New Zealand fighter Matt “The Viper” Vaile will look to defend the XFC welterweight title for the fourth time when he meets late replacement Joel Fahey in the main event of XFC 32.
The promotion returns to the Logan Metro Centre this Saturday.
In just over three years, Vaile (8-1) has risen to become one of the best welterweights in the region with his lone loss coming at the hands of former UFC fighter Ben Alloway. The 26-year-old captured the XFC title back in 2016 with a first round submission over James Klingner and since then has defeated Andrew Mills, Brogan Anderson and David Francis in his title reign.
His opponent, Joel Fahey (1-2), steps up on less than a weeks notice after previous challenger and Combat Lab team-mate Glen Pettigrew was forced out due to injury. Fahey is a former XFC amateur title holder however his introduction to the pro ranks was met with back-to-back losses before securing a win on Coast Combat 2 in September.
A welterweight fight between Joel Kendrick and Craig Callaghan is set to feature as the co-main event.
Kendrick (3-1-1) trains out of the Australian Top Teeam and fought to a draw in his last outing back in July on AFC 20 against Saeed Karsaz. The twenty year-old’s lone professional loss has come at the hands of Glen Pettigrew. Callaghan (4-4) had won three on the trot prior to losing to Glen Pettigrew and the Integrated MMA trained fighter will be hoping to rebound and take it out for Queensland against his New South Wales counterpart.
Also on the card Josh Togo and Jackson Small will scrap in a lightweight contest that looks set to keep the crowd entertained while Nicole Szepesvary returns to the cage, aiming to keep her unblemished record intact when she faces the more experienced Hera Tamati.
An intriuging amateur lightweight title fight between David Russell and Connor Birch is also set to feature high up on the card.
Fight Card (Pro):
- Matt Vaile (c) vs. Joel Fahey – XFC welterweight title
- Joel Kendrick vs. Craig Callaghan
- Josh Togo vs. Jackson Small
- Jayden Eynaud vs. Michael McDaniel
- Nicole Szepesvary vs. Hera Tamati
- Paul Loga vs. Grego Penaloza
- Brooke Kenrick vs. Leigha Aurisch
- Alan Hartley vs. Matthew Seden
Fight Card (Amateur):
- David Russell vs. Connor Birch – XFC amateur lightweight title
- Joshua Francois vs. Tom Nolan – XFC amateur featherweight title
- Hayden Harbutt vs. Darren Habben – XFC amateur flyweight title
- Auryn Parmley vs. Alex Hong
- Rasa Dasa vs. Johnny Borg
- Lewis Ashton vs. Jack Gibbs
