Double Trouble: Rosta Ready for MMA and Boxing Return

Dalton Rosta likes to fight and he doesn't care if it's in a cage, or in a ring.

Rosta, 22, who hails from New Castle, Pennsylvania starred in football and wrestling in high school before wrestling at the collegiate level.

His football and wrestling careers might be nothing more than a recent memory but Rosta still carries those physical and athletic traits with him as an undefeated MMA and amateur boxer.

With his amateur MMA record sitting at 5-0, Rosta is currently ranked #1 in Ohio and #2 in the whole midwest at light heavyweight.

The cage isn't the only place where Rosta is perfect as he is 4-0 as an amateur heavyweight boxer.

Though Rosta has looked invincible in the cage with all his wins coming by way of knockout, his career has recently suffered a minor setback in the form of an injury. 

"I had knee surgery back in May which put me out of the Golden Gloves as well", said Rosta.  "Back in February, I tore my meniscus in three places and was told I needed surgery but I had a fight for a title in March for the Pinnacle FC so I decided to postpone the surgery so I fought in that fight with a torn meniscus".

With knee surgery behind him and his training once again at a full go, Rosta is excited to get back into the cage and the ring.

Rosta will first climb into the cage for the first ever Made Men Promotions MMA event being held at the Rivers Casino on July 14th as he will be taking on 32-year-old Devon Williams (4-0) of Philadelphia for the Made Men Promotions light heavyweight championship belt.

Though Williams might have an unblemished record, Rosta sees this as more of an opportunity than a reason for concern. 

"It feels a lot better than most fights against somebody who already has some losses," said Rosta.  "You go into the fight knowing this guy hasn't been beaten but once you beat him your the first person to do it".

Following his battle in the cage at the Rivers Casino, Rosta will go back into boxing mode as will once again make the trip to Pittsburgh to fight at the Meadows Casino in a Pro-Am event on August 4th.

Despite not being in the boxing ring as much as he has been in the cage lately, Rosta attributes his boxing ability to a great portion of his success in MMA.

"I'm not much of a kicker.  I practice my kicks but as far as my MMA fights I haven't even thrown one kick and haven't needed to so I've pretty much have taken everyone out with my hands and my wrestling", said Rosta when asked how boxing helps him in the cage.

Though Rosta is currently participating in both of the two main combat sports one thing is for certain,  this kid is going to be a household name in the near future no matter which path he ultimately follows.

                                  

Youngstown Boxing Scene Heats Up

Youngstown has seen the weather hit 90-plus degrees the past few days, but as the weather continues to heat up so is the boxing scene in the city at both the professional and amateur levels.

Two Youngstown professionals have matches lined up according to BoxRec in the coming months this summer.

Alejandro Popo Salinas (9-2) will be first up when he heads to the Hollywood Casino in Columbus on July 28th to take on 24-year-old Hakeem Watkins (6-3) of Whitehall, OH in a scheduled 8-round lightweight matchup. 

Salinas, 23, will be looking to get back in the win column after his shocking unanimous decision loss in his own backyard at the Palermo Center to Uganda native Sulaiman Segawa in March.

Danny Rosenberger (3-4-3) will be the next to step into the ring this summer when he heads to Pittsburgh on August 11th at the Rivers Casino and does battle for the fourth time in 2018.

Rosenberger, 28, who has won 3 of his last 5 bouts and fought to a draw in another, will be taking on 29-year-old Eric Bledsoe of Wheeling, West Virginia in a scheduled 6-round super welterweight contest on the Made Men Promotions promoted card. 

Lights Out Managment will once again be providing entertaining nights of amateur boxing for a good cause as they have two shows lined up this summer.

The first amateur card which is being billed as "Fighting for the Friars" will be held next Saturday, June 30th at the Ukrainian Orthodox Center in Youngstown with proceeds from individual tickets sales, 50/50, and the Chinese auction will go to St. Dominic Catholic Parish.

Lights Out Managment will return on July 28th to support another worthy cause which will be named at a later date with a show in Niles at Johnny K's Power Sports. 

Craig Snyder Set for Downtown Book Signing at Roberto's Italian Restaraunt

Craig Snyder has stayed busy with book signings which recently included a stop in Erie, PA  since releasing his book, "The Boxers of Youngstown: Boxing Capital of the World" in early March.

Snyder, who claimed the International Boxing Council Americas Jr Middleweight title on November 23, 1994, with a victory over Tommy Small finished his professional career which spanned from 1986 to 1996 with an 18-8 record will hold his next signing at Roberto's Italian Restaraunt in downtown Youngstown.  

Roberto's, located at 103 West Federal Street, will be hosting Snyder this Thursday, June 21 from 5 pm until 9 pm.  

Fans who have not purchased the book yet will be able to do so at the signing.

Rosenberger Slated to Take on Bledsoe in August at Rivers Brawl X

Danny Rosenberger

Over the past year and some change, Danny Rosenberger has been the most active fighter in Youngstown having entered the ring 6-times since March 2017.

Rosenberger, 28, will waste no time getting back in the ring following his unanimous decision victory over the previously undefeated Mark Daley at The Meadows Casino in Pittsburgh in early June as he is slated to take on Eric Bledsoe at the Rivers Casino in Pittsburgh on August 11th at Rivers Brawl X.

With his victory over Daley, a match which saw Rosenberger dominate the 4-round super welterweight contest from start to finish, Rosenberger now has a chance to get his record even as it currently sits at 3-4-3.

The 29-year-old Bledsoe who hails from Wheeling, West Virginia will be no pushover for Rosenberger, however. 

Eric Bledsoe

Bledsoe holds a career record of 4-1-1 including a draw his last time out on June 8th in Pittsburgh

against the always tough and durable Roque Zapata.

This won't be the first Youngstown product Bledsoe has faced as his lone defeat was handed to him by

Vic Toney who scored a third-round knockout over Bledsoe in Youngstown back in 2015.

Tickets will be available in coming weeks for purchase by visiting the Made Men Promotions website at www.mademenpromotions.com.

Don't Call It a Comeback: Salinas Slated for July Ring Return

Alejandro Popo Salinas (9-2) will climb back into the ring next month for the first time since his shocking unanimous decision loss in his own backyard at the Palermo Center to Uganda native Sulaiman Segawa in March.

The loss in March was the second in the career of the 23-year-old Salinas who was on a 6-match win streak and coming off a huge national television victory in Las Vegas against previously undefeated Duarn Vue in September.

Salinas, who had bouts fall through in both May and this month, is now slated to take on 24-year-old Hakeem Watkins of Whitehall, OH on July 28th in a scheduled 8-round lightweight contest at the Hollywood Casino in Columbus according to BoxRec.

Watkins (6-3) will be stepping into the ring for the first time since scoring a knockout victory over Glenn Mitchell in August 2017.

Stay tuned to Youngstown Boxing News for more information as bouts are always subject to change at the drop of a dime. 

Regional Roundup

Pittsburgh Area 

- One of Pittsburgh's top young professional prospects took a huge step forward this past Friday night at The Rivers Casino in Pittsburgh.   

Matt Conway, 22, improved his record to a perfect 13-0 and captured the IBA Intercontinental lightweight championship by scoring a 10-round split decision victory over Mexican native Arturo Santos Reyes.

Conway will be back in action when pro boxing returns to The Rivers on August 11th. 


- Pittsburgh will be buzzing with pro boxing events in August as three events are lined up on consecutive weekends.

August 4th: The Meadows will host hosting a show promoted by World Fighting Championships
August 11th: Made Men Boxing will be hosting Rivers Ruble X at The Rivers Casino
August 18th: Integrity Fighter Managment will return to Priory Grand Hall

Northeast Ohio

- One the same card that Matt Conway showed why he is considered by many to be the top rising star in Pittsburgh, Thomas Mattice showed why he is considered one of the top prospects in the rising fight city of Cleveland.

The 27-year-old Mattice made quick work of Hondorus native Jorge Mungia (13-13) and displayed his power in both hands.

Mattice, who improved his record to 13-0 sent Mungia to the canvas on two occasions in the opening round before the referee waved the bout off at the 2:30 mark of the round.

- Another one of Cleveland's top rising stars, Montana Love will be in action this upcoming Saturday in Toledo at the Seagate Convention Center.

The 23-year-old super lightweight will be taking on Sulaiman Segawa in a very interesting matchup.

Love will bring a perfect 11-0 record into the ring while the crafty 27-year-old lefty from Uganda will bring a 10-1 record into the ring.

Segawa, who suffered his lone defeat in April to rising star William Foster III holds victories over Youngstown's top prospect Alejandro Popo Salinas and Brian Gallegos of Las Vegas by way of Mexico.

-  Canton welterweight Antonio Castillo Jr. will look to stay perfect when he takes on Sharad Collier at the Xfinity Theater in Hartford, Connecticut this upcoming Saturday.

Castillo, 31, scored a knockout victory over James Brown in his debut a month ago in Pittsburgh while Collier will be making his professional debut. 

Conway Victorious in IBA Intercontinental Title Fight; Holt Dominates Under the Stars

The weather held off on the North Shore of Pittsburgh as Made Men Promotions held the 8th edition of the Rivers Rumble under the stars on a beautiful night at The Rivers Casino.

As if the beautiful scenery provided by the Ohio River which acted as the backdrop at the outdoor amphitheater wasn't a big enough treat for the large crowd, Matt Conway and Arturo Santos Reyes put on a beautiful display of the sweet science in the evening's main event which got started just before 9:30 PM.

Conway took control of the IBA Intercontinental lightweight title fight early as he controlled the opening three rounds with what appeared to be ease despite Reyes outweighing him by 6 pounds on the scale the day prior.

Reyes, 32, has been in big fights and seemed to settle in as he began to turn the tables in what became an exciting back and forth boxing match as both fighters traded combinations, power shots, and showed the ability to slip punches and counter over the duration of the ten round bout.

In the end, the 22-year-old Conway did enough to impress two of the three judges as the Pittsburgh native earned the split decision victory in front of his hometown fans as the judges scored the bout 93-97, 98-92, 98-92.  I scored the bout from my ringside seat as 97-93 in favor of Conway.

With the win, Conway earned the first belt in his young but quickly rising professional career as he improved to 13-0 while Santos, who has taken on some of the biggest names in boxing falls to 19-10.

While Conway capitalized on his attempt to win a belt, East Liverpool native Joey Holt, who suffered his first career loss in his attempt to win the West Virginia super middleweight state title the last time he entered the ring in February at Mountaineer Casino was back in action.

Holt, 32, showed that he wasn't going to let the controversial decision loss to Aaron Quattrocchi four months ago carry over as he landed strong body shots and combinations on 29-year-old Pittsburgh product Lawrence Blakey (5-10-2) en route to a 4-round majority decision victory (39-37, 39-37, 39-37), improving his record to 10-1.

Cleveland native and fast-rising lightweight Thomas Mattice showed the crowd why he could be challenging for a world title in the near future as he made quick work of Hondorus native Jorge Mungia (13-13) and displayed his power in both hands.

Mattice, who improved his record to 13-0 sent Mungia to the canvas on two occasions in the opening round before the referee waved the bout off at the 2:30 mark of the round.

Made Men Promotions will bring boxing back to the outdoor amphitheater at The Rivers Casino on August 11th, visit www.mademenboxing.com for more information. 

Full Results

Amateur Bout

Featherweight - Adel Mason (Cleveland) DEC. Danny Bodish (Pittsburgh)

Pro Bouts

Pro Jr. Middleweight - Roque Zapata (Culpeper, VA) vs. Eric Bledsoe (Wheeling, WV) - DRAW
Pro Super Middleweight -  Joey Holt (East Liverpool) UD over Larry Blakey (Pittsburgh) 

Pro Lightweight - Latorie Woodberry (Roanoke, VA) MD over. Mike Conway (Pittsburgh)
Pro Jr. Middleweight - Justin Steave (Weirton, WV) UD over James Robinson (York, PA)
Pro Lightweight - Thomas Mattice (Cleveland) TKO 1 Jorge Mungia (Honduras)
MAIN EVENT: IBA INTERNATIONAL LIGHTWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP 

Matt Conway (Pittsburgh, PA) SD over Arturo Santos Reyes (Nogales, Mexico)