[NEF PRESS RELEASE]
For one night this spring, Aura nightclub in Portland will be transformed into King's Landing and 34 athletes will battle to determine who sits atop the Iron Throne.
On April 27th, New England Fights (NEF) brings its next mixed-martial-arts event, "NEF 38: STORMBORN" to the Old Port. The event has been promoted with a Game of Thrones theme in homage to the television series which will run its eighth-and-final season this April on HBO.
In the main event of the evening, Portland's own "The Jamaican Shamrock" Ras "Rasquatch" Hylton will take on Charles Penn in a professional heavyweight contest. Like the much-anticipated series showdown between the Mountain and his estranged brother the Hound, Hylton and Penn are two giants who bring an otherworldly power to their fights. Fans are cautioned not to blink as NEF heavyweight contests are known to end quite regularly in devastating knockouts.
Caleb Hall takes on veteran journeyman Jay Ellis in the professional lightweight co-main event of the evening. Hall will look to pick up the third straight win of his undefeated professional career. Both of his previous wins have come by way of first-round submission.
Fred Lear will make his professional debut in a bantamweight bout against Bryant Bullock. Lear looks to build off a stellar amateur career that saw him go 6-2-1 while capturing the NEF Amateur Bantamweight Title in the process.
Rounding out the pro card will be Keegan "The Flu" Hornstra and Zenon "K-Bar" Herrera in a lightweight contest. A regular in the promotion's cage during its infancy, Hornstra makes his return to NEF after nearly a seven-year absence. Both will be looking to bounce back from losses in their most recent respective fights.
At the top of the amateur card will be no less than four title fights.
NEF's version of Jon Snow, "The King in the North" "Killa" Kam Arnold will defend his amateur bantamweight strap against Henry Clark. Arnold was voted the "2018 Fighter of the Year" by NEF fans. He is a perfect 4-0 in his amateur career, but has yet to be tested by an opponent the caliber of Henry Clark. Clark, at 5-4, is a five-year veteran of the NEF cage, having battle some of the best New England has to offer. This fight will, no doubt, be an exciting, back-and-forth war of attrition reminiscent of the epic Battle of the Bastards from season six of Game of Thrones.
Also defending his title will be Duncan "The Highlander" Smith as he puts his amateur welterweight championship on the line against undefeated Jon Tefft. Smith captured the 170-pound crown last summer downing Carlton Charles at "NEF 34." Tefft has finished both of his previous opponents.
Zac Richard and Tom "The Phenom" Pagliarulo will square off for the vacant NEF Amateur Featherweight Title. It will be the second time this year Richard has tried to claim the championship. He fought Fred Lear to a thrilling five-round draw last month in Bangor, Maine with the belt up for grabs. Richard was voted the "2018 Rookie of the Year" by NEF fans. Both he and Pagliarulo bring extensive wrestling backgrounds with them to this fight.
Westeros and Essos are known for their powerful female characters like Daenerys Targaryan, Cersei Lannister and Brienne of Tarth. The women of George R.R. Martin's writings do not follow... they lead. And that is exactly what Taylor "T-Storm" Thompson and Andrea "Renegade" Howland will do when they throw down for the vacant NEF Amateur Women's Bantamweight Championship. A lot is at stake in this bout as not only the belt but Thompson and Howland's undefeated records, (3-0 and 2-0, respectively) will be on the line.
The full "NEF 38" fight card (subject to change):
PROFESSIONAL
265 Charles Penn (Hayastan MMA) vs. Ras Hylton (First Class/Dragonfire)
155 Caleb Hall (Choi Institute) vs. Jay Ellis (Team Knockout)
155 Keegan Hornstra (Evolution Athletix) vs. Zenon Herrera (Team SMOG)
135 Bryan Bullock (Hayastan MMA) vs. Fred Lear (Young's MMA)
AMATEUR
135*TITLE Henry Clark (Choi Institute) vs. Kam Arnold (CMBJJ) (c)
135*TITLE Taylor Thompson (BST MMA) vs. Andrea Howland (MI Top Team)
170*TITLE Duncan Smith (Evolution Athletix) (c) vs. Jon Tefft (First Class)
145*TITLE Zac Richard (Nostos MMA) vs. Tom Pagliarulo (Spero's/Burgess)
150 Arii Fernandez (Thornton) vs. Ryan Savage (First Class)
185 Justin Philbrook (Independent) vs. Titus Pannell (T4C)
158 Brian Cosco (Sityodtong/Brazil 021) vs. Garry Carr (CMBJJ)
140 Megan Rosado (Evolution Athletix) vs. Amanda Bennett (First Class)
145 Jesse Fitzsimmons (Nostos MMA) vs. Brandon Maillet-Fevens (CMBJJ)
185 Jordan Norman (Bad Little Falls Dojo) vs. Greg Ishihara (Recon)
145 Clifford Redman (Independent) vs. Nate White (Rumford Hardcore)
135 Schuyler Vallaincourt (Nostos MMA) vs. Dillon Henry (First Class)
115 Adina Beaudry (Evolution Athletix) vs. Traci Baldwin (Thornton)
NEF's next mixed-martial-arts event, "NEF 38: STORMBORN," will take place on Saturday, April 27, 2019 at Aura in Portland, Maine with a bell time of 7 pm. Tickets are on sale now at www.AuraMaine.com.