FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Lewiston, Maine (September 4, 2014) –This Saturday night, September 6 in Lewiston, New England Fights (NEF), America's number-one regional fight promotion, presents its next mixed martial arts (MMA) event, "NEF XIV." The fight card will feature a professional bantamweight bout between Elias Leland (0-0) and Brandon Bushaw (0-0). After successful amateur careers, both athletes will be making their professional debut. Recently, Leland was the guest on the NEF Podcast where he discussed the upcoming bout with NEF co-owner and matchmaker Matt Peterson.
Leland, who trains out of the Academy of MMA in Portland, Maine, amassed an impressive 3-1 record as an amateur. He has won his last three fights, all in the NEF cage. Both Leland and his opponent Bushaw are undefeated in the NEF cage. Leland first spoke about his introduction to the sport of MMA.
"When I first started this journey it was because I always liked to wrestle around and mess around with my friends," recalled Leland. "I was very, very competitive. I never got the chance to do any sort of martial arts whatsoever. I always wanted to try karate, but it wasn't an option as I was growing up. As I got a little bit older, I needed to change my habits... I saw a few fights on TV and I was like 'I gotta try that.' So, I went into Jay's gym and I was hooked ever since. I've been doing it for six years now straight. I train like six days a week, even when I'm off-training, I just constantly train. It's my love. Jay's given me a brown belt just recently in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. I'm very proud of that."
Leland's only loss in the MMA cage to date was his debut in the fall of 2011. He lost by submission to the current Maine State MMA Featherweight Champion Ray "All Business" Wood (4-0). When most fighters will call it quits after suffering their first defeat, Leland was able to take that early loss and transform it into a highly successful amateur career.
"First, I'm not gonna stop on a loss," exclaimed Leland. "There's no fucking way that's gonna happen! Like I said, I'm very competitive and that's just something I'm not gonna do. Second, after I got over the cockiness and the 'I'm the greatest, how could this actually happen,' I sat down and I really paid attention to what happened and what made me actually lose that fight. From anything that you do, from any fight, anything, you can always walk away win, lose or draw with some sort of knowledge."
This Saturday, Leland makes his professional debut against Brandon Bushaw. Bushaw is a native of Westbrook, Maine, but now lives in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. A former two-time Maine State Wrestling champion and veteran of the Michigan State University wrestling program, Bushaw put together a fantastic 7-4 record as an amateur in MMA. It will definitely be a major test for Leland in his pro debut, much like he faced with Ray Wood in his amateur debut.
"I think he's a fairly good wrestler, so I'm going to be watching out for that," said Leland of Bushaw. "I don't know what he's got to bring with kickboxing or real brutal ground and pound, especially with my Jiu-Jitsu. With us matched up I think it's gonna be a very interesting fight. I'm gonna try to keep it standing and bang a little bit. It'll be very interesting to see how he reacts to that. In most of his fights, I've noticed that he goes for the takedown fairly quick, and I think I think I've got a couple tricks up my sleeve to stuff that."
Moving into the professional ranks is a serious step in the career of any mixed martial artist. Leland touched on his goals for the future as a professional fighter.
"I would like to continue to fight as long as my body will let me," Leland declared. "Then, I'll eventually open up a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu gym. I've decided from every single fight that I do that I'm taking some of whatever I make and I'm putting it aside into an account to build up and get interest so that I can eventually open up a gym. I don't know when that will be exactly. I've got a long road ahead of me before that will happen."
To listen to the full NEF Podcast with Elias Leland please visitwww.NewEnglandFights.com/
To learn more about the Academy of MMA in Portland, Maine please visit their website www.TheAcademyMaine.com. If you would like to contact Elias Leland you can send him a message through his personal Facebook page "Elias.Leland."
NEF's next MMA event, “NEF XIV,” is scheduled to take place thisSaturday, September 6, 2014 at the Androscoggin Bank Colisee in Lewiston, Maine with a bell time of 6:00 pm. In the main event of the evening, Featherweight Champion Ray "All Business" Wood (4-0) returns from injury after a year of recovery against Brazil's Gabriel Baino (6-1). Bantamweight Champion Paul Gorman (10-8) defends against Tim "The Terror" Goodwin (8-4). Plus, Bruce "Pretty Boy" Boyington (6-7) and Jesse "The Viking" Erickson (3-2) will meet for the Lightweight Title, Ryan Sanders (6-5) faces Ryan Quinn (10-4-1), and John "First Class" Raio (2-5) competes in his final fight.
Tickets for "NEF XIV" start at just $25 and are on sale now atwww.TheColisee.com or by calling The Colisee box office at207.783.2009 x 525. For more information on the event and fight card updates, please visit the promotion’s website at www.NewEnglandFights.com.
About New England Fights
New England Fights (“NEF”) is a fight events promotions company. NEF’s mission is to create the highest quality events for Maine’s fighters and fans alike. NEF’s executive team has extensive experience in combat sports management, events production, media relations, marketing, legal and advertising.
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