CFFC 147– The cage door locks at the Florida State Fairgrounds, and the crowd leans in. No pyrotechnics. No celebrity walk-ins will be found in CFFC 147, just steel, sweat, and the faint smell of carnival food reminding everyone this is where fighters come to prove something—not to themselves, but to the belief economy that built Florida MMA.
Where Belief Was Born
“A huge community of Brazilians came to Florida in the ’90s,” recalls longtime coach and ESPN analyst Din Thomas, “possibly because the climate felt like home. They brought jiu-jitsu and vale tudo with them.”
Those early mats—rolled out in garages and warehouse gyms—built a fight culture that prizes grind over glamour.
Image: Cage Fury Fighting Championships
Thomas says that mindset still defines the scene:
“Do you really believe in yourself if you bum-hunt your way to the UFC? The ones who make it fight whoever, even under bad circumstances, and still find a way to shine.”
That challenge—the quiet conviction to take hard fights—is Florida’s unofficial currency. Call it the belief economy.
The Fairgrounds Effect for CFFC 147
CFFC 147 has become the perfect testing ground for that faith.
“Tampa is enriched with so much MMA talent that it was really a no-brainer to come here,” matchmaker Arias Garcia told MMA Sucka. “We’ve got Gracie Pac with Billy Quarantillo and DefWar with Daniel Mendoza right in the area—plus Kill Cliff and American Top Team just a drive away.”
CFFC CEO Rob Haydak echoed the sentiment in the promotion’s release for CFFC 147, calling Tampa “a blue-collar fight town” and promising that “the Fairgrounds will be rocking once again.”
CFFC first touched down in Tampa with CFFC 133 in July 2024, then returned three more times in 2025—April, July, and now October. The consistency isn’t accidental. Tampa crowds show up and believe.
CFFC 147: Where Faith Meets the Grind
The main event for CFFC 147 pits Florida’s Kevin “Sweet Peas” Pease against Michigan’s Ethan Pauley for the vacant welterweight title—a fight that embodies everything this promotion stands for.
Just a year ago, Pease (6-0 MMA, 4-0 CFFC) seemed destined for gold before the Professional Fighters League called. He notched a win there, but when a return invitation didn’t materialize, CFFC offered him the title shot he’d been chasing since 2022. He accepted immediately, determined to complete his climb toward the UFC.
His opponent for CFFC 147, Pauley (7-1 MMA, 0-0 CFFC), brings six submission wins and the kind of momentum that makes scouts take notice. The Warrior Way Martial Arts standout has fought six times in the past fourteen months and arrives in Tampa on a four-fight streak.
“My training at Warrior Way is the reason I’ve gotten this far,” Pauley told MMA Sucka. “It’s one of the original, true martial-arts gyms in Michigan.”
Pease: Wrestling Roots, Professional Mindset
Pease enters from Kill Cliff FC, surrounded by elite talent like Gilbert Burns and Kamaru Usman.
“It’s extremely helpful when you’re surrounded by like-minded individuals,” Pease said. “Everyone there is focused on doing the right things to succeed. It’s been an integral piece of my development.”
He describes his style as “tenacious” and his foundation as “cut from wrestling. That’s where my greatest strengths come from.”
The southpaw wrestles with precision, boxes with calculated angles, and carries the same patient ferocity that made Pernell Whitaker—his nickname’s inspiration—so dangerous.
From the Fighters Who’ve Been There
CFFC veteran Tommy Hinz says the difference between this promotion and a typical regional card is more than production value—it’s accountability.
“From a regional perspective, what makes fighting for CFFC different is the professionalism,” Hinz told MMA Sucka. “All members of the crew and team keep everything sharp, and the fighters do their part. It’s killers’ row.”
He points to concrete proof: “My coach Ryan Cafaro won the featherweight title, and my friend Eric Nolan captured gold and went straight to the UFC. This organization reminds you to keep working hard.”
That lineage gives weight to every title bout that follows.
Belief Over Bright Lights Ahead of CFFC 147
According to UFC.com, Tampa’s Anthony Guarascio is still the only area fighter to reach Dana White’s Contender Series since 2020—a reminder that the bridge from local to global remains narrow. CFFC is the scaffolding that keeps it standing.
“Organizations like CFFC provide a level of professionalism that prepares fighters for the UFC,” Thomas said. “They bridge the gap.”
And that bridge—between fried dough and fame—is where Florida’s fighters learn what belief really means.
At the Fairgrounds, there are no chandeliers or celebrity cageside rows—just conviction, sweat, and the faint sweetness of powdered sugar drifting through the air.
In Tampa, belief isn’t marketing. It’s the main event.
Sources: CFFC.tv event archives; official CFFC press release; UFC.com DWCS roster listings; interviews with CFFC matchmaker Arias Garcia, ESPN analyst Din Thomas, Tommy Hinz, Kevin Pease, and Ethan Pauley for MMA Sucka.