Custom Search

May 18, 2011

NEW CES Press Release for June 10th Show at Twin River Casino

217172_211066302246078_141570059195703_809039_1039357_n

Staying grounded?

Submission specialists Moreno and Carroll could trade blows June 10th

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (May 18, 2011) – One would expect two fighters with 20 combined victories by submission to literally hit the ground running in their highly-anticipated match-up Friday, June 10th, 2011, at the Twin River Casino in Lincoln, R.I., but conventional wisdom doesn’t always get the upper hand inside the cage.

“Whatever it takes to win the fight,” said Alexandre “Vaca” Moreno (11-2, 10 submissions) of Manchester, N.H., who will face Roger “The Leprechaun” Carroll (10-3, 10 submissions) of Claremont, N.C., in the middleweight co-feature of next month’s “Nowhere To Hide” professional cage-fighting show, presented by Jimmy Burchfield’s Classic Entertainment & Sports.

“I can win standing up or on the ground. We’ll see what works best for me.”

The element of surprise is always a factor, and it wouldn’t be out of the ordinary if Carroll and Moreno go toe-to-toe next month in what could be Moreno’s last major test before climbing the ladder in professional mixed martial arts. Twelve of Moreno’s 13 bouts have ended in the opening round, including his submission victory over former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) contender John “Doomsday” Howard in September of 2006.

“Alex has been working a lot on his stand-up game,” said Moreno’s manager and head coach at Team Link, Marco Alvan. “His goal is to keep it standing up, but if [Carroll] wants to go to the ground, we’ll be prepared for that. Alex is a UFC-level fighter. There’s no doubt about that. This could be his last fight around here. He will be in the UFC soon, and when that opportunity shows up, he’ll take it.”

Before he sets his sights on greener pastures, Moreno must first prepare for what is expected to be a dangerous match-up against an opponent who – similar to himself – doesn’t always get credit for his ability to use his fists.

Carroll has won all nine of his professional bouts by submission – three by rear-naked choke – and is credited as a mixed martial arts road warrior who rarely fights at home. Six of his last seven fights have taken place in Atlantic City, N.J.; Duluth, Ga. (twice); Harrisburg, Pa.; Atlanta and Kennesaw, Ga.

Until this past April, when he beat Adrien Miles via submission in Cherokee – approximately 200 miles west of Claremont – Carroll hadn’t fought in his home state since October of 2009.

“He’s probably in the same boat as I am,” Carroll said of Moreno. “People only see half of what we bring to the table. We never get to show that we train for standup, too. People see what we’re good at, but they don’t see the other side – sort of like [former UFC light heavyweight champion] Chuck Liddell. He had all these knockouts [13 in 21 professional fights with only one submission], but people never realized how good a wrestler he was.”

The deciding factor on June 10th could be the push Moreno gets from the hometown crowd, which figures to be in his corner given his status as one of New England’s top-ranked middleweights, but Carroll has been in this position before. He actually prefers the role of underdog as opposed to being the hometown favorite.

“I like being the redneck that people don’t expect to be able to come in there and stand and bang and punch,” Carroll said. “I’m coming to his hometown. I don’t necessarily feel like the underdog, but I’m coming to his backyard to play.

“I like to travel. It’s as simple as that. You can’t stay in your backyard and play all the time. If you don’t venture out, you don’t grow. I like to travel to other states and fight different styles of fighters. A 185-pounder in North Carolina is not necessarily the same as a 185-pounder from New Jersey.

“Plus, being from North Carolina, I train in the mountains all the time dealing with the altitude and the cold weather. I just don’t feel as if I’m going to get shell-shocked fighting outside of my home state. I’m able to relax and concentrate. This is just another fight for me – another day at the office.”

Although this will be his first fight since February when he beat Jeff Nader in Connecticut, Moreno has remained active by teaching Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu five days a week at the Team Link school in Manchester. He’s also coming off a victory in his weight class in the Black Belt Division at the New York International Open IBJJF (International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation) Championship in College City on April 16th.

“All year long, he does maintenance, and then when it comes time to fight he takes two months to concentrate solely on training,” said Alvan, who is a second-degree black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. “Alex is always competing.”

For the past four months, Moreno has also been working under the guidance of one of his students, Kyle Briere – a purple belt – who has become Moreno’s strength and conditioning coach. Moreno also trains with fellow Team Link members Gabriel Gonzaga, who has appeared on 12 UFC cards; Ricardo Funch, a two-time UFC competitor; and John Manley, who recently beatJason Trzewieczynski at Twin River on April 8th.

“I feel great,” Moreno said. “Training has been going really well and I’m prepared for this fight, but anything can happen. Fighting is fighting, and I have a lot of respect for my opponent. I’m just going to train to do my best.”

“This is a really good match-up,” Alvan added. “Training camp has been going great and Kyle is doing a great job with Alex. He promised me he’ll be ready. We’re really pumped for this fight, but it won’t be easy. Alex has a lot of respect for [Carroll] and knows he needs to fight an intelligent fight.”

“Nowhere To Hide” will be headlined by Boston native and former UFC competitor Alex “T-Rex” Karalexis (10-5, 5 KOs), who will face Tiawan “Iron Dragon” Howard (8-7, 3 KOs) of Cleveland in the welterweight main event. Boston’s Damien “The Omen” Trites (5-4, 1 KO) will battle Jeff “Candyman” Anderson of Providence, R.I./B+F Boxing in a lightweight bout. Welterweight Cody “The Wolverine” Stevens (8-1, 2 KOs) of Mansfield, Ohio, will also be on the card in a separate bout. All fights and fighters are subject to change.

Tickets for “Nowhere To Hide” are $40.00, $60.00, $100.00 and $200.00 (VIP) and can be purchased by calling CES at 401.724.2253/2254, online at www.cesboxing.com or www.twinriver.com, at the Players Club booth at Twin River, or through any TicketMaster location. Doors open 6 p.m. with the first bout scheduled for 7.

(Twin River has waived its 18+ rule for “Nowhere To Hide.” Anybody under the age of 18 must be accompanied by an adult and must enter through the West entrance.)

– CES –

I was at Vaca’s last fight at Reality Fighting and he is a very well rounded fighter so I know he will not disappoint the fans so defnitely check this one out!!  Not to mention The Omen Damien Trites is on this card.  We are planning on covering this show so stay tuned!!