Collard opponent set in boxing; Westin to headline MMA card

Just a quick few notes: (UPDATE BELOW)

According to ESPN's Steve Kim, MMA/boxer Clay Collard has an opponent for an Aug. 22 boxing card in "The Bubble" MGM Grand in Las Vegas, promoted by Top Rank. Collard (8-2-3), winner of four bouts this year, will face middleweight Maurice Williams (7-1).

The bout will likely be broadcast on ESPN as Collard has gained a following as boxing's most consistent face, and winner, during this pandemic year. Collard is seen above stopping L.T. Nelson in his most recent win.  ... Noted also is that 17-year-old professional boxer Jesus Haro, of Merced, Calif., logged his first win last weekend in Tijuana, Mexico. Haro, a prominent amateur, has family in Utah. Also winning on the card was Miklo Arnold, a 16-year-old professional, of North Plains, Ore.

And in MMA news, Mountain Force MMA is planning a card in Evanston, Wyo., on Aug. 1. Utah professional Westin Wilson, of Orem, will headline the card, meeting Kurt Steinke. The card is here. Mountain Force's Facebook page is here. Its website is here. ... On the weekend of Aug. 21 and Aug. 22, FitCon 2020 is planning to have amateur MMA bouts. Its Facebook page is here. Utah amateur MMA fighter Brittany Guillemin is scheduled to fight on Aug. 21.

ALSO, on Friday, July 31, Utah MMA pro heavyweight, Zac Cavender, (3-1) fights in Sioux Falls, S.D., on Legacy Fighting Alliance 87 card, which is being broadcast on UFC Fight Pass. Cavender meets debuting Zac Pauga. The card starts at 7 p.m. MST.

UPDATE TO WESTIN and CAVENDER MMA bouts: Cavender, 3-2, lost a three-round decision in his streamed bout against Pauga, a highly touted amateur who was making his pro debut. Westin, 8-5, stopped the debuting Steinke in the first round.

Valentine, Guillemin win bouts, boxing card scheduled

Saturday night, in an MMA card in Colorado Springs, Colo., a couple of Northern Utah fighters participated. Amateur Brittany Guillemin, of Layton, scored a decision win over Brandi Hancock (29-28 on all cards).

In a professional bout, Eric Munoz, of Ogden, suffered his first loss as a pro against veteran Josh Watson. In the second round a punch from Watson broke Munoz' nose, leading to a stoppage.

In Las Vegas, in a no-submission match, John Valentine stopped Arron Carson at around two minutes. Both fighters had their moments before Valentine managed a leg lock to force a tap from Carson. Valentine's win came on a card that raised money to assist our Troops.

MMA fighter turned boxer Clay Collard fought on the Alvarev versus Kovalev super-card at MGM Grand in Las Vegas two weekends ago. Collard had enjoyed success barnstorming the nation, defeating prospects. However, his opponent, Bektemir Melikuziev, of Uzbekistan, is one of the top prospects in the world. The UFC fighter Collard was stopped in this bout.

This Friday in Salt Lake City, DiBella Promotions is putting on a boxing card at the Salt Palace. The main event matches heavyweight contender Junior Fa against former Olympian Devin Vargas. The  card is here, on bottom of page. More information is on the poster above.

Some reminders: Super middleweight boxer Larry Gomez has a big fight on Nov. 30, in Las Vegas, fighting undefeated Brian Mendoza on an ESPN Plus card. And SteelFist is back on Nov. 22 in Salt Lake City, at the Union Event Center. Hayden Brown and Lehi Dominguez are professionals competing in separate bouts.

Chairez brothers, Raddon, Aguirre have fights on calendar

Some fights news of the past couple of months:

Tonight, at the 801 Event Center in Salt Lake City, there is a boxing card and undefeated professional boxers/brothers Ignacio and Gabriel Chairez are scheduled to meet opponents.

Tomorrow night in Denver, Colo., at the National Western Complex, Kaecy Raddon fights in a 165-pound Sparta Combat League Muy Thai title belt. Raddon, along with Utahn Jarrett Kelton, recently competed internationally for the U.S. Kickboxing team. Kelton, by the way, recently won the pro 170-pound kickboxing belt at the inaugural Mountain Force Kickboxing promotion, in Logan.

This Thursday night, Dec. 6, at The Hangar in Costa Mesa, Calif., super welterweight Christian Aguirre (seen above at left in an earlier bout) meets undefeated pro and former international amateur star Andreas Katzourakis in the top bout of the card. Aguirre, 8-3, scored a KO win over a previously undefeated boxer, Joey Alday Jr., at The Hangar earlier in the fall. The card is scheduled to be streamed on Facebook Live. SoCal Fights is the FB page. According to boxrec.com, Aguirre's last five opponents have met with with combined records of 31-1-1.
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Zac Cavender, a Tooele MMA heavyweight who had a lot of success as an amateur with Steelfist and Fierce Fighting Championships, continued that success in the pro ranks in mid November, scoring a win in his pro debut at a Final Fight Championships card.

Utah amateur MMA fighter Brittany Guillemin traveled to Nevada for a Tuff N Uff card, suffering a defeat.

SteelFist had a fight card on Nov. 16. Here are the results. On the card, local amateur Trevor Mortimer scored a stoppage win over Brandon Lemmings. It was Mortimer's second straight win. Sadly, this past week Mortimer died. He turned 24 on Nov. 27. We express our sadness and prayers for Trevor, his family and friends.

Fierce Fighting Championships had an MMA card on Oct. 27 in Price. Here are the results. In an ongoing 155 pound pro tournament, Thiago Alves and Bobby King won semi-final tournament bouts and will meet in an upcoming championship bout.

Another SteelFist card is scheduled for January 5. Pro bouts include Joe Rodriguez versus Hank Weiss and Kaytlin Neil versus Andrea Miller. Amateur bouts include Alonzo Salas versus Aldyn Ashcraft and an amateur title bout, 135 pounds, between Augustin Valdez and Thomas Prestriedge. Here is the SteelFist Facebook page.

John Valentine, former MMA pro, continues to have success as a grappling competitor. He recently scored a win over Arron Carson in a submission-only grappling competition. You can watch the bout here.

AND I ALMOST FORGET!!! USA Boxing amateur qualifying tournament in Salt Lake City starts Dec. 2. The bouts, which through the next week, are at the Salt Palace. Here is some information. Louie's Boxing Gym, 855 W California in Salt Lake City, is offering free training for credentialed competitors, tomorrow from 10 am to 1 pm, Sunday from 10 am to 2 pm, Monday, Wednesday and Friday from 2 to 8 pm and Tuesday and Thursday from 2 to 6 pm.

Weekend results, O'Connell fights on PFL tonight

Above are several photos, courtesy of fight photographer Justin Hughes, of local boxer Christian Aguirre's bout in Glendale, Ariz., Saturday against undefeated Sagadat Rakhmankul. Christian is in the red trunks. The bout was streamed on ESPN Plus. It was a spirited with the more aggressive Aguirre, 7-3, dropping a decision to counterpunching Rakhmankul (3-0).

In Las Vegas, local MMA amateur Joe Flores (4-1), suffered his first loss to Billy Elekana (4-0-1) via RSC Round 2, in a 205-pound Sparta Combat League amateur title bout on Saturday.

And Kaecy Raddon this past weekend scored an amateur kickboxing win in Augusta, Ga., in a WAKO international event. (Pictures of the bout are here). Raddon, along with Ogden's Jarrett Kelton, will be competing in a WAKO even in October in Mexico.

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Tonight Utah MMA pro Sean O'Connell fights on national TV (NBCSports) against Bazigit Ataev in round 2 of the tournament's light heavyweight division. O'Connell has already qualified to move on in the $1 million tourney but can improve his seed with another win.

Utah amateur Brittany Guillemin, of One Hit MMA, will fight on a Tuff N Uff MMA card in Las Vegas on Nov. 16.

Finally, former UFC fighter Clay Collard of Utah, who has recently picked up a couple of SteelFist title belts, has signed with Final Fight Championships. He will fight for a FFC belt in Las Vegas on Oct. 5.

... One more thing: Louie's Boxing gym tells us that  Deserree Shines Jamison, Maryquen V and Stephanie Clausen will be going to California to fight in Beautiful Brawlers tournament. Coach Manuel Soto will be in their corner. The bouts are on Sept. 1 and title belts go to winners.