North Andover's Shakir battles in main event of Combat Zone MMA 57 Friday night at Rockingham Park

North Andover’s Nuri Shakir, who is a legend in MMA circles, doesn’t expect many surprises when he steps into the cage to battle Brett Oteri in the main event of Combat Zone 57 “Clash of the Titans” on Friday night. That’s because Oteri isn’t exactly an ingénue himself.

The pair of well-seasoned combatants are titans indeed and have a combined 58 fights in the MMA pro division. Shakir’s 18-21 record has vaunted him to the top of the middleweight ranks among active middleweights in New York and he is ranked 11th in New England. Oteri (12-7) is ranked 7th in the welterweight class in the region and their fight at Rockingham Park will be at 180 pounds.

“There’s no secret. We both know what we’re going to do and what our game plans are. He’s a good fighter and he’s very strong. He can strike, but he’s mostly a very strong grappler. My game plan is to beat him. Most likely, I’ll knock him out. That’s what I’m known for. I’m known for having fast hands,” said Shakir, a senior microbiologist at Davol in Woburn, MA.

Shakir, who also owns Gate City Gym in Nashua and teaches rising stars including undefeated Combat Zone lightweight champion Shawn Melanson from Manchester, has fought in Canada, New York, New Jersey and throughout New England earning his lofty reputation. He’s even been known as the local gatekeeper for the sport’s highest level.

“I’ve been around a long time and I’ve fought a lot of UFC guys who were coming in and out of the UFC. Dana (White, UFC president) was sending guys over to fight me, and if they beat me they would have their next fight in the UFC, but if they lost to me they didn’t go anywhere else,” he said.

Now 36, he still has the drive and the passion.

“I have the same fire I always did,” said Shakir, who ironically has used one of the products he works on at Davol, the blood clotting agent Avitene, to close deep cuts around his eyes and on his face sustained in the ring. “It’s all about the fight. I’ve always been about the martial arts and about combat. I can see me doing this until I can’t do it anymore. I feel great and this fight should be fun.”

The main event is one of the 11 amateur and pro MMA and kickboxing matches on the highly-competitive card. The co-main event is another pro MMA bout at 155 pounds between Devin Powell (4-1) and Jeff “Candyman” Anderson (11-10), who is looking for redemption after losing to Lewis Corapi by decision in Combat Zone 56 last time out.

Another highly-anticipated match is for Combat Zone’s first Amateur Kickboxing Heavyweight championship and it features Steve Walker (5-2) against Franklin Johnson (2-1).

Four fighters representing Team Burgess in Manchester- Matt Gordon, Ramano Medina, Ray Welch, and Kevin Flanagan- will be making their debuts in amateur and kickboxing matches. The best adjudged amateur fighter of the night will take home the trophy from Chang’s Taekwondo America in Methuen, MA.

Tickets to Combat Zone 57 are $40, $50, $75, $90 and $120 for ringside seating and parking is free. Doors to the racetrack’s sports club at 5:30 PM and the first fight taps off at 7:00 PM.

For tickets and more information visit http://www.czmma.com or call co-promoter Jamison Kattar at 978-361-6772.

The card, subject to change is: “*** Amateur Kickboxing ***
185lbs Connor Duffy 0-0 (Revere, MA) vs Pericles George 0-0 (Pawtucket, RI)
185lbs Lavelle Wesley 0-0 (Revere, MA) vs Matt Gordon 0-0 (Manchester, NH)
155lbs Freddy Bermudez 0-0 (Pawtucket, RI) vs Ramano Medina 0-0 (Manchester, NH)
160lbs Alex Dolan 0-0 (Medway, MA) vs Ray Welch 0-0 (Manchester, NH)
*** Amateur MMA ***
145lbs Kurt Daniels 0-3 (Wakefield, MA) vs Dan Ward 0-5 (Plaistow, NH)
145lbs Fernando Lopez 0-1 (No. Waterboro, ME) vs Brandon Marotte 0-0 (Plaistow, NH)
155lbs CJ Kevlin 2-2 (Gilford, NH) vs Nick Fiore 0-0 (Salem, NH)
130lbs James Palmer 0-1 (Wakefield, MA) vs Kevin Flanagan 0-0 (Manchester, NH)
*** Professional Kickboxing ***
185lbs Buck Pineau 0-1 (No. Waterboro, ME) vs Ralph Johnson 9-16 (Worcester, MA)
*** Amateur Kickboxing Heavyweight Title Fight ***
225lbs Franklin Johnson 2-1 (Pawtucket, RI) vs Steve Walker 5-2 (Boston, MA)
*** Professional MMA ***
155lbs Devin Powell 4-1 (So. Berwick, ME) vs Jeff Anderson 11-10 (Lincoln, RI)
*** CZ 57 Main Event MMA***
155lbs Nuri Shakir 18-21 (Nashua, NH) vs Brett Oteri 12-7 (Norwood, MA)
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