3 Long Islanders on the Ring of Combat 32 card
Middleweight Chris Weidman of Baldwin, trains with Ray Longo in Garden City. (Sept. 9, 2010) Credit: James Escher
Ring of Combat continues to be as solid a regional mixed martial arts promotion as there is. Lou Neglia's MMA promotion has sent more than 30 fighters to the UFC, the latest of which is Edson Barboza. (He fights at UFC 123 this Saturday.)
Among the list of RoC graduates into the UFC are former welterweight champion Matt Serra and current lightweight champion Frankie Edgar. The New Jersey-based company's next card -- Ring of Combat XXXII -- is set for Dec. 3, 2010, at the Tropicana Hotel.
On the card are three Long Islanders:
Baldwin's Chris Weidman (3-0), who is pictured above and trains with Ray Longo and Serra, defends his middleweight title against Valdir Araugo (2-1), a 28-year-old from Florida.
Levittown's Gian Villante (6-1), who fights out of Bellmore Kickboxing Academy with trainer Keith Trimble, returns from an elbow injury to fight Rory Singer, a Brooklyn-born 34-year-old.
Merrick's Constantinos Philippou (5-1), another Team Serra-Longo fighter, will fight Aungla Sang (1-0).