Last week we discussed some of the up and coming talent out of Arizona. We discussed the new wave of fighters such as Strikeforce lightweight, and Trilogy  champ Estevan Payan.  Trilogy bantamweight champ John Moraga. WFFMMA bantamweight champ Nate Vorel. RITC bantamweight champ Anthony Birchak. Also Trilogy featherweight champ Freddie Lux.

In the second part we will take a look at another group of fighters who are top prospect coming from great camps that are probably fights away from reaching the elite promotions of the sport.

Chad Dietmeyer (8-1) is a name that if you don’t recognize now you will in 2012. He is a lightweight fighter out of Tucson under GC Management at Boxing Inc. North. Dietmeyer is one of the top lightweights in Arizona who brings an aggressive style with great technique. 

At Boxing Inc. he has the benefit to train with top AZ fighters such as Nate Vorel, Nick Piedmont, and occasional visits from UFC bantamweight champion Dominick Cruz and UFC featherweight George Roop.

Dietmeyer is on the verge of breaking into MMA mainstream as he has an upcoming fight with former MFC champion Antonio McKee in March. With a victory he will make a strong case to soon make his way into the Octagon or other top promotion’s cage. Watch for Dietmeyer on a TV near you as 2012 could be his defining year.

Another GC Management fighter and Bellator veteran which this writer had the pleasure to see when he first started out and then see him evolve to the top prospect he has become today. This fighter is featherweight Nick Piedmont (5-3).

Piedmont has made leaps and bounds since starting in MMA and now is a great prospect with a bright future ahead of him. An amazing wrestler with great technique Piedmont is no joke as he is as dangerous as they come. He has the Jiu Jitsu to finish the fight on the ground and is willing to stand up and trade with his ever evolving striking game.

Currently training at Boxing Inc. as well as Alliance MMA in San Diego, Piedmont is further sharping his tools to get to the next level in his career. A hard worker and a great wrestler do not be surprised if we see him in some big match ups in a top promotion soon.

The following fighter could not be left out when talking about AZ MMA as he not only fights but has helped countless other fighters start and build their careers. This gentleman is Apex MMA’s own Joey Rivera (7-1) one of the most respected AZ fighters.

Joey is the owner of Apex MMA and a coach of many MMA fighters in AZ like Andy Perez, Joel Champion, and Nick Rhoads among many others. He is also a training partner of Ed West and George Roop.

Rivera is a great fighter with one of the best ground games in AZ with black belt level Judo throws to go with his arsenal of weapons. Joey is the current WFFMMA welterweight champion and has fought many great fighters one of them being a win over former K-1 champion Rick Roufus in an exhibition match.

Joey is a top prospect in the welterweight division and it is baffling how he hasn’t had a chance to step into the Octagon. Regardless, Joey is a great supporter of MMA in Arizona not only in representing AZ by fighting but as a coach, promoter, and role model.

Another fighter who the MMA community knows as the Golden boy who deserves a second nickname as The Terminator because no matter what is thrown at him he comes back and dominates. This up and coming prospect is Apex MMA fighter Andy Perez (2-0).

Andy is the type of fighter that embodies what it means to be an Aztec warrior as he never backs down and no matter how the fight is going he keeps moving forward. He is a strong wrestler with great takedowns and ground and pound. Don’t be fooled though as he is well rounded and can catch fighters in submissions and he uses his strikes to set up his takedowns nicely.

Andy is a crowd favorite due to his heart, and though he only has 2 pro fights he has a bright future ahead of him. He will continue his rise as he will be fighting in February in his hometown for Uptown Fights.

Booking this fight at 205 shows he fights any time any weight. It’s amazing because Perez is a welterweight that fights between across a broad spectrum of weight classes.

Be prepared to see Perez do big things in MMA as his drive and determination will take him places. After winning a few more fights bigger organizations will take notice.

Last but not least, this fighter on the list is a fighter that you cannot talk about up and comers without having him on the list. He is a powerful wrestler with hands to match as he displayed in his last outing in Bellator out pointing the aforementioned Nick Piedmont. The fighter being discussed is undefeated Jade Porter (6-0).

Jade Porter is a featherweight who is making waves in Bellator and has all the tools to eventually take out most of the fighters in the roster. He brings to the table high level wrestling but the x-factor are his hands as he is as comfortable making a fight into boxing match or he can just out wrestle his opponent. 

He has made improvement on his submission defense, which he lost 2 of his amateur fights by, and with this hole in his game covered it hard to see any fighters in the Bellator roster that would outclass Porter.

Porter is starting to breakthrough into the next stage of his career and at the pace he is going we are going to see a lot more of him in the big stages of MMA.

This concludes part 2 of this segment come back next week as we conclude who are the up and coming talents of Arizona such as Frankie Saenz, Brendon Tierney, Benny Madrid, Cody Huard, Eddie Arizmendi, and Nick Rhoads.

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