Jerry Milani sent along the following:
TOP INTERNATIONAL FIGHT LEAGUE STARS SHINE ON FRIDAY NIGHT ON FSN
Jay Hieron, Chris Horodecki, Vladimir Matyushenko, Ben Rothwell
Featured In “Meet the Stars” Special
NEW YORK, June 5, 2007- The International Fight League (OTC.BB: IFLI),
the world’s number one professional mixed martial arts league, takes
a look at some of the circuit’s most exciting athletes, including Jay
Hieron and Chris Horodecki of the Los Angeles Anacondas, Vladimir
Matyushenko of the Tokyo Sabres and Ben Rothwell of the defending champion
Quad Cities Silverbacks in the latest episode seen on Fox Sports Net
this week. The show debuts across the FSN Regional Networks on Friday,
June 8, at 11 p.m. in most markets.
Friday’s show features bout action and behind-the-scenes interviews
with the four stars. Hieron, Horodecki, Matyushenko and Rothwell have
been stalwarts in the IFL, which concludes its inaugural regular season
this month, with playoffs set for August and September.
* Hieron, one of the league’s standout welterweights, is a master
of quick finishes, with three of his four IFL victories coming in the
first round, via three different types of chokes. The New York native
and Las Vegas resident has helped lead the Anacondas to a 3-0 team record
and qualification for the IFL playoffs.
* Horodecki, at 19 the youngest athlete in the IFL, is an explosive
lightweight with an exciting style who has treated fans to some of the
most-talked-about fights in IFL history. The London, Ontario native’s
February bout with the Silverbacks’ Bart Palaszewski has been talked
about as an early candidate for MMA fight of the year, and is among the
action on Friday’s show.
* The upstart Tokyo Sabres turned a winless 2006 into an undefeated
2007, and veteran light heavyweight Matyushenko from Belarus has been a
major force in that turnaround. Unbeaten in three IFL bouts and
boasting an 18-3 overall mark, the well-rounded athlete came to the U.S. more
than a decade ago with little money and speaking no English but has
utilized his talents to become one of the world’s best MMA stars.
* Dubbed “The North Star,” Rothwell has been the IFL’s premier
heavyweight since the league’s first event last April. His imposing
physical presence is complemented by quickness and flexibility usually
seen in lower weight classes. His powerful high kicks and boxing
skills are highlighted in the episode.
This week’s show is the first in a series of “Meet the Stars”
programs that will highlight the up-and-coming stars of the mixed martial
arts world this summer. A preview of the program, along with the the
IFL on FSN schedule, with dates and times on each Regional FSN network,
can be seen at http://www.ifl.tv/TV-Schedule.html. Viewers can also
check their local schedule at http://msn.foxsports.com/tv/schedule.
The FSN schedule will continue each Friday, following the order of IFL
events through the regular season. Regular event programming resumes
on June 16 with the Condors-Razorclaws matchup from last month in
Chicago.
The 22 hours of original programming scheduled on FSN this year
represents nearly 70% more than the 13 hours shown in 2006, when the network
aired three hours of coverage of the IFL Legends Championship in May and
June and followed up with 10 hours of IFL World Team Championship
action, September through December.
The FSN coverage is in addition to the 22, two-hour episodes of
“International Fight League Battleground,” seen on over-the-air
MyNetworkTV nationwide every Monday (8 p.m. ET/PT).
In all, a minimum of 67 hours of original IFL programming are scheduled
to run on the two networks, which together reach more than 95% of U.S.
television households.
The upcoming schedule of matchups on each FSN debut date is as follows:
June 15, Condors vs. Razorclaws (Chicago, May 19)
June 22, Red Bears vs. Silverbacks (Chicago, May 19)
June 29, Sabres vs. Wolfpack (Everett, Wash., June 1)
July 6, Anacondas vs. Tiger Sharks (Everett, Wash., June 1)
Each of the nine regular season IFL events will consist of four teams
— each with an athlete in all five weight classes competing. The
team that wins the best three of five match setup will be declared the
team winner for the match, similar to collegiate and high school wrestling
meets. The IFL also differs from other MMA organizations in that the
bouts are held in an oversized five-rope boxing ring with three,
four-minute rounds, each designed to create the most compelling in-arena
experience for local fans.
Each of the 12 IFL teams for 2007 will compete in three regular season
events; the teams with the top four overall win-loss team records will
advance to the semi-finals, which will be held on Thursday, August 2,
at Continental Airlines Arena in East Rutherford, N.J. The 2007 IFL
Finals will then be held at The Forum in Los Angeles on Saturday,
September 15.
About the IFL
International Fight League (IFL) is the world’s number one
professional mixed martial arts sports league. IFL has its headquarters in New
York and offices in Las Vegas. For more information about IFL, please
see: www.ifl.tv.
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