The path toward upward mobility in the mixed martial arts world usually is rooted in success at the developmental levels.
But there are occasions when opportunity knocks suddenly.
“The” Ryan Sanders of Bangor and Derek “Shatterproof” Shorey of Dover-Foxcroft both answered their cellphones this week and learned they will be competing as late replacements on a nationally televised MMA card next Friday night.
Sanders will fight Luis “Rockstar” Felix of Cranston, Rhode Island, in the main event of CES 32, to be held at the Twin River Casino in Lincoln, Rhode Island, and broadcast live Jan. 8 beginning at 9 p.m. on AXS-TV.
Shorey also will be on the CES 32 main card, facing Kody Nordby of Cumberland, Rhode Island, in a lightweight (155-pound) bout.
Felix is the reigning CES lightweight champion, but because Sanders took the fight just last Monday as a replacement for injured challenger Waylon Lowe, the bout will be held at a catchweight of 160 pounds.
“My only concern was that it was supposed to be a title fight but I told them there was no way I could make 155 on 10 days notice so they agreed to a non-title fight at 160,” said Sanders, an Etna native who trains at Young’s MMA in Bangor.
“After I win on Friday it will look good because I will have beaten Felix on short notice and then he’ll probably want a rematch and that one will be for the title and it will be really big.”
Sanders (9-7) has won three of his last four fights, including a five-round split-decision victory over Lucas Cruz on Oct. 3 in Portland to win the Toe 2 Toe Fights lightweight championship.
Cruz represents a common opponent between Sanders and Felix, who similarly scored a split-decision win over Cruz on Dec. 6, 2013.
“That not only reiterates that I belong with these guys but that I can beat them,” said the 28-year-old Sanders. “The game plan is to put on a great fight and hopefully move up the ladder.”
Sanders reached out to officials from CES, one of several regional promotions around the country whose live shows are broadcast by AXS-TV, in November after his win over Cruz.
“I knew they had the top three or four lightweights in the region under contract, so I said if anything happened to one of Luis’ opponents that I’d be ready for January,” said Sanders.
An effort to get Sanders elsewhere on CES’ Jan. 8 show fell through, then plans turned toward arranging for Sanders to fight for the promotion in March until Lowe pulled out of his match with Felix.
“It’s a huge opportunity. I’m really looking forward to the challenge,” said Sanders, who already was scheduled for a Feb. 7 fight for the Combat Zone promotion in Salem, New Hampshire. “He’s the No. 1 guy, and that’s the kind of fight I’ve always wanted.”
Felix (14-8) has won five of his last six bouts while ascending to the top of the CES ranks. A former high school and college wrestler, Felix also is well known for his striking skills.
“I’m getting more comfortable and more confident with my striking, so hopefully I’ll get the chance to display that,” said Sanders. “If I start getting the better of him I assume he’ll take it to the ground, but we’ll see.”
This will be Sanders’ second nationally televised fight and he hopes it turns out better than his 10-second loss to Michael “Venom” Page during Bellator 93 at the Androscoggin Bank Colisee in Lewiston on March 21, 2013.
“This is kind of the same situation,” said Sanders, “but this time around I think I’m more mature. I’m not going to let the pressure get to me. I’m not going to overthink it, I’m just going to go in there and have fun.
“I think that was my problem with Bellator, I took it too seriously and thought of it as too much as a big deal when it’s really not. It’s a different opponent and it’s a different name on the cage but everything else is the same. It’s just a fight and I’ve just got to go in there with the mentality that it’s fun, that I was born to do this, and to just fight.”
Shorey (3-3) learned about his opportunity last Monday from New England Fights co-owner and matchmaker Matt Peterson.
“I said yes immediately,” said Shorey, who operates Shatterproof Combat Club in Dexter. “Matt said he thought it would be a great opportunity for me and it’s also a great opportunity for people who normally don’t get to see me fight.”
Nordby — whose two previously scheduled opponents for this bout backed out — regularly competes at 135 pounds but agreed to fight Shorey at 145 to alleviate Shorey’s need to drop weight on short notice.
Nordby is 5-3 with all of his pro victories by rear naked choke.
“He’s a wrestler who wins by rear naked choke,” said Shorey. “Anyone who’s followed my amateur career knows that’s been my Achilles heel, so this is just a direct challenge that I need to overcome.”
At 5-foot-10, the 33-year-old Shorey will enter the cage with a six-inch height advantage over his 22-year-old opponent.
“I’ve got the reach advantage, I’m a lot taller than he is, but that hasn’t seemed to affect any of his past matches,” said Shorey. “He’s just a really good, game fighter and I’m excited for the challenge.”
For Shorey, the chance to perform for a nationwide television audience will be a dream come true.
“Honestly it means I can quit fighting, because that was the only goal I had, as vain as it sounds, to fight on TV,” said the 33-year-old Shorey, a former high school wrestling state champion for Foxcroft Academy in 1998.
“Obviously I’m not going to [retire], but it’s an incredible opportunity. I know the caliber of the fight is huge on top of the pressure of fighting on national TV. But I’m ready for it. This is all I’ve wanted and I’m going to be smiling through it all. Regardless of what happens, I’m going to leave everything in the cage next Friday night.”
