA tournament in the state of Florida, and is the second of four Combate Global tentpole events.
“The eight-man tournament is how I launched the UFC, and it is one of the ways that Combate has distinguished itself from other MMA organizations,” said Combate Global CEO Campbell McLaren. “Only Combate does a one-night tournament, which is considered the toughest event in sports. The challenge for the athletes is not just the extraordinary physical challenge of three fights in one night, but also the incredible mental challenge of facing three different opponents in one night.”
Representing Mexico in the first tournament bracket, David “The Black Spartan” Martinez (3-1) of Coyoacan, CDMX will square off with Eduardo “El Pube” Alvarado Osuna (9-6) of Tijuana, B.C., while undefeated Ernesto “Stallion” Ibarra (5-0) of Ensenada, B.C. will battle Alan “Beche” Cantu (8-6) of Monterrey, N.L.
Representing the U.S. in the opposite tournament bracket, Manny Vazquez (12-3) of Elmwood Park, Ill. will face off with Nohelin ‘Suave” Hernandez (10-4) of Gilroy, Calif., while Francisco “Cisco” Rivera, Jr. (12-7) of Buena Park, Calif. will collide with Adam “The American Bully” Martinez (7-2) of Colorado Springs, Colo.
The tournament’s quarterfinal stage bouts will consist of one, five-minute round; the semifinal stage bouts will consist of three, three-minute rounds; and the championship stage bout will also consist of three, three-minute rounds.