McCall, Ortiz Cleared for Tachi Palace Fights 9
Brian Knapp May 5, 2011
Only one question remains for Ian McCall.
What does he do for an encore?
Three months removed from his stunning upset of then top-ranked flyweight Jussier da Silva, McCall tipped the scales at 126 pounds for his showdown with unbeaten Strikeforce veteran Dustin Ortiz (125) in the Tachi Palace Fights 9 “The Contenders” 127-pound catch-weight main event on Friday at the Tachi Palace Hotel and Casino in Lemoore, Calif.
McCall will carry a modest two-fight winning streak into the match.
The 26-year-old
WEC alum has not competed since he staked his claim as one of
the world’s top 125-pound fighters in his victory over Da Silva in
February. A Team Oyama representative, the twice-beaten McCall
suffered his only two defeats in a 2009 decision to current
UFC bantamweight king Dominick
Cruz and a 2007 submission to UFC veteran Charlie
Valencia.
Undefeated in seven professional appearances, Ortiz last appeared at Strikeforce Challengers 13 in January, when he stopped Matt Horning on third-round punches at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium in Nashville, Tenn. He has finished all seven of his foes, four of them inside the first round. A Franklin, Tenn., native, Ortiz has fought primarily under the Gameness Fighting Championship banner.
After DeJesus failed to reach the 145-pound limit, it was decided and agreed upon that the bout will continue as a five-round contest and Miura will claim the title from the champion if he defeats the incumbent titleholder.
Tachi Palace Fights 9 -- which will stream live on Sherdog.com at 8:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. PT -- will also feature a lightweight duel pairing “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 8 winner Efrain Escudero (156) with Fabricio Camoes (154.8), a middleweight tilt pitting UFC alum Gerald Harris (186) against Anthony Ruiz (185.6) and a flyweight battle matching the world-ranked Mamoru Yamaguchi (125) with Kevin Dunsmoor (125.2).
Tachi Palace Fights 9 “The Contenders
Friday, May 6
Tachi Palace Hotel and Casino
Lemoore, Calif.
TPF Featherweight Championship
Isaac DeJesus (*146.4) vs. Russ Miura (143.8)
Ian McCall (126) vs. Dustin Ortiz (125)
Efrain Escudero (156) vs. Fabricio Camoes (154.8)
Anthony Ruiz (185.6) vs. Gerald Harris (186)
Kevin Dunsmoor (125.2) vs. Mamoru Yamaguchi (125)
Jorge Lopez (172) vs. Waachiim Spiritwolf (174.4)
Farkhad Sharipov (135.4) vs. Tommy Vargas (134.8)
Alan Jouban (170) vs. Chidi Njokuani (171)
Art Arciniega (145.8) vs. Josh Herrick (*148.8)
Cody Gibson (136) vs. Walel Watson (133.4)
Jesse Bowen (144) vs. Brad McDonald (144)
Kenny Ento (169.8) vs. James Chaney (169.6)
Alex Perez (135.8) vs. Jesus Castro (135.6)
* DeJesus and Miura will fight at a 146.8 pound catch-weight contest, but DeJesus' title is still on the line. Herrick was fined and will fight overweight.
Three months removed from his stunning upset of then top-ranked flyweight Jussier da Silva, McCall tipped the scales at 126 pounds for his showdown with unbeaten Strikeforce veteran Dustin Ortiz (125) in the Tachi Palace Fights 9 “The Contenders” 127-pound catch-weight main event on Friday at the Tachi Palace Hotel and Casino in Lemoore, Calif.
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Undefeated in seven professional appearances, Ortiz last appeared at Strikeforce Challengers 13 in January, when he stopped Matt Horning on third-round punches at the Nashville Municipal Auditorium in Nashville, Tenn. He has finished all seven of his foes, four of them inside the first round. A Franklin, Tenn., native, Ortiz has fought primarily under the Gameness Fighting Championship banner.
The two men booked in the five-round co-headliner, featherweight
champion Isaac
DeJesus (146.4) and challenger Russ Miura
(143.8), saw drama unfold Thursday at the weigh-ins.
After DeJesus failed to reach the 145-pound limit, it was decided and agreed upon that the bout will continue as a five-round contest and Miura will claim the title from the champion if he defeats the incumbent titleholder.
Tachi Palace Fights 9 -- which will stream live on Sherdog.com at 8:30 p.m. ET/5:30 p.m. PT -- will also feature a lightweight duel pairing “The Ultimate Fighter” Season 8 winner Efrain Escudero (156) with Fabricio Camoes (154.8), a middleweight tilt pitting UFC alum Gerald Harris (186) against Anthony Ruiz (185.6) and a flyweight battle matching the world-ranked Mamoru Yamaguchi (125) with Kevin Dunsmoor (125.2).
Tachi Palace Fights 9 “The Contenders
Friday, May 6
Tachi Palace Hotel and Casino
Lemoore, Calif.
TPF Featherweight Championship
Isaac DeJesus (*146.4) vs. Russ Miura (143.8)
Ian McCall (126) vs. Dustin Ortiz (125)
Efrain Escudero (156) vs. Fabricio Camoes (154.8)
Anthony Ruiz (185.6) vs. Gerald Harris (186)
Kevin Dunsmoor (125.2) vs. Mamoru Yamaguchi (125)
Jorge Lopez (172) vs. Waachiim Spiritwolf (174.4)
Farkhad Sharipov (135.4) vs. Tommy Vargas (134.8)
Alan Jouban (170) vs. Chidi Njokuani (171)
Art Arciniega (145.8) vs. Josh Herrick (*148.8)
Cody Gibson (136) vs. Walel Watson (133.4)
Jesse Bowen (144) vs. Brad McDonald (144)
Kenny Ento (169.8) vs. James Chaney (169.6)
Alex Perez (135.8) vs. Jesus Castro (135.6)
* DeJesus and Miura will fight at a 146.8 pound catch-weight contest, but DeJesus' title is still on the line. Herrick was fined and will fight overweight.
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