Friday 1 February 2013

BAMMA 12 Headliner - Jimmy Wallhead VS Matt Veach


The UK’s premier Mixed Martial Arts promotion, BAMMA, is proud to announce a Welterweight clash between ’Judo’ Jimmy Wallhead and Matt Veach as the headlining bout for BAMMA 12 , which takes place at Newcastle’s Metro Radio Arena on Saturday 9th March 2013. Tickets go on sale at 9am, on Monday 4th February.

“ Judo” Jimmy Wallhead (23-7-0) stands among the cream of UK fighters, often avoided due to his dangerous reputation and was long over-looked. After being turned down for The “Ultimate Fighter: United States vs. United Kingdom” in 2008 on the grounds of being ‘too experienced’; another potential break for Wallhead in Bellator’s 2010 Welterweight Contender Tournament was thwarted by the Eyjafjallajökull eruptions that rendered Wallhead unable to travel for the contest. With his short-notice defeat of MMA legend Frank Trigg at BAMMA 7, Wallhead’s star finally began to rise in the UK; though with a hefty record that included a string of first round victories at both Welterweight and Middleweight, Judo Jimmy had been proving his worth for a long time on the domestic scene. BAMMA 8 saw Wallhead return to demolish Joey Villasenor with flying knees and a spectacular KO finish. Judo Jimmy fought just once in 2012 at Bellator, which unfolded in a unanimous decision loss to Lyman Good. Looking to be considerably more active in 2012 at BAMMA, Jimmy Wallhead has signed up to a multi-fight deal.

Renowned for his "Fight of the Night" performance against former UFC Lightweight Champion Frankie Edgar, UFC veteran Matt Veach walks into the BAMMA cage with a professional record of 16-4-0. Hailing from Illinois in the United States, Veech comes from a Wrestling background and competed for 12 years to become a high school state placer, JuCo All-American and a D-1 NCAA qualifier. Veach’s last outing against a Brit was against Paul Kelly at UFC 112 to whom he lost to a Guillotine Choke, leading to his release from the promotion. He continues to train with Matt Hughes and Robbie Lawler at The HIT Squad, and went on to notch up a spate of wins before fighting with Canadian promotion, MFC. The majority of Veach’s victories have come via Submission. Veach steps up from Lightweight to Welterweight for BAMMA 12.

Jimmy Wallhead said:
“I feel Matt Veach is a strong opponent with a strong game, especially his takedown game, so I'm looking forward to the fight. He also has good experience fighting in the UFC so the fight excites me. As for being back on BAMMA, I'm buzzing! It's where I belong and where I've wanted to fight again for a long time. I just can't wait to get back in there and put on another exciting fight for the fans and can't wait to hear the crowd get behind me fighting back on UK soil.

” BAMMA’s Managing Director, Ashley Bothwell, said:
“Arguably the UK's number 1 Welterweight, Jimmy Wallhead has been on the edge of greatness for the past few years, with recent career highlights on BAMMA shows. We’re looking forward to see him continue on that roll of thrilling fights and are proud to welcome Judo Jimmy to our roster. We’re also excited to have an experienced, international name such as Matt Veach coming to BAMMA and he will pose a serious threat to Jimmy. We like to showcase fighters who take tough challenges and bring the fight. This match-up is going to be a fierce clash between two very experienced and highly skilled athletes, in which both will be pushed to their absolute limits.”

BAMMA 12 will feature on Channel 5 and 5* in the UK; and will be televised on AXS-TV in the US, The Fight Network in Canada, Red Media in Russia, TV Esporte Interativo in Brazil and Setanta in Africa. Follow @JudoJimmy and @BAMMAUK on Twitter

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