Printable VersionLAKE HAVASU CITY — Scottie Merritt will have some extra pressure Saturday and that’s fine with him.
 David Bell/News-Herald Photo. Mixed Martial Arts fighters Jose Portocarrero, top, and Scottie Merritt, spar on the ground during a work out at Arevalo Academy Monday. The pair, along with Rich Campbell and Matt Muramoto will be in Laughlin Saturday to fight at the King of the Cage Upper Cut MMA event at the Avi Resort and Casino. Merritt has the headline bout against Thomas Kenney. |
“I’d like to finish him, it’s be nice to get a submission. I haven’t won by submission yet. But I have to feel him out first,” Merritt said during a break in training Monday. “I’m not just going to jump in there without a game plan.”
Merritt is 3-0 in King of the Cage bouts, putting him in the Top 10 in the series. His last fight was Oct. 3, 2009, which Merritt won on a unanimous decision over Sean Canova.
With Kenney, Merritt expects to see a significant amount of action on the ground, as his opponent likes to take fighters down and grapple.
“He’s got a lot of experience,” Merritt said. “But Rudy (Arevalo) has been helping me a lot with my striking.”
Arevalo, owner of the Arevalo Academy where Merritt and three other Havasu fighters heading to Laughlin this weekend — Rich Campbell, Jose Portocarrero and Matt Muramoto — train for fights, said training doesn’t mean moving away from a fighter’s strength.
“If you’re a ground fighter, fine. If you strike, fine too. Our philosophy is ‘be the fighter you are.’ But you have to be well rounded to be a top fighter. So that what all these guys are doing, working on all facets of their game. And it’s like night-and-day from where they all were just a year ago.”
Portocarrero is coming into his second fight following a long layoff to rest from gall bladder surgery. He said just like his last fight in December, he’s looking for a win.
“In this fight, I want to keep my hands up more, work with my kicking,” he said.
The 5-4 fighter is giving away five inches to his opponent, so Portocarrero said he’ll “go to the ground game” if that’s what it takes to get the victory.
Campbell is another fighter that’s seen success on the ground. But this time he’s looking for a different way to win.
“I’m going to knock him out,” Campbell said. “I’m going to try and stay on my feet. Just to prove it to me. I usually take guys down to the ground but I want to test myself.”
Muramoto is coming off a win in October, defeating Joseph Urias by TKO at 2:52 of the first round.
Saturday’s fights start at 7 p.m. Nevada time. Tickets are on sale locally at Arevalo Academy, 3612 S. Jamaica Blvd.
You may contact the reporter at dbell@havasunews.com.
Article Rating