On the 9th of November, one of the most bitter and acrimonious rivalries in EFC history will reach its final and dramatic conclusion inside the Hexagon, as veteran middleweights and sworn enemies Conrad ‘Cagewise’ Seabi and Dino ‘The Lion’ Bagattin settle their significant personal differences with their fists.
Even though both had hung up the gloves in recent times following lengthy campaigns during truly spectacular and storied careers, an escalating series of altercations spectacularly boiled-over as tempers eventually erupted at EFC 106 where Bagattin assaulted his archenemy backstage, requiring Night Guard to urgently intervene to separate the belligerents and prevent serious injury.
Bagattin was immediately suspended from the EFC for the heinous attack, prompting Seabi to instantly ask the promotion for the opportunity to settle the score inside the Hex in the only way he knows how, an offer Bagattin accepted without hesitation.
As former welterweight champion, ‘The Lion’ ran through a succession of the toughest athletes competing at the time, with sensational victories over the likes of Tyron Rightford, Michiel Opperman and Dallas Jakobi whilst his opponent was having his hand raised over Sizwe Mnikathi, Max Merten and Wade Henderson. Yet through a mixture of fate and divisional differences, their paths leading to the cage never crossed. Until now.
This is a superfight that is a true fans delight, two of the most experienced 185lb’ers looking to legally destroy the other under the auspices of a watchful athletic commission instead of law enforcement. And while EFC pundits and viewers around the world were imploring Bagattin to make one last dance for the fans, the real irony is that it took a sworn enemy like Seabi to tempt the Lion back into the cage. Whether ‘Cagewise’ will roar with victory or the one to be tamed remains to be seen for all on the 9th of November in Johannesburg, where bad blood will be spilt and this saga savagely settled.
EFC 109 presented by World Sports Betting takes place on Thursday 9 November live from The EFC Performance Institute in JHB, South Africa. Ticket and broadcast info at EFCworldwide.com