Mixed Martial Arts event kicks up excitement at 3D Sideouts Sports Tavern Aug. 9

It’s been six years since 3D Sideouts in Island Lake hosted an Mixed Martial Arts event, but the thrills return in August.

The upcoming event — XFO Presents: Return of the Outdoor War — will feature more than 15 bouts plus a title fight between Jaime Martinez and Austin Cloe. The ankle picks, sweeps, chokes, kicks, strikes and more all start at 5 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 9, at 3D Sideouts Sports Tavern, 4018 W. Roberts Road, Island Lake.

As before, the elevated, caged ring, 24 feet in diameter, will be built into the sand east of Sideouts’ volleyball courts, where Bands in the Sand used to take place. The full fight card is clickable at fightertix.com.

According to Sideouts owner Jerry DeLaurentis and others, many people have been clamoring for the return of the Outdoor War, which had been an annual summertime staple there from 2005 to 2019. Like many events, it disappeared in the crowd-thwarting protocols of the 2020 pandemic.

Among those especially excited to see the Mixed Martial Arts event’s return is former top-ranked MMA fighter Jeff Curran of Island Lake, according to a news release.

The owner and operator of Curran Jiu-Jitsu Academy in Crystal Lake, Curran founded the XFO, or Xtreme Fighting Organization, now re-launched by one of Curran’s former XFO partners, Dan Lardy.

Curran said he never missed an XFO MMA event at Sideouts during the Outdoor War’s former run, as he was always there as a coach, fielding Team Curran. The main reason he and then-partners Lardy and Monte Cox started the Midwest’s XFO was to give area fighters a forum, he said. Many of those fighters, like him, went on to have careers in the UFC and with other upper-echelon organizations, the release stated.

“This year, I’m just going to get to go there and enjoy it,” Curran said. “The shows at Sideouts were never disappointing. It was always our favorite one of the year. It’s like a big gathering. You’re not just stuck in your seat waiting for the next fight. You can float around, eat, drink and socialize.”

Lardy, a Wauconda native who now lives in Texas, said names to watch this year will include Ian Mullen and Marco Delgadillo.

“Both are standout ex-wrestlers,” he said. “We have fighters coming from all over the Midwest, and a couple are flying in from Florida.”

For more information about the venue, visit 3dsideouts.com/, email staff@sideouts.comor call 847-526-7174.

The Xtreme Fighting Organization can be found on Facebook and Instagram @xfomma.