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After successfully beating cancer, the 50-year-old former boxer and mixed martial arts promoter, Tom Crowther, now wants to try his luck in the cage against a fighter half his age. As a result he will make his professional MMA debut in the co-main event at RFC 23: Breaking Point at the A La Carte Pavilion in Tampa, Fla. March 18.

While the odds are clearly not in Crowther's favor he remains confident that his opponent, Jared Crawford, will not pose much of a challenge for him. Crawford, on the other hand, plans on using his wrestling skills to take Crowther out of his element and submit him on the ground before the former boxer has the chance to land a fateful blow.

Although Crowther has received much support from the local MMA community and will also have former UFC fighter, Dan Savern, in his corner it remains to be seen if he can indeed dominate a significantly younger opponent in the cage.

Aside from the age factor, most professional boxers have not successfully transitioned to MMA. One famous example is boxing champ, James Toney's submission loss to UFC legend, Randy Couture at UFC 118 last August. Toney's pre-fight claim of knocking out Couture while being pinned to the ground literally blew up in Toney's face when Couture forced him to tap out at 3:19 of round one.

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The Tampa-based mixed martial arts promotion, Art of Fighting, will host an inaugural MMA expo at the Florida State Fair this Saturday and Sunday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.

"We wanted to bring something to MMA fans in Florida that will help grow the sport in our state and reward loyal fans with a great experience." said AOF President Nathan Smith.

Access to the MMA expo is free with the purchase of a ticket to the fair. On the agenda will be live demonstrations of MMA techniques that include Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, boxing, Kickboxing, wrestling  and more. In addition there will be MMA seminars that offer the opportunity to  participate and experience the sport firsthand.  MMA merchandise will also be available for purchase. The icing on the cake, however, will be free autograph sessions with professional MMA fighters.

"This expo is going to be a lot of fun for kids and maybe even more fun for adults who have been following the sport for years," said Smith.

Since the Florida State Fair attracts about 500 thousand visitors annually, the addition of an MMA expo is expected to increase that number significantly. Moreover, it will give people who have never been exposed to the sport before an opportunity to learn about it in a family-friendly environment.

In light of the fact that many martial arts schools in Tampa have begun to add MMA classes for kids and adults to their curriculums it makes perfect sense to add MMA-related events to mainstream events like the Florida State Fair in order to clear up common misperceptions about the sport.

While many people tend to believe that MMA training is the equivalent of the professional MMA fights they watch on TV, this is simply not true. Instead, the combination of several martial arts in a workout program actually results in a very healthy exercise routine.

AOF will also host a professional MMA fight card, AOF 11, at the Florida State Fair Entertainment Hall immediately following the expo on Saturday with ten bouts scheduled to start at 7 p.m. Tickets can be purchased at the Florida State Fair for $30 or online.

• Complete AOF MMA Expo schedule

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Since nothing spells success like a packed venue and an enthusiastic crowd cheering at the top of its lungs the Tampa-based mixed martial arts promotion, Art of Fighting, seems to be off to a good start with her brand new  Amateur MMA at the Ritz series that was launched Friday night at an almost sold out Ritz in Ybor, Fla.

"We plan on having the amateur MMA events every two to three months, always here at the Ritz," said Nick Smith, co-owner of AOF. "Tonight we are crowning the very first AOF amateur champion in the main event."

Watch the fight photo slide show after the break.

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After about a year of training mixed martial artist Paul Barrow has achieved something most other fighters only dream of. He made it onto the MMA reality show The Ultimate Fighter for season 12, where lightweight fighters will compete for the holy grail of MMA: a much coveted contract with the Ultimate Fighting Championship.

While Barrow's talent for the sport is undeniable he also happened to be in the right place at the right time. As fate would have it he crossed paths with TUF 6 alumnus, Matt Arroyo, at the University of Tampa who introduced him to MMA and put him on the fast track to success.

"I am sure me knowing Matt didn't hurt my chance of getting on TUF 12," said Barrow. "But I really worked hard over the last year to get to where I am now."

Not only did Barrow work hard, he took the Tampa MMA scene by storm going undefeated in his first three fights before suffering his first loss at the hands of Michael Byrnes at RFC 21 last July. His fast rise to local stardom after his first two wins prompted his quest for bigger and better things in the MMA world. Naturally, the TUF 12 tryouts earlier this year were the perfect opportunity to evaluate Barrow's skills on a national level. Not surprisingly Barrow's training under Aorroyo's tutelage paid off as he did well enough to make it onto the show for the first elimination round, just like his coach did a few years ago.

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MMA has been taking over the world as one of the fastest growing sports and the Tampa-based mixed martial arts promotion, Xtreme Fighting Championships, has been growing right along with it as evident in the upcoming XFC fight card at Port Cratos at Kyrenia, Northern Cyprus next month.

“We are ecstatic to build our brand in Northern Cyprus and the surrounding area and plan on delivering a quality show there like only the XFC can,” said XFC President John Prisco.

After the XFC's success in the U.S. with 10,000 plus fans attending the live events at venues like the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, Fla. and live coverage of the fights nationwide on HDNet as well as weekly reruns on various cable channels the international expansion seems like a logical next step.

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It was only a little over a year ago that quadruple-amputee Kyle Maynard made his debut as mixed martial arts fighter at an unsanctioned event in Ala. never to be seen or heard of again.

Apparently, he did not spend the last 16 months idle though, as he is now heavily promoting an ESPN documentary about himself titled 'A Fighting Chance' (watch the video preview after the break!).

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Team XFC proved that mixed martial arts is not all about violence as it helped raise more than $24,000 Saturday at Dodgeball for a Cause at the St. Pete Times Forum in Tampa, which was hosted by Clear Channel Radio of Tampa, Tampa Bay Storm,  St. Pete Times Forum, and and 620 WDAE for the families of slain Tampa police officers David Curtis and Jeffrey Kocab.

The Tampa-based MMA promotion, Xtreme Fighting Championships, participated as the only representatives from the Tampa MMA community alongside 63 other teams.

Watch the event slide show after the break.