Oct 22 Ringside 4 - Rivalries - Nov 14th in Drummondville

Ringside MMA, whose last event titled « Battle for the Belt » was a staunch success, comes back with force and with a new formula to present their 4th gala which will be held outside the limits of Montreal, in the beautiful region of central Quebec. Ringside’s 4^th event, titled Ringside 4: Rivalries, is being promoted in collaboration with Team Bergeron, and will be held on November 14^th at the Best Western Hotel, 915 Rue Hains,  in Drummondville at 7pm. This will be the city of Drummondville’s first ever professional MMA event!

Drummondville has been for years been considered a Mecca for combat sports, thanks in large part to the local population coming out in droves to witness explosive and action packed fights. “Ever since I have been organizing amateur boxing and kickboxing shows in Drummondville, the city has always responded positively by coming out in large numbers to support their local athletes” said Yanick Bergeron, co-promoter for “Ringside: Rivalries” and owner of Team Bergeron, a martial arts and kickboxing school well respected in Quebec and located in the heart of Drummondville. “I have absolutely no doubt in the choice of Drummondville, which has a favourable location geographically, was the right choice to make this event a success. We will be able to draw fans from Drummondville, Victoriaville, Sherbrooke and Granby, each with passionate fight fans, who will be able to watch a professional event near to them”. Mr. Bergeron, who in additional to having promoted amateur boxing and kickboxing galas, has also collaborated with Eric Lucas and the Interbox group for 2 shows at the Centre Marcel-Dionne. Yanick Bergeron feels that the door is wide open for combat sports in Drummondville, including those involving MMA.

In the main event of the night, at middleweight (185), will be UFC veteran Steve « LionHeart » Vigneault (11-6-0) taking on Albertan Dan « Torture » Chambers (13-12-0). Steve Vigneault was one of the first professional MMA fighters in Quebec, and is considered one of the pioneers of the sport in North America! Inactive since 2006 due to various injuries, Vigneault gave up his gloves after realizing his dream when he fought at UFC 58 – USA vs Canada, a fight which ended with him losing at the hands of Mike “Quick” Swick by guillotine. However, feeling like he still had more to give, and hearing the call of the ring, this passionate and talented fighter has decided to return to the sport where he dedicated a major portion of his life and give back to the many fans he will be on location on November 14^th. For his part, Dan Chambers has everything to prove when he faces the UFC veteran, despite his impressive wins. Coming back from 3 consecutive losses against Chris Fontaine, Mike Robowtham, and Nick Hinchliffe, Dan will be looking to make his mark against a high calibre opponent and refind the win column.

At 145 pounds, the Drummondville native Guillaume « The Showman » Lamarche (4-2) from Team Bergeron will be looking to forget the quick KO he suffered at the hands of Will Romero on August 22nd at Ringside: Rage Fighting Series at Club Soda. This high calibre athlete, is regarded as one of Quebec’s best featherweight prospects, and is looking to take advantage to training he received in February/March in Phuket, Thailand. Guillaume Lamarche’s opponent will be announced shortly.

Student of Franco Behring in Toronto, Sean « Pimp Daddy » Pierson (8-4), will be looking to build on his 3 consecutive wins over the likes of (now deceased) Jacob MacDonald, Iraj Hadin and most recently Jason Rorison at the Ringside: Rage Fighting Series at Club Soda on August 22nd. This warrior stands 6’1’’ and 170 pounds, will be ready to stop his opponent, yet to be named, and has not lost since he faced Jesse Bongfeldt in 2007.

Another eagerly anticipated battle at lightweight is one that will pit rising star from Team Bergeron Chris « The Tank » Boivert (1-1) against undefeated and dangerous American Joey Gambino (2-0-0) from New York. Boivert is more motivated than ever since suffering his first loss at the hands of Kevin Morin due to a disqualification at Ringside: Rage Fighting Series on August 22^nd. For his part, Gambino will be entering his 3^rd professional MMA fight and will be looking to put his world-class wrestling skills against the young fighter from Drummondville.

Also at lightweight, the undefeated Mike Ricci (4-0-0) will be looking to stay perfect after wins over Stéphane Chrétien, Reza Kamali, Rory McDonell and Jean-Marc Ladonde over the last two years. Knowing that fans have come to expect explosive KO from him, we can expect him to rock the crowd at the Best Western Hotel by delivering as explosive a performance as all his previous ones.

On the card November 14th at welterweight is Yves « The Shark » Lemelin (3-2-0) from Team Bergeron who makes his return to the Octagon after a year and a half absence, in which he won his match against Johnrick Flanegin in Oranjestad, Aruba in April 2008. Lemelin will now face Chris Vorano (3-4) from Barrie, Ontario. Vorano is trying to shake off hard times after losing his last 3 fights against experienced opponents like Mark Holst, Nicolas Exame and most recently Nabil Khatib on October 10^th in Gatineau. Vorano will be hoping to take advantage of the long absence of his opponent to get himself back in the win column. This classic match up of grappler vs striker will be filled with back and forth action!

At 145 pounds, fighters Réjean Groulx (2-0) from Team Bergeron and the veteran Tommy Pariseau (4-6) from Team Legion in Victoriaville will certainly deliver a hotly contested battle full of strong emotion as the rivalries between the two clubs will again be on display.

For the 2^nd time in the same night, two rival clans from Drummondville and Victoriaville will battle for supremacy, this time at 135 pounds, between Pierre-Étienne « Speedy » Marcoux (1-1) and Nicolas Pariseau (0-2).

Also on the card will be undefeated lightweight fighter John Makdessi (4-0-0) from TriStar gym, and he will be looking to stay that way against Rory McDonnell (3-4). Mikael Pellerin (MMA debut) from Team Legion will be facing Erik Dumaine (1-1) from Team Bergeron. Jeremy Gagnon (0-1) from Team Shredder will face Philippe Gauthier (MMA Debut) from Ultimate Boss Fighting. These last two fights will be at 145 pounds

Ringside : Rivalries, will take place at the Best Western Hotel in Drummondville, November 14^th at 7pm. Tickets are on sale now at Admission outlets (514)790-1245 or toll-free at 1-800-361-4595, or online. You can also get your tickets directly at Team Bergeron located at 470 St-Jean in Drummondville or by phone at (819)477-3868.

Ringside is a proud partner of Labatt Breweries, Rage Liquid Energy drinks, KARV Clothing, MMA Fight Shop, Equinoxe Productions, Bar La Bamba in Drummondville, and Litho Milles Iles Imprimerie. For more information about Ringside MMA or Ringside: Rivalries, please visit the official website, or contact Eric Champoux by email or Yanick Bergeron, also by email.

(please note that this is my translation of the french press release that was released on October 21st).

Tags: Boivert \ Chambers \ Makdessi \ MMA \ Pierson \ Ricci \ Ringside \ Rivalries \ Vigneault