Gary “Batman” Balletto III (10-3) successfully defended his CES MMA Welterweight World title against Brazilian Bruno Quintanilha (5-4) in an absolute war that had fans at the edge of their seats for the duration of the bout.
The fight served as the main event for CES MMA 79: ‘Fight for a Cause 2,’ an excellent card taking place at a sold-out Foxwoods Resort Casino and televised live on Swerve Combat TV that included 12 MMA bouts and 2 worthy causes.
Balletto, a fan-favorite from Cranston, walked into the cage to “Duel of the Fates” from Star Wars’ The Phantom Menace accompanied by Zayden Amato, a shadow boxing 5-year-old MMA fan from A Wish Come True who joined Team Balletto for the night. A Wish Come True is the oldest wish granting organization in Rhode Island and Massachusetts, granting wishes and providing resources to families that have a child struggling with a life-threatening illness.
‘Batman’ was defending his world title just a week after his father, Gary “Tiger” Balletto, was inducted into the Connecticut Boxing Hall of Fame for his memorable career as a power punching lightweight champion. Following in his father’s footsteps, Batman Balletto is already a 2-division MMA world champion (he also holds the CES MMA Middleweight title) and is 4-0-1 (2 KOs) in boxing.
In Balletto’s way stood an inspired Bruno Quintanilha, a 34-year-old Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu specialist and striker who was determined to bring the title back with him to Amazonas, Brazil.
Just a few seconds into the bout, the Brazilian almost made his own wish a reality. Quintanilha landed a counter left hook that stunned Balletto as the two traded strikes. Balletto held on to clear his head, and Quintanilha took advantage by launching several right knees to Balletto’s head, bloodying Balletto’s nose. Once he had his legs back under him, Balletto began to circle the cage and box. By the end of the round, it was Balletto who was landing the harder strikes as Quintanilha retreated.
Round 2 was just as exciting, with the fighters trading heavy shots and taking turns hurting one another. Quintanilha caught Balletto with a combination that backed Batman up. The Brazilian pursued, grabbing hold of Balletto and again firing several knees. Balletto covered up to avoid most of the incoming, but he was now also bleeding from a cut under his left eye.
The courageous Balletto would not be denied, however, as he withstood the assault before unleashing a ferocious counterattack. Balletto hurt Quintanilha with a right hand before walking the Brazilian down using intelligent pressure and combination strikes. Once he got close enough, Balletto took down his weakened opponent and proceeded to land a series of unanswered right hands that caused referee Bryan Miner to mercifully waive off the fight.