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www.insidehalton.com | OAKVILLE BEAVER | Friday, September 8, 2017 | 24 Kevin Nagel, Oakville Beaver Sports Editor, knagel@burlingtonpost.com Assenza fighting close to home Burlington MMA athlete co-headliner on Saturday night's card in Oakville By Herb Garbutt Oakville Beaver staff Sports "Connected to your Community" Adam Assenza still remembers his introduction to professional mixed martial arts eight years ago, though he uses the term loosely. "I think they billed it as amateur, but only so they didn't have to pay us," says the Burlington fighter. With mixed martial arts fights still illegal in Ontario at the time, Assenza would travel to Michigan or fly elsewhere in the U.S. just to get fight experience. Most times he would have no idea who he would be facing. "They would pick your opponent there, or you would get there and it would be someone different," he said. "Sometimes you would be fighting at different weight classes. It was like Medieval times." Assenza relates the story to demonstrate how far the sport has come in a short time. Mixed martial arts was legalized in Ontario in 2010, allowing the UFC to host UFC 129 at the Rogers Centre in Toronto the following year. And while hosting the sport's best was a boon for fans, it had an even bigger impact on developing fighters like Assenza. Since then, he's been able to fight almost exclusively in his home province with bouts in Hamilton, London, Sarnia and a hometown victory at Central Arena in 2015. After a decisive victory in Toronto in May that improved his record to 7-4, Assenza is coming home -- almost -- again on Saturday. Assenza will be the co-main event for BTC 2: Valhalla at Sixteen Mile Sports Complex in Oakville. Assenza will take on Maine's Jesse `The Viking' Erickson, who sports a 9-6 record, in a lightweight match. It will be his second fight on a BTC Fight Promotions Card. The BTC stands for Burlington Training Centre, where Assenza works as the head strength and conditioning coach. Owner Irene Starr has branched into fight promotion and Assenza said after It took more than two years for Nathan Rourke to find a school that would give him a chance to be a Division 1 quarterback. It only took a week for him to prove Ohio University was right to give him that opportunity. The Oakville native was named the Mid-American Conference East offensive player of the week after scoring three touchdowns against Burlington's Adam `The Maverick' Assenza celebrates his 2015 win over Taylor Soloman. Assenza will square off against Jesse `The Viking' Erickson Saturday at Sixteen Mile Sports Complex in Oakville. The bout will be part of the 10-fight BTC 2: Valhalla card. | Metroland Media file photo years of having to promote himself, it's good to have a promoter behind him. "I've known Irene for a long Hampton in his debut with the Bobcats in front of 17,500 fans. Rourke's highlight of the game? "I think just running out of that tunnel for the first time," he told OhioBobcats.com. "You know, the smoke and the band, that really culminated a crazy journey to get to this point." On his first series, Rourke ran for an eight-yard TD to finish off an time. She's a huge fight fan. She was part of the group that put on Global Warriors (in Burlington in 2015)," he said. "She's really trying 82-yard drive. After leading the Holy Trinity Titans to an OFSAA Bowl title in 2014, the top-ranked QB in Canada moved to Alabama for his final year of high school in order to attract more attention from NCAA scouts. Despite throwing a conference record 59 TDs while leading the undefeated Edgewood Academy to a state title, the offer he was look- to build up MMA and its athletes and bring big crowds to the fights." Assenza is coming into the fight having won by TKO over Braedon Ward at BTC 1: Genesis at the Toronto Convention Centre. Ward was added to the bill three weeks before the fight after Assenza's original opponent was injured during training. He researched his opponent online and found little except that Ward had a Tyson-like right hand. "Those guys are tough because one punch and your night could be over," Assenza said. "But I got in there early and connected and hurt him and after that everything I threw landed." It took just a minute and 27 seconds before the fight was stopped. BTC 2 will have 10 fights on the card, including Scott Hudson (64-1) facing Adam Hazelton (5-1); Anastasia Nikolakakos (1-0) vs. Francis Hernandez (1-1); Vladimir Kazbekov (2-2) vs. P .J. Ste-Marie (0-0); Julien Leblanc (4-0) against Marcus Finch (8-10) and Matt Dimarcantonio (9-7) facing Jacob Bohn (5-4). Tickets range from $35 to $75. Doors open at 6 p.m. ing for failed to materialize. After an all-star season at a Kansas junior college, Ohio finally delivered the opportunity. Rourke completed 6 of 10 passes for 72 yards and ran the ball six times for 55 yards in his debut 59-0 win. He became the first Ohio player since 2012 to rush for three or more TDs in a game. -- Herb Garbutt Memorable debut for Holy Trinity grad Nathan Rourke in Division 1 football OPEN HOUSE SUNday 2-4PM chris clarke Broker of Record 905-338-1130 138 John street $999,000 Spacious 2+1 bedroom, 2.2 bath, 2272 s.f. freehold town home with fantastic downtown location. Premium end unit, double car attached garage, hardwood, sunken living room, eat-in kitchen with built-in appliances and maple cabinetry. Low maintenance exterior. Walk to downtown, lake, grocery stores, restaurants. Trafalgar real esTaTe services inc., Brokerage*