Lewiston, Maine (July 23, 2012) – New England Fights! (NEF) announced today the addition of a fight between top-ranked amateur featherweights to the promotion’s FIGHT NIGHT IV card scheduled for September 8 in Lewiston, ME at the Androscoggin Bank Colisée. NEF veteran and Bangor, ME resident Ray Wood (4-1) will meet Soap Am (3-0) in a long-awaited dream matchup of the northeast’s number three (Wood) and number one (Am) ranked amateur featherweights.
“There were so many promotions in New England vying for this fight,” said NEF co-owner and promoter Nick DiSalvo. “Thanks to a lot of cooperation between the two camps we were able to make this fight in Lewiston. It’s really a major coup for the MMA scene in central Maine. The Maine fans are going to get to watch a bout that the fans in every corner of New England wanted to see happen in their backyard.”
Wood, known for his wrestling ability, is looking to wrap up a stellar amateur career with what might be his biggest challenge to date in Am. “Ray is one of our most popular fighters in NEF,” said DiSalvo. “He’s got a huge following in northern and central Maine. You can bet all those fans are going to turn out on September 8 to support him. We expect the crowd to blow the roof off the Colisee.”
“It’s going to be a great fight, an all-out war,” stated Wood when reached for comment. “Soap is a very well-rounded fighter and I think we both have similar styles. We will see who the number one ammy in New England is come September 8th. When it’s all said and done, it’s all business!”
Am is based out of Lynn, Massachusetts’ Team Pradal Serey (TPS), a school practicing the ancient Cambodian martial art of pradal serey centering on striking from elusive fight stances. “This will be like nothing else Ray has ever faced in the cage,” stated NEF co-owner and matchmaker Matt Peterson. “For a while there, it was Ray Wood and Cory Pickering at the top of the amateur featherweight rankings. The two were pretty dominant in those positions until Soap Am burst onto the scene this past spring. His appearance changed everything.”
“We have the utmost respect for Ray Wood and the Young’s MMA team and we look forward to seeing who is truly the best 145 ammy in New England. We would like to thank NEF for having us at such a great show,” stated Mike Strazzere, TPS’ general team manager.
Am’s meteoric rise to the top spot of the division was capped by a 12-second knockout of the division’s former top dog Pickering back in April. That was Am’s second fight, amazingly less than two weeks after his victorious amateur debut! “TPS and Young’s MMA (Wood’s camp) are two teams that believe in challenging their athletes,” Peterson continued. “They don’t take easy fights. In fact, both schools pride themselves on taking the toughest fights possible. We’ve heard from both camps, ‘We only want the best fight you can give us.’ To me, as a matchmaker, that’s very refreshing. To those teams, it’s commendable. And to the fans, it makes for some really great fights. And that’s what we have here – simply two of the best in the division going at it in the cage. If you’re a fight fan, this one is a must-see.”
FIGHT NIGHT IV is slated for September 8 at the Androscoggin Bank Colisée in Lewiston, ME. The card will feature a headline fight between Jesse Peterson (6-2) and Cody Lightfoot (6-3) for the NEF Maine State MMA Middleweight Title, as well as a fight for the NEF Maine State MMA Welterweight Title between Ryan Sanders (4-1) and UFC veteran Ricardo Funch (8-4). Tickets are on sale and most of cage-side sold-out within minutes. For more information on this event, visit www.NewEnglandFights.com. You can watch NEF videos at www.youtube.com/NEFMMA, follow them on twitter @nefights and join the official Facebook group “New England Fights”. Tickets for Fight Night IV are on sale now at www.TheColisee.com or by calling The Colisee box office at 207-783-2009.
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