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Saturday at 7:30 a.m. Jason MacKay will enter the mixed martial arts fighting cage for the last time.
At 33, MacKay has decided to break free of the competition and enter the world of promotion for the sport.
But as a farewell treat for the fans who have cheered him on by the hundreds, he is putting on this one last show against the undefeated Winnipeg native, Alex Sung.
“I’ve had great support here the last number of years, and I hope that will show here Saturday night,” MacKay said. “I hope everyone will come out to say goodbye.”
Stylistically, MacKay said the men should match each other well and put on a good show making the fight both memorable for them and the audience.
“I’ve never had a 15 minute match, but if I was going to last 15 minutes in a cage I think it will be with him,” MacKay said.
Since he started fighting in 2006, MacKay has earned the title of Canadian Champion in the lightweight division and has won eight of his 10 fights.
While he likes the sport, he has two main reasons for getting out of the ring.
First is the amount of time it takes to train for professional level competition.
“It’s very time consuming and if you want to fight the best guys in the world, you’ve got to be 100 per cent committed to it,” MacKay said.
The second reason is the anxiety.
“This isn’t a real natural thing for me,” MacKay said. “I’ve always battled with the tension leading up to the event. That aspect I’m not going to miss.”
Oddly enough, MacKay said he’s not afraid when he’s in the ring &ndash just on the days leading up to an event and in the moments before he enters the cage. But once the door has shut, the adrenaline takes over.
“For me it’s the fight or flight response,” he said. “Luckily I’ve had the fight response and I’ve been able to do very well.”
He said he’s also looking forward to getting into the promotion end of things with his friend Chris White, an primary teacher by day, who has been helping him train since his first fight.
“I want to go back to a little lighter training and more freedom and between Chris and I, hopefully we’re going to build the promotion of AFC as opposed to focusing on my career,” MacKay said.
Working together they hope to bring Absolute Fighting Canada events to more Maritime towns including Trenton and give local fighters a chance to get the experience and exposure to make it big.
Many fighters have been training for years on their own, but have had little opportunity in the past.
“It costs a lot of money to train and put that kind of time in and they don’t always get recognized for it,” White says. “This is a chance to give them a little more.”
In the last two years there have only been four shows in this area. White and MacKay hope to change that. Their projection now is to hold 10 shows in the next three years.
MacKay hopes that together they can raise the bar for this sport in the area by treating the fighters and the audience right and keeping ticket prices low.
White said it’s great working under the AFC because they are not tied to any fighters or clubs which allows the fights to be more focused on the community and local fighters. “The intent is to showcase local players &ndash Maritimers,” White said. “Not fly everybody in.”
After the fight Saturday a charity beer garden will be held with proceeds going to a non-profit which focuses on self-defence.
Northern Nova Scotia, New Glasgow, Pictou, Westville, Trenton, Stellarton, Pictou County.