Fienberg Advances to the Finals at Midwest Combat Challenge 9
by Jake Digman

(11/09/09 – Akron, OH) – With less than a month to go until Night of Champions, the NAAFS made a pit stop this past Saturday at Chapparell’s Community Center in Akron, OH for Midwest Combat Challenge 9. The fans in attendance were treated to a great night of action, featuring new names being introduced to the series and some very familiar faces.

The final National Amateur Championship fight for Night of Champions was set at Midwest Combat Challenge 9 when #3 Bill Fienberg (4-1) of Ohio BJJC defeated Josh Castro (8-3) of Lancaster Academy of MMA by Unanimous Decision in the main event. Fienberg now sets his sights on the unbeaten #1 ranked JP “The Jackhammer” Jaranowski (7-0) for the 2009 National Amateur Bantamweight Championship.

The co-main event featured new blood entering the NAAFS scene, as Team Tru Fighter’s Nate “The Robot” Mango (6-2) defeated Kelli Gottardo (3-2) by Rear Naked Choke at 1:36 of the first round. Look for Mango to be a force in the National Amateur Featherweight division by the time 2010 rolls around.

Midwest Combat Challenge 9 also witnessed the successful returns of two prominent National Amateur Middleweight fighters of Strong Style Fight Team. Brook Park’s “X-Rayted” Ray Halasz (3-0) showed no signs of rust in his TKO victory over Mike Bothwell (2-1) at 1:33 of the first round. Afterwards, an elated Halasz dedicated the victory to the memory of his father who had recently passed away. Halasz’ s teammate “Chocolate Thunder” Milan Wesley (4-2) was equally as impressive in his first round TKO victory, after being out of the cage for over 2 years. These could be two more potential names to keep an eye on for 2010.

The National Amateur Women’s division was also on display at Midwest Combat Challenge 9, with two fights taking place. In the first fight at 145lbs; Erie, PA’s Nola Hessom (1-0) made a successful MMA debut making short work Trisha Barr with a first round Guillotine Choke victory in just 40 seconds. The second women’s bout took place at 130lbs and saw Rachel “The Rage” Dovidio of Team Corps improve to 2-0 by defeating Brandy Bennett by TKO at 2:58 of the first round. Living in North Carolina, but originally from the Canton area this was a successful homecoming for Dovidio. With the first ever National Amateur Women’s Champion being crowned at Night of Champions, look for even big growth next year and beyond for one of the NAAFS’s most popular divisions.

The NAAFS would like to thank all the great fans for coming up and showing your support at Midwest Combat Challenge 9. A special thank you goes out to Dillard’s Department Stores, SportsTalkCLEVELAND.com, Rev 3 Energy Drink, Tim Lally Chevrolet, SportsTime Ohio, BetonFighting.com, D-A Specialty Company, Cliffside Key Club, the United States Army, and Mr. John P. Lennon for your support of the NAAFS!

QUICK RESULTS

135 lbs - Bill Fienberg 4-1 (Ohio BJJC) over Josh Castro 8-3 (Lancaster Academy) by Unanimous Decision

145 lbs - Nate Mango 6-2 (Team Tru Fighter) over Kelli Gottardo 3-2 (Wauseon MMA) by Rear Naked Choke @ 1:36 of Rd 1

185 lbs - "X-Rayted" Ray Halaz 3-0 (Strong Style) over Mike Bothwell 2-1 (Mad Dog Fight Team) by TKO @ 1:33 of Rd 1

130 lbs - Rachel "The Rage" Dovidio 2-0 (Team Corps) over Brandy Bennett 0-1 (Dark Water Fight Team) by TKO @ 2:58 of Rd 1

185 lbs - "Chocolate Thunder" Milan Wesley 4-2 (Strong Style) over Cliffton McNair 1-2 (Kaged Kombat MMA) by TKO @ 2:47 of Rd 1

185 lbs - Corey Bresson 2-1 (Kombat MMA) over Chris Bradley 2-4 (Instigator) by Unanimous Decision

135 lbs - Aaron Kent 4-1 (Nutter MMA) over John Nemeth 2-2 (Golden Dragons Fight Team) by Unanimous Decision

135 lbs - Shawn Goolsby 3-2 (Vander) over Abe Peterman 6-5 (Elite Combat Team) by TKO @ 2:18 of Rd 2

155 lbs - Andrew Jordan 1-0 (Kick MMA) over Matt Cavazos 0-1 (Red Dragon Fight Team) by Rear Naked Choke @ 1:38 of Rd 1

170 lbs - Manny Soto 1-0 (Vander) over Jeff Himes 0-1 (Doylestown, OH) by TKO @ 1:47 of Rd 1

145 lbs - Nola Hessom 1-0 (Harris International) over Trisha Barr 0-1 (Team Kana) by Rear Naked Choke @ :40 of Rd 1

145 lbs - Francis Healy 1-0 (Mad Dog Fight Team) over Stanley Van Pelt 0-2 (Independent) by Tapout From Strikes @ 1:40 of Rd 1

PHOTOS


Francis Healy of Mad Dog Fight Team makes his debut


Nola Hessom vs Trisha Barr


Andrew Jordan vs. Matt Cavazos with the most exciting debut fight of the night


Corey Bresson with the ground and pound on Chris Bradley to win the unanimous decision


Mr. & Mrs. Digman cageside


Milan Wesley looks to finish in round 1


Jake Digman & Nichole Long


Future NAAFS fighters?


Rachel Dovidio vs Brandy Bennett


Rachel Dovidio victorious over Brandy Bennett


Mr. Lennon having a good time dancing cageside


Ray Halasz has fans!


NAAFS Cage Girls


Kevin, John & Dan enjoying Midwest Combat Challenge 9


Nate Mango finishes off Kelli Gottardo


Nate Mango has amazing ink


Castro ready for battle


Bill Feinberg gets ready to enter the cage


Castro vs Feinberg


Feinberg moves on to December and the National Finals

About the NAAFS

The North American Allied Fight Series is the region's premiere mixed martial arts organization featuring top amateur and professional prospects along with some of the sports premier fighters includin, Jason Dent (Current NAAFS Lightweight Champion), Forrest Petz, Ryan Madigan, Josh Hendricks, Ben Rothwell, Jeff Cox, Dan Bobish, Paul Bradley, Noah Inhofer, Matt Brown, and Joe Heiland among others. The television program NAAFS Cage Fighting can be seen domestically Sunday nights at 11 pm EST on the television home of the Cleveland Indians, SportsTime Ohio, nationally via Direct TV and Dish Network.