Portland, Maine (August 22, 2017) – New England Fights (NEF) will make its debut in Portland on Friday, November 3, 2017 at Aura with "NEF 31: The Old Port." Earlier today, the fight promotion announced the addition of an amateur mixed-martial-arts title bout to the card. Nick Gulliver (4-0) will defend the NEF MMA Amateur Heavyweight Title against Terrance Jean-Jacques (1-0).
"NEF is an amazing organization and I love fighting for them," said Gulliver. "This will be my fifth fight for NEF and to me, this fight is different. During my fighting career I’ve always been fighting for someone, or something, and I’ve never really had time or the energy to really enjoy it. This fight I’m fighting to prove to myself that I’m good enough to be the heavyweight champion. People tell me every day after sparring or training that I’m good, but I don’t see it yet. I don’t see what others see and this is a time for me to see and believe. This camp I’m going to work and find myself in the process."
Gulliver, a product of First Class MMA and the Foundry BJJ, has been nothing short of perfect over the course of his amateur career with NEF. "The Guardian," as he is known amongst his fans and teammates, has finished all four of his previous opponents, including a third-round technical knockout of Yorgan DeCastro (2-4) last fall to claim the title belt. DeCastro is the first, and only, opponent to date to make it out of the first round with Gulliver.
"I have a lot to prove to myself and I’m going to look into the mirror on November 3rd and see the man I’ve wanted to be in the cage and out," continued Gulliver. "I’m going to work as much as I can and never give up. Something I always repeat to myself is 'cowards never start, the weak never finish, winners never quit,' and I’m not quitting on November 3rd."
Terrance Jean-Jacques brings a solid amateur wrestling background with him to the NEF cage. The Haverhill, Massachusetts native put together an impressive 22-6 record as the starting heavyweight for the NCAA Division I Iowa Hawkeyes as a freshman. He later transferred to Rhode Island College and was a runner-up at the 2015 Division III wrestling championships. Jean-Jacques signed a developmental deal with the WWE in the spring of 2016 to train at their performance center in Florida.
"Everybody fights for different things," remarked Jean-Jacques. "My thing is, I'm not doing this for anyone else but my daughter and myself. It's much bigger than this fight. I'm reinventing myself and it's kill or be killed. This will be the best version of myself to date. I have goals that I'm charging at in an unstoppable manner and I'm coming to get it. This is my destiny."
"I want to thank my training partners and my family," said Gulliver in closing. "I want to thank FirstClass MMA and The Foundry BJJ for everything they have given me. I’ve been training with FirstClass MMA and John Raio for almost three years now and I’ve been training with The Foundry BJJ going on eight years now. I appreciate all they do for me. I can name over 100 people that I train with every week that help push me, day in and day out, and I can’t thank them enough for it.
"This fight will be a war. If you put me and my opponent, Terrance, side by side and took bets, I’d be the loser all day. Shit, even I would bet against me if it was about size and looks. But this fight will be won by one thing and one thing only and anyone that knows me knows what I’m about to say. This fight will be won with heart. I’m not great at anything I do. I fail at most things, but I have a lot of heart and I push. Sometimes in life heart is what people need most. I’m looking to see what I’ve got on November 3rd and I’m looking forward to November 4th when I can wake up and see that I had enough heart and that I am the still the champ. Thank you to everyone involved in my life and thanks again for this fight I greatly appreciate it. Thank you to Terrance Jean-Jacques for coming to Portland to fight. Also, just a quick thank you to my friend Josh Jones, who made me remember the fun in this game again. He got me motivated to fight in this one. I’m hoping this fight is just like watching fireworks at a baseball game. If you’ve never seen fireworks at a baseball game come to this fight and I’ll show you the feeling."
NEF's next mixed-martial-arts event, "NEF 31: The Old Port," will see the company make its long-awaited debut in Portland, Maine at the brand new, state-of-the-art venue Aura. The event is scheduled to take place on Friday, November 3, 2017. Tickets are on sale now at www.auramaine.com.