The migration of IFL fighters to Affliction continues today with the acquisition of 20-year-old standout Chris Horodecki.
Horodecki has but one blemish on his record and has a huge future in this business. He owns a 12-1 record and is a big time acquisition who will build toward the future.
Horodecki is a very good striker and half of his wins come by way of KO or TKO. His exciting style and quick hands and legs make for a big attraction. He should have an exciting career with Affliction. However Horodecki, is not the only standout to work his way into a big contract there.
Vladimir Matyushenko is another IFL star that has signed for top dollar in Affliction. Matyushenko may have been a breakout star in the IFL, but he is also a journeyman holding a 3-2 record in the UFC, beating greats like Yuki Kondo and Pedro Rizzo while losing to fellow Belarussian Andrei Arlovski and Tito Ortiz in his prime.
"The Janitor" took the IFL by storm going on a six-fight win streak. He should be an interesting dark horse seeing as his 21-3 record holds wins over Lil Nog, Kondo, and Rizzo. I am definitely looking for him to surprise people.
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Savant Young was another big time IFL prospect. With lightning quick strikes and a stout powerful frame, Young is a knockout waiting to happen.
Although he lost to Mark Hominick at Affliction: Banned, he has some amazing potential. He is quick and powerful. While not on the level of maybe a Guillard in the explosiveness category, he is a definite combustible element.
One of the more famous acquisitions from the IFL was heavyweight standout Ben Rothwell. Rothwell was one of the more feared heavies in the IFL, winning all nine of his fights, most notably against former UFC champ Ricco Rodriguez (Deja Vu).
He was also a loser at Banned, but managed to last until the third round with big time striker Andrei Arlovski. That is certainly something to take into account.
Lastly, IFL heavyweight champ Roy Nelson is rumored to be featured on the next Affliction card. This may make things interesting as Nelson is deceptively athletic for his build. His hands are definitely heavy, as is everything about Big Country. He is coming off of two first round TKO victories of Brad Imes and UFC vet, Fabiano Scherner. (Scherner is best remembered for being knocked out by Brandon Vera.) Either way, he is making his presence known to doubters of his skill. Bas Rutten is also a big believer in Nelson and is pushing for a bigger fight for him in the future.
So in the stream of IFL fighters fleeing their promotion for money and fame, there looms a question. Will the IFL go under? The answer: Probably not. But there sure will be fewer viewers.
On a side note, Affliction has reportedly talked with Denis Kang and Takanori Gomi about contracts. Boy would I love to see that.
Overall though, I wish the best to the IFL fighters, because although they may not have the big names, they have the big hearts.
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about 1 month ago
What a truly impressive article. Thank you for asking me to edit it for you, although I am not an editor and am still waiting for an edit on my last article. You are welcome to look at anyone who has edittedarticlesfor me and asking them for future edits to be sure you get the best bang for your bucks, or so to speak. And I look forward to readng more articles of yours in the future--great job!
about 1 month ago
""The Janitor" took the IFL going on a six-fight win streak." -- This sentence is messed up.
Very good article.
In my opinion though, most of those fighters from the IFL aren't going to do much. Maybe Horodecki or Young a few years from now... by which time I'm not expecting Affliction to be around anymore -- although I don't think I've seen Young fight yet so I can't say much. And you should have clearly stated in your article which weightclasses Horodecki and Young are in, imo.
from about 1 month ago
young is at 155 and horodecki is at 155 also
about 1 month ago
Yeah - all they need now is to merge with EliteXC.
from about 1 month ago
haha now that would be interesting!
about 1 month ago
I'm a big Horodecki fan. I think he's a very exciting fighter and has a big following. He should bring quite a following to Affliction. Who wouldn't like a fighter with a nickname like "The Polish Hammer"?
about 1 month ago
The Ufc has gotten some talent from the IFL as well. The Miller brothers, Andre' Gusmao, Rory Markham. Also two of the guys in the last season of TUF were at one point in the IFL. Dolce and Gerald Harris.
Good Article. I am excited what Horodecki can do against some better competition. I really wanted to see him fight Gomi and was disappointed when it fell thru.
from about 1 month ago
Right there with ya on that one. For one I just really want to see Gomi against some top competition. It's really too bad he isn't in Dream.
about 1 month ago
The picture you have up there creeps me out.
from about 1 month ago
haha yeah it is kind of a wierd picture, but fitting as I wrote this article after the Horodecki acquisition.
from about 1 month ago
Ditto.
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