Kitchener’s Pytlik to headline MMA card
KITCHENER — Professional mixed martial arts is coming to the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium.
Burlington-based BTC Fight Promotions, the leader in Ontario MMA events, is bringing a slate of fights to the East Avenue barn on Feb. 29.
The promotion has long eyed Waterloo Region as a destination point and secured a deal to host some of the best Canadian up-and-comers in the cage in BTC 9: Rampage.
“We’ve had our mind set on Kitchener,” said BTC’s Mitchell Solsky. “There is a pretty good MMA market there. It’s something that we’ve wanted to do for a while. The Aud is a venue we really like and we finally pulled the trigger on it.”
The fighters have not been officially announced but Kitchener welterweight Pat Pytlik is expected to clash in one of the main events.
Pytlik has seven wins and one loss on the mat, with his wins all by knockout.
The 30-year-old is coming off the first loss of his MMA career after being choked unconscious last March in the second round by Jake Lindsey in the main event at Unified MMA 36.
The standup specialist, who has an extensive background in Muay Thai, has been nursing various injuries since that scrap but is ready to return to MMA.
He did fit in a boxing bout — the first of his career — while sidelined and came away with a split-decision draw against veteran Marco Parente this past September in Hamilton.
BTC has taken the reins as the leader of MMA promotions in Ontario ever since the Score Fighting Series folded about seven years ago. “There was a big void in Ontario mixed martial arts,” said Solsky. “We wanted to fill that void and have a place for fighters in Ontario to actually fight.”
The promotion has put on nine cards across the province. The last one, in Niagara Falls, was headlined by super lightweight champ Scott Hudson, who successfully defended his strap against American Jarel Askew of Team Alpha Male, which was founded by UFC fighter Urijah Faber.
“The guys that are going to be fighting on this card are the best fighters in Canada,” said Solsky. “We’re trying to promote Canadian fighters as best we can. We’re serving as a proving ground for guys that want to go to the next level.”
Fighters and ticket prices will likely be known next week.