The International Fight League (OTC.BB: IFLI), the world’s first team-based professional mixed martial arts league, today announced the field for its event at Everett Events Center, set for Friday, June 1 at 7:30 p.m. The team matchups between the unbeaten Tokyo Sabres and Portland Wolfpack and between the Los Angeles Anacondas and homestanding Seattle Tiger Sharks will go a long way in determining the playoff fates in the final regular season event for all four squads.
IFL stars such as lightweight Savant Young (Pasadena, Calif.), welterweight Antonio McKee (Long Beach, Calif.) and light heavyweight Vladimir Matyushenko (Belarus) of the Sabres (2-0 overall, 6-4 individual) will all be in action, taking on the likes of Ryan Schultz (North Platte, Neb.), Mike Dolce (Belmar, N.J.) and Aaron Stark (Portland, Ore.), respectively, of the Wolfpack (1-1, 5-5). The first-place Anacondas (2-0, 8-2), coming off a 5-0 sweep over the San Jose Razorclaws in their last bout, bring unbeaten lightweight Chris Horodecki (London, Ontario), welterweight Jay Hieron (Las Vegas) and heavyweight Krzysztof Soszynski (Winnipeg, Manitoba) to the ring against Tiger Sharks (1-1, 6-4) stalwarts Shad Lierley (Seattle), Brad Blackburn (Olympia, Wash.) and Reese Andy (Billings, Mont.).
All four teams are still eligible to qualify for the IFL playoff semifinals on August 2 in East Rutherford, N.J. Coach Shawn Tompkins’ Anacondas and Coach Ken Yasuda’s Sabres can clinch berths with victories, while Matt Lindland’s Wolfpack and Maurice Smith’s Tiger Sharks need to claim wins and hope to earn spots via tiebreakers.
Sabres (2-0 team, 6-4 indiv.) vs. Wolfpack (1-1, 5-5)
155 lb.: Savant Young (Pasadena, Calif.) (2-0 IFL, 8-4 0verall) vs. Ryan Schultz (North Platte, Neb.) (2-2, 15-9-1)
170 lb.: Antonio McKee (Lakewood, Calif.) (2-0, 19-3-2) vs. Mike Dolce (Belmar, N.J.) (1-1, 3-1)
185 lb.: Kazuhiro Hamanaka (Tokyo) (0-2, 4-4-1) vs. Matt Horwich (Gresham, Ore.) (2-3, 17-9-1)
205 lb: Vladimir Matyushenko (El Segundo, Calif.) (2-0, 17-3) vs. Aaron Stark (Portland, Ore.) (2-1, 3-3)
265 lb.: Orville Palmer (Norman, Okla.) (0-0, 2-0) vs. Devin Cole (Medford, Ore.) (3-4, 7-5)
Anacondas (2-0, 8-2) vs. Tiger Sharks (1-1, 6-4)
155 lb.: Chris Horodecki (London, Ontario) (5-0, 9-0) vs. Shad Lierley (Seattle) (2-0, 2-0)
170 lb.: Jay Hieron (Las Vegas) (4-1, 12-3) vs. Brad Blackburn (Olympia, Wash.) (2-2, 9-9)
185 lb.: Benji Radach (Coconut Creek, Fla.) (2-0, 14-3) vs. Bristol Marunde (Sequim, Wash.) (1-2, 3-4)
205 lb.: Alex Schoenauer (Las Vegas) (3-3, 11-7) vs. Allan Goes (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil) (3-0, 10-4-2)
265 lb.: Krzysztof Soszynski (Winnipeg, Manitoba) (3-2, 12-6-1) vs. Reese Andy (Billings, Mont.) (4-1, 6-1)