Golden Boy Promotions applies for first MMA event in November

Golden Boy Promotions has applied to run a mixed martial arts event in November.

The well-known boxing promotion, headed by Oscar De La Hoya, filed an application last month with the California State Athletic Commission (CSAC) for an event to be held Nov. 24 at The Forum in Inglewood, Calif., per a CSAC document obtained by MMA Fighting via open records request.

The main event listed on the application is Chuck Liddell vs. Tito Ortiz 3, though sources told MMA Fighting that the fight has not officially been set. The application states that it will be a Ring TV pay-per-view event. CSAC plans on approving the event, commission executive officer Andy Foster told MMA Fighting.

De La Hoya told Fight Hub TV on Tuesday that Liddell vs. Ortiz was being looked at for the weekend of Nov. 25. He added that current fighter pay in MMA “makes me sick to my stomach.”

“I’m looking forward to getting into the MMA world and making sure these fighters are being compensated well,” De La Hoya said. “We risk our lives in the ring, so fighter should be compensated extremely well.”

Liddell and Ortiz have verbally agreed to fight each other, both have said publicly, with Golden Boy acting as promoter. The two UFC Hall of Famer competitors have fought twice before, with Liddell winning both via a form of knockout.

Liddell, 48 is making his comeback in mixed martial arts after eight years away. He already owns two victories over Ortiz and he said he plans on continuing on with his fighting career after this bout. Liddell is one of the most popular and highly regarded fighters in the history of the sport.

Ortiz, 43, is also one of the most influential and popular MMA fighters of all time. He has fought more recently than Liddell, beating Chael Sonnen in January 2017 in what at the time was considered to be his retirement fight.

Ortiz and Liddell are both former UFC light heavyweight champions and their rivalry in the mid-2000s was a pivotal jumping off point for the surge of MMA in the United States. They were supposed to meet again in 2010 after coaching opposite each other on The Ultimate Fighter, but Ortiz withdrew due to injury.

In their first fight, Liddell knocked out Ortiz in the second round at UFC 47 in 2004. Liddell won by third-round TKO at UFC 66 in 2006.

The two legends faced off last month during the UFC Hall of Fame red carpet ceremony.