Watson, ‘Ninja’ Hit Marks for BAMMA 6

British Association of Mixed Martial Arts middleweight champion Tom Watson checked in at 184.5 pounds for his scheduled title defense against Pride Fighting Championships veteran Murilo Rua (185) in the BAMMA 6 main event on Saturday at Wembley Arena in London.

The two headliners hit the scales and met their mandated weight requirements without incident at Friday’s official weigh-in.

Watson (13-4, 3-0 BAMMA) last appeared at BAMMA 4 in September, when he defended the promotion’s 185-pound crown in a unanimous decision over Alex Reid at the National Indoor Arena in Birmingham, England. The 28-year-old has posted nine wins in his past 10 outings. Watson, who has spent time training at the Tristar Gym in Montreal and Jackson’s Mixed Martial Arts in Albuquerque, N.M., owns notable victories against former International Fight League champion Matt Horwich and EliteXC alum Travis Galbraith.

Spawned by the Chute Boxe Academy, Rua (20-11-1) has not fought since October, when he lost a unanimous decision to Roy Boughton under the Warrior-1 MMA banner; the defeat snapped a four-fight winning streak for the well-traveled 30-year-old Brazilian. A Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt and potent finisher, Rua has secured 18 of his 20 career victories by knockout, technical knockout or submission. He held the EliteXC middleweight championship for three months in 2007.

BAMMA 6 will also feature a pair of middleweight tilts, as UFC veteran Frank Trigg (184.5) meets John Phillips (186) and Ivan Salaverry (186) comes out of retirement to face Matt Ewin (184.5). The 40-year-old Salaverry last appeared at UFC 84 in May 2008, when he submitted to a first-round armbar from Rousimar Palhares at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas.

BAMMA 6
Saturday, May 21
Wembley Arena
London

BAMMA Middleweight Championship
Tom Watson (184.5) vs. Murilo Rua (185)

John Phillips (186) vs. Frank Trigg (184.5)
Matt Ewin (184.5) vs. Ivan Salaverry (186)
Jeremy Bailey (172) vs. Laurens-Jan Thijssen (170.5)
Valentino Petrescu (184) vs. Joao Souza (186)
Jason Ball (156) vs. Leonardo Santos (156)
Che Mills (170.5) vs. Marcio Cesar (171)
Neil Wain (260) vs. Marcin Bartkiewicz (246)
Shane Omer (154) vs. Aaron Wilkinson (156)
Costas Doru (156) vs. Jeremy Petley (155)
Lee Taylor (170.5) vs. Kenny Moyston (167)
Ryan White (203) vs. Fraser Opie (206)
Murrey Fullerton (168) vs. Charles Scott (169.5)
Scott Jensen (156) vs. Craig Chesters (155)
Sam Watling (169) vs. Leigh Cohoon (170)
Catalin Zmarandescu (236) vs. Sharif Mohamed Ali (243)