KANSAS CITY, Missouri — "The" James Krause (18-4) is eager to start the new year without missing a beat. The dynamic Grind House MMA product, who went unbeaten in three professional MMA bouts in 2012, will now headline RFA 6 as the promotion makes its first foray into his hometown of Kansas City, Missouri on Friday, January 18th, 2013.
Krause is an RFA mainstay, since the promotion hosted its first event 12 months ago. In that time, he has competed and won in four of the RFA’s first five events. Krause is currently riding a six-fight win streak, which includes a pair of highlight reel finishes at RFA 4 and RFA 5 last month.
Krause will look to carry that surging wave of momentum as he collides with a familiar foe in Toby Imada (30-17) in a lightweight bout. The two previously locked horns in the Quarter-Final of the Bellator: Season 2 – Lightweight Tournament in April 2010.
That bout came about on very short notice, after Olympic judoka Ferrid Kheder was injured. Imada was scheduled to fight Kheder at Bellator 15 on a card that Krause was also expected to compete on. However, Krause was then tapped as Kheder’s late replacement. Their bout was then pushed up a week to Bellator 14, which created more drastic weight cutting conditions and last-minute fight preparations.
Imada ended up winning the bout via armbar in the second round, but needless to say, Krause is eager to erase that loss on his record with a full training camp leading into his rematch with Imada. However, Imada has different things in mind, as he will undoubtedly be looking to silence the naysayers and duplicate the feat that helped propel him into his second straight Bellator Lightweight Tournament Final.
What makes this rematch even more intriguing is the fact that Krause and Imada are incredible finishers. 95% of Krause’s wins have come via Submission or KO/TKO, while Imada has accomplished the same feat in 94% of his wins. Those numbers are even more impressive when you consider the fact that Krause and Imada have competed in a combined 69 professional MMA bouts.
Fighters don’t fight that many times and compile that many highlight reel finishes without getting noticed. Krause’s trademark Guillotine Choke on the ground and Head Kick on the feet followed by hearing Michael Schiavello shout "Good Night Irene" in his Australian accent has become a regular Friday night routine on AXS TV broadcasts.
Meanwhile, Imada’s Inverted Triangle Choke submission win over Jorge Masvidal at Bellator 5, that earned him the "2009 Submission of the Year" award, is still talked about to this day. Along with his unorthodox grappling prowess, Imada also holds a Shoot Boxing victory over two-time K-1 World MAX champion and four-time S-Cup Shoot Boxing world champion Andy Souwer.
The RFA 6 main event between Krause and Imada will headline the RFA’s first event of the 2013 calendar year. It will be televised on AXS TV on Friday, January 18th live from the Scottish Rite Temple in Kansas City, Missouri. This will be the RFA’s first event in "The Show Me State" and is expected to include many other RFA notables, which will be announced by the promotion in the next few days.
About RFA:
Resurrection Fighting Alliance (RFA) was founded in 2011 and includes a number of prominent businessmen, fight promoters, matchmakers, and individuals with successful careers in hosting Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) shows across the United States. To learn more, check out their website at RFAfighting.com, like RFA on Facebook at Facebook.com/RFAfighting, and follow RFA on Twitter at Twitter.com/RFAfighting.