Looking for hard fights Dominic Mazzotta readies himself for the future

Tonight one of the most highly anticipated fights of the month takes place at Stage AE in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Chris Dunn (8-4) and Dominic Mazzotta (3-1) are set to headline the Gladiators of the Cage: The North Shore to Power VI event. For the first time since his loss, Mazzotta will be stepping back into the cage.

That loss came against one of the regions biggest prospects in Cody Garbrandt (4-0). The two of them met this past March at the promotions The North Shore’s Rise to Power IV event. It was the first time that Mazzotta was ever stopped inside the cage in his career. Earlier this week, “The Honeybadger” stopped by The Kyote Ugly Show to talk with host David McKinney.

During the show, Mazzotta informed McKinney that he suffered a couple of injuries during that fight that kept him on the sidelines. Ideally, Mazzotta would have liked to get back in the cage as early as a month later. “I was ready to get right back on the horse,” explained Mazzotta. “It didn’t do anything but motivate me to get better and better every day in the gym. I’m feeling better than I ever did.”

The conversation then moved to his fight this weekend. When asked about his thoughts on his opponent, Dominic Mazzotta had this to say, “It’s a good match-up. He’s a dangerous fighter.” Both of them are very dangerous fighters on their feet. To say this is a good match-up is an understatement.

The two of them share a common opponent in Jordan Espinosa. Both of them were victorious against the standout wrestler. In his last outing, Dunn was able to pick up the unanimous decision win. Meanwhile, Mazzotta was able to submit Espinosa in the second round of their fight this past December.

While you could dissect the fights featuring Espinosa, both Dunn and Mazzotta have grown tremendously since their performances inside the cage. The biggest threat for Mazzotta is getting worn out and becoming sloppy during their fight. Dunn has cardio for days. In fact, he might just have the best cardio out of every fighter in our entire region. If Mazzotta can stay composed during the fight, and keep his distance from the elusive Dunn he has a good chance of the fight going his way.

If they decide to keep it standing, neither fighter has a clear advantage as both. Although Mazzotta does have a knockout. This type of uncertainty can pose a serious threat to Dunn. He is known to keep his hands down while moving around the cage the way he so famously does.

When, and if, the fight goes do the ground is when it will get interesting. Both of their many victories have come by some sort of submission while on the ground. To say one has the edge over the other would not be telling the truth. Either way this fight goes the fans are the ones who will get to see what is sure to be a remarkable fight.

The Future of Honeybadger

Looking past this weekend, Dominic Mazzotta is already thinking about his future. “I’m very confident that I’m going to be in the UFC,” said the Pennsylvania native. Of course, before he thinks about his dreams as a Zuffa fighter he needs first to get past the always dangerous Dunn.

Wanting to face the toughest opponents he could get, Mazzotta was happy to accept this fight with Dunn. He knows that taking easy fights will not be beneficial to his career in the long run “You have guys that take easy fights to get into the UFC, but lose two fights, and they’re out,” he told McKinney. He is absolutely right.

In fact, there was a prime example of a fighter who had nothing but easy fights earn a spot with the UFC. Needless to say that fighter suffered a first round loss. Dominic Mazzotta knows what he needs to do to ensure he not only makes it onto the national scene but also stay there. But tonight, he has to be the one getting his hand raised.

The action goes down at Stage AE in Pittsburgh with the first fight scheduled for 7:00PM ET. Tickets for the event are still available for purchase at the door. If you are not able to make the event, the organization will be streaming the event live on iPPV for $20- the price is definitely worth it! Finally, if you are busy tonight and can’t watch the stream, stay tuned to BluegrassMMA.com for all of the results.