Mayorga may face UFC vet Thomas in MMA debut

by Brian Henderson

Shine Fights has been on a shopping spree that has brought in such talents as Hector Lombard, Alexander Shlemenko, Ninja Rua and professional boxer Ricardo Mayorga. Lombard vs Alexandre Ferreira and a rematch of a Pride fight between Luiz Azeredo and Luiz Firmino have already been mentioned in yesterday's edition of Booked, but The Rumble has learned of additional fights planned for the card through sources close to the organization.

First, the big news: Ricardo Mayorga's opponent is expected to be Din Thomas. Sources close to the organization have confirmed that bout agreements have been drawn up and will be sent to the fighters. The fight will likely be contested at 160 pounds and Shine Fights is targeting March 2010 for the event with a couple of different possible locations under consideration.

Ricardo Mayorga has been the name under Shine's banner that has received the most attention due to his transition from professional boxing to mixed martial arts. Mayorga is a former WBA/WBC welterweight champion and former WBC junior middleweight champion with a professional boxing record of 28-7-1. He holds victories over Vernon Forrest, Andrew Lewis and Fernando Vargas, but is just 3-4 over his last seven boxing bouts with losses to Cory Spinks, Felix Trinidad, Oscar De La Hoya and Shane Mosley.

An American Top Team fighter, Thomas (24-8) is a very tough first opponent for Mayorga. Thomas is a UFC veteran and appeared on "The Ultimate Fighter" season four. After losing back-to-back fights in the UFC to Kenny Florian and Josh Neer, Thomas was released by the organization. He has gone on to win two fights since the release and had dropped from lightweight down to featherweight. Thomas is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt under Ricardo Liborio and holds victories over Jeremy Stephens, Clay Guida, Rich Clementi and Matt Serra in the UFC.

Also expected to be featured on the card will be a fight between Murilo "Ninja" Rua (17-10-1) and Falaniko Vitale (26-9).

Murilo Rua is the older brother of UFC light heavyweight contender Mauricio "Shogun" Rua. Rua established himself as a star of the Pride organization and is also a veteran of Dream, Strikeforce and EliteXC. He was the first ever EliteXC Middleweight champion.

Falaniko Vitale is a veteran of Strikeforce and the IFL in addition to the UFC. He holds notable wins over Yushin Okami, Dave Menne and Matt Lindland. Vitale is 5-2 over his last seven fights with the losses coming against Frank Trigg and Trevor Prangley.

Other fights rumored for the card include UFC veteran Nick Thompson (38-12-1) taking on fellow UFC veteran Danillo Villefort (10-3), WEC veteran Todd Moore (11-3) against Shine Fights veteran James Warfield (17-4) and Bitetti Combat veteran Fabio Maldonado (12-3) against Bellator veteran Daniel Tabera (13-2-3).

Shine Fights will be putting on just the third card in their existence, but they have steadily made a name for themselves through high profile signings and solid events. The Rumble interviewed Devin Price of Shine Fights prior to their last event; that interview can be found here.

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