- Lucas Neufeld has been competing in MMA for over three years, but has never had the opportunity to do so in the fight capital of the world. Until Friday night.
Neufeld (3-0) will be taking on Jordan Leavitt (1-0) in a featherweight bout at Tuff-N-Uff: Fight Night being held at The Orleans Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, NV.
The Orleans had been a fixture of the Las Vegas regional MMA calendar for years — a locals' casino off the Strip where promotions like Tuff-N-Uff ran cards packed with prospects trying to get noticed by the UFC brass watching from just down the road. Fighting there is not the same as fighting at the apex of the sport, but it's closer than most Canadian fighters ever get.
For Canadian regional fighters, a Las Vegas booking is the sport's version of a call-up — Tuff-N-Uff had spent two decades as one of the city's best-known feeder promotions, regularly giving undefeated prospects their first taste of a real fight town. Neufeld's 3-0 record earned him exactly that opportunity.
Although Neufeld, 25, is “stoked” about fighting in Las Vegas and has given the fight plenty of hype, he said the reward is going to be celebrating the win with his family and friends.
The family contingent making the trip is the kind of detail that separates fighters who treat the sport as a job from those who treat it as a way of life — a 25-year-old from Lethbridge dragging a cheering section to Las Vegas for a featherweight prelim is building memories regardless of the outcome.
“When I get there, it’s just going to be another ring. I’m going to go in there, do my thing, beat a guy’s ass, get paid for it, and go celebrate with my family in Vegas, of all places,” said Neufeld in an interview.
“I have a troop of people making the trip.”
But standing in front of Neufeld and a Vegas celebration is a tough opponent in Leavitt, who has four of his five victories, including amateur, by submission.
The stylistic contrast is clean — Leavitt wants the fight on the mat, Neufeld wants it on the feet — which is exactly the kind of matchup that makes featherweight prospects worth watching. Whichever game plan survives contact will likely decide whose record stays intact.
Neufeld said he’s well aware of Leavitt’s skill on the mat, and will look to keep the fight standing and walk out of the cage with a knockout.
“I really believe lighting is going to strike, and it’s going to strike on his jaw,” said Neufeld.
“If I don’t knock him out in the first, I’m prepared to go the full three rounds. It could end up being gritty. He’s tough and has good endurance.”
While Neufeld isn’t looking past Leavitt, he said it’s been confirmed his next fight will be back home in Lethbridge, Alta., when Z-Promotions returns for Fight Night 8 on Jan. 25.
The fact that a hometown booking was already lined up says something about how quickly the Lethbridge scene was growing — Z-Promotions had carved out a real niche in southern Alberta, and Neufeld was becoming the promotion's most recognizable name.
Neufeld said he currently doesn’t have a confirmed opponent for the event, but is open to battling Randy Mahon after Mahon stated, following his win at XFFC 19, he wants to fight Neufeld.
The Mahon callout adds a layer of genuine regional drama — two Alberta featherweights talking about each other across promotions is the kind of slow-burning rivalry that keeps the local circuit interesting between cards.
But since reaching 3-0 in his professional career, Neufeld said he’s been taking heat from certain people, including Mahon, for accepting easy fights, and said he would only be proving those people right if he accepted a fight with Mahon, if he had a below .500 record.
“If he has a losing record coming out of his next fight, there’s no way I’m fighting him,” said Neufeld.
“If he wins his next fight and wants to fight me in January, I’d love to make his wish come true.”
Leavitt Standing Strong
On the opposite side of the cage, Leavitt is looking to ensure Neufeld won’t be undefeated heading into a potential matchup with Mahon, while also remaining undefeated himself.
Although he’s shown a strong jiu-jitsu game so far in his young career, Leavitt said he’s confident in his ability to win this fight, no matter where it goes.
“If I see an opening to enforce my will, I’m going to take it to the ground and do what I usually do in all my fights,” said Leavitt in an interview.
“But I also feel very confident on the feet, and I’m not worried wherever this fight goes.”
With Leavitt being a Las Vegas resident, this will be a hometown fight for the 23-year-old training out of Syndicate MMA.
Syndicate was one of the most legitimate rooms in American regional MMA — a gym that had produced UFC talent and whose prospect pipeline was watched closely by the big promotions. For Leavitt, training there meant his 1-0 professional record was probably more battle-tested than it looked on paper.
And while he may have support from the heavy majority of the crowd in attendance, Leavitt said he has one fan who will make enough noise for the entire building.
“The cheers from the crowd probably aren’t going to get to me because my mom is louder than everybody put together,” said Leavitt.
“When my mom is on the sideline, it’s already like I have the whole crowd behind me.”
Following a successful undefeated amateur career, Leavitt kicked off his professional career with a submission win back in Oct. 2017, and doesn’t plan on taking his first loss on Friday.
Although Neufeld is “a nice Canadian dude,” Leavitt said he intends on sending him home with his first loss as a professional.
“I’m going to pressure him, he’s going to try to push me back, but won’t be able to, and I think he’s going to panic,” said Leavitt.
“When that happens, I’m going to find a way to capitalize on it and finish the fight.”
Leavitt’s Shoutouts
“I just want to thank my friends, my family and my training partners because I can’t do what I want to do with my life without them.”
