Re: Two Organizations Collide WSOF-GC 4: DEEP vs WSOF GLOBAL – Live at WSOFGC.com

Fight Scheduled for December 17th at Differ Ariake Arena in Tokyo, Japan

                LAS VEGAS, NV  November 18, 2016  World Series of Fighting – Global Championship (WSOF-GC) is taking on all challengers by announcing a spirited event with their Japanese affiliate organization, DEEP, to take place in Tokyo at Differ Ariake Arena on December 17th. WSOF-GC 4 will focus on six international fighters colliding with DEEP’s stable of talented athletes.  Fighters will be represented from USA, Brazil, South Korea, and Northern Mariana Islands.

The anticipated main event will crown the first-ever WSOF Global Flyweight Champion, featuring a rematch of Japan’s Yusaku Nakamura (13-4-1), who previously competed for DEEP in the first twelve of his professional fights, against USA’s Lawrence DiGiulio (18-7-1), who has won 10 of his last 11 bouts. DiGiulio’s only loss during that time span was a controversial split decision to Nakamura at WSOF-GC 2 JAPAN back in February of this year. Both fighters won their opening round 4-man, 125-lb tournament fights at WSOF-GC 3 PHILIPPINES in July, which set up the rematch for these two talented combatants. This won’t be an ordinary rematch though, as this will be an exciting 5-round affair for championship gold.

The co-main event will be for the inaugural WSOF Global Bantamweight Championship, as DEEP’s Bantamweight Champion, Japan’s Takafumi Otsuka (21-13-2), currently riding a 3-fight win streak and 6-1-1 in his last 8 bouts, takes on Brazil’s Fernando Vieira (12-2), who has not lost since 2009.  Also featured is a match up for the vacant DEEP Featherweight Championship, pitting the legendary Masakazu Imanari (34-16-2) against rising contender Tatsunao Nagakura (12-5). Another highlight on the main card, UFC veteran, Yoshiyuki Yoshida (18-8), will take on Yoshiyuki Katahira (9-4-2) in the first round of DEEP’s Welterweight Grand Prix.

Three international bantamweight matchups will also be on the card, including Northern Mariana Islands’ Roman Alvarez (7-1) against recently-released UFC fighter, Masanori Kanehara (25-13-5). South Korea’s Jae Woong Byun (2-0) puts his undefeated record on the line against veteran Makoto Kamaya (27-15-4). Another South Korea vs Japan matchup will pit Jin Soo Son (5-2-2) against Daisuke Endo (14-10-2). The first international match of the night places Brazil’s Luiz Andrade (18-17-6) against young upstart, Shintaro Agatsuma (2-0), in a lightweight battle.

At a press conference held in Japan earlier this year, DEEP Fighting Championships President, Shigeru Saeki stated, “I am very happy and thrilled about DEEP FC forming a partnership with WSOF-GC. I would like to thank both President Shawn Wright and Vice-President Jason Lilly for considering working with us. Moving forward, a 15-year old MMA promotion DEEP FC would like to provide all the support necessary to help them achieve success in Asia. Let’s work together to achieve our goals!”

                “It has been a remarkable journey since we first announced that WSOF-GC and DEEP would be partnering together to spotlight some of their great talent on our international platform and their assistance in promoting our brand in Japan,” elated WSOF-GC President, Shawn Wright. “Since the announcement, we have featured some of their fighters during our Philippines event. We have also added their shows to our Global Library so that fans from around the world can watch their great fights on our website. This December, we will be working together to not only stream a live event for all of our subscribers, but to also bring some of our fighters together for this monumental occasion.”

                “It is a matchmaker’s dream to promote such an incredible fight card,” prompted WSOF-GC Vice President of Operations, Jason Lilly. “I am thrilled to give two of DEEP’s best fighters, Yusaku Nakamura and Takafumi Otsuka, an opportunity to compete for a world championship against Global’s representatives, Lawrence DiGiulio and Fernando Vieira. It is such an honor for us to promote so many other great DEEP athletes and other international talent. No matter which side comes out victorious, the fans will be the true winners, with 18 fights in all. It will make for an amazing day of fights in Tokyo in December.”

WSOF Global will host WSOF-GC 4 DEEP vs GLOBAL at Differ Ariake Arena on December 17, 2016 at 14:30JST (UTC +9). Tickets start at ¥6500 with VIP seating available for ¥16,000. Tickets are now on sale at http://deep2001.tstar.jp/.  The event will air live in the USA at wsofgc.comon December 16 at 9:30pm PST.

This year WSOF Global has brought together more than 15 MMA promotions on 6 continents for fans under one common banner, including DEEP, which has hosted over 300 events since their inception in 2001. These fights will be making their way into the WSOF Global Fight Library at wsofgc.com, as will future fights available live. There are currently five events online at wsofgc.com, including DEEP 76, DEEP 77, DEEP CAGE IMPACT 2016, DEEP JEWELS 12, and DEEP JEWELS 13. MMA fans can watch all of these fights, as well as those from all other affiliates at WSOFGC.com.

                World Series of Fighting Global’s ultimate mission is to bring together the best athletes from countries and organizations across the world to compete for a true, globally-recognized world champion. Media inquiries should be sent to Jason Lilly, Vice President of Operations of World Series of Fighting Global, at jlilly@wsof.asia. Follow them on Twitter @WSOFGlobal

Founded in 2001 by the promoter Shigeru Saeki, DEEP Fighting Championships (DEEP FC) is a championship Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) series dedicated to not just showcasing the top MMA athletes in Asia but also promote the sport with many interesting and experimental approaches – promote both ring and cage events, resurrect the careers of big-name stars, provide athletes from other sports such as kick boxers, sumo wrestlers, pro-wrestlers, and ex-pro baseball players, the opportunity to test their skills in MMA. Also, DEEP implement various rules from North American unified rules, PRIDE rules to Kick Boxing and Shoot Boxing rules.

The operation is based in Tokyo and Nagoya, Japan, DEEP FC is one of the longest running premier MMA promotions in the world.

In addition to MMA series, DEEP FC also promotes grappling series named DEEP X, kick boxing series named DEEP KICK, and senior fighters’ series named DEEP HERO and “Oyaji” DEEP.

DEEP FC is currently broadcasted by Sky Perfect TV / Fighting Network Samurai in Japan, Fight Network in Canada and UK, and recently, inked the deal with Abema TV, an internet TV station created by TV Asahi and Cyber Agent. Abema TV will broadcast all of DEEP FC’s “Number Series” events and “Cage Impact Series” event starting from DEEP 76 on June 26th, 2016.