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In between all of the big events from the major MMA organizations comes another big event from the Resurrection Fighting Alliance. RFA 25 will be headlined by a pair of title bouts in both the featherweight and middleweight divisions respectively. Also, Bellator MMA veteran Larue Burley makes his RFA debut and longtime MMA veteran Abel Cullum is in action.
Main Card
Main Event
RFA Featherweight Title Fight
Justin “The American Kid†Lawrence (6-2-0) (Champion) vs. “Super†Sam Toomer (9-0-0-1NC)
Lawrence will be making the first defense of his championship, which he won by defeating Mark Dickman at RFA 17. Toomer has already won two bouts under the RFA banner, defeating both Daniel Aguiar and Altair Alencar. Lawrence has been undefeated since getting released from the UFC, which came after a loss to Daniel Pineda at the UFC Ultimate Fighter 17 Finale. Toomer actually has one of the oddest wins in MMA history, his victory over Daniel Aguiar at RFA 15 came via disqualification after Aguiar refused to get up from a seated position and the referee disqualified him. Lawrence is a top fighter on the feet, but he is horrendous on the ground, which is where Toomer will take it to submit Lawrence and win the championship.
Co-Main Event
RFA Middleweight Title Decision Fight
Gabriel “Zangief†Checco (8-1-0) vs. Francisco “Kiko†France (11-3-1)
Checco will be looking to build on the momentum of his first RFA victory, which came over Joseph Henle at RFA 23. France is currently undefeated under the RFA banner, defeating both Isaac Appel and Mikey Gomez respectively. Checco has already fought nine times as a professional and none of those bouts have gone past the second round. France will enter the fight riding a four fight winning streak, he also holds a victory over UFC veteran James McSweeney. France has the best ground game out of any fighter in the RFA, he submits Checco in the third to take the gold home.
RFA Flyweight Division Fight
Abel “The Silent Assassin†Cullum (20-6-0) vs. Josh “The Rage†Rave (21-11-0-1NC)
Cullum is currently undefeated in RFA competing and he has only competed two times in the last four years. Rave will be returning to the RFA for the first time in three years, having won three of four fights in between appearances. Cullum has seen a career resurgence since his return to action in 2014, Cullum submits Rave in the first to win his third straight.
RFA Lightweight Division Fight
LaRue “The Cannibal†Burley (5-0-0) vs. TJ “The Carnivore†Hepburn (4-0-0)
Burley will be making his RFA debut in this fight, but he pulled a huge upset in 2013 when he defeated Bubba Jenkins at Bellator 100. Hepburn will be returning to RFA competition after a year’s absence and only one of his professional MMA bouts went to a decision. Burley is a good wrestler with good striking, but he uses that wrestling game to get the decision over Hepburn.
RFA Welterweight Division Fight
Jarrod L’Heureux (7-1-0) vs. Jordon Larson (5-1-0)
L’Heureux will be making his RFA debut in this fight and he will be doing so on the strength of a seven fight winning streak. Larson is currently undefeated in RFA competition and he already holds a win over L’Heureux, which happened at Optimum Fighting Championships I in 2010. L’Heureux has vastly improved since the initial meeting and he shows his vastly superior ground game to submit Larson and get revenge.
RFA Light Heavyweight Division Fight
Cameron Olsen (2-0-0-1NC) vs. Khalil “The War Horse†Rountree (2-0-0)
Olsen will be making his RFA debut in this bout and he has yet to see any of his professional MMA fights go past the second round. Rountree has spent his entire career thus far under the RFA banner, last defeating Blake Troop at RFA 21. Olsen has the better submission game when compared to Rountree at this stage of their careers, Olsen gets a submission in the second round.
Preliminary Card
Devin Clark over Jaquis Williams
Devin Turner over Matt Lopez
