[Combat Zone Press Release by Lynne Snierson]
MANCHESTER, NH- The vacant MMA Amateur Bantamweight title will be up for the taking when champions Jake "The Gorilla" Pilla and Fred Lear meet for the first time in the stellar main event of the stacked 17-fight Combat Zone 63 card "Mayhem in Manchester" on Friday, September 29 at the Downtown Radisson Hotel in the Queen City.
Lear (6-2) holds the NEF bantamweight crown and brings his three-fight win streak into the cage in what will be his final amateur appearance before turning pro no matter the outcome of this fight. The representative of Young's MMA in Maine said he wanted the toughest opponent he could get, and his wish has certainly come true. Pilla (5-2), a former Combat Zone Amateur Featherweight champion, is dropping down from 145 to 135 pounds for this title fight but the impost will not present a problem.
In his last outing, Pilla fought at 135 pounds for the first time in his career but needed a mere 37 seconds of the first round of Combat Zone 62 on June 30 to submit the very tough Jack Greene in front of what has become a hometown crowd for the Billerica, MA native,, who represents Team Flo/Spero's MMA in Plaistow, NH. Pilla, who is one of the Northeast's most dynamic and charismatic fighters, has developed a devoted and enormous following of fans known as "The Gorilla Crew" and they are sure to be out in force again as he goes for his second MMA belt in a different weight division.
The main event caps what promises to be an exciting and action-packed night of pro and amateur MMA and kickboxing featuring the top talent as well as rising stars on the Northeast fight scene.
Tickets range in price from $40 for General Admission to $120 for ringside seating and may be purchased at www.czmma.com, where the full fight card may be viewed, or by calling co-promoter Jamison Kattar at 978-361-6772. Doors to the Radisson's Armory Room open at 5:30 PM and the first fight begins at 7:00 PM. Parking is available in the hotel garage or in Manchester's downtown, and the Radisson (603-625-1000) offers special room rates for fight fans.
Combat Zone is New England's longest running mixed martial arts and kickboxing promotion and is co-owned by UFC fighter Calvin Kattar and Jamison Kattar.