Lion Fight returns to Boston live on UFC FIGHT PASS®
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE – October 20, 2021
Lion Fight 72 – Friday, December 3 – Boston, USA
Steve “Put ’Em To Sleep” Walker vs. Ivan Bartek – Lion Fight World Super Cruiserweight Title
Brett Hlavacek vs. Washington Dos Santos – Lion Fight North American Light Heavyweight Title
Ashley Smallwood vs. Niamh Kinehan – Women’s Lightweight
LION FIGHT will make its hotly awaited return to Boston with a World title defense for hometown hero Steve “Put ’Em To Sleep” Walker topping the card.
Lion Fight 72 will take place on Friday, December 3 at the Shriners Auditorium, airing live and exclusively on UFC FIGHT PASS®, the world’s leading streaming service for combat sports.
After defending his North American title twice this year, the undefeated Walker (10-0) puts his World Super Cruiserweighttitle on the line for the first time as he faces Ivan Bartek (36-16).
“Steve is unquestionably the hottest commodity in Muay Thai anywhere in the world, and it is very exciting to announce that he will make his first World title defense in his home town,” said LION FIGHT CEO Scott Kent.
“Our event in Boston back in August was such a huge success and to thank our great fans there, we wanted to do our final event of 2021 in Boston and for all the world to see on UFC FIGHT PASS. And to have this event be Steve’s first opportunity to put his World championship at stake just makes this even that much more of an attraction.”
Tickets for Lion Fight 72 in Boston are on sale now exclusively at www.lionfight.com.
Walker aiming to keep unbeaten record intact
Lion Fight 72 marks the first time that two-belt champion Steve Walker puts his World title on the line, and he’ll do so against a young and hungry challenger in Ivan Bartek.
Walker won the World title with a clear-cut five-round verdict over Chris Bradford at Lion Fight 58. Since then, the Boston, Massachusetts, product, who had previously captured the North American title at Lion Fight 42, has shown a much more aggressive – downright vicious – side to his demeanor duringtwo successful defenses in 2021. Walker utilized his unorthodox yet devastating offensive game plan in destroying Brian Collette with a tornado head-kick knockout just 46 seconds into their clash at LF64, and he followed that by using the passion of his hometown fans in Boston to propel him to a fourth-round TKO against Warren Thompson at LF69. Standing across from Walker will be Slovakian Ivan Bartek, who has an abundance of experience on high-end events. The powerfully build 32-year-old has previously won European and regional titles in both Muay Thai and kickboxing.
In the co-main event of Lion Fight 72, Brett Hlavacek (19-6) puts his North American Light Heavyweight title up for grabs against fellow veteran Washington Dos Santos (23-1). Hlavacek, who fights out of Brooklyn, New York, has fought a who’s who of talent, including former World Cruiserweight champion Chip Moraza-Pollard. Hlavacek won the Light Heavyweight title with decision win over Elijah Clarke at LF40, but the former two-belt champion dropped his North American Cruiserweight title at LF58 with a decision loss to Joey George. Moving into the title picture is Dos Santos, who is originally from Sao Paulo, Brazil, but now fights out of San Antonio, Texas. After falling to former World Middleweight champion Magnus Andersson in his promotional debut, Dos Santos returned to winning ways at LF63 back in February when he earned a dominant decision win over Lowrant-T Nelson.
Lion Fight 72 will also feature an international women’s lightweight showdown between American sensation Ashley Smallwood and British rising star Niamh Kinehan. Smallwood, who was the Lion Fight amateur champion, turned pro at LF70 in Los Angeles and displayed an ultra-aggressive style,culminating in a second-round TKO win over Melissa Cramer.
Additional Lion Fight 72 bouts include:
*Chase Walden (3-2; Virginia Beach, Virginia) vs. Shaun Shubert (1-1; West Bridgewater, Massachusetts)
*Jake Haas (0-1; San Francisco, California) vs. Josh Grispi (0-1; Plympton, Massachusetts)
*Jorge Vega (1-0; Providence, Rhode Island) vs. Doug Holland (3-2; Providence, Rhode Island)
*More pro and amateur bouts featuring Joao Teixeira, Jimmy MacDonald, and Alex Brown to be announced soon
Please visit LIONFIGHT.com for news, information and event updates, and follow on Twitter @LIONFIGHT and on Instagram @LionFightofficial.
To sign up for UFC FIGHT PASS, please visit www.ufcfightpass.com, or download the UFC app.
ABOUT LION FIGHT:
Founded in 2010 by Owner/Chief Executive Officer Scott Kent, Lion Fight is recognized as a worldwide leader in Muay Thai events. Now in its 10th year of operation, Lion Fight has showcased elite-level fighters in over 60 events staged in seven countries worldwide, including iconic events at the Fremont Street Experience in Las Vegas, the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum, the Fox Theater at Foxwoods Resort Casino in Connecticut, and the Indigo at O2 Arena in London, England. Already a worldwide leader in Muay Thai, Lion Fight is dedicated to growing the sport and is driving that cause with the creation of its Road to Lion Fight events, featuring up-and-coming talent vying for their opportunity to earn a Lion Fight contract.
ABOUT UFC FIGHT PASS®:
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