Canadian native Johnny Ross now makes his home in Texarkana USA. He had a dream about bringing Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) fighting to the city, and with the support of Craig Campbell did just that last March.
Ross and Campbell are currently promoting their second MMA PEAK FIGHTING EVENT to be held July 20 at the Texarkana Arkansas Convention Center.
“Craig and I met through the fight game; we coached against each other in some tournaments,” said Ross. “I really wanted to put an MMA event together, but didn’t know anyone else to go to. Craig was eager to get on board. We wanted to do this bigtime, doing things that nobody else was doing for the fighters. We’re there for our fighters, and I believe they know that after the March show.”
The approaching event will feature 15 bouts, including four professional fights and three amateur title contests.
Both promoters are expecting their second event in Texarkana to surpass the success of the inaugural show.
“We had a vision of three hundred or so fans coming to that first event,” said Campbell. “That would be awesome we thought, but then five-or-six hundred showed up and blew us away.
“We also saw the reception we got from the fighters. It seemed like everybody had a good time. Johnny and I knew we were going to do it again. We now have relationships with some of the fighters.”
Campbell fighting to keep MMA alive locally
Campbell, who has fought at different levels in the MMA, has personal reasons for bringing these fights to Texarkana. He notes there’s local fighters capable of being somebody special in the fight game. He was a guest Monday on Fox Sports Texarkana’s Matt Graves & Matt Knight Show Monday, saying that he wants to discover that talent, cultivate that talent, and build it.
“Instead of just having one fighter from Texarkana, there will be several,” he said. “People with great athletic skill have come out of the Texarkana area, but there has been no fight game here.”
Just to mention a few of the bouts on the card July 20, Daniel Staggs will square off with Courtnee Pitts. Featherweight and welterweight amateur title will be on the line when Jack McDaniels challenges Marcellus Brown, while Tyler Stewart takes on Joshua Acuay.
The ladies will also exchange blows when Cristina Crist tangles with Shannon Goughary.
The local promoters are eventually hoping to take their show to Longview, Hot Springs, Little Rock and Shreveport. However, it’s significant that the duo plans on having three or four events in Texarkana every year.
Ticket information is available online at peakfighting.com.