NEF 41 'COLLISION COURSE' LIVE REVIEW 11/9/2019

Warchild and I traveled north to Maine.  We were excited to stop by the Kennebunk Plaza to get the infamous Popeye’s chicken sandwich.  In fact, I think Ed was more excited about that than the fights.  To our surprise, they do not sell the chicken sandwich there so we had to get popcorn shrimp.  Then we made our way to the club Aura for the show.  Took us a bit to find parking as there was a hockey game going on nearby.  We took our nice brisk walk to the venue and found our way to our seats by the cage.  New England Fights has a good night of fights tonight with 14 total amateur battles including 4 of them that are title fights.  Also happening tonight will be New England Fight’s big fight announcement for their next event in February 2020.  Pete Czymbor will be the host of the night and the ring girls are the Veayo twins.  They did an awesome job as always on our National Anthem.  Please follow along as I recap the night.  Refresh this article to stay up to date as I update it after each fight.

NEF FIGHT VIDEOS: Taylor Bartlett vs. Randall Hathorn | Justin Philbrook vs. Dylan Williams | Justin Kangas vs. Nathaniel Grimard

From a Controlling Relationship to Fighting for her Second MMA Title, Glory Watson Main Events NEF 41 this Saturday

Glory “The Fury” Watson (6-0) burst onto the regional New England mixed-martial-arts scene in the early summer of 2018.  Seventeen months, two submissions, one knockout and three decisions later, she is one of the hottest amateur prospects in the entire country.

A product of Young’s MMA in Bangor, Maine, Watson is the reigning New England Fights (NEF) Amateur Women’s 125-pound Flyweight Champion.  This Saturday night at Aura nightclub in Portland, Maine, she will challenge for the vacant 115-pound strawweight title.  Her opponent is a very tough, and seasoned, Oklahoman in the form of Cara Greenwell (9-4).

Watson will have the chance to make history on Saturday night by becoming the first athlete to ever hold two title belts simultaneously in different weight classes in NEF.  Many have tried, but no one has accomplished the feat yet.  Regardless of the outcome of the bout, history will already have been made as soon as the cage door closes on Saturday as Watson and Greenwell become the first women’s fight to headline one of the promotion’s cards as the main event.

Earlier today, Watson was interviewed by Wayne Harvey on 92.9 FM The Ticket regarding fighting in the main event of “NEF 41: Collision Course” this Saturday night in Portland.  She spoke not only on the fight, but on her introduction to the sport and weight cutting among other topics.

“I had no intention of fighting at all,” noted Watson when asked by Harvey about how she got into the sport.  “I was in a relationship with a guy who’s not a bad person, just wasn’t good for me.  A little bit controlling over what I did.  Didn’t want me to work.  Didn’t want me to do things.  So, I decided it would be a good idea to find an outlet and what boyfriend is going to say, “no, you can’t go to the gym?”  So, I reached out to a girl who had been training with Young’s MMA for a couple years.”

NEF 41 'COLLISION COURSE' PREVIEW 11/9/2019

New England Fights are set to return this Saturday November 9th to Club Aura for their 41st show.  This show has been dubbed Collision Course and featured on it will be 14 amateur fights.  Included in those 14 fights will be 4 amateur title battles.  NEF is looking to finish the year out with a bang.  I hear rumors of some snow coming but I doubt that will keep the fight fans away.  Let me break down the fight card for you all.

180 AM Tim Bergeron (0-0 Team Landry) vs. Chandler Chapman (1-0 Lee Brothers MMA)

First match is at 180 lbs and it is between Tim Bergeron and Chandler Chapman. Tim Bergeron trains with Team Landy and will be making his amateur debut.  His opponent is Chandler Chapman and he trains with Lee Brothers MMA.  He comes into this fight with a 1-0 record with his 1 win by split decision.  I see this one being a stand up battle.

MMA WEEKEND--Bellator 233 | UFC on ESPN+ 21

Bellator 233: Salter vs. Van Steenis

Friday 11.08.2019 at 09:00 PM ET

U.S. Broadcast: Paramount Network

John Salter  vs.  C. van Steenis 185 lbs

Muhammed Lawal  vs.  Andrew Kapel 195 lbs

Leslie Smith  vs.  Arlene Blencowe 145 lbs

Tyrell Fortune  vs.  Azunna Anyanwu 265 lbs

Julius Anglickas  vs.  Jordan Young 205 lbs

Janay Harding  vs.  Amanda Bell 145 lbs

Lucas Brennan  vs.  Jacob Landin 145 lbs

Romero Cotton  vs.  Jason Perrotta 185 lbs

Aaron McKenzie  vs.  Sean Clements 155 lbs

Christian Edwards  vs.  Cesar Bennett 205 lbs

Logan Storley  vs.  EJ Brooks 175 lbs

Grant Neal  vs.  Jimmy Lugo 205 lbs

Tyree Fortune  vs.  Chuck Campbell 205 lbs

Kyle Crutchmer  vs.  Robert Gidron 170 lbs

UFC on ESPN+ 21: Magomedsharipov vs. Kattar

Saturday 11.09.2019 at 11:00 AM ET

U.S. Broadcast: ESPN+

Z. Magomedsharipov  vs.  Calvin Kattar 145 lbs

Alexander Volkov  vs.  Greg Hardy 265 lbs

Zelim Imadaev  vs.  Danny Roberts 170 lbs

Ed Herman  vs.  Khadis Ibragimov 205 lbs

A. Martin  vs.  Ramazan Emeev 170 lbs

Shamil Gamzatov  vs.  Klidson Abreu 185 lbs

Magomed Ankalaev  vs.  D. Lungiambula 205 lbs

Rustam Khabilov  vs.  Sergey Khandozhko 155 lbs

Roman Kopylov  vs.  Karl Roberson 185 lbs

A. Nurmagomedov  vs.  David Zawada 170 lbs

A. Yakovlev  vs.  Roosevelt Roberts 155 lbs

J. Clark  vs.  Pannie Kianzad 135 lbs

Grigorii Popov  vs.  Davey Grant 135 lbs

CONTENDER “MAGIC” MIKE MURRAY: I KNOW THERE’S A LOT OF GUYS IN THIS DIVISION THAT ARE GOING TO WANT IT

[NEF PRESS RELEASE]

Few fighters have stormed their way onto the NEF regional mixed martial arts scene in recent memory like undefeated lightweight prospect “Magic” Mike Murray has in 2019. 2-0 with two first round stoppages in back-to-back NEF events in June and September, the active Marine Corps member now has his sights set on his first amateur title when the “Magic” man is set to square off with his toughest test to date, perennial number one contender, Zac “Rocky” Richard (4-2-1), this Saturday at “NEF 41: Collision Course.” Recently Murray joined Between Rounds Radio host Ryan Jarrell to discuss his upcoming fight and his path to his championship shot.

 A lifelong martial artist, 21-year old Murray began his studies in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu (BJJ) with former NEF amateur heavyweight Champion Nick “Gully” Gulliver (4-1) as a teenager at The Foundry. After enlisting in the Marine Corps, Murray continued his studies in BJJ a Camden Combat in Georgia, where he is currently stationed.

 Murray made his NEF debut in Lewiston last June when he stopped fellow newcomer Dylan Williams (0-2) in just over two minutes into the first round with a rear naked choke submission. Not one to sit on the sidelines, Murray made a quick turnaround and jumped right back on the following NEF card in Orono back in September when he stopped Jordan Crim (1-1), again with his signature rear naked choke submission. Now, Murray is set to compete on his third NEF card in a row when he takes on Richard for the title.