In the battle between going big and going home, Fight 2 Win has once again decided to do both at the same time. The promotion will be returning to its hometown of Denver, CO, for its 137th event, and it’s bringing a stacked card along with it.
The main event of the evening will be a gi match between young standout Roberto Jimenez and Atos star Lucas “Hulk” Barbosa. Jimenez, who recently spoke out against the use of PEDs in grappling, was very recently promoted to black belt after a spectacular brown belt career that saw him earn, among other titles, the 185lb brown belt F2W championship. He made waves just recently by defeating Keenan Cornelius in their superfight at Who’s #1. If he wants a victory against Barbosa, though, he’ll have to work hard to earn it. Barbosa is one of Atos’ most successful athletes, having won Worlds, No-Gi Worlds (multiple times), and Pans (multiple times), among many other titles. With impressive performances at ADCC and Kasai Pro 7 now in his pocket, he and Jimenez will be worthwhile tests for each other on the Fight 2 Win stage.
Also on the card will be a match between Michael Liera Jr. and Marcio Andre. Liera Jr. has become a staple at F2W, having won all five of his matches for the promotion even against the likes of Jaime Canuto and Jake Watson. But Marcio Andre will prove to be an interesting and difficult opponent for him. Andre and Liera Jr. are currently 1-1 in their black belt matches against each other, and this match will be a “tiebreaker” of sorts between them. Andre has also had significant success at F2W, pulling out wins against competitors like Kennedy Maciel and Ben Henderson. This rematch will be a can’t-miss battle on an already impressive card.
Finally, Fight 2 Win regular and 2019 Pans silver medalist Jake Watson will be facing Rudson Mateus, who had a particularly strong 2019 with wins at Euros, multiple UAEJJF Grand Slams, and of course, the Abu Dhabi World Pro. Mateus will be riding the momentum of an armbar finish against Gutemberg Pereira at F2W 125, but with Watson coming off two consecutive wins at F2W 134 and 135, there’s no telling who will get their hand raised by the time the match is over.
With these matches and many more coming to Denver on March 6, F2W 137 is the kind of event you should be marking your calendar for. Don’t miss it when it streams live on FloGrappling!
