Rene Catalan is set for a mixed martial arts return as he faces rising prospect Eros Baluyot in the main event of URCC 87: Heroes this Tuesday, August 8, at the Xylo at the Palace in Bonifacio Global City in Taguig City.
This will be the first MMA fight for the Santa Barbara, Iloilo-native Catalan since he suffered a stoppage defeat to South African Bokang Masunyane in December 2020 in Singapore.
“This is my first time to fight in the URCC cage in my entire life. My dream of fighting here just finally happened,” said Catalan, who is eyeing to end a three-fight losing streak.
Baluyot, for his part, said he will not be intimidated by the 44-year-old Catalan, as he has used the past few weeks to study the moves of the Ilonggo MMA fighter.
“I am really well-prepared for this fight. I am so excited to face coach Rene because he is one of the legends of Philippine MMA. He already built that legacy in this sport, which is why I am really excited about our fight on Tuesday,” Baluyot said.
Catalan, who has a 6-5 record, is a three-time wushu world champion, a former MMA world title contender in other promotions, and also won multiple medals in the Southeast Asian Games.
The 30-year-old Baluyot, currently with a 2-0 win-loss slate, is a two-time International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation world champion and is currently considered one of the brightest talents in URCC.
“Awesome, awesome card that we’re going to have here, especially our main event. We have two world champions here going up against each other,” URCC president Alvin Aguilar said.
The co-main event features a grappling superfight between Godwin Langbayan and Red Samson, while another grappling bout features Troy Legaspi battling Paige Alitao.
The other pro MMA bouts feature Rex De Lara and Mhar John Manahan in the featherweights, Mark Cuizon and Rufino Mantein in the bantamweights, and Kerwin Tan and Marco Lampacan in the flyweights.
In amateur MMA, Paolo Cruz takes on Jerald Vellarde in a 150-pound catchweight bout, while there will also be a bareknuckle boxing showdown between Christian Panliag and Chris Cantos.
In special slap battle attractions, Milarde Hugo takes on Reynaldo Beltrano, Roldan Licame battles Gi-Jay Velasco, and Gerald Gabonada exchanges facial hits with Michael Azucena.
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