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AARON LACEY RETURNING TO THE CAGE AT NEF 43 IN ORONO, MAINE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Orono, Maine (March 11, 2020) – New England Fights (NEF) will present its next mixed-martial-arts (MMA) event at the Collins Center for the Arts on the University of Maine’s flagship Orono campus. The event, titled “NEF 43: Rampage,” will take place on Saturday, April 18, 2020, with a bell-time of 7 pm EDT. Earlier today, the fight promotion announced the addition of a professional featherweight bout to the card. Aaron “Relentless” Lacey (6-2) is scheduled to meet “Yours Truly” Chris Herd (2-3) at a fight weight of 145 pounds.
It will have been 19 months since the last time Aaron Lacey stepped in the NEF cage as a competitor. Lacey defeated veteran Jon Lemke (7-9) in the main event of “NEF 35” in September 2018. He has not fought since due to an injury suffered later that fall. A former NEF Amateur Featherweight Champion, Lacey started his professional career a perfect 4-0 before going 2-2 in his last four bouts. He will look to make his comeback a successful one on April 18. Lacey represents Young’s MMA based in nearby Bangor, Maine.
“I’m so super excited to be getting back into my happy place,” exclaimed Aaron Lacey. “Matt (Peterson, NEF co-owner and matchmaker) worked really hard to get me a fight on this card, and I am beyond grateful! April 18th ‘Relentless’ returns!”
Lacey’s opponent, Chris Herd, will make the 1,000-mile trip from his home in Wilmington, North Carolina for the fight. Herd had a stellar amateur career, going 5-0 with four knockouts and one submission and capturing a regional championship along the way. Both of his wins as a professional have been first-round finishes with one a technical knockout and the other a submission. Herd currently represents Brunson’s MMA & Fitness based in Wilmington, North Carolina.
“No man can touch me without my permission,” said Herd when reached for comment. “This fight will go where I want it, and I will finish it at will.”
New England Fights’ next mixed-martial-arts event, “NEF 43: Rampage,” will take place on Saturday, April 18, 2020, at the Collins Center for the Arts at UMaine Orono. Tickets are on sale now at www.CollinsCenterfortheArts.com.
About New England Fights
New England Fights (“NEF”) is a fight events promotions company. NEF’s mission is to create the highest quality events for fighters and fans alike. NEF’s executive team has extensive experience in combat sports management, events production, media relations, marketing, legal and advertising.
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FEATHERWEIGHT BOUT ADDED TO NEF 43 CARD IN ORONO, MAINE
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Orono, Maine (March 10, 2020) – New England Fights (NEF) will present its next mixed-martial-arts (MMA) event at the Collins Center for the Arts on the University of Maine’s flagship Orono campus. The event, titled “NEF 43: Rampage,” will take place on Saturday, April 18, 2020, with a bell-time of 7 pm EDT. Earlier today, the fight promotion announced the addition of a professional featherweight bout to the card. Carl Langston (0-5) is scheduled to meet Aaron “Short Fuse” Hughes (0-0) at a fight weight of 145 pounds.
Carl Langston comes into the fight looking for the first win that has eluded him thus far in his professional career. Last month, Langston took on Jacob Deppmeyer (1-0) in Portland, Maine at “NEF 42,” losing via first-round technical knockout. It was his first fight back with the promotion since losing his pro debut in April 2018. Langston, a lifelong practitioner of Taekwondo, currently represents Young’s MMA based in nearby Bangor, Maine.
“It’s been hard getting fights altogether, but even more so in my home state,” noted Langston. “So, with this last lost I didn’t think I was going to get another fight for a bit. I got in my own head and said I wanted to stop fighting for a bit, but when I got the call three weeks after the loss, I couldn’t say no. This is something I need, back-to-back fights. I just have to show up like I show up in the gym and I’ll get my hand raised without a doubt.”
Aaron Hughes will make both his professional and promotional debuts with NEF. He has had a very active amateur career since his debut in 2015, putting together a record of 4-6 while competing on fight cards in his home state of Massachusetts. Hughes represents Regiment Training Center of Fall River, Massachusetts where he trains alongside the likes of current UFC star and former NEF Professional Cruiserweight Champion Yorgan De Castro (6-0).
“I’m really excited to take the trip to Maine to make my professional debut,” said Hughes when reached for comment. “My opponent is skilled, but I’m coming to put on a show, and he’s just a man in the way of my dreams to the UFC. Thank you to NEF for having me out.”
New England Fights’ next mixed-martial-arts event, “NEF 43: Rampage,” will take place on Saturday, April 18, 2020, at the Collins Center for the Arts at UMaine Orono. Tickets are on sale now at www.CollinsCenterfortheArts.com.
About New England Fights
New England Fights (“NEF”) is a fight events promotions company. NEF’s mission is to create the highest quality events for fighters and fans alike. NEF’s executive team has extensive experience in combat sports management, events production, media relations, marketing, legal and advertising.
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One of the best all-time…. 1988 Olympic silver medalist Riddick “Big Daddy” Bowe
COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (March 9, 2020) – By any standards, U.S. Olympian and former unified World heavyweight champion Riddick “Big Daddy” Bowe is inarguably one of the all-time greatest boxers, amateur and professional.
Born and raised in the infamous Brownsville section of Brooklyn, New York, which also produced fellow World heavyweight championsMike Tyson and Shannon Briggs, Bowe started boxing at 13 in the Bedford-Stuyvesant Boxing Association Gym.
“I wanted to do everything Muhammad Ali did,” Bowe explained why he got into boxing. “He was my idol. I wanted to join the Marines, but I fell in love with boxing and stayed with it. I forgot about the Marines.”
Bowe developed his craft and became an outstanding boxer, compiling a 104-18 amateur record, highlighted by his controversial silver-medal winning performance at the 1988 Olympic Games in Seoul, South Korea.
A four-time New York Golden Gloves champion, Bowe also captured top honors at the 1986 Junior World Championships, along with a bronze medal at the 1987 Pan American Games, despite fighting in his final match with a fractured hand he hid from his coaches.
Bowe had a rivalry with Robert Salters, with whom he split four matches, but he defeated Salters, 3-2, in the U.S. Box-Offs to qualify for the 1988 USA Boxing Olympic Team. His Olympic teammates included Roy Jones, Jr., Ray Mercer, Kennedy McKinney andAndrew Maynard.
Controversary surrounded his Olympic championship fight against future World heavyweight champion, Canadian super heavyweight Lennox Lewis, who returned home with the Olympic gold medal. During his fight with Lewis, Bowe was deducted a point for a “ghost” head butt that never happened, and the referee gave Bowe a pair of disputed standing-eight counts, the last of which resulted in the stoppage of the fight in Lewis’ favor.
“That fight never should have been stopped,” Bowe commented. “I’m still happy about winning a silver medal. I still have it. And then I turned pro. My mother had 13 kids and I wanted to make my mother happy. I wanted to buy her a house. That’s what inspired me to box.”
“Bowe’s success as an amateur and professional has made him a household name amongst USA Boxing Alumni,” said Chris Cugliari, USA Boxing Alumni Association Director. “His combination of power and skill, along with his legendary battles with other USA Boxing Alumni at the pro ranks, establishes him as one of the greatest fighters that USA Boxing has ever produced.”
USA Boxing Alumni Association
Created to champion lifelong, mutually beneficial relationships between USA Boxing and its alumni, –boxers, officials, coaches and boxing fans — The Alumni Association connects generations of champions, inspiring and giving back to USA Boxing’s future boxing champions, in and out of the ring.
The USA Boxing Alumni Association is open to anyone who has a love for boxing and would like to stay connected with amateur boxing. Members are granted access to a wide variety of special events hosted by the Alumni Association, including its annual USA Boxing Alumni Association Hall of Fame reception.
To join the Alumni Association, simply register at alumni@usaboxing.org for a $40.00 per year membership fee. New members will receive a T-shirt, keychain and e-wallet.
With legendary trainer Eddie Futch in his corner, Bowe became the first truly unified World heavyweight champion, winning the title belt for all four recognized major sanctioning bodies: WBC, WBA, IBF and WBO.
Bowe retired with an amazing 43-1 (33 KOs) pro record. He had a 5-1 (4 KOs) mark in world title fights, 7-1 (5 KOs) versus past world heavyweight champions such as Evander Holyfield (twice), Pinklon Thomas, Tony Tubbs, Bruce Seldon, Michael Dokes andHerbie Hyde.
Bowe later avenged his lone pro loss to Holyfield, winning two of three fights with the “Real Deal.”
“I’m very happy with my pro career,” Bowe added. “I beat Holyfield two times and I think it should have been three. I’m not a sore loser, but I was the World heavyweight champion. How did he win that fight? The challenger needs to take the belt from the champion, and he didn’t do that. I thought I won by a point, at worst, maybe it should have been a draw, but I shouldn’t have lost the fight. I did become the first to ever knockout Holyfield. My pro career wasn’t too bad. I kept working hard and became two-time World heavyweight champion.”
Now 51 and living in Maryland, Bowe has some advice for the American boxers trying to qualify for the 2020 Team USA Boxing Olympic Team.
“Just don’t think about it,” stressed Bowe, sounding like a Nike commercial. “Just do it! It worked for me. I showed up and didn’t think about it. And always finish strong.”
Riddick “Big Daddy” Bowe, who was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in 2015, left his mark in amateur and pro boxing. Nobody can ever take that away from the big guy from Brownsville.
INFORMATION:
www.usaboxing.orgi
Twitter: @USABoxing, @USABoxingAlumni
Instagram: @USABoxing
Facebook: /USABoxing
ABOUT USA BOXING: The mission of USA Boxing shall be to enable United States’ athletes and coaches to achieve sustained competitive excellence, develop character, support the sport of boxing, and promote and grow Olympic style boxing in the United States. The responsibility of USA Boxing is not only to produce Olympic gold, but also oversee and govern every aspect of amateur boxing in the United States.