Keefe part of Bay State MMA history

Dan Keefe is quickly becoming a part of mixed martial arts history in Massachusetts.
Not only did the Salem, N.H., native fight in the first officially sanctioned MMA event in the Bay State last month, but he has also signed on for the first "major" sanctioned MMA event in the state being held on May 21 at the DCU Center in Worcester.
Keefe's win in the Xtreme Championship Fight League event held at the Lowell Auditorium in March - the first since the Massachusetts Athletic Commission sanctioned the sport - earned him a spot on the card of Moosin's God of Martial Arts in Worcester, a pay-per-view event where he will face veteran cagefighter Robert "Bubba" McDaniel.
It will be the first televised event for Keefe.
The former football and wrestling star at Salem High School said this could be a big break for him, but he approaches every fight the same way whether it's on TV or not.
"It's good to be fighting on something that's going to be on TV," Keefe said. "But for me, it's just another fight."
Exposure on a pay-per-view event could help Keefe land some sponsorship. Right now he is sponsored by HeadBlade, Prime Athletics and the Route 28 Roadhouse.
Keefe is 7-1 overall and 3-1 in sanctioned fights. He has won four bouts in a row since his only loss to former Plymouth, N.H., wrestling standout Dan Pasquarella in 2007. Included in his win streak are victories over Thomas Moreau of Derry, N.H., and Woody Weatherby of Nashua, N.H. According to the most recent rankings by Northeast MMA, Moreau was sixth in the 170-pound weight class and Weatherby, who lost in the preliminary round of The Ultimate Fighter 11, was fourth at 185.
"I still feel I've got a lot to learn," Keefe said. "I've still got a long way to go."
McDaniel is 14-5. Eleven of his 14 wins have been by submission.
Keefe said he McDaniel likes to take the fight to the ground, which is also where Keefe excels. He said his strength as a fighter is to ground-and-pound, so he wouldn't mind grappling on the mat a bit.
It will be the biggest payday of his career to this point for Keefe. He said he will receive $2,000 just for fighting and another $2,000 if he wins.
That money could go a long way in helping Keefe fulfill his dream of taking some time off from work as a prison guard and training full-time for a big fight. Right now he said he is limited to the amount of training he can do because of his job, which he needs to make it financially.
He's hoping some sponsors will be impressed with what he can do either during the broadcast, or from the stands, at the DCU Center and sign him.
"Assuming I win, I think it will help significantly," Keefe said. "(McDaniel) is a pretty recognized name."
The main event on the card features former Ultimate Fighting Championship champion Tim Sylvia against five-time World's Strongest Man winner Marius Pudzianowski. Also fighting will be former Boston Bruins enforcer and local radio personality Lyndon Byers, who will take on former toughman legend Eric "Butterbean" Esch in a fight to raise money for a local charity.