Yves Edwards recently won the HookNShoot Submission Fighting Middleweight Championship. He won a hard fought twenty-minute battle with Aaron Riley, under Pancrase style rules, edging out a decision for the title. Edwards has fought over 30 times, but was relatively unknown before beating Riley. He has built up an impressive record competing in submission wrestling, Pancrase-style, NHB and even kickboxing matches. This well-rounded young fighter has collected over 20 victories and is always looking for the next challenge. Well, he's found it. He has been brought in to face the most electrifying fighter in NHB today, Rumina Sato. Sato is known to dispatch his opponents quickly and effortlessly. However, the American fighters are beginning to slow down the Japanese fighters, with Dave Menne and Bradda Cooper beating Jutaro Nakao, Lance Gibson beating Akihira Gono, to name a few. Will Edwards add his name to the list of fighters that are proving that the US is still a powerhouse in NHB? About a month later, Edwards is scheduled to have a rematch with Aaron Riley, this time under NHB rules. This promises to be another war. I caught up with Yves Edwards on March 19, 2000, and he just happened to be watching the Rumina Sato vs. Kaoru Uno title fight in Shooto.

FCF: Not a lot of people have heard of you before you beat Aaron Riley. Tell us about your martial arts background.
Yves Edwards: Well I started training when I was 20 and now I'm 23, so about three years ago. And I started training with Tim Mousel here in Houston. I did Kung Fu for a about a year, when I was 13 or 14, I don't remember. But other than that, I've learned everything I know from Tim, or through people that he's introduced me to.

FCF: What kind of evolution did your training take to get you to fight in NHB?
YE: I wanted to learn how to grapple when UFC started the grappling craze. And I was looking for someone who taught that. A friend of mine told me about my instructor, Tim Mousel. I went over there, just to grapple really, and I did one grappling tournament. Some local guy saw it and was putting on a kickboxing match and so they asked Tim if I wanted to fight in a kickboxing match. I never fought with strikes before. I was real nervous about it, but did that. Then I put the grappling with the striking and it got fun. I started to want to do amateur vale tudo and Pancrase fights.

FCF: You have built up quite an impressive record in mixed martial arts competitions. What exactly is it?
YE: I have had 31 fights. I don't really remember many of the results of the local tournaments and the amateur stuff I did. But as far as the fights that I have been paid for, I'm 15-2. I lost to Joe Hurley from the Lion's Den and Fabiano Iha and that was it.

FCF: What kind of fights were the amateur ones in?
YE: I think about six of them were in submission grappling only and maybe about seven of them were amateur vale tudo, like no striking to the head. They were all on mats and I had one kickboxing match.

FCF: What titles have you won?
YE: There's an organization here in Houston called the International Shoot Wrestling Federation. I won their title. I had to fight Shannon Rich [from the Shark Tank] for that title. I won that just recently, last year, I think in August. I also won the HookNShoot Middleweight Pancrase-style Championship when I fought Aaron Riley. I won that on a unanimous decision.

FCF: When did you first start fighting NHB type events?
YE: My first NHB fight was with Fabiano Iha in Extreme Challenge.

FCF: Oh really?
YE: Yeah, [laughs] it was. It was fun. I had been training for Pancrase styled fights a lot before that. So the change over wasn't that difficult and the fighting style wasn't that different, except when you close your fists, the fight moves a lot faster. You move quicker and you work better combination and stuff like that. The first time I actually fought NHB was in November 1998, against Fabiano.

FCF: Why don't you tell us about that fight with Iha?
YE: Well, when the fight started, I knew Fabiano was a Jiu-Jitsu guy, but it threw me off when he came to the ring with Marco [Ruas] by his side. But I thought, this is a Jiu-Jitsu guy, so I need to stay on my feet. A few seconds in, he throws a leg kick and I'm just startled. I just shuffle back real quick to kind of avoid it. And then he just shoots in for the takedown. He's really, really strong. He just kept driving and driving. He doesn't have a wrestling background, outside of Jiu-Jitsu, but he kept driving and he felt just like a wrestler. He didn't get the takedown on the first try, we separated and traded some shots. Then he shot in again and…he didn't feel very strong on his feet, as far as striking, but he was amazing. He was really good on the ground, hard to move, real slick and sneaky, you know? He put me in an arm bar and it was the tightest arm bar that I felt from that point.

FCF: And what was it like fighting in your first NHB type event?
YE: I was real nervous at first, when I walked into the arena and saw how big it was. It was up in Utah, Monte puts together a really good show. He had quite a crowd, there was like 5,000 people on hand. That was the biggest crowd that I have ever fought in front of. So I was getting really nervous back stage. This was before my warm up and everything. But when I started warming up, I started getting a little more relaxed. Walking out to the cage, I was real focused on what I had to do, not on the people that were around. In the fight, I didn't hear anything but my corner and sometimes his corner. The crowd didn't get to me, but it was real exciting before getting into the cage. But after, it's just time to go to work. So all that other stuff didn't matter anymore, it was just me and him. And it's time to play.

FCF: You train at Mousel's Self Defense Academy in Texas. Mousel has become a household name to web surfers due to his martial arts discussion forum. Tell us a little about Tim Mousel and what it's like training with him?
YE: Tim Mousel is the man as far as I'm concerned. He's been doing this for 19 years, and he's brought me this far in just three. A lot of people look at him when they come into our gym…Tim is not a big guy in stature, physically, but Tim is awesome. Just the things he knows and the way he transfers that knowledge to me and the other guys is just amazing. Guys come in and just expect to pound on him because they are so much bigger than him, but he just wipes the floor with them. He doesn't have any ego about it, he just does it, and then he teaches them what he did. He's been training quite a bit. He is certified for Thai boxing under Ajarn Chai and he's also a certified instructor of Jeet Kune Do under Guru Dan Inosanto. He studies Jiu-Jitsu under Rickson Gracie, so everything he learns he puts it all together. I have never met anyone personally, who puts it together like him. I've seen guys like Frank Shamrock and Tito [Ortiz] and everybody else that do it their own way, but for a guy who doesn't compete, to understand that much, is amazing.

FCF: Which different organizations did you fight for?
YE: I have fought for HookNShoot, the Extreme Shootout in south Texas, the International Shoot Wrestling Federation, the ISWF here in Houston, and Monte Cox's Extreme Challenge. There was a promoter named Buddy Albin, he had a Power Ring Warrior organization, I won his title at 160, then I never fought for it again. So I guess I retired unofficially. Those are the major ones, the ones that stand out in my memory.

FCF: Have you ever fought for Steve Nelson?
YE: No. In the USWF, no I haven't unfortunately. He's in Amarillo, which is like 10 hours away. Texas is so big.

FCF: But it's closer than Utah right? [laughs]
YE: [laughs] Yeah. Unfortunately, we never talked. I met him once, and he probably doesn't even remember that. But we never talked about me fighting out there. I do know that he had some real good guys fighting out there, like Eric Payne and guys like that. [Payne is also fighting on the same card at Future Brawl 17 on April 15th.] I would love to do one of his shows, but it just had never come up.

FCF: Please name some of the fighters that you have faced?
YE: Shannon Rich, like I said Fabiano Iha, Aaron Riley, Anthony Holiday, Paul Gardener, Jeff Rosenbaum, Joe Hurley. I can't think of anyone else off the top of my head.

FCF: Now, let's talk about your fight against Aaron Riley for the HookNShoot Submission Fighting Middleweight Championship. Both of you had considerable experience by that time?
YE: Aaron is a really tough guy. That fight was the biggest thing that I had on my mind. Walking to the ring was a big step because Aaron's a tough guy, but as soon as I got in there we tagged up…I was amazed at how strong he was. I got him in a Thai clinch and got his head down and I watch the tape, and every time I'm amazed. He just lifted his head up to the ceiling without using his arms, [laughs] and lifted my whole body off the mat with his head. I was just shocked. And I have to fight this guy. [laughs] He was doing really good. He can take a shot and he can hit really hard. Aaron is really dangerous. I wasn't afraid to fight Aaron, there's no fear in fighting. But I was real respectful of…he can beat me and I can beat him, depending on who makes the most mistakes and who capitalizes the most. I just have to keep my head and not worry about anything that's going on and if I make a mistake, what do I need to fix it. I need to stay on my toes, if I'm on the ground, I have to keep moving and get back up. Find what I'm better at than him and do that more than him doing what he's better at than me.

FCF: What, in your opinion, won you the fight?
YE: The clinch. When we tied up on our feet and we were in tight, that was my best bet. He did keep his head up real well, but I did get a few good knees in. And on the stand up, it was the open hands. I know he has fought quite a bit with open hands, but so have I and I think that kind of threw him off a little bit. In Texas, you can hit using open hands on the ground, in Indiana you can't. So that's another thing that might have thrown him off. I had been doing that for a little bit longer. For someone with that much experience, the rules don't matter much, but once a fight is so close and when two fighters are so close in skill, everything counts.

FCF: It has just recently been released that you will be fighting the Japanese phenom, Rumina Sato at Future Brawl on April 15th. Have you seen Sato fight before and, if so, what do you think of him?
YE: Sato is amazing. I have only seen Sato fight twice, his six second fight against Charles Taylor and actually, right now, I'm watching his title fight with Kaoru Uno. And Sato is quick and really good. I've heard a lot about him and I have heard of the guys that he has beaten, guys like John Lewis and Andre Pederneiras. And Sato is pretty much Shooto's number one guy at that weight, maybe at all weight classes. So, I'm expecting him to be everything they are saying that he is. It's not going to slow me down or discourage me at all. I'm just going to train myself and take it to him.

FCF: This could be the biggest fight of your life because of Rumina's ranking in Shooto. Do you have any specific strategy or game plan that you can share with us?
YE: Well that all depends on which issue this interview will be in, because if he's going to read it, I'm not going to tell you. [laughs]

FCF: Well then, let's just keep that a secret then. Can you share with us any weaknesses you see in him? Basically, is there anything you can tell us?
YE: I really don't think that he's lacking in any area, but I just have to find something. I just need to have my trainer train me the way that he has before and make sure that I'm physically and mentally prepared and just do what I try to do best, find his weakness and just exploit it. I'm not too familiar with his background. I think that he's been training for about five years. So as far as knowledge, he has a lot of assets, living in Japan and being around all those guys in Shooto, of what he can learn. I know that he has quite a bit of knowledge for just five years. I think he's quick, but I think I'm stronger than he is. I will have to cut weight for this fight, so I know that I'm going to be stronger than him. If I can keep up with him and use my strength as an advantage, I think that will be a big part.

FCF: This fight will not be under Pancrase style rules. Will this present a problem at all?
YE: No, not at all. In fact, I prefer to fight with NHB rules just because of the fact that you get to move faster, the combinations are faster than with the open hand. I'm prepared for that. In fact, I'm looking forward to that. That's my favorite way to fight.

FCF: You have fought in a number of different organizations and under a number of different rules. Where do you see the direction of NHB going and which style of rules would you like to see become prevalent?
YE: I like the rounds. Rounds are real helpful to everybody. That makes it seem more sportive, especially for the fans. If someone is tired at the end of a round, they need a little break. That one or two minutes that they get between the rounds helps a lot. It really resets the fight. Some guys come out at 100%, some guys can't, but that just depends on how you train. I also like the no stand up rule. That doesn't really help anyone. Some guys' work really hard to take someone down and when they finally get them down, their comfortable on the ground. They want to break for a second, and take a breather. They want to keep their position and then start to work again. By the time that they decide to start to work again, they are tied up and it's harder to start moving. So with all the stoppage there, the ref may stand them back up again and the guy has to work all over again. I don't think that you should give anyone an advantage. Everyone is coming in with the same knowledge of what they're getting into. I think you should just let the guys go in there, fight, give them their time limits, and at the end of the round, let them out. I like the World Extreme [Fighting] rules, where you can kick on the ground. I'm not sure of the head butts in World Extreme, but if you have to deal with that, then train for it. Whatever rules they want to present, just train for it and don't whine, don't complain, just train for it. If you decide that you want to fight, just fight.

FCF: Has your style or the way that you fight changed since your earlier fights as compared to now?
YE: Well every time I fight, I try to find whatever I did wrong and try to fix it. Whenever I lose, I definitely fix those problems. When I first started fighting, I didn't do a lot of striking. I want to compete with these guys who have been grappling for years and have black belts in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. And the only way that I will be able to do that is to strike. On the ground, no matter how good you are at grappling, once you start getting hit, it changes the game quite a bit. You have to think a little bit more and protect yourself and you can't take the chances you normally would when there's no strikes allowed. Striking is a part of my game that I don't want to leave behind. I don't want that to fall by the waist side. Also, I want to be quick. Sato's a prime example, the way he moves, the way he goes after things, he just attacks all the time. Sometimes I want to be laid back, just to give the guy a false sense of security, so you think "oh, this guy is really laid back. I'm just going to pound on him." And then when you get ready to strike, I just counter and go after you like a shark. I just want to be ready for anything at any time. I still have so much to learn. I don't want to just sit back on my laurels and the little bit that I've done so far. I want to be the man in this sport and this is going to happen pretty soon. I just need to keep my focus and I need to keep working. My game is going to constantly improve. Whatever I'm lacking, I'm going to improve. Hopefully, I'll be someone who adds to this sport. I'm going to keep working at it.

FCF: One of your fights against Thomas Denny at Caged Warriors was featured on an episode on the television show Fox Files. I assume that you have seen that episode. What did you think of its anti-NHB message?
YE: I didn't think much of it at all. The interview and the way they presented it to us, at least when they came to me and Tim and said that they wanted an interview, they seemed like they were just going to show a sport that is breaking into America now and trying to be positive. But I felt totally misled the way they portrayed NHB after that. They made it seem like the L.A. Underground was the ultimate in mixed martial arts and no-holds barred and it isn't. I mean, it was a good show as far as the competition, but the way it was run could have been different, but who am I to say anything, I'm not a promoter. I'm not going to tell them how to run their show. But, the L. A. Underground doesn't represent Future Brawl, or UFC or World Extreme [Fighting] or Monte Cox's Extreme Challenge. The only thing that's the same about any of those shows is the fighters. Future Brawls and UFCs, those types of shows, you can go to those shows and you won't see anything that you didn't see at the Underground. The Underground was just that, it was "underground." At that time, NHB was illegal in California. It was as underground as it could get. It was kind of like a movie, [laughs] as far as the audience, the crowd, the ambiance of the event. But it doesn't represent NHB as a whole at all.

FCF: That leads me to another question. How did you feel about entering an event that was illegal in the state. Weren't you uneasy about the thought of the show getting busted and going to jail?
YE: It was slightly a concern, but I didn't have any qualms about competing. It was kind of like a protest really, as far as I'm concerned. I think NHB should be legal everywhere. It's nobody's place to tell another person what he can or cannot do when they're not hurting anyone else. Everyone who steps into the cage or ring knows what they are getting into and have been preparing themselves for weeks, if not for months to get in there. They know exactly what they are getting into. The injury record of NHB is pretty much impeccable. There was one death, which I don't even know where it was,

FCF: It was in Russia.
YE: In Russia, well look at that, you learn something new everyday. [laughs] Look at the safety record, some of the fighters go to the hospital after the fights for little things like stitches. Those are the things that we understand the risk of that. Nobody is getting into the ring and getting hurt. People do get injured, but not at a high rate. Football players get hurt a lot more and that sport is adored by millions of Americans. No holds barred or mixed martial arts is, as far as I'm concerned and many other people are concerned, is the sport of the future. It's the ultimate sport. It's one on one, man to man, with pretty much the same training. You know what you're getting into. In the beginning it was different when everybody did Karate and the Gracie's did Jiu-Jitsu and nobody knew how to handle that. Now everybody understands the whole spectrum of the event and they are training in every area they can, working on their weaknesses, getting stronger, and getting better. Now everything matters, weight matters, experience matters, and guys are preparing themselves for it. It's not a cockfight, it's not anyone risking their lives, and it's just a sport, a game.

FCF: What are your future plans? How long do you plan on fighting
YE: I plan on fighting as long as it's fun. If it's up to me, I'd probably fight forever. It's just that much fun. I still have so much to learn. If I can ever master one aspect of NHB, there's still so many more things to learn. I'm going to always be a student of the game. I am always going to be learning. In the unlikely event that anyone ever gets better than Rickson [Gracie], if I got better than Rickson on the ground, I still need to get better than Maurice Smith or Bas Rutten on my feet. I need to wrestle better than Mark Kerr. I will always keep learning. I just have to keep training. As far as fighting, I will keep fighting as long as my body says "hey, we can go." Martial arts will always be a big part of my life.

FCF: After this fight do you have anything else coming up?
YE: I have a rematch scheduled against Aaron Riley at World Extreme Fighting. This time it's going to be NHB. So that should be about a month after my fight with Sato.

FCF: Do you see any advantages or disadvantages going in to face Riley again under different rules?
YE: I think, as far as skill, as far as experience and mental toughness, we're still pretty much evenly matched. I did win the Pancrase fight, but if I sit back and rest on my laurels. I can't think that just because I beat him in Pancrase rules, I will beat him up in NHB rules. If I did, I would probably get knocked out. Aaron's a good guy, he's been fighting, in fact, he just won last night [in HookNShoot - Double Rising against Jeremy Bennett]. So I'm not going to sit back and think that the rules favor me so I'm not going to work as hard as I did before. I need to work twice as hard. He feels that he has something to prove. I feel that I have something to prove. So, it's going to be like we never fought before.

FCF: Is there anything else you would like to add?
YE: Well, you're making me nervous. [laughs] Something that I do want to say to all the guys out there competing and trying to make the sport grow, keep working at it. We just got back California and I don't know what the situation is in Indiana or Iowa. The sport is going to grow. We just need to expose the sport to more people, get them to understand, and we will be right where we want to be. There's so much more to this than boxing. Boxing is just a part of what we do. So I think we just need to get it out there, and get more people educated on what is exactly going on and not have people drunk, sitting in the crowd screaming "get off of him, get off of him."

FCF: Thanks for getting back to me so quickly and good luck. I look forward to meeting you at Future Brawl.
YE: Thank you man. Thanks a lot.