Shortly after his December 2006 win over Dave Menne, welterweight prospect and former United States Marine Luigi Fioravanti told UFC.com what it was like to fight in front of 3,000 of his fellow leathernecks at the Marine Corps Air Station Miramar.
“It was amazing,” said Fioravanti. “You could tell walking out to the ring that they were all on your side just because you’re part of the same fraternity. Them chanting and rooting for me was very exciting, and after the fight I was pretty emotional and excited, and I couldn’t really even speak.”
It was a memorable night for the veteran of Operation Iraqi Freedom, and while you would normally say that it was a once in a lifetime experience, on December 10th, Fioravanti will once again fight in front of members of the United States Armed Forces when he takes on Brodie Farber as part of the UFC’s “Fight for The Troops” event at the Crown Coliseum in Fayetteville, North Carolina.
This special Spike TV live event, which is headlined by the welterweight clash between Josh Koscheck and Yoshiyuki Yoshida, will raise funds to build a hospital for traumatic brain injuries for the brave men and women in the United States Armed Forces. Thousands of soldiers from nearby Fort Bragg, the proud home of the U.S. Airborne and Special Operations Forces, will be in attendance.
Fioravanti isn’t the only military veteran representing the UFC that night though, as four former members of the United States Navy step into the Octagon to compete in pivotal battles.
In welterweight action, Naval Air Crewman / Rescue Swimmer Steve Bruno takes on Johnny Rees; The Ultimate Fighter season seven’s Tim Credeur will battle Nate Loughran in a middleweight contest; Lightweight Dale Hartt returns to face Corey Hill; and Navy SEAL Brandon Wolff makes his UFC debut against Ben Saunders.
UFC Fight for The Troops airs on Spike TV on Wednesday, December 10th at 9pm ET / PT.
Only 30 tickets have been made available to the public for this event, with all funds raised benefiting the Intrepid Fallen Heroes Fund. To bid now on this ticket auction, click here.
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