After knocking out tough Kiwi Beau Rawiri last year to claim the superfight welterweight title, Corey Nelson will make his promotional return this Friday night in Sydney where the top-tier Australian fighter will square off another New Zealander in BJ Bland.
The intriguing title fight headlines the fourth offering from Superfight which takes place at Club Punchbowl in Western Sydney.
The Rawiri victory was an important one for Nelson after suffering a submission loss at the hands of former UFC fighter Manuel Rodriguez in AFC almost 12 months prior. “Major” was dominant against the resilient New Zealand fighter throughout the opening rounds before landing a number of unanswered shots on the canvas in the third frame forcing the ref to wave it off.
His opponent BJ Bland will ride an impressive five fight win streak over the Tasman. Recently, the Hawke’s Bay based fighter picked up a pair of decision victories outpointing both Cole Davids and BJJ black belt Renan Secco last year under the Brace banner.
In the co-main event Friday night, local welterweight David Francis returns to the promotion to take on Brace veteran Tom Kingston.
Francis will be aiming for three wins in a row following TKO victories against Sam Hayward and most recently Rick Alchin who he stopped in the opening round at Brace 47.
Newcastle based Kingston, meanwhile, will be making his 2017 debut on the night and will no doubt be eager to get back on track following a pair of losses.
The other pro fights slated for the night will see Robbie Lara battle James Vandarakis while George Malzis takes on Mitchell Birkett.
Superfight is run by the same crew which was behind the now defunct Cage Fighting Championship (CFC). The last offering from the Western Sydney based promotion (Superfight 3) took place in June of 2016.
Fight Card (Pro):
- Corey Nelson vs. BJ Bland – Welterweight Title
- David Francis vs. Tom Kingston
- Robbie Lara vs. James Vandarakis
- George Malzis vs. Mitchell Birkett
Fight Card (Amateur):
- Marko Papuckovski vs. Harry Thomson
- Kris Ustijanovski vs. Brayden Frogson
- Shannon Hinton vs. Bruno Playfair
- Eythan Sykes vs. Hayden Harbutt
- Kiet Tran vs. Chanthou Sin
- Caleb Mera vs. Adam Bailey
- Cameron Catania vs. Isaac Hogan
