Hollett on a roll heading into next cage fight

By Monty Mosher

Halifax’s Roger Hollett will take some major momentum into his next fight this summer.

He gave away nearly eight inches to Montreal’s Ricardeau Francois on Saturday night at the Halifax Forum, but still collected the East Coast Combat light heavyweight championship to highlight Extreme Cage Combat V before 4,500 fans.

Hollett, 5-0, is already confirmed for a June 22 mixed martial arts fight against Lethbridge’s Jason Day, the undisputed light heavyweight champion in the Alberta fight scene. Francois is 12-8 and has lost four in a row, including one to Day.

Hollett obliterated Francois, belting him to the floor at the outset and raining blows on his face and head until Francois curled up and surrendered.

Francois’ only chance was to keep the stronger Hollett at a distance, but had no answer for Hollett’s superior power.

"It went great," Hollett, a man of few words, told the crowd in accepting the belt.

Hollett’s last two fights have lasted a combined 56 seconds after he knocked out Mike Maurer in Edmonton in February in 36 seconds.

In two other ECC title matches, Pictou County’s Jason Mackay also went to 5-0 by defeating Ontario’s Shaun Krysa for the lightweight belt and Montreal’s Cory MacDonald bloodied Rowan Cunningham of Port Williams for the welterweight championship.

Mackay’s fight with Krysa ended on an accidental foul in the second round and went to the scorecards with Mackay winning 19-18 on all three cards. Mackay immediately offered Krysa, 4-1, a rematch.

Krysa’s camp is irate over the decision, arguing Mackay committed an illegal kick to Krysa’s chin to end the match and the bout should be ruled a no-contest.

MacDonald knocked out Cunningham, who had a gash on his nose, in the second round. MacDonald is 5-1 and Cunningham 4-2.

The night also marked the first female bout in the ECC with Fall River’s Tannaya Hantelman losing to Montreal’s Valerie Letourneau in the first cage action for either fighter. Hantelman weighed 138 while Letourneau was 140.

Hantelman and Letourneau delivered a spirited battle, much to the delight of the fans, with the two delivering strike after strike and shaking off the damage.

But in the second round, Letourneau worked a left jab that had Hantelman’s nose running red. She finished Hantelman with a series of strikes and a punishing kick to the body that led to the stoppage.

On the undercard, Amherst’s Tim Skidmore stopped Halifax’s Tim Kelly with an armbar submission in the second round (185 pounds), Peter McGrath and Mike Scudder, both of Halifax, went the full three rounds with McGrath winning an impressive decision via a barrage of kicks (150 pounds) and Halifax’s Craig Skinner knocked out fellow Haligonian Curtis Fiander with a crunching left 17 seconds into the first round.

Ontario’s Stjepan Vujnovic won a quick first-round armbar submission over New Brunswick’s Andrew Belyea (185 pounds), Halifax’s Adam MacDonald pummelled Fredericton’s Michael Waugh for a TKO in less than two minutes (175 pounds), Halifax’s Matt Dutkoski locked an armbar on Kentville’s Matt Hamilton for a second-round submission and P.E.I.’s Travis Axworthy won on a first-round armbar submission over Ontario’s Shawn Marchand.

(Source)