By Larry Snyder

New Cumberland, WV – With each proclamation of victory inside the cage by the ring announcer on Saturday, March 23, the crowd in the ballroom at Mountaineer Casino, Racetrack, and Resort roared their approval. It was a night of first-class mixed martial arts action produced by Angelo Magnone and Made Men Promotions.

There were three professional confrontations and 11 amateur bouts. It was a fight card skillfully brought together through the help of matchmaker Nichole Castillo, and it was sold out days before the event.

For 33-year-old Joey Holt (9-2-0), it was the opportunity to claim the ninth triumph of his MMA career after a verbal submission on strikes by his welterweight opponent Scott Futrell. Holt asserted his dominance at 1:05 of the second-round. Coming into Saturday night’s competition, the combatant known as the “Hitman” owned four MMA victories via knockout or TKO, and three by way of submission. The 27-year-old Futrell picked up his eighth defeat against 11 wins.

Jason Cassius Mullen tasted victory in his first outing as a professional with an armbar submission over 23-year-old lightweight Ardit Hysa (0-4-0) at 2:43 of the first round. The 21-year-old Mullen, who trains at the Campbell Martial Arts Center (Team C.M.A}, assembled a record of 6-4-0 as an amateur. He said on his Facebook page, “I could never have done this without my family, coaches/team, and friends. Thank you all for believing in me.”

Chris McKinney (1-2-0) secured the first professional win of his career with a heel hook submission at 4:05 of the first round against 33-year-old bantamweight Donny Korbel (0-1-0). McKinney, who is 31 and a native of Beckley, West Virginia, was 4-2-0 as an amateur before turning pro in September 2017. He is now rated at No. 13 among Ohio Pro Bantamweights and 29th in Pennsylvania by Tapology.com.

Angelo Magnone and Made Men Promotions provided a pair of amateur title matchups just before the pros stepped into the cage. Alex Poinar (6-1-0) captured the MMP Flyweight Championship on a majority decision from the judges over 24-year-old Jose Leon (6-4-1). The 26-years-old Poinar talked about his mentor on Facebook, “Glad I got to bring the belt back to the place that’s been my second home for 20 years, and my jiu-jitsu coach since day 1. Steve Hindman always said I could do this, and definitely has been watching over me on this journey. I plan to continue to make him proud.”

Samuel Lemin, 25, seized the MMP Amateur Welterweight Championship with an armbar submission at 38 seconds of the first round against 32-year-old Jarod Shaw (5-2-0). Lemin (8-5-0) is a former rifleman with the 3rd Battalion, 5th Marines.

Shamrock Showdown Professional Recap:

Welterweight – Joey Holt (East Liverpool, OH) WINS Vs. Scott Futrell (St. Louis, MO)

Lightweight – Jason Mullen (Youngstown, OH) WINS Vs. Ardit Hysa (Elbasan, Albania)

Bantamweight – Chris McKinney (Beckley, WV) WINS Vs. Donny Korbel (Columbus, OH)

Shamrock Showdown Amateur Recap:

MMP Flyweight Title – Alex Poinar (Canton, OH) WINS Vs. Jose Leon (Cary, IL)

MMP Welterweight Title – Samuel Lemin (Youngstown, OH) WINS Vs. Jarod Shaw (Follansbee, WV)

Bantamweight – Nolan Stahl (Erie, PA) WINS By Unanimous Decision Vs. Dante Pennachio (Warren, OH)

Middleweight – DJ Jacobucci (Mentor, OH) WINS By Knockout In 1st Rnd Vs. Cody Prior (Covington, VA)

Lightweight – Darnell Truett (Cleveland, OH) WINS By Triangle Choke In 2nd Rnd Vs. Jeremiah Leviege (Warren, OH)

Welterweight – Chase Boyde (Pittsburgh, PA) -NC- Klevon Hill (Youngstown, OH) – No Contest Due To Illegal Strike By Hill

Featherweight – Kiran Shah (Erie, PA) WINS By Armbar Submission In 1st Rnd Vs. Cameron Mueller (Erie, PA)

Welterweight – Chaz Hudson (Toledo, OH) WINS By Unanimous Decision Vs. Elias Buhl (Erie, PA)

Welterweight – Mitch Fitzgerald (Pittsburgh, PA) WINS By Guillotine Choke Submission Vs. Will Hopkins (Steubenville, OH)

Cruiserweight – Eric McPhilomy (Monaca, PA) WINS By Submission Vs. Chase Stafford (Oceana, WV)

Welterweight – Cody Dunson (Wellsburg, WV) WINS By Unanimous Decision Vs. Daniel Smith (Washington, PA)