Miguel Vega is feeling upbeat about his career as a mixed martial arts fighter following his victory at the Extreme Fight Night show Feb. 25 in Pharr.
The 145-pound Brownsville fighter (4-1) defeated a much taller Jeff Campbell of Harlingen on a unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27) in a matchup of MMA featherweights. It was the second straight victory for Vega coming off a win last November. Much of the Feb. 25 fight was spent grappling on the mat and Vega was the one who prevailed.
“I’m very happy to know that my fighting style is effective against many types of opponents, including taller ones,” said Vega, who hopes to fight again in May, possibly in Corpus Christi. “It’s a style that we (Vega MMA) have developed over the years.
“I’m really looking forward to fighting outside the Valley and getting my name out there,” he added.
Miguel is coached by older brother Luis Vega, who is considered the first professional MMA fighter in Brownsville. Miguel is 24 and Luis is closing in on 36. Both grew up in the Southmost area of Brownsville and graduated from Lopez High School.
Luis is primarily a trainer and coach now and described himself as “semi-retired” as a fighter because he wants to leave the door open, even if just a little bit, for the possibility of a future fight.
As always, Luis was Miguel’s coach for the Feb. 25 fight and he was pleased with how his brother adapted to the situation in the boxing ring, which was used that night instead of a cage because the show featured boxing and MMA matches.
“It was not the most crowd-pleasing fight because most of the fire was on the ground (grappling), but nevertheless, it was a well-calculated fight,” the older brother said. “The crowd likes to see standups and punches and wars, but in order to have longevity in this sport, you have to fight smart.
“We basically game-planned most of the fight, and thankfully everything fell into place,” Luis added. “It’s like playing chess and we tried to be two moves ahead.”
Now the brothers are busy with training and awaiting Miguel’s next fight.
UPCOMING
Weslaco super bantamweight Brandon Lee Figueroa (11-0, nine KOs) is scheduled to fight an opponent to be announced on March 28 in California.
Extreme Fight Night returns to the Golazo Soccer facility in Pharr on April 22. It’s presented by Texas Rage and South Texas Fighting Academy. For more information, call (956) 456-5786 or (956) 460-7808.
The “Noche de Campeones II” boxing show presented by Silver Promotions is scheduled April 22 at Boggus Ford Events Center in Pharr. The event is set to feature the return of Harlingen’s Juan “J.P.” De La Rosa plus a rematch between Weslaco’s Jose Prado and Mexico City’s Shoki Sakai. For more information, call (956) 206-9543, (956) 456-9081, (956) 463-5524 or (956) 618-4363.
The STFC 42 mixed martial arts cage fighting show is scheduled May 19 at McAllen Convention Center. For more information, call (956) 414-8698 or (956) 562-2622.
Roy Hess covers sports for The Brownsville Herald. You can reach him via email at [email protected]. On Twitter he’s @HessRgehess
