It looks like the TKO organization is stepping back into the international market with one of the biggest fights in their history. In the main event we will see homegrown talent David “The Crow” Loiseau stepping up big time to face one of the living legends of the sport of Mixed Martial Arts, Jeremy “Gumby” Horn. The rest of the card includes TKO stalwarts Steve “The Lionheart” Vigneault, Mark "The Machine” Hominick, Kyle Sandford, Stephan “The Rude boy” Potvin, and new blood, such as Chris Fontaine, Bill Mahood, and the much anticipated MMA debut of Nova Uniao Black belt Mark Bocek. With the TKO debut of arguably the best Light Heavyweight fighter in Canada, "Butcher" Bill Mahood making his TKO debut, the MMA debut of Jiu Jitsu black belt Mark Bocek, TKO 15 has a lot of hype to live up to. Will Bocek be able to transpose his incredible success on the Jiu Jitsu circuit, to the mixed martial arts scene? Will Bill Mahood be able to take his impressive record, and his status as the best Light Heavyweight in Canada, to the TKO arena and set up a match with the TKO Light heavyweight champion Patric Cote? Will Steve “The Lionheart” Vigneault be able to overcome the mental anguish of losing by knockout for the first time in his career, on top of losing one of his championship belts? And last but not least will the local boy David "The Crow" Loiseau be able to redeem his disappointing loss to Rivera at UCF 44, and stop the man that so few have been able to stop before? TKO 15 “Unstoppable” is just around the corner, and we will soon find the answers to all these questions and more come February 28th. The countdown has begun.

David Loiseau Vs Jeremy Horn
World Middleweight Championship

There is no doubt about it; this is by far the biggest, most important fight in the young career of the “Crow”, David Loiseau. It is bigger then the fight that got him into the UFC against UFC veteran Anthony Fryklund, it is bigger then his first fight in the UFC against Mark Weir, and bigger then his unimpressive loss to Jorge Rivera in his second UFC showdown. This fight will be the litmus test that definitively proves or disproves what many have been talking about, but few outside Montreal have seen. Loiseau is putting it all on the line against the biggest challenge of his young career against Jeremy Horn. With respect to all the past opponents of his short career, no one comes close to the stature of one of the backbones of arguably the greatest MMA team in the world in Team Miletich Fighting Systems. Loiseau is coming off the two highest profile fights of his career, a big K.O Victory over Mark Weir at the UFC 42 event in Miami, and a stunning loss to Jorge Rivera via decision at UFC 44 in Las Vegas Nevada. In the opinion of his manager, many things went wrong for Loiseau before and during that fight, but he makes no excuses for his performance, and steps up against the biggest challenge of his MMA career. Jeremy Horn is no stranger to the fans of MMA and he will be stepping into the TKO arena for the 3rd time in his storied career. Truly one of the landmarks of the sport, Horn will be breaking some new ground facing the toughest challenge of his new 185-pound career. Spending the bulk of his career at 205 pounds and even heavyweight, he will make his third career 185 pound appearance. The first was an expected victory over an unknown William Hill at an Extreme Challenge event, and the second a draw with well traveled James Zikic in Europe. On paper this fight looks like a mismatch with one of, if not the most experienced top rank competitor in the world of MMA, dropping down a weight class and fighting a young gun with less then ten percent of his total fights! To overlook Loiseau would be a mistake however, as he is a talent that has shown knockout power and the ability to finish quality opponents, in fact, he has defeated several of Horn’s “Team Extreme” teammates including Jesse Jones at UCC 11 and Anthony Fryklund atUCC 12. Without a doubt, he wields some of the most devastating hands of the 185 division, many industry pundits feel that at the best of times, Loiseau is the best boxer at 185 pounds. He boasts an interesting, and unique array of offensive tools, most of which branch off from his hands. It is his Mui Thai mixed in with his boxing, which he works on with the legendary Otis Grant, that separates his offensive tools from the rest. He is one of the best at mixing in elbows, knee’s and punches in standing combinations, which he unloads with uncanny fluidity. He throws the elbows and knee’s in his stand up arsenal like boxers mix in hooks, and uppercuts, to their punching combinations. Loiseau will clearly have the edge in the standup department, but just as he has the edge in the standup, Horn has an equal or greater edge in experience and ground skills. His workmanlike ground game is his bread and butter, and part of the reason that some critics chastise his somewhat methodical approach. He is not flashy on the ground like a Genki Sudo, and does not gamble with position, but there is no doubt that he is a winner. His trademark flexibility and sound positional game have been the backbone of his storied career, and he will be looking to take this fight to the mat at his soundest opportunity. He has improved his standup dramatically, flashing some of that in his 185 debut against Hill, but it is unlikely that he will play with fire and decide to participate in the boxing game with hand speed of Loiseau. Horn has a solid arsenal of takedowns that will test the strong wrestling background of Loiseau and the classic Striker vs. Grappler match up will be reborn when these two giants clash in the main event. Expect the house to come down when “The Crow” walks out to the ring in his hometown, with the 185 lb career of Horn, along with another shot at the big show for the Crow on the line, expect the best from both competitors. The wait begins and the countdown is on for February 28th.

Steve Vigneault Vs Chris Fontaine
Canadian Middleweight Championship Bout

Steve Vigneault’s claim to fame is that he is the only fighter ever to hold two belts in two different weight divisions in the TKO organization, carrying the Canadian Middleweight and Light heavyweight belts simultaneously. That is history now, and he is coming off the only K.O loss of his career, and the emotionally scarring loss of one of his coveted belts, losing his Light Heavyweight crown to Patric Cote. Many felt that fighting in the Light Heavyweight class was a dangerous gamble for the obvious middleweight and it certainly proved to be so. He is an emotional fighter that fights on heart, as much as he fights with technique and skill, and with the emotional K.O loss still fresh in his mind, his state of mind is unsure. He will not be taking an easy fight to pad his record or redeem his confidence, he will instead step in against another very dangerous foe in Chris Fontaine. One of the main stable mates of rising Canadian middleweight talent Joe Doerkson, Fontaine will be making the most high profile appearance of his career. He will be facing off in a title fight, in a high profile organization, against the highest profile fighter of his career. Fontaine’s is a fighter that is better then his record would have you believe, we all know fighters records can be deceiving, and by all accounts he is much better then his sub par record shows on paper. He fought a valiant fight against Shane Biever at MFC 5 “Sweet Redemption” back in 2002, [ A Full Review with Pictures of this event can be found HERE…] and although he lost that fight he showed what kind of heart, the then out of shape, Fontaine possessed. Since then, he has changed his physique 100% and looks like a totally different fighter then he did when he faced Biever. His desire and his willingness to step in against the toughest of the tough has been proven, and he will need to bring it all against the striking prowess, and unwincing heart of Steve Vigneault. The Lionheart’s boxing should be superior to that of Fontaine’s and he will most likely be looking to keep the fight standing up, or at the very least, keep himself in the top position if it goes to the ground. Vigneault has shown a vastly improved sprawl of late, and he will be difficult to get to the mat, but if Fontaine can get him there, that is where he may capitalize. Vigneault’s two losses to Pierson were a direct result of being taken down and grounded and pounded, so that is an area that Fontaine will likely try to exploit. Although, to be fair, those two fights were the second and third fights of his MMA career and were long before he took MMA seriously. Whether Fontaine is able to get him there or not will surely decide the fight. Standing and boxing with the iron chinned, and iron willed Vigneault will be suicide for almost every TKO fighter, with the exception of maybe David Loiseau. Vigneault will have the edge in experience having fought in the TKO ring many times before, and having faced tougher competition then Fontaine has ever faced, names the likes of David Loiseau, and Jermaine Andre. The clash of styles that the whole card is seems to be built around should be a recipe for nothing less then a knock down drag out war. Vigneault is a crowd favorite and the fans will be behind him when he walks out to the ring, so no matter what happens expect an exciting fight, with the vocal crowd into the action from bell to final bell.

Bill Mahood Vs Yan Pellerin
Lightheavyweight #1 Contendership

At long last, “Butcher” Bill Mahood is finally in the TKO mix, and will be taking on the tough as nails Quebec native Yan Pellerin. Mahood had been rumored to be fighting on TKO cards for the past several shows, and will be making his long awaited debut for an organization he has said has been a dream for him to compete on. He comes in with the highest credentials of any current Canadian Light Heavyweight, but will have no easy task ahead of him. Yan Pellerin is coming off a big first round win over Cameron Brown, grounding and pounding his way to an impressive win over the Gibson Pankration product that is in fact a shared opponent. Mahood faced Brown on two occasions in the past, once in the Ultimate Ring Challenge where he knocked him out, and once at WFF 4, grinding out an entertaining, and hard fought draw. The “Mountain of Mayhem”, Chris Peak, is another shared opponent that both fighters stopped in the first rounds, in somewhat similar fashion. Pellerin is a very strong fighter that has had problems with conditioning in the past, one of the big reasons he lost to current TKO Canadian light heavyweight champion Patric Cote. This fight is a title contender’s match and the winner will get his shot against Cote who currently holds the title, and is not fighting on the card due to other commitments. Mahood has only one “real” loss on his record, a somewhat controversial submission loss to Jason MacDonald, a man that also defeated Pellerin with relative ease in under one round. Mahood went on to avenge his loss to MacDonald, and claim his title as best light heavyweight in Canada. Both Pellerin and Mahood are well known for putting on some of the most exciting fights of the night so there are high expectations for this bout as well. Pellerin hits like a truck, and Mahood has a cast iron jaw so it should be a tasty recipe for an entertaining fight. If Pellerin is going to win the fight he will need to do so in the first round. He has the punching power to take out most fighters, but in the past, his conditioning has proven to be less then impressive as the fight goes down the stretch. Mahood would do well to push the fight into the later rounds, and should have what it takes to pick up the pace as the fight goes further into the second and third stanzas. It seems absurd that a fighter with Mahood’s credentials should have to fight to become a number one contender, rather then step right up into the title fight, but with Cote unable to compete on the card anyways, a “keep them busy” fight makes a lot of sense here. On the same WFF 4 card where Mahood drew with Brown, the only fight that was more exciting was the Yan Pellerin Vs Ulysses Castro Fight. As long as both these fighters do what they have done in the past, blood sweat and tears should fly, and someone will hit the canvass hard. Very hard.

Mark Hominick Vs David Gui Gui

Mark Hominick is back on track. Riding a high, coming of a huge win over Lance Gibson product Ryan Diaz, he will be looking to stretch his winning streak to two after suffing 3 disheartening consecutive losses. He had been stuck in a rut of late and rolled off 3 consecutive losses to Superbrawl veteran Stephan Palling, Team Elite member Mike Brown (who will be taking on Genki Sudo at the UFC 47), and Tommy Lee (No not that Tommy Lee), respectively, two of which ended early in the first round. Three straight losses could have crippled the psyche of many young fighters, but Hominick stepped up against a tough opponent his first fight back, and his win has put him back in the drivers seat. It is ironic that in his 3rd title defense, he will be taking on an opponent that on paper, may have the least credentials of any of his Canadian superlightweight title defenses. David Gui Gui has had an up and down career and his 5-5 record certainly reflects it. He is a strong Jiu Jitsu practitioner with some experience, and is coming into this title fight on the strength of a victory over Steve “The Snake”Claveau, a man that Hominick stopped convincingly in under two rounds back at UCC 11. Gui Gui defeated Claveau in a rather dry 2 round decision on a preliminary bout at TKO 13, and he now makes the jump, not only the main card, but a title opportunity no less. I guess one win over Steve Claveau, a man that has a record of 1-4, and winning only one fight, in his only fight, in almost two years is enough to push him into a title shot situation. Many people are wondering what exactly he did to deserve this title shot, but to be fair few people in the TKO organization deserve the shot, it may be more of a “best of the rest” situation with no clear cut contender at this point in time. Hominick with has solid takedown defense and quick footspeed should be able to keep this fight on the feet where he will be most effective. His speed, skill, and accuracy on his feet are unmatched at his weight, and his cardio is legendary. Few people in the world can go as hard, for as long, and when you see him in action, it is clear where he gets the nickname “The Machine”: His weakness will be on the ground and that is where Gui Gui will be looking to strike, but Hominick has shown the ability to survive and get back to his feet in efficient fashion. He even has one submission victory on his resume, a slick armbar over one of Claveau’s students Stephane Laliberte. There is no doubt that if he gets taken down, he will be looking for anyway back to his feet, there he will be most dangerous while simultaneously keeping his opponent out of his comfort zone. Gui Gui is long and lean and will have a substantial reach advantage but it will not help him in the stand up against Hominck’s kickboxing tools. He is much too sharp on the feet and should have his way with Gui Gui from the get go punishing him whenever he tries shoots, and wearing him down as the fight progresses. Hominick will be the favorite, very few fighters deserved a shot at the 145 crown at this point, and it could be argued the Gui Gui is no different. Having said that, Gui Gui is a competitor, and should make for a game opponent for the talented Shawn Thompkins protégé, but whatever you do, don’t blink.

Kyle Sandford Vs Stephan Potvin

Young ground specialist Kyle Sanford is stepping up in competition big time. With the exception of Jeff Joslin, his list of opponents is less then impressive and he will be making the biggest jump up in competition in his career. Sandford is as talented as they come and has been impressive in his four TKO appearances, the only blemish on his record being a K.O loss, ironically coming at the hands of fellow ground fighter Jeff Joslin. The loss to Joslin, who is one of the brightest stars in the Canadian MMA scene, is hardly something to be ashamed of, but if he chooses to stand and trade with Potvin like he did with Joslin, this will be a very short fight. Stephan Potvin is a slugger and hits as hard as any 185er in the TKO organization save David Loiseau. He has proven his worth in the ring defeating game fighters such as Amir Ranivardhi by punch K.O, Joe Doerkson by decision, and Ronald “The Machine Gun” Jhun by submission. He will have the sizable edge in experience, and his ring time against top opponents will be a big plus, but Sandford has wrestled with Potvin in the past and feels he has the edge on the ground. Sandford is a ground specialist, that is no secret, his three wins in the TKO ring have all come by submission. He has long lanky limbs that are perfect for certain choke submissions that he has used to finish several of his opponents in the past. Sandford will need to take this fight to the ground in order to find success, there is no chance for him to win on the feet, and Potvin will want to do the opposite. The last time Potvin faced a good ground fighter he was dominated by Denis Kang, who is much more experienced in all aspects of MMA then Sandford, but his fate in that fight could be an omen of things to come if he gets taken down. The young Sandford will be looking to take the next step in his gradual movement up the Canadian 185 Middleweight ladder and will have to go through the gritty Potvin to get there. This fight will either see the young Sandford take the next critical step in his evolution into the top 185 that many people believe he can be, or the first step back into contendership for the veteran Potvin who has been on a slide of late. Either way it is doubtful this fight will go the distance, and while it last it should be an entertaining clash of styles.

Mark Bocek Vs Mark Colangelo

The long awaited debut of one of the first Jiu Jitsu black belts in the history of Canada is a story in itself and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu black belt Mark Bocek will butt heads with Renzo Gracie purple belt Mark Colangelo. Bocek is a Nova Uniao Black belt that recently got his black belt from Joao Roque after spending some time in Brazil. He is not only stepping into the TKO ring for the first time in his career, he will be fighting in an MMA competition for the first time in his career. It will be a challenge for him to step in against a guy that has been there before, as Colangelo will be fighting in his 5th MMA fight and Bocek in his first, although he is technically at a higher Jiu Jitsu belt ranking then Colangelo, his lack or ring experience could be a major factor in the fight. TKO/UCC veteran Mark Colangelo has 4 fights to his name, two losses, and two wins. The first loss being to fellow card-mate Jonathan Goulet, losing via armbar, and the second to Canadian Olympic wrestling hopeful Sean Pierson, losing by armbar a second time. He is coming off a win in his last fight, but he hasn’t fought in over a year. Will Bocek be able to use his extensive Jiu Jitsu experience to over come his lack of experience in the ring? While Colangelo only has four fights on his MMA resume, some ring experience is certainly better then none at all, and it will be sizeable hurdle for Bocek to overcome. Will the young 22 year old Jiu Jitsu Phenom be able to translate his success on the jiu Jitsu mat, into that of the MMA ring? The battle of the two Jiu Jitsu men should be an interesting bout, and the winner of this fight should be well on his way to a future shot at the Canadian championship belt.

Kajan Johnson Vs Stephane Dube

At the tender age of 19 years old, “Ragin” Kajan Johnson is already a seasoned MMA veteran, with over 10 full fledged MMA bouts to his name. He has already accomplished more then some fighters a decade his senior, and although he has his fair share of losses on his record, he has faced off against tough competition early in his career. There is little shame in fighting and losing to the ultra talented two time UFC veteran Josh “The Punk” Thomson, stepping in and taking him late into the second round as a then 17 year old is nothing to be ashamed of. Johnson’s last foray into the TKO arena was a controversial loss to George St Pierre product, Thierry Quenneville, losing by decision in a fight that many people had going the other way. Stephane Dube is also a George St Pierre counterpart and is coming off a loss to the Canadian Lightweight champion Dave Goulet in one of the best back and forth action packed fights of 2003. At thirty-eight years of age Dube is surprisingly fit and when he steps in the ring no one will know he is 38, his physique truly defies his age. He is the older of the two fighter by 18 years, almost double that of Johnson, and has only one fight to his name, the aforementioned loss to Goulet. On paper, he looks to be the major underdog, having said that, his strong performance against the undefeated Canadian Lightweight champion Dave Goulet proved his worth in the ring. His strong Jiu Jitsu work will be what he relies on in this fight against the taller and more striking friendly opponent. Johnson has worked hard on his sprawl and it should be good enough to keep Dube’s takedowns at bay, but Dube is crafty and seems to finds ways to impose his will, even in difficult situations. If Johnson stays within his game and steps out of the guard whenever he has his opportunity he will have a good opportunity to keep the fight in his zone of strength. The classic striker Vs grappler match-up is here again, and the fighter who will be able to best keep the fight in their element of strength will be the one to take this fight. While neither of them are household names, this fight has the potential to be the best of the night.

In other action TKO action…

Phillip Lagace Vs Thierry Quenneville

Both of these fighters will be making their second TKO appearances. In their last times out, Lagace lost badly to Antonio Carvalho in one of the worst beatings of 2003, and Quenneville off a controversial win over Kajan Johnson via decision. With a combined 6 fights between them both, neither fighter will have the huge edge in experience and both should be looking to win impressively to take the next step in their fighting careers.

Alex Gasson Vs Jonathan Goulet

Neither of these fighters have impressive records, but both are game competitors who leave everything they have in the ring. They have one common opponent and that is Jiu Jitsu phenom Jeff Joslin. Gasson lost to Joslin badly at TKO 13, barely getting a shot off before getting mauled by Joslin, Goulet on the other hand is actually coming of a very controversial decision win over Joslin, that many felt he lost convincingly. Both are coming in on the heel of wins and won’t be looking to add another loss their records. Goulet has been in against some of the toughest of the tough losing badly to Tony Fryklund, and Brendan Seguin so he should have an edge in the experience department. How far that will take him is unknown. Any way it happens, neither fighter will back down and should prove their gamely nature when they meet at the center of the ring.

Todd Gouwenberg Vs Marc Cambier

With so few competing Heavyweight fighters, the Canadian Heavyweight division will get a much needed shot in the arm when these two fighters meet in the ring. Gouwenberg is a Lance Gibson Product so you know he will be well rounded, and ready to battle. Not much is known about Cambier but the local Quebec fighters are almost always ready to bang, or go down trying.

Stephane “Simba” Vigneault Vs Troy Quesnelle

The younger brother of Steve Vigneault will be out to make his family proud against the Gary Goodridge protégé, who has been pegged as one of the exciting young up and comers out of the Goodridge camp. “Simba” has not been able to fight as often as he would like, several opponents have dropped out last minute, and has been clamoring to get another round in the ring. If he keeps on winning like many believe he will, the stand up kickboxer will be on a collision course with Mark “The Machine” Hominick.

Steve Duquette Vs. Claude Tremblay

Duquette destroyed Andy Social in his last fight in TKO, grounding and pounding his opponent into a quick tapout victory. Oddly enough, it was the only pro MMA fight his career and he will be making his second MMA appearance against Claude Tremblay. Tremblay has two losses in his only two MMA fights, and both losses were against less then impressive competition. Not much is known about either fighter but on paper it looks like Duquette will have an edge.

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