Vera, Ana share MMA spotlight

MANILA, Philippines – Two foreign-based Fil-Ams will climb the cage in a 10-fight Mixed Martial Arts bill dubbed “Spirit of Champions” sanctioned by ONE Championship at the Mall of Asia Arena on Dec. 11 as Brandon (The Truth) Vera faces Chi Lewis-Parry of England for the vacant heavyweight crown and Ana (Hurricane) Julaton meets Irina Mazepa of Russia in a flyweight title eliminator.

ONE Championship was launched in 2011 and has so far staged 31 events. It is now Asia’s largest sports media property reaching out to over 1 billion homes in 75 countries via a 10-year broadcast agreement with Fox Sports Asia. ONE has put on shows in Singapore, Kuala Lumpur, Taipei, Dubai, Jakarta, Phnom Penh (Cambodia), Yangon (Myanmar), Beijing, Guangzhou and Manila.

Vera, 38, made his ONE debut against Igor Subora at the Mall of Asia (MOA) Arena last December and scored a spectacular first round stoppage. The San Diego-based Fil-Am raised his MMA record to 13-7 after an 8-0 start and a UFC career spanning 16 bouts. Against Lewis-Parry, Vera will be pushed to the limit as he’s giving up seven inches in height and nearly 40 pounds in weight. Lewis-Parry, who towers at 6-9, is six years younger at 32 and is unbeaten with a 6-0 record on four knockouts and two submissions.

Lewis-Parry hasn’t fought since disposing of Alain Ngalani in a ONE event in Taipei in July last year. He could be rusty coming from a layoff and Vera will surely take advantage. Vera left the UFC after suffering back-to-back losses to Mauricio Rua and Ben Rothwell but is now on track to capture the ONE heavyweight crown. It will be the second appearance at the MOA Arena for the former World Kickboxing Association and World Extreme Cagefighting Grand Prix heavyweight titlist.

What could steal the thunder from the Vera fight is Julaton’s match against Mazepa in a duel of strikers. Julaton, 35, is a former WBO/IBA superbantamweight champion who campaigns in the ring and the cage. Last December, she outpointed Egypt’s Walaa Abbas Mohamed Kamaly in her third ONE fight at the MOA Arena. Julaton made her ONE debut in May 2014, beating Aya Saber of Egypt via a third round technical knockout at the MOA Arena. She lost to Malaysia’s Ann (Athena) Osman on a split three-round decision in Dubai in August 2014.

Mazepa made an auspicious ONE debut by stopping Osman in the first round in Kuala Lumpur last month. Now, Julaton has a chance to beat her tormentor’s tormentor. Ultimately, Julaton hopes to lure Osman back into the cage for a rematch. A win over Mazepa will seal it.

Julaton is expected to fly in from her training base in Las Vegas on Dec. 4 or 7 with strike coach Angelo Reyes and grappling coach Ricky Lundell. Reyes said it will be fireworks in the Julaton-Mazepa bout.

“A possible disadvantage for Ana is the fact that she’s been inactive from the cage all year while Mazepa is at an all-time high with her amazing upset performance over Osman,” said Reyes. “On the other hand, Ana began training under her new head MMA coach (Lundell) a year ago. Their first fight working together was a victory over Abbas last December and Ana’s improvement in MMA was evident as she scored her first takedown ever.”

Reyes said Julaton has worked alongside MMA fighter Frank Mir and honed her grappling skills at the Bishop Gorman Wrestling Room in Las Vegas. “Ana is working hard to become a complete MMA fighter using wrestling, grapping, jiu-jitsu techniques to add to her black belt in taekwondo, kenpo karate and world-class boxing skills,” continued Reyes. “One thing about Ana is she has never turned down a fight and when Matt Hume sent her the contract to fight Mazepa, she signed it right away. I can guarantee all fans of combat sports that this match-up will easily be the fight of the night in Manila. Both fighters have devastating left hooks. Both are very strong and both are black belt MMA strikers so expect an all-out, action-packed fight that will determine who is the No. 1 female fighter in all of MMA in Asia.”

Reyes said Lundell’s influence has transformed Julaton into a fearsome MMA fighter. “I believe the global MMA community is about to see a fighter who is becoming more and more a prodigy of the legendary grappler Lundell who is the Freddie Roach of MMA,” said Reyes. “I can’t wait for our kababayan to see the best MMA version of Ana we have ever seen. Manila will definitely see an explosive match. Mazepa is a powerful striker. To see what she did to Osman in front of a sold-out hometown crowd was spectacular. When Mazepa knocked out Osman cold with a left hook, it sent shockwaves all over the MMA world that she’s one of the best and most talented female fighters in MMA Asia.”