CFFC 149 preview: Six belts up for grabs at most stacked event in promotional history
Five champions look to defend, while one inaugural belt will be awarded on Saturday at New Jersey's Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City
ATLANTIC CITY, N.J. – Cage Fury Fighting Championships returns home to the historic Atlantic City Boardwalk for the organization's final MMA card of the year and the most loaded lineup in the history of the promotion with "CFFC 149: Cafaro vs. Patton" at the spectacular Hard Rock Hotel & Casino Atlantic City.
Six total championship belts will be awarded on the night, including four straight title fights to close out the night, as well as two of the most high-profile matchups in CFFC NextGen history scheduled for the evening's preliminary card. Additionally, the first CFFC Fan Experience in company history will unfold inside the venue, as well, making for an incredible night of entertainment that is not to be missed.
The CFFC 149 main card streams live on UFC FIGHT PASS, while prelims stream at OnlyFans.com/cffcmma. Limited tickets remain at CFFC.tv.
MAIN CARD (UFC FIGHT PASS, 8:30 p.m. ET)
Champ Ryan Cafaro vs. Justin Patton – for featherweight title
Champ Bilal Hasan vs. Renaldy Manse - for flyweight title
Champ Emily Martins vs. Alexa Conners – for women's bantamweight title
Champ Chris Brown vs. Guram Gochashvili – for middleweight title
Bobby Lee vs. Richie Lewis
Derek Benoit vs. Nick Galanti
PRELIMINARY CARD (OnlyFans.com. 6 p.m. ET)
NextGen: James Lledo vs. Kayne Caplinger – for inaugural 168-pound title
Cornellius Aritonang vs. Christian Bobe
Karli Jo Thomas vs. Paige Wilcox
NextGen: Champ Joey Milano vs. Damien Blotzke – for 190-pound title
Safar Akhmadov vs. Jerry Lleshi
David Bergida vs. Egor Kostyuchenko
Alius Delarosa vs. Justin Meyers
MAIN EVENT: Ryan Cafaro vs. Justin Patton
Reigning CFFC featherweight champion "Korean Thunder"" Ryan Cafaro (13-6 MMA, 8-2 CFFC) is hoping the first defense of the title he earned earlier this year will be enough to earn him an invitation to the UFC, and he knows what type of fight it takes to get the attention of the matchmakers at the sport's highest level. That’s exactly why he welcomed a rematch with challenger Justin "The General" Patton (9-4 MMA, 1-0 CFFC).
Cafaro and Patton met on the Pennsylvania regional scene 15 months ago. Less than two minutes into the matchup, an inadvertent Cafaro eye poke left Patton unable to continue, and the bout was ruled a no contest. Both men felt the action picking up and believe fireworks were going to follow, so when Cafaro claimed the CFFC featherweight belt in May and Patton joined the promotion three months later, the path was cleared for a rematch, and both men immediately jumped on the opportunity.
On a night of huge fights, both Cafaro and Patton know it will take a special performance to stand out from the pack, and they plan on delivering exactly that to close the night.
CO-MAIN EVENT: Bilal Hasan vs. Renaldy Manse
Currently the longest reigning titleholder in CFFC with two defenses of his belt, flyweight champ Bilal Hasan (7-0 MMA, 7-0 CFFC) stands out as one of the top pound-for-pound fighters on the company roster. But in the night's co-main event, fellow Indonesian prospect Renaldy Manse (7-0 MMA, 0-0 CFFC) plans on stealing all of his shine.
After earning a decision win in his professional debut, Hasan has since rattled off six consecutive stoppage wins, claiming the title in September 204 and then turning away challengers Brian Hauser and Jason Eastman earlier this year. The 24-year-old Hasan now seeks his third defense this year when he takes on the undefeated Manse, who fights in the United States for the first time after relocating from Indonesia to chase the biggest opportunities available.
With a shared fanbase in Indonesia, both Hasan and Manse have been friendly in the buildup to this massive co-main event, but both are promising something spectacular to move to 8-0 and hopefully earn a call from the UFC.
FEATURED BOUT: Emily Martins vs. Alexa Conners
At just 21 years old, reigning CFFC women's bantamweight champion Emily "Galega" Martins (4-1 MMA, 4-1 CFFC) is a standout Brazilian jiu-jitsu ace who is quickly proving herself a well-rounded fighter and a top prospect at 135 pounds. In July, she claimed the title in a rematch with then-champ Auttumn Norton, avaenging the lone loss of her MMA career. Now, she takes the most experienced opponent she's faced to date in Alexa Conners (8-5 MMA, 1-1 CFFC).
Conners is currently 3-1 in her past four appearances but hasn't competed since April 2024 after having a pair of scheduled appearances fail to come to fruition. A four-time Invicta FC veteran, Conners has faced a number of athletes who have gone on to compete in the UFC, and she'll look to lean on that experience edge as she enters the biggest fight of his career.
FEATURED BOUT: Chris Brown vs. Guram Gochashvili
The first of four straight championship bouts to close out the night will take place at middleweight, as longtime veteran Chris "Breezy" Brown (12-5 MMA, 2-0 CFFC) takes on Georgian standout Guram Gochashvili (4-0 MMA, 1-0 CFFC).
After a brief stop in the Professional Fighters League, Brown came to CFFC earlier this year and debuted with a hard-fought decision win over Egor Kostyuchenko, a great result that was marred only by failing to make the welterweight limit. That prompted a move up to middleweight, where he was scheduled to compete for a title against then-champ Kyle Daukaus. When Daukaus was forced to withdraw from the contest, Brown instead claimed an interim title against replacement opponent Buddy Wallace. Brown was then promoted to undisputed champ when Daukaus returned to the UFC.
Meanwhile, Gochashvili debuted for the promotion in June, scoring an impressive TKO win over a dangerous Christian Echols. Gochashvili was then scheduled to face Daukaus in August and Brown in September, though both matchups fell through. During that time Gochashvili accepted every offer that came his way, though it was difficult to find any opponents willing to sign the dotted line. With Brown finally healthy and ready to compete, Gochashvili now gets the title shot he's called for in the six months since his promotional debut.
Bobby Lee vs. Richie Lewis
An intriguing catchweight matchup will play out at 165 pounds when former CFFC interim welterweight champion Bobby Lee (15-10 MMA, 1-0 CFFC) returns to the organization to take on recent CFFC headliner Richie "Savage" Lewis (7-1 MMA, 1-0 CFFC).
Lee was scheduled to challenge for the undisputed belt in 2020 before then-champion Jeremiah Wells was forced to withdraw from the contest. Lee instead competed for an interim title, claiming the belt with a decision win over Mike Hill before bwing signed by Bellator MMA. He now returns to the CFFC cage for the first time in five years to face Lewis, who headlined CFFC 145 in August, as well as CFFC BJJ 15 in September. A New Jersey native, Lewis will have homefield advantage as he moves up 10 pounds from his preferred lightweight division.
Derek Benoit vs. Nick Galanti
A potential middleweight title shot could hang in the balance when Derek "Barracuda" Benoit (6-2 MMA, 0-0 CFFC) takes on Dante Rivera BJJ product Nick Galanti (5-1 MMA, 5-1 CFFC).
Benoit makes his CFFC debut on the strength of a three-fight win streak and recently claimed a title on the Minnesota regional scene. He now steps in for the biggest fight of his career, as he takes on former NextGen champion Galanti, who's hoping to claim a professional belt, as well, and join his teammates Luke Fernandez and Eric Nolan in the UFC.
NextGen: James Lledo vs. Kayne Caplinger
History is on the line in the night's featured prelim when CFFC two-division titleholder James "Las Vegas" Lledo (8-1) seeks a NextGen belt in a third weight class. However, standing in his way is a dangerous Kayne Caplinger (3-1), who looks to claim gold in his CFFC debut.
Lledo is rated as the No. 2 amateur welterweight prospect in North America according to Tapology.com and already owns belts at 175 pounds and 170 pounds. He now moves down to 168 pounds, known as the super middleweight division under New Jersey regulations, in hopes of becoming a three-division champion. Meanwhile, Caplinger suffered a split-decision loss in his amateur debut but has since bounced back with three straight stoppage wins to earn this title shot.
Cornellius Aritonang vs. Christian Bobe
Impressive featherweight prospects collide when indonesia's Cornellius Aritonang (4-0) takes on Marquez MMA's Christian Bobe (2-1).
Aritonang makes his promotional debut following a three-fight run under the Cage Warriors banner and looks to remain undefeated on his career, but he'll have his hands full against the impressive Bobe, who has competed 10 times under the CFFC, CFFC NextGen and CFFC BJJ banners.
Karli Jo Thomas vs. Paige Wilcox
The lone women’s bout of the night takes place in the strawweight division, as Karli Jo Thomas (2-0) returns to the CFFC cage to take on promotional newcomer Paige Wilcox (Pro Debut).
Thomas has proven herself to be an exciting prospect at 115 pounds, scoring back-to-back stoppage wins under the CFFC banner and will now look to make it three in a row. Meanwhile, Wilcox was an impressive 7-2 as an amateur, including six wins by stoppage, and now looks to make an impact in her professional debut.
NextGen: Joey Milano vs. Damien Blotzke
The first title fight of the night takes place at 190 pounds, known as cruiserweight under New Jersey regulations, with reigning NextGen champ Joey Milano (6-1) taking on late replacement Damien "The Kid" Blotzke (4-1) of Nevada.
Milano is currently rated as the No. 6 amateur middleweight in all of North America according to Tapology.com, and seeks the first defense of the belt he won at October's CFFC NextGen 2 event. Milano was expected to face Sam Van Wynen, but the challenger was forced to withdraw from the contest. That allowed for Blotzke to step in on just one week's notice for the biggest fight of his career. "The Kid" has been victorious in two straight championship matchups under the King of the Cage banner in his past two outings and now will look to take home a CFFC belt in his professional debut.
Safar Akhmadov vs. Jerry Lleshi
Two flyweights who know how to entertain clash when Safar Alhmadov (5-2-2) faces Jerry Lleshi (4-1).
Hailing from Kazakhstan, Akhmadov steps into the CFFC cage for the first time after a four-fight run under the Karate Combat banner. Akhmadov was scheduled to face former CFFC title challenger Israel Galvan in September, but the bout was scrapped, and the "Mazandaren Tiger" now competes under MMA rules for the first time since 2023. Welcoming him to the promotion is former CFFC NextGen champion Lleshi, whose lone career loss came via split decision in his pro debut to current pro champ Bilal Hasan. Lleshi has since rattled off four straight wins and is hoping a rematch with Hasan lies in his future.
David Bergida vs. Egor Kostyuchenko
Impressive welterweight prospects collide early in the night, as David Bergida (4-1-1) makes his CFFC debut against Ukrainian standout Egor Kostyuchenko (5-1).
Bergida makes his way to the promotion on the strength of a three-fight unbeaten streak. He's proven dangerous early in his career, earning three of his four wins by stoppage. Now, he'll take on the incredibly durable Kostyuchenko, who saw his undefeated record vanish in March against Chris Brown, who came in five pounds heavy for the matchup and earned a narrow decision win. Brown, has since moved to middleweight, and Kostyuchenko will look to get back into the win column.
Alius Delarosa vs. Justin Meyers
The evening kicks off in the lightweight division, as Alius Delarosa (3-0) hopes to finally make his promotional debut when he takes on a returning Justin Meyers (1-1).
Alius Delarosa was scheduled twice this year to face off with Will Rentz. Both times, Rentz was declared medically ineligible in the final 24 hours before the fight, leaving Delarosa without an opponent. Now, he'll hope the third time is the charm, as he looks to face Meyers, who was victorious in his pro debut at CFFC 140 in March before returning in August and suffering a third-round submission loss to undefeated prospect Khetag Moraov.
