After postponing their first event of 2020 thanks to the coronavirus, Poland’s KSW is ready to return to action.
KSW 53 will take place July 11 in Warsaw, the promotion announced Wednesday. And it will be topped by two massive fights in Mateusz Gamrot vs. Norman Parke, and Borys Mankowski vs. Marcin Wrzosek.
We're back 🔥🔥🔥! #KSW53 -> July 11th
👑 @gamer_mma 🇵🇱 vs 🇬🇧 @norman_parke 👑@BorysMankowski 🇵🇱 vs 🇵🇱 @PolishZombieMMA pic.twitter.com/jCq4xt0gtr
— KSW (@KSW_MMA) May 27, 2020
The original KSW 53 card was expected to feature popular Polish heavyweight and strongman Mariusz Pudzianowski. However, he was forced to drop out of the event due to injury. Instead, Borys Mankowski stepped up to help save the show — only to have those plans cancelled due to the pandemic.
Now, Mankowski (20-8-1), a former welterweight champion in the organization, is back atop the card. He’s coming off a win over Vaso Bakočević in November. At KSW 53, he’ll face Ultimate Fighter alum and former KSW title challenger Marcin Wrzosek. The bout is expected to take place at lightweight.
A title unification fight, meanwhile, will also feature at KSW 53: Reborn. Norman Parke (28-6-1), a UFC veteran who currently holds interim gold at lightweight, will face undefeated double-champ Mateusz Gamrot (15-0). Gamrot won the promotion’s featherweight title in his last outing.
The pair have competed twice previously. Gamrot defended his title against Parke in their original meeting at KSW 39 in 2017. However, the fight was mired in controversy— Parke claimed Gamrot bit him, while Gamrot accused Parke of trying to fish-hook him. In the promotion’s next event later that year, they attempted a rematch — however, an eye poke on Parke led to a No Contest.
No other fights have been announced for the event as of yet.
