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CFFC's Philadelphia Debut Will Showcase Undefeated Prospect Paul Felder Versus MMA Veteran Marc Stevens for the Vacant Lightweight Title

(PRESS RELEASE) -- Philadelphia, PA –On Saturday, March 22, 2014, Cage Fury Fighting Championships (CFFC) will crown a new a lightweight champion when Paul Felder (6-0) takes on Marc Stevens (16-8) at the 2300 Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. "“For the past couple of years, we’ve been actively searching for a home in Philadephia, PA with a blue collar appeal,” said CFFC CEO Robert Haydak, Jr. “The 2300 Arena offers just that. The entire management team there embraced our vision and things are off to a great start. Being in the heart of Philadelphia to showcase some of the top fighters in the sport is something we've been working on for quite some time. Our events take place at several of the top venues on the East Coast. Arena 2300 will be no exception and we're excited to provide our fighters will a blue collar setting in a venue that is up close and personal for the fans. We plan on making this a permanent home. The staff here has been amazing to work with thus far."

After Charlie Brenneman went back to the UFC, he vacated the CFFC lightweight title leaving an opportunity to for two warriors to battle for the right to be called champion. Those two warriors, Felder and Stevens, are ready for a five round war. “Paul Felder is one of CFFC’s fastest rising stars and with a couple of huge wins he deserves the opportunity,’ said CFFC President Mike Constantino. “Marc Stevens is a very stiff test for Felder and Marc is riding a two-fight win streak in MMA as well as some recent vicious knockout’s in Muay Thai competition. By adding Felder to that list, Marc would be a deserving champion.”

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Coming into the title fight, Felder has high hopes with a victory. “Feel honored and excited to fight for the belt,” said the Philly native. “It seems the title holders in CFFC have a nice record of going to the UFC.”

Although this will be his first ever scheduled fight to potentially go beyond three rounds, Felder isn’t changing much in his routine. “The only thing that's different is the intensity and amount of rounds I do a day,” continued Felder. “I also really picked up my conditioning at Hardbat Crossfit. I also brought in Aaron Meisner to be my Muay Thai coach and he kills me on the pads.”

"Paul is a hard nose scrappy fighter from right here in Philadelphia,” continued Haydak. “Being on his home turf with a chance to walk away with the title is something he's earned. He never puts on a boring fight and constantly looks for the finish."

In regards to his opponent, Felder knows how dangerous Stevens is and that the fight can be over quickly either way. “I think Marc is a very tough grinding type of fighter with a ton of experience. It's going to be a huge challenge. This fight can end fast if one of us lands something clean early but more likely it will be a hard fight but I see myself winning. I'm hungry and am training my ass off to get that belt. It's not going be a fight you want to miss.”

Stevens is a veteran of the sport and has won tournaments on the regional scene and was also featured on season 12 of the Ultimate Fighter. This will be his CFFC debut and he will try to make the most of his immediate title shot. “Fighting for CFFC in general is awesome,” said the New York native. “They are a great organization, giving a lot of fighters good exposure. When Charlie went to the UFC I knew I had to get that belt and keep it with a MVC managed fighter. I'm pumped.”

“Marc has always been on our radar,” said Haydak. “He’s very well known in the Northeast and he’s a great fighter. A veteran of The Ultimate Fighter(TUF), Strikeforce and two previous title fights made him an obvious choice to be a contender for the CFFC Lightweight Championship. When Charlie (Brenneman) got the call to go back to the UFC, Marc quickly made it known that he wanted to be considered for a title fight. It took a whole two seconds before we started to search for his opponent.”

Stevens had a recent camp change and he believes it will give him the necessities to win the title. “I'm training at Pacific Health Club with a lot of great coaches,” said Stevens. “My boxing coach is there and I have an awesome new Muay Thai coach, Jimmy Andrello. Jon Fitch is here and one of my main training partners Rodrigo Botti is here running the jiu-jitsu. A lot of great fighters are passing through. Matt Brown was just here and I've got a lot of great Muay Thai guys to work with for this camp. I’m also still training at my own gym, Jiu-Jitsu Nation with a lot of up-and-coming guys that are going to make noise in 2014. They are really pushing me this camp.”

Stevens understands what Felder can bring but he is confident in his own skills. “I have a lot of respect for Felder. He's undefeated. He's a good striker and uses it well in MMA. That being said I'm better than him everywhere. I have a lot more experience and have fought great strikers before. I'm on a roll in my last three fights and am excited to test myself against an up-and-comer like Paul. With that being said about Paul, I know for a fact he's going to come in shape and ready to fight. I've gone 25 minutes before and he hasn't. That for me is a big advantage. I've put a serious amount of time into my striking and plan on adding another knock out to my resume.”

CFFC 33 will also feature Tom Marcellino (5-2) versus Ricky Nuno (2-2) while Travis Wynn (5-1) looks to get back into the title mix against Dave Morgan (5-3) in a flyweight bout.

This card will also feature the area’s top amateurs from the most prominent schools. For more information on this card including where to purchase tickets and how to watch online, log on to www.CFFC.tv.

About Cage Fury Fighting Championships Cage Fury Fighting Championships (www.cffc.tv) is a pioneer in bringing prominent and elite MMA talent to the east coast. Since CFFC’s debut, past and current champions have competed at the highest level. Before they were in the UFC, Jim and Dan Miller were both CFFC champions. That legacy remains the same today. Three current CFFC champions, George Sullivan, Aljamain Sterling, and Charlie Brenneman are currently on the UFC roster. Current UFC fighters Zach Makovsky, Nick Catone, Nah-Shon Burrell, and John Howard have also competed in CFFC prior to their entry to the UFC. Also, CFFC helped jump start the career of internet fighting sensation Kimbo Slice, whose first foray into MMA came in the CFFC cage when he fought former boxing champion Ray “Merciless” Mercer. CFFC continues to thrive as one of the best regional promotions in the world while focusing on treating fighters with respect and giving the fans the ultimate MMA experience.
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