Ruckus Thursday Night Fights

Ruckus Entertainment returns on Thursday May 12 at the Alhambra Palace in downtown Chicago.  After their previous venue pulled out of an event less than two weeks before, Ruckus matchmaker Tony O has been busy working to find a new venue.

The May 12 event will be taking place at the Alhambra Palace.  Alhamabra boasts an amazing 24,000 square feet featuring beautiful architecture influenced by Egypt and Morocco.

The night of action is set to feature an all amateur card with fighters from many of the top local gyms.  Fan favorites Kim Novak, Johny Odisho, and Ankeddo Shamoun are scheduled to be apart of the card.

Tickets start at just $30 and can be purchased by calling Tony O at 630-674-2627.  For more information on the Alhambra Palace visit their website at alhambrapalacerestaurant.com

Ruckus Entertainment has partnered up with US Combat Sports to bring a nation wide tournament together.  Fighters from Illinois, California, Minnesota and Wisconsin are all set to do battle.  The tournament will start in January and end in the fall of 2011.

The tournament will feature eight fighters from each of the following weight classes: flyweight, lightweight, welterweight and middleweight.  The brackets for each state are composed of an upper tier and a lower tier of four fighters in each.

The winners from the upper tier will become the “state champion” and face off against another’s state champion.  Illinois will match up with California and Minnesota and Wisconsin will meet in the regional matchups.

The lower tier fighters will win their way into an automatic seed in the next tournament scheduled to start in November of 2011.  Additionally the lower tier fighters could earn their way onto an upper tier fight if someone gets injured.

The winner of each tournament will ultimately win over $30,000 in cash and prizes of which includes a $10,000 diamond ring.

The regional and national fights will be broadcast on PPV and take place a casino to be determined.

Fighters who are licensed in Illinois and wish to participate can contact Tony O either by email (ruckusmma@gmail.com) or you can show up to the November 24 show at Venuti’s in Addison, Illinois.

Several big names are being considered and will be released shortly.  The first round of the tournament will take place on January 21.

On tonight’s RecapRadio we will be featuring three promoters all with Chicago ties.  In local action we will have Fightcard Entertainment and Ruckus Entertainment and in national coverage Bellator’s CEO Bjorn Rebney will be calling in.

Carson Beebe is the younger brother of former WEC champion Chase Beebe and is already following in his brother’s footsteps.  After an impressive amateur career, Beebe is now 4-0 as a professional and is looking at an early fall return to action.  MMA Recap’s Brent Todd caught up with Beebe to learn more about his career and goals.

How’d you get into mixed martial arts?
When I was in high school my brother Chase was just getting into MMA. I trained with him and our buddy Clay French almost every day of the summers. I fell in love with the sport then and knew when I was done wrestling that this is what I wanted to do.

You most recently fought at Chicago Cage Fighting Championships where you faced Danny Black.  Did that fight go how you thought it would?
That fight went exactly as planned. I put the pressure on him right away and scored a big slam, which received a great reaction from the crowd. From there we train to secure position on top first, then deliver punishment and look for the finish. That is exactly what I did.

He came out to the song “Knock You Out” what are your thoughts on this song choice?
Haha…  I try to spend a little time and effort as possible concentrating on my opponent and what he does. So whatever song he comes out to wont affect me.

He was seriously injured after the fight as he stated he couldn’t see.  What damage did you do exactly?
Well, originally the doctor said he broke his orbital in his face and it was obvious he needed stitches on his forehead. I was very glad to hear that he ended up not breaking anything. I don’t try to hurt my opponent and after the fight I feel kind of bad, but unfortunately its part of the sport.

That fight was actually your third fight in four weeks, was it difficult keeping the weight down for that period of time?
I have grown up wrestling my whole life. I wrestled in for Purdue University in college, and at that high level of wrestling here is no choice but to learn how to cut weight the right way. We would have to make weight up to 3 times a week with only one hour between weigh-ins and the competition. So, with the 24-hour weigh-ins in MMA, making weigh 3 times in a month wasn’t too difficult.

Your pro debut against Nate Williams at Ruckus 2 many felt was not a good showing by you, what are your thoughts on that fight?
That was my first true fight. Nate is an extremely tough kid who will not quit, and the first fighter like that that I had seen. That may not have been my best fight but it was a fight that I really needed. I honestly believe I learned more about fighting and myself as a fighter in that 15 min fight than I have in my whole career. I think my growth though that experience is apparent in my next few showings.

What’s coming up as far as fights go for you?
The next big fight will be for Ruckus Entertainment on September 11th on Navy Pier, Chicago. I am extremely excited for this show. Not only will it in my hometown and greatest city in the world, but also I will be on the card with my older brother Chase and good friend and long time training partner Clay French. It is an honor to share the stag with those guys. Ruckus always puts on a great show and I know those guys are pushing the envelope much harder for this one.

Obviously many people know who your brother is, are you hoping to follow a career path similar to his?
My brother is a great fighter and has experienced much success in this sport. I am taking my career as it comes. The ultimate goal is a world championship belt, which is what Chase had at one point. How I get to that point doesn’t matter to me, just as long as I get it done!

What was the biggest hurdle that you had to over come when you decided to become a professional fighter?
Well, the decision in itself was a huge hurdle for me. I had been wrestling my whole life, and I had been dreaming of being an NCAA Champion for as long as I can remember. By choosing to fight I also was giving up a scholarship to one of the best universities in the country.  I had to exchange my goals in wrestling for bigger and better goals in MMA. When you are fully committed to a goal, as I was, that is not an easy thing to do. In the end, I wrestling wasn’t making me happy anymore so I made the very difficult leap of faith to go after what I love to do; fight. Fortunately I have the full support of my family

Which one of your fights has been your favorite?
My favorite fight was the last one for Chicago Cagefighting. I love fighting close to home so I can fill my locker room with all my closest friends and family. That fight was my best performance to date, and I think the people I surround myself with have a lot to do with that.

Obviously your wrestling is your biggest strength, how often do you work wrestling compared to the other aspects of martial arts?
I’d say I work on all aspects of the game equally (wrestling, Jiu-jitsu, and stand-up). I try to make my strengths stronger and eliminate my weaknesses.

How long do you hope to have a career in fighting for?
It is hard to predict something like that. As long as the sport is making me happy I will continue to be involved in it… and I think that will be a long time.

Who are some fighters that you wish to aspire to be like and why?
Clay Guida is my number one role model. He is a great fighter with the heart of a warrior. He puts on a great show every single time. More importantly he is an great person. Clay loves to share his success with everyone around him. My goal is to take on as many Clay Guia attributes ad possible.

What do you like to do in your off time?
I don’t like having off time haha.

What is your favorite breakfast cereal?
Fruity Pebbles

Any sponsors or people you want to thank?
I’d like to thank all my coaches and training partners at Gilbert Grappling and Uflacker Academy. Also, my sponsor Mio Fight Gear and my friends and family for all of their support.

Questions from fighters for fighters:
Who in your opinion is the hottest female fighter in the Midwest?
I don’t know of too many but I no my girl Felice Herrig is one bad chick… And she doesn’t look bad in fight shorts and a sports bra haha.

Jarrett Payton, son of Walter Payton, is the host of Chicagoland Sports Radio.  Wednesday July 21, the show will focus on mixed martial arts and feature several fighters.  Schedule to make an appearance on the show are Chase Beebe, Clay French, Vince Ramos and Ruckus Entertainment promoters Frank Defilippis and Tony O.

The show will be broadcast at 7pm CST and can be heard at www.chicagolandsportsradio.com.  The internet radio show debuted on July 16 of 2010.

Jarrett Payton is the son of the famous Chicago Bear’s running back Walter Payton.

Ruckus Entertainment has just informed MMA Recap (www.mmarecap.com) that their third event will be held at the historic Navy Pier on Saturday September 11.  The date was not picked by accident as the Ruckus Entertainment plans to donate a portion of all ticket sales to the 911 Foundation.

This will mark the first time a mixed martial arts event will take place at Navy Pier.  The venue has adjustable seating depending on the event but will likely play home to around 5,000 fans.

While the event is still nearly four months away, a high profile main event is in the works to headline the show.  Ruckus Entertainment’s Frank Defilippis stated, “We want to put on a big main event that not only will draw a lot of fans, but will also be a good fight.”

Stay tuned to MMA Recap for details on the historic Ruckus 3 show.

Every day there’s always a new promotion that we, as media, hear about.  And every day we also hear about another promotion that was one and done or is going under.  The problem is that so many of these people who think “Oh I can do this” really can’t.  The issues aren’t just limited to smaller amateur shows that have tiny budgets.  The bigger shows run into problems as well.  This editorial looks to break down what it means to put on a good show from the perspective of the promoter, the fighter, the media, and most importantly the fan.  In this first part, I will look into what a fighter wants to get out of a promotion.

Let me preface this by saying that I am not a fighter.  I haven’t trained with any fighters and all the information I have received has only been because I have been fortunate enough to talk to numerous fighters.  In some cases I will quote a fighter directly and mention them by name, in other cases I cannot out of respect that I keep their name out of their somewhat derogatory quote towards a promotion.

The number one thing that a fighter wants out of a promotion is to make sure the check clears.  Now a days, many athletic commissions require that the fighter’s salary be paid to the commission prior to the event to ensure that a fighter at least gets his “to show” money.

Shonie Carter once told me a story how he received a check after a fight and the promoter told him to wait until Monday to cash the check.  Carter wasn’t too keen on having to wait to get his money and was somewhat afraid the check might bounce.  So he did what any sane person would do: took the check to a check-cashing place that night.  The promoter called Carter up and screamed at him for cashing the check before he was told he should and that as such other checks were now bouncing.  This wasn’t Carter’s first “at bat” so to speak and his suspicions were correct about the lack of funds.

Some fighters won’t even take a check, even if it means more money.  One fighter I talked to said he was offered double the money for a bonus he earned if he took a check over cash.  Not wanting to wait, he opted for the cash instead.  Why would he forgo half of his bonus just to get cash?  As he said, “It’s better to have half the money for sure, then none of the money”.

Many promoters think that money is the be-all-end-all when it comes to ensuring they are happy with a promotion.  But that isn’t the case.  Fighter’s are smart and look at the big picture.  And like the painting “A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte” by Georges-Pierre Seurat, the big picture is made up of a lot of tiny details.

Hotel accommodations for fighters a big thing for these guys.  Who wants to stay at the local motel that looks like it has played home to drug trafficking and prostitution when they could stay at a nicer hotel?  We aren’t talking about fighters staying at like the Ritz Carlton here, but a nice clean hotel is a must.

One fighter I talked to mentioned how he was booked at a run down hotel and almost didn’t fight.  “When I got to the hotel I could tell that they booked this place just to save money.  I think this place could have been rented out by the hour it was that bad.  The fight was a good fight for me, and I considered not taking it after I got there.  Instead I paid for my hotel about a block away in a place I knew I wasn’t going to contract some sort of disease.”

Then there’s the issue of access to a gym.  Fighters cut weight and most of the time need to make sure that the last one or two pounds is cut before weigh-ins.  Having access to a gym versus having to try and do sprints up and down the hall at the hotel is a big difference.  And while many gyms offer single day passes, to the fighter, it’s yet another cost they have to endure.

Anyone remember Nate Diaz’s tweeting about his fight against Melvin Guillard?  He mentioned how he was going crazy looking for a gym in Oklahoma.  The problem was there wasn’t a 24-hour gym available and as such he was forced to using the hotel’s tiny little gym.

Fighters understand that not every show will be a big deal.  But even the smallest shows can make a fighter feel like it’s the biggest fight of their life.  In talking with Bellator middleweight fighter Matt Major, he mentioned this.  “My favorite fight was my fight against Jamie Fletcher at Call to Arms.  The fight was held in an arena, the production was great, it just felt like it was a big deal.”

A local promotion here in Chicago, Ruckus Entertainment, makes sure that production is a big deal for these guys.  Every fighter had a tapped prefight interview that was shown on the big screens before they made their way to the cage.  Their music was blaring loud and the smoke and light show for each fighter was unique to each one.  Every single fighter I talked to after the show, regardless of if they won or lost, all said the same thing.  I want to fight for them again.  This was a big deal for me.

As I said the little details, no matter how small, can make a big difference.  In talking to a fighter who wishes to remain anonymous he said, “I remember fighting at a promotion and they didn’t even have water for us back stage.  I mean how can they be so cheap to not even provide us with water.  The check cleared so I was happy about that, but I remember being very irked over the lack of water for us.”

Another fighter recalled a night after weigh-ins.  “The weigh-ins were held at a restaurant.  Most of us cut weight and were starving at this point, as we hadn’t had a solid thing of food for at least 24 hours.  After the weigh-in we expected that we would be fed since the weigh-ins were conducted AT A RESTAURNT.  But to our surprise when we sat down to figure out what we could eat, we were told whatever we wanted to pay for.  I understand they need to keep costs low, but you would expect there to have been some sort of food agreement between the promotion and the venue to give us something.”

Promotions need to take care of their fighters.  All it takes is one fighter to be vocal about how bad a promotion is and suddenly that promotion finds itself without any fighters.  The fighters are there to put on the show and they deserve to be treated with the highest amount of respect.

Ruckus Entertainment put on their second show “Ruckus 2″ last night.  Many fans praised the production of the first show, and the second surpassed the first.  Local DJ Julian “Jumpin” Perez kept the beats rocking through out the night of action.  Four amateur fights were capped off with six professional bouts.  Read on for the full results.

Nick Porter and Tyler Bird wanted to set the pace for the night.  Unfortunately there wasn’t a lot of action as most of the fight was spent on the ground.  Bird easily got the fight to the ground, but once there, couldn’t find a way to finish the fight as his opponent did a good job of controlling his head and arm.  While Porter was able to defend well, that didn’t earn him any points and all three judges scored it 30-27 for Bird.

Before the match started, Kevin Switella looked like Sean Anderson had just done something horrible to his family.  When the bell rang, both fighters respected each other’s striking game as they were both hesitant to throw a big shot.  Near the end of the first round, Anderson got a takedown but didn’t do much with it.  In the second round, Switella responded with a takedown of his own.  He was able to get full mount, but Anderson was able to roll out of it and punished Switella’s forehead with shots.  It was a close round and could have gone either way.  The third round Sitella spent most of the round trying to choke Anderson out.  While he couldn’t secure the tap, he was able to win the round.  Unfortunately for him, it wasn’t enough as the judges awarded the fight to Anderson.

The women were up next with Marcia Allen taking on Kim Novak.  Through out the entire three rounds, the women were typically jockeying for position from within the clinch.  Both fighters were able to take the other down, and in the end it came down to who did more damage.  The judges awarded the victory to Marcia Allen after three rounds of action.

The final amateur fight of the night saw Dan Borke take on Kris Blayney.  The first round was extremely close as Blayney scored a takedown, but Borke was able to get out of the troublesome position and secure Blayney’s back.  The second round showed the grappling skills of both fighters as they were able to sweep and reverse the position on each other.  Blayney wound up the better of the two as he ended the second round in full mount unloading punches.  The final round Borke used a trip takedown to land in side control.  From there he worked an arm triangle submission, but he couldn’t get the leverage he needed to finish the fight.  In the end, the judges saw Blayney as the victor.

Professional bouts
The opening professional fight saw Carson Beebe make his pro debut against Nate Williams.  Beebe controlled the action for the full fifteen minutes.  The rather lackluster affair saw Williams being taken down by Beebe, Beebe working to get a dominant position, Williams giving up his back, and rinse and repeat.  While there were some good strikes by both fighters, the fighters were rather predictable by the end of the third round.  In the end the judges awarded Beebe the victory.

Danny Black and Vince Ramos were both making their professional debut and only one could come away as the victor.  Ramos quickly shot for a takedown and got it.  Ramos then worked to get mount and threw punches in bunches.  Black bucked and rolled to escape and brought the fight back to his feet.  Unfortunately Ramos quickly worked a takedown and while Black attempted a submission, he wasn’t able to get it.  From the takedown, Ramos worked a kimura that looked bad, but Black didn’t give up.  Black gave up his back attempting to get out of the hold and Ramos locked in the fight ending rear naked choke.

Bobby Reardanz needed less than ninety seconds to submit Randy Fuentes.  Both fighters exchanged kicks before Fuentes worked for a takedown.  After the takedown, Fuentes postured up, but Reardanz threw his legs up and was able to secure the choke.

Jay Ellis wanted to punish Tyler Combs as was evident in the stare down between the two before the bell started.  Ellis came out with a flying kick that missed.  Combs kicked Ellis’s leg, but Ellis caught the kick and used it to take the fight down.  From there he quickly moved to mount and landed several shots.  But Combs was able to sweep Ellis.  After a couple of short shots, Combs stood up and Ellis followed leaving his neck open.  Combs grabbed a guillotine choke and it looked deep, but Ellis broke free.  After escaping, the referee called time out and deducted a point from Ellis for grabbing the glove to break the choke.  At the restart, Combs caught a kick of Ellis, but Ellis jumped over Combs to get Combs’s back.  Again Comb’s rolled out of it and this time he started landing powerful shots. Ellis curled up and the ref called a halt to the action.

The co-main event saw Dustin Neace take on Toni Marti.  Marti opened the fight with a big overhand right followed by a takedown.  Neace defended well as Marti worked for a choke.  Neace pushed through it and wound up in Marti’s guard, but the choke was still there.  Neace forced his head out and grabbed Marti’s neck.  Marti reversed the position and again attempted a choke from within Neace’s guard.  Neace threw his legs up working for an arm bar, but Marti spins and worked for a leg lock of his own.  Neace spun out of the leg lock and was able to get Marti’s back.  Once there he sunk in a rear naked choke forcing Marti to tap.

The main event saw former “Ultimate Fighter” cast member, Jeremy May take on Chris Albandia.  Albandia landed a nice leg kick and then worked for a single leg takedown.  May defended it well and both fighters were clinched.  May with a big knee, followed it up with a good 1-2 combo another knee and finished it off with upper cuts.  Albandia looked to be in trouble and he shot for a takedown.  Albandia got the takedown, but May showcased his jiu jitsu by locking in a triangle choke.  Albandia didn’t give up and May worked several punches to Albandia’s head before being able to pull down on Albandia’s head sinking the choke in as tight as possible and earning the tapout victory.

Quick Results
Amateur Bouts

• Tyler Bird defeated Nick Porter by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
• Sean Anderson defeated Kevin Switella by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
• Marcia Allen defeated Kim Novak by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 30-27, 29-28)
• Kris Blayney defeated Dan Borke by Unanimous Decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)

Professional Bouts

• Carson Beebe defeated Nate Williams by Unanimous Decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-27)
• Vince Ramos defeated Danny Black by rear naked choke 3:18 of round 1
• Bobby Reardanz defeated Randy Fuentes by triangle choke 1:22 of round 1
• Tyler Combs defeated Jay Ellis by TKO (ref stoppage) 3:13 of round 1
• Dustin Neace defeated Toni Marti by rear naked choke 3:53 of round 1
• Jeremy May defeated Chris Albandia by triangle choke 2:53 of round 1

The weight-ins for tomorrow night’s event took place earlier tonight at Venuti’s Banquet Hall in Addison, Illinois.  MMA Recap was on scene to witness all the fighters step on the scale.  All fighters were on weight for their fights with the exception of both main event fighters, Jeremy May and Chris Albandia.  Both fighters weighed in at 188lbs and agreed to have the bout contested at that weight.

With less than 24 hours until the event takes place, less than 70 tickets remain for the 1400 capacity event.  All fighters expressed excitement for their fights tomorrow.

Full Weigh In Results include:
Amateur Bouts
    •    Nick Porter 145 vs Tyler Bird 145
•    Sean Anderson 145 vs Kevin Switella 145
•    Wilbert Jones vs Tim Duggan (weight was under the max 265 for both fighters, no weight specified)
•    Marcia Allen 135 vs Kim Novak 135
•    Kris Blayney 185 vs Dan Borke 184.5
•    Aaron Plumley 150 vs Dennis Dombrow 150 (catchweight)

Professional Bouts
    •    Demitrius Richards 205 vs Luke Burton 205
•    Carson Beebe 135 vs Nate Williams 135
•    Danny Black 145 vs Vince Ramos 145
•    Bobby Reardanz 152 vs Randy Fuentes 150 (catchweight)
•    Jay Ellis 165 vs Tyler Combs 165 (catchweight)
•    Dustin Neace 145 vs Tony Marti 145
•    Jeremy May 187.7 vs Chris Albandia 187.8

The weigh-ins for Ruckus Entertainment’s second show “Ruckus 2″ takes place tonight at Venuti’s Banquet Hall in Addison, Illinois.  The fighters will step on the scale starting at 6pm and the doors are open to the public.

Venuti’s will also play host to tomorrow night’s action, which will see six amateur bouts and eight professional fights.  In the main event, Jeremy May will take on Chris Albandia.

The night features several local fighters including Toni Marti, Vince Ramos, and Carson Beebe.

Tickets for the event are nearly sold out and will more than likely be sold out by the time the fights take place tomorrow.  For ticket information visit www.ruckusentertainment.net

Ruckus Entertainment will put on their second show “Ruckus 2″ on Friday March 12 from Venuti’s Banquet Hall in Addison, Illinois.  Six amateur bouts will kick off the night before eight professional bouts end the night.

Headlining the night’s action will be “Ultimate Fighter” veteran Jeremy May battling Chris Albandia.  Carson Beebe, brother to Chase Beebe, will be making his professional debut.  Another local fighter to make his professional debut at the event is Vince Ramos who went 7-0 as an amateur fighter.

The full card looks like:
Amateur Fights:

• Tyler Burd vs. Nick Porter
• Kevin Switalla vs. Sean Anderson
• Wilburt Jones vs. Tim Duggan
• Kim Novak vs. Marcia Allen
• Dan Borke vs. Kris Blayney
• Dennis Dombrow vs. Logan Anderson

Professional Fights:

• Adam Ward vs. TBD
• Ed Carpenter vs. Harley Hiner
• Luke Burton vs. Demetrius Richards
• Vince Ramos vs. Danny Black
• Carson Beebe vs. Nate Williams
• Toni Marti vs. Dustin Neace
• Tyler Combs vs. James Seipel
• Jeremy May vs. Chris Albandia

Ruckus Entertainment has confirmed the rest of the professional portion of their “Ruckus 2″ card.  The event takes place on Friday, March 12 at Venuti’s Banquet Hall in Addison, IL.

Ruckus Entertainment previously confirmed that Vince Ramos would be making his professional debut for the organization.  Ramos has an impressive 7-0 amateur record and is one of the top amateur fighters in the Chicago land area.  Welcoming him to the professional ranks is Danny Black (1-0) who fights out of Disorderly Conduct in Nebraska.  Black made his debut at “Adrenaline 4″ where he submitted Matt Bentley with a triangle choke in the second round.

Other fights that are now official include Mike Lullo vs Josh Schmidt, Demo Richards vs Steve Laureto, Ed Carpenter vs Harley Hiner, Carson Beebe vs Nate Williams and Adam Ward vs Shannon Slack.

The full line up now looks like:
•    145 lbs Vince Ramos (MTC) 0-0 vs.  Danny Black (DC) 1-0
•    155 lbs Mike Lullo (MTC) 5-1 vs. Josh Schmidt (DC) 8-7
•    145 lbs Tony Marti (MTC) 7-2 vs. Dustin Neace (Hit Squad) 25-15
•    205 lbs Demo Richards (DC) 4-1 vs. Steve Laureto (Hackneys) 3-1
•    HWT Ed Carpenter (MTC) 3-1 vs.  Harley Hiner (DC) 1-1
•    135 lbs Carson Beebe (Gilbert’s) 0-0 vs.  Nate Williams (DC) 5-6
•    145 lbs Adam Ward (GIlbert’s) 0-0 vs.  Shannon Slack (DC) 1-0
•    155 lbs Kyle Watson (Hit Squad) 16-6  vs.  Tyler Combs 12-4
•    Main Event:  185 lbs Chris Albandia (MTC) 10-4  vs.  Jeremy May 6-6

The amateur main event for “Ruckus 2″ is supposed to be Dan Borke taking on Dominic Noia.  However, that bout now looks to be in jeopardy due to Noia not wanting to fight Borke.

Noia made his debut at Ruckus Entertainment’s first event where he submitted Tony Gregrow in 31 seconds.

Borke will be making his “official” amateur debut at the March 12 event but has had several unsanctioned fights.  When contacted for a comment, Borke had the following to say.

“You know he won his first fight in less than a minute.  But since then he’s apparently been going around telling everyone he’s the ‘King of Addison’ like he’s some big shot for winning a fight.

Now he’s thinking of backing out of a fight because it is me?  Come on.  I thought he was the ‘King’ and a ‘fighter’.  To me he’s just a scared punk.

I’ll tell you what, I’m going to go in there, beat his ass, take his crown, and then give the princess the tiara that he deserves.”

No word has been given if the fight is off or not yet, but the fight could be in danger of not happening.

Ruckus Entertainment has just released two new fights for their March 12 event, “Ruckus 2″.  Kyle Watson (15-6) takes on Tyler Combs (12-4) in a welterweight match up and Dustin Neace (25-15) takes on Anthony Marti (7-2) in a lightweight bout.

Watson trains out of “The Hit Squad” and is currently riding a four-fight win streak.  Watson’s lone loss in the past three years came at the hands of Tyler Jackson in a hard fought close split decision at “Bodog Fight: Costa Rica Combat”.

Combs meanwhile is coming off a loss to WEC fighter Bart Palaszewski at XFO 32.  Combs currently holds the Midwest Fighting Championship welterweight belt.

Dustin Neace last saw action at “Strikeforce: Fedor vs. Rogers” in November of 2009.  The fight ended with a freak rib injury forcing Neace to submit to Jeff Curran.  Neace is currently riding a three-fight losing streak and is hoping his training at the Hughes owned “Hit Squad” will bring him just that.

Marti is currently 5-1 in his last six fights and is undefeated under the “Xtreme Fighting Organization” banner.  In all of Marti’s victories, he has submitted his opponent within the first round.

“Ruckus 2″ takes place on Friday March 12 at Venuti’s Banquet Hall in Addision, Illinois.  The night will be headlined in a middleweight contest between Jeremy May and Chris Albandia.

Hot off the heels of announcing Vince Ramos making his professional debut at the March 12 event, Ruckus Entertainment has just confirmed that former “Ultimate Fighter” cast member, Jeremy May (6-6) will take on Chris Albandia (7-5) in the night’s headline bout.

May recently got back on the winning streak after defeating Casey Stillman in just 40 seconds at “XCF 10″ in October.  Prior to the victory May had been recovering from a broken collarbone and fractured number two vertebrae due to a freak accident in a dirt bike.  May competed on season seven of “The Ultimate Fighter” defeating David Roberts in the elimination round and losing to Matt Brown in the first round.

Albandia is just 1-2 in his last four fights with one being ruled a no contest.  Albandia has competed for many promotions including the XFO, IFL, and M1 Mixed Fight Championship.  Albandia trains out of the Midwest Training Center, which is home to Chase Beebe, Clay Guida, Kevin Knabjian and many other notable fighters.

Ruckus Entertainment will take place on Friday March 12 at Venuti’s Banquet Hall in Addision, IL.  The current card looks as follows:
•    Jeremy May vs Chris Albandia
•    Vince Ramos vs TBA

Undefeated amateur fighter, Vince Ramos (7-0) will make his professional debut for Ruckus Entertainment at their March 12 show.  No opponent has been named for the featherweight fighter.

Ramos is widely known through out the Chicagoland area as a very impressive fighter.  Ramos currently holds the Xtreme Challenge featherweight title and the Rocktown Showdown featherweight title.

Ramos is primarily known for his wrestling pedigree as he has wrestled his entire life.  Ramos has won the majority of his fights by unanimous decision, however his record does include one technical knockout and two submissions.

Ramos is the first fighter officially announced for the March 12 card that will take place at Venuti’s Banquet Hall in Addison, Illinois.  The fight card is expected to have a total of nine professional fights with five amateur fights taking place on the preliminary card.

Stay tuned to MMA Recap for more fight announcements for the upcoming card.

If there is one phrase that can describe Ruckus Entertainment it would be “Service is Everything”.  While they are only about to put on their sophomore event, Ruckus Entertainment is seeing success few promotions have and they show no sign of stopping.  MMA Recap’s Brent Todd caught up with Ruckus Entertainment promoter Frank Defilippis to learn more about the upstart promotion that is making some big waves.

The first event was held in October and was an all-amateur show.  But that didn’t prevent Defilippis from treating it as if it was the biggest show of all times.  The first part was selecting a venue, as Defilippis knew that would set the stage for everything else.  So he went to a place many people wouldn’t think of at all: Venuti’s Banquet Hall.  Venuti’s is known in the Chicagoland area for being one of the best places has to have a wedding reception at.  In fact it is so popular that trying to book the venue for a Saturday or Sunday event is impossible for the next three years.

“We selected Venuti’s because it is gorgeous.  Everything in here is high class, and that is what we wanted to promote.“

But a venue doesn’t make for an entertaining show.  So Ruckus Entertainment brought in one of the top laser-light show companies as well as top dj’s for the event.  There was a tinge in the air that this was something special.  And the attention to detail for the fans of the sport passed onto the fighters.

The fighters could tell that this was going to be a big deal.  The very first fight had an amazing knockout that set the pace for the rest of the night.

Seating is one thing that was very important in the first event.  The sold out event saw over 1,300 fans of the sport watching.  The venue could hold more, but Defilippis didn’t want to sacrifice comfort.

“I’ve been to other shows where I buy a table and my chair backs right into the chair of the next table.  That isn’t comfortable.  We made sure we have a certain amount of space between the table, chair, and the next seat.”

The seating chart for the event is laid out very smartly.  From staggering tables so that there aren’t rows of people all blocking each other to table risers, there is an emphasis on quality.  But Defilippis saw room for improvement for the second show.

“We started with our seating.  We ordered table risers for more sections so that everyone who bought a table could have a clear view.  And we are bringing in more servers.  Last time we had one server for every seven tables, which wasn’t enough.  This time there will be one server for every three tables.“

Ticket sales are always the hardest part to run smoothly for any event.  But Ruckus Entertainment has made sure that it runs smoothly.  Especially being in the cold Chicago climate, they knew that people don’t want to stand outside waiting.

“We have two lines for tickets.  Those who need to purchase and will call for the tickets that were already sold.  The ticket got scanned, ID’s were checked by security, wristbands were put on, and then we had people escorting everyone to their seat.  The process was extremely quick and efficient.“

The first event they pre-sold about 75% of the tickets before the doors even opened and sold out before the first fight even took place.  The second event, fans will be lucky if they can purchase a ticket the day of the show.

“My goal is to be sold out before the event.  We’ve already sold a good amount and we are two months away.“

And the second event is going to be bigger.  While their first event featured all-amateur fighters, the March event will feature nine professional fights and five amateur fights.  Making the jump from amateur to professional is no small feat, but due to the success of the first show, they were able to do it.

“We had secured Jason Guida, brother to Clay Guida, for our main event.  However he recently suffered a hamstring injury and had to withdraw from the card.  We are still finalizing the details of our main event, but it will released very shortly.“

One thing that sets the promotions that will stay versus the ones that are one and done is the ability to see ahead of the next show.  And Ruckus Entertainment has already secured venues for future shows.

“We have finalized a lot of details for a different before even announcing it.  We are planning on holding two more events, one in June, one in July, before returning back to Venuti’s in October.  Our goal is to put on five shows this year and we have already locked down four of them.“

Ruckus Entertainment will be hosting their second show on Friday March 12 at Venuti’s Banquet Hall in Addision, Illinois.  Tickets start at just $35 for the evening.  Doors open at 6pm and don’t close till 2am as the venue will be turned into a large after party once all the fights conclude.

Stay tuned to MMA Recap for updates on the fight.