Extreme Challenge: "Mayhem at the Marina" Lineup

Tomorrow night is Extreme Challenge: "Mayhem at the Marina", which takes place at the Trump Marina in Atlantic City. MMA Journalist will be there liveblogging the action, and the lineup currently looks like this:

• Tara LaRosa (Fight Factory) vs. Sally Krumdiack (Charlie's Combat Club)
• Maciej Linke (Gold Team Fighters) vs. Jeff Lentz (Rhino Fight Team)
• Tim Bradley (Wolf Pack) vs. Steve DeAngelis (Team Pellegrino/Bombsquad)
• Rich Edwards (Gold Team Fighters) vs. Dave Church (Team Pellegrino)
• Matt Kocher (Lionheart MMA) vs. Troy Maxwell (Extreme Performance)
• Jay Silva (Team Rampage) vs. Mike Johnson (Fight Factory)
• Daniel Straus (Vision MMA) vs. Lester Caslow (Team Pellegrino)
• Pat White (Evolution Fight Team) vs. Mervin Rodriguez (Rhino Fight Team)
• Kevin Roddy (Team Pellegrino) vs. Biff Walizer (Lionheart MMA)

Keep an eye out for LaRosa, DeAngelis, Caslow and Roddy.

New Jersey State Athletic Control Board to License Outlaw?

On March 28th Monte Cox's Extreme Challenge: "Mayhem at the Marina" comes to Trump Marina in Atlantic City, and while the event is headlined by top female fighter Tara LaRosa taking on up-and-comer Sally Krumdiak, one bout on the main card is raising eyebrows: Steve DeAngelis vs. Billy the Kidd. DeAngelis is one of the best 145-pounders the Garden State has to offer - capable of taking on nearly anyone and definitely destined for the WEC or Japan - but Billy the Kidd... Billy the Kidd is a well-known outlaw. Will the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board license a man wanted in Arizona, New Mexico and Texas for murder, cattle rustling, theft and cheating at poker? No one doubts DeAngelis' ability to handle whatever his opponent throws at him, but all it takes is one bullet from a .45 single-action six-shooter to end things unfairly. Also, should the commission allow this match-up, they'd essentially be condoning the fact that Billy the Kidd was a founding member of the vigilante group "The Regulators", and that during the course of his career he murdered lawmen and civilians alike. For the sake of fighter safety and especially common decency, let's hope the NJSACB does the right thing.

Kevin Roddy and Steve DeAngelis: Our First Line of Defense Against the Brazilian Invasion

The World Cagefighting Alliance debut event suddenly got pretty damn intriguing with the announced match-ups of Kevin Roddy vs. Charles Oliveira da Silva and Steve DeAngelis vs. Felipe Medeiros Arantes - bouts that are pitting top New Jersey featherweights against two potentially dangerous Brazilians. Who are Oliveira da Silva and Arantes? According to the Gold Team Fighters website, they're a pair of "fresh off the boat" dudes with a 6-0 record and a 4-1 MMA record, respectively, and Oliveira da Silva is credited with four grappling championship titles to his name. Are Roddy and DeAngelis ready for two opponents with Chute Boxe lineage, opponents who've been paying their dues in hardcore vale tudo style back in Brazil? Hopefully. But either way, time will tell.

New Jersey Killers to Spill Blood in New York

New Jersey killers Kevin Roddy and Steve DeAngelis will be in upstate New York on Saturday night, spilling blood at the "There Will Be Blood" MMA show at the Gil Lay Arena on the Seneca Nation Indian reservation (outside of Buffalo). The event features an undercard of amateur bouts and a trio of pro bouts, with Roddy (recently promoted to brown belt by trainer Kurt Pellegrino) and BCX featherweight champ DeAngelis taking on and likely murdering durable kickboxer Peter Kaljevic and striker Paul Compton. Said arena janitor Jerome Woods, "Roddy and DeAngelis? Ugh. I'm gonna go get my mop ready. There definitely will be blood."

Preliminary February 6th WCA Card Released

The preliminary card for the World Cagefighting Alliance's February 6th inaugural event at Boardwalk Hall has been released, and MMA Journalist feels very optimistic about what's been put on paper. Instead of spending the entire budget on talent that won't sell tickets, matchmaker Gary Marino has wisely put together a roster of local draws - a fact that bodes well for any New Jersey promotion interested in staying in business longer than a show or two. Here's the card, subject to change of course:

1. Tom Gallicchio vs. Rich Ashkar - a welterweight bout that was supposed to be a title fight at the last ROC.
2. Matt Lee vs. TBA - Lee is a tough-as-nails lightweight and took Eddie Alvarez the distance at a BodogFIGHT.
3. Al Buck vs. Jose Rodriguez - a welterweight battle between two huge ticket sellers.
4. Doug Gordon vs. Mike Medrano - two very strong welterweights with promising futures.
5. Chris Schlesinger vs. Andrew Calandrelli - a lightweight scrap featuring excellent grapplers.
6. Mahnseah Boley vs. Pat Collins - a heavyweight Bombsquad vs. AMA FC/Team Renzo bout.
7. Kevin Roddy vs. TBA - Roddy is exciting and one of the best featherweights in the Garden State.
8. Ryan Smith vs. Anthony D'Angelo - welterweight D'Angelo is a dangerous fighter, and has been a force at New Jersey shows for years.
9. Lester Caslow vs. Pat White - featherweight Caslow is a very talented up-and-comer.
10. Brian DeMuro vs. Eric Henry - Team Balance vs. Bombsquad at welterweight.
11. Steve DeAngelis vs. Doug Solnier - DeAngelis is a top-ranked featherweight and BCX champ.
12. Anthony Leone vs. Joey Camacho - Camacho is another tough featherweight.
13. Daniel Tavares vs. Brian Danner - two relative newcomers.

Help Wanted: Reporter Near Buffalo

Will you be near Buffalo, New York on December 13th? Do you have a digital camera capable of taking about three pics? Can you tell the difference between an armbar and a leglock? If so, then MMA Journalist wants you to cover a pro/am show by Knockout Productions called "There Will Be Blood". New Jersey superstars Kevin Roddy and Steve DeAngelis are fighting, as is Lance Evans (TUF star Rashad Evans' brother). How much does the job pay? Zero! But you do get the writing and photography credit, plus, thanks to your all-access press pass, you get to keep whatever you can steal from the fighters' locker rooms (note: they will kill you if you get caught). If interested, send an email to mma_journalist@yahoo.com.

The East Coast's Big Ticket Sellers

Two promotions are coming to Atlantic City in the first quarter of 2009 to stake their claim in the Garden State's MMA fan-rich soil - the World Cagefighting Alliance (headed by Derek Panza, Keith Evans and Gary Marino), and a Monte Cox event (it could be an Extreme Challenge or it could be an Adrenaline show, we just don't know yet) that will be headlined by Eddie Alvarez. Both Marino and Cox should have a pretty decent handle on which fighters put asses in seats, but to help them out, MMA Journalist has put together the following list of the East Coast's big ticket sellers (a local big ticket seller is the cornerstone of the "Strikforce business model" these promotions aspire to):

1. Lyman Good, an exciting welterweight/middleweight and star player for the Tiger Schulmann Mixed Martial Arts clan.
2. Really, almost any other Team Tiger Schulmann fighter. TSMMA students turn out in droves to see their instructors fight.
3. Dom Stanco, a heavy-handed lightweight from Bellmore Kickboxing who always has a decent-sized cheering section.
4. Chris Schlesinger, a frenetic grappler from Bellmore Kickboxing. Schlesinger used to pack Reality Fighting shows with legions of fans.
5. Al Buck, a lightweight scrapper. Tons of fans.
6. Carlos Moreno, a heavyweight slugger who's been known to bring a crowd of supporters.
7. Chris Liguori, a top New Jersey lightweight and ROC champ.
8. Dante Rivera, a top New Jersey middleweight.
9. Doug Gordon, a well-rounded welterweight who always seems to have people going nuts for him in the bleachers.
10. Greg Soto, a welterweight grappler whose Combat in the Cage championship win nearly brought down the house.
11. Jon Murphy, a heavyweight EliteXC veteran. When he knocked out Sherman Pendergarst at Extreme Challenge 75, women were unabashedly throwing their panties into the cage.
12. Jose Rodriguez, a welterweight brawler and long-time New Jersey competitor.
13. Steve DeAngelis, a featherweight BCX champ. Big cheering section.
14. Kevin Roddy, a featherweight/lightweight grappling stud who is to the Jersey Shore what Barack Obama is to Illinois.
15. Justin Garcia, a welterweight/middleweight jiu-jitsu beast who, if you can lure him back into MMA competition, brings tons of rabid fans.

For his January 13th show at the Tropicana Casino & Resort, Cox already has the aforementioned Alvarez headliner and popular welterweight Tom Gallicchio taking on Phil Baroni (maybe). It will be interesting to see who else ends up on that card and who winds up on the February 6th WCA show.

Rumble on the Rez

The second of the aforementioned under-the-radar New York State shows took place last night, this one on an Indian reservation outside of Buffalo. Dubbed "Rumble on the Rez", the event was a mix of professional bouts and amateur bouts, and featured the likes of former BodogFIGHT headliner Matt Lee taking on kickboxer Peter Kalejevic (Lee won the decision), veteran warrior Andrew Montanez rematching with BCX champ Pat Audinwood (Audinwood won the split decision), and the Northeast's top-ranked bantamweight Steve DeAngelis squaring off against Josh Pearson (DeAngelis won via rear naked choke at 2:22 of the first round). Close to 500 spectators came out to watch the action, making this well-run event a nice addition to the Empire State's growing collection of MMA organizations.