GOMI ON FOR AFFLICTION 3, DRAWS RAFAEL OLIVEIRA

GOMI ON FOR AFFLICTION 3, DRAWS RAFAEL OLIVEIRA



Takanori Gomi (30-5) will continue on his comeback trail when he faces Rafaelllo Oliveira (8-1) at Affliction: “Trilogy” on Aug. 1 in Anaheim.

Last month, Gomi was in talks to face Brett Cooper at the promotion’s third MMA event, but parties could not come to an agreement on compensation or the bout’s contested weight.

Affliction remained in talks with the Japanese star, and last Sunday, Vice President Tom Atencio confirmed to MMAWeekly that a deal was nearly finalized. The bout will be Gomi’s third on US soil.

In May, Gomi posted a KO victory over Takashi Nakakura for Shooto, his first victory since a two-fight slide in Sengoku. Once regarded as the most dominant lightweight in the world, the losses removed him from most top-ten lists.

Oliveira last appeared in April at Xtreme Fighting Champions, besting John Mahlow by unanimous decision. The Knoxville, Tenn. resident made a sole appearance on EliteXC’s challenger series last October, losing to prospect Lyle Beerbohm by TKO.