Julio Pena (Photo Credit: Bennie Palmore)

By Press Release

Lion Fight Promotions has added a strong cast of talented of fighters including fan-favorite knockout artist “The Don” Julio Pena to the lineup for Lion Fight 29 coming up on Friday, May 27th at Foxwoods Resort & Casino in Mashantucket, Connecticut.

Pena (4-0) is coming off a spectacular knockout victory over Tim Amorim at Lion Fight 26, and he will look to keep his perfect record intact against lightweight hot prospect Travis Clay (1-0).

A deputy sheriff in Suffolk County, Pena is undefeated inside the Lion Fight ring, opening up his tenure with a unanimous decision victory over Matt Doherty at Lion Fight 19. Then came the stuff that made highlight reels spin.

At Lion Fight 20, Pena starched Tom Evans with a bullet right hand to earn a first-round knockout, and then at Lion Fight 26, Pena continued his path of devastation when he turned the lights out on Tom Amorim with a face-crushing spinning elbow for a blistering third-round knockout. That finish earned Pena a “Knockout of the Year” nomination from AXS TV Fights’ Inside MMA.

Clay made his own bold mark at Lion Fight 27 with a resounding triumph. The Chandler, Arizona, product brought the crowd to its feet on numerous occasions as he delivered a convincing upset win over former UFC competitor Jared Papazian. An early body-shot knockdown via a Clay knee was much of the difference as the scores were 49-46 from all three judges.

The Pena-Clay clash is one of three East Coast-West Coast rivalries that have been added to the main card of Lion Fight 29.
In a super lightweight bout, Asa Ten Pow (1-0), who hails from West Palm Beach Florida, will take on San Diego, California’s Marvin “The Mad Lion” Madariaga (5-1-1).

Ten Pow collected his first pro win at Lion Fight 28 when he stopped Turan Hasanov via TKO (doctor’s stoppage) at 47 seconds of the third round. Madariaga, who is originally from Kahului, Hawaii, will have a decided experience edge as in addition to his Muay Thai action, he has fought in mixed martial arts and trained at the famed Black House which produced former UFC champions Anderson Silva and Lyoto Machida.

The cross-country battles lines will further be drawn when welterweights Brian Del Rosario (4-2) of Van Nuys, California, and Philadelphia’s PJ Sweda (1-0) toe the line. Del Rosario (4-2) returns to the ring following his unanimous decision victory at Lion Fight 27 in a grudge match against Chris Culley.

Philadelphia will be further represented by rising star John Nofer (7-1) who will take on Jared Tipton (1-1), a 2014 WKA North American Kickboxing champion, in a featherweight battle.

Lion Fight 29 is topped by the return of the organization’s stellar super welterweight champion “Smokin” Jo Nattawut plus former lightweight champion Ognjen Topic squares off against onetime Lumpinee Stadium champion Dechsakda Sitsongpeenong.

Tickets for Lion Fight 29 are on sale now at www.foxwoods.com or by calling 800-200-2882 or by visiting the Foxwoods Box Offices.
The main card will air live on AXS TV Fights with a special start time of 9 p.m. ET / 6 p.m. PT. with commentary from renowned duo “The Voice” Michael Schiavello and UFC Hall of Famer Pat Miletich.

Please visit LIONFIGHT.com for news, information and event updates, and follow on Twitter @LIONFIGHT and @LionFightOfficial on Instagram.