theScore Fighting Series: Proving Ground
With Bellator Fighting Championships making its inaugural trip to Canada this Saturday at Casino Rama, we found it only fitting to list some of theScore Fighting Series alumni that have gone on to major organizations after having proven their mettle under our banner.
The most recent of which is Canadian welterweight prospect Ryan “The Real Deal” Ford, who just Tuesday inked a multi-fight deal with Bellator. Ford, who sports a professional record of 16-3 with 15 stoppages, is fresh off a recent TKO victory over rival Nick Hinchcliffe, and in the last 8 months has dispatched UFC veterans Karo Parisyan and Pete Spratt. Ford fought for theScore Fighting Series in his hometown of Edmonton, Alberta in March of this year, where he battered Indiana-based welterweight Johnny Davis for 2 rounds en route to a TKO win. Ford will make his Bellator debut in October when the promotion makes its return to Casino Rama, where he will fight in a future welterweight tournament qualifier.
Another alum of ours, Jordan “Young Gun” Mein, has signed on to a four-fight deal with the juggernaut of mixed martial arts, Zuffa LLC., where he will be competing under the Strikeforce banner. Jordan most recently dispatched of DREAM welterweight champion Marius Zaromskis at SFS Mississauga on June 10th, where he outpointed the Strikeforce and K-1 veteran over 3 rounds en route to a unanimous decision victory. Prior to that impressive win, Jordan had secured 2011 victories over UFC veterans Joe Riggs and Josh Burkman. At only 21 years of age, Jordan has amassed 29 professional fights with 22 wins, 19 of those coming via stoppage. Jordan is expected to make his Strikeforce debut this fall against former title contender Evangelista “Cyborg” Santos.
Recent UFC 129 competitor Sean Pierson also cut his teeth under our banner, where he blasted through Ricky Goodall via first round TKO in Halifax in October of last year. That win prompted the UFC brass to sign the talented Canadian welterweight to a multi-fight deal. Pierson made his UFC debut a mere six weeks later, where he fought TUF 7 cast member Matt Riddle in a what-would-be fight of the night, had it not been for fan voting, which gave the honour to the Georges St. Pierre vs. Josh Koscheck bout. After a spirited three rounds of action, Pierson was awarded a unanimous decision victory with scores of 30-27 across the board. His second outing at UFC 129 was not quite as successful, however, as he took a big step up in competition to face late-replacement Jake Ellenberger. Despite having lost via first round knockout, Pierson earned the praise of his peers and his bosses for facing a very tough test with a fighter like Ellenberger. Pierson was originally scheduled to face Brian Foster, but after Foster was forced to pull out of the bout due to a brain hemorrhage, the UFC appointed the highly-ranked Ellenberger to be his replacement. Despite that setback, Pierson continues to persevere in his evolution as a mixed martial artist.
Perhaps the most successful fighter to come through our ranks is UFC bantamweight Ivan Menjivar. “The Pride of El Salvador” made his first Score Fighting Series appearance in June 2010 in Montreal, where he quickly vanquished American Aaron Miller via first round guillotine choke. Menjivar began his career at welterweight, and fought current training partner and UFC welterweight kingpin Georges St. Pierre in 2002. Since then, Menjivar has fought a virtual who’s who of mixed martial arts: Jeff Curran, Vitor Ribeiro, Matt Serra, Joe Lauzon, Urijah Faber and Caol Uno, just to name a few. Menjivar’s biggest career win came over Charlie Valencia at UFC 129 here in Toronto this past April. Menjivar won the bout via TKO a mere 90 seconds in, making his return to the UFC a successful one (he lost to Matt Serra at UFC 48 in 2004). Menjivar will return to the Octagon at UFC 133, where he will square off against Nick Pace.
There you have it, a short list of Score Fighting Series alums that have gone on to fight in some of the world’s biggest mixed martial arts promotions, and we’re not stopping there as we continue to provide up-and-coming prospects a platform to showcase their skills.
Be sure not to miss Bellator 47 this Saturday, as Score Fighting Series alum Will Romero squares off against Daniel Langbeen in featherweight action. Bellator 47 kicks off at 7:30pm ET with the undercard, and the main card begins at 9pm ET, and can be viewed live on theScore in Canada and MTV2 in the United States. Tickets are available at the Casino Rama box office, or visit ticketmaster.ca.
