By Press Release

LAS VEGAS, Nevada – Resurrection Fighting Alliance (RFA) president Ed Soares announced today that there has been a change at the top of RFA 42, which is set to take place later this month in the San Joaquin Valley of central California. The main event of RFA 42 will now feature a showdown between former RFA lightweight champion Christos “The Spartan” Giagos and BJJ black belt Arthur Estrázulas. RFA 42 – Giagos vs. Estrázulas will take place Friday, August 19th at the Visalia Convention Center in Visalia, California. The entire main card will be televised live and nationwide on AXS TV at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT.

“Christos Giagos vs. Arthur Estrázulas is the new main event of RFA 42 on August 19th,” stated Soares. “Giagos was the first RFA lightweight champion and he’s looking to earn another shot at RFA gold. Estrázulas is an exciting BJJ black belt from Brazil. I’m looking forward to this headliner and our first trip to Visalia.”

Tickets for RFA 42 – Giagos vs. Estrázulas are available for purchase NOW through VisaliaTix.com or by calling (800) 640-4888.

Giagos (12-5) is the first man to ever win the RFA lightweight title. “The Spartan” captured the title two summers ago in the first sanctioned MMA main event in the state of South Dakota. Giagos won the title by landing a brilliant flying knee KO against Dakota Cochrane at RFA 17. The win immediately got Giagos signed to the UFC. His second fight for the UFC was a flawless victory over Jorge “Blade” de Oliveira in Brazil. The 26-year-old returned to the RFA in June with a spectacular first round KO win over former WEC star Karen Darabedyan.

UFC President Dana White, who was in attendance, had high praise for Giagos, when he spoke to Inside MMA correspondent Ron Kruck in a cageside interview on AXS TV after the bout. “Tonight it looked like he (Giagos) belongs back in the UFC,” stated White. “He looked great. He won in very devastating, exciting fashion.”

Estrázulas (8-2) is one of the top lightweight prospects training at the world-renowned Kings MMA camp under Master Rafael Cordeiro. The 27-year-old native of Porto Alegre, Brazil made a huge statement in his international MMA debut last October. He did this by submitting UFC vet Chris Tickle with a Triangle Choke in Las Vegas. The BJJ black belt followed up that win with a blistering first round KO win over Daniel Vasquez in the headliner of an event held in Bolivia. Estrázulas’ KO win over Vasquez came one week after Giagos’ KO win over Darabedyan in June and has set the table for their showdown in the main event of RFA 42 in two weeks.

The co-main event of RFA 42 will feature a high-stakes flyweight bout between a top undefeated prospect and a former regional flyweight champion. Ray Elizalde (10-0) made his RFA debut in June and showed the world why he is one of the top flyweight prospects in the sport. “The Bloodhound” smelled blood in the third round of an action-packed bout with Richard Alarcon and defeated the fellow undefeated prospect via TKO at RFA 38. This was the same event that Giagos won at and where UFC President Dana White was sitting cageside. Alex Perez (13-4) is Alarcon’s teammate and will be looking for revenge. Perez also hails from nearby Lemoore and will look to utilize his home crowd advantage and experience when he faces one of the top prospects in MMA.

The main card of RFA 42 is now set:

Main Event | Lightweight Bout (155 lbs)

Christos Giagos (12-5) vs. Arthur Estrázulas (8-2)

Co-Main Event | Flyweight Bout (125 lbs)

Ray Elizalde (10-0) vs. Alex Perez (13-4)

Lightweight Bout (155 lbs)

Anthony Avila (12-4) vs. Chris “Taco” Padilla (7-1)

Lightweight Bout (155 lbs)

Davi Ramos (4-1) vs. “Baby” Ray Cervera (9-5)

Flyweight Bout (125 lbs)

Shai Lindsey (4-1) vs. Steve Gruber (5-3)

Featherweight Bout (145 lbs)

Tommy Aaron (2-0) vs. Adin Duenas (4-1)

RFA 42 will be the promotion’s eighth event to take place in the “Golden State” of California and the first RFA event to be held in central California. The entire main card of RFA 42 – Giagos vs. Estrázulas will be televised live and nationwide on AXS TV at 10 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. PT on Friday, August 19th.

Please visit RFAfighting.com for bout updates and information. RFA is also on Facebook at Facebook.com/RFAfighting, Instagram at @RFAfighting, and Twitter at @RFAfighting.