It is a main event billed as two of the top professional unsigned MMA products from the state.
The Tri-Cities mixed-martial arts circuit will hit 2015 with an uppercut on Saturday, Jan. 10, with Apex Fights 4, presented by Valor Fights, at the Dickie Warren Dome on Sullivan Central’s campus.
The climax of the event pits Hampton’s Adam “Primetime” Townsend (11-3) against “Relentless” Craig Johnson (7-3).
“They’re arguably the two best unsigned fighters in the state,” promotor Tim Loy explained in an interview with CarterCountySports.com. “It’ll be a great fight. It is near his backyard so going in, Adam would probably be the consensus favorite but Craig is a tough fighter. The fight is at 170 lb. and Craig has fought up to as much as 200 and this is Adam’s first time at 170, normally fighting at 140-140. We’re excited about this event and the location we’re at, it’ll be a great night of MMA.”
Apex features a loaded pro/am card with three professional fights with 15 amateur bouts.
In the other pro contests, Happy Valley product Dustin Long (5-1) against Dameon Melton and Steve Thomas, a product of team Oxendine from Johnson City, makes his professional debut against Alan Stewart from KMMA.
Townsend and Long represent D-Evil, the fight team based from Evolution Sports Gym, while the card itself features a bevy of fighters from across the state.
With Elizabethton, Johnson City, and Kingsport gyms amongst the representatives, the Tri-Cities is a hot-bed when it comes to MMA, Loy said.
“It’s a huge event we are looking forward to,” he added. “The Tri-Cities is a hotbed when it comes to the scene. The fighters have such a loyal fan-base and the gyms in the area are producing good fighters. It’ll be a good night with good fights and we hope it’ll be able to strengthen the gyms for people to see what type of talent comes from each facility.”
JCMMA, Team Oxendine, Bushido and D-Evil are the likes of the local gyms sending fighters to the octagon.
Tickets are going fast for the event. They can be purchased by contacting a favorite fighter or by one of two websites
ValorFights.com
localmmatickets.com
“It is always hard to guess the attendance before an event,” Loy said. “But I’d be disappointed if it is no less than 1,200.”
Doors for the event open at 4 p.m. with the main card set to start at 6 p.m.
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CarterCountySports.com caught up with John Moorehouse, owner of MMA-Insider, Tuesday night. MMA-Insider is the leader of mixed-martial arts coverage in the Tri-Cities, along with covering events on a national scale. Moorehouse, a veteran MMA journalist for the past 3 and 1/2 years, took time to discuss Apex Fights 4, Townsend vs. Johnson, Long vs. Melton and what’s ahead on the MMA circuit.
(The audio interview with Mr. Moorehouse by CarterCountySports.com was conducted while in attendance of Unicoi County High School/Sullivan South High School basketball games. While Moorehouse can be heard, periods of the interview will have background noise from the contests)
AUDIO: Click here
You can visit MMA-Insider by visiting them online
Website:Â mma-insider.com
Facebook:Â www.facebook.com/MMAdashInsider
Twitter: @MMAdashinsider
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Match Card
Main Event
Adam “Prime Time” Townsend
vs
Relentless Craig Johnson
Co-Main Event
Dustin Long
vs
Dameon Melton
Pro-Featured Fight
Steve Thomas
vs
Alan Stewart
Amateur Card
Amateur Main Event: Apex Featherweight Championship
Jon Smith
vs
Joey Mullin
—
Angie Dugan
vs
Christal Martin
—
Jim Lord
vs
Joey Pelletier
—
Jackie Abshire
vs
Paula Riddle
—
Billy Combs
vs
Jesse Richardson
—
Arron Meadows
vs
Nick Baker
—
Michael Horton
vs
Devyn Chambers
—
Brock Walker
vs
Brandon Ivy
—
Daris Reynolds
vs
Tomas Hill
—
Rodrigo Gonzalez
vs
Dakota Pell
—
Kenny McCoy
vs
Robby Calahan
—
Blake Neurenberg
vs
Aaron Milloway
—
Preliminaries -4:30 p.m.
Gary Burke
vs
Dylan Stout
—
Roger Mullins
vs
Thomas Miller
—
Preston Schick
vs
Ryan Moore
—
Scott Farmer
vs
Jackson Griffith
