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They say "okay the first time, but twice as nice the second time". We're about to see if that's true for Chase Sherman.
"The Vanilla Gorilla" will return to the Octagon for the first time since September 2018, riding a 3 fight losing streak. When the heavyweight was released he went back to the regional circuit and also fought for BKFC. There, Sherman quickly climbed the ladder and picked up the BKFC Heavyweight title and the Police Gazette Bare Knuckle title in front of his legion of hometown Mississippi fans. He edged out Arnold Adams via unanimous decision.
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Will second time be the charm for Chase Sherman?
Many fans called for a quick rematch with another opponent; Sam Shewmaker. But that never materialized. It was an absolute war that went into the books as a split draw. As fast as he won the belts though, he lost them in a hard fought battle with fellow former UFC fighter Joey Beltran. Usually UFC contracts are exclusive and it's not known if he'd still be allowed to fight for BKFC.
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Sherman's UFC return makes him the second real life firefighting hero in the heavyweight division; the other being reigning champion Stipe Miocic. With the UFC unable to have international fighters on cards, former roster spot holders will probably get the first calls. On May 13th, the 30-year-old fan favorite takes on Ike Viillanueva.
Although Ike didn't fight in 2018, his last 4 fights were 1st round TKO's for Fury FC. Three of which were in 2019. Ike's also moved from middleweight to light heavyweight. Against "UFC style competition" the regional fighter picked up and defended the Fury FC light heavyweight strap against Roger Narvaez, and Rashard Coulter respectively.
This might very well be a one-off for one of these two knock out finishing warriors. But don't blink because one may go to sleep quickly.
Make sure to catch the high-octane action coming your way from a superbly stacked UFC 249 card on May 9.
