Josh Barnett vs. Andrei Arlovski to headline Affliction: “Day of Reckoning”
August 4, 2008 by Adam Morgan
Affliction has officially announced that top ten heavyweights Andrei Arlovski and Josh Barnett are set to face off against one another at Affliction’s October 11 event entitled “Day of Reckoning.” The event will take place in Las Vegas, Nevada at the Thomas & Mack Center on the campus of UNLV.
FiveOuncesOfPain.com was the first to break this story on Friday night, revealing that a tentative bout between Arlovksi and WAMMA heavyweight champion Fedor Emelianenko was likely to be scrapped due to a hand injury sustained by Fedor. We were also the first site to report the replacement main event featuring Arlovski vs. Barnett.
Arlovski is coming off an impressive TKO victory over Ben Rothwell at Affliction: “Banned,” while Barnett recorded a TKO victory over on the same show. Affliction is staying true to its plan to have the best heavyweights in the world go head to head with one another and this bout will be no different.
Tickets for the event go on sale Wednesday at 10 a.m.
I really like Afflictions Marketing of their events. they make it very dramatic and almost like you’re watching a movie preview.
Personally I’m excited for this bout, but at the same time I think it’s a little crazy to put these two against each other. Either man deserves their shot at Fedor but now who ever loses drops their stream they had building up. Either way I’ll still be watching because I think this will be a really close fight.
u think fedor hurt his hand at the amusement park he was at after his fight with Tim?
isn’t this like the third time that fedor has hurt his hand?
1st time - lead to the interim pride hw match between cro cop and nog
2nd time - pulling out of the open weight gp
Fedor. Hit to the body man
Its softer.
I have my money on the Pitbull (TKO),
I am a Barnett fan but he is much slower then he was a few years ago and I dont think he will withstand the pace of the Arlovski
Arlovski DESTROYED Rothwell… If that same Arlovski fights Barnett it should be a WAR!
Winner Gets Fedor!?
Tim Sylvia vs Ben Rothwell 2?
I like this matchup. I’d like it even better if we were assured that Affliction would still be around for a 3rd card w/ Fedor.
Its a good match up but a disappointment nonetheless. I’ll watch certainly, but without the genuine excitement of seeing Fedor fight again.
have to agree with steak_knife and DocWagner. we need to see Fedor.
E, yeah, what is up with Fedor’s hand all the time? The dude is punching too hard! I think he broke it doing gnp before when he missed and punched the floor with massive force. Maybe he should consider switching to palm strikes when he’s aiming for the head.
i hope the undercard is on hdnet
This is a good match up that creates drama for a fight between the winner and Fedor. Knowing that the winner gets Fedor creates more interest for this fight than if one or both of them fought and lost against Fedor first.
As far a predictions go, Barnett has the advantage. His stand up is good and so is his ground game, which could be better than Arlovski’s. Arlovski looked great against Rothwell, but Rothwell is one-dimensional and no threat on the ground. Arlovski knew that and could be more aggressive. I don’t think he can or will be that aggressive with Barnett.
“Affliction is staying true to its plan to have the best heavyweights in the world go head to head with one another and this bout will be no different.”
No shit since that’s all they have. they better hope that massive injuries dont ever hit one of their cards.
Those affliction preview commercials were awesome. The production value on them was insane. Like guys headbutting through glass, Babalu looking all demon, Fedor smiling politely.
They should show those all over the place.
Maybe they should do more PR for this event than they did for the last one..
Too Bad… I hope fedor’s hard heals soon. Anyway, this is a good match up. BUT I’ll go for Barnett. He’ll finish this fight with one of his wicked ankle locks… hehehe. But to be honest, I was looking forward for a Fedor/Arlovski fight… guess I’ll have to wait a little bit longer.
without fedor is like elitexc with no kimbo-they will lose even more $. ufc dosen’t need to counter. affliction r.i.p. in less than a year.
If they do sign Tito and he fights Bobalu it will sell tickets
The odds are stacked against Affliction. They can’t afford to have injuries or their company and all their aspirations will go up in smoke. Tito and Babalu are no longer relevant fighters. They are no longer headliners
bring frank shamrock……………