EFC 7: Day of Reckoning preview
Mixed Martial Arts is still a baby in Pennsylvania, at only two years old we still have plenty of hurtles to leap… some rules are still very precautionary, the talent level isn’t quite there yet. However, with Erie’s own Extreme Fight Club holding its first event in 2011 on February 18 th, we come yet another step closer to legitimacy! Philadelphia has been host to the UFC - Pittsburgh, Harrisburg, York, and Erie have all began their own promotions, thus MMA in PA looks very promising!
The Extreme Fight Club has only held a handful of events, but each one has been more successful than the previous. EFC Founder Jason Lawrence has been hyping this fight card for months. He released the fight card a few weeks ago which is easily the best showcase of talent to ever hit the lake city! Lawrence has put together a roster of fighters that will bring in a very large crowd- having recruited some of Erie’s most popular fighters to bang it out at the Rainbow Gardens.
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The main event fights go as follows - Okey Lawrence, the front man of Team NonStop MMA in Erie, will take on Darrius Heyliger in a pro bout. Professionals Tony Abbate and Paul Waite are also scheduled for war. While these fights are the pros and listed as the main event, I truly believe the 205lbs Amateur title fight between two of the town’s most popular fighters will steal the show! Wrestler and known knockout artist Dave Spinelli Jr. will square off against the most established fighter in the amateur ranks in Bob Rech. Spinelli, a local High School wrestling coach, is coming off an impressive KO victory at EFC’s Rock and Rumble. Meanwhile Rech, whose resume extends into Ohio with many bouts in the UFC feeder- NAAFS, is a jiu-jitsu fighter with one important ingredient for success - his willingness to stand in the pocket and BANG! Regardless of the winner, Spinelli’s strength and Rech’s technicality will easily be seen as the fight of the night when all is said and done.
Tickets for this event are currently on sale at the EFC website www.ExtremeFC.com and will most likely be available at the door of the Rainbow Gardens as well. So, with your Friday night free, and an extra twenty bucks in your pocket, only the foolish local MMA fans would miss this event. Mixed Martial Arts in Pennsylvania takes a giant leap in the best direction on February 18 th, 2011 with Extreme Fight Club’s “Day of Reckoning”! A fight card you won’t want to miss
By Harold Hughes
ProFighting-fans.com MMA Staff Writer