It’s “Frosty” Brent Dillingham. The fighter says his nickname comes first — not in the middle, surely no afterthought — and yes, the placement is significant.

“My mom gave me that nickname when I was little because of my cold-heartedness and my ice-cold demeanor,” Dillingham explained.

There is fire blazing beneath that glacier, too.

Four amateur forays into the mixed martial arts cage each ended far ahead of their scheduled distance. The 23-year-old Lewiston native won them all, two by stoppage and a pair by submission.

No better time to turn professional than Thursday night, when Bellator MMA and Spike TV storm Androscoggin Bank Colisee for Lewiston’s first nationally televised combat sports event in nearly two decades.

Dillingham will duke it out with Mike Mucitelli of Syracuse, N.Y. (4-0) on the undercard, which will be live streamed at Spike.com starting at 7:30 p.m.

“I’ve always had it on my mind for a couple of years and now here I am. It’s a dream come true,” Dillingham said of his pro debut. “All the secondary things leading up to it change. The fight doesn’t change. All the press and the people around are different. Honestly right now none of that matters to me. What matters most is going in there every time and learning and progressing as a mixed martial artist.”

The sport’s emergence as a power player in his hometown has been a salvation, of sorts, for Dillingham.

A high school dropout, Dillingham described himself as a “troubled kid with a lot of problems” when he discovered the sport as a teenager, gravitating to the Ultimate Fighting Championship and its then-light heavyweight champion Chuck Liddell.

“Baseball, football and basketball, I was an all-star at everything I played growing up. When I got done with school I was looking for another outlet to apply my athletic ability. I was young. I loved sports and I still wanted to compete,” Dillingham said. “I was always interested in boxing but there was really no place around here to do it. There was no gym, no nothing.”

He entered amateur grappling tournaments and received instruction in jiu-jitsu. Dillingham then followed his passion to Florida, training at a pair of elite MMA gyms, American Top Team in Coconut Beach and Combat Athletix in Jacksonville.

In early 2010, Dillingham learned of a bill in the state legislature sponsored by Rep. Matt Peterson (D-Rumford) to legalize combat sports in Maine after a lengthy hiatus. He returned home and helped a friend, Ryan Cowette, launch MMA Athletix, a gym in the Bath-Brunswick area.

“I traveled around and learned a lot,” Dillingham said. “Then I said, OK, it’s time.”

Shortly thereafter, Peterson collaborated with Nick DiSalvo to develop New England Fights. Dillingham took his craft to the cage for the first time in front of four near-capacity crowds in Lewiston and Biddeford, dispatching Rick Garland, Chaz Guthrie, Crowsneck Boutin and Ben Raven in short order.

Under the watchful eye of his trainer, UFC veteran Henry Martinez, Dillingham ascended to No. 2 in the New England rankings at the 205-pound limit.

Turning pro is a coincidence and not an attempt to attach himself to Bellator’s big international name, Dillingham said. He is aware that power players in the sport may be watching but has blocked it from his mind.

“I love the experience. I’m growing from the experience and getting better from it,” Dillingham said. “I don’t fight to prove anything to anybody but myself. The day I start fighting for anybody but me is the day I retire.”

Dillingham is appreciative of the notoriety that Bellator brings to his neck of the woods, however.

It’s more momentum for a sport that shows no signs of slowing down. Dillingham sees the throng of 3,000 every time he steps into the cage and hears the buzz each day he walks into a gym in a different corner of the state.

“We call it cross-training. I like to get a feel for all kinds of different people and how they train and how they fight,” Dillingham said. “I like to help and teach people as much as I can and spread the skills around. We help each other get better. A lot of guys don’t like to cross-train, but I appreciate the ones who have welcomed me in.”

One person who never fails to receive Dillingham with open arms or make him drop his guard: Lana Raubeson, the mother who gave her son his wintry label.

“She’s been nothing but supportive of me my whole life,” Dillingham said. “She’s one of the strongest people I’ve ever met. She has fought and overcome so much, and I absolutely owe this all to her.”

So much for cold-hearted.

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