RENZO GRACIE VS. PAT MILETICH SUPERFIGHT HIGHLIGHTS INTERNATIONAL FIGHT LEAGUE WORLD TEAM CHAMPIONSHIPS IN MOLINE SEPT. 23
Gracie’s Pitbulls Battle Miletich’s Silverbacks; New Dragons, Razorclaws Debut As Rosters Announced For World Team Championship Quarterfinals
NEW YORK, August 18, 2006 – The highly-anticipated Renzo Gracie vs. Pat Miletich Superfight tops an exciting night of fighting at the International Fight League World Team Championships at The MARK of the Quad Cities in Moline, Ill. on September 23, beginning at 8 p.m. The Pitbulls team, coached by Gracie and based in New York, takes on Miletich’s host Silverbacks, who won the inaugural World Team title in June. Two new squads, both recent additions to the IFL, will battle in the other quarterfinal, as Frank Shamrock’s Razorclaws of San Jose and Carlos Newton’s Dragons, based in Toronto, square off.
The card is scheduled to include many of the top IFL performers. For the Pitbulls, Marcio Feitosa (Brazil), Andre Gusmao (Brazil), Delson Heleno (Brazil) Bryan Vitell (Jamaica, N.Y.) and one fighter to be determined will battle the likes of the Silverbacks’ Mike Ciesnolevicz (Williamstown, Pa.), Rory Markham (Bettendorf, Iowa), Ryan McGivern (Bettendorf, Iowa), Bart Palaszewski (Wonderlake, Ill.) and Ben Rothwell (Kenosha, Wis.)
The event will also feature the first IFL fights for the Razorclaws’ Dwayne Compton (Tucson, Ariz.), Raphael Davis (Torrance, Calif.), Brian Ebersole (San Jose, Calif.), Josh Odom (San Jose, Calif.) and Ray Steinbeiss (Tempe, Ariz.), as well as the Dragons’ Brent Beauparlant (Montreal, Quebec), Rob Di Censo (Woodbridge, Ontario), Joe Doerksen (Winnipeg, Manitoba), Wojtek Kaszowski (Toronto, Ontario) and Claude Patrick (Mississauga, Ontario).
“As we gear up for our full Championship season in 2007, the IFL World Team Championship event at The Mark is an outstanding showcase of two of our founding teams as well as two new squads,” said Gareb Shamus, IFL president. “Pat Miletich and Renzo Gracie are two of the biggest names in the history of mixed martial arts, and I know fans are excited to see them in the ring next month.”
The winning teams will advance to the semifinals, where they will take on the squads which emerge victorious in the other World Team Championship quarterfinal matches in Portland, Ore., on Sept. 9. The date and location of the semifinal matches will be announced shortly.
Tickets for the Moline event retail from $28.50 to $148.50 and are available at all Ticketmaster outlets, www.ticketmaster.com, charge by phone at (563) 326-1111, and The MARK of the Quad Cities Box Office.
Founded in 2006 by Kurt Otto, a highly successful real estate investor and a life-long martial arts participant and Gareb Shamus, chairman of the comics empire Wizard Entertainment Group, the International Fight League™ (IFL) and Pure Sport™ were created to establish a centralized and structured organization that brings the power and influence of the mixed martial arts industry together. For more information and action, go to www.IFL.tv.
IFL World Team Championships, The MARK of the Quad Cities, Moline, Ill., Sept. 23, 2006
Pitbulls
Silverbacks
155 lb.
Marcio Feitosa (Brazil)
Bart Palaszewski (Wonderlake, Ill.)
170 lb.
TBD
Rory Markham (Bettendorf, Iowa)
185 lb.
Delson Heleno (Brazil)
Ryan McGivern (Bettendorf, Iowa)
205 lb.
Andre Gusmao (Brazil)
Mike Ciesnolevicz (Williamstown, Pa.)
265 lb.
Bryan Vitell (Jamaica, N.Y.)
Ben Rothwell (Kenosha, Wis.)
Razorclaws
Dragons
155 lb.
Josh Odom (San Jose, Calif.)
Rob Di Censo (Woodbridge, Ontario)
170 lb.
Ray Steinbeiss (Tempe, Ariz.)
Claude Patrick (Mississaauga, Ontario)
185 lb.
Brian Ebersole (San Jose, Calif.)
Joe Doerksen (Winnipeg, Manitoba)
205 lb.
Raphael Davis (Torrance, Calif.)
Brent Beauparlant (Montreal, Quebec)
265 lb.
Dwayne Compton (Tucson, Ariz.)
Wojtek Kaszowski (Toronto, Ontario)
Superfight
Renzo Gracie (Holmdel, N.J.)
Pat Miletich (Bettendorf, Iowa)
— IFL —