Lion Fight 8 to air live on AXS TV on January 25, 2013

Lion Fight Muay Thai (@LFPLasVegas) has officially announced that they will make their national television debut on AXS TV with "Lion Fight 8" on January 25, 2013.

Lion Fight has been hard at work for the last two years promoting some of the best Muay Thai fight cards in the United States. They have featured some of the best American and international fighters on their events and have quickly built a solid brand. They have featured fighters such as Cosmo Alexandre, Simon Marcus, Matt Embree, Joe Schilling, Ky Hollenbeck, Kevin Ross, and Tiffany Van Soest to name a few. The fight card for Lion Fight 8 has yet to be announced.

AXS TV formerly HDNet, is available on satellite (Direct TV & Dishnetwork) and various cable providers. You can read the official press release form Lion Fight below.

LION FIGHT MUAY THAI DEBUTS ON NATIONAL TELEVISION WITH ‘LION FIGHT 8’ LIVE ON AXS TV

FRIDAY, JANUARY 25 - 10:00 p.m. ET

LIVE FROM INSIDE THE JOINT
AT THE HARD ROCK HOTEL & CASINO IN LAS VEGAS

LAS VEGAS – After two years of presenting world class Muay Thai action featuring the most exciting stand up fighting in the sport, and featuring top-ranked talent from around the world, Lion Fight Promotions today announced that it will make its long-awaited LIVE television debut with ‘Lion Fight 8’ on AXS TV Friday, January 25 at 10:00 p.m. ET.

“I am so proud to announce today that the network that brought the tradition of Friday Night Fights back to the mainstream audience will now showcase Lion Fight Muay Thai in addition to its blend of mixed martial arts and kickboxing programming,” said Kent. “I am committed to growing this amazing stand up fighting style, with its rich history and culture, to an American audience and thanks to Mark Cuban and Andrew Simon, our live television debut on AXS TV brings us a giant step closer.”

"We are excited to introduce AXS TV Fight Fans to the stand-up artistry that is Lion Fight,” said Andrew Simon CEO of AXS TV Fights. “Lion Fight was once called ‘The Best Kept Secret of the Las Vegas Fight Scene,’ find out why on January 25th!"

Lion Fight 8 will present a full card line-up of professional fights including male and female competitions. All of the main card's professional Muay Thai fights will air live on AXS TV, culminating with a main and co-main attraction yet to be announced.

Ticket information and more news for Lion Fight Promotions January 25, 2013 event taking place live at the Joint inside the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino will be announced soon.

For more information on Lion Fight Promotions, please visit lionfightpromotions.com and follow on Twitter @LFPLasVegas and Facebook atFacebook.com/LionFightPromotions.
 
About Lion Fight Promotions
Lion Fight Promotions, LLC is a Muay Thai fight promotion company based out of Las Vegas, Nevada USA. The ultimate goal of the company is to help the sport of Muay Thai expand in America. Unfortunately, in many other parts of the world, the level of exposure and appreciation outnumbers that of what is represented in the U.S.

About AXS TV Fights

AXS TV Fights is renowned for its universally recognized Friday Night Mixed Martial Arts and Kickboxing events. As Your Home For MMA, AXS TV utilizes an expansive network of promotions from the United States, Canada, Europe and Asia to broadcast more LIVE fights than any other television network. "The Voice" Michael Schiavello and five-timeMMA world-champion Pat Miletich provide viewers expert play-by-play, in depth fighter coverage and extensive analysis to each fight card. AXS TV broadcasts world-class LIVE fight events from Legacy Fighting Championship, Titan Fighting Championship, XFC, Maximum Fighting Championship, BAMMA, The Score Fighting Series and It's Showtime every Friday night, at 7PM PT/10PM ET.

AXS TV Fights can be found online at www.axs.tv, on Facebook at www.facebook.com/axstvfights and on Twitter at www.twitter.com/axstvfights

For media inquiries please email pr@lionfightpromotions.com.

Lion Fight Promotions inks Tiffany Van Soest to multi-fight deal

Lion Fight Promotions (@LFPLasVegas) has announced today that they have signed Tiffany Van Soest (@TiffTimeBomb)to a multi-fight deal. Van Soest is one of the rising start in female Muay Thai and most recently defeated Jeri Sitzes by unanimous decision at Lion Fight Muay Thai 7 to win the WBC International Women's Bantamweight Title. Terms of the deal were not disclosed, but you can expect to see Van Soest continue fighting for Lion Fight Promotions and no one else. You can read the official press release from Lion Fight Promotions below. 

WBC WOMEN’S INTERNATIONAL MUAY THAI CHAMPION SIGNS MULTI-FIGHT DEAL WITH LION FIGHT

LAS VEGAS – Joining in the fight world’s evolution to promoting the exciting and thrilling action of women’s championship competition, Scott Kent, Owner of Lion Fight Promotions, today announced that he has signed the undefeated WBC Women’s Bantamweight Champion Tiffany Van Soest to a long-term multi-fight contract starting in 2013. Van Soest becomes one of the few Muay Thai athletes to be signed to an extended contract with Lion Fight, and the first female ever in the history of the organization.

“Tiffany Van Soest showed fight fans what she is made of on October 13th in her WBC title fight with Jeri Sitzes, and by the third round she had won me over, and I think she won over just about everyone who watched her that night,” said Kent. “She’s a hard working, intelligent fighter who is committed to growing women’s Muay Thai in America. She is a great ambassador for the sport and I am proud to state that she now fights exclusively with us under the Lion Fight banner.”

Van Soest said, “I am honored to become the first female Muay Thai fighter to sign a long-term contract with Lion Fight. Thanks to Scott Kent, I feel like I have been given an opportunity to represent the women in Muay Thai, showcase my skills on the big stage, and prove that women fighters bring just as much action, excitement, and marketability to the sport as the men. To me, this is my chance to do for Women’s Muay Thai, what Gina Carano, Ronda Rousey and Miesha Tate have done for women’s MMA.”

A California native, Van Soest started her martial arts training when she was just eight years old with the U.S. Karate Organization in Riverside, Calif. She earned a second-degree (rank of Nidan) black belt when she was only 17. After winning consecutive USKA State, National, and World karate titles, she began training in Muay Thai. With athletic abilities not limited to martial arts, Van Soest also grew up as a soccer player and played two seasons while studying at Cal State San Marcos to earn her Bachelor’s degree in Kinesiology and certifications in personal training. She holds a perfect professional Muay Thai record of 4-0 (1-draw) and was recently crowned the WBC Women’s Bantamweight Champion when she defeated her opponent Jeri Sitzes October 13 via unanimous decision.

Kent stated that Van Soest would compete in a title fight in early 2013, either headlining or appearing as the co-main event on the card. In addition to Van Soest, Lion Fight is in the process of signing numerous other top-ranked Muay Thai fighters to the organization and will make those announcements as soon as they are official.

For more information about Lion Fight, please visit http://www.lionfightpromotions.com and follow on Twitter @LFPLasVegas.

Eddie Walker talks upcoming bout with Joe Schilling at Lion Fight Muay Thai 7

In less than two weeks Eddie “Showtime” Walker (@eddieshowtime) will be fighting Joe Schilling (@Cant_Stop_Crazy) at Lion Fight Muay Thai 7 (@LFPVegas) in Las Vegas, NV. Walker was kind enough to take time away from his training to answer a few questions about the upcoming fight. Enjoy.

MTA: You have a big fight against Joe Schilling coming up. How has training been going for the bout?

Eddie: Training is going well. My coach always knows how to make you feel like you are out of shape.

MTA: A lot of people on the west coast may not be familiar with you. What can they expect to see from you come October 13th?

Lion Fight Promotions announces date change for their next event, "big" announcement expected soon

Lion Fight Promotions upcoming event was expected to take place September 8th in Las Vegas. A bout featuring Joe Schilling and Alex Berrios had been rumored to headline the event. Since the initial announcement of the September 8th date, a few things have changed and Muay Thai Authority has confirmed with Lion Fight Promotions that there has been a date change due to scheduling conflicts and the next event will not take place September 8th.

Although a new date was not specified, Lion Fight Promotions stated that a new date will be announced shortly along with a “big” announcement.

Joe Schilling vs. Alex Berrios rumored as main event for September 8th Lion Fight Muay Thai VII event

Lion Fight Muay Thai VII will take place on September 8th at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, NV. The main event for the evening is expected to be a Light Heavyweight match-up between Joe Schilling and Alex Berrios. Although the fight has not been officially announced by Lion Fight Promotions, sources have informed us that both fighters have verbally agreed to the fight.

Schilling will be looking for back to back wins after dropping two consecutive bouts to Simon Marcus earlier in the year. He most recently defeated Karapaet Karapetyan at Battle of the Belts earlier this month in Thailand; Schilling won the fight by unanimous decision.

Nils Widlund replaces Kevin Ross against Matt Embree at Lion Fight Muay Thai VI: Schilling vs. Marcus

Last week Kevin Ross was forced to withdraw from his bout with Matt Embree at Lion Fight Muay Thai VI: Schilling vs. Marcus. Ross had an MRI done on his knee and discovered a torn ACL that will need surgery to repair. Brought in to replace Ross against Embree is Nils Widlund from Sweeden.

Widlund is a former K-1 fighter and currently trains under Alex Palma in San Diego, California. He recently lost to former K-1 tournament winner Yuta Kubo at the Fight for Japan event in December of 2011.

Embree is coming off a victory over Coke Chunhawat at “Battle in the Desert 5”. Embree will be looking to add to his current five fight win streak with a win over Widlund. He last lost in September of 2010 when he dropped a razor thin split decision in his first encounter with Coke Chunhawat.

Schilling vs. Marcus official for Lion Fight Muay Thai VI

Lion Fight Promotions has officially announced the re-match between Joe Schilling and Simon Marcus for their May 12th event at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas. The "Battle in the Desert" series, however, will no longer be in effect. The event is officially being called Lion Fight Muay Thai VI: Schilling vs. Marcus.

Schilling and Marcus fought at Lion Fight Promotions "Battle in the Desert 5"; the event drew a lot attention because of the back and forth trash talk between Schilling and Marcus. In the ring Marcus would walk away the winner, but controversy would follow. Marcus attempted to toss Schilling to the canvas, but both fighters went down. Schilling's head bounced off the canvas and as he got back to his feet he was dazed, when the action resumed Marcus pounced and knocked Schilling down with a left hook. After beating the referee's count Schilling was again knocked down by Marcus after being hit with an elbow. The referee would not allow the fight to continue and Marcus was declared the winner. A lot of controversy surrounded the win for Marcus as there were claims that the technique was illegal. The re-match is expected to settle the feud, and bring out the best that we have seen of these two fighters.