I’d also like to remind the community that this WILL be the day after my 22nd birthday, and drinks will be gladly accepted.  No date-rape drugs (that means you Littlefield)

As always, it would be pointless to try to predict anything in fights with fighters I know nothing about, but good luck to the following.

210 Pro – Mark Hoxie 0-5 (Shikaku Ryu) vs Chris Devno (AZMMA)
185 Pro – Tony Woodman 0-0 (C.A.I.N.) vs Dawson Walton 0-2 (Generation)
185 Am – Matt Burke 0-0 (Feijao) vs Dan Cramer 2-0 (Best Way/ATT)
235 Am – Reggie Silva 0-0 (Iron Fist) vs Keith Dixon 1-0 (Santos)
155 Pro – Damian Vitale 0-0 (Ultimate)  vs Mike Gresh 0-0 (CCFA)

140 Am – Nick Pepper 1-0 (Aggression) vs Jeremy Adley 0-0 (Generation)

Pepper is a tough little bastard.  In his first fight, in the first round, he seemed hesitant to stand with his opponent, though I�d heard nothing but great things about his kickboxing.  It appeared to just be first fight jitters, and through the second and third rounds of his unanimous decision win, he picked the other guy apart on the feet, scoring multiple knock downs.  Being a Team Aggression guy, he clearly has great jiu-jitsu as well.  Adley is new, and the only fighter I�ve seen recently from Generation is Dolloff, so maybe we�ll be lucky and see a mini-big angry man.
 
190 Pro – Kipp Kollar 0-0 (Kubaki) vs Mike Laliberte 5-1-1 (Irish)

 This is an intriguing fight, just for the fact that it�s Kipp making his pro debut against a beast in Mike Laliberte.  I�ve never seen Kipp�s amateur bouts, but from what I�m told the guy is good at everything.  Laliberte is a hell of a wrestler, and his gorilla arms pose a problem on the feet as well.  As interesting as this is and therefore difficult to predict a winner�Kipp doesn�t let me into his shows for free, so I pick Laliberte.

165 Am – Bill Vasquezi 0-1 (IMDC) vs John Morrissey Jr. 1-0 (Boneyard)

I like this fight a lot, because back in Brockton these two both made their debuts (against different opponents) and got as much experience in one fight as any person can, both going through wars.  Vasquezi looked like he would rather be on the ground in a fight, whereas Morrissey looked to trade.  Both fighters took some punishment and persevered to a decision.  Vasquezi lost a very close fight, Morrissey won a fairy close fight.  The winner will be decided by who enforces his game plan best, and I think Morrissey will be that guy.

140 Pro – Jonny Catarino 0-0 (Independent) vs Ryan Parker 0-0 (Boneyard)

Both guys are fighting for the first time, but because it�s Ryan Parker, I�ll give it some thought (look for the interview with Parker on the main page).  Parker trains everywhere and is supposedly  a tough grappler, and all I know about Catarino is what Parker said; he�s a karate guy.  Even though Parker has proven his jealousy of my rugged, manly, heterosexual handsomeness, I still have to pick him to win.

180 Pro Qualifier – Nate LaMotte 5-2 (Burgess) vs Jay Jack 12-7 (AMMA)

In what could easily be another main event for this show, powerhouse Nate LaMotte will face seasoned veteran and incredibly tough Jay Jack.  LaMotte is intense for sure, and brings great kickboxing and wrestling to each fight. His last fight was a long, grueling four seconds of KO punch, making 2 wins in a row after dropping fights to Hammerstrom and Galliccio.  Jack is a local guy who�s fought plenty of top stars throughout his career, and he�s come out of many of them with wins.  His ground game is second to none locally at 170, and he�s proven time and time again to be on a different level than even his toughest opponents.  I�m a huge fan of Nate, but I think Jay is just going to be too much for him.

170 Pro – Brandon Hoxie 2-5 (Shikaku Ryu) vs Mark Chaupette 0-1 (Boneyard)

You all know the deal with this one, and before I even consider who will win the fight, you all better be saving a few extra bucks from your paychecks this week to give to Mark�s charity.  Check out the article on Mark on the main page for details, and if you hadn�t read on the other article�s comments, Hoxie has also stepped up and plans to donate his entire fight purse to the cause, and I want to publicly acknowledge that on here because the Hoxies are awesome. 

Chaupette shocked us last year when he went to a decision with Chuck O�Neil after surviving numerous triangle chokes.  My main fear is that Hoxie�s triangle is better than Cold Steel�s, along with the rest of his submission game.  But hey, in this situation everyone wins, so whether Mark beats Hoxie or not, all ends well.

200 Pro – Ralph Green 1-1 (C.A.I.N.) vs Greg Rebello 3-2 (CCFA)

If there�s one thing Green has, it�s balls.  Whether it�s stepping to fight local monster Lance Everson, or celebrating a cut stoppage save for the win after being mounted by Eddie Saldana on the brink of defeat, he definitely surprises us all the time.  Rebello has improved more and more with each fight, racking up two TKO wins in a row after a slow start to his MMA career.  Look for Rebello to improve to 4-2 by another TKO win, strikes from mount.

185 Pro – Juan Urena 0-2 (Ultimate MMA) vs Chris Rondeau 1-2 (Fight Zone)

Rondeau is another fighter with a deceiving record.  Ask anyone who trains with him and they�ll tell you he�s no joke.  Somehow I�ve managed to miss all three of his fights, but for some reason his talent in the gym hasn�t quite shown in the ring to my knowledge.  I have, however seen Urena in the ring, and with all due respect to a guy who�s gone the distance twice, he hasn�t sparkled himself.  These are two fighters looking to prove themselves, and I believe Rondeau will come out with the win.

155 Pro Superfight- Dan Lauzon 4-2 (Aggression) vs James Meals 4-16 (Renzo)

Some might see Meals� record and chalk this up as an easy win for the Upgrade, but a few clicks at fcfighter.com will quickly change your mind.  Meals is the lightweight Jerry Spiegel of sorts, taking fights against a who�s who in MMA at lightweight AND welterweight.  I�m not trying to say I don�t think Lauzon will get the win, as I believe he will in impressive fashion.  I just like to give a fighter with Meals� warrior mentality props when I can, and I love seeing him step up to take on the caliber of a Dan Lauzon.

145 Pro Qualifier – Josh Grispi 8-1(SSS) vs Paul Gorman 5-4 (AMMA)

Easily the most evenly matched fight on this card, it would be NO surprise to see this become fight of the night or even year in MassMMA.  By now everyone knows �The Fluke� is no such thing, and continues to rack up win after win, whether it be kicking fools in the head or using his superior jiu-jitsu when the fight hits the floor.  But against a fighter like Gorman, the ground might not be the best place to go.  Gorman�s 5-4 record is deceiving, as he fights only the best all over the United States, from Massachusetts to Hawaii.  Like everyone at AMMA, he�s slick as hell on the ground and can get the fight there any time he wants.  Grispi has the advantage on the feet, but Gorman is no slouch with his boxing.  Gorman is the better grappler, but Grispi also has numerous submission wins.  They have the same number of fights, so it�s hard to say one is more experienced than the other, though Gorman is older and has been around longer.  I�m grasping for straws trying to pick a real advantage in either direction, but as you can all see, I�m failing.  This is as much a toss up as a toss up can be, so I�ll now flip my lucky Foxwoods chip to pick a winner.

It�s Grispi.
 
145LB TITLE

Spencer Paige 3-1 (CNYMMA) vs Leandro �Tatu� Escobar 5-2 (Best Way/ATT)

I learned my lesson a month ago; never bet against Spencer Paige.  Paige dominated Ferrer (sorry Dan) and considering Ferrer is a top tier local 145, Paige proved that he�s clearly the biggest force at that weight in this area.  Tatu�s best chance to win this fight is to take it to the ground and hope to keep Paige down, but after watching Paige stuff and keep his balance against a strong wrestler in Ferrer, I�d be shocked to see Tatu pull off that feat for three rounds.  Paige should win this by KO, just hard to say when.  I�d put the over/under at 2:00 of the first round.  Paige for the win.
 
HEAVY WEIGHT TITLE

JOSH DIEKMAN 8-1 (Strike Zone) vs Pat Schultz 6-0-1 (CCFA/Sityodtong)

We�ve been waiting for this one for so long that it�s really been beaten to death as far as strategy goes.  DIEKMAN is the more aggressive fighter, with heavy hands and when he doesn�t kill you on your feet, he more often than not has superior wrestling and ground and pound, with jiu-jitsu as well.  Schultz is as polished a kickboxer as you�ll see at this level, and to his credit has never been defeated, so it�s obvious he always finds a way to win (or draw in one case).  I�ve been very vocal about DIEKMAN winning this fight and more than likely in the first round, but I will say now if it manages its way into the second and third rounds, it could get VERY interesting.