FFC MMA card features fighters with win streaks

 

Two MMA pros with win streaks headline the next Fierce Fighting Championship card Saturday, Aug. 15 in Farmington, Utah, at the Western Sports Park, in Farmington, Utah, 25 N Sports Park Way 84025.

Doors open at 4 p.m., fights begin at 5 p.m. 

Roy Utah's Teague Vigil, 5-4, fights Colorado's Miguel Barrientes, 5-2, for the FFC pro featherweight bout. Vigil has won his last five bouts.

Ammon Garcia, 4-1-1, of Layton, Utah, on a four-fight win streak, meets Davon Duncan, of Las Vegas, in a professional 160-pound catch weight fight.

In other pro bouts, George Lo, of North Carolina, fights Avtandil Khimshiashvili, of Las Vegas, welterweights; in a pro cruiserweight bout, Tracy Hardy, of Layton, fights Thomas Boyer, of Idaho Falls, Idaho; in a pro welterweight bout, Kamuela Mamone, Hawaii, fights North Carolina's Gabriel Muscat; pro flyweight David Kim, a hometown fighter from Farmington, fights New York's Haseeb Khetab; in a heavyweight bout, North Carolina's Michael Delozier fights Montana's Braden Peterson; and flyweight Dietrick Jessop, of Layton, meets Las Vegas fighter Alex Castenada. There's even two more bouts in the professional ranks, with Spanish Fork, Utah's Tyler Call fights Sandy Utah's Justin Vialpando. The other matches light heavyweight Sam Van Wynen, of Kaysville, versus Cody Beierle, of Montana.

The top amateur bout is for the FCC light heavyweight belt. Mike Gillion of Syracuse, Utah, fights Ethan Ojukwu, of Florida. Also, the FCC amateur belt is being contested with Aiden Egler, of Saratoga Springs, Utah, meeting Braeten Jorgensen, of Las Vegas. 

Other amateur bouts include Layton's Bryon Sneed meeting Arizona's Pike Jones, heavyweights; Hannah Silva, Las Vegas, fighting Layton's Ashley Zolnik, featherweights; and amateur strawweights Katerina McDermott, of Russia, fighting Samaira Wisner, of Texas.

For tickets, contact the fighters or the FFC website. For PPV info go to the FCC website.

Haro suffers KO loss in FFC main bout; Owens outlasts Ruiz in co-main

 

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In the main event before a nice crowd at the Maverik Center in West Valley City Saturday May 16, Suleiman Bouhata, of Montreal, Canada, scored a shocking upset over highly favored Joel Haro. 

The featherweight pro MMA bout ended in 41 seconds after Bouhata, 16-10, floored Haro, 7-3, with a right hand. Haro was pummeled on the ground before the bout was stopped. Bouhata was taller and slightly heavier than his opponent. Haro was very groggy for several minutes after the stoppage.

In a strongly anticipated co-main event between two solid professionals, Ha'va Nathan Owens, Ogden, 144, scored a mild upset with a second round TKO over Julian Ruiz, 5-3, 146, of Salt Lake City. (The photo above is of Ruiz, at left, congratulating Owens after the bout.)

Owens had the upper hand in a close first round, showing strong boxing. Ruiz rallied in round 2 with a strong right hand and put Owens to the ground. However, Ruiz was hampered by what appeared to be a broken nose, which bled profusely. Late in round 2, after they were up, Owens staggered Ruiz with hard shots that sent him against the ropes. The fight was stopped at 4.59. (The below photo is of Owens (at left) and Ruiz competing in round 1.)

In a pro welterweight bout Teague Vigil, of Roy, 5-4, sent Desmond Manabat, 4-8, fighting out of Las Vegas, to the canvas early. Vigil finished the bout in 32 seconds with a rear naked choke submission.

In the final pro bout, bantamweight David Kim, 1-2, of Provo, picked up his first win with a hard-fought three-round decision over Jordan Gonzales, 0-2, of Salt Lake City. Scores were 29-28 and 29-27 twice. Utah Fight Game scored the bout 29-28 for Kim.

In a five-round amateur bout for the Fierce Fighting Championship bantamweight title, Talon Carvalho, 7-3, generally controlled the action over challenger Rey Lee, 5-3, of Gardenia, Calif. Judges scores were 50-45 across the board. Utah Fight Game scored it 49-46 for Carvalho.

In other amateur bouts:

Ashley Green, 2-0, from Las Vegas, scored a mild upset over Provo's Nicole Fuga, 4-4. Scores were 29-28 unanimously, which is how Utah Fight Game saw the women's bout too.

In a bout between 190-plus pounders, Hunter Birdsley, 3-1, of Salt Lake City, used hard punches to quickly end the unbeaten record of Park Abegglen, 2-1, of Cedar City. The bout was stopped after 34 seconds.

In a 150-pound catchweight bout, Park City's Chris Ventura, 3-2 with 1 no contest, needed one right cross to end his bout with Morgun Colledge, 5-9. The fight was stopped at 41 seconds

In a welterweight bout Edgar Mixan, 3-1, of Bozeman, Mont., used a big right hand to stop Provo's Lance Lovoie, 1-1, in 42 seconds of round 1.

In a match between debuting 155-pounders, Brady Gourson, wore down debuting Joseph Marshall to score a second-round submission win. Both are Northern Utah fighters.

In a lightweight bout between Northern Utahns, London Van Camp, 1-2, caught Chris Vandemyle, 1-1, with a hard shot midway in the first. The bout was stopped at 1.57 of the first with Van Camp the winner.

In a featherweight bout, Eric Lazo, 2-0, defeated Pouya Bahamin, 0-2, via unanimous decision. Utah Fight Game scored the bout 29-28 for Lazo.

In the first bout of the night, between 200 pounders, Traie Buhler,1-0, scored a close unanimous 29-28 win over heavier Raven Janis. Utah Fight Game agreed with the 29-28 tally.

A scheduled bout between amateur middleweights James Prescott, 4-1, and Jett Swain, 2-1, was scrapped when Swain had to pull out. Prescott entered the cage and thanked fans for their support.

-- Doug Gibson

Haro headlines FFC card; Ruiz versus Owens an intriguing MMA co-main

 

NOTE: ARTICLE HAS BEEN UPDATED: Mixed martial arts fighter Joel Haro, of Herriman, is the headline name for Fierce Fighting Championship 49's Saturday night MMA card at the Maverik Center, in West Valley. Haro, 7-2, who is on a two-bout win streak, takes on Canada's Suileman Bouhata,15-10, in a professional featherweight bout scheduled for three rounds. The Canadian won a modified cage/boxing match last fall in Canada but has not competed in MMA since 2021, when he suffered a defeat.

The co-main three-round bout has intrigued combat sports gyms in Utah. Featherweights Julian Ruiz, 7-2, and Ha'va Nathan Owens, 4-5, are matched. Both are young veterans who have enjoyed recent success. More on these two later in this article.

In another pro MMA bout, lightweight Sergio Mamone Jr., makes his pro debut against Washington's pro debuting Andrew Martinez. Mamone fights in Utah often but lives in Hawaii. He had an impressive MMA amateur career. Mamone also made a successful pro boxing debut recently in Ogden. Martinez is 4-0 as an amateur but has not competed for three years.

UPDATE: The Mamone vs Martinez fight is no longer on card. It has been replaced by a 135-pound pro bout matching David Kim, 0-2, versus Jordan Gonzales, 0-1. Both are from Northern Utah.

The other pro bout matches featherweight Teague Vigil, 4-4 against Nevada's Desmond Manabat, 4-7.

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Utah Fight Game interviewed both Ruiz, of Salt Lake City, and Owens, of Ogden. Below are their responses. (The photos below, in order, are of Owens and Ruiz.

UTAH FIGHT GAME: What's your typical training day like?

RUIZ: Monday and Friday I train 2-3 times; Thursday I only train in afternoon. I always finish with Saturday morning workout, then take rest of weekend off.

OWENS: My typical training day will have at least two training sessions. The first session will either be a strength, or cardio workout. The second session will either be Jiu Jitsu, boxing or kickboxing; a minimum of four miles roadwork every day as well.

UTAH FIGHT GAME: Who is training you? Who are you sparring with. 

RUIZ: The Pit, (and) Agema Jiu Jitsu and MMA. (And) a few different boxing coaches. My head coach (at gym) is Ramsey Nijem and my other coach is Dayne Aristizabal.

OWENS: My coaches are Eduardo Mori and Ernest Chavez. My sparring partners are a handful of talented competitors, Alex Johnson, Ryder Campo, Van Woods, and many others.

UTAH FIGHT GAME: What do you know about your opponent? Do you have a style of fighting that differs with him?

RUIZ: He's experienced and he's down to scrap. He's well known around here. People talk highly of him, so I know he's a good guy. And (he) works hard. Our styles are similar. I'm just the 2.0 version. He's good with his hands but not on my level. I can't wait to show.

OWENS: What I know about my opponent is that he has power and is dangerous at any moment. My style of fight that I have set for him, however, is a perfect counter to his more power-heavy approach.

UTAH FIGHT GAME: Where do you hope to be a year from now in your career?

RUIZ: A year from now I'd love to be in Contender Series or in talks to fight across seas! (I'm) taking it all the way!

OWENS: I hope to see myself on a larger stage, against higher-caliber opponents, testing myself to my absolute limits to reach the best version of myself.

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There are several amateur, mostly three, three-minute round contests, a couple for FFC championships They are (updated):

- James Prescott vs Jett Swain, for the FFC Amateur Middleweight belt. (Five rounds)

- Hunter Birdsley vs Parker Abegglen, heavyweights.

- London Van Camp vs Chris Vandermyle, lightweights

- Pouya Bahamin vs Eric Lazo, lightweights

- Nicole Fuga vs Ashley Green, 150 pounds

- Morgun Colledge vs Chris Ventura, 150 pounds

- Brady Gourson vs Joseph Marshall, 155 pounds

- Lance Lavoie vs. Edgar Mixan

- Raven Janis vs Traie Buhler

- and for the FFC Amateur Featherweight belt, Taylor Carvalho vs Rey Lee (Five rounds)

Tickets are available online from the promoter FFC and the Maverik Center website. The Maverik Center address is 3200 South Decker Lake Drive in West Valley. The gates open Saturday at 4 p.m. Bouts begin about 5 p.m. Fierce Fighting Championships has a Facebook page but make sure it's legitimate because spoofers try to clone it.

- Doug Gibson 

PFL's Collard competes in Salt Lake City MMA bout

 

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Some hooks and jabs involving Utah boxing and MMA: Utahn Clay Collard will be in Utah for the second round of this year's PFL MMA tournament. The Jon Huntsman Center in SLC will host next card June 21. It was also be televised and streamed on ESPN. Collard, in the lightweight division, fights Mads Burnell.

Foley's gym in Ogden will have an amateur boxing card Saturday May 11. The gym is 375 31st St in Ogden. Doors open at 3 pm. Fights start at 4 pm. Cost is $15 for adults, $10 for kids 5 to 12. Undefeated heavyweight Shakeem Barnwell, who is returning after a long layoff, is on the card.

SteelFist MMA has a card scheduled Saturday, June 8, at the Union Event Center. On the card will be pro middleweight Hayden Brown, also resuming his career after a long layoff. In a SteelFist card in SLC on April 27, Justin McDonald defeated Rusty Pearson in a main bout. Entire card results are here.

Fierce Fighting Championships will have an MMA card May 31 at The Maverik Center. On the card will be pros Eric Iman and Joel Haro, and amateur Ammon Garcia. On April 20, in Orem, Mike Jones successfully defended his FFC pro middleweight title, stopping Trent Miller in first round. In a FFC light heavyweight title bout, Hamza Salim took a split decision over Jarome Hatch. Entire card results are here. I heard recently that former FFC amateur champ Hannah Silva is slated for a title bout with the promotion this summer.

The May 25 pro/am boxing match at the Salt Air in Magna is taking shape. The card is here. Pro fighters competing include Francisco Jalel Lopez, Bishop Le'i, Isiah Rodriquez, Joshua Pirela and Armando Heurta. Ticket information is here.

Some results: Jesus Haro, minimum weight, lost a 12-round decision, in a bout in Puerto Rico, to former world title holder Wilfredo Mendez; Northern Utah featherweight pro boxer Brandon Douglas won a decision over Raymond Chacon on April 27. The fight was in Maumelle, Ark.; On April 4 in Costa Mesa, Calif., Provo-based cruiserweight pro boxer Juan Higuera scored a decision over Ricky Frausto; And Utah MMA pro, 135-pounder Thomas Prestreidge lost a decison to undefeated Amari Sengsavanh on April 20 in Phoenix, Ariz; Former national amateur standout boxer Aaron Maximus Garcia Jr., of Payson, will look to go 2-0 as a pro when he boxes June 15 in Tijuana, Mexico.

Collard, Raddon, Garcia score fighting wins, update on future cards, fights

 

Last weekend brought some success to local fighters. In a nationally televised MMA bout on ESPN2, Utah native Clay Collard stalked and wore down Bellator veteran Patricky Pitbull at PFL 2 card in Las Vegas on April 12. The 155-pounders competed in the first round of a yearlong tournament. Pitbull knocked down Collard in the first round but by the end of the round Collard was in control of the bout, frequently cutting off his opponent. The bout ended roughly 90 seconds into round two, with Collard pummelling a near-defenseless Pitbull. Collard recently attended an MMA card in Ogden.

In Atlantic City on the same day, in a bout of 155-pound MMA pros, former local fighter, Kaecy Raddon, who now fights out of Denver, scored a submission early in the third round over Armando Gjetga. A rear naked choke ended the bout. The card was streamed on UFC Fight Pass.

In boxing (also on Friday), standout Payson boxer Aaron Maximus Garcia, who was consistently a top-ranked national amateur, made a successful pro debut in Ensenada, Mexico, stopping Moises Cortez in round 2. 

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Upcoming fight cards in Northern Utah include Fierce Fighting Championship on April 24 at UCC  Center in Orem. Fights start at 5 pm. Headlining in separate bouts are established pros Mike Jones and Jarome Hatch. More information on card, tickets, address, is here.

On April 27 SteelFist Fight Night will have a card at The Union Event Center in Salt Lake City. It's a 7 pm start. Main bout matches 170 pounders Justin McDonald versus Rusty Pearson. More information, including tickets, address, card, is here.

On May 25, 801 Productions is having a pro/amateur boxing card at The Great Salt Air in Magna. It starts at 7 p.m. I learned recently that Ogden featherweight pro boxer Isaiah Rodriguez is scheduled to fight on the card.

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More jabs and hooks: Utah pro 135-pounder MMA Thomas Prestriedge, on a three-bout winning streak, travels to Phoenix, Ariz., this Saturday to fight undefeated Amari Sensavanh. More info on the card is here. ... Jesus Haro, a California/Nevada-based pro boxer who is related to former world-ranked featherweight Jose Haro, travels to Trujillo Alto, Puerto Rico to fight Wilfredo Mendez Saturday night for the 105-pound World Boxing Association Gold Title. ... And former Utahn, veteran super middleweight boxer Christian Aguirre, lost a six-round decision to undefeated Justin Figuerora in San Antonio on March 30.

Olguin, Douglas, Jesus Haro score boxing wins; Siler versus King MMA headliner

 

Some boxing news: On Jan. 30 of this year in Tooele, Utah, northern Utah professional boxers Helaman Olguin, heavyweight, Brandon Douglas, featherweight, and Eric Wahlen, heavyweight, all scored KO wins. Olguin, of West Jordan, 9-3, ended the bout in round one against Carlos Reyes, 7-13-2. Olguin has won his last 8 bouts. Douglas, 10-1, stopped Rondarius Hunter, 4-8-2, in round one. And Wahlen, 6-0, defeated Joshua Brown, 1-3, in round two. (The photo above shows Douglas, at right, measuring his opponent. It is a photo posted on Facebook.)

Winners in other pro bouts were Danielle Bennett, Deborah Willies, Juan Higuera and Cody Woslager. To see all the fighters' names and amateur muy thay fighting results, go here.

On Oct. 31, in Tijuana, Mexico, Jesus Haro, a light flyweight professional boxing prospect who fights out of Merced, Calif., but has family ties in Northern Utah, won a four-round unanimous decision over Fernando Molina. Jesse Haro, now 4-1, fights in Mexico City on March 5. 

On Nov. 20, in Shelbville, Ky, at the Shelby County Fairgrounds, Idaho boxer/MMA fighter Clay Collard meets undefeated Maidel Sando in a middleweight main bout. Collard won five of six boxing matches in 2020. Livesportscaster.com is supposed to stream the card. ... After this fight he competes in the 2021 PFL MMA tournament beginning April 23. Collard will fight in the lightweight division. ESPN has broadcast rights.

In Utah MMA Mountain Force MMA, Fierce Fighting Championship and SteelFist have cards planned in February and March. The Feb. 27 FFC card at The Maverik Center in West Valley headlines pro featherweights Steven Siler and Bobby King in the main. More on that card, which features many local fighters, is here. Info on the MF MMA card Feb. 13 is here. 

Siler meets King in FFC MMA title bout; Hardman fights on XFC card

 

Update: Due to the uptick in Covid-19 cases in Utah, it was announced on Nov. 12 that the FFC card has been postponed: Assuming Covid-19 doesn't stop things, this is a big week for MMA action locally. On Saturday, Nov. 14, at The Maverik Center, Steven Siler meets Bobby King in a featherweight FFC title tilt. King has been winning of late, but UFC and PFL veteran Siler will be a tough test. Look below at the matchups. Several of these fights would be excellent main events on any local card. The card can be streamed for I think $20. Info is here.

HARDMAN TO FIGHT ON XFX 43

Update: Hatdman, 9-2, scored a first round stoppage win via strikes. His opponent was Steven Newell. 9-2, who stepped in as a sub for Bradley Desir. Also, Utah County professional MMA fighter Carson Hardman fights in XFC 43 on Wednesday, as part of a tournament. He fights Bellator veteran Bradley Desir. Here is the card, a portion of which is televised on NBCSports TV network at 7 p.m. (Xfinity 34). The card is in Atlanta. I assume there will be streaming for earlier bouts. 

Finally, Mountain Force MMA had a card in October in Logan. Montell Williams scored a decision win over Ogden's Eric Munoz in the pro main event. Card results are here. 

BOXING

Two weekends ago in Tijuana, Mexico, professional prospect Jesus Haro scored a decision win over Uziel Pinto Jimenez. Haro boxed very well, winning every round. By the way, Haro has several pro wins, more than the two Boxrec.com claims. Haro's stablemate, Miklo Arnold, scored a TKO win over Alejandro Leon Martinez. Arnold also has wins not acknowledged by Boxrec.com.

On Oct. 24, previously undefeated Salt Lake City pro boxer Brandon Douglas suffered his first loss in Agua Prita, Mexico. Douglas (9-1), lost a 10-round decision to veteran Juan Jimenez, 28-19-3. 

West Jordan welterweight pro boxer Larry Gomez, 10-1, who upset then-undefeated Brian Mendoza late last year on a Top Rank card, will fight undefeated, 11-0 Brian Ceballo on Dec. 3 in Los Angeles. The bout will be televised by NBCSports network.

February MMA, boxing results in Utah

MMA

On Feb. 15 at The Maverik Center in West Valley, Fierce Fighting Championship hosted an MMA card. featherweight Bobby King scored a third round stoppage of Samson Phommabout in the main event. King, who has enjoyed success of late, seems ready for an opportunity in Bellator, etc.

The entire card is here. In other bouts, Mike Hamel defeated Fabio Serrao via decision, Kyle Stewart and Carson Hardman scored first round wins over Mike Jones and Nate Kearsley, Josh Quinlan and Tracy Hardy scored submission wins over Aaron Thomson and Eric Munoz, and Trever Bradshaw and Brian Mitchell stopped Randy Rowland and Thomas Hughes in the first round.

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On Feb. 21 in Salt Lake City, SteelFist hosted an MMA card. In the main bout, professional Cole Shafer, 1-0, 185 pounds, made a successful pro debut, stopping Nick Martinez in round one. In an amateur promotional title fight, 185 pounds, Ryan Thaxton stopped Zack Partridge in round 2. Undefeated amateur 265 pounder Bryce Scanlon stayed unbeaten, stopping Kendrid Wolf in round 3.  And in a battle of 145-pound amateurs, Austin Atkinson stopped Jordan Munoz in the second round. The entire card is here.

BOXING

At the 801 Event Center in Salt Lake City, there was a boxing card. In the main bout, professional heavyweight Helaman Olguin, 7-3, stopped Mexico's Alfredo Trevino, 9-7-1. Also, local Jalel Lopez, Lopez, 9-3-2, defeated veteran Edgar Ivan Garcia, 7-22-1. Undefeated Brandon Douglas defeated Carols Apodaca, 3-15-2, Ray Corona won his pro debut over Gary Bailey, 0-1-1, and Maryguenn Vellinga-Heinz, in her pro debut, defeated Jennifer Michelle Woods, 0-2.

On Feb. 22, there was an amateur boxing card at Foley's gym in Ogden. Below is a photo of the card with victors circled.

And in other news ...

SteelFist is having a Kickboxing card March 6 at the Union Event Center in Salt Lake City. Tyson Roberts will be fighting on the card ... On March 7, grappler John Valentine will be competing in a submission-only bout in Las Vegas. His sons will also be competing on the card.

Utah MMA cards, Larry Gomez set to fight, Collard wins in boxing again

Some MMA news first. Here is an update on the Fierce Fighting Championship card set for Feb. 15 at the Maverik Center in West Valley, Utah.

The main bout matches Samson Phommabout against Bobby King. The rest of the card features similarly well-matched bouts. They include:

Fabio Serrao versus Mike Hamel; Mike Jones versus Kyle Stewart; Carson Hardman versus Nate Kearsley; Eric Munoz versus Tracy Hardy; Aaron Thomson versus Josh Quinlan; Trever Bradshaw versus Randy Rowland; Thomas Hughes versus Brian Mitchell; and Nathan Owens versus Justin Horsley; with more bouts. A complete scheduled card is here. More info at FFC's Facebook page. This is a damned good card.

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Speaking of good MMA cards, SteelFist has another card six days later, Feb. 21, at the Union Event Center. The main bout matches Nick Martinez versus Cole Shafer. The co-main matches Hayden Brown against Craig Grove. And undefeated Lehi Dominguez against Jeff Carson, and another pro bout. Ryan Thaxton and Zack Partridge meet in an amateur promotional title bout. Another amateur bout matches Jordan Munoz against Austin Atkinson. Jordan Munoz is the son of professional Eric Munoz, who, as mentioned, fights on the FFC card six days earlier. The scheduled card is here. For more information, go to SteelFist's website.

BOXING

Utah's Clay Collard, a UFC-quality mixed martial artist, continued his remarkable barnstorming-around-the-nation boxing career by scoring another solid win over a previously undefeated professional boxer ... usually in their home towns. On Jan. 1, in Cincinnati, Collard defeated Quashawn Toler, who is now 9-1. Collard is now 5-2-3. In the past seven months, Collard has fought nine times against opponents with a combined record of, I believe, now, 51 wins and three losses. He has won four of those fights, lost one by decision and drawn three times. His only stoppage loss was against a "super-prospect," Bektemir Melikuziev, on the undercard of the Canelo Alavarez victory over Sergey Kovalev.

And .... Collard is readying to fight another undefeated prospect on Feb. 1. In Biloxi, Miss., he will fight on the undercard of a Fox Sports TV fight card, meeting Raymond Guajardo. Guajardo is only 19 and he has looked great in his brief career. However, he has met no fighter as remotely experienced or talented as Collard.

Larry Gomez, who defeated Brian Mendoza on a Top Rank boxing card late last year, will be back in the ring in Salt Lake City on Feb. 7 at the Union Event Center. His opponent has yet to be announced. Also scheduled to fight on the card is undefeated heavyweight Eric Wahlen, undefeated featherweight Brandon Douglas, heavyweight Helaman Olguin, superlightweight Francisco Jalel Lopez, and undefeated lightweight Gabriel Chairez. The scheduled, still sketchy for opponents at this date, is at the bottom of this webpage.

ALSO, Mountain Force MMA and Cache Valley Boxing are hosting an amateur boxing card on Jan. 25 in Logan at the Cache County Event Center.

Montoya, Collard main bout at SteelFist; more boxing, MMA results

SteelFist has a big fight Friday night at The Union Event Center in SLC. It matches comebacking former WSOF MMA fighter Lucus Montoya against SteelFist welterweight champ Clay Collard, who of course had a long stint in the UFC. Both these fighters are returning to where they excelled early in their careers and the winner will likely see a path back into the PFL, Bellator or UFC. Although Montoya has competed in grappling events, he hasn't been in the cage since he broke his forearm in WSOF 20, on nationally TV, almost four years ago. Collard, after winning a title at SteelFist, suffered a setback late last year Final Fight Championship 33.

The entire SteelFist card is here. Undefeated pro Zac Cavender fights at 205 pounds against Chris Thompson. In another pro bout for the women's 125-pound belt, Kaytlin Neil fights Shannon Sinn. In a 115 pound women's amateur title fight, Brittany Guillemin fights Sadie Ault. Others on the card include Ryder Newman and Zack Partridge in separate bouts.

A couple of weeks ago at the Utah State Fairpark, Fierce Fighting Championships had an MMA card. In the main bout for the promotion's 155-pound title, Bobby King stopped Nate Kearsley. In an actin-packed pro co-main that saw a lot of ebb and flow over five minutes, Randy Rowland, 155 pounds, stopped Thomas Hughes just prior to the end of round one, referee call due to strikes. The entire card is here.

BOXING

In SLC on March 8 undefeated Midvale pro welterweight Larry Gomez moved to 8-0 with a first round KO over veteran Mikhail Lyubarsky. Counter left hooks eventually left Lyubarsky stunned and on the canvas. In other bouts, former MMA fighter Eric Wahlen remained undefeated as a boxer, defeating Garrard Williams, heavyweights; Helaman Olguin defeated Anjel Osiris, heavyweights; Brandon Douglas defeated Mulapi Enjani, featherweights; In an amateur bout, Jay Wright defeated Emmanuel Gonzales, and amateur Gary Bailey also was a winner.

Last weekend at the Utah State Fairpark, there was the state Golden Gloves. Jon Bryant repeated as Utah 152-pound Golden Gloves champ with a decision on Saturday over Julian Ruiz. And 132-pound GG champ Diego Alvarez also repeated with a decision win over the aforementioned Wright, who fights out of Foley's gym. In the 165-pound GG final, Danny Galloway defeated Bailey for the state title. I don't have all Sunday results but here's a few: Carlos Padilla decisioned Isaac Lugo, 150; anfd Juan Higuera decisioned Robert Martinez, 201-plus pounds.

On Saturday, which included some semifinal bouts, winners were Eric Castanada, Dillan Neuyen, Alvarez, Kathryn Lopdez, Ruiz, Emmanual Gonzales; Carson Matthews; Jayden Lopez; Wright; Jesus Garcia; Galloway; Dan Butterfield; and Toa Piutua.

Raddon wins kickboxing title; Hughes among MMA fights this weekend

On Feb. 23 in Farmington at Mountain Force Kickboxing 2, Kaecy Raddon, 6-4, stopped Ian Scott, 5-3, in round one to win the promotion's lightweight title belt. Raddon, who has competed internationally, had too much experience for the game Scott, who has dropped seconds after the opening bell and then pummeled until the bout was stopped. You can see the bout at Raddon's Facebook page.

At the card it was announced that the promotion's pro welterweight champion, Jarrett Kelton, will defend his title on May 18 against Cole Rose. (See poster above)

This Saturday in Salt Lake City Fierce Fighting Championship 10 will have an MMA card at the Utah State Fair Park. The main event matches Bobby King and Nate Kearsley for the promotion's 155-pound belt. The co-main matches Ogden MMA pro Thomas Hughes against Randy Rowland. Local fighters competing on the card include Brandon Rease, Jeffery Prado-Morales and Kelsey Skillman. More info on FCC is here.

In boxing news, as we reported previously, undefeated pro Larry Gomez headlines a card in SLC on March 8 and Christian Aguirre fights Thomas Hill in Texas on March 16 on the undercard of Erroll Spence Jr. versus Mikey Garcia world welterweight championship bout..

Siler fights on TV Thursday, SteelFist card announced

Steelfist announced its next MMA card for August 3. Pro bouts include the return of Joe Rodriguez and AJ Garcia meeting opponents. Fighting as an amateur will be Brandon Rease. The entire card is here. The fights are at the Union Event Center in SLC.

MMA pro Steven Siler continues in the nationally televised Professional Fighters League featherweight MMA tournament (round 2) Thursday night. The card is PFL # 4 and Siler's fight against Alexandre de Almeida is on the NBCSN cable TV network telecast (Xfinity 34), which starts at 7 p.m. MST.

MORE NEWS: MMA/kickboxer Kaecy Raddon, originally out of Utah who now fights out of Colorado, will compete for the Sparta Combat League 165-pound kickboxing title on July 27 in Denver.

Fierce Fighting Championship in Price had an MMA card last Saturday that included the beginning matches of a pro lightweight tournament. Results are here at Jeffrey Dutcher's Fighting Out of Utah MMA news Facebook page.

Finally, MMA professional and enthusiast Eric Tillotson is making a comeback, at age 50, in the cage. He'll be competing Sept. 29 on an MMA card, in Logan, promoted by Mountain Force MMA promotions.

ONE MORE THING -- Good luck to Utah amateur boxers competing this week in Mesquite, Nevada, at the Junior National Golden Gloves.

Interviews with Brandon Rease, Thomas Prestriedge

(UPDATE: We learned this early afternoon that MMA pro Miles Welk has to pull out of his March 17 bout in Logan. He suffered a severe MCL sprain in hand and knee as well as a severely sprained thumb. We wish him well in his recovery. He hopes to fight again in April or May. )

This Saturday night is Fierce Fighting Championship's latest card. You can see it here. The main pro bout matches Cy Nelson against Nate Kearsley. An amateur rematch places Brandon Rease against Thomas Prestriedge. It's for a promotional title and we're very intrigued by this fight. Utah Fight Game interviewed both Thomas and Brandon:

THOMAS PRESTRIEDGE:

UFG: You fought Brandon a couple of years ago, lost a split decision. Now it's for a title. What are you looking for from your opponent? Do you think there's more to learn about your opponent? Or are looking for an updated version of the same bout? 

Prestriedge: I'm looking for a good fight from him, I'm really hoping Brandon has improved since the last time we fought like I have. There's nothing I hate more then a easy fight . I only wanna fight the best! It's the only way I'll ever reach my goal in life.

UFG: What is training like? Who are your main coaches, who are you training and sparring with? 

Prestriedge: To me training is a awesome experience. It's where I get to work on all my weaknesses and spend time with awesome people. I always train harder then the day before! My main coaches are professor Rob Handely, Pedro Sierra, Paul Tom, and coach Pat Garcia and I work on my Jiu-Jitsu at Paul Tom's academy of BBJ and I work on my wrestling sparring and my MMA training at Absolute MMA.

UFG: What advantages do you take into the bout? What are some challenges that your opponent will bring to you?

Prestriedge: I think my advantages in this fight are gonna be my stand up and my Jiu-Jitsu, not to mention my mentality. I am not willing to give up no matter how hard he comes at me! And I think one of the biggest challenges he will bring at me is having the same mindset; he is not gonna be willing to give up either and when both opponents aren't willing to give up that's when the fight really becomes interesting.

BRANDON REASE:

UFG: You fought Thomas a couple of years ago, won a split decision. Now it's for a title. What are you looking for from your opponent? Do you think there's more to learn about your opponent? Or are looking for an updated version of the same bout? 

Rease: I’m looking to see a mor improved Thomas. I have a feeling he’s gonna come at me with everything he’s got and I will be bringing everything I got to him. I know this fight will be a war.

UFG: What is training like? Who are your main coaches, who are you training and sparring with?

Rease: Training, I’m not gonna lie is very brutal. I train at KOA which is now the home for the Garage MMA and we got some high-skilled "bangas" in there, like Bryce Edminister, Bobby King, Miles Welk, Hector Lopez, Bryce Scanlon, Alonzo Salas, Edgar Soto and Kelsey Skillman; so many well-skilled fighters. My coaches are Anthony Lobato, David Castillo and Bobby King! Those are some big names in Utah MMA. Sparring at KOA isn’t no walk in a park and I love it.

UFG: What advantages do you take into the bout? What are some challenges that your opponent will bring to you?

Rease: Advantages I will bring into this fight are I already beat him -- that’s gonna be on his mind this fight -- (and) also my skills in everything have improved since we last fought. The challenge he will bring to me is his reach and heart; that kid can bang. ... also this fight is dedicated to Pat Reeves (Ogden MMA fighter who recently died).

We wish both Thomas and Brandon the best. I admire both these veteran amateurs. Brandon rebounded well from some tough, early losses in his career, and improved to become a consistent winner. Thomas, in his last fight, won a SteelFist crown after taking quite a beating in round one against a very talented opponent. He withstood the early attack and battled back to take a five-round decision. Saturday's bout is also for five rounds.

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A reminder that Mountain Force MMA card is next Saturday in Logan. We have interviewed Miles Welk, pro fighter on the card. The entire card is here. Anthony Miller fights Allen Silva in the main pro bout. Also on the card are debuting pros Andy Pitcher and Ben Goins, and amateurs Hayden Brown and Joe Flores. ... Hector Lopez, 3-0, amateur out of KOA, is fighting on the April 6 FitCon card in SLC. 

Notes: Amateur MMA fighter/kickboxer Kaecy Raddon, who fights out of Colorado now, is competing in a WAKO Team USA  K1 Kickboxing card this weekend in Janesville, Wisc. Raddon will be back in the  cage on April 7 in Everett, Wash., fighting for the Sparta Combat League 155 pound amateur belt. ... By the way, Eric Tillotson is calling the Fierce Fighting Championship card on Saturday in Price. He recently previewed the card on a podcast. You can find it here on Facebook.

SteelFist results, upcoming bouts

A quick Utah Fight Game blog post this week: Last Saturday SteelFist had its MMA pro/am card in Salt Lake City. In the main event Fabio Serrao defeated Cody Bunderson in round three and in another pro bout, Trever Bradshaw stopped Daniel Benjamin Grass is the opening stanza. Amateur winners included Jordan Matrshall, Jayden Marshall and Hayden Brown. ALL THE RESULTS are at the Facebook page Fighting Out of Utah MMA News here.

There was an amateur card Saturday at the South Salt Lake PAL. I don't have all the results but here is what I have:

Austin Garcia dec. Diego Cabrera, 50 pounds (both Team Unbreakable)

Alyssa Mendoza (Alpha Boxing Club) dec. Soledad Rodriguez (Louie's Boxing Club) 114 pounds

Shane Saunders (SSL PAL) dec. Corbin Lloyd (Team Unbreakable) 65 pounds

Erik Castenada (Fullmer Bro. Boxing Club) dec. Joe Gibson (Foley's gym) 95 pounds

Fernando Quintanilla (SSL PAL) dec. Guillermo Martinez (Louie's Boxing Club) 85 pounds

John Ortiz (Reyes Boxing) dec. Robert Chaiarez (Salt Lake City)

Jay Wright (Foley's gym) dec. Abuch Jones (Team Unbreakable) 141 pounds

Nicole Sontag (Logan, UT) dec. Bethanny Wurster (Cache Valley Boxing Club) 141 pounds

Heneli Paea (Salt Lake City) defeated Tyson Haddon (Cache Valley Boxing Club) 165 pounds

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Back to MMA: SteelFist has a great main event on April 13, Clay Collard versus undefeated Carson Gregory. An amateur 185-pound bout will match Eric Munoz, who trains at Foley's, against Cole Shafer. ... Next week is the Fierce Fighting Championships card. A great amateur title bout matches Thomas Prestriedge against Brandon Rease. We should have interview with both on the blog next week.

Here is a list of upcoming events in Utah courtesy of the state athletic commission website. Mountain Force MMA and Invicta are in Logan and Salt Lake City March 17 and March 24. Rumor has it a boxing card is on tap in March kin SLC but it's not listed as of yet. Mountain Force MMA plans an Ogden card in June, and Jeremy Horn's will be in Ogden in August.

An interview with MMA pro Miles Welk

On March 17 Mountain Force MMA will have its first promotion at the Eccles Ice Arena in Logan. The card is set and you can see matchups at the promotion's Facebook page. One of the pro bouts matches Miles Welk (of KOA gym in Layton) (at left above) with Nick Clem. Both fighters are undefeated. We have observed Welk's career for several years, from a successful amateur who captured regional titles through two successful pro bouts. We took the time to chat with him recently.

Miles, there have been fairly long gaps between your two pro fights. Do you have plans to fight more often?

Welk: Yeah I've struggled to stay in the gym and be consistent in my training. I've rededicated myself and I'm going to see if I can't take my career to the next level so I'm planning to fight at 3 times this year maybe 4 depending on how healthy I stay.

How is training going? You train at KOA. Who are your trainers and other fighters you work out with?

Welk: I do train at KOA. I love it. It's an amazing gym and it has so much to offer to everyone, especially fighters. It's a great fit for me. Training is good. I'm working hard in every aspect. I’m just trying to get better at being a mixed martial artist every day. My head coach is David Castillo, my Jui Jitsui Coach is Anthony Lobato, My strength and conditioning Coach is Bobby King. I have a room full of great partners. Bryce Edminister, Bobby King, Hector Lopez, Edgar Sorto, Brandon Rease, Kelsey Skillman, Bryce Scanlon,Alonzo Salas. We have a pretty stacked team right now.

How do you match strongly against your opponent?

Welk: My opponent is Nick Clem from Colorado. He's a tough guy, had 12 amateur fights, 1-0 as a pro. He has good footwork and lateral movement and I can tell he likes to wrestle and grapple so I feel like I match up well against him. I feel like I can wrestle with anyone in the 125-pound weight class and my striking is getting better every day and so is my jui jitsui . Overall I'm ready for whatever and match up well with him.

You are fighting, and getting some good publicity, from a new promoter. What are your plans beyond this bout. Do you have a schedule, plans to move forward in MMA?

Welk: This is a new promotion Mountain Force MMA. They have been awesome to work with. Juan (Pablo) is the man, and I'm looking forward to fighting and trying to get the W on the very first card. Hopefully they'll have me back. I don't have anything scheduled yet but I have plenty of teammates who do so I'm just going to stay in the gym and stay ready for the next fight and help my teammates get ready.

Thanks Miles for your time and good luck on March 17.

Some extra news: SteelFist has announced a very strong matchup for its Friday the 13th April card. Undefeated Carson Gregory versus former UFC veteran Clay Collard. This will be highly anticipated; either a gate for Gregory to move up early in his career or perhaps a means for Collard to move back into the major promotions. ... Locally, we are intrigued by a Fierce Fighting Championship promotional amateur title fight between Thomas Prestriedge, of American Fork, and Brandon Rease, who fights out of KOA. The pair fought two years ago at at SteelFist card with Rease getting a split decision. It's in Price on March 10, and we'll likely try to interview both soon.

And more ... Kelsey Skillman, amateur at KOA, is set to fight in April for SteelFist, and this weekend, Kaecy Raddon, formerly at One Hit MMA, who now fights out of Colorado, is fighting Roy Sarabia for a Sparta Combat League 155-pound amateur belt.

Interview with MMA pro Cisco Alcantara

As part of a preview for the October SteelFist MMA card we've chatted with Top of Utah mixed martial artist Francisco "Cisco" Alcantara, who returns to the cage after a while off to meet undefeated Carson Gregory. Alcantara recently trained a few days at Duane Ludwig's gym in Broomfield, Colo., working out with the Bang Muy Thai training system. (Above, from left, UFC fighter T.J. Dillashaw, unidentified fighter, Alcantara and Ludwig.) 

Here's our interview.

Tell me about visiting Colorado, Bang Mui Thai, Duane Ludwig's philosophy on training. How does it help you personally as a mixed martial artist? Who went with you?

Alcantara: Visiting Colorado for 4 days was great. We did two trainings/classes a day at Bang Muay Thai with Duane Ludwick himself showing us the proper way of putting the punches and kicks together. Also we had the opportunity to train alongside TJ Dillashaw watching how an ex-UFC champion trains and puts his combinations together was great and inspiring. We also went to Easton gym to spar with current and up and coming UFC fighters. Let's just say they only have one speed and that's fast and hard. Jon Neal, Gavin Weston, Hayden Brown and Jarrett Kelton all went with me but Jarrett Kelton set it all up for us. He's been helping since day one. (Below, Alcantara, front in last row, lined up for training.)

What is training like for the Gregory fight? You've had a break from the cage. Are you back into the routine well?

Alcantara: Training for Gregory is training to go to war, just like any other war that I've been in. This time I've worked hard to get to a lighter weight: class, 170 pounds. I've never fought at 170 so I will be faster, stronger and healthier than I've ever been in this fight. My mind is clear and I'm still chasing this dream I want to fight in the UFC one day and I honestly think that I can beat any 170-pound man that walks this earth with proper training and God's grace. 

Who is helping you locally train? How is your mindset after a few years away. Are family and friends a support.

Alcantara: I'm back in routine training with Dave Foley Jarrett Kelton and Aldo Oreggia from One Hit (and) West Side. And (I'm training with) Jason Tafoya on striking and mitt work. I'm too old to go in the cage and risk injury or even my life just for nothing. The pay is minimal, I've actually lost money for taking time off of work and paying for blood work and test but to me this is an investment and me stopping Gregory will put me at the top of the division and hopefully move me closer to the Big Show. (Photo below shows Alcantara on the way to making the 170-pound weight.)

Alcantara: My children have been in my corner since day one. They root for daddy win or lose I've had a bad losing streak but it's time to change that and show my friends, family and even my enemies that you can't keep a good man down, that hard work and dedication pays off. I'm will to do anything and everything to win and walk up the ranks to get to the top ... Cisco kid.

My family is traveling from California to watch this fight so I have a lot of pressure to win but I look at it like this, regardless. I'm coming to win. I just need to make it pretty for them. I'm dedicating this fight to The Lord and Savior that has kept me alive and well through the hard times that life brings.

Back to us: Good luck Cisco on fight night. We extend that same wish to all the competitors. And thanks again Cisco, for speaking with us. I still recall your win over Mike Crisman a while back as one of the best fights I have seen.

Results to the last weekend's Fierce Fighting Championship card in Tooele are at Fighting Out of Net Facebook page (here).  Results included Antonio Arroyo stopping Trever Carlson in round one, David Putvin stopping Cy Nelson, and Nate Kearsley winning a majority decision over Tanner Cowan. In amateur title bouts, Aaron Thomson stopped Ali Farkhar and Zac Cavender stopped Justin Oswald.

ONE MORE THING: Professional Trever Bradshaw announced on social media that he's fighting on a SteelFist card on Dec. 9.

BOXING:

Two amateur cards. Saturday night, Oct. 7, at Foley's gym in Ogden, a host of amateur fights start at 7 p.m. Doors open at 6. Info in the poster below. 

And All Heart Gym has scheduled an amateur card on Oct. 21, doors open at 5 p.m, at the Legacy Events Center in Farmington. Here's a poster below. Brad Davidson will be announcing the card.

Fierce Fighting MMA card Saturday, Hatch wins in Oklahoma

Saturday night, in Tooele, at the Desert Peak Complex, Fierce Fighting Championship has its latest MMA card. Matches include Tanner Cowan versus Nate Kearsley, Cy Nelson versus David Putvin, and Trever Carlson versus Antonio Arroyo in pro bouts and Aaron Thomson versus Ali Farkhar for the promotion's amateur middleweight title and Justin Oswald (champ) versus Zac Cavender in a 205-pound amateur title bout. Tickets are $30 GA and $50 VIP. ... Here's the scheduled card.

Thomson, by the was one of the division winners at last week's Proving Grounds International 3 grappling competition.

SOME MORE INFO:

Top of Utah MMA amateur Destiny McCubbin, currently living and training in Las Vegas, will be fighting in that city on Nov. 6, she announced via social media. She'll be fighting Genia Goodin on Nov. 11 at Sam's Town. Readers of the blog will note that McCubbin's Sept. 16 fight in Mesquite was called off when her opponent pulled out.  ...

Jared Hatch, who used to be familiar professional fighter in Utah, fighting bouts against pros such as Clinton Williams and Ed Whitmore, returned to the cage last weekend in Oklahoma. He was successful, defeating Chad Leonhardt in round 2 via a TKO, according to his Facebook page. ...

Finally, Utah woman MMA pro Kaytlin Neil won her first victory last weekend, taking a unanimous decision over Brooke Mayo in a preliminary match at Bellator 183 in San Jose, Calif.

Siler to meet Lance Palmer in MMA fight; Brenda Enriquez wins pro debut

Some short nuggets of MMA and boxing information:

-- Former amateur SteelFist women's MMA champ Brenda Enriquez (seen above) turned pro last weekend in a Combates America MMA card, scoring a unanimous decision win over Shyann Farmer. It was judged the fight of the night, as Enriquez won 29-28 on all cards.

-- Ogden MMA pro Steven Siler is scheduled to meet Lance Palmer, former WSOF champ, in a Professional Fight League MMA bout on Nov. 2. The PFL is the revamped WSOF, of which Siler was of late a part of. It's another tough assignment for former UFC veteran Siler, but it's also a great opportunity.

-- Both Palmer and Siler have a common opponent in former Ogden MMA pro Pat Reeves, whom bolth stopped in round one of bouts in Orem (Palmer) and Ogden (Siler). Siler announced the bout, scheduled to be in Washington DC, by posting an Sept. 15 MMA  Bulletin article on his Facebook page.

-- Proving Grounds Invitational 3 is Saturday, Sept. 23 at KOA in Layton, 109 W. Gentile. (http://www.provinggroundsinvitational.com/tickets/) A lot of prominent local fighters will be participating. The aforementioned Steven Siler will be competing, so will Lucus Montoya, amateur Aaron Thomson, and former MMA pro Craig Mock, as well as MMA's Nick Rossborough. Here is the event's Facebook page.

BOXING: There was a charity boxing event in Draper last weekend that fell off my radar, but here's a news article about it. Greg Hughes, speaker of the Utah House, who has an impressive boxing collection/shrine in his office, was in the ring tossing punches. Sorry to have missed that.

MORE MMA: Reminder that in a little more than a week Fierce Fighting Championship has a card in Tooele. It looks like quite a good card. I am interested particularly in seeing how Tanner Cowan and Aaron Thomson do, as I have followed their careers with interest. But good luck to all the fighters.

And next month SteelFist will be back with a card that includes Kyle Herrera versus Thiago Alves, Francisco Alcantara versus Carson Gregory. Also fighting in separate bouts are Thomas Hughes and AJ Garcia. We'll try too preview some match ups as the date, Oct. 14, draws near.

--  Here's a look at the state athletic commission website's schedule. A pro boxing event is scheduled at The Complex on Nov. 3. We'll let you know if we learn more about it.