David Branch Will Defend His Title Against Yushin Okami At WSOF 15
World Series of Fighting middleweight champion David Branch will get the chance to defend his title against a fellow UFC veteran this October 24, as WSOF president Ray Sefo confirmed that Yushin Okami will is scheduled as the first man to challenge the new champion. Branch snatched the inaugural title against Jesse Taylor at WSOF 10 with a first round submission win.
Taylor was, until that point, undefeated since 2012. Branch has only ever lost to current and former UFC competitors, and sports a 14-3 record heading in to the bout with ‘Thunder’. Okami had a three fight win streak ended in the UFC when he was knocked out by Ronaldo ‘Jacare’ de Souza back in 2013. His subsequent release raised a few eyebrows at the time.
Although outclassed by ‘Jacare’, the Japanese Judo black belt vowed to continue, and scored a second round submission win over Svetlozar Savov in his promotional debut at WSOF 9. The win moved ‘Thunder’ to 30-8 for the title fight with Branch, but Okami has arguably the better resume as well as the experience edge.
While fighting for the UFC, Okami beat Alan Belcher twice, Mike Swick, Evan Tanner, Mark Munoz, Dean Lister and Hector Lombard to name a few. His hopeless effort against Anderson Silva at UFC 134, and crushing TKO loss to Tim Boetsch at UFC 144 showed that ‘Thunder’ just wasn’t championship material anymore, at least in the UFC anyway.
So the Gracie Jiu-Jitsu fighter David Branch will take on Team Quest’s Yushin Okami, in an event that is yet to be attached to a venue. Both fighters are similar age (Branch 32, and Okami 33), but ‘Thunder’ has the experience and competitive calibre on his side. Will Okami taste title glory for WSOF, if so, perhaps a call from the UFC is on the cards?
