Sengoku 12: Marlon Sandro vs Tomonari Kanomata on tap for March 7

Marlon Sandro (15-1), who had a breakout year in 2009 with his strong performance in Sengoku Featherweight Grand Prix, finally has an opponent for his upcoming return to action.

He will meet Cage Force and Pancrase veteran, Tomonari Kanomata (15-4-5) at Sengoku 12, which will take place on March 7 and air on HDNet in North America.

Sandro entered the Sengoku Featherweight Grand Prix undefeated and with Featherweight King of Pancrase title under his belt. In the tournament, he defeated Matt Jaggers and Nick Denis before losing a controversial split decision against the upset artist, Michihiro Omigawa.

He quickly atoned for the first and only loss of his career by dispatching Yuji Hoshino with a first-round TKO at Sengoku 11 last November. Since then, he was tapped to face Hideo Tokoro in the "DREAM vs. Sengoku" cross-promotional bout series at Dynamite!! 2009; however, an injury forced his withdrawal.

Tomonari Kanomata cut his teeth in longstanding Japanese MMA promotions, such as Shooto and Cage Force. Having competed as a lightweight for most of his career, he dropped to featherweight when he joined Pancrase last year. Since then, he has recorded two wins and two draws, including a victory over previously undefeated Shigeyuki Uchiyama.

Sengoku 12 will be headlined by the middleweight title match cum rematch between the reigning champion, Jorge Santaigo and the fast-rising Polish standout, Mamed Khalidov.