Marlon Moraes Vacates WSOF Bantamweight Title
World Series of Fighting will be holding its next event (WSOF 35) in Verona, NY. The promotion announced on Friday that three titles would be on the line at the event. One of the titles that will be up for grabs at the event will be the bantamweight belt. However, long-time champion Marlon Moraes will not be defending it as he has vacated the title.
Moraes, the only bantamweight champion in WSOF history, has defended his strap five times over the course of his undefeated MMA career. He has long been considered one of the best fighters in the world and under the WSOF banner. Currently, Moraes is a free agent and is in negotiations with the UFC, according to Ariel Helwani of MMA Fighting. As of this writing, no deal has yet been finalized.
I want to thank @MMAWorldSeries for this amazing run and all of the support they've given me. @SugarRaySefo @WSOF_Kevin @csilva #grafeful #
— Marlon Moraes (@MMARLONMORAES) February 3, 2017
It appears that WSOF is expecting Moraes to leave the promotion as Timur Valiev (11-2) and Bekbulat Magomedov (17-1) will be fighting for the bantamweight title at the event. WSOF heavyweight champion Blagoy Ivanov (14-1) will defend the title against Shawn Jordan (19-7) in the main event. WSOF featherweight champion Lance Palmer (11-2) and Andre Harrison (15-0) will meet in the co-main event.
The event takes places on March 18 at the Turning Stone Resort Casino in Verona, NY.
