It's Showtime and Simon Rutz have been teasing a major announcement on Facebook and Twitter for the past two weeks. Most felt that it would be a deal to air the events live on American television. Unfortunately, there is no announcement for a TV deal. Instead, we get even better news. For fans of one night tournaments and the K-1 MAX World Grand Prix, you will be happy to know that It's Showtime has decided to fill that void. 

The event will take place in Brussels, Belgium on September 24. The eight participants will be fighting for a 50.000 Euro purse on top of their normal win money and bonuses throughout the night. The announced fighters are a legitimate Who's who of 70kg kickboxing, from the press release: 

The following world elite fighters will participate to this prestigious tournament:

1) Giorgio Petrosyan

2) Andy Souwer

3) Artur Kyshenko

4) Gago Drago

5) Murat Direkçi

6) Chris Ngimbi

7) Harut Grigorian

8) Pajunsuk Superpro Samui

The quarter finals will be decided by a drawing of lots in Belgium at the end of June, and every participant will be present at the drawing. We already know that every possible combination of the 2 of the abovementioned fighters will promise fireworks!

While this obviously isn't the news that American fans hoped for, this is great news for all fans around the world. This tournament on paper is one of the best in recent years. Giorgio Petrosyan will try to continue his dominance while Chris Ngimbi will be look for legitimacy as the current It's Showtime 70kg Champion. 

Fans who tune into It's Showtime Lyon this weekend will get a chance to see both Petrosyan and Ngimbi fight as Giorgio faces off against Chahid Oulad El Hadj while Ngimbi puts his title on the line against Willy Borrel.

An aside: For those that are interested in It's Showtime, come on over to HeadKickLegend.com this Saturday. We'll be having a live discussion and play by play for the event. It's gonna cost about $13 for the stream but you get the following card:

70 kg bout: Chahid Oulad El Hadj vs. Giorgio Petrosyan
70 kg bout: Willy Borrel vs. Chris Ngimbi (It’s Showtime 70MAX World Title Fight)
Heavyweight bout: Fikri Ameziane vs. Daniel Ghiţă
73 kg bout: Yohan Lidon vs. Marat Grigorian (It’s Showtime 73MAX World Title Fight)
Heavyweight bout: Igor Mihaljevic vs. Tyrone Spong
Heavyweight bout (Main Event): Gregory Tony vs. Badr Hari

Stream can be purchased here.