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Wheelie
27-02-2008, 13:03
Ray Sefo Turns Down Fight with Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic (http://mmajunkie.com/2008/02/26/ray-sefo-turns-down-fight-with-mirko-cro-cop-filipovic/)

Posted by MMA Junkie on February 26, 2008 at 10:08 am ET
http://mmajunkie.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/ray-sefo-and-jan-nortje.jpg (http://mmajunkie.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/02/ray-sefo-and-jan-nortje.jpg)K-1 fighter Ray Sefo (1-0) turned down an offer to fight former UFC heavyweight Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic (22-6-2) at next month’s DREAM show in Japan.
The news was posted on the Xtreme Couture blog (http://xtremecouture.wordpress.com/).
The report also confirmed that Sefo, as well as super-heavyweight Jan Nortje (who defeated Bob Sapp in the main event of this past weekend’s “Strikeforce at the Dome” show), have both joined Xtreme Couture’s fight team.
Sefo turned downed the fight because he would have had just weeks to prepare for it.
DREAM will replace K-1’s former MMA division (K-1 HERO’S) and includes former executives from the now-defunct PRIDE Fighting Championships. The organization will hold its first show on March 15 at the Saitama Super Arena in Saitama, Japan. Although Sefo turned down the fight, the organization still wants to have Filipovic on the card, which will also include the first round of a star-studded lightweight grand prix.
Sefo, 37, owns a mere 1-0 professional MMA record after defeating Min Soo Kim with a second-round KO at a 2005 K-1 HERO’S show. However, the New Zealand native is most noted as a kickboxer (53-17-1 record) and a five-time Muay Thai world champ.
Filipovic, a former PRIDE stand-out, recently left the UFC with three fights remaining on his contract. The split was amicable, according to both Filipovic and UFC president Dana White. Filipovic recently stated that he plans to return to the UFC after competing three times in Japan.
The 2006 PRIDE Open Weight Grand Prix winner scored a win over Eddie Sanchez in his much-hyped UFC debut last year, but he then suffered back-to-back losses to Gabriel Gonzaga and Cheick Kongo.

dimitri
27-02-2008, 14:59
Sefo refuses to fight Cro Cop
Battle would take place at first DREAM event


Lack of time to prepare is the alleged reason. The Kiwi Ray Sefo, holder of five world muay thai championships and regular at K-1 standup events, refused the promoters of Dream’s offer to fight Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic under MMA rules. Sefo, who trains in Las Vegas at Randy Couture’s team Xtreme Couture, has only ever fought one MMA fight, in which he knocked out Min Soo Kim at Hero’s.

With a little over two weeks to the first DREAM event, which will take place in Saitama, Tokyo, the Japanese organization was turned down for the first time in what would be the only heavyweight match of the night, which includes the first stage of the lightweight GP. Cro Cop still has three fights on his contract with the UFC, but was released amicably by Dana White so that he could get back to his best shape in Japan and return to the American event by the end of the year. The event’s organizers still want the Croatian ex-policeman in its debut show, but to do so will have to race against time.

Sefo refuses to fight Cro Cop (http://www.graciemag.com/news/144/ARTICLE/9652/2008-02-26.html)

sportfan
27-02-2008, 16:00
Mighty Mo