The First Class MMA product had to overcome some significant pre-fight trash talk and illegal hair pulling in round one before finding his groove and getting the victory, much to the delight of the Portland Maine crowd. 

We asked Hylton if this was the most gratifying win of his career, and here what is “The RasQuatch” had to say: “Yes, and ironically enough, yeah there was a lot of trash talk going on but it wasn’t so much that. I heard and felt everything last Saturday night. It was absolutely beautiful.”

The trash talk and hostility from his opponent was something that continued to creep into the conversation.

“My only response to the trash talk was okay, I’m gonna let you throw absolutely everything that you can at me,” said Hylton “Go ahead throw in the kitchen sink too and lets see what you can make stick and regardless of whatever he had said prior to stepping in the cage with me, it wasn’t enough”.

In between rounds one and two, there was a special moment that took place. Hylton’s teenage daughter, Genieva, was yelling very loudly trying to get her father’s attention. Ras proceeded to speak directly to his daughter to calm her nerves. “The tenor of Geneiva’s voice let me now that she might be a little concerned with the way things are going, and I just wanted to let her know that I heard her and I was going to use what she was talking about.” His daughter is an up and coming combat sport athlete in her own right, so Hylton takes what she says very seriously. 

One new wrinkle to Hylton’s camp is former competitor and BKFC heavyweight Chris Sarro. The two met last year at NEF 40 where Sarro KO’d Ras in the very first round. The two men have since began a friendship that has seen Ras travel up to Sarro’s gym in Ellsworth to train together. The key catalyst for this is Hylton’s wife, Janice, who started messaging Sarro directly so the two men could find time to train together. Asked if there was one thing Sarro has helped with more than any, Hylton answered “Simplification. Really the perspective shift from Sarro and his coach Garth is what I needed to get back to.”

Now, Ras Hylton has accepted a fight for Premier FC against Terrance Jean Jacques for the Cruiserweight Title on February 29, in Springfield Massachusetts.

Jacques is a former D1 wrestler who beat Hylton’s teammate and friend Nick Gulliver in 2017. His teammate’s loss gives Hylton a little more motivation to go in and win, and get some retribution for Gulliver in the process. “Yeah, I’ll admit there is some saltiness going on on my part. I feel like [that fight] didn’t really exemplify what Nick is capable of and yeah I want that strap.”

Hylton wasn’t quick to predict a round one finish, but does see himself getting his hand raised. And ultimately he envisions a KO win for himself. ”I don’t know exactly when, I’m not gonna call it. But yeah at some point.”

Watch our full chat with Ras Hylton below!

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White landed a huge front kick right out of the gate that stunned his opponent and ultimately led to his demise. Following the bout, we asked Nate if he could tell Cosco was rocked after landing the shot. “Oh yeah, when I landed that shot I knew it was over,” White replied. “I could just feel the power behind it, the way it kicked his head up, I knew it was over after that.”

We proceeded to dig to find out if this shot was instinctual, or something White saw in watching tape on his opponent. “I knew a kick would be open, you could see in the beginning of the fight we kind of just stand there and I was just waiting for him to open up a little bit and as soon as he did I threw the kick.”

White knew the importance of beating a veteran fighter like Cosco. Nate is early on in his career, and Brian Cosco has had more then double the amount of fights as the undefeated amateur. “It was big. Like I said coming in I knew Brian was a tough dude, so to be able to beat him and beat him in the fashion I did, it’s hard to put into words how great that feels. I’ve never felt something like that in my life.”

The Mule went on to discuss how amazing it was to watch his head coach Jesse Erickson spring the upset over previously undefeated prospect Josh Harvey in the Co-Main event of the evening. “I’m not surprised. I know how hard he works, I know what his skill level is, I wasn’t surprised at all. I know what he’s capable of and he stuck to his game plan and worked it like a wizard.”

Finally, we look forward to NEF 43 in April. “I do have a fight for NEF in April, I’m not allowed to say names yet but I’m excited to go there, I love that venue.”

Check out our full chat with Nate White below!

The post Nate White on NEF 42 Win: “I’ve never felt something like that in my life” appeared first on Cageside Press.

Nate was originally slated to fight Norman Fox at 130lbs, but Fox withdrew for undisclosed reasons. Although Boucher is still excited to face Caterino in his debut, there is some disappointment as well after Fox had some pre-fight trash talk that fired the former champion up. “I am pretty upset that I didn’t get to share the cage with Norman, I was looking forward to that one,” he told us recently. “There has not been many of my fights where there was any trash talk and I like shutting people like that up.” Boucher went on to explain why this fight with Caterino is better for him. “I personally think it’s a step up in competition so I think it will be much more of an impressive fight.”

Boucher explained that the respectful thing to do (regarding his new opponent taking the fight) on short notice is to give an extra 5 pounds to his opponent, hence the 140 pound bout. This did not bother Nate much as he explained that “When I found out I definitely enjoyed a steak and baked potato that night.”

Nate also discussed what winning the amateur flyweight belt for NEF meant to him and for his confidence. “That feeling was long overdue. The way I see it [winning the belt] was just a formality part of it. I still strongly believe I won the fight against Justin Witham”. 

The Witham fight came in 2017, and had been for the then-vacant amateur flyweight title. Two years later, his second shot at gold had a much different outcome.

The CMBJJ product explained how he has been evolving since we last saw him inside the cage. “I’ve spent a lot of time absorbing and studying different techniques, I’m definitely excited to come in on the 8th and show my transition from amateur to professional,” he said.

As far as the fight with Chris Caterino goes, Boucher feels extremely confident. “I can say it all day and it shows time and time again, that my takedowns can’t be stopped.” Nate went on to explain why he believes he will be victorious come fight night. “I don’t think he will be able to maintain my pace or handle the pressure I give off. I have a very intense wrestling [with a] unique style. I think it’s gonna be a very grind-it-out first round, and I’ll catch him in the second.”

So what is next for Nate Boucher? He is getting ready to have his first child, expected in late March and the NEF standout anticipates taking some time off to be a Father. “Kelsey Mae Boucher will be introduced to the world on March 22nd, I’m definitely gonna focus on family after this fight.”

Check out the full chat with Nate Boucher below!

The post Nate Boucher to NEF flyweights: “My takedowns can’t be stopped.” appeared first on Cageside Press.