Saturday is fight night

Published 11:59 pm Monday, September 7, 2009

“Ultimate Cage Fighting” is returning to Covington County.

On Saturday night starting at 7:30 p.m. at the old National Guard armory in Florala, mixed martial arts and full contact fans will have the opportunity to see fighters “clash in the cage.”

Florala native Sammy “Big Daddy” Collingwood and a friend simply known as “Bear” established the UCF two years ago.

UCF is similar to the Ultimate Fighting Championship, but UCF is not affiliated with the events people see on TV.

“It’s just cage fighting,” Collingwood said. “It’s the same thing you see on TV on the UFC matches. It’s the same rules. We do a lot of showcasing on the upcoming amateur talent.

“We’ve also put them on in Brewton, Montgomery, Dothan and just around the southern part of Alabama.”

This will be the ninth event UCF has staged.

Collingwood is a professional fighter who left the construction business and now works with the UCF. He also participates in the “Tuff-N-Uff Amateur Fighting Championship,” which bills itself as the future stars of mixed martial arts.

His most recent Tuff-N-Uff fight was in Las Vegas, Nev., on May 30, where he knocked out Russian Tomislav Lorber.

“I knocked him out in the second round,” he said of the victory.

Collingwood said Bear told him that it would be possible to do a show in Florala.

“I’m doing a pro fight in Florala so everybody in Florala can see me fight,” he said. “I grew up there and nobody has ever seen me fight around there. People aren’t going to be able to fly to Las Vegas and watch me fight.

“They aren’t going to be able to go to Biloxi and watch me fight,” he said. “For shows outside that, it costs $100 per ticket to watch a cage fight. Where I’m bringing it to you it’s only $20 per ticket general admission and $35 for ring-side.”

The last time a fight was held in Florala was on June 27 at the Masonic Lodge, and the first UCF show was held in Andalusia.

“I’ll be the first professional to fight before the intermission and the main event will include Eric ‘The Pit’ West. We’ve got a bunch of great fights,” Collingwood said. “It’s hard to say that one fight is going to be better than the other fight. The card is packed with a lot of good fighters.”

Collingwood has been fighting for three years now and he says he loves what he does.

“I found an outlet where I can get paid and enjoy it at the same time,” he said. “It’s as real as it gets.”

Doors open at 6:30 p.m. and the fights start at 7:30 p.m. For more information, contact Bear at 1-850-855-0124.