247 Fighting Championships brings Brawl in the Burgh 21: Live MMA to the Hollywood Casino at the Meadows in Washington, PA, this Saturday, April 20.

And you better believe this pro-am fight card promises action from start to finish.

At the top of lineup, two of Pittsburgh’s biggest stars await the spotlight.

Former UFC lightweight Khama “The Deathstar” Worthy emerges from a brief retirement from the sport to take on Ohio’s Jimmy Sandlin in the main event, while local favorite Justin “The General” Patton faces 4-1 Miami-based pro featherweight Martin Justiz.

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Those fights absolutely rule –– and the local boys have their work cut out for them big time against these out-of-town beasts. Buckle up.

But that’s not what I’m here to talk about today.

Today, I’m here to talk about Southside Boxing Club’s JR Kazalas vs. American Top Team – Happy Valley’s Noah Hermosillo.

Why?

The answer’s simple: It’s as high-level of a novice amateur fight as you’ll find in Pennsylvania –– or anywhere on planet Earth.

Let me explain.

JR Kazalas = Pedigree + In-Cage Perfection

Southside Boxing Club’s Kazalas boasts some experience inside the cage, rocketing off to a 2-0 record since making his MMA debut last July.

You can’t start much better than that, but his success should surprise no one in Western PA. Kazalas placed twice at states while wrestling at Quaker Valley, and he went on to compete at the D1 level for Binghamton University.

We’ve seen wrestling serve as the great equalizer in MMA time and again, and Kazalas’ foundation there is rock solid.

Even better for him, though, is the fact that he linked up with Matt Leyshock and Southside Boxing Club to build his overall game. An old-school-minded trainer, Leyshock’s worked with some of the area’s best fighters of all time, including Bill Hutchinson, Gregg Rudolph, Cody Law, and countless others.

Basically, if you tried to make a name for yourself in combat sports in Pittsburgh, you went through Leyshock at some point.

Now, Kazalas looks to establish himself as the leader of the next wave out of Southside Boxing Club, and he’s doing all the right things so far.

But Hermosillo isn’t going down easily…

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Hermosillo = D2 National Champion

Yes, you read that correctly. A D2 National Champion wrestler from Adams State makes his MMA debut Saturday at Brawl in the Burgh 21, and his name is Noah Hermosillo.

Kazalas’ pedigree is fantastic –– but don’t expect Hermosillo to be intimidated on Saturday night inside the Hollywood Casino at the Meadows Event Center.

Besides his illustrious collegiate wrestling background, Hermosillo transitioned to MMA with a purpose. He trains at American Top Team – Happy Valley, and he’s putting in the necessary work to make it to the next level. To him, this is an MMA debut, yes, but it’s also the first chapter in what he expects to be a long, long novel.

And about that gym, American Top Team – Happy Valley… It rings a bell, right? Bo Nickal. Anthony Cassar. Musa Alsulaimani.

Led by head coach and fifth-degree black belt Ailton Barbosa, American Top Team – Happy Valley has emerged as a premier fighting location in Pennsylvania, and for good reason.

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Will Hermosillo establish himself as the next future star out of the gym? We get to see the first step in the journey Saturday, April 20 at Brawl in the Burgh 21.

So, yeah. You might wanna get those Brawl in the Burgh 21 tickets…

And you might wanna do it quickly. Seats are extremely limited and will likely sell out before doors open on Saturday night.

Get ’em while you can. We’ll see yinz there.

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