Date:September 17th, 2005Time:Doors Open: 6:30pm Fight Time: 8:00pm
Location:Cleveland's Historic Flats Entertainment District
GriffonRawl Head Instructor Jason Dent makes his long awaited return following a 6 month layoff due to a broken right hand. Dent and Souder have been a match up that has been in the works for a while and promises to be a really good fight. Below is the line up so far. Expect changes and additional info to come soon.The Gladiators Fighting Series makes its debut in Cleveland, OH when Betcris.com and BetonFighting.com present “Fight Nite in the Flats” 2005. Slated for September 17th, the Scene Pavilion in the historic Flats district will play host to a night of hard hitting action as MMA returns to the North Coast. A total of fourteen fights will be scheduled for this show and additional match-ups will be released this week.Current featured match-ups will include:Ben Rothwell (18-5) vs Allan Weickert (6-1) In the night’s main event, Kenosha, Wisconsin native Big Ben Rothwell will bring his 18-5 record in to the north coast as he looks to take one more step towards the UFC. A student of legendary champions Pat Miletich and Duke Roufus, Rothwell’s resume includes wins over UFC veteran Jonothan Weizorek and TUF 2 star Kerry Schall among others. An accomplished kickboxer (K-1, Heavyweight Gladiators), Rothwell is one of the most well rounded heavyweights in the sport today. On the other side of the cage will stand the 6’2”, 270 pound Allan Weikert of Tiffin, Ohio. A veteran of the WEC and King of the Cage, Weickert is considered to be a star on the rise and will no doubt face the toughest challenge of his young career on September 17th. Weickert is another UFC hopeful and feels that a win over Rothwell will bring him that much closer to his ultimate goal. Jeff Cox (10-1) vs Braden Workman (9-4)A Cleveland police officer by day, Jeff Cox will be looking to impress the hometown fans as he takes on Team Gurgel’s Braden Workman of Columbus, OH. Cox, a training partner of former KOTC Champion and Pride FC veteran Dan “The Bull” Bobish, will try to rebound from his first career loss earlier this year and re-establish himself as a force in the welterweight division. Workman has won three of his last four fights and is regarded by many as one of the most improved fighters in his weight class. Both fighters are well versed on their feet as well as the ground which should make for a very entertaining match-up. Greg Franklin (8-3) vs Rob Wince (11-3)Cincinnati’s Greg Franklin looks to take another step up in the heavyweight division when he clashes with former professional bull rider now turned fighter, Rob Wince. With brother and current UFC Middleweight Champion Rich Franklin in his corner, Franklin is out to make a name for himself on September 17th and prove that his 8-3 record is no fluke. His opponent “The “Bull Rider”, as he’s known to fans, will be a tough task for Franklin as Wince comes in with a mix of experience and power which is always a dangerous combination. Josh Hendricks (8-4) vs Joey Smith (6-1)In a super heavyweight match-up, King of the Cage veteran Josh Hendricks will take on the hard hitting Joey Smith of Hilliard, OH. Hendricks a former All American wrestler in college is coming off of an impressive TKO victory his last time in the ring and is ready for all comers. Smith has come out of nowhere to build a 6-1 record which includes 3 first round knockouts in his last three fights (all under one minute). A classic match-up between wrestler and striker will no doubt makes this a candidate for fight of the night. Jason Dent (7-5) vs Josh Souder (8-4)In a battle of top lightweights, Cleveland’s own Jason “Dynamite” Dent will collide with Team Gurgel’s Josh “The Pitbull” Souder. The Dent vs Souder fight is a match-up Ohio fans will finally get to see when these two lightweights square off in the Flats. A native of West Virginia and training partner of Rich Franklin, Souder holds wins over two of Dents teammates which Dent will be looking to avenge. Dent, is no stranger to the cage and has mixed it up with some of the top names in the sport including Jeff Curran and Ryan Shultz among others. The main card will also include K-1 veteran Mark “The Shark’ Miller as he continues to make the transition from kickboxing to mixed martial arts. Miller will face Ashland, Ohio’s Mitch Whitesel who hopes to make his mark in the sport with a win over The Shark. Miller’s team mate and former Muay Thai champion, Jason “Steeltown” Taylor will look for his second consecutive win. In his debut as a professional last March, Taylor defeated North Carolina’s Robert Bradley by tapout (armbar) in the opening round but will have his hands full with Hammer House veteran Derek Collins (4-2) who has been on a roll of his own winning three of his last four fights. Cleveland’s Mike Bogner will face off with Tommy Ridenbaugh of Newark, Ohio to round out the main card. Current preliminary match-ups will include:The under-card will feature the unbeaten Justin Black (3-0) and the debut of Team Gurgel lightweight Tony Jayme. Also slated to fight are Ft. Wayne, Indiana’s Dave Morris, Cleveland’s Bob Harhay, and the Murder City Fight Team’s (Detroit, MI) Evan Sarniki will make his MMA debut. As an added to bonus to fight fans in attendance, serving as special guest announcer will be none other then 4 time kickboxing world champion and K-1 legend, Duke Roufus. Also scheduled to attend are UFC MW Champion Rich Franklin, Former King of the Cage HW Champion Dan Bobish, UFC Veteran and former AFC HW Champion Wes “The Project” Sims, BJJ World Champion/MMA star Jorge Gurgel and Kickboxing chamion Ryan “The Lion” Madigan among others. Figth Night in the Flats official Pro Figth CardHW Main Event: Ben Rothwell 18-5 (Miletich/Roufus) vs Allen Weickert 7-1(Peak Submission)170 LBS: Jeff Cox 10-1 (Strong Style Fight Team) vs Braden Workman 9-4 (Team Gurgel)HW: Greg Franklin 8-4 (Meat-truck Inc) vs Rob "The Bull Rider" Wince 11-3 (Impact Martial Arts)HW: Josh Hendricks 8-4 (Barn of Truth Dojo) vs Joey Smith (Hammer House) 7-1160 LBS: Jason Dent 7-5 (Team Griffon-Rawl) vs Josh "Bam Bam" Souder 8-4 (Team Gurgel)155 LBS: Jason "Steeltown" Taylor (Team BOF) vs Derek Collins (Hammer House)185 LBS: Mark "The Shark" Miller (Team BOF) vs Mitch Whitesel (Barn of Truth Dojo) 170 LBS: Mike Bogner (Peak Submission) vs Tommy Ridenbaugh (Impact Martial Arts)Preliminary BoutsHW: Justin Black (Barn of Truth Dojo) vs Dustin Holbrook (Peak Submission)170 LBS: Evan Sarnicki (Murder City Fight Team) vs Matt Brown (Team Gurgel)170 LBS: Torrence "The Tyrant" Taylor (Iron Dragon) vs "Bad" Josh Barden (Aharta Inner Power)185 LBS: Eric Truckovich (Barn of Truth Dojo) vs Clint Zeedyk (Peak Submission)170 LBS: Casey Leonard (Team BOF) vs Walt Felix (Imapct Martial Arts)205 LBS: Matt Masterson (Strong Style Fight Team) vs Damien Parker*All bouts subject to changeAdditional match-ups and appearances along with the official odds for this event will be released soon on the official internet home of “Fight Night in the Flats” http://www.prokarateweekly.com/ and the home of the Gladiators Fighting Series, http://www.gladiatorsfights.com/. All bouts and appearances are subject to change. Fight Night in the Flats is made possible by BetonFighting,com, BetCris.com, SportstalkCleveland.com, Celtic Media, and the Voice of the Fight Fan, PKW
