On Saturday, March 28, World Series of Fighting held its 19th event from the Comerica Theatre in Phoenix.
In the night’s main event, lightweight champion Justin Gaethje put his 155-pound strap on the line against veteran Luis Palomino. Gaethje entered the title defense with an unblemished, 13-0 record. He was last in action in November, earning a decision win over UFC veteran Melvin Guillard. Palomino, meanwhile, stepped into the title affair having won two straight in the WSOF cage. The 34-year-old had won his last four fights via knockout.
The championship tilt was joined by one half of the promotion’s light heavyweight tournament ladder as UFC veteran Thiago Silva took on Teddy Holder. Silva was originally slated to lock horns with Matt Hamill for a second time, but Hamill withdrew from the contest on fight day. Silva had been out of action since October of 2013, when, ironically, he fought Hamill in the UFC Octagon. Silva earned a unanimous decision victory in that bout.
For the full results of the event, click here.
Above are video highlights of the main card bout between Starks and Heun (courtesy of NBC Sports).
Teddy Holder vs. Thiago Silva – light heavyweight tournament opening round
Timur Valiev vs. Ed West
Jake Heun vs. Clifford Starks
Benny Madrid vs. Jimmy Spicuzza
Joseph Gigliotti vs. Brendan Tierney
Juan Archuleta vs. Andres Ponce
Israel Aquino vs. Dan Huber
Matthew Frincu vs. Eric Regan
Joe Madrid vs. Erik Villalobos