Cluster at Cage Titans: A fight, alleged theft and commission's cancellation

UFC veteran Joe Giannetti and Keenan Raymond showed up to the Pinz bowling alley in Kingston, Mass., expecting to weigh in for a bout at “Cage Titans: Combat Night” on July 13.

Giannetti was set to make $100 to show, $100 to win and get paid a portion of ticket sales. Raymond’s salary was $700 and $700. Giannetti, a finalist on “The Ultimate Fighter 27,” didn’t fuss about pay. What the fight lacked in compensation, it made up for in potential exposure. He hoped a win would convince the UFC to put him on an upcoming card in Boston.

But before the fighters could make things official, the Massachusetts State Athletic Commission canceled the fight. The reason? They say another promoter claimed the matchup was “stolen.”

“I don’t understand how someone can make a phone call and get a fight canceled,” Giannetti said. “All the things that MMA fighters stress about, to have to worry about somebody randomly making a phone call after you, your opponent and the promotion have done everything by the book, and then you’re just not fighting.”

A spokesperson for the MSAC declined to comment on the fighters’ claims and said a previous suspension of Raymond was the reason for the cancellation.

“Before Mr. Raymond is able to compete, he is required to appear before the MSAC board to determine whether he is eligible to fight in accordance with the Board’s regulations and policies,” Carolyn Assa told MMA Junkie in an email.

Raymond said even before he walked to the scale, two commission officials informed him that the promoter “had made a problem of some sort about us fighting.”

“All I know is I want to fight, and they picked a very strange time to tell me I can’t fight,” Raymond told MMA Junkie.

Gianetti and Raymond said commission officials identified Bill Vigil, owner of the Massachusetts-based AMMO Fight League, as the source of the theft accusation. In a written statement, Vigil told MMA Junkie he’d referred the matter to his attorneys and couldn’t comment. He also denied calling the commission.

“Bottom line is someone will have to answer for this,” Vigil wrote. “If someone from MSAC indeed told Joe, we will file a legal complaint against them and if someone is just stirring (expletive). That is defamation, and that will lead to a lawsuit.”

Cage Titans promoter Mike Polvere had gone to extra lengths to make the matchup. One day prior to weigh-ins, he’d cut a $100 check he claims the commission said would remove a hold on Raymond’s license for a previous suspension.

After officials canceled the fight, Polvere said the commission reversed itself, citing safety concerns and the rival promoter’s complaint.

“They were trying to make the point that … what if something happened to him? It would look bad,” Polvere said. “Which I thought was an excuse, to be quite honest.”

Emails forwarded by Polvere to MMA Junkie indicate the promoter was warned by an MSAC official that paying the fine wouldn’t clear Raymond to fight.

“Michael this is a waste of time for Mr. Alfred Raymond after … you pay his fine for him, he still needs to come in front of the board,” MSAC officer Wilfrid St-Hilaire wrote to Polvere on July 11.

Per Raymond’s administrative file with the Association of Boxing Commissions, obtained by MMA Junkie, his suspension is noted as disciplinary and states he was indefinitely suspended on Dec. 11, 2018. Additionally, on Dec. 27, he was suspended for three months “until fine paid in full.” The file advises regulators to call the MSAC.

A copy of Raymond’s suspension obtained by MMA Junkie does not explicitly say the fighter is required to appear before the commission before being cleared. But in a follow-up email, MSAC spokesperson Assa indicated the commission has a right to require such an appearance. She cited a rule that states the MSAC “may require an applicant to appear before the commission to answer questions or provide documents in conjunction with an application for a license in addition to those required under the applicable licensing requirements.”

Raymond’s suspension indicates he was punished for not being ready for a scheduled fight on March 10, 2018, in Massachusetts. In a written decision, the MSAC said Raymond arrived late, didn’t have a mouthpiece, cup, or proper shorts, or a corner person, which are all violations of the commission’s rules. It found the fighter’s behavior was a discredit to unarmed combat.

Raymond told MMA Junkie his corner didn’t show up, and he couldn’t find anyone to help. He made no mention of wardrobe issues.

Polvere ultimately believes the MSAC “got flustered and made a poor decision that is flat-out wrong, and they can’t go back and give this fight back.”

Not long after the cancellation, Giannetti confronted Vigil about the commission’s claims. The two subsequently volleyed on social media, with Gianetti posting a screenshot on Twitter that appears to show Vigil threatening him with a defamation suit.

In his text to Giannetti, Vigil writes that several MSAC commissioners have denied identifying him as the source of theft and tells the fighter to “prepare to be served for slander!”

“You can believe what you want to believe!” Virgil posted later on Facebook. “If someone is telling you something that I said or have done, I’ll tell you straight up that they are FOOKING LIAR’s!

“I’m man enough to say that if i did something or said something, i would admit it. i’m no coward and fear no one to meet up with anyone!.”

Giannetti and Raymond said they both lost money on the canceled bout. Gianetti, who services restaurant ventilation systems for his father’s company, took one week off of work. As of last Wednesday, Raymond was headed to Mississippi for construction work.

They’re not letting the cancellation derail their combative plans. On Aug. 24, they’ll be fighting on a Cage Titans card at Plymouth Memorial Hall. Despite the past week’s cluster, Polvere is convinced Raymond will be licensed.

“Unless they pull some more crap…he should be fine to fight,” the promoter wrote.

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