Posted via twitter, the Northern Irish, Ultimate Fighter winner, Norman Parke has stated that following his upcoming bout under promotion BKB he will give up fighting unless he is offered a fight worth the right amount of money.

Coming off back to back wins against Myles Price and highly talented BJJ artists Paul Redmond, this announcement will come to a surprise to many, considering his recent signing with Bellator.

There was rumors of a fight between him and Benson Henderson in the pipeline, so it could be possible that perhaps that a disagreement between the two parties could have had some part to play in this decision. We will have to wait to find out what exactly the reason was.

All I do know however is that it would be a real shame to see Norman retire as he has a lot more to offer.

More will follow as it comes to light.

Check back throughout the evening for all of the results as they happen.

Main Event- Heavyweight Title

Phil De Fries defeats Karol Bedorf via submission (second round)

Co-main Event – Heavyweight

Erko Jun defeats Popek Monster via TKO (round 2)

Middleweight

Michał Materla defeats Damian Janikowski via TKO (round 1)

Welterweight Title

Roberto Soldic defeats Dricus Du Plessis via KO (round 3)

Middleweight

Scott Askham defeats Marcin Wójcik via TKO (round 1)

Heavyweight

Thiago Silva defeats James McSweeney via Unanimous Decision

Heavyweight

Wagner Prado defeats Lukasz Parobiec via Knockout (round 1)

Light Heavyweight

Akop Szostak vs. Jamie Sloane ruled as No Contest due to accidental eye poke by Szostak.

Lightweight

Leszek Krakowski defeats Alfie Davis via split decision.

James ‘The Hammer’ McSweeney is a true veteran of the MMA game having competed all over the world, including the UFC and being a cast member of the memorable TUF heavyweight season alongside Kimbo Slice, Brendan Schaub, and Roy Nelson, and he is also a renowned coach having worked directly with some of the biggest names in the sport.

Hailing from London, England, McSweeney now returns to compete in his home city for the first time since his win over former KSW champ Marcin Rozalski at KSW 32. The 37-year-old will be looking to recreate that performance and reestablish himself as a force in the KSW heavyweight division with a win on October 6th.

A twelve-fight UFC veteran, Brazil’s Thiago Silva is one of the most recognisable fighters in the world. The 35-year-old can claim career wins over the likes of Matt Hamill, Keith Jardine, Houston Alexander, and James Irvin, and has fought alongside Alexander Gustafsson and Rashad Evan in main events during his time with the UFC.

Silva is a heavy handed striker with fourteen wins coming by way of TKO/KO and will be aiming to add another devastating finish to that list at KSW 45.

The fight joins a stacked card for KSW London that includes a heavyweight title fight between Phil De Fries and Karol Bedorf, a rematch between welterweight champion Dricus Du Plessis and Roberto Soldic, as well as the beginning of a four-man tournament between Michal Materla, Damian Janikowski, Scott Askham, and Marcin Wojcik to crown a new KSW middleweight champion.

KSW 45 Fight Card:

Heavyweight Title

Phil De Fries (c) vs. Karol Bedorf

Heavyweight: Popek Monster vs. Erko Jun

Welterweight Title

Dricus Du Plessis (c) vs. Roberto Soldic

Opening Round of Middleweight Tournament

Michal Materla vs. Damian Janikowski

Scott Askham vs. Marcin Wojcik

Heavyweight: James McSweeney vs. Thiago Silva

Light Heavyweight: Wagner Prado vs. Max Nunes

Light Heavyweight: Akop Szostak vs. TBA*

Lightweight: Leszek Krakowski vs. Alfie Davis

*John Smith has withdrawn from this fight, replacement TBA

Prado signed a multi-fight contract with KSW earlier this year, marking his debut with an impressive TKO win over SBG’s Chris Fields at KSW 44 in June. The 30-year-old has garnered a fierce reputation in as a dangerous knock out artist with all but one of his 14 wins coming via KO/TKO. After building a record of 8-0 as a professional, he was snapped up by the UFC in 2012 and competed three times for the promotion including a pair of fights against Phil Davis. Since leaving the UFC he has is 6-1 including the stunning KO win over Fields in his KSW debut.

Training out of the famous Allstars Training Center gym in Sweden comes the well-travelled Max Nunes. Having competed in the likes of Cage Rage, BAMMA, Abu Dhabi Warriors and Superior Challenge, the 29-year-old is also partial to finishing his opponents, having registered a total of ten TKO/KO’s and five submission wins over the likes of Ion Pascu, Patrick Vallee, and Marcin Lazarz.

With a combined finishing rate in excess of 90%, this clash is certainly a blink-and-could-miss-it type of fight with potential title implications.

The fight joins a stacked card for KSW London that includes a heavyweight title fight between Phil De Fries and Karol Bedorf, a rematch between welterweight champion Dricus Du Plessis and Roberto Soldic, as well as the beginning of a four-man tournament between Michal Materla, Damian Janikowski, Scott Askham, and Marcin Wojcik to crown a new KSW middleweight champion.

KSW 45 Fight Card

Heavyweight Title

Phil De Fries (c) vs. Karol Bedorf

Heavyweight: Popek Monster vs. Erko Jun

Welterweight Title

Dricus Du Plessis (c) vs. Roberto Soldic

Opening Round of Middleweight Tournament

Michal Materla vs. Damian Janikowski

Marcin Wojcik vs. Scott Askham

Heavyweight: Michal Andryszak vs. James McSweeney

Light Heavyweight: Wagner Prado vs. Max Nunes

Light Heavyweight: Akop Szostak vs. John Smith

Lightweight: Leszek Krakowski vs. Alfie Davis

McSweeney is a true veteran of the MMA game having competed all over the world, including the UFC and being a cast member of the memorable TUF heavyweight season alongside Kimbo Slice, Brendan Schaub, and Roy Nelson, and he is also a renowned coach having worked directly with some of the biggest names in the sport.

Hailing from London, England, McSweeney now returns to compete in his home city for the first time since his win over former KSW champ Marcin Rozalski at KSW 32. The 37-year-old will be looking to recreate that performance and reestablish himself as a force in the KSW heavyweight division with a win on October 6th.

Standing in his way however is Michal Andryszak. At only 26-years-old this Polish monster has quickly risen to become one of the top heavyweight prospects in the world. Owning nineteen first round stoppage wins and already a former title challenger in KSW, Andryszak is aiming to get back into the title fold.

This fight joins a stacked card for KSW London that includes a heavyweight title fight between Phil De Fries and Karol Bedorf, a rematch between welterweight champion Dricus Du Plessis and Roberto Soldic, as well as the beginning of a four-man tournament between Michal Materla, Damian Janikowski, Scott Askham, and Marcin Wojcik to crown a new KSW middleweight champion.

KSW 45: The Return to Wembley will be live around the world on www.KSWTV.com and tickets are on sale right now from AXS.com.

KSW 45 Fight Card

Heavyweight Title – Phil De Fries (c) vs. Karol Bedorf

Popek Monster vs. Erko Jun

Welterweight Title – Dricus Du Plessis (c) vs. Roberto Soldic

Opening Round of Middleweight Tournament

Michal Materla vs. Damian Janikowski

Scott Askham vs. Marcin Wojcik

James McSweeney vs. Michal Andryszak

Akop Szostak vs. John Smith

More Fights TBA

The 26-year-old made his pro debut in 2014 and holds wins in the Cage Warriors, Bellator, and UCMMA promotions. Davis has also racked up eight stoppage wins and has even garnered praise from UFC commentator Joe Rogan for his finishing prowess. Now the well travelled prospect will be hoping to put on a show in his KSW debut and entertain the jam-packed SSE Arena, Wembley.

“I think KSW is a great promotion and I am excited to fight on it. I have heard from team mates that the atmosphere in the last Wembley show was one of the best in the world,” said Davis. “I am excited about fighting back in London as I can have all of #TheARDfamily come and support. They will also be instrumental in providing a great atmosphere for the viewers. My opponent is a tough grappler. However he is only a tiddler and his striking is awful. This is a great stylistic match up for the fan and I will provide another highlight reel #ARDspecial for everyone watching.”

Looking to spoil the party, much like he did at the first KSW London event in 2015, is Leszek Krakowski. Three years ago, Krakowski shocked almost everyone at The SSE Arena, Wembley as he defeated British UFC veteran Andre Winner to earn easily the biggest win of his career. Following up that win with a first round submission loss to top KSW fighter Kleber Koike Erbst, Krakowski bounced back with a unanimous decision win over Brazilian Nathan Bastista on the UK scene.

The Titan & TSG fighter, who holds nine stoppage victories in thirteen professional outings, is now once again presented with the opportunity to shock London and take a scalp of one of the UK’s top fighters in Alfie Davis.

KSW 45 will feature a heavyweight title fight between the UK’s very own Phil De Fries and former champion Karol Bedorf in the main event. This card will also see the rematch between two of the world’s most promising welterweights in champion Dricus Du Plessis and Roberto Soldic, as well as the beginning of a four-man tournament between former champ Michal Materla, Olympic hero Damian Janikowski, UFC vet Scott Askham, and ‘The Giant’ Marcin Wojcik to crown a new KSW middleweight champion.

KSW 45 Fight Card

Popek Monster was last in action in December of last year against Polish action movie star Tomasz Oswiecinski and after dominating the first round he then succumbed to a TKO in round two. Since then Popek has had a successful stint on Poland’s ‘Dancing With The Stars’ making it to the latter stages of the competition.

A return to action has been highly anticipated for Popek but this will also be a return to London, a place where he lived and where he made his MMA debut in the legendary Cage Rage promotion. Over the years Popek has collaborated musically with many of the UK’s top rap artists including Big Narstie, Professor Green and JME.

After only making his MMA debut in June of this year, Erko Jun now looks to tackle The Monster Popek in his sophomore outting. The 28-year-old rose to fame as a social media bodybuilding star and has amassed over one million Instagram followers while building something of a fitness empire that includes a clothing range and personal training.

Jun got into MMA after a chance meeting with Roberto Soldic and soon after started training at the renowned UFD gym in Germany, home to a host of top fighters including Soldic, Martin Zawada, Antun Racic and more. With the same drive and motivation he put into bodybuilding, Jun dedicated himself to MMA and would often sleep at the gym and drive back home to Belgium at the weekends. This hard work and sacrifice paid off as in his MMA debut at KSW 44 he registered a highlight reel first round KO win over Tomasz Oswiecinski, and now looks to follow up with another devastating finish at KSW 45 in London.

This fight joins a stacked card for KSW London that includes a heavyweight title fight between Phil De Fries and Karol Bedorf, a rematch between welterweight champion Dricus Du Plessis and Roberto Soldic, as well as the beginning of a four-man tournament between Michal Materla, Damian Janikowski, Scott Askham, and Marcin Wojcik to crown a new KSW middleweight champion.

KSW 45 Fight Card:

Heavyweight Title

Phil De Fries (c) vs. Karol Bedorf

Heavyweight: Popek Monster vs. Erko Jun

Welterweight Title

Dricus Du Plessis (c) vs. Roberto Soldic

Opening Round of Middleweight Tournament

Michal Materla vs. Damian Janikowski

Scott Askham vs. Marcin Wojcik

Light Heavyweight: Akop Szostak vs. John Smith

More Fights TBA

Hailing from Sunderland, England, De Fries has established himself as one of the elite European heavyweights. The 32-year-old has fought all over the world in some of the biggest promotions, including five appearances in the UFC, sharing the cage with the likes of Stipe Miocic, Matt Mitrione and James Thompson.

Riding a three-fight-win-streak and feeling as good as he has ever done, De Fries is looking forward to facing the challenge of Bedorf and vows to remain the KSW heavyweight champ for a long time coming.

“Bedorf is a beast. Longest reigning KSW heavyweight champ. A great fighter and a gentleman, but there is no way he is beating me, especially not on home soil,” said De Fries. “I am literally a different fighter than I was in the UFC. I’ve improved vastly, I’ve conquered the anxiety that plagued me in the UFC, and now I plan on being the KSW heavyweight champ for a long time. I can’t wait to defend my title in London and show everyone what I am made of.”

Bedorf, who is widely regarded as one of the best heavyweights in the world, is a man on a mission. There can be no denying that the former champ has had a tough couple of years. After dropping the title in disappointing fashion to Brazil’s Fernando Rodrigues Jr. at KSW 37 and suffering an injury that forced him from the historic KSW 39 card, the 34-year-old finally returned to action last month and showed no signs of ring rust as he submitted Mariusz Pudzianowski in the opening round.

As the heavyweight behemoth celebrated post fight in the cage he signaled to the belt around his waist. Looking to build on his impressive return to action, he has decided to immediately head straight into enemy territory and challenge De Fries in his own backyard and try regain what he believes is his championship.

KSW 45: The Return to Wembley will be live around the world on www.KSWTV.com and tickets are on sale right now from AXS.com.

The card will also feature Olympic medalist Damian Janikowski, the UK’s number one middleweight Scott Askham, Polish superstar Michal Materla, and infamous rapper Popek Monster.

Known for their incredibly high level production,  entertaining and world class fights and just their overall spectacle, eyes will surely be on KSW as they make a highly anticipated return to English shores.

On this card, we see Former UFC Veteran of 6 fights, Scott Askham. With his opponent yet to be announced, the English native will be certainly looking to make another statement following his incredible first round stoppage over the extremely talented Micahl Materla, as he chases the KSW middleweight championship.

Currently training with American Top Team in Coconut Creek, Florida, Scott trains with the best daily. Having partners such as Thiago Santos, Colby Covington, Santiago Ponzinibio, Antonio  Carlos Jr to name a few, Askham is arguably among the elite middleweights around the world.

Coming off the back of two impressive wins against Luke Barnett and Michal Materla, Scott Askham has his eyes on one thing and one thing only – the title. Ahead of Scott’s return to KSW with their huge return to London, I caught up with the middleweight contender to find out how he is feeling, who he will be fighting and his thoughts on the future.

Eamonn Scott: You fight in KSW in London next, this is a huge card, are you looking forward to it and how closely are you to finalising your opponent?

Scott Askham: “Really looking forward to it and I advise any MMA fan to attend! Never been to a show like KSW before in my life. Not close to finalising an opponent yet, but looking forward to some news!”

ES: You are 2-0 since leaving UFC against very tough opponents in Luke Barnatt and Michal Materla. Do you believe that you are finally able to show people that you truly are one of the best middleweights in the world?

SA: “Yes of course, I now train with the best team in the world, American Top Team, and the confidence that is giving me, plus adding to my game all the time, is really showing in my fights. [I’m] Excited to see how far I can take it!”

ES: You were a huge underdog in your last fight against one of the hottest names in MMA, Michal Materla. Do you believe that your spell with the UFC put doubt into people’s minds about how good you really are, and do you thrive off the doubt and being under-looked?    

SA: “Let them doubt me all they like, I know where my skills are at. I will keep proving it each fight. In the UFC I underperformed and [I am] happy at my new team. I am fully happy with everything in my camp. No excuses. Let’s get some belts and earn some cash!”

ES: With that massive win over Materla in March, how far away from the KSW title do you think you are?

SA: “I feel I am next in line for the title shot. Who else is there for me to fight? I would be disappointed with any other fight but hearing Khalidov wants a rematch with Narkun. Let’s see what happens!”

ES: When comparing the UFC with KSW, what would you say the main differences are?

SA: “UFC is more mainstream and if you’re in the UFC more people around the world watch. But, in terms of how to put on a show, KSW are way ahead. Their opening ceremonies are something else!”

ES: For you personally, do you enjoy the freedom of being able to fight where you want?

SA: “Yeah, I am happy with my contract situation at the minute, allowing me to fight more often (I was unlucky to get an injury last camp) but yeah, I am really happy with everything going off in my career at the minute.”

ES: BRAVE CF just had their European debut card in Belfast, have you heard of them before and if so have you been approached and would you be interested in fighting for them?

SA: “I have never been approached by them, no. [I have] Heard about them before, yes, and great to see other big promotions expand across Europe. I believe European MMA is up there with some of the best in the world.”

ES: Finally, are there any fighters in particular that you would like to fight in your next coming bouts?

SA: “Of course, Khalidov! If not Khalidov it must be [for the] vacant belt! I am the number one contender. Defend or vacate. [I’m] Not in to no interim title. He’s not injured. I want that belt! So hopefully Khalidov!”

As Scott looks to climb that ladder and gain the middleweight championship under the KSW banner, it is clear that he is ready to face the current champ Khalidov in order to get it. When we will see the fight for the belt is not yet confirmed, but what is for sure is that Askham’s dynamic style will always be pleasing for the fans. October we will see him back – don’t miss it!

Infamous rapper and former London resident Popek Monster (3-3) is set to return to action following a successful stint away from the cage on ‘Dancing with the Stars’ in Poland. Joining him on the London card will be Olympic medalist Damian Janikowski (3-0), who will make his first international MMA appearance after three straight finishes over notably more experienced opposition.

England’s own Scott Askham (16-4) will be looking to give the British fans something to cheer about as he makes his second walk to the KSW cage along with KSW’s latest signing and famous bodybuilder Akop Szostak (3-2) who will make his KSW debut in the light heavyweight division.

Their opponents and additional fight announcements can be expected over the coming weeks.