Former UFC fighter and current American Fight League lightweight champion Diego Saraiva (11-6-1) will make his first title defense when he meets Hermes Franca's protégé Josh Cate (5-6) in the main event of"AFL: BULLETPROOF."
The AFL today announced the headline bout, which takes place May 30 at Atlanta's Phillps Arena.
Additionally, the organization announced that veteran fighters George Lockhart (7-2) and George Allen (12-14-1) will meet for the first-ever AFL middleweight title during the event.
The AFL, a Kentucky-based organization hoping to expand from a regional hit to a player on the national stage, has been on a recent shopping spree for talent. In addition to Saraiva, the organization recently signed UFC veteran and "The Ultimate Fighter 2" cast member Dan Christison (11-6) and former WEC and IFO fighter Chilo Gonzales (14-10). Additional signings are expected over the next couple weeks.
Saraiva, who defeated Joe Ammerman for the AFL title in March, will look to continue his success outside the UFC. The Atlanta-based fighter went 0-3 in the UFC in 2007, but he's a solid 11-3-1 outside the organization. He'll now take on Cate, a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt under Franca. The HOOKnSHOOT veteran competed primarily in the late 1990s before returning for one fight in 2006. He's lost four of his past five fights, but Saraiva said his record is deceiving.
"Josh is a phenomenal athlete with a misleading record," Saraiva stated. "He has really improved since the beginning on his career."
AFL CEO BJ Santiago played up the bout, as well.
"What makes this fight so intriguing is that Hermes Franca and Diego Saraiva are from the town of Fortaleza in Brazil," Santiago stated. "It's going to be interesting to see how all of this plays out."
The AFL event will be the first-ever mixed-martial-arts show approved by the Georgia Athletic and Entertainment Commission for Phillips Arena.
Also Diego Saraiva (11-6-1) will defend his PFC lightweight title for the first time against Bakersfield’s Brian Cobb (11-4) on Thursday May 8th at the Tachi Palace Casino in lemoore CA.
