We are only a few days into the New Year and Reality is back with a bang to Mohegan Sun in Connecticut. Joe Cuff has worked through the holiday season to secure a solid 7 fight card. There were some drop outs as usual the last few weeks and they have not been able to fill the slots. I know Soap Am hurt his hand and had to drop out so we wish him a speedy recovery. Tickets are on sale at the door and through the fighters of course so get your tickets if you haven't yet. If you have never been to Mohegan Sun, I strongly urge you to come check it out. The venue is absolutely gorgeous and the seating is stadium seating so there isn't a bad seat in the arena. There are tons of awesome places to eat inside the casino and of course you can test your luck on the gambling if you are feeling lucky! Let me break down the card for you all....
Mike Johnson vs. Josh Flores
For the first fight Mike Johnson takes on Josh Flores at 145lbs. Mike has an 0-1 record and is hungry for the first amateur victory. He fought at a previous Warrior Nation against Hassan Mahmood and lost by tko stoppage in Rd 1. He has been training hard since then and we wish him best of luck in his bout. His opponent Josh has a 1-1 record. He won a majority decision and lost a unanimous decision so far in his amateur career. I feel this is an awesome fight to start off a night of mixed martial arts action and as you can see from the breakdown it is anyone's fight to take.
Marvin Maldonado vs. Mico De los Reyes
Next up is the pro fight between Marvin Maldonado and Mico De Los Reyes at 125lbs. Marvin is coming up from New York and he trains out of Renzo Gracie. He fought at a CES not too long ago against Dan Cormier and lost by a razor thin split decision. He had a really good amateur career and I know will be ready for anything in this fight. Mico trains with Dexter MMA out of Connecticut and will have the hometown crowd with him. He had a ton of amateur fights and lost many of them to decision. He is always ready to scrap and puts on a good show. He started out his pro career so far with an 0-2 record with losses to Dan Cormier and Theo Desjardins.
Kevin Aurelien vs. Jose Rivera
Then Kevin Aurelien takes on Jose Rivera at 155lbs. Kevin trains with Calasanz MMA and has an 0-1 record. He fought at the last Warrior Nation and ended up losing in the first round by tko stoppage to strikes. Jose will be making his amateur debut and trains out of Kipp's Basement. Being from Kipp's Basement I know Jose will be ready in his amateur debut.
Mike Mangan vs. Steve Barnes
Mike Mangan will face off against Steve Barnes at 155lbs. Mike is from Team Thunder and has a 1-0 record. He fought TJ Holt at a previous Premier FC and won it by submission in rd 1. His opponent Steve is from Team Plus One and he will be making his amateur debut. We will have to wait and see if Mike's one fight experience will make the difference in this fight but that is the beauty of amateur (you never know)!
Johnny O’Brien vs. Johnny Lopez
Then Johnny O'Brien takes on Johnny Lopez at 135lbs. Johnny is from Silver City Boxing and will be making his pro debut. From what I found online it appears Johnny he was 0-9 amateur and most of them were all in the first round. The majority of them were by ko/tko and submissions. He has a tough fight on Johnny Lopez. Johnny is from Underdog BJJ and has a 1-3 pro record coming into this fight. He has lost two by tko/ko stoppages and one by submission. He has one win over John Marcheterre by submission so far in his pro career. This is a good fight and I give the edge to Johnny Lopez and I think he will win this one by submission.
Brigitte Narcise vs. Sarah Payant
Now for the female fight on the card between Brigitte Narcise and Sarah Payant at 125lbs. Brigitte is from K Warrior Dojo Tribe and will be making her amateur debut. Her opponent Sarah trains with Gladiator BJJ and has a 3-4 record. She lost all four of her losses by submissions. She has won two ko/tko to strikes and one by submission in her amateur career. It may seem like this fight isn't even but it is more even that you think. Brigitte has done some grappling tournaments in the expert division so she is definitely going to be comfortable on the ground. I think Sarah will want to keep this fight standing and use her striking to tire out Brigitte. I can't wait for this fight!!
Joey Gomez vs. Joe Cushman (Bantamweight Title Fight)
For the main event Joey Gomez will fight Joe Cushman for the bantamweight title fight. Joey is from Triumph BJJ and has a 2-0 record. He has won both of his pro fights by ko/tko in rounds 1. Those fights were at 145lbs and he is now dropping down to 135 to fight for the title. Certainly not a bad decision and Triumph was team of the year so you know they will be looking to continue their domination. Joe is from Lauzon MMA and has a 10-4 record. He has 2 ko/tko, 2 submissions and 6 decisions. For his losses he lost 1 ko/tko, 2 by submission and one decision. Now Joe hasn't fought since 2011 but he is riding a 2 fight win streak which he will be looking to continue. Both fighters were do what it takes to try to get that vacant title and remember this is a 5 round fight. I think this is a real close battle and could go either way. I am definitely excited to see how this fight turns out.
There you have the complete breakdown of the Reality Fighting show for this Saturday evening. The snow storm will stop on Friday so you all have no excuse not to make it! The Boss Jeremy Reipold and The Artist Joe Leonard will be in attendance covering for you all so make sure you stop by and say Hi to them or give them a punch or two. As of right now Alexander Keshtov and Devin Powell are still looking for an opponent so we will have to wait til fight day to see if those happen or not. I would like to give a shoutout to Reality Fighting for another solid job on this card and also for keeping us up to date on the fight cards so we can write this article.