[NEF Press Release]
Lewiston, Maine (January 5, 2015) –New England Fights (NEF), America's number-one regional fight promotion, presents its sixteenth mixed martial arts (MMA) event, “NEF XVI,” on February 7, 2015 in Lewiston, Maine. The event is scheduled to originate from the Androscoggin Bank Colisee. Earlier today, NEF announced the addition of an amateur catchweight bout to the fight card. Aaron "Relentless" Lacey (4-1) returns to take on Nick Spencer (7-4) at a weight of 140-pounds.
Aaron Lacey fights out of Holden, Maine and is a member of Young's MMA based in nearby Bangor, Maine. He got off to a quick start to his amateur career, winning his first three bouts before suffering his first loss at the hands of Matt Tullos (7-0) on a fight card in New Hampshire last spring. Just weeks later, Lacey would rebound from that loss, defeating "Dangerous" Dom "Hands of Stone" Cofone (5-5) via unanimous decision at "NEF XIII." At the time, many observers on the northeast MMA scene were calling Lacey the "heir apparent" to his Young's teammate, and current NEF MMA Featherweight Champion, Ray "All Business" Wood (5-0), predicting that Lacey would ascend to the top of NEF's featherweight division when he turned professional and Wood got the call to the national stage of the sport.
Lacey would take the next several months off from competition, concentrating on training his Young's teammates for their NEF bouts in the second half of 2014. He is now looking forward to his long-awaited return to the NEF MMA cage, as are the NEF and Young's MMA fans.
"I'm excited to fight Nick," said Lacey of the upcoming bout with Spencer. "He's very well-rounded and has a lot of cage time. That being said, I'm going to go in there and do what I do."
Portland, Maine's Nick Spencer has been a mainstay of NEF since his debut fight in June 2012. He has not lost in the NEF MMA cage in over two years. Spencer last appeared in Lewiston, Maine with a win over Caleb Serra (0-1) via technical knockout (TKO) at "NEF XV." Just a few weeks earlier, he had similarly stopped Carl Langston (3-7) via TKO at "NEF XIV." Spencer is on a roll, having won four of his last five bouts. The product of Portland, Maine's Choi Institute will look to add to that streak at the expense of Aaron Lacey on February 7.
NEF's next MMA event, "NEF XVI," takes place on February 7, 2015 with an all-star lineup of fights scheduled. Ray "All Business" Wood (5-0) returns that night to defend the NEF MMA Featherweight Title against Bellator and WEC veteran Anthony "Cheesesteak" Morrison (16-9). NFL and UFC The Ultimate Fighter veteran Tyler King (7-2) puts the NEF MMA Heavyweight Title on the line against Terry "The Polar Bear" Blackburn (5-2). In the feature bout of the evening, UFC, Bellator and Strikeforce veteran Nah-Shon Burrell (10-5) makes his NEF MMA debut against Ryan Hodge (6-9). Tickets start at just $25 and are on sale now at www.TheColisee.com or by calling The Colisee box office at 207.783.2009 x 525. For more information on the event and fight card updates, please visit the promotion’s website at www.NewEnglandFights.com. In addition, you can watch NEF videos at www.youtube.com/NEFMMA, follow them on Twitter @nefights and join the official Facebook group “New England Fights.”