Mixed martial artist Gary "Batman" Balletto III (9-3) fights this Saturday, November 9th against Brazilian jiu jitsu specialist Bruno Quintanilha (5-3). The fight serves as the main event for CES MMA 79: ‘Fight for a Cause 2,’ a stacked card taking place at Foxwoods Resort Casino that includes 7 professional bouts and 5 amateur fights. The card will be televised live on Swerve Combat TV. Balletto, a native of Cranston, Rhode Island, is the son of former boxer Gary "Tiger" Balletto. While Gary III was deep in training and only a week away from his title defense, he stepped away from his camp for the day to see his father inducted into the Connecticut Boxing Hall of Fame. "It's unbelievable," said Balletto. "It's so heartwarming to see him get this all this love and recognition."
"Tiger" Balletto campaigned as a lightweight division in the 90s and early 2000’s, winning the IBU title against Johnny Walker in 2003 and making two defenses before dropping a majority decision to Gregorio Vargas. Balletto made his comeback on ESPN’s The Contender Series, winning his first bout of the tournament before losing a close decision to Norberto Bravo. Balletto fought once more after that, stopping then 20-1 Matthew Strode at a sold-out Convention Center in Providence before retiring in 2006.
Tiger Balletto suffered a life changing spinal injury in 2013 when a pull up bar he set up in his backyard gave way as he was playing with his son Aiden. While such a devastating injury could demoralize the spirits of anyone who was once so active, Tiger Balletto is a fighter through and through. Rather than sulk in his misfortune, the elder Balletto decided to take action, creating "The Gary Tiger Balletto Foundation" to bring awareness and assistance to those with paralysis injuries.
"Dad was always my superhero," says Balletto when asked what he remembers most about his father during his heyday. "He really lit the path for us and set a great example for us to follow. I remember him providing me with these little life lessons. He told me once, ‘you know why people lie?’ I said ‘no, why?’ he said, ‘because they're afraid’. That never left my head my whole life. A lot of little things like that I remember as a kid that that he imprinted on me, and it stuck with me forever."
"I use it as such a motivational example that he's been more successful this past decade with this injury than he had been his whole life before," says Batman of his father. "It's phenomenal to see him still achieving things at a time when he thought there was nothing left for him to do."
Following in his father’s footsteps, Balletto III launched his own combat sports career in 2015 and has been adding championship titles to the Balletto family legacy. Batman even has his own Contender series that he’d like to compete in. "We’ve been in talks with Dana White’s matchmakers quite a bit," says Balleto of the prospect of joining the show. "We've had some opportunities fall through, but we’ve got our fingers crossed and hope something comes up again soon."
In the meantime, Balletto takes a philosophical approach to life and his career, taking on the opportunities that life presents without worrying too much about the ones that don’t materialize.
"I just go where the wind blows and fight whoever they assign me next," says Balletto nonchalantly. "I have a fantastic team around me with CES and Jimmy Burchfield. I have the best coaches and, of course, I have my dad. I'm fortunate to not have to worry about any of that. They just point and I go."
Indeed, Batman knows from experience that no matter the odds, life tends to work out for those who consistently put effort and dedication into their goals and dreams.
"Motivation will fail you, but discipline will not," says Balletto when considering the most important life lesson his father taught him. "I can't imagine the days that he's had feeling angry at the world and sorry for himself. I don't know if he does. He doesn't tell us about that. We only ever see him get up early every morning, work on his projects and help other people. He really set the bar high, and that's the example we try to follow."
Tickets for ‘Fight for a Cause 2’ are quickly selling out. Purchase yours now at CESFights.com, Ticketmaster or Foxwoods. Doors open at 7pm, with the first bout scheduled for 7:30pm EST. A portion of the night’s proceeds will benefit cancer research at the Dana Farber Cancer Institute in Boston in honor of JoAnne Sullivan, mother of CES Director of Operations Patrick Sullivan. Fans can also join the fight by donating here: The JoAnne Sullivan Memorial Fund.
Balletto won the CES MMA middleweight title in July 2023, submitting James Cannon via rear naked choke in round 2 of their contest. In February 2024, the fan favorite added the CES MMA welterweight title to his collection, submitting Pat Casey in just over three minutes of the first round. The 29-year-old now attempts to make the first defense of his welterweight title against Quintanilha, a knockout artist from the MMA rich country of Brazil. "Training is going perfectly," said Balletto from the Connecticut Boxing Hall of Fame gala, where his father, Gary "Tiger" Balletto, was being inducted. "I know that he’s a tough Brazilian who is coming to win, but I got a great camp in. The more I do it, the more I get it down to a sweet science. I feel better than ever."
While Quintanilha has won 4 of his last 5 bouts, 3 of them by knockout, he is susceptible to the rear naked choke. In fact, 2 of the Brazilian’s 3 losses have come via Balletto’s favorite finishing move, a detail that has not gone unnoticed. "It's never off the table," said Batman, who stopped both Pat Casey and James Cannon via rear naked choke. "It depends on how the fight goes. A lot of times the fight’s going well on the feet and things transition, and sometimes it's just the safest and cleanest option so we can all go home without brain trauma."
