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The PunchDrunkGamer.com Forums are your source for UFC, UFC news, UFC event coverage, MMA, GLORY, Kickboxing, kickboxing news, Muay Thai, Videos and Xbox 360, PS3, Gamer Girls photos, Ring Girl photos, Video Game Trailers and game reviews. 2012-09-28T12:32:49-07:00 https://uwatch.tv/feed.php?f=27&t=9431 2012-09-28T12:32:49-07:00 2012-09-28T12:32:49-07:00 https://uwatch.tv/viewtopic.php?t=9431&p=30810#p30810 Almeida, Kattar Put It On the Line at CES MMA: Real Pain


On paper, it could be the fight of the night, or perhaps the fight of the year, a bona fide main event on almost any other card.

The impending Oct. 6 showdown between Saul Almeida and Calvin Kattar is almost too good to be true, so much so that it might make fight fans wonder why two red-hot prospects in their mid-20s are willing to risk their records and reputations against one another in front of a worldwide Pay Per View audience.

“Fights like this don’t come around often,” Kattar said. “I couldn’t pass up this opportunity.”

This rare match-up will take place on the undercard of Jimmy Burchfield’s Classic Entertainment & Sports’ “Real Pain” mixed martial arts event Saturday, Oct. 6, 2012 at The Dunkin’ Donuts Center in association with June Entertainment.

The event, which is available live on Direct TV Pay Per View, features the professional debut of former six-time World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) heavyweight champion Dave Bautista, but the Kattar-Almeida showdown could steal the show, even with four former Ultimate Fighting Championships (UFC) veterans on the undercard.

Kattar, a Methuen, Mass., native and Almeida, who hails from nearby Framingham, enter next weekend’s featherweight showdown with identical records (12-2) and equal opportunities to climb even higher if they win the fight.

According to the website ULTMMA.com (Uniting Fighters Locally Through Mixed Martial Arts), which ranks “unsigned” fighters – primarily those not affiliated with the UFC or signed by another major promotion – on a pound-for-pound scale and by their respective weight class, Almeida and Kattar are No. 5 and No. 11, respectively, in the pound-for-pound rankings, a list that includes fighters from New York, Iceland, Brazil and Germany.

Kattar, a natural lightweight (155 pounds), is dropping to 145 to face Almeida, who has never lost in the featherweight division (both of his losses, including his most recent setback against Matt Bessette at the Bellator Fighting Championships in March, have come at 155). While the two have identical records, this is actually a stark contrast in styles; six of Kattar’s 12 wins have ended by knockout, prompting the nickname “The Boston Finisher,” whereas “The Spider” Almeida has gone the distance 10 times in his 12 wins, using his lanky, 6-foot-1 frame to impose his will on his opponents.

“He’s a little unpredictable,” Kattar said. “Long, definitely rangy – he likes to impose his will, and I generally like to do the same, so it’ll be an interesting fight.”

“He likes to trade a little more and push the pace,” Almeida countered. “It’ll be interesting to see who can impose their will. This is the fight that’s supposed to happen. Everyone wants to see it. I want to fight the best and I feel as though he and I are right up there, so it’s a big fight for both of us.”

Though the perception is Almeida would rather keep the fight on the ground, “The Spider” is quick to point out he was a black belt in karate at 10 years old and began boxing at 16. He even made his professional boxing debut in July, a fight that ended in a no-contest due to an accidental headbutt.

Kattar doesn’t care where the fight ends up; he’s preparing for every imaginable scenario.

“I don’t want to say, ‘He can’t take me to the ground!’ because then I’ll get taken down and there goes my whole game plan,” he said. “I’ll adjust as the fight goes.”

What the future holds for the winner remains to be seen, but both fighters understand the implications. Kattar has a show a willingness throughout his career to fight anyone at any given time. He’s won four consecutive fights dating back to 2010, including wins over Jeff Anderson and Cody Stevens, both of whom have also lost to Almeida. Throw in Kevin Roddy, who has also lost to both fighters, and that makes three common opponents.

Considering they’ve traveled similar paths to the top, Kattar is correct in saying next month’s showdown against Almeida has “been a long time coming.”

“He kept winning, I kept winning – the fight had been hanging around for a while, but it never made as much sense as it does right now,” Kattar said. “CES made it happen.”

“He was never someone I was gunning for,” Almeida said, “but once he dropped down to featherweight, I knew it’d be a possibility. I really see the winner moving on [to something bigger].”

The only major difference between the two as they prepare to face one another on Oct. 6 is Kattar has been red-hot of late, whereas Almeida is coming off a loss, one in which he blames his own lack of focus for the outcome.

“My head wasn’t it,” he said. “I wasn’t listening to my team or my corner. I wasn’t following the game plan. I looked at the fight afterward and I knew I was sloppy. Not to take anything away from [Bessette], but that wasn’t me out there.

“I feel better now,” he added. “Plus, I’m fighting at 145. I feel stronger and quicker at this weight. I’ve never lost at 145, so it should be a good fight.”

Kattar hasn’t fought since October; he had a fight lined up for August that fell through the day of the weigh-in. Rust might be a factor, but he’s been in the gym consistently since the beginning of his last training camp, so he doesn’t anticipate any problems matching Almeida’s impeccable level of conditioning.

“Given the caliber of opponent, I know I won’t have a problem,” Kattar said. “I know he’ll be ready, too.”

When it’s all said done, Kattar might even have enough time afterward to enjoy the rest of the fight card, including Bautista’s highly-anticipated debut.

“The cool part is this on the undercard, so there’s a little less pressure for me,” he said. “This is the perfect storm. This is what fight is all about. I’m excited to finally have this opportunity.”

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]]> 2012-09-25T19:37:05-07:00 2012-09-25T19:37:05-07:00 https://uwatch.tv/viewtopic.php?t=9431&p=30785#p30785 McNally Aims for Gold Against Loiseau at CES MMA: Real Pain


The only way a professional fighter working full-time in the airline business can soar to new heights is by stepping into the cage against a former Ultimate Fighting Championships (UFC) veteran.

On Saturday, Oct. 6, 2012, Charleston, S.C., middleweight Chris McNally (5-4) will face his toughest test in front of a Pay Per View audience at The Dunkin’ Donuts Center when he battles former UFC title contender Dave Loiseau (20-10, 13 KOs) on the undercard of “Real Pain,” presented by Jimmy Burchfield’s Classic Entertainment & Sports in association with June Entertainment.

The show, highlighted by the professional mixed martial arts debut of former six-time World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) heavyweight champion Dave Bautista, features an undercard stacked with four UFC veterans, including this intriguing showdown between McNally and Loiseau, two fighters at polar opposites in their careers battling for the same prize.

“Dave is definitely the best fighter I’ve faced,” said McNally, who works for The Boeing Company’s material management division. “I believe a win like this could really accelerate my career in a lot of ways and put me a lot closer to where I want to be.

“I want to go global. I want to go as far as this sport can take me. I’m getting older, so I’m at the point where I really want my shot. I’ve been doing this for four years, and my aspirations have always been extremely high. I want it to finally pay dividends.”

A 32-year-old father of four (three daughters and one son), McNally works for the department that stores, supplies and retains parts to build Boeing aircrafts, including, screws, nuts, bolts and all raw materials.

“I kind of got into it by accident in some regard,” he said.

The same could be said for his mixed martial arts career. After four years at Western Maryland College – now known as McDaniel College – where he wrestled for four years and finished fourth in the country among Division III wrestlers as a senior, McNally moved to South Carolina to begin working on his Master’s degree at The Citadel.

While attending night classes, he met a local Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu instructor who wanted McNally to teach he and his students fundamental wrestling moves. At the time, McNally was helping coach The Citadel’s wrestling team, so he agreed. In exchange, McNally began learning Jiu-Jitsu and eventually started studying other forms of self-defense and hand-to-hand combat, including Muay Thai.

“To me, it was cool,” he said. “I had always wanted to train in martial arts and now I had my chance. Then it just of progressed.”

Three years later, McNally made his amateur debut in mixed martial arts and eventually turned pro in 2010. He’s now 5-4 with all five wins by submission, showcasing his elite wrestling technique. He’ll need every bit of it against Loiseau, a 12-year veteran who, despite being the same age as McNally, has three times the experience inside the cage and once fought for the UFC middleweight championship against Rich Franklin six years ago.

“I’ve always been the underdog,” McNally said. “I had a severe learning disability growing up, which really hurt me my whole life. I almost quit wrestling a number of times, but I eventually worked my way up to No. 4 in the country as a senior. I know if you believe in yourself and don’t quit you can achieve greatness. You just have to be willing to make sacrifices along the way.”

Loiseau, a Montreal native who is a close friend and training partner of UFC welterweight champion George St-Pierre, will enter next week’s fight as the heavy favorite as he continues to work his way back from a knee injury that has kept him out of the cage for more than a year and a half. Next month’s showdown against McNally will be his first since February of 2011.

While his ultimate goal is to get back to the UFC following his release in January of 2010, Loiseau refuses to look ahead – “I’ve made that mistake in the past,” he said – and is instead focusing on the task at hand, which is taking care of business against McNally on Oct. 6.

“I’ve got experience on my side, and that’s something you can’t buy,” he said. “I’m taking it one fight at a time. I’ve been doing this for 12 years and I’ve had a lot of ups and downs, but thankfully I’m 100-percent healthy now.

“I’ve approached fights strategically through the years, which is why longevity is on my side. I live a very clean and healthy lifestyle. I don’t drink or smoke – no drugs. Fighting for another six or seven years is what I fully expect.”

The 13 knockouts on his resume suggest Loiseau would prefer to keep his opponent upright, but the reality is he’s become more well-rounded through the years and is fully prepared to hit the canvas if that’s where the fight ends up.

“There’s a difference between training Jiu-Jitsu and wrestling to defend it and actually embracing the whole art. That’s the biggest change from today compared to years ago,” Loiseau said. “I no longer just train to defend.

“Everyone practices everything these days. There are no more karate guys fighting judo guys. It’s not like that anymore. I’ve noticed [McNally] is strong on the ground. That’s about it.”

The possibility of fighting in front of thousands of fans both at The Dunk and on Pay Per View worldwide does not faze Loiseau, who fought Franklin in front of 9,569 at UFC 58 in Las Vegas and 12,604 fans in Anaheim at UFC 63.

“The UFC is the [National Football League] of MMA,” he said. “This is where the top dogs are at, and it’s a great experience, but it could be at Mandalay Bay or Montreal or California – wherever. A fight is a fight to me.”

“My family is the driving force behind what I do,” said McNally, who celebrated his seventh wedding anniversary this past summer. “I just don’t accept that I can’t make something of this because of all the time and training I’ve put into it and the sacrifices I’ve made. What this has taught me is if I hang on, it’ll pay off. To me it’s not about proving anything. I just want to be as successful as I possibly can.”

The main event of “Real Pain” stars Bautista against fellow newcomer Rashid Evans of Newburgh, N.Y. The show also features former UFC welterweight Marc Stevens (14-7, 6 KOs) of Lorraine, N.Y., who will face dangerous Providence native Luis Felix (7-6, 4 KOs), a winner of back-to-back fights, including a huge win over The Ultimate Fighter: Live quarterfinalist and current UFC contender Joe Proctor in November of 2010.

Stevens, who has also appeared on Bellator Fighting Championships and Strikeforce promotions, was cast on Season 12 of TUF, also known as The Ultimate Fighter: Team GSP vs. Team Koscheck, in 2010. Stevens lost both of his fights on the show, including his re-entry into the house via the wild card selection, but has since won two of his last three bouts and is aiming for another shot with the UFC.

Boston native John “Doomsday” Howard (17-7, 6 KOs), a veteran of seven UFC shows between 2009 and 2011, finds himself in a similar position, though he’s much closer to making it back to the sport’s biggest stage. Since the UFC released him in 2011 following three consecutive losses, Howard has won three in a row and will look to extend that streak Oct. 6 when he faces middleweight Brett Chism (16-11, 7 KOs) of Valdosta, Ga. Chism has won three of his last four fights within the past two years, including two by knockout.

The fourth UFC veteran on next month’s card, welterweight Chad Reiner (29-13, 9 KOs) of Omaha, Neb., will face arguably the stiffest test among his UFC alumni when he battles Pawtucket, R.I., veteran Keith Jeffrey (8-2). Reiner, who fought for the UFC twice in 2007 and also has an appearance with Bellator on his resume, has won seven of his last 10 bouts since 2010, while Jeffrey has won three in a row since returning from a knee injury, including an impressive submission win over Harley Beekman in June. Jeffrey is now ranked No. 5 among welterweights in the northeast.

The remainder of the undercard is littered with Top 10 regional fighters, including a dynamic showdown between No. 1 ranked 145-pounder Saul “The Spider” Almeida (12-2) of Framingham, Mass., and No. 4 ranked Calvin Kattar (12-2, 6 KOs) of Methuen, Mass. Nicknamed “The Boston Finisher,” Kattar has won four consecutive bouts, including big wins over Cody Stevens and Jeff Anderson, while Almeida is looking to bounce back from his loss to Matt Bessette at Bellator’s show in March, which ended his five-fight winning streak.

Providence’s Mike “The Beast” Campbell (11-4, 7 KOs), a former World Extreme Cagefighting contender who is now ranked No. 5 among lightweights in the northeast, will face Philadelphia’s Gemiyale Adkins (7-3, 3 KOs), a former welterweight making his first appearance in the 155-pound division. Campbell won a unanimous decision over Bombsqaud veteran Don Carlo-Clauss in August, giving him back-to-back wins for the first time in more than two years.

Pawtucket’s Todd “The Hulk” Chattelle (10-7, 8 KOs), the former CES MMA middleweight champion, will end his five-month layoff and face Boulder, Colo., native Chandler Holderness (9-3, 4 KOs) in a bout originally scheduled for June before Chattelle suffered an arm injury during training camp.

Chattelle last fought in April when he lost by second-round knockout to Howard, but had won his last four fights leading up to the showdown against “Doomsday.” Holderness, who splits time between training in Colorado and Boston, still fought in June, knocking out Bob Burton at the 2:33 mark of the opening round, which, at the time, was his first win in 11 months. Overall, he’s won four of his last five and is now ranked No. 7 in the middleweight division – five spots behind Chattelle, who is No. 2 behind Howard.

In the 205-pound division, Providence’s Greg Rebello (13-4, 7 KOs), No. 3 in the northeast, will look to get back on track against Chris Guillen (13-12, 1 KO), a St. George, Utah, veteran with a deceiving record. Of Guillen’s 12 losses, four have come against future UFC contenders, including former UFC interim heavyweight champion Shane Carwin, who will face Roy Nelson in The Ultimate Fighter 16 Finale in December, and former heavyweight contender Ben Rothwell. Rebello, who has lost two of his last three, is looking for his first win since beating Cody Lightfoot in September of 2011.

“Real Pain” also features another battle between two Top 10 fighters, this time in the heavyweight division with No. 3 Josh Diekmann (12-4, 8 KOs) of Groton, Conn., facing No. 5 Tyler King (4-1, 2 KOs), a former NFL offensive lineman from Norwood, Mass. King and Diekmann actually fought on the same card in separate bouts in Rhode Island back in February; King beat Eric Bedard while Diekmann lost to former UFC contender Josh Hendricks. Neither fighter has fought since then, so the winner could continue climbing the northeast rankings in the heavyweight division.

Also on the undercard, No. 6 ranked middleweight Brennan Ward (3-0, 2 KOs) of Providence will face Shedrick “Chocolate Thunder” Goodridge (2-2) of Rahway, N.J.; Providence’s Nate Andrews (1-0) will battle Leon Davis (2-0) of Springfield, Mass., in an interstate welterweight showdown and bantamweight Andre Soukhamthath (2-1, 1 KO) of Woonsocket, R.I., will face Rob Costa (2-0) of Fall River, Mass.

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]]> 2012-09-12T22:52:13-07:00 2012-09-12T22:52:13-07:00 https://uwatch.tv/viewtopic.php?t=9431&p=30672#p30672 Stacked CES MMA Card Coming to Providence


A loaded undercard featuring four Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) veterans and 12 fighters ranked among the elite in the northeast is threatening to steal the thunder from Dave “The Animal” Bautista next month at The Dunkin’ Donuts Center in Providence.

The former six-time World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) heavyweight champion will make his long-awaited mixed martial arts debut Saturday, Oct. 6, 2012 against Rashid Evans at “Real Pain,” presented by Jimmy Burchfield’s Classic Entertainment & Sports in association with June Entertainment, but he won’t be the only star featured on the live, Direct TV Pay Per View telecast. The show features 13 bouts, including the Rhode Island debut of Canadian UFC veteran Dave Loiseau and the return of 29-year-old Boston native John “Doomsday” Howard, who fought on seven UFC shows between 2009 and 2011.

“We’ve stacked the deck for this one,” Burchfield said. “Almost every fight on this show has ‘main event’ potential. Anyone could walk away as the Fighter of the Night, and that’s what makes it an event you don’t want to miss.”

Loiseau (20-10, 13 KOs), nicknamed “The Crow,” is a veteran of nine UFC shows, most recently in June of 2010 when he lost to Mario Miranda. He also fought Rich Franklin in Las Vegas for the UFC middleweight title in 2006, but lost a unanimous decision. On Sept. 6, Loiseau will face Charleston, S.C., native Chris McNally (5-4), who has five submission wins on his resume and has won back-to-back bouts since his last loss in 2010.

Also looking to return to the UFC, welterweight Marc Stevens (14-7, 6 KOs) of Lorraine, N.Y., will face dangerous Providence native Luis Felix (7-6, 4 KOs), who has won back-to-back fights, including a huge win over The Ultimate Fighter: Live quarterfinalist and current UFC contender Joe Proctor in November of 2010, and five of his last seven dating back to 2009.

Stevens, who has also appeared on Bellator Fighting Championships and Strikeforce promotions, was cast on Season 12 of TUF, also known as The Ultimate Fighter: Team GSP vs. Team Koscheck, in 2010. Stevens lost both of his fights on the show, including his re-entry into the house via the wild card selection, but has since won two of his last three bouts and is aiming for another shot with the UFC.

Howard (17-7, 6 KOs) finds himself in a similar position, though he’s much closer to making it back to the sport’s biggest stage. Since the UFC released him in 2011 following three consecutive losses, Howard has won three in a row, including a 1-minute, 28-second win over Scott Rehm in August after Rehm suffered an injured triceps. “Doomsday” will look to make it four in a row Oct. 6 when he faces middleweight Brett Chism (16-11, 7 KOs) of Valdosta, Ga. Chism has won three of his last four fights within the past two years, including two by knockout.

The fourth UFC veteran on next month’s card, welterweight Chad Reiner (29-13, 9 KOs) of Omaha, Neb., will face arguably the stiffest test among his UFC alumni when he battles Pawtucket, R.I., veteran Keith Jeffrey (8-2). Reiner, who fought for the UFC twice in 2007 and also has an appearance with Bellator on his resume, has won seven of his last 10 bouts since 2010, while Jeffrey has won three in a row since returning from a knee injury, including an impressive submission win over Harley Beekman in June. Jeffrey is now ranked No. 5 among welterweights in the northeast.

The remainder of the undercard is littered with Top 10 fighters, including a dynamic showdown between No. 1 ranked 145-pounder Saul “The Spider” Almeida (12-2) of Framingham, Mass., and No. 4 ranked Calvin Kattar (12-2, 6 KOs) of Methuen, Mass. Nicknamed “The Boston Finisher,” Kattar has won four consecutive bouts, including big wins over Cody Stevens and Jeff Anderson, while Almeida is looking to bounce back from his loss to Matt Bessette at Bellator’s show in March, which ended his five-fight winning streak.

Providence’s Mike “The Beast” Campbell (11-4, 7 KOs), a former World Extreme Cagefighting contender who is now ranked No. 5 among lightweights in the northeast, will face Philadelphia’s Gemiyale Adkins (7-3, 3 KOs), a former welterweight making his first appearance in the 155-pound division. Campbell won a unanimous decision over Bombsqaud veteran Don Carlo-Clauss in August, giving him back-to-back wins for the first time in more than two years.

Pawtucket’s Todd “The Hulk” Chattelle (10-7, 8 KOs), the former CES MMA middleweight champion, will end his five-month layoff and face Boulder, Colo., native Chandler Holderness (9-3, 4 KOs) in a bout originally scheduled for June before Chattelle suffered an arm injury during training camp.

Chattelle last fought in April when he lost by second-round knockout to Howard, but had won his last four fights leading up to the showdown against “Doomsday.” Holderness, who splits time between training in Colorado and Boston, still fought in June, knocking out Bob Burton at the 2:33 mark of the opening round, which, at the time, was his first win in 11 months. Overall, he’s won four of his last five and is now ranked No. 7 in the middleweight division – five spots behind Chattelle, who is No. 2 behind Howard.

In the 205-pound division, Providence’s Greg Rebello (13-4, 7 KOs), No. 3 in the northeast, will look to get back on track against Chris Guillen (13-12, 1 KO), a St. George, Utah, veteran with a deceiving record. Of Guillen’s 12 losses, four have come against future UFC contenders, including former UFC interim heavyweight champion Shane Carwin, who will face Roy Nelson in The Ultimate Fighter 16 Finale in December, and former heavyweight contender Ben Rothwell. Rebello, who has lost two of his last three, is looking for his first win since beating Cody Lightfoot in September of 2011.

“Real Pain” also features another battle between two Top 10 fighters, this time in the heavyweight division with No. 3 Josh Diekmann (12-4, 8 KOs) of Groton, Conn., facing No. 5 Tyler King (4-1, 2 KOs), a former NFL offensive lineman from Norwood, Mass. King and Diekmann actually fought on the same card in separate bouts in Rhode Island back in February; King beat Eric Bedard while Diekmann lost to former UFC contender Josh Hendricks. Neither fighter has fought since then, so the winner could continue climbing the northeast rankings in the heavyweight division.

Also on the undercard, No. 6 ranked middleweight Brennan Ward (3-0, 2 KOs) of Providence will face Shedrick “Chocolate Thunder” Goodridge (2-2) of Rahway, N.J.; Providence’s Nate Andrews (1-0) will battle Leon Davis (2-0) of Springfield, Mass., in an interstate welterweight showdown and bantamweight Andre Soukhamthath (2-1, 1 KO) of Woonsocket, R.I., will face Rob Costa (2-0) of Fall River, Mass.

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]]> 2012-08-26T23:38:43-07:00 2012-08-26T23:38:43-07:00 https://uwatch.tv/viewtopic.php?t=9431&p=30556#p30556 Saturday's CES MMA Card Rescheduled Due to Cage Malfunction


Saturday night’s professional mixed martial arts event promoted by Jimmy Burchfield’s Classic Entertainment & Sports at the Resorts Casino Hotel in Atlantic City has been rescheduled for a later date due to a cage malfunction.

Official details on the new date and scheduled bouts will be available shortly on www.cesmma.com. Fans who purchased tickets at the Resorts Box Office or through TicketMaster will be entitled to a full refund at either the Resorts Box Office or any TicketMaster location.

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]]> 2012-08-22T20:11:56-07:00 2012-08-22T20:11:56-07:00 https://uwatch.tv/viewtopic.php?t=9431&p=30523#p30523 Stewart Hopes to Stay on Top at CES MMA


Mike Stewart doesn’t worry much about where he’s ranked among his peers in the light heavyweight division. The numbers game in mixed martial arts can be quite fickle at times.

“I could be out of those rankings in a mere second,” said Stewart, a White Plains, N.Y., native who’s ranked No. 1 in the northeast in the 205-pound weight class. “You’ve got to treat everyone the same regardless of their record or ranking.

“The biggest fight is the one in front of you, and you never know when you might get that call – or who’s watching.”

Stewart (8-3, 3 KOs) hopes all eyes are on him Saturday, Aug. 25, 2012 at the Resorts Casino Hotel in Atlantic City when he faces veteran Eric Thompson (7-16, 4 KOs) of Slidell, La., on the undercard of Jimmy Burchfield’s Classic Entertainment & Sports “War On The Shore” mixed martial arts event.

With three consecutive wins – two against fighters currently ranked among the Top 5 in the northeast, including former No. 1 Greg Rebello of Rhode Island – Stewart knows he’s on the cusp of something big if he can keep the momentum going. Thompson’s resume isn’t as flashy as what Rebello or Cody Lightfoot – the current third-ranked light heavyweight in the region, whom Stewart beat in February – bring to the table, but Stewart knows better than to overlook anyone, especially considering what’s at stake.

“I think we’re getting close,” Stewart said of his chances of a possible invite to the Ultimate Fighting Championships (UFC). “Greg and Cody were such tough guys and tough fighters, and, to be honest, it’s easy to get up when you’re facing someone that good, but right now Eric Thompson is the most dangerous guy in the world to me.

“If I lose to him, all my recent winnings are undone. He’s got nothing to lose, so I need to be that much sharper. I need him – I need him to get to where I want to be.”

Stewart’s recent success, and subsequent climb in the rankings, hasn’t affected his mentality, nor has the pressure of needing every last win brought on any unwanted bouts with stage fright. He’s figured out how to ignore all the outside chatter, a skill he developed over the years while balancing his personal life and career.

“You have to block that stuff out,” he said. “If you think about anything else other than the day in front of you, things won’t get done. Learning how to deal with adversity and being uncomfortable is what makes you a champion, and with every fight I’ve had, it seems like there’s always something.”

Two weeks before his win over Frederic Belleton in January of 2010 in Plymouth, Mass., Stewart’s father passed away – “I was going from the funeral to my workout sessions,” he said – and he’s had to adjust his training schedule for Saturday’s fight with his wife, Dana, undergoing a surgical procedure earlier this month.

“I think these are the little speed bumps God throws in your way to make you stronger,” Stewart said.

“If you sit and harp and worry, you won’t get done what you need to get done. I love training. I’m glad I’m a simple-minded person. Once I get in there, I shut my phone off and just concentrate on what I need to do. I live for this. When I’m in there, either training or fighting, there’s nothing else – no worries, just the guy standing in front of you trying to punch you in the face.”

The task at hand Saturday night is defeating Thompson, whom Stewart describes as a crafty veteran capable of switching between an orthodox and southpaw stance if necessary.

“He’s going to come out swinging for the fences,” Stewart said. “That’s what I would tell him to do.”

Stewart’s goal, as always, is to use his dominant strength and size to overwhelm his opponent, similar to what he did against both Rebello and Lightfoot.

“I just want to come forward and make him bend to my will. I like to pressure guys until they’re worn out,” Stewart said. “If that means throwing punches, then so be it, or if they hit the cage and go to the floor I’ll just punch them until they throw their hands up and say, ‘Get me out of here!’

“I just want to outwork the guy. I’m not the most talented guy in the world, but the one thing I do is work. I’m going to work harder than him and we’ll find out who’s willing to give more.”

The main event of Saturday’s show stars former UFC welterweight Kris McCray of Toms River, N.J., battling Chris Curtis in addition to a dynamic lightweight showdown between Brazil’s Gil de Freitas and Philadelphia native Gemiyale Adkins.

Also on the undercard, Bricktown, N.J., lightweight Kevin Roddy (12-14-1) will face Brazilian Fabio Serrao (4-2) – fighting out of the city of Manaus – with Roddy seeking three consecutive wins for the first time since 2006.

Welterweight Joe McGann (3-1, 1 KO) of Franklin, Mass., will battle Lester Caslow (8-7, 3 KOs) of Belmar, N.J.; Philadelphia’s Rami Ibrahim (1-1) will take on fellow bantamweight Keyon Wilkins (0-2) of South Hill, Va.; and featherweight Jason McLean (6-5, 2 KOs) of Perthamboy, N.J., will face Corey Simmons (1-1) of Defiance, Ohio.

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