Local MMA Fighters to Compete Thursday at Seven Bridges

On Thursday night around 7:30 p.m. at the Cinemark movie theater at Seven Bridges in Woodridge you can catch films Men in Black 3 or the The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel. Or you can walk around behind the theater and see an entirely different kind of entertainment.

At Bobak's Signature Room Thursday night the United Combat League promotion will host a full night of mixed martial arts and Muay Thai kickboxing fights featuring six fighters who train out of on Ogden Avenue in Downers Grove. Five of the fighters will fight MMA while the sixth participates in a Muay Thai match.

One of the fighter's on Thursday's card—Pete Juska, a —will be making his MMA debut fighting in the Heavyweight division. Another fighter, Hassan Umer, wrestled for four years at . Juska and Umer's fights are two of an expected 13 fights in what is United Combat League's second event ever, following a late May event at Bourbon Street in Chicago.

The doors for Thursday's event will open up at 6:30 p.m. with fights starting at 7:30 p.m.. Tickets range in price from $20 for general admission/standing room only to $45 for seats in the first two rows. Tickets can be purchased ahead of time at CounterStrike or at the door on Thursday.

More information on the CounterStrike fighters (information provided by CounterStrike):

• James Camisa, (125 lbs.) from Hinsdale, IL. Camisa went to Hinsdale Central High School and currently attends the College of DuPage. His record is 1-1 after losing a close decision at his last fight.

• Matt Wilcox, (125 lbs.) from Lombard, IL. Wilcox attended Glenbard East High School and has a record of 5-0. This will be his first fight in eight months and his first under the CounterStrike MMA banner.

• Nick Savino from Warrenville, IL. Savino attended Wheaton-Warrenville High School and will attend Northern Illinois University in the Fall. Savino is a black-belt in Shotokan karate and this will be his amateur Muay Thai kickboxing debut.

• Hassan Umer (175 lbs.) from Downers Grove, IL. Umer attend South High and wrestled for DGS all four years of high-school. His record is 3-0 and he's a 3-stripe blue-belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu under .

• Andrew Potapenko (185 lbs.) from Hickory Hills, IL. Born in the Ukraine, Potapenko is an ex-rugby player with a 3-0 record who has trained with Team Alpha Male in Sacramento, CA with the likes of Uriah Faber, TJ Dillashaw, Joseph Benavidez and Danny Castillo.

• Pete Juska, (Heavyweight) from Westmont, IL. Juska is and runs many programs ranging from children's anti-bullying to women's safety. This will be Juska's MMA debut.