December's Titan FC 42 building with four title fights on UFC Fight Pass

Titan FC will close out its calendar year with a whopper of a card featuring four title fights at the top of the bill.

Titan FC 42 is set for Dec. 2 and will stream on UFC Fight Pass. Although a host city and venue have yet to be announced, the promotion’s past four events all have taken place in South Florida.

In the main event, welterweight champion Dhiego Lima (12-4) will put his title on the line against Jason Jackson (6-2). In the co-feature, interim flyweight champ Jose Torres (3-0) takes on challenger Pedro Nobre (18-2-2). And two vacant belts will be up for grabs: Farkhad Sharipov (16-7) takes on Andrew Whitney (14-4) for the bantamweight title, and Jack May (8-3) fights Volkan Oezdemir (12-1) for the heavyweight strap.

In addition, the promotion has booked three other bouts for the card: Martin Brown (10-3) vs. former featherweight champion Desmond Green (18-5); Yosdenis Cedeno (10-5) vs. ex-featherweight champ Kurt Holobaugh (15-4); and Adriano Capitulino (4-0) vs. “TUF” veteran Hayder Hassan (6-3).

Jason Jackson

“TUF 19” veteran Lima was bounced from the UFC after going 1-3 with the promotion, but has rebounded in 2016 with decision wins over Antonio Trocoli at Legacy FC 53 and UFC vet David Michaud at Titan FC 39, where he won the welterweight title. Jackson, a member of the Blackzilians team in South Florida, has won three straight, including his promotional debut at Titan FC 41 in September – a decision win over Rodrigo Correia.

Jose Torres

Chicago’s “Shorty” Torres turned pro earlier this year and went to work quickly. All three of his wins are for Titan. In August at Titan FC 40, he knocked out Abdiel Velazquez to win the interim 125-pound belt. In Nobre, he’ll fight someone with seven times his experience level and wins in six of his past seven fights. His most recent four bouts have been for Titan, and he rebounded from a loss to current “TUF” contender Tim Elliott with a split-decision win over Sid Bice at Titan FC 38 in April.

Sharipov, a Florida-based Bellator veteran, made his promotional debut in August and took a split call from Bruce Lutchmedial at Titan FC 40 to get back in the win column after a March loss. Whitney, who trains in Miami at MMA Masters, will fight for Titan for the seventh time. He’s won four straight, including three in a row for Titan. most recently, he stopped Anderson dos Santos with a second-round TKO in August.

May fought twice in the UFC, but suffered TKO losses to Derrick Lewis and Shawn Jordan after starting his pro career a perfect 7-0 with six knockouts. In April, he made his Titan debut, but suffered a leg injury early in his fight with Chase Sherman and took a TKO. In August, he rebounded with a win on the regional circuit. Switzerland’s Oezdemir has 10 of his 12 career wins by stoppage, including nine knockouts. His two previous bouts in the States left him 1-1 for Bellator with a knockout of Josh Lanier, but a submission setback against Kelly Anundson – his lone pro loss.

The Titan FC 42 card includes:

• Champ Dhiego Lima vs. Jason Jackson – for welterweight title
• Champ Jose Torres vs. Pedro Nobre – for flyweight title
• Farkhad Sharipov vs. Andrew Whitney – for vacant bantamweight title
• Jack May vs. Volkan Oezdemir – for vacant heavyweight title
• Martin Brown vs. Desmond Green
• Yosdenis Cedeno vs. Kurt Holobaugh
• Adriano Capitulino vs. Hayder Hassan

For more on Titan FC 42, check out the MMA Rumors section of the site.