Mika Immonen and Jeffrey de Luna could renew rivalries during this weekend’s World Nineball Tour ranking event on Long Island, six months on from one of the most controversial moments of the year.
Click here for the full draw bracket and how to watch the 2023 Raxx MVP Tour Open
The in-form Immonen, who was a runner-up at the recent Turning Stone Classic, has defeated Denis Grabe and Mario He at the Raxx MVP Tour Open before being sent to the one-loss side in a closely-contested match against David Alcaide.
De Luna, meanwhile, came through a hill-hill affair against Billy Thorpe and thrashed Konrad Juszczyszyn 9-1, only to subsequently suffer a heavy defeat against Alexander Kazakis by the same scoreline.
The pair could now face one another in the eighth round via the one-loss bracket, as De Luna takes on Norway’s Emil-Andre Gangflot to progress and lock horns with the 2001 world champion from Finland.
Immonen and De Luna made the headlines following an altercation at the World 10-Ball Championship in March due to some confusion surrounding the Fin calling a seven-nine combination.
The referee initially called a foul, causing De Luna to burst out of his chair, but the official reversed his decision. That lead to Immonen shouting in the face of his opponent and the pair ultimately exchanging words.
Elsewhere in New York, youngsters Fedor Gorst and Moritz Neuhausen remain undefeated and face one another in the final four, while newly-crowned European Open champion David Alcaide takes on Carlo Biado.
There are two mouth-watering encounters on the one-loss side as recent European Open runner-up Anton Raga faces Albin Ouschan and Mario He takes on former Texas Open champion Vitaliy Patsura.
Billy Ussery continues his charge towards a Mosconi Cup debut, with the ranking event winner having beaten Peru’s Gerson Martinez and Wiktor Zielinski during a remarkable run. He plays Mieszko Fortunski to face fellow American Shane Wolford.
The 2023 Raxx MVP Tour Open concludes on Sunday at the Raxx Pool Room in West Hempstead.
