Wednesday, June 24, 2009

Several Top UFC & WEC Fighters Confirmed for UFC Fan Expo

PRESS RELEASE:

The history of the Ultimate Fighting Championship is filled with stories of legendary fights and athletes who built a sport behind skill, heart, and determination. On July 10th and 11th, just before the lights go down and the first bell rings for July 11th's historic UFC 100 event, fans will have the opportunity to meet and greet the fighters who made mixed martial arts what it is today, as well as the ones carrying the flag for the next generation, all under one roof at the Mandalay Bay Convention Center during the UFC Fan Expo.

Tickets for this fight fan's dream event, which features an unprecedented lineup of UFC, World Extreme Cagefighting (WEC) and former PRIDE fighters, are limited, but are still on sale and can be bought exclusively at www.ufcfanexpo.com V.I.P. Passes for this event are already SOLD OUT, but Customers that purchase Expo tickets in advance will receive $10 off the two-day pass.

Already confirmed to be in attendance during the UFC Fan Expo are UFC light heavyweight champion Lyoto "The Dragon" Machida, UFC Hall of Famers Royce Gracie and Randy "The Natural" Couture, and former world champions Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell, "Suga" Rashad Evans, Forrest Griffin, and Quinton "Rampage" Jackson. UFC contenders Kenny Florian, Steve Cantwell, Shane Carwin, Marcus "The Irish Hand Grenade" Davis, Tyson Griffin, Clay Guida, Dustin Hazelett, Keith "The Dean of Mean" Jardine, Anthony "Rumble" Johnson, Martin "The Hitman" Kampmann, Josh Koscheck, Joe Lauzon, Junie Browning, Nate Marquardt, Gray Maynard, Karo Parisyan, Diego "Nightmare" Sanchez, Sean Sherk and Mike Swick will also be meeting fans, along with The Ultimate Fighter winners Nate Diaz and Efrain Escudero.

Fans of the PRIDE Fighting Championships will have the chance to re-live the excitement of Japan's classic organization as well, with MMA icons Renzo Gracie and Gary Goodridge being joined by "The Texas Crazy Horse" Heath Herring, and Brazilian superstars Wanderlei "The Axe Murderer" Silva and Mauricio "Shogun" Rua.

And if that's not enough MMA star power, the premier fighters of the WEC will be on hand to sign autographs, with current champions Miguel Torres, Mike Brown, and Jamie Varner sharing the convention center floor with Urijah Faber, Jens Pulver, Brian Bowles, Joseph Benavidez, Donald Cerrone, Leonard Garcia, Ben Henderson, and Alex Karalexis.

Among the UFC Fan Expo's two-day roster of activities will be the aforementioned meet and greets with legendary UFC, WEC, and PRIDE fighters, MMA demonstrations, fan-inspired special events, training and development sessions, and other exciting opportunities and entertainment. All the UFC Fan Expo activities will be planned in conjunction with UFC 100, including the free-to-the-public weigh-in event on Friday, July 10th.

Expected to attract over 100 companies and brands, UFC Fan Expo will span more than 200,000 gross square feet of space exhibiting apparel, electronic gaming, food & beverages, fight gear and fitness equipment, MMA training and development, nutritional supplements, lifestyle products, and much more.