A lightweight clash between UFC veteran Efrain Escudero (26-11) and top French prospect Mansour Barnaoui (13-4) is official for the main event of EuroFC 02.
Escudero is a name known to MMA fans around the world. After making his professional debut in 2006 he went 10-0 before winning season 8 of ‘The Ultimate Fighter’. In the years since he fought for the UFC during three different stints for a total of 12 fights, registering wins over the likes of Cole Miller, Dan Lauzon and Drew Dober.
The 30-year-old’s most recent run with the UFC came to an end in April of last year but he has since bounced back and is currently on a two-fight-win-streak beating Japanese vet Koshi Matsumoto and submission artist Nelson Carvalho, respectively, in the space of three months ending 2016 on a high. Now he will aim to continue this run into 2017 as he makes his EuroFC debut in Prague, Czech Republic.
However, looking to make a name for himself internationally is 24-year-old Mansour Barnaoui. Already proven himself as a top fighter on the European scene through capturing the BAMMA and M-1 lightweight titles, Barnaoui will now have arguably his highest profile fight to date when he takes on Escudero on February 11th.
The Frenchman has notable wins over UFC vets Colin Fletcher and Curt Warburton and highly rated EU fighters Ivan Musardo and Maxim Divnich, stopping all four in the first round. In total he has a 92% finishing rate and has yet to be stopped himself.
This match-up provides fight fans the opportunity to see a clash between one of Europe’s true rising stars and an established high-level American. Is Efrain Escudero too much for Barnaoui? Can Mansour Barnaoui introduce himself globally by beating Escudero? These questions will be answered in the EuroFC 02 main event.
