December 9, 2025 • 16 mins
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
But our friends are the Fierce Fighting Championships are live
in studio once again, the founder Zach Partridge, how.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
Are you man? Good?
Speaker 1 (00:07):
How are you good to see it? And then the
broadcaster Blake? Oh really and what's up Blake? Happy to
be here, Good to see you guys. As always all right,
educating Zach about the card. What's the most exciting thing
about this card coming.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
Up on Friday?
Speaker 3 (00:19):
This card is a really unique one. The balance difference
of so we have we have a bunch of fighters.
We have twelve fighters making their amateur debut, so this
is their first time that they've ever made this walk.
So most cards there's a few debuters and then there's
some established amateurs, then early on pros, and then the
veteran pros. This card, the way it just kind of
like worked out, is it's front loaded with a bunch
(00:42):
of amateur debuters, which those fights are sometimes the most exciting, uh,
because you don't you don't know what you're gonna get
with those guys. And then at the top of the card,
we have probably the pound for pound top one or
two fighters in the entire state with Joe Harrow cool.
So it's like it's that and it's kind of everything
in between. Got a couple of amateur title fights. It's
(01:03):
a lot of fun. But yeah, the debuters, it's sometimes
they're my favorite ones because you get these guys in
the room that are they don't movie coaches don't know
if they're ready. So a lot of it's just throw
them in there and let's see, and they usually are
and they they you know, it's that fight or flight
thing and and you know, they most of them just
fight and they do really well and they end up
being some of the best fights on the card.
Speaker 1 (01:23):
Now you're a fighter too, So when it comes to
like ignorance is bliss, Yeah.
Speaker 2 (01:29):
Type dynamic.
Speaker 1 (01:29):
Maybe you're just I don't mean this disrespectfully, No, you're
just too dumb to know that you're in danger.
Speaker 2 (01:34):
So just go do your thing.
Speaker 3 (01:36):
You're pretty well inept to know that the type of danger,
Like if you're trying to get the gyms that you
know that are they're at locally getting ready for these fights.
I mean, uh, at least at our gym, Like I mean,
I I I was. I I'll never forget my first
My first card was almost eight years ago this week Yeah,
(01:58):
eight years ago this weekend. Was my first fight.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
Did you know what you were getting into?
Speaker 3 (02:02):
Kind of but it's but also like so the main
I was one of the i think the first or
second fight on the card, just like these guys are.
My main event was Ben Moa. You fought Ben No
like he was the main event and he's one of
my teammates. Ben mo is one of my teammates that
I trained with.
Speaker 2 (02:15):
It's a good guy to have your back.
Speaker 3 (02:17):
So like going through the process with somebody like Ben
made it a lot easier. But I mean the whole time,
I just kept trying to remind myself every time I
get kind of freaked out because you do like you're
sitting in the back and dude, it's it is. It
is an experience unlike any other. But I just kept
telling myself, I'm like, well, this guy, no matter what,
he's not going to hit me as hard as Ben,
(02:39):
because I went through the whole camp with Ben and
he was beat the crap out of me.
Speaker 2 (02:43):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (02:43):
So so it's just a lot of you kind of know.
But uh there MMA is growing and it's becoming more popular,
and so these guys do know more and more what
they're getting themselves into. You just don't know until the
ref goes. Are you ready? You you don't know if
you have that in you and if.
Speaker 2 (03:03):
You're ready, yeah, yeah, Blake.
Speaker 1 (03:06):
Tell me about Joel Joel Harrow, who, as Zach was
just outlining the number one MMA prospect in Utah.
Speaker 2 (03:11):
What sort of fighter is no.
Speaker 4 (03:13):
I actually got the chance to interview him just a
couple of weeks ago, and we were talking and I
kind of said, you are the guy out of Utah
right now six and two thirty one years of age,
has a whole bunch of knockouts and is one of
the most electrifying strikers that you will ever see on
any landscape in this sport. So he has been kind
of one of the top guys in Utah for a while,
but right now is really his time to go if
(03:33):
he wants to make it to that next level, which
again he told me, it's basically UFC or bust at
this point. So Friday night it's gonna be a big
test for one one.
Speaker 1 (03:41):
Hundred and forty pounds catch weight, that's what that's called.
When it comes to so three rounds, five minutes when
it comes to his opponent. Tell me about Owen Robinette,
who is up against Yeah Owen Robinette out of Montana.
Twenty fights over the course of the last four years
between his amateur and professional career, ninety two percent submission
(04:01):
rate between his amateur and pro careers, and as a
pro he's only submitted guy. So he certainly poses some
problems for a guy like Joel Harrow, who is such
a good striker. Owen Robinette also coming in on a
couple of weeks, notice a little bit of a late replacement.
That all being said, he brings a cyclone of submission attacks,
so really excited to see him as well. What do
you make in the match up, Zach when it comes
(04:22):
to Joel taking on Owen?
Speaker 3 (04:23):
So it's really interesting. So I've actually cornered a couple
of times against Owen. Owen's fought one of my teammates
a couple of times, and that's how I got to
know him and come to like him and respect him. Right,
I've watched he fought one of the top prospects in
Utah and one of my teammates, and and when I
reached out to Owen. So that's why it's one hundred
and forty Catchwaight I'm not a fan of catchweights generally.
Speaker 2 (04:46):
Can you help me understand what that means?
Speaker 3 (04:48):
So every fighter has weight classes, right, yeah, flyweights one
twenty five. Joel is a naturally, he's a one thirty
five band, so he raised in at one thirty five.
Owen has been fighting anywhere from forty five to fifty
f making his way down to thirty five right now.
That's where he knows he needs to be little short
notice for him to diet down and prep his body
(05:08):
to be able to make the one hundred and thirty
five pound limit. Last thing you want to do when
you take a fight on short notice is coming in
misweight and give up part of your purse, which is
a penalty for pros, just like you see in the UFC.
You misweight, you give up a percentage of your purse
to the opponent. He doesn't want to, he said, I've
never cut to thirty five. I don't want to do
it on short notice. We agreed one hundred and forty
(05:29):
pound catchwait with Joe Harroway, he's scrappy, he's fun and
like he's game. He's there for it. You want to
talk about these amateurs that don't know what they're getting
themselves into kids like Owen Robinette. This is like him
and his older brother, who's a very good weal toweight
prospect of one hundred and seventy pounds. They've been raised
through this. They eat, breathe sleep, this. They go to
the gym together every day. His wife trains with him
(05:52):
like this is this is his life. And he is
just scrappy as all get out. So for somebody like
Joel that likes to he has a Joel has a
really clean, smooth, pretty style. He's electric. I mean we
just dropped a promo. I mean he is the master
of spinning back elbow. He's highlight reel after highlight reel
with spinning elbows. And you know, Owens the type of
(06:14):
kid that he likes to make be in your face,
make it ugly, make it like a scrap. So very
interesting matchup stylistically.
Speaker 1 (06:23):
And you said Joel's he has six fights or eight
fights and six and two yep.
Speaker 2 (06:28):
And Owen, did you say as twenty fights?
Speaker 3 (06:31):
Blake said between his amateur and pro career.
Speaker 4 (06:33):
So four and three is a professional, pretty extensive amateur.
Speaker 1 (06:37):
So o, and I'll go to you on this one.
I don't know who Zeke Latu is. He just sounds dangerous. Oh,
he most certainly is. He is an absolute tank. Six
and four the pro record all wins by finish five
of them by knockout. He's coming off a thirteen second
knockout at the Maverick Center in August. This guy packs
so much power behind every single punch, and when he wins,
he celebrates by pounding both of his fists in the
(06:59):
center of the cage and being cage side, you can
literally feel a ripple from the power that this guy possesses.
So always exciting to see Zeke law Tu inside of
any cage. And this is his first time at the
Masonic Temple. Typically he fights the Maverick Center, but being
in that smaller confined space, it's gonna be really interesting.
I feel like the audience might feel and hear some
more of the power that he has.
Speaker 2 (07:20):
How big did you say it was?
Speaker 4 (07:21):
He's a heavyweight, So he walks around anywhere between two
thirty five and two sixties typically where he tips the scales.
Speaker 2 (07:27):
All right, you don't want to get hit by closer
to Yeah, he's he's a big He's a big fighter.
Speaker 1 (07:31):
Tell me Zach about the opponent, Jared Torgansen, who he's
up against.
Speaker 3 (07:36):
Yeah, that's what we're trying. So this is Jared's another late,
late replacement. We're still in the final stages of trying
to complete it for this weekend. That's so you were
we're live in the mix right now. So there's a
whole lot that goes on to Zeke's original opponent unfortunately,
has forty plus fights, has fought tons of people, has
(07:56):
ghosted us. Oh Man as of Monday, has gone radio
silent on us.
Speaker 2 (08:01):
Do you think you saw video?
Speaker 4 (08:03):
You know what?
Speaker 3 (08:04):
Honestly, honestly, most people yes, but a guy like this no.
But there's no telling. Like you know, the fighters are,
they're they're their own creatures in a lot of ways,
and you just you don't know what's going on in
their personal life, just like you you know, you we
see you see these jazz players, right and and you
might know if something seems off, you might know what's
going on in their personal life. Everybody else does it.
(08:25):
Fighters are no different, and fighting in front of a
crowd when there's a bunch of other distractions going on
and the consequences are getting separated from consciousness, the stress
is just a little bit different, and unfortunately his first opponent,
just for whatever reason, whatever's going on is life, decided
that fighting was at the time and his answer to
(08:46):
that was just go radio silent. But Jared is one
of those guys that fighting is like an ecosystem. You
have to have those guys that are willing to step
in on short notice. We're working through details with contracts,
athletic commission, medicals, all that type of stuff, try to
sort it out. But Jarrett's game as they get. He's
been around. He has almost fifty fights himself as a pro,
(09:06):
very experienced, crafty veteran type. Yeah, you know, a couple
of UFC guys and has some wins over some really
good guys. So if we can get this done and
that does be our our co main event, in fact,
it'll be a lot of fun. If not, we will
see Zeke probably the first part of twenty twenty six.
Speaker 2 (09:24):
Very nice.
Speaker 1 (09:25):
What are the uh I'm reading that there are titles
at stake, So what are the title fights on the car?
Speaker 3 (09:30):
So the first one is Dante Morales versus Deetrich Jessup.
Dante is an undefeated flyway prospect here in Utah, he's
from Miami, originally moved out here, and uh, he's probably
one of the top three amateur prospects in the state. Yeah,
I think, I mean, I think that's that's without question.
He Uh No, nobody's figured out how to beat him yet.
(09:54):
And yeah, he's pretty good. He's beaten some guys that
have gone on that it's like he beat him early
on and we realized how well those wins have aged.
Just really tough, durable all around, like he's just I mean,
they we use the phrases he's just a dog like
he's a dog like he likes to get in the mix.
(10:14):
Challenger Deetri Jessup a young man that I've trained with.
He is he's just we watched him grow up since
he was eighteen. He's fought most of his amateur career
with us at Fierce and uh, you know, he wants
to go pro. But the one thing he hasn't captured
is I believe he's zero and two in title fights
before he goes pro. He wants to capture that title
and he's every bit uh the challenger for this. I
(10:34):
think it's gonna be a great, great matchup to kick
off our main card.
Speaker 2 (10:38):
And then Blake will go to you on this one.
Speaker 1 (10:40):
Michael Pfeiffer, Lane Dalton looks like it's a middleweight title
h five rounds, three minutes. So the additional rounds is
that because it's a championship fight.
Speaker 4 (10:50):
Correct, correct? And I won't bury the lead here. I
think this is the most excited I've ever been for
an amateur fight. If fear fighting trick really okay, Lane
Dalton is an unbelievable prospect out of Eagle Eye. He's
five to one and one no contest. He hasn't lost
since September of twenty twenty three. On the flip side,
Michael Pheiffer, he hasn't lost since his debut years ago
as well. So Feiffer is the bigger, longer, six foot
(11:12):
four prospect at middleweight. Lane Dalton is our current amateur
welterweight champion and so he's moving up a weight class
and he's looking to be one of three ever in
fear SEFC history to claim that double champ status. And
when you talk to Lane, he is so certain of
how this fight is going to play out. He's more
so of a grappler, but also has very strong punching
power and then Michael Pheiffer is kind of crafty a
(11:32):
lot like Joel Harrow, really fun, his striking is beautiful,
but also knows how to keep it on the feed
and that six foot four frame really poses a lot
of problems for people. So all in all, the matchup
is just kind of perfect here on paper, and so
both guys think that they have everything that it takes
to get the job done.
Speaker 2 (11:49):
We'll just see how it plays out on fraight, is.
Speaker 1 (11:51):
This rundown you're giving me in order of how the
fight's So the main card is right off the top. No, no, no,
so it's bottom up by bottomless. Okay, I was gonna
say that would be a different approach because you don't
want people to bounce after watching the better fights. All Right,
one more hit from each of you, Zach will go
to you just as far as the other fighters who
we haven't highlighted, who give me one or two that
(12:12):
stand out to you?
Speaker 3 (12:12):
And why so I'm gonna go to the amateur heavyweight matchup.
We have two amateur heavyweights that are making the amateur debuts.
Speaker 1 (12:19):
Ethan there you go go to the broadcast.
Speaker 3 (12:23):
And Byron sneed these two. So when we're matching former
college football players. But Byron sneed his his uh, his
coach came to me and he goes, I have this guy.
He's six y five about two seventy ready to fight,
and I'm like, that's a giant human. So I go,
I do a little google research. Played football at South
Alabama State, you know, physically, and I'm like, you know,
(12:46):
guys like this there, you can't really match them up
with another debutor because they're just an elite level, elito
A level athletes and MMA, it's just a little different,
little Ben mo esque right, Like we haven't seen him
in the cage, but that's that's where Ben comes from,
right football player and transition. So I'm sitting there going,
I can't just give him to another guy making his debut.
And his coach's like, well, you know, fighter, he's pretty green.
(13:07):
I'm like, yeah, but it's pretty athletic and probably hits
really hard. I'm like, let me find something. And then
I hear about your friend Sean O'Connell and uh, you know,
we were just on with and a couple other guys
that we have trained with. This Ethan kid who is
six four, two fifty with a six pack, played college basketball,
doing standing backflips at the gym things like that, just
(13:30):
a freak athlete. And I was like, I've got the
perfect guy for these guys to make their debuts against
each other. So we have two college athletes, one basketball,
one football that are both freak athletes at real heavyweights.
Most a lot of heavyweights are kind of a little
softer in the mid section and eventually going to find
their correct weight class. These two real heavyweights, I think
(13:53):
for me on the amateur side of things with debuts,
that's what I'm the most excited.
Speaker 2 (13:57):
And I'll say this really quickly. I apologize I've joked
about this.
Speaker 4 (14:00):
If you were to go into AI and prompt like
create an MMA fight poster of two MMA heavyweights, you
would get what these two guys look like. I mean,
they look like SUPERHEROESVN. So very excited for that one.
Speaker 3 (14:12):
Now.
Speaker 1 (14:12):
I just pulled up a picture of Byron Sneed. He's
a beast that is a big, big boy. So that
should be a lot of fun. All right, one more
hit from each of you. Let's just sell the experience. Blake,
Let's start with you. The atmosphere, the environment, the Masonic temple.
Why should people show up on Friday night.
Speaker 4 (14:28):
It's an unbelievable event and we're already tracking to do
very well, potentially a sellout on Friday night. And when
that place is packed, there is literally no other viewing
experience like it in all of sports in Utah. So
if you can get a ticket, you might want to
be sitting in your seats throughout the entirety of these
four team fights because it is going to be loud
from the very top. I mean that Ethano Djuku Byron
Sneed fight. There is a lot of people coming out
(14:50):
for that one. Joel Harrow, so many people are in
his corner and so very excited to see a lot
of local talent. And that all being said, Friday just
can't get here soon enough.
Speaker 1 (14:59):
Zach Funnelwarders, you're the founder, You're the driving force behind
the Fierce Fighting Championships.
Speaker 2 (15:04):
Why should people show up?
Speaker 3 (15:05):
Not founder, I just I'm the COO. I run it,
But Cody Bunderson's the founder.
Speaker 2 (15:09):
Gotta give Cody.
Speaker 3 (15:09):
Gotta give Cody the credit. But uh no, uh, Fierce
Fighting Championship dot com. Since we've gotten this straightened away too,
If you go to Fierce Fighting Championship dot com for tickets.
Put in promo code ESPN at checkout for five dollars
off on your ticket. Nice for every ticket that goes.
So there's that. Like I said, I tell everybody, if
(15:30):
you haven't seen MMA Live before, come give it a try,
because if you do, you will get hooked. You will
enjoy the event. I promise. If you don't, come find me.
We'll make it right somehow. But you're gonna love. It's
a great thing for Friday night. Come out. You have
R and R barbecue there, we have drinks, we have everything.
It's a good time. Come watch. We have stat Card
(15:52):
thirteen fourteen. Fights can be fun there.
Speaker 1 (15:54):
You go, doors open at five o'clock the fights being
at six o'clock. You go to Fierce Fighting Championship dot com.
Use the promo code of ESPN seven hundred to check out.
They're gonna cook you up with five dollars off the ticket. Guys,
good to see a good luck on Friday.
Speaker 2 (16:06):
Okay, thank you,
But our friends are the Fierce Fighting Championships are live
in studio once again, the founder Zach Partridge, how.
Speaker 2 (00:06):
Are you man? Good?
Speaker 1 (00:07):
How are you good to see it? And then the
broadcaster Blake? Oh really and what's up Blake? Happy to
be here, Good to see you guys. As always all right,
educating Zach about the card. What's the most exciting thing
about this card coming.
Speaker 2 (00:18):
Up on Friday?
Speaker 3 (00:19):
This card is a really unique one. The balance difference
of so we have we have a bunch of fighters.
We have twelve fighters making their amateur debut, so this
is their first time that they've ever made this walk.
So most cards there's a few debuters and then there's
some established amateurs, then early on pros, and then the
veteran pros. This card, the way it just kind of
like worked out, is it's front loaded with a bunch
(00:42):
of amateur debuters, which those fights are sometimes the most exciting, uh,
because you don't you don't know what you're gonna get
with those guys. And then at the top of the card,
we have probably the pound for pound top one or
two fighters in the entire state with Joe Harrow cool.
So it's like it's that and it's kind of everything
in between. Got a couple of amateur title fights. It's
(01:03):
a lot of fun. But yeah, the debuters, it's sometimes
they're my favorite ones because you get these guys in
the room that are they don't movie coaches don't know
if they're ready. So a lot of it's just throw
them in there and let's see, and they usually are
and they they you know, it's that fight or flight
thing and and you know, they most of them just
fight and they do really well and they end up
being some of the best fights on the card.
Speaker 1 (01:23):
Now you're a fighter too, So when it comes to
like ignorance is bliss, Yeah.
Speaker 2 (01:29):
Type dynamic.
Speaker 1 (01:29):
Maybe you're just I don't mean this disrespectfully, No, you're
just too dumb to know that you're in danger.
Speaker 2 (01:34):
So just go do your thing.
Speaker 3 (01:36):
You're pretty well inept to know that the type of danger,
Like if you're trying to get the gyms that you
know that are they're at locally getting ready for these fights.
I mean, uh, at least at our gym, Like I mean,
I I I was. I I'll never forget my first
My first card was almost eight years ago this week Yeah,
(01:58):
eight years ago this weekend. Was my first fight.
Speaker 2 (02:00):
Did you know what you were getting into?
Speaker 3 (02:02):
Kind of but it's but also like so the main
I was one of the i think the first or
second fight on the card, just like these guys are.
My main event was Ben Moa. You fought Ben No
like he was the main event and he's one of
my teammates. Ben mo is one of my teammates that
I trained with.
Speaker 2 (02:15):
It's a good guy to have your back.
Speaker 3 (02:17):
So like going through the process with somebody like Ben
made it a lot easier. But I mean the whole time,
I just kept trying to remind myself every time I
get kind of freaked out because you do like you're
sitting in the back and dude, it's it is. It
is an experience unlike any other. But I just kept
telling myself, I'm like, well, this guy, no matter what,
he's not going to hit me as hard as Ben,
(02:39):
because I went through the whole camp with Ben and
he was beat the crap out of me.
Speaker 2 (02:43):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (02:43):
So so it's just a lot of you kind of know.
But uh there MMA is growing and it's becoming more popular,
and so these guys do know more and more what
they're getting themselves into. You just don't know until the
ref goes. Are you ready? You you don't know if
you have that in you and if.
Speaker 2 (03:03):
You're ready, yeah, yeah, Blake.
Speaker 1 (03:06):
Tell me about Joel Joel Harrow, who, as Zach was
just outlining the number one MMA prospect in Utah.
Speaker 2 (03:11):
What sort of fighter is no.
Speaker 4 (03:13):
I actually got the chance to interview him just a
couple of weeks ago, and we were talking and I
kind of said, you are the guy out of Utah
right now six and two thirty one years of age,
has a whole bunch of knockouts and is one of
the most electrifying strikers that you will ever see on
any landscape in this sport. So he has been kind
of one of the top guys in Utah for a while,
but right now is really his time to go if
(03:33):
he wants to make it to that next level, which
again he told me, it's basically UFC or bust at
this point. So Friday night it's gonna be a big
test for one one.
Speaker 1 (03:41):
Hundred and forty pounds catch weight, that's what that's called.
When it comes to so three rounds, five minutes when
it comes to his opponent. Tell me about Owen Robinette,
who is up against Yeah Owen Robinette out of Montana.
Twenty fights over the course of the last four years
between his amateur and professional career, ninety two percent submission
(04:01):
rate between his amateur and pro careers, and as a
pro he's only submitted guy. So he certainly poses some
problems for a guy like Joel Harrow, who is such
a good striker. Owen Robinette also coming in on a
couple of weeks, notice a little bit of a late replacement.
That all being said, he brings a cyclone of submission attacks,
so really excited to see him as well. What do
you make in the match up, Zach when it comes
(04:22):
to Joel taking on Owen?
Speaker 3 (04:23):
So it's really interesting. So I've actually cornered a couple
of times against Owen. Owen's fought one of my teammates
a couple of times, and that's how I got to
know him and come to like him and respect him. Right,
I've watched he fought one of the top prospects in
Utah and one of my teammates, and and when I
reached out to Owen. So that's why it's one hundred
and forty Catchwaight I'm not a fan of catchweights generally.
Speaker 2 (04:46):
Can you help me understand what that means?
Speaker 3 (04:48):
So every fighter has weight classes, right, yeah, flyweights one
twenty five. Joel is a naturally, he's a one thirty
five band, so he raised in at one thirty five.
Owen has been fighting anywhere from forty five to fifty
f making his way down to thirty five right now.
That's where he knows he needs to be little short
notice for him to diet down and prep his body
(05:08):
to be able to make the one hundred and thirty
five pound limit. Last thing you want to do when
you take a fight on short notice is coming in
misweight and give up part of your purse, which is
a penalty for pros, just like you see in the UFC.
You misweight, you give up a percentage of your purse
to the opponent. He doesn't want to, he said, I've
never cut to thirty five. I don't want to do
it on short notice. We agreed one hundred and forty
(05:29):
pound catchwait with Joe Harroway, he's scrappy, he's fun and
like he's game. He's there for it. You want to
talk about these amateurs that don't know what they're getting
themselves into kids like Owen Robinette. This is like him
and his older brother, who's a very good weal toweight
prospect of one hundred and seventy pounds. They've been raised
through this. They eat, breathe sleep, this. They go to
the gym together every day. His wife trains with him
(05:52):
like this is this is his life. And he is
just scrappy as all get out. So for somebody like
Joel that likes to he has a Joel has a
really clean, smooth, pretty style. He's electric. I mean we
just dropped a promo. I mean he is the master
of spinning back elbow. He's highlight reel after highlight reel
with spinning elbows. And you know, Owens the type of
(06:14):
kid that he likes to make be in your face,
make it ugly, make it like a scrap. So very
interesting matchup stylistically.
Speaker 1 (06:23):
And you said Joel's he has six fights or eight
fights and six and two yep.
Speaker 2 (06:28):
And Owen, did you say as twenty fights?
Speaker 3 (06:31):
Blake said between his amateur and pro career.
Speaker 4 (06:33):
So four and three is a professional, pretty extensive amateur.
Speaker 1 (06:37):
So o, and I'll go to you on this one.
I don't know who Zeke Latu is. He just sounds dangerous. Oh,
he most certainly is. He is an absolute tank. Six
and four the pro record all wins by finish five
of them by knockout. He's coming off a thirteen second
knockout at the Maverick Center in August. This guy packs
so much power behind every single punch, and when he wins,
he celebrates by pounding both of his fists in the
(06:59):
center of the cage and being cage side, you can
literally feel a ripple from the power that this guy possesses.
So always exciting to see Zeke law Tu inside of
any cage. And this is his first time at the
Masonic Temple. Typically he fights the Maverick Center, but being
in that smaller confined space, it's gonna be really interesting.
I feel like the audience might feel and hear some
more of the power that he has.
Speaker 2 (07:20):
How big did you say it was?
Speaker 4 (07:21):
He's a heavyweight, So he walks around anywhere between two
thirty five and two sixties typically where he tips the scales.
Speaker 2 (07:27):
All right, you don't want to get hit by closer
to Yeah, he's he's a big He's a big fighter.
Speaker 1 (07:31):
Tell me Zach about the opponent, Jared Torgansen, who he's
up against.
Speaker 3 (07:36):
Yeah, that's what we're trying. So this is Jared's another late,
late replacement. We're still in the final stages of trying
to complete it for this weekend. That's so you were
we're live in the mix right now. So there's a
whole lot that goes on to Zeke's original opponent unfortunately,
has forty plus fights, has fought tons of people, has
(07:56):
ghosted us. Oh Man as of Monday, has gone radio
silent on us.
Speaker 2 (08:01):
Do you think you saw video?
Speaker 4 (08:03):
You know what?
Speaker 3 (08:04):
Honestly, honestly, most people yes, but a guy like this no.
But there's no telling. Like you know, the fighters are,
they're they're their own creatures in a lot of ways,
and you just you don't know what's going on in
their personal life, just like you you know, you we
see you see these jazz players, right and and you
might know if something seems off, you might know what's
going on in their personal life. Everybody else does it.
(08:25):
Fighters are no different, and fighting in front of a
crowd when there's a bunch of other distractions going on
and the consequences are getting separated from consciousness, the stress
is just a little bit different, and unfortunately his first opponent,
just for whatever reason, whatever's going on is life, decided
that fighting was at the time and his answer to
(08:46):
that was just go radio silent. But Jared is one
of those guys that fighting is like an ecosystem. You
have to have those guys that are willing to step
in on short notice. We're working through details with contracts,
athletic commission, medicals, all that type of stuff, try to
sort it out. But Jarrett's game as they get. He's
been around. He has almost fifty fights himself as a pro,
(09:06):
very experienced, crafty veteran type. Yeah, you know, a couple
of UFC guys and has some wins over some really
good guys. So if we can get this done and
that does be our our co main event, in fact,
it'll be a lot of fun. If not, we will
see Zeke probably the first part of twenty twenty six.
Speaker 2 (09:24):
Very nice.
Speaker 1 (09:25):
What are the uh I'm reading that there are titles
at stake, So what are the title fights on the car?
Speaker 3 (09:30):
So the first one is Dante Morales versus Deetrich Jessup.
Dante is an undefeated flyway prospect here in Utah, he's
from Miami, originally moved out here, and uh, he's probably
one of the top three amateur prospects in the state. Yeah,
I think, I mean, I think that's that's without question.
He Uh No, nobody's figured out how to beat him yet.
(09:54):
And yeah, he's pretty good. He's beaten some guys that
have gone on that it's like he beat him early
on and we realized how well those wins have aged.
Just really tough, durable all around, like he's just I mean,
they we use the phrases he's just a dog like
he's a dog like he likes to get in the mix.
(10:14):
Challenger Deetri Jessup a young man that I've trained with.
He is he's just we watched him grow up since
he was eighteen. He's fought most of his amateur career
with us at Fierce and uh, you know, he wants
to go pro. But the one thing he hasn't captured
is I believe he's zero and two in title fights
before he goes pro. He wants to capture that title
and he's every bit uh the challenger for this. I
(10:34):
think it's gonna be a great, great matchup to kick
off our main card.
Speaker 2 (10:38):
And then Blake will go to you on this one.
Speaker 1 (10:40):
Michael Pfeiffer, Lane Dalton looks like it's a middleweight title
h five rounds, three minutes. So the additional rounds is
that because it's a championship fight.
Speaker 4 (10:50):
Correct, correct? And I won't bury the lead here. I
think this is the most excited I've ever been for
an amateur fight. If fear fighting trick really okay, Lane
Dalton is an unbelievable prospect out of Eagle Eye. He's
five to one and one no contest. He hasn't lost
since September of twenty twenty three. On the flip side,
Michael Pheiffer, he hasn't lost since his debut years ago
as well. So Feiffer is the bigger, longer, six foot
(11:12):
four prospect at middleweight. Lane Dalton is our current amateur
welterweight champion and so he's moving up a weight class
and he's looking to be one of three ever in
fear SEFC history to claim that double champ status. And
when you talk to Lane, he is so certain of
how this fight is going to play out. He's more
so of a grappler, but also has very strong punching
power and then Michael Pheiffer is kind of crafty a
(11:32):
lot like Joel Harrow, really fun, his striking is beautiful,
but also knows how to keep it on the feed
and that six foot four frame really poses a lot
of problems for people. So all in all, the matchup
is just kind of perfect here on paper, and so
both guys think that they have everything that it takes
to get the job done.
Speaker 2 (11:49):
We'll just see how it plays out on fraight, is.
Speaker 1 (11:51):
This rundown you're giving me in order of how the
fight's So the main card is right off the top. No, no, no,
so it's bottom up by bottomless. Okay, I was gonna
say that would be a different approach because you don't
want people to bounce after watching the better fights. All Right,
one more hit from each of you, Zach will go
to you just as far as the other fighters who
we haven't highlighted, who give me one or two that
(12:12):
stand out to you?
Speaker 3 (12:12):
And why so I'm gonna go to the amateur heavyweight matchup.
We have two amateur heavyweights that are making the amateur debuts.
Speaker 1 (12:19):
Ethan there you go go to the broadcast.
Speaker 3 (12:23):
And Byron sneed these two. So when we're matching former
college football players. But Byron sneed his his uh, his
coach came to me and he goes, I have this guy.
He's six y five about two seventy ready to fight,
and I'm like, that's a giant human. So I go,
I do a little google research. Played football at South
Alabama State, you know, physically, and I'm like, you know,
(12:46):
guys like this there, you can't really match them up
with another debutor because they're just an elite level, elito
A level athletes and MMA, it's just a little different,
little Ben mo esque right, Like we haven't seen him
in the cage, but that's that's where Ben comes from,
right football player and transition. So I'm sitting there going,
I can't just give him to another guy making his debut.
And his coach's like, well, you know, fighter, he's pretty green.
(13:07):
I'm like, yeah, but it's pretty athletic and probably hits
really hard. I'm like, let me find something. And then
I hear about your friend Sean O'Connell and uh, you know,
we were just on with and a couple other guys
that we have trained with. This Ethan kid who is
six four, two fifty with a six pack, played college basketball,
doing standing backflips at the gym things like that, just
(13:30):
a freak athlete. And I was like, I've got the
perfect guy for these guys to make their debuts against
each other. So we have two college athletes, one basketball,
one football that are both freak athletes at real heavyweights.
Most a lot of heavyweights are kind of a little
softer in the mid section and eventually going to find
their correct weight class. These two real heavyweights, I think
(13:53):
for me on the amateur side of things with debuts,
that's what I'm the most excited.
Speaker 2 (13:57):
And I'll say this really quickly. I apologize I've joked
about this.
Speaker 4 (14:00):
If you were to go into AI and prompt like
create an MMA fight poster of two MMA heavyweights, you
would get what these two guys look like. I mean,
they look like SUPERHEROESVN. So very excited for that one.
Speaker 3 (14:12):
Now.
Speaker 1 (14:12):
I just pulled up a picture of Byron Sneed. He's
a beast that is a big, big boy. So that
should be a lot of fun. All right, one more
hit from each of you. Let's just sell the experience. Blake,
Let's start with you. The atmosphere, the environment, the Masonic temple.
Why should people show up on Friday night.
Speaker 4 (14:28):
It's an unbelievable event and we're already tracking to do
very well, potentially a sellout on Friday night. And when
that place is packed, there is literally no other viewing
experience like it in all of sports in Utah. So
if you can get a ticket, you might want to
be sitting in your seats throughout the entirety of these
four team fights because it is going to be loud
from the very top. I mean that Ethano Djuku Byron
Sneed fight. There is a lot of people coming out
(14:50):
for that one. Joel Harrow, so many people are in
his corner and so very excited to see a lot
of local talent. And that all being said, Friday just
can't get here soon enough.
Speaker 1 (14:59):
Zach Funnelwarders, you're the founder, You're the driving force behind
the Fierce Fighting Championships.
Speaker 2 (15:04):
Why should people show up?
Speaker 3 (15:05):
Not founder, I just I'm the COO. I run it,
But Cody Bunderson's the founder.
Speaker 2 (15:09):
Gotta give Cody.
Speaker 3 (15:09):
Gotta give Cody the credit. But uh no, uh, Fierce
Fighting Championship dot com. Since we've gotten this straightened away too,
If you go to Fierce Fighting Championship dot com for tickets.
Put in promo code ESPN at checkout for five dollars
off on your ticket. Nice for every ticket that goes.
So there's that. Like I said, I tell everybody, if
(15:30):
you haven't seen MMA Live before, come give it a try,
because if you do, you will get hooked. You will
enjoy the event. I promise. If you don't, come find me.
We'll make it right somehow. But you're gonna love. It's
a great thing for Friday night. Come out. You have
R and R barbecue there, we have drinks, we have everything.
It's a good time. Come watch. We have stat Card
(15:52):
thirteen fourteen. Fights can be fun there.
Speaker 1 (15:54):
You go, doors open at five o'clock the fights being
at six o'clock. You go to Fierce Fighting Championship dot com.
Use the promo code of ESPN seven hundred to check out.
They're gonna cook you up with five dollars off the ticket. Guys,
good to see a good luck on Friday.
Speaker 2 (16:06):
Okay, thank you,
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