Shamrock 320 Preview: Zekthi looks to make a statement
The 4th of July may be over, but fireworks will be on display at Ameristar Casino in St. Charles, Missouri as Shamrock Fighting Championships returns this Saturday night with an incredible card.
Bantamweights will be front and center for the Main Event as Horacio Escobar (5-2) faces off against fan favorite Erion Zekthi (3-1). Escobar comes into the contest looking to once again pick up a victory inside the Shamrock FC cage having won his last via submission. Zekthi returns to the cage for the first time since December of 2017. FightBook MMA caught up with the always confident “Albanian One” ahead of Saturday’s Main Event tilt.
What can fans expect come Saturday night?
“A more patient, mature Erion. I don’t need to prove anything I already know how this fight will play out. They can expect perfection.”
You are much known for your trash talking. Is that something for yourself or to get inside your opponent’s head?
“Honestly I could give a fuck less about a mental edge or any of that shit. I don’t consider what I say to be trash talk. This is what own I think. I say what I feel. I don’t make shit up or play a role. I simply have the balls to speak my mind and the heart to own every word spoken.”
Oozing confidence ahead of Saturday night. What’s the outcome you’re visualizing?
“There’s not a man on this planet that believes in himself as I do. Second round finish. I’ll know if it’s a KO or sub after round one. It depends on Horacio, to be honest. How he wants to go out.”
This contest will be fun from bell to bell.
The Co-Main Event will be a kickboxing bout featuring Darryl Cobb taking on Shahriar Zolfashari. Cobb a savvy veteran with good hands and relentlessness will for sure put on a show regardless of the outcome. Chicago’s Zolfashari earned a knockout victory the last time he stepped into the Shamrock FC cage. This has the makings of a FightBook MMA fight of the night nominee.
Lightweights will go to work as Garrett Wells (2-2) squares off with Kevin Mueller (0-1). Wells will look to make it three in a row inside the Shamrock FC cage. Mueller will be looking for redemption having suffered a nineteen-second knockout loss in his pro debut. This fight will make it’s way to the ground and probably finish there as well.
Jump-starting the professional portion of the card will be Flyweights Kris Craig (1-0) pitted against Jason Stevenson (debut) After a successful pro debut Craig looks to remain unbeaten. Stevenson will look to make a splash in the Flyweight division to kick start his pro career. This matchup will be a fun one. Craig is the more seasoned of the two, but Stevenson’s no quit attitude and power make this an intriguing contest.
Highlighting the amateur portion of the card will be a virtual title eliminator in the Welterweight division as Dustin Ventimigla (4-0) throws down with Jason Garvil (3-1). Ventimigla shared some of his thoughts on this matchup a few days ago with FightBook MMA. While confident in his skill set he has yet to face an opponent the caliber of Garvil. Aside from a first fight loss, Garvil is much in the same boat and that makes this matchup a FightBook MMA fight of the night nominee. The best part of this matchup is that it could legitimately end anywhere.
There are plenty of great matchups throughout the rest of the card that can be found below or watch live on flocombat.com
Full card: (Subject to change):
Erion Zekthi vs Horacio Escobar
Darryl Cobb vs Shahriar Zolfaghari – Kickboxing
Garrett Wells vs Kevin Mueller
Kris Craig vs Jason Stevenson
Jason Garvil vs Dustin Ventimiglia
James Bailey vs Jesse Martinelli
Kory Beck vs Richard Jones
Adrienne Archey vs Priscilia Lay
Jackson Henson vs Korey Kitchell
Amethyst DePeter vs Phylicia Phillips
Kevin Arnold vs Toby Gvillo
Arvin Mills vs Tyler Roussin
Josh Mitchell vs Logan Miller
Nathan Murray vs Ted Clark
