XFC 21 Fight Card taking shape

Advance Martial Arts trained Mixed Martial Artist Jacob Mahony (pictured) will return to defend his Xtreme Fighting Championships (XFC) bantamweight title on 14th June. An opponent for Mahony is yet to be announced.

He will headline the event – XFC 21, which will be held at the Mansfield Tavern in Queensland.

Mahony captured the title last month when he submitted Shantaram Maharaj with a first-round rear-naked choke submission. The 24 year-old has lost just once in his last six bouts, with that coming to Chris ‘Kewl Bonez’ Morris back in August.

Current XFC featherweight champion Adrian Rodriguez will be making a drop down to bantamweight when he comes up against highly regarded Reece McLaren from Kachi MMA.

The move to bantamweight is not a permanent one at this stage, with Rodriguez expected to defend his featherweight title at a following XFC event later in the year. Rodriguez captured the featherweight title with a submission over Taylor Harvey back in July 2013. He returned to defend his title last month where he edged out New Zealand fighter Shane Young.

His opponent Reece McLaren is coming off an impressive TKO stoppage over veteran fighter Kian Pham last month at Eternal MMA 4. He has notable wins over Chris Morris and Pat Promrangka, however was submitted by Rodriguez’s team-mate Jacob Mahony in early 2013.

In a Trans-Tasman battle for the vacant XFC women’s bantamweight title Jessy ‘Jess’ Rose-Clark will take on BJJ Black Belt Kate Da Silva from New Zealand. Training out of the Integrated MMA gym in Brisbane, Rose-Clark is coming off a first-round submission victory over Zoie Shreiweis last month where she captured the Unarmed Combat Unleashed bantamweight title. Da Silva fought three times last August int he Storm Damage women’s eliminator, and ultimately went down in the final to fellow New Zealand fighter Faith Van Duin.

Also on the card two fighters who have participated in XFC in the amateur ranks will clash as professionals, with Sassom MMA fighter James Klingner set to take on Ben Quarmby in what will be an entertaining bout between two guys who have shown good submission skills in their short careers. XFC regular Zac Bennett will make his professional debut when he meets Corey Lynch. Integrated MMA fighter Nix Agulto will look to defend his XFC amateur bantamweight title for the first time when he meets Dan O’Rouke from Sam Nest’s Rings Lismore gym.

Fights Announced:

Jacob Mahony vs TBA – XFC bantamweight title

Jessy Rose-Clark vs Kate Da Silva – XFC women’s bantamweight title

Adrian Rodriguez vs Reece McLaren

James Klingner vs Ben Quarmby

Zac Bennett vs Corey Lynch

Nix Agulto vs Dan O’Rourke – XFC amateur bantamweight title