NORTH AMERICAN FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIP
Mar 10, 2010
(PRESS RELEASE) -- Formerly known as Gladiators Cage Fighting, MMA
fight promotion North American Fighting Championship will make its
debut on Saturday, April 3rd with “Stand Your Ground” at Wisconsin
State Fair Park in West Allis, WI.
The event will feature several nationally-known fighters, including Ultimate Fighter alum and UFC veteran Jason “Dynamite” Dent, well-travelled former Bodog/Bellator/WEC/UFC competitor Nick Agallar, another Bellator/UFC veteran in Sherman “The Tank” Pendergarst, and “The Triangular Strangler” Joe Pearson, who fought in Shooto and PRIDE and has also challenged former WEC Featherweight Champion Urijah Faber for the belt.
This star-studded card will showcase ten exciting fights, and
ticket information is as follows: VIP Table seats - $100.00 and
$70.00 (tables seat 10 people max, and include waitress service),
Floor Reserved seats - $50.00 and $35.00. Tickets for “Stand Your
Ground” are available at http://www.nafc.tv/, by calling (414)
967-7767, or at the door (cash only). Tickets may also be purchased
at Duke Roufus MMA Academy, 320 N 76th St., Milwaukee, (414)
453-5425.
Jason “Dynamite” Dent (19-10, 15 submissions) is a multi-time UFC veteran who has won many regional MMA championships. He was also a participant in The Ultimate Fighter season 9: “United States vs. United Kingdom,” where he reached the semifinals of the show by defeating recent Shine Fights signee Jeff Lawson by anaconda choke. Despite losing to eventual lightweight winner Ross Pearson via decision, “Dynamite” did go on to submit Cameron Dollar at the season finale of the show. Dent has established himself as a submission expert who is a threat to anyone in the lightweight division. He has taken on UFC veterans George Sotiropoulos, Gleison Tibau, Roger Huerta, Jeff Curran, and former IFL fighter Ryan Schultz.
Sherman “The Tank” Pendergarst (11-16) has garnered a reputation for being a game opponent for anyone in the sport of MMA. A veteran of Bellator and the UFC, he fights all over the country, and subscribes to the mentality of “kill or be killed.” Extremely tough, he has secured most of his victories by submission. He has stepped into the cage with UFC veterans Houston Alexander, Justin Eilers, Carmelo Marrero, and Tim Hague, as well as current UFC fighters Joey Beltran, Antoni Hardonk, and UFC Heavyweight title challenger Shane Carwin.
Joe “The Triangular Strangler” Pearson (33-14-1, 28 submissions) is one of the most unique fighters in the sport today. A Militech fighter, Pearson is considered one of the most prolific submission experts in MMA. But while being a great grappler does not necessarily guarantee notoriety, garnering 28 of your 33 wins by submission does. And when you add in the fact that 20 of those 28 submissions came via triangle-choke…one can see where Pearson got his nickname from. Now, this tapout extraordinaire brings his skill set to the NAFC. “The Triangular Strangler” has battled the likes of Japanese star Yoshiro Maeda, as well as current WEC fighters Raphael Assuncao, Erik Koch, former WEC Bantamweight Champion Miguel Torres, and former WEC featherweight kingpin Urijah Faber.
North American Fighting Championship is presented by Concede Fight Wear, Monster Energy Drink, FM 102.1 Milwaukee, Speedy Metals, and Med+Pro Imaging. Additional sponsorship and support is provided by Combat Corner Fight Shop, WICombatSports.com, ExpressMilwaukee.com, On the Border, Hooters Restaurants, The Milwaukee Times, Area Rental, Curtis Ambulance, Battle Against Dogfighting, Duke Roufus MMA Academy, and Budweiser/Beechwood Distributing. The official post-event after-party sponsor is StarBar, located at 631 N Milwaukee St., Milwaukee, WI.
The full fight card for “Stand Your Ground” includes:
Lightweight - 155 lbs. (3 Rounds)
Jason "Dynamite" Dent (Mentor, OH) vs. Tim Samelstad (Madison, WI)
Lightweight - 155 lbs. (3 rounds)
Nick Agallar (Racine, WI) vs. Ted "Red" Worthington (Des Moines, IA)
Heavyweight - 265 lbs. (3 rounds)
Sherman "Tank" Pendergarst (Bettendorf, IA) vs. Reese "Old Man" Shaner (Waukesha, WI)
Bantamweight - 135 lbs. (3 rounds)
Joe "The Triangular Strangler" Pearson (Davenport, IA) vs. Chico "King" Camus (Milwaukee, WI)
Light Heavyweight - 205 lbs. (3 rounds)
Justin "The Fighting Fireman" Lemke (Milwaukee, WI) vs. TBA
Light Heavyweight - 185 lbs. (3 rounds)
Karl "Robo Cop" Turek (Milwaukee, WI) vs. TBA
Flyweight - 125 lbs. (3 rounds)
Omar Choudhury (Shorewood, WI) vs. Chris Beck (Walworth, WI)
Featherweight - 145 lbs. (3 rounds)
Gary Schaumberg (West Bend, WI) vs. David Rhoads (Allenton, WI)
Featherweight - 145 lbs. (3 rounds)
Jose Pacheco (Milwaukee, WI) vs. "Nasty" Nick Dupees (Walworth, WI)
Light Heavyweight - 205 lbs. (3 rounds)
Kyle "Wicked" Weickhardt (Brookfield, WI) vs. Tim Nixon (Marquette, MI)
Welterweight - 170 lbs. (3 rounds)
Ricky Stettner (Kenosha, WI) vs. Desie "Dizzy Devil" Beadon (Madison, WI)
The NAFC is operated by famed fight trainer Duke Roufus and his business partner and producer Scott Joffe, who have joined forces with former NFL nose tackle and Green Bay Packers Hall-of-Famer Gilbert “Gravedigger” Brown to create a formidable promotional team.
Roufus is one of the most recognizable striking coaches in North America, and is considered to be one of the top trainers of Muay Thai Kickboxing outside of Thailand. He also runs the Roufusport Fight Club team, which includes UFC stars Ben Rothwell, Eric "Red" Schafer, Alan Belcher, Patrick Barry, and UFC vet Razak Al-Hassan. Former students include former UFC Lightweight Champion Jens Pulver and The Ultimate Fighter season one star Stephan Bonnar.
Roufus and Joffe operate the Duke Roufus MMA Academy with multiple locations in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Brown is considered by many to be one of the greatest run-stuffers of his era. He played in 125 Packers games, recording 292 tackles (186 solo) and seven sacks. Nicknamed “The Gravedigger” in honor of his celebratory dance following a thunderous tackle, Brown played in 15 Packers playoff games. His best season was 1996, when Green Bay won Super Bowl XXXI. He was also part of the Kansas team that won the 1992 Aloha Bowl, and was selected for the All-Academic Big Eight team in 1991. He will fill the role of New Business Development Director for the NAFC.
About NAFC
North American Fighting Championship creates and produces events that feature combatants who have fought in the UFC, WEC, and other top level organizations, as they take on local fighters looking to make it to the next level. The NAFC's unofficial motto is “To get to the big show, you have to win on our show!,” which sums up the focus and purpose of the promotion. UFC and WEC fighters who have fought on past Gladiators Fighting shows (the NAFC’s predecessor) include former UFC Middleweight Champion Dave Menne, current UFC stars Ben Rothwell, Pat Barry, and Eric “Red” Schafer, WEC star Anthony “Showtime” Pettis, Adrian Serrano, Jesse Lennox, Bart “Bartimus” Palaszewski, Jason “Dynamite” Dent, Rex Holman, Joe Doerksen, Dan Bobish, Ryan “The Lion” Madigan, Jody Poff, Josh “Heavy” Hendricks, Sherman “The Tank” Perdergarst, and Geza Kalman. For additional information on NAFC, please visit http://www.nafc.tv
About Fight of Your Life Communications
Fight of Your Life is the only company that focuses exclusively on communications within the sport of MMA. Through utilization of media relationships, sponsorship contacts, writing skills, and public relations experience, Fight of Your Life raises the profile of its clients, which increases awareness, draws revenue, and helps establish long-term viability. In addition, Fight of Your Life owner Phil Lanides covers MMA for Examiner.com, and writes for FightSport Magazine, and CACombatSports.com. For additional information on Fight of Your Life Communications, please visit http://www.fightofyourlife.com/
The event will feature several nationally-known fighters, including Ultimate Fighter alum and UFC veteran Jason “Dynamite” Dent, well-travelled former Bodog/Bellator/WEC/UFC competitor Nick Agallar, another Bellator/UFC veteran in Sherman “The Tank” Pendergarst, and “The Triangular Strangler” Joe Pearson, who fought in Shooto and PRIDE and has also challenged former WEC Featherweight Champion Urijah Faber for the belt.
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Jason “Dynamite” Dent (19-10, 15 submissions) is a multi-time UFC veteran who has won many regional MMA championships. He was also a participant in The Ultimate Fighter season 9: “United States vs. United Kingdom,” where he reached the semifinals of the show by defeating recent Shine Fights signee Jeff Lawson by anaconda choke. Despite losing to eventual lightweight winner Ross Pearson via decision, “Dynamite” did go on to submit Cameron Dollar at the season finale of the show. Dent has established himself as a submission expert who is a threat to anyone in the lightweight division. He has taken on UFC veterans George Sotiropoulos, Gleison Tibau, Roger Huerta, Jeff Curran, and former IFL fighter Ryan Schultz.
Nick Agallar (22-6), a native of Racine, Wisconsin, is one of
toughest lightweight fighters in the country. He runs his own gym,
Agallar Combative systems, and possesses an extremely exciting
well-rounded style. In all, Agallar has eight submission wins and
eight TKO/KO wins on his record. During his career, he has faced
world class competition including Bellator fighter Jorge Masvidal,
UFC fighter “Handsome” Matt Wiman, PRIDE veteran Eiji Mitsuoka, and
UFC/Bodog veteran Yves Edwards.
Sherman “The Tank” Pendergarst (11-16) has garnered a reputation for being a game opponent for anyone in the sport of MMA. A veteran of Bellator and the UFC, he fights all over the country, and subscribes to the mentality of “kill or be killed.” Extremely tough, he has secured most of his victories by submission. He has stepped into the cage with UFC veterans Houston Alexander, Justin Eilers, Carmelo Marrero, and Tim Hague, as well as current UFC fighters Joey Beltran, Antoni Hardonk, and UFC Heavyweight title challenger Shane Carwin.
Joe “The Triangular Strangler” Pearson (33-14-1, 28 submissions) is one of the most unique fighters in the sport today. A Militech fighter, Pearson is considered one of the most prolific submission experts in MMA. But while being a great grappler does not necessarily guarantee notoriety, garnering 28 of your 33 wins by submission does. And when you add in the fact that 20 of those 28 submissions came via triangle-choke…one can see where Pearson got his nickname from. Now, this tapout extraordinaire brings his skill set to the NAFC. “The Triangular Strangler” has battled the likes of Japanese star Yoshiro Maeda, as well as current WEC fighters Raphael Assuncao, Erik Koch, former WEC Bantamweight Champion Miguel Torres, and former WEC featherweight kingpin Urijah Faber.
North American Fighting Championship is presented by Concede Fight Wear, Monster Energy Drink, FM 102.1 Milwaukee, Speedy Metals, and Med+Pro Imaging. Additional sponsorship and support is provided by Combat Corner Fight Shop, WICombatSports.com, ExpressMilwaukee.com, On the Border, Hooters Restaurants, The Milwaukee Times, Area Rental, Curtis Ambulance, Battle Against Dogfighting, Duke Roufus MMA Academy, and Budweiser/Beechwood Distributing. The official post-event after-party sponsor is StarBar, located at 631 N Milwaukee St., Milwaukee, WI.
The full fight card for “Stand Your Ground” includes:
Lightweight - 155 lbs. (3 Rounds)
Jason "Dynamite" Dent (Mentor, OH) vs. Tim Samelstad (Madison, WI)
Lightweight - 155 lbs. (3 rounds)
Nick Agallar (Racine, WI) vs. Ted "Red" Worthington (Des Moines, IA)
Heavyweight - 265 lbs. (3 rounds)
Sherman "Tank" Pendergarst (Bettendorf, IA) vs. Reese "Old Man" Shaner (Waukesha, WI)
Bantamweight - 135 lbs. (3 rounds)
Joe "The Triangular Strangler" Pearson (Davenport, IA) vs. Chico "King" Camus (Milwaukee, WI)
Light Heavyweight - 205 lbs. (3 rounds)
Justin "The Fighting Fireman" Lemke (Milwaukee, WI) vs. TBA
Light Heavyweight - 185 lbs. (3 rounds)
Karl "Robo Cop" Turek (Milwaukee, WI) vs. TBA
Flyweight - 125 lbs. (3 rounds)
Omar Choudhury (Shorewood, WI) vs. Chris Beck (Walworth, WI)
Featherweight - 145 lbs. (3 rounds)
Gary Schaumberg (West Bend, WI) vs. David Rhoads (Allenton, WI)
Featherweight - 145 lbs. (3 rounds)
Jose Pacheco (Milwaukee, WI) vs. "Nasty" Nick Dupees (Walworth, WI)
Light Heavyweight - 205 lbs. (3 rounds)
Kyle "Wicked" Weickhardt (Brookfield, WI) vs. Tim Nixon (Marquette, MI)
Welterweight - 170 lbs. (3 rounds)
Ricky Stettner (Kenosha, WI) vs. Desie "Dizzy Devil" Beadon (Madison, WI)
The NAFC is operated by famed fight trainer Duke Roufus and his business partner and producer Scott Joffe, who have joined forces with former NFL nose tackle and Green Bay Packers Hall-of-Famer Gilbert “Gravedigger” Brown to create a formidable promotional team.
Roufus is one of the most recognizable striking coaches in North America, and is considered to be one of the top trainers of Muay Thai Kickboxing outside of Thailand. He also runs the Roufusport Fight Club team, which includes UFC stars Ben Rothwell, Eric "Red" Schafer, Alan Belcher, Patrick Barry, and UFC vet Razak Al-Hassan. Former students include former UFC Lightweight Champion Jens Pulver and The Ultimate Fighter season one star Stephan Bonnar.
Roufus and Joffe operate the Duke Roufus MMA Academy with multiple locations in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Brown is considered by many to be one of the greatest run-stuffers of his era. He played in 125 Packers games, recording 292 tackles (186 solo) and seven sacks. Nicknamed “The Gravedigger” in honor of his celebratory dance following a thunderous tackle, Brown played in 15 Packers playoff games. His best season was 1996, when Green Bay won Super Bowl XXXI. He was also part of the Kansas team that won the 1992 Aloha Bowl, and was selected for the All-Academic Big Eight team in 1991. He will fill the role of New Business Development Director for the NAFC.
About NAFC
North American Fighting Championship creates and produces events that feature combatants who have fought in the UFC, WEC, and other top level organizations, as they take on local fighters looking to make it to the next level. The NAFC's unofficial motto is “To get to the big show, you have to win on our show!,” which sums up the focus and purpose of the promotion. UFC and WEC fighters who have fought on past Gladiators Fighting shows (the NAFC’s predecessor) include former UFC Middleweight Champion Dave Menne, current UFC stars Ben Rothwell, Pat Barry, and Eric “Red” Schafer, WEC star Anthony “Showtime” Pettis, Adrian Serrano, Jesse Lennox, Bart “Bartimus” Palaszewski, Jason “Dynamite” Dent, Rex Holman, Joe Doerksen, Dan Bobish, Ryan “The Lion” Madigan, Jody Poff, Josh “Heavy” Hendricks, Sherman “The Tank” Perdergarst, and Geza Kalman. For additional information on NAFC, please visit http://www.nafc.tv
About Fight of Your Life Communications
Fight of Your Life is the only company that focuses exclusively on communications within the sport of MMA. Through utilization of media relationships, sponsorship contacts, writing skills, and public relations experience, Fight of Your Life raises the profile of its clients, which increases awareness, draws revenue, and helps establish long-term viability. In addition, Fight of Your Life owner Phil Lanides covers MMA for Examiner.com, and writes for FightSport Magazine, and CACombatSports.com. For additional information on Fight of Your Life Communications, please visit http://www.fightofyourlife.com/
