DRAGONS VS. WOLFPACK INTERNATIONAL FIGHT LEAGUE MATCHUP DEBUTS ON
FRIDAY NIGHT ON FSN
Carlos Newton-Led, Toronto-Based Dragons Take On Matt Lindland’s 2006
Finalists
NEW YORK, March 21, 2007- The International Fight League (OTC.BB:
IFLI), the world’s first team-based professional mixed martial arts
league, and television partner Fox Sports Net present last month’s
intriguing matchup between the Dragons, coached by Carlos Newton and based in
Toronto, and the Wolfpack, coached by Olympic Silver Medalist Matt
Lindland and based in Portland, Ore., debuting on Friday, March 23. The
show features five bouts, including the entertaining battle between
middleweights Brent Beauparlant and Matt Horwich and the explosive debut of
Wolfpack welterweight Mike Dolce.
Start time for the show is 11 p.m. in most markets. The March 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 other bouts include the IFL debuts of four other athletes, as well
as fights involving league veterans and fan favorites Wojtek Kaszowski
of the Dragons and Devin Cole of the Wolfpack.
The FSN schedule will continue each Friday, following the order of IFL
events in the first third of the regular season. Then on April 13, the
battle at Mohegan Sun Arena in Uncasville, Conn., between two of the
league’s top teams, the Pitbulls, coached by Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu master
Renzo Gracie and based in New York, and Lindland’s Wolfpack will air
on same-night delay at 11 p.m. in most markets.
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, 66 hours of original IFL programming is scheduled to run on the
two networks, which together reach more than 95% of U.S. television
households.
The remaining schedule of matchups on each FSN debut date is as follows
through April:
March 30, Pitbulls vs. Red Bears (Atlanta, Feb. 23)
April 6, Condors vs. Sabres (Los Angeles, March 17)
April 13, Wolfpack vs. Pitbulls (Uncasville, Conn., April 13 same day
show)
April 20, Anacondas vs. Razorclaws (Los Angeles, March 17)
April 27, Dragons vs. Scorpions (Uncasville, April 13 show)
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 first professional
mixed martial arts sports league. IFL has its headquarters in New York,
NY and offices in Las Vegas, NV. For more information about IFL,
please see: www.ifl.tv.
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