The Cincinnati, Ohio-based mixed martial arts promotion "MMA Big Show" will feature two former contestants from "The Ultimate Fighter" (TUF) season 6 -- War Machine (formerly known as Jon Koppenhaver) and Joe Scarola -- on its upcoming "Conviction" card, which will take place at the Belterra Casino Resort and Spa in Belterra, Indiana, on June 20.
The main event, which the organization is referring to as "the biggest fight in MMA Big Show history," will be a five-round welterweight title bout between War Machine (7-2) and Big Show standout Roger Bowling (2-0).
War Machine has been in and out of the headlines over the last few months for both good and bad incidents, including getting booted from the UFC last September for posting a controversial Internet message regarding the late Evan Tanner, as well as bad mouthing his former employer. The good news for the Las Vegas resident is that he has won two straight fights since his departure from the organization.
First he knocked out David Anderson on a November Desert Rage card in little more than two minutes of cage time and then went on to fill in nicely for Phil Baroni at XMMA 7: "Inferno" in February by defeating Guillaume Delorenzi with a first round rear naked choke.
Bowling recently signed an exclusive deal to compete for "MMA Big Show" after nearly a year on the sidelines. He brings an inexperienced -- yet somewhat impressive -- resume to the cage with him. Both of his pro fights have been first round technical knockout wins, which include handing Shamar Bailey (7-1) the first loss of his career last April.
The co-featured fight of the night will also be a championship match-up, this time in the lightweight division, as Scarola (4-1) -- the man who gave up the opportunity of a lifetime on TUF 6 by leaving the house for personal reasons -- locks horns with Joe Ammerman (2-1).
Ammerman won his first two pro fights under the MMA Big Show banner, but dropped the first match of his career to UFC veteran Diego Saraiva last March on the first American Fight League (AFL) card. Scarola is a submission expert who formerly trained under Matt Serra at Serra jiu jitsu. All four of his wins have come by way of tap out.
Stay tuned to MMAmania.com for more on MMA Big Show: "Conviction" as it's announced.