First time I met Curtis Demarce he was a rough and tough 14 year old hockey player here in Brandon. And now a decade later Curtis is living and training in San Jose California in an attempt to be the next big household name in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) Blood sweat and money makes MMA exist and training three times a day currently for Curtis is now not only a passion, but perhaps a way to become a contender in UFC. Hard to explain really where Curtis is at in his career. In hockey of course you have the NHL then AHL, then ECHL, and SPHL. Same in baseball where you have AAA, and AA and A level ball. For Demarce he states it is all about opportunities to fight in different organizations and it boils down to the relationship the promoter and the fighter have. He says lots of young guys won’t sign with UFC today because you are working for basically minimum wage. Now here is the money breakdown: 20% to management 20% to taxes 10% to the gym and trainer Adding in diet, food, medical expenses, plus one on one training maybe leaves the fighter only 10 – 20% of the prize payout. More interesting facts that McGregor made $15,000,000 from his last UFC fight and WWE / UFC star Brock Lesnar made 2.5 million whereas UFC legend Anderson Silva made $500,000. Dana White and the UFC and other big promotion companies know that minimum wage fighters are always hungry to be part of the business. One interesting item that Demarce mentioned is that a MMAFA union is being created and operated by Randy Couture and Shamrock, two legends in UFC ,to help promote MMA fairly and that all fighters get paid a fair amount. As it stand Curtis says his body has taken a beating for the last 6 years and he feels it is time to go where the money is at. And that place could be in Poland – Russia or Asia where they get crowds of 70 – 80,000 people. The current goal for “The Demon” as he is known in MMA circles is to be in the top 5 or 6 in his weight class. Right now Curtis feels he is in the top 5 percent in Canada for his weight. He also says that he feels Brandon has lots of talent in many sports but you have to leave the small town mentality behind and reach your goals by making huge sacrifices. One important thing is sponsors and he says without them it is almost impossible to survive due to the breakdown of payouts from fights. He said that anyone who might be interested to reach out to him on his Facebook page.

Ringette in Canada has never been more popular. Numbers have hit an all-time high across the country with more than 30,000 players and 2,000 teams registered last year. The fast-paced game is growing across the prairies too, with Winnipeg and surrounding area leading the Manitoba growth. A dedicated group of players and volunteers have brought ringette back to Brandon in recent years, but we need to keep introducing new players to the fun and friendship of the sport to keep it healthy. Come Try Ringette is a free event where kids get to try an hour of ringette with fun on-ice and off-ice activities on Saturday, Sept. 10 at the Enns Brothers Arena in the Keystone Centre. Kids only need a helmet and skates to take part. Sticks and rings will be provided. A limited number of helmets are also available. "Brandon Ringette is very happy to host this event as it gives kids starting at age four a chance to come try out the sport and learn what ringette is all about," said Sara Bell, Brandon Ringette Association president. “Once the players get out on the ice and see how much fun it is, they can’t wait to come back.” In addition to an hour of ice time, Come Try Ringette will include face-painting and entertainment, as well a used equipment sale. The event starts at 1 p.m. Parents can register at cometryringette.ca or email kylajmhenderson@gmail.com for more information. For more information contact: Sara Bell President  Brandon Ringette Association 204-570-1045 bryanandsarabell@live.com brandonringette.ca Kyla Henderson Publicity/Come Try Ringette Brandon Ringette Association 204-573-5083 kylajmhenderson@gmail.com

ROH Star Jason "The Gift" Kincaid & Shane Sabre vs. ROH Star The Beer City Bruiser & The Bullet Club's "Crown Jewel" Chase Owens Canadian Wrestling's Elite debuts at a brand new venue in Brandon, Manitoba and with it a new match has been signed that will blow the roof right off of the place! A special tag team attraction match has been signed that will have the fast paced and innovative Jason Kincaid join forces to battle Ring Of Honor's Beer City Bruiser and New Japan Pro Wrestling's Chase Owens! Jason Kincaid and Chase Owens are no stranger to each other but this will be the first time these four men with four independent and strong personalities are in the ring at the exact same time. All four men are headlining singles stars in their respective home territory and on September 28th they will headline once again!

A new multisport club is starting operations in Brandon with the hopes of bringing a variety of sports programs to Brandon and the Westman region. Nextplay, operated by Brian Staples, will be starting operations from scratch this fall beginning with an Adult Ball Hockey League and an Adult Futsal League (indoor soccer). As a kid Brian was a regular at Wheelies, the old roller rink on the North Hill, and since its closing he’s always wanted to create a bigger and better version. He opened up a multi-sport club in Kelowna which ran roller derby, inline hockey, ball hockey, indoor soccer, indoor golf, birthdays, concerts, trade shows, and a sports bar. What started as just a roller rink at the time blossomed into multiple sports leagues, and became a great place to keep fit and make new friends! Now he wants to do the same thing for Westman. The Adult Ball Hockey League will be shorter for its inaugural season with 10 regular season games and up to 5 more in the playoffs. Games will be played once a week and depending what division you’re in will determine what week night you play. Registration for ball hockey will be $100/player, and games will be played out of the Keystone Centre on the sport court tile. Portable fences will be used as the rink boards until they are able to raise enough registration revenue to purchase new custom rink boards.   Once purchased these rink boards can be easily set up and moved when the Keystone requires the space for other events. The ball hockey season will start Oct 4th and 5th, with 6 teams in Division 1 Ball Hockey on Wednesday evenings and 6 teams available for Division 2 on Tuesdays.  For ball hockey, all you need is a helmet, gloves and a regular hockey stick. Games will be played in 2-25 minute halves. As Brian tells bndmb.ca “I want people to know the leagues are just for fun, and that anyone can play. We offer different skill level divisions.”  You can contact Brian at brianstaples@nextplay.ca for more information on how to get invoved with the various leagues. 

GFW World Champion Nick "MAGNUS" Aldis vs. CWE Tag Team Champion Mr. Inkredible A HUGE heavyweight encounter has officially been signed for Canadian Wrestling's Elite return to the "Wheat City" on September 28th! If Nick Aldis is to retain his GFW World Championship prior to CWE's event in Brandon on The Destined For Greatness Tour he will defend against one of the most feared men in all of professional wrestling, Mr. Inkredible! Mr. Inkredible is one half of the CWE Tag Team Champions as one half of Pain & Punishment and the only American born wrestler Magnus will defend his GFW World Championship against on the entire tour. Although born in Virginia and based out of North Dakota, CWE is Mr. Inkredible's home as he competes in Canadian Wrestling's Elite more than any other organization and has found the most success here. As one of the hardest hitters in professional wrestling many men have pulled out of scheduled matches with Mr, Inkredible upon the announcement of their match with him because of the long list of men he has severely injured throughout his career and the amount of careers he has shortened with major head trauma with his "Black Hammer" lariat. At 6'2", 260lbs, very few men can match size with Mr. Inkredible but Nick Aldis is very close. Given the fact he is comparable in size and a former a New Japan Pro Wrestling IWGP Tag Team Champion it is safe to safe Aldis is quite familiar and capable of competing against a man of Inkredible's size and ability to hit as hard as he does. However Nick Aldis will be many matches into the tour by the time September 28th rolls around and Brandon will be Mr. Inkredible's first appearance on the tour which could give him an incredible advantage to say the least if Aldis is still the reigning and defending championship. This match promises to be a true display of heavyweight wrestling at the highest level and YOU can be there to see it live! For full event information visit www.cwecanada.ca