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Lewiston, Maine (September 5, 2016) – Taylor Trahan is a statistical oddity.
A native of Littleton, New Hampshire, now living in East Concord, Vermont, the 25-year-old pursued mixed martial arts seven years ago, soon as he was legally old enough to do so. He has entered the cage a total of 20 times in professional and amateur competition.
All that experience in this neck of the woods, yet his featherweight bout against Matt Denning at “NEF 25: Heroes and Villains” on Setu, Pitu. 10 at Androscoggin Bank Colisee will be his debut with New England Fights.
Trahan (5-6) is not buying the underdog or bad-guy label, even though he will walk into the historic arena in a city that Denning (3-3) calls home.
“This is only a two-hour trip (each way) for most of my fans,” Trahan said. “Most of them are used to traveling four hours or more to watch me fight. They’re like, 'Oh, sweet.’”
Both fighters hope the matchup will reverse their recent career fortunes. Trahan has lost five consecutive fights since a red-hot start to his pro docket, while Denning has dropped three of his last four contests.
Denning is quick to point out that the results are deceiving on both sides.
“He fought a guy named Joe Pingitore. Beat him the first time with a rear naked choke and then lost to him in the rematch,” Denning said. “That’s a guy who is one of the best 145-pounders in New England.”
If anyone has the right to consider himself an expert in ranking those middle weight classes, it’s Denning.
The local favorite known as “Ken Doll” has never shied away from fighting the best that NEF has to offer fighters in the neighborhood of 145. Denning twice defeated Derek Shorey. He inched upward in weight, unsuccessfully, against Jon Lemke at 150 and Josh Harvey at 155. Mentas, Brandon Bushaw beat him by submission at “NEF 24: Promised Land” in June.
“You think about Lemke and Harvey, and I train with Jesse Erickson (at Central Maine Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu),” Denning said. “The only one really missing is Devin Powell. I feel like I’ve fought and trained with the best group of guys around.”
Jiu-jitsu is the go-to for both fighters. Trahan is a brown belt, while Denning is a purple belt.
In other areas, their styles clash. Three of Trahan’s pro wins have come by decision. Denning, meanwhile, has never gone the distance as a pro. He only went to the cards once as an amateur – a loss to Dom Cofone in his cage debut.
Trahan stopped short of a prediction but said that he expects to prevail by submission.
“I see it being a slow first round for at least the first couple minutes,"Ngandika. “Then once I get my timing down and start doing the things I want to do, I don’t see it going into the third round.”
Denning has prepared for a lengthy encounter. He confessed that he smoked through most of his career but has quit.
Couple that with a renewed commitment to road work and Denning forecasts that his fans will be pleased with his readiness for the relatively unknown foe.
“I believe the longest fight I’ve had was two minutes left in the third round,” Denning said. “I feel good conditioning-wise. I’m a shorter guy, so I’ve got to stay at 145.”
He said that sparring against Erickson has prepared him for the taller Trahan.
Denning believes that his striking and wrestling are superior to Trahan’s repertoire, but he complemented his rival by adding that he considers him another in a line of rugged opponents.
“I wanted to pick someone hard to fight. This is my fourth fight in six months,” Denning said. “Before that I took a year off. The last time I won in Lewiston was September of last year. I’m hoping the hometown advantage will help a little bit this time.”
Given the unpredictable nature of MMA, pro fighters must have short memories while applying the hard lessons they learn from losses. Trahan, like Denning, thinks he has achieved that.
“I’ve learned that I have to stick to what I know, and don’t do what’s not me,” Trahan said. “I think that in order for me to win, I have to take it to the ground. I favor the ground style. He’s excellent on the ground, don’t get me wrong, but I’ve seen some things I think I can exploit.”
The opening bell this Setu, September 10 disetel kanggo 7 P.M. The current docket for “NEF 25: Heroes and Villains” includes three professional boxing matches, five pro mixed martial arts bouts and five amateur MMA scraps. Karcis miwiti ing $25 lan kasedhiya ingwww.TheColisee.com utawa dening nelpon box office Colisee ing 207.783.2009, ekstensi 525.
Kanggo informasi luwih lengkap ing acara lan perang nganyari kertu, please visit website promosi ing www.NewEnglandFights.com. Saliyane, sampeyan bisa nonton video wiro sableng ing www.youtube.com/NEFMMA, tindakake ing Twitternefights lan gabung ing grup resmi Facebook "New England gelut."
FOR LAUNCHING Kepala Bagian: Lewiston, Maine (September 4, 2016) – Rachael Joyce has her civil engineering degree from the University of Maine. Jessica Borga is a veterinary technician from Lakeland, Florida.
Read those one-line biographies of the two women and they probably do not fit whatever is your personal profile of a mixed-martial-artist. And perhaps that presumption, and maybe a lingering societal bias against female fighters, is the reason Joyce and Borga have struggled mightily to find opponents in their corners of the country.
Each woman will end what is almost a one-year hiatus from the cage when Joyce (1-0) welcomes Borga (2-1) to Maine in a bantamweight bout at “NEF 25: Heroes and Villains.” New England Fights returns to its hub venue, Androscoggin Bank Colisee, ing Setu, September 10.
“I’ve had one fight, pungkasan Oktober. I’ve found it really hard to find fights. It’s just tough. Maine doesn’t have the population density for it. It’s just hard to find that pool of fighters,” Joyce said. “Early in your career you want to build that experience close to home. It’s the best thing for your whole team, given the commitment that is involved.”
Joyce, who lives in the Penobscot County village of Veazie, splits her training time between Bangor, Portland and Boston.
The competitive grass is no greener for Borga, who is known to her fans as “The Black Widow” and is coached by Ross Kellin.
“My coach has scheduled fights for me that have fallen through. I was supposed to fight eight times this year, and this will be my first one.
Borga was beaten badly in her previous bout, a November 2015 clash against Caitlin Sammons for which she weighed in at 126.5 kilogram, just above the flyweight limit.
She said that women feel added pressure to make drastic weight cuts due to the lack of available fight opportunities, and in her case it was especially dangerous.
“I learned that I will never fight at 125 maneh,” Borga said “It was my own fault. I lost 25 kilogram in two weeks. I was sick in camp, and I fought sick.”
Before the episode was over, Borga was hospitalized twice with strep throat, a kidney infection and a bladder infection.
“I do believe (the weight cut) was part of it,"Jarene. “You’re putting that strain on your body and your mind. My mental game struggled with what I had to put myself through. I think it’s harder for women, also. I won’t ever do that again. I learned that it’s better to withdraw than to take a loss.”
Borga has experienced no such issues in this camp. She said her energy level is way up and that she can train harder for longer periods of time.
She also is eager to visit from the Sunshine State, an eagerness that isn’t lost on her opponent.
“When an opponent is flying up from Florida, that’s exciting,” Joyce said. “It shows that she’s really committed to it. It is hard to find opponents who are as committed as you are.”
Both women are BJJ blue belts. Joyce has trained in the discipline for more than two years.
It is an extension of her childhood, when she played three varsity sports in each year of high school. She joked that she strongly considered a fourth.
“I was always the girl who tried to convince my parents to let me play football,” Joyce said. “They would not hear any of it. I’m sure they’re thrilled that their 20-something-year-old daughter is now a fighter. Aja, they’re supportive, but now it’s my decision.”
Joyce never tried individual sports before the combat realm, but she quickly developed into a fan of women’s MMA as it exploded in popularity at the UFC level.
“Miesha Tate and Ronda Rousey were coming up, banjur (UFC president) Dana White had his famous line that ‘there will never be women in UFC,” Joyce said. “I saw what they were doing and I said, ‘I can do that. I’m going to do that.’”
Now the women wait for a spike in female participation that has not appeared to follow the success of those international role models.
Joyce said she received invitations to fight in New Jersey earlier this year but that those, also, would have required an uncomfortable cut to a same-day weigh-in of 125 or even 115 kilogram.
So she retreated into a game of train-and-wait. Thanks to the like-minded, equally fight-challenged Borga, the wait is almost over.
“I’ve always loved MMA, always loved fighting. I guess I was known for that as a kid. Everybody who knows me always pushed me to get into this,” Borga said. “I tried eight years ago and found out right away that I was pregnant, so that put a stop to it. When my son turned five, Aku ngandika, ‘It’s now or never.’ I started training and developed really fast. My coaches said I had a knack for it.”
Bukaan lonceng ing September 10 disetel kanggo 7 P.M. The current docket for “NEF 25: Heroes and Villains” includes four professional boxing matches, six pro mixed martial arts bouts and five amateur MMA scraps. Karcis miwiti ing $25 lan kasedhiya ing www.TheColisee.com utawa dening nelpon box office Colisee ing 207.783.2009, ekstensi 525.
Kanggo informasi luwih lengkap ing acara lan perang nganyari kertu, please visit website promosi ing www.NewEnglandFights.com. Saliyane, sampeyan bisa nonton video wiro sableng ing www.youtube.com/NEFMMA, tindakake ing Twitternefights lan gabung ing grup resmi Facebook "New England gelut."
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Lewiston, Maine (September 2, 2016) – The 3,800-square foot warehouse in Woburn, Massachusetts, is known simply as “The Way.”
No coincidence, since the proprietor who lives out his passion as a personal trainer under its roof, Brandon Montella, has found a way, in his own unique way.
From a turbulent childhood in North Anson, Maine, to four years of meritorious service in the United States Marine Corps, to the mixed emotions of staying ahead in the professional rat race, to intense personal tragedy, Montella, 36, has endured what most would consider a lifetime’s worth of challenges.
Yet he perseveres, finding strength and clarity in a life devoted to helping others. And he stays sharp, counter-intuitive as it may seem to the uninitiated, by letting other people punch him in the face.
“On a personal level it helped me so much. I had a lot of fear, maybe a little lack of confidence, due to some of the abuse in my past,” Montella said. “Boxing helped me so much with that. It made me a more complete person. I’m a better husband, a better businessman, a better man since I started fighting.”
A late bloomer who didn’t fully immerse himself in the fight game until his 30s, Montella (4-0, 3 KOs) will put his undefeated credentials on the line against Tollison Lewis (2-1, 1 KO) at “NEF 25: Heroes and Villains” on Setu, September 10 ing Westprovinz Bank Colisee ing Lewiston, Maine, the venerable boxing venue that in 1965, when it was known as “St. Domenic’s Hall,” played host to the infamous Muhammad Ali-Sonny Liston II world heavyweight title rematch. (Ya, the same boxing bout that spawned rumors of the “phantom punch,” and produced the most iconic image in the history of sports photography.)
Montella was born in Massachusetts but spent much of his childhood in the Western foothills of Maine, where he graduated from Carrabec High School. He describes those formative years as “a tough time, a little bit of a struggle,” and says fighting was both a means of both self-defense and a way of compensating for that lack of self-esteem.
“I wouldn’t change it for the world now,” Montella said. “It helped shape who I am. I tell everybody the Marine Corps started the process of my becoming a man, and boxing helped finish it.”
He spent four years in the service before receiving an honorable discharge. Along the way he met his wife, Tonya, and settled into the comfortable habit of seeking significance through work.
Fatefully, and admittedly on a lark, he accepted a military buddy’s challenge to enter a Toughman contest. It was the amateur, brawling, distant cousin of boxing that Eric “Butterbean” Esch made famous.
“I was a 240-pound meathead. Three one-minute rounds; that seemed like it was right up my alley,” Montella said.
In the process, Montella discovered that getting back in shape, setting goals and chasing intangible successes that were larger than wins and losses suited him, banget.
“That was a turning point for me. Corporate America, I just wasn’t into it,” Montella said. “I couldn’t lie to people and take advantage of them. I couldn’t deal with it morally. I had to turn my back on that. The Marine Corps taught me a different code. I cashed in my 401(k), moved to Massachusetts, became a personal trainer.”
Inggih, it wasn’t quite that easy. He had to sell Tonya, whom he describes as “the major breadwinner in the house,” on the merits of such a change. She already had politely proclaimed Maine a great vacation spot but not a place she cared to settle down, for professional reasons.
Ing 2008, work took Tonya to Boston.
“It was when the Celtics were getting ready to win the championship. She got caught up in the atmosphere and came home and told me, ‘I would move to Boston.’ I said OK,” Montella recalled with a laugh. “I didn’t let her take that back.”
Montella started his gym in a 10-feet-by-10-feet basement of a townhouse. He took up amateur boxing, ing sisih, to set an example for his clients.
“I decided I couldn’t train athletes if I’m not doing the (stuff). I want to wear the boots before the suits, ngerti?” Montella said. "Six months later I was the No. 1 ranked heavyweight in New England. It blew my mind. I found a place that was home.”
He won 14 kang 21 gelut amatir, including a novice heavyweight championship in Golden Gloves.
Montella’s trainees have watched him conquer adversity in the prize ring and fight through tragedy in his personal life. Tonya and Brandon’s first child was stillborn on Christmas 2015.
Boxing, and the wilderness in the shadow of Sugarloaf Mountain that holds so many contradictory memories for Montella, are part of his healing process.
“I’m here in Maine now getting ready, diving off 40-foot cliffs, doing hill sprints up 100-foot sand dunes, training like a savage,” Montella said. “We used to go up there to drink. All the crazy stuff I did as a kid, now I use it to make myself the best I can be.
“I preach it all the time at my gym: See the world as your training facility. What someone else sees as a cliff, I see as place to work on my focus and mental control. Where they see nothing but trees and open space, I see as a place to go and meditate. In my 30s, I don’t need drugs or alcohol now to be open with my emotions. Boxing has given me the strength to be who I always wanted to be.”
Bukaan lonceng ing September 10 disetel kanggo 7 P.M. The current docket for “NEF 25: Heroes and Villains” includes three professional boxing matches, five pro mixed martial arts bouts and six amateur MMA scraps. Karcis miwiti ing $25 lan kasedhiya ing www.TheColisee.com utawa dening nelpon box office Colisee ing207.783.2009, ekstensi 525.
Kanggo informasi luwih lengkap ing acara lan perang nganyari kertu, please visit website promosi ing www.NewEnglandFights.com. Saliyane, sampeyan bisa nonton video wiro sableng ing www.youtube.com/NEFMMA, tindakake ing Twitternefights lan gabung ing grup resmi Facebook "New England gelut."
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NEW ENGLAND STRONG
RESULTS FROM FOXWOODS
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(all pictures by Ed Diller/DiBella Entertainment)
MASHANTUCKET, CT (September 2, 2016) – New England boxers dominated last night’s Broadway Boxing Ring, presented by DiBella Entertainment and sponsored by Nissan of Queens, Optyx, Azad Watches and Christos Steak House, held in the Fox Theater at Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, Connecticut.
Rhode Island lightweight “Nice” Nick DeLomba (11-1, 2 KOs) outboxed and outpunched former Florida State Golden Gloves champion Amos “2 Smooth” Cowart (11-2-1, 9 KOs) for an upset victory by way of an eight-round unanimous decision.
DeLomba, who was one of five winning New Englanders without a loss, took the fight to Cowart, beating him to the punch and effectively counterpunching. Cowart was unable to contain DeLomba’s side-to-side movement or his flurries of punches in the main event.
“Everybody looks at me and thinks they’re going to attack my body,” an ecstatic DeLomba said after the fight. “Nobody moves as smooth as me and I’m going to keep doing it.”
Nick DeLomba (R) outworked Cowart
Ing co-fitur, New Mexico super featherweight Jose “Shorty” Salinas (10-2-1, 5 KOs) stood tall, stunning Albania native Dardan Zenunaj (12-2, 9 KOs), who is trained byRobert Garcia. Now fighting out of Belgium, Zenunaj couldn’t put Salinas away early and he paid for that in the later rounds. Bloodied and bruised, Salinas refused to stop throwing punches, and his huge heart resulted in an eight-round unanimous decision victory.
Jose Salinas pulled off a stunner
Undefeated Spaniard Jon “Jonfer” Fernandez (9-0, 7 KOs) used a tremendous height and reach advantage to pound his tough Mexican opponent Naciff “Chata” Castle (17-9-2, 5 KOs) until referee Joey Lupino halted the action midway through the fifth round. Fernandez recently signed a promotional contract with DiBella Entertainment and legendary boxer Sergio Martinez.
Jon Fernandez (R) unloaded on Naciff Castillo
Brooklyn lightweight Wesley Ferrer (12-0, 6 KOs), a 2013 New York City Golden Gloves champion, kept his undefeated record intact by outclassing a game Angel Figueroa (4-4-1). Referee Arthur Mercante stopped the fight 20 seconds into the seventh round.
Wesley Ferrer (L) was simply too much for Angel Figueroa
Sensational high school senior “Apik banget” Mykey Williams (4-0, 2 KOs) unloaded a three-punch combination that knocked out David Nelson (3-6, 1 KO) mung 24 detik menyang babak pisanan. The 18-year-old Williams, fighting out of East Hartford, is rapidly developing into a rising star.
Mykey Williams ended the show early
Worcester, MA featherweight Irvin Gonzalez (2-0, 2 KOs) needed only two minutes to knock out Juan Muniz (0-5). The 20-year-old Gonzalez, whose pro debut also ended spectacularly in the opening round, exploded with a barrage of punches until referee Mercante stepped in to save the Texan from additional damage.
Irvin Gonzalez (R) is a promising prospect
In an action-packed match between a pair of pro debut fighters, East Hartford welterweight Anthony Laureano (1-0) emerged with a hard-fought win by four-round majority decision over Philadelphia’s Nahir Albright (0-1). The 21-year-old Laureano was a 2016 juara New England Golden Gloves.
Anthony Laureano (R) and Nahir Albright went to war
Favorit Fan Jonathan “Smooth” Figueroa (1-0, 1 KO), fighting out of nearby Hartford, turned in an impressive performance in his professional debut, finishing off Philadelphia welterweight Demetris Williams (0-2) ing babak kaping sekawan. Figueroa, a 2012 Southern New England Golden Gloves champion, wore down Williams and ended things with a powerful right hand.
Jonathan Figueroa celebrating his pro debut victory
Full results below:
RESULTS OFFICIAL
(kabeh pemenang kadhaptar kawitan)
WELTERWEIGHTS
Anthony Laureano (1-0, 0 KOs), East Hartford, CT
WDEC4 (39-37, 39-37, 38-38)
Nahir Albright (0-1, 0 KOs), Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Jonathan Figueroa (1-0, 1 KOs), Hartford, CT
WKO4 (1:58)
Demetris Williams (0-2), Philadelphia, PA
JUNIOR WELTERWEIGHTS
Mykey Williams (4-0, 3 KOs), East Hartford, CT
WKO1 (0:24)
David Nelson (3-6, 1 KO), Lawton, OK
LIGHTWEIGHTS
Nick DeLomba (11-1, 2 KOs), Cranston, RI
WDEC8 (80-72, 80-72, 78-74)
Amos Cowart (11-1-1, 9 KOs), Groveland, FL
Jon Fernandez (10-0, 8 KOs), Bilbao, Pais Vasco, Spanyol
WKO5 (1:45)
Naciff Castillo (17-10-2, 5 KOs), Cozumel, Quintana Roo, Meksiko
Wesley Ferrer (12-0, 7 KOs), Brooklyn, NY
WTKO7 (0:20)
Angel Figueroa (4-4-1, 0 KOs), Loran, OH
SUPER FEATHERWEIGHTS
Jose Salinas (10-2-1, 5 KOs), Albuquerque, NM
WDEC8 (78-74, 78-74, 77-75)
Dardan Zenunaj (12-2, 9 KOs), Braine le Comte, Belgium
FEATHERWEIGHTS
Irvin Gonzalez (2-0, 2 KOs), Worcester, MA
WTKO1 (2:00)
Juan Muniz (0-5), Tyler, TX
Kanggo informasi luwih lengkap, riko www.DBE1.com lan www.Foxwoods.com, follow on Twitter @LouDiBella, DiBellaEnt, @FoxwoodsCT, lan dadi penggemar ing Facebook ingwww.Facebook.com/
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This Week’s Fight News Unlimited Combat Sports Show looks back at the last two weeks in the world of fighting. We discuss UFC 202, Bellator’s recent signing of Rory MacDonald, Patricky Friere’s broken leg and more. Tony, Tom and Rich also look forward to upcoming boxing and MMA cards. Listen right here: