February News Part 2
|
Sorry
about yesterday's news
I
came home late last night and went straight to bed. I know you
guys need your daily fix. |
|
Quote
of the Day
You
cannot do a kindness too soon, for you never know how soon it
will be too late.
Ralph
Waldo Emerson |
Warriors
Of The Ring II
Maui War Memorial Gymnasium, Wailuku, Maui
February 16, 2003
By Chris Onzuka – Chris@Onzuka.com
Warriors
of the Ring returned for their second event. The first event
brought in the largest crowd of MMA fans that Maui has ever seen
and for this show it looks like the promoters wanted to appease
Maui fight fans by filling the card with Maui fighters. Sometimes
the tendency is for established fighters to fight conservatively
in order to preserve their records and the first timers have
nothing to lose and come out to brawl. These fighters, most of
them making their debut, left nothing on the table after their
fights and went after each other. The crowd erupted after every
exchange. There were a couple of controversial calls, but they
were due to unusual circumstances. One instance was the Nerveza-Cabalero
fight, Cabalero was winning the fight until it went to the ground
and the adrenaline got to him and he fired off some knees to
Nerveza’s head, which are illegal. Before the referee could
step in to give Cabalero a warning, Nerveza scrambled up to take
down Cabalero. During the scramble, Cabalero locked in a tight
guillotine for the tap out. So it looked to be a win by submission,
but because the knees affected the outcome of the fight, the
referee, after consulting the judges, disqualified Cabalero due
to the knees. The matches were even with either fighter having
equal opportunity to win, which made for tight, but exciting
fights. Unfortunately the evening ended on a sour note. Two super
lightweights, who put on an very exciting first round, brought
the crowd’s excitement to a screeching halt by their lack
of action in the second round. Both fighters turned into counter
fighters and waited the whole round for their opponent to make
the first move. This was the only boring round in the event,
too bad it was the last one of the evening. The promoters promise
a stacked card and an even better show for the next event. They
brought in some up and coming fighters into the ring to build
anticipation for some great matches down the road during the
intermission. Even Cabbage Correira was brought in to let the
Maui fans know that he was thinking of moving to Maui and to
let everyone know his future with the UFC.
Preliminary
Bouts:
Paul
Laga (Bulls Pen, Honolulu, HI) def. Patrick Clark (Koali Fighting
Systems, Hana, HI)
Submission due to cut over eye at 3:25 minutes in Round 2.
Charles
Hendrickson (Freelance, 6’0”, 220lbs) drew Scott Tam
(Maui Full Contact Fighting, 6’0”, 225lbs)
Majority Draw [(19-19), (19-20), (19-19)] after 2 rounds.
Ednor
Lat (Maui Full Contact Fighting, 5’10”, 165lbs) def.
Robert Billianor (Lockdown Unlimited, 5’10”, 170lbs.)
Submission due to strikes from the mount at 3:48 minutes in Round
2.
John
Nerveza Jr. (Bulls Pen, 5’6”, 145lbs, Honolulu, HI)
def. Keola Cabalero (Wailuku Kickboxing, 5’7”, 140lbs,
Wailuku, HI)
Cabalero disqualified for illegal knee strikes on the ground
at 4:05 minutes in Round 1.
Paulo
Lupi (Brazilian Freestyle J.J., 173lbs) def. Lucky Keefner (Maui
Full Contact Fighting, 175lbs)
Submission via triangle choke at 1:59 minutes in Round 2.
Co-Main
Event:
Anthony
Billianor (Lockdown Unlimited, 260lbs) vs. Palmer Fuga (Kona
Boxing Club, 220lbs, Kona, HI)
Submission via neck crank (reverse rear naked choke) at 3:53
minutes in Round 1.
Main
Event:
J.R.
Baraoiden (Maui Full Contact Fighting, 120lbs, Kahului, HI) vs.
Tien Nguyen (Wailuku Kickboxing, 130lbs, Wailuku, HI)
Draw [(19-19), (19-19), (19-19)] after 2 rounds. |
Breaking
news: Nino will face Sakuraba at Pride
by: Luca Atalla
The
first thing Antonio 'Nino' Schembri did when he received the
news was to call home. 'Mom, we must get a new guitar!' he said.
The reason is obvious: since he will face Japanese star Kazushi
Sakuraba at the next Pride, on March 16th, the big Elvis fan
must set up his costume to attend the show in a grand style.
It
was the opportunity Nino was asking for and he did not complain
about being caught by surprise: 'Actually I love that. It's really
an honor to have a chance to face Sakuraba and fighting is my
life, so I'm glad they called me. No matter, I was training with
a gi, no matter that there is less than a month for the fight.
It will be a pleasure, and I'll be ready.'
Nino
is not worrying about Sakuraba's experience (14-4-1) nor his
skills and he's confident in declaring: 'I'll submit him'. Everyone
familiar with Schembri knows this belief is not arrogance. He
really believes that, and says the reason: 'I know he will try
to avoid my game, but I think 20 minutes is too much time for
him to hide. So he probably will be tapping.'
Considered
perhaps the most dangerous fighter in Jiu-Jitsu nowadays, Nino
is
a former World Champion and holds the title of most technical
fighter at ADCC 2001. Only 2-0-0 in vale-tudo, the Brazilian
wants to build his career showing how Jiu-Jitsu submissions work
in this genre. It would be a big tribute to the real king, Elvis
Presley indeed, to submit Sakuraba at home!
Source:
ADCC
|
PRIDE.25
Fight Card
Yokohama Arena
March 16th, 2003
February
19th, DSE/PRIDE press release all match up of PRIDE.25 on March
16th as follows.
New
release
Kazushi
Sakuraba (Japan / Takada Dojo) vs Nino "Elvis" Schembri
(Brazil / Gracie Barra)
Alexander
Otsuka (Japan / AODC) vs Kenichi Yamamoto (Japan / Free)
Carlos Newton (British Virgin Islands/Warrior Martial Arts Center)
vs Anderson Silva (Brazil /Chute Boxe Academy)
.
Akira Shoji (Japan / Free) vs Alex Stiebling (USA / I.F.Academy
)
Already
announced
Quinton
"RAMPAGE"Jackson (USA / Team Panishment) vs Kevin Randleman
(USA / Hammer House)
Dan
Henderson (USA / Team Quest) vs Shungo Oyama (Japan / Free)
PRIDE heavy weight championship
Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira (Brazil / Brazilian Top Team) vs Emelianenko
Fedor (Russia / Russian Top Team)
Rogerio
"Minotoro" Nogueira (Brazil / Brazilian Top Team) vs
Kazuhiro Nakamura (Japan / Yoshida Dojo)
Source:
Koichi "Booker K" Kawasaki |
More
on the LIGHTWEIGHTS
After
the UCC shakeup and the upcoming UFC featuring four of the top
ten, you can bet the top ten is going to shift!
Here's
a look at January's version of the MMA WEEKLY TOP TEN. It will
be interesting to see how things play out.
Here's
a look at some of the movers and shakers in the top ten. Some
have fallen, some have excelled and some have yet to shine!
LIGHTWEIGHT
DIVISION - 155 Pounds
1. Jens Pulver - 102 Points (7 first place votes)
2. Takanori Gomi - 99 Points (2 first place votes)
3. BJ Penn - 98 points (1 first place vote)
4. Caol Uno - 64 Points
5. Matt Serra - 48 Points
Tie - Genki Sudo - 48 Points
7. Din Thomas - 42 Points
8. Javier Vasquez - 36 Points
9. Dokonjonosuke Mishima - 17 Points
Tie - Vitor Shaolin Ribeiro - 17 Points
Other
votes - Josh Thompson - 10 Pts; Ryan Bow - 8 pts; Yves Edwards
- 7 pts; Rumina Sato - 5 Points, Hermes Franca 2 Points, Rich
Clementi - 2 pts, Alberto Crane - 1 point
Takanori
Gomi: Count 'em....twelve victories and ZERO loses. He's beaten
Rumina Sato, Stephen Palling, Ryan Bow, Chris Brennan and Mishima
and still hasn't been ranked number one. Often he's plagued with
playing it cool and getting a decision which makes him seem 'noneventful'
but regardless, he wins. It's highly doubtful he'd ever fight
out of Shooto (other than one SuperBrawl appearance) but anything
is possible.
Genki
Sudo: Another fighter who exudes excitement but is he serious
about MMA? There have apparent communication breakdowns between
Sudo's management and other organizations. Recently Sudo claimed
a hip injury forced him out of UFC but it appears he's fighting
for K-1 on 3/1/03 (the day after UFC). He is 7-2-1 with his most
notable victories being over Nathan Marquardt, Leigh Remedios
and Kenichi Yamamoto. He future is unsure in MMA but he does
add an unpredictable edge of excitement and finishes opponents.
His bizarre business choices may keep him from ever making it
as a star outside of Japan.
Rumina
Sato: Once regarded as the sports most exciting fighter, Sato
has suffered a bad luck streak. Sato is 1-3-1 in his last five
outings but is still a fan favorite. His legendary bouts with
Caol Uno, John Lewis, Joel Gerson and the single most amazing
piece of video in MMA, the flying armbar against Charles Taylor.
Sato has fallen out of the top ten but remains loyal to Shooto.
UFC was after Sato a year ago but his stock has dropped and he
is out of the top ten.
Matt
Serra: Many argued that Serra's loss to BJ Penn was questionable.
Although his record is a modest 3-2 Serra's aggressive style
makes him one of the most exciting fighters in the 155lbs division.
Serra's transitioning from submission to submission without giving
his opponents a chance to think is what makes him VERY dangerous.
Even when losing, Serra is fighting like a winner and that makes
him one of the most explosive fighters in MMA after only five
fights.
Jens
Pulver: Although 'Little Evil' has an unmatched record, he is
often criticized for not finishing his opponents. Some fans even
attack him personally which is out of line but Jen's keeps on
going. Although he is known for his dangerous left, Pulver's
last finish was 11/17/2000 in his now infamous KO of John Lewis.
Since then, all of Pulver's matches have went this distance until
his recent loss to Duane Ludwig. Criticisms started after Pulver's
wins in UFC when he apologized for his performance on a couple
of occasions. Although he was a winner, a select group of fans
took aim. Many believe Pulver will be back in the UFC. Dana White
has said publicly that Pulver calls and talks to him about coming
back. After such a 'high impact' loss to Ludwig, it may take
a little longer but everyone is optimistic.
Dokonjonosuke
Mishima: With a 10-2 record in MMA, Mishima is another player
in the 155lbs weight class. His two loses are to Shooto champ
Gomi and Din Thomas (lost on a cut). He is quite a character
outside of the ring but backs it up with massive submission arsenal.
His only MMA ventures outside of Shooto have been in HOOKnSHOOT
and Deep. He packs excitement into his fights and is a fan favorite
in Japan. It's doubtful that Mishima would venture outside of
Japan but Shooto fans in the U.S. are hopeful.
Source:
ADCC |
The
Tao of Tank
Tank Abbott is back in the UFC, and regardless of how you feel
about it, the goal is the same as it always was: to fight and
destroy the guy in front of him. No more and no less. The advantage
of doing it in the Octagon versus one of his favorite watering
holes in Los Angeles? He gets paid and doesn't risk going to
jail for his fistic ministrations.
Abbott,
who returns February 28 in UFC 41, faces Frank Mir, a solid submissions
fighter who defeated Pete Williams before losing to Ian Freeman.
Despite the constant evolution of skills in the Octagon, the
Tank isn't losing sleep over that fact that he made his debut
in UFC 6, back when mullets and ineffective fighting styles were
comically all too common. The UFC has gotten civilized since,
and the Huntington Beach slugger feels it's more than enough
of a counterpoint to the spate of cross-training that lead some
to wonder if he can compete in today's game.
"There's
rounds now," Abbott told maxfighting.com. "There wasn't
back when I was fighting Taktarov. I think a lot of guys got
into the UFC and said, 'I wanna do this,' but I was out there
doing it for free. I'm back doing what I was put on earth to
do."
Abbott's
streetfighting dossier is the stuff of legend. Back in the mid-90s,
when he was whacking out people with a definitive nastiness that
made chilling fodder for the highlight reel, he estimated his
total at somewhere around 300, with a half-dozen losses among
them. "Sometimes I drink too much," he says in explaining
the occasional defeat in the street. When he lost in the UFC,
he went down swinging. Either way, Tank Abbott brought it, and
when he landed, usually that alone justified the price of admission
and left you feeling like you'd seen something primordial.
Like
a car wreck, you couldn't take your eyes off of him whacking
out a 400-lb. John Matua, leaving him twitching, and helped out
of the Octagon while clinging to an oxygen mask. Or blasting
favored Hugo Duarte with a look of a kid on Christmas while his
fists bounced off Duarte's head. It has all the subtlety of a
chain whipping, but unless you can deal with Abbott, and quickly,
you'll probably be his highlight-reel sissy. And that's just
the way he likes it. Tank isn't a bully, but he seems to take
special pleasure in beating up those who think they can intimidate
him.
Ironically,
though Abbott cultivates a bad assed persona during interview
segments on TV, he is well educated, holding a B.A. in History
from Cal State Long Beach. He's unpretentious and plain spoken
with a good sense of humor, and it's what endears him to fans.
What Abbott always brought to his bouts was the sense of something
memorable about to take place; it's that same appeal that probably
motivated the UFC brass sign him up for another run.
He
faces a new generation of heavyweights but doesn't dwell on it.
He doesn't even care about getting a shot at champion Ricco Rodriguez
for the belt. He just wants to fight whoever they put in front
of him. And he's still going to be Tank Abbott, all day, and
all night long.
"The
Tank Abbott training regimen is simple. You get up about 1 pm,
grab some food. Go down and do some training," he said.
"Then go out and get a drink." With his preferred Stoly
in hand, Tanks unwinds from the rigors of a training day.
Even
when he's keeping to himself he still finds a fight, and the
usually unfazed Abbott betrays a small tinge of bewilderment
at the Karmic hand he's been dealt.
"It
doesn't matter what I do. I can go into a bar, sit in the corner
by myself, and some tough guy is always gonna try and push me
around," he said, with a gruesome humor. "Most of those
fights were before I was Tank Abbott. I was 220 for half of them,
or about 280 for the other half. We'd get down and go for it."
"Nowadays,
apparently Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu is the new kryptonite," Tank
adds, pointing to the fighters coming into the game with grappling
pedigrees. "Street fighting is a mentality that these people
might not have had. It (UFC) is still a fight, though."
Abbott's
biggest problem in the UFC was always stamina and excess pounds.
His weight, which ranged from a low of 250 lbs. vs. Dan Severn
to just over 300 versus Scott Ferrozzo, is now at about 245,
startlingly low for his frame. And with time limits and five-minute
rounds, he'll be able to do something he was never able to do
in his long bouts which too often left him with empty barrels
-grab a one-minute rest, suck up some oxygen, and gather himself
for another burst of two-fisted mayhem.
Fighters
have definitely gotten better in the UFC since he was gone, but
if Tank Abbott can hit them, will it matter?
Source:
Maxfighting |
Lions
and Tigers and Bulls!
Interview with Tony Galindo
It's been nearly a year and a half since Tony "The Bull"
Galindo last fought. In that fight Galindo suffered a severe
knee injury that has kept him on the sidelines of mixed martial
arts until now. The next King Of The Cage is only days away and
Galindo is set to face the always ready Joey VillaSenor. The
Bull took a few moments away from his students to talk about
his upcoming fight, his love life, the Lions Den and more.
Brian
Piepenbrink: So what's been going on Tony?
Tony Galindo: Well for the last few months I've just been getting
ready for this fight and trying to build up the school. Between
the school and the fight most of my time has been taken up. I
don't know if you've heard, but I've been training with Dean
Lister and the guys from City Boxing in the mornings. As you
know right now Ken has got his issues with his family and he's
more or less retired.
Therefore
it's just Vernon and myself here. And with just Vernon and myself
I don't feel I can get to where I need to be. Just like before,
I tried to work with other people… it's not like it used
to be. Before you could train with your team and if you didn't
have any other influences you were doing pretty good. Everyone
has now caught up with the game so much.
You
got guys from Millennia or Mileich or Barnett's camp up north,
their really good on their feet, their really good on the ground.
So I've had to go and expand my game. I give a lot of credit
to the guys from City Boxing. They've been there pushing me very
very hard. I've been training with Mike Regner for my Thai-boxing,
he's a Fairtex certified instructor. He came from San Francisco.
He's really really good. [I train] with Dean and Jaco in the
mornings. Dean's as good as anybody on the ground in my book.
He did very well at Abu Dhabi and is qualified to go again. This
is going to be a good fight for me. I'm very excited to be back.
It's been a long haul for me. And I'm engaged by the way.
BP:
Wow, when did that happen?
TG: It happened on New Years. I've been with Ute for well over
a year and a half and I care for her more than I've ever cared
for any other chick. She keeps me happy and she's good to me.
She's the reason the business is doing as well as it's doing.
She helps me with all my advertisement, she helps me with paperwork.
Things that us knucklehead fighters aren't very good at that's
when you get a good woman to come in and help you. She's doing
the Price Is Right, she's no longer doing the King Of The Cage.
BP:
Talk about you opponent.
TG: I'm fighting Joey VillaSenor. I know Joey, I have nothing
against him. Usually in my fights I have a grudge against the
guy or I don't know him and I build a grudge. With Joey I'm just
going to go in there and do my job and finish it as quickly as
possible. I'm sure he's training his ass of too.
BP:
So I know Guy Mezger has his camp out in Dallas, but what about
the other guys? What is the state of the Den today?
TG: Well we're always going to be brothers. We're like a band
of brothers that has been switched around. We've pretty much
more or less disbanded because we didn't have the leadership
that kept us together. The last big fight was Ken's fight with
Tito and I didn't get a chance to see him train and he came in
really light. That's the lightest I've ever seen him. And he's
pushing forty.
But
the status on the other guys, Mike still has his gym but he's
more or less just concentrating on his family. I talked to him
last week and he wished me luck and he said he'd be living the
fights through me. I talked to Jerry. Jerry teaches twice a week.
He's also engaged. He's doing very well but he's more or less
retired himself.
Guy
called me, he wished me luck. I told him I was training with
Dean and he said "you're in good hands" and he said
whenever I have the chance to come out to Texas and show him
what I've learned [I could]. And that to me was pretty cool because
Guy has never been one too… I wouldn't say cordial but I
was a subordinate to him. I was a Young Boy. When I got started
I was the young boy so he saw me as the young boy. Now they're
starting to see me as something different which I think is good.
Joe
Hurley is on his way down here as we speak. He should be here
any second. He's doing well himself. He wants to get fights in
now, he's been working, saving money trying to support his kid.
All these guys got girlfriends then got married and did they're
own things. Vernon and I are not training together because I'm
training at City [Boxing] and he has a commitment to Miguel Reyes.
He's going down to Mexico twice a week to kickbox with them.
He had an opportunity to train at City Boxing with us but if
he's going to train at City Boxing and represent City Boxing
they want to make sure he has the well-rounded training. They
can't have him doing jiu-jitsu in the mornings with us and then
going to Miguel's at night if he's going to represent the gym.
Because if he loses to a good kickboxer and he's representing
City Boxing it makes City Boxing look bad, it makes their program
look weak. I understand that side of it but I also understand
Vernon's. He loyal to Miguel and he has to fulfill his commitment
before he can move on and after this fight he said he'll think
about coming to City Boxing and I think it would be a good thing
for Vernon to do that.
Dean's
changed my game a lot him and Jaco. When they get on top or get
me from the side or pass my guard it's pretty much been impossible.
I've learned a lot of new tricks but like I was saying before
the sport has evolved so much. All the stuff that I learned a
year ago is either obsolete or you have to modify it and change
a few things. The guys are getting really really good. Look at
this guy Shoalin who beat Joe. He's got some crazy moves. You
can't just stay on the same track so I hope he comes out and
trains with us… I'm rambling on huh?
BP:
So tell me about your school.
TG: The school is doing very well. I'd say 35% of my students
are Navy. And I've got a lot of real young guys you know eighteen
nineteen-year-old kids that want to fight. I have a few that
I'm getting ready for fights. That's the reason I'm fighting
again, not just because I love it but after I win this fight
it will make my school look good.
Everyone
wants to train at the schools that are kicking ass, that's the
bottom line. If you go out there and you get buried or you get
pinned and you can't get out… I'm not trying to cut anybody
down but if you go out to a fight and some wrestler takes you
down and he holds you the entire match then your school is weak
in that sense, especially if you're their leader. I eventually
want to have my own dojo and whether it's called the "Bull
Pen" or it stays the Lions Den is entirely up to Ken. He's
still the Lions Den name owner and he's made me who I am today.
If it wasn't for Ken I wouldn't be here right now.
BP:
One thing I wanted to ask you about. I saw you and your girlfriend,
or should I say your fiancé, on ABCs "Are You Hot?".
How did she do?
TG: She dropped out of the contest because they called her for
The Price Is Right and asked her to take that position. And between
you and I now that I've watched the show I'm kind of glad she
didn't go through with it. I consider Ute to be my ideal girl
ever since I was a kid. But they were just ripping on the girls
who were a little too muscular or too skinny, it was just brutal.
It's like American Idol. They took the hottest people and the
ugliest people. There was no in-between. If you were like an
8 or a 9 you're out. You weren't hot enough for this show. If
you were a 10 or a 1 you're in. Because if you saw it they had
some crack-head looking chicks and some ugly dudes. So She [Ute]
made it and they looked at the rest of us and said you're not
hot enough to be on this show, please leave. And Vernon didn't
make it either [laughs]!
BP:
So you and Vernon actually entered the contest?
TG: Yep! [laughs]. I figured if she was going to be doing it
I may as well just for the shits and giggles. She says to be
with her I must be pretty hot myself. So with that mentality
I don't consider myself to be that ugly of a fighter. And she's
like "no baby you're hot!". So I went and apparently
they didn't think I was that hot. They didn't think Vernon was
that hot either. So Ute is the only one hot enough from the clan
over here [laughs]. It's the ears, maybe my ears throw them off.
BP:
Yeah, cauliflower ears probably don't go over big in Hollywood.
TG: No, but in Japan I'm pretty fucking hot though, I know that
[laughs]!
BP:
So did she get the Price Is Right job yet?
TG: Yeah she did and she's got another gig with the Travel Channel.
She's been doing a lot of commercials. I can guarantee that she's
not only going to pass me up, which she already has, but she's
going to hit the big time before me or any of my guys will that's
for sure.
BP:
Well it's a good thing you're marrying her now [laughs].
TG: Oh yeah. I was going to be with her no matter what. She's
not only beautiful but she's more beautiful on the inside to
me. I mean come on, who would want to take care of me or put
up with my shit? I feel very very lucky to have her. I'm going
to be with her for a very long time. They say a girl will either
make you or break you. That's so true. All the guys that got
women who were either not in love with them or with them for
the wrong reasons they're all down hill skiers. There is only
1% of the group that's going on the chair lift back up to the
mountain. Jerry's doing well, and Mikey is married with kids
but everyone else I'm not going to even comment.
BP:
Well do you want to add anything before we close?
TG: Watch out for my standup now and my ground. Watch out for
this fight because it's going to be a fun thing and you're going
to see a different Tony Galindo. No longer will you see the angry
caveman going in there and just clubbing and Rahhh! Just muscling
his way in there. I think I've put a little dance in my steps
now so I can flow a little better.
BP:
And the knee's fine?
TG: The knee is perfect. Both of them.
BP:
Thanks Tony.
TG: Thank you.
Source:
Sherdog |
Quote
of the Day
What
this power is, I cannot say. All I know is that it exists...and
it becomes available only when you are in that state of mind
in which you know EXACTLY what you want...and are fully determined
not to quit until you get it.
Alexander
Graham Bell
|
Matt
“The Terror” Serra (pt 2)
Matt
“The Terror” Serra is preparing for his upcoming fight
in the UFC against Din Thomas. His most recent fight was a decision
loss to B.J. Penn who is fighting on the same upcoming UFC card,
against Caol Uno for the 155 lb belt. Matt has always trained
under Renzo Gracie and now owns two academies that are affiliates
of Team Renzo Gracie, the largest and most dominating team in
the North East.
KM:
Speaking of which I take it the new Renzo Gracie gym has opened
already?
MS: It should be open soon. I was there last weekend; he showed
me and it’s still getting under way; it looks beautiful.
KM:
How often are you training at Renzo’s and how often boxing
at Ray Longo’s?
MS: I’m at Ray Longo’s more because it is more convenient
for me in Long Island. I do a lot of my boxing there and my sparring
and my cardio work. I definitely try to see Renzo as much as
I can and he’s always got great advice for me.
KM:
How do you look back at the Penn fight?
MS: I enjoyed it. I got to work a lot of stuff. The decision
went to him and I’m not going to cry about it. I thought
I should have got it but that’s the same as me saying ‘hey,
I got robbed’. It was a close fight.
KM:
You definitely put on the more exciting show.
MS: I enjoyed it because definitely thought I’m going to
grow from that fight. I got tested; I got cut in the first round
when I was going for a single. No big deal, nothing to slow me
down or anything. It tested my mettle. Everybody said if I couldn’t
get him down I’m getting knocked out but he was shying away
from the stand-up with me. He tried to get aggressive in the
second round and everytime he did…one time I knocked him
on his ass. Going into the third round he wasn’t listening
to his corner; he didn’t come right after me. He must have
felt something. I’m think I’m going to grow from that
fight. Anytime you go fifteen minutes with a tough guy you grow
from it.
KM:
Even though you lost by decision I think you made him look bad.
It reminded me of the Pulver/Penn fight and Penn hasn’t
quite been the same since then but he definitely took a 180 when
he stepped in there with you. He was all defense and stall and
even though you lost by decision you had such an effect on him
that it’s nothing like his other wins.
MS: You’d think after a fight like that the guy would be
respectful but I guess not.
KM:
How do you think this Uno/Penn match is going to go? MS: (Penn)
is very talented. His mental state and his heart is definitely
in question but he is very talented. Uno, if he takes him out
in a later round is his best chance. There is a good possibility
of that. With this game, it’s a game of upsets. I think
Penn will win but at the same time Uno is smart; I think Uno
will learn from my fight with Penn. Nobody is unbeatable and
this guy is definitely not unbeatable.
KM:
How do you feel about the perception of the winner your fight
against Din stays in the UFC while the loser needs to step down
and get more experience before coming back?
MS: Is that a fact or are you just throwing that out there?
KM:
Mostly from Din. He was saying the winner stays in there and
I believe his term was ‘the loser goes home’. I was
making the point with Din about like Yves Edwards loses and steps
down, goes to HOOKnSHOOT and wins that, and now is back in the
UFC.
MS: That is only a fight away from getting back in. When you
start looking at it like that you put too much pressure on yourself.
You put too much pressure on yourself you can affect your performance.
You’ll hold back, play it safe…I never want to fight
like that. I’d rather go out hard and die hard then win
decisions. I’m not even thinking about it to tell you the
truth. I’m training for a fight and I know what I gotta
do in there and I’m training hard to take this guy out,
not win a decision.
KM:
We are seeing more attention to the 155s than we usually do in
part due to three fights in the next UFC at 155 and Pulver/Ludwig
last month. Do you see anything really coming from this like
larger paychecks and publicity or is this just a passing phase?
MS: There is a ton of talent in my division. Not only that but
styles make fights and there are a bunch of different guys with
different styles that match up very well in our division. The
Lightweights definitely shouldn’t be paid less, they are
more exciting than many of these big guys. I think it’s
about time we got paid our due.
KM:
So how is the rest of your gym coming right now? Anybody likely
to cross over soon or are they sticking to grappling?
MS: Oh no, I have some very good up-and-comers. Pete “Drago”
Sell just beat the used to be undefeated Ted Govola. Govola was
9-0 and my guy Pete Sell was 1-0 and people were saying he shouldn’t
even take that fight but I knew his abilities in there and they
fought a tough fight but Pete definitely dominated. Besides Pete
I have Joe Scarola, my highest ranking belt in here, a very good
BJJ technician you can expect big things from this year. Also
my big guy Tom Muller who just won in Ring Of Combat and Luke
“The Silent Assassin” Cummo who just won in Ring Of
Combat who is also really good in muay thai. I think these guys
all have a future in MMA doing some damage.
KM:
I’m wondering at what point we are going to see some of
your guys outside the North East.
MS: I‘m going to wait until after my fight with Din and
make some calls because I have some guys that are definitely
ready for HOOKnSHOOT and things that are on that level and the
bigger shows, it’s just a matter of a lot of these guys
that I named are helping me with my tow academies so while one
if them is fighting the other guys pick up the slack. After this
fight these guys all helping me now get ready and helping the
academies I’m definitely going to concentrate on my guys
and let them get something in.
KM:
Anything else you want to project to the fans?
MS: Besides thanking Renzo I want to thank Ray Longo and say
keep an eye out for my guys.
Source:
ADCC |
Fighters
on the Move!
Duane
Ludwig, fresh off a brutal KO of #1 ranked Jens Pulver, has started
receiving offers! After his victory, UFC was hot on his trail
and offered him a shot at Yves Edwards. 'Bang' turned down the
fight due to short notice and being an acquaintance of Edwards
as well. Bang is reportedly waiting on his next combat - K-1
in May! Bang's future is looking brighter every day.
Jose
'Pele' Landi. Not much has been heard out of him after he and
Chute Boxe parted ways. There was a strong rumor that Pele may
be headed for the UFC in the 185lbs division as UFC President,
Dana White, publicly stated he was interested in Pele and was
going to make an attempt to contact the Brazilian powerhouse.
Pele's last fight was against Carlos Newton where he lost via
submission in an incredible seesaw battle at PRIDE. ADCC recently
reported Pele is relocating to Rio - so look for a return in
2003!
There
was also some chatter about Dan Henderson heading towards the
UFC. Henderson has primarily fought in PRIDE for the last two
years and is now reported to be fighting again for PRIDE in the
next edition. He displayed incredible versatility in his last
fight, with 'Minotauro' Nogueira, even after taking the fight
on two weeks notice and giving up over 40lbs. Henderson could
be back in UFC by year end!
Aaron
Riley is preparing for a HOOKnSHOOT World Title match against
Chris Lytle. This will crown the new HnS Champion at 170lbs after
the belt was vacated by Yves Edwards. The two have somewhat of
a rivalry that makes the match more interesting, since both have
come up with BIG reputations in their home state of Indiana.
Riley is also planning on fighting more often in 2003.
Could
Dennis Hallman get a THIRD victory over UFC Welterweight Champion
Matt Hughes? Dennis seems to think so! He gets his opportunity
to establish himself as a contender at UFC 42. Hallman will take
on KING OF THE CAGE Champion Romie Arum in a welterweight showdown.
The
WEF and HOOKnSHOOT 145lbs champion is looking to add another
belt to his collection. Hermes Franca, from American Top Team,
is looking to take home the King of the Cage Championship. Negotiations
between the two have started.
Speaking
of Hughes, many are speculating that he could retire the welterweight
title and move up to 185lbs. This would make room for teammate
Robbie Lawler to make a bid for the vacated championship....IF.....Hughes
steps up in weight.
Source:
ADCC |
"Rampage"
vs. "The Monster" in Pride 25
Quinton "Rampage" Jackson will square off against Kevin
"The Monster" Randleman March 16 at PRIDE 25 in a battle
of two the most powerful and formidable light heavyweights currently
competing. Randleman, 3-0 in PRIDE fights, is coming off a TKO
victory over Murilo Rua in December. This marks Jackson's first
fight since a late-September victory over Igor Vovchanchyn. It
was also announced that Dan Henderson will fulfill the final
fight in his PRIDE contract versus Shungo Oyama.
Source:
Maxfighting |
March
SHOOTO Bouts Announced
Slumping SHOOTO 154-pound star Rumina Sato faces Danish competitor
Joachim Hansen March 18 in Tokyo, Japan. Sato, 1-3-1 in his last
five fights, hopes to again climb the ranks of SHOOTO welterweights,
where he's currently ranked sixth. Hansen, 4-1, surprised Takumi
Nakayama in SHOOTO's December end of the year event in earning
a majority decision victory.
Less
than a month following his Feb. 21 King of the Cage bout versus
Fernando Vasconcelos, Shonie Carter will fight in Japan for the
first time since a December 2000 Pancrase bout. He'll face Seichi
Ikemoto in a 167-pound contest. Other Class A bouts include Tetsuo
Katsuta versus Hideki Kadowaki and Mamoru against Homare Kuboyama.
Source:
Maxfighting |
Thinking
Out Loud: The UFC Heavyweight Division
What
is going on in the UFC these days? First, Jens Pulver exits to
pursue personal interests. Then Josh Barnett pees hot for three
anabolic steroids, is stripped of his title and abandons Zuffa.
After that, Murilo Bustamante, regarded by many as the best fighter,
pound-for-pound, in mixed martial arts, turns up his nose to
various offers from UFC and has yet to resign. And, of course,
Tito Ortiz appears to be a little more than reluctant to fight
Chuck Liddell. If that’s not enough, Zuffa has only one
supreme big guy, and he is none other than Ricco Rodriguez.
Do
you think the UFC Heavyweight class is stacked, or malnourished?
Discuss it in the Mixed Martial Arts forum
Ricco
will step into the Octagon come February 28th and face challenger
Tim Sylvia in what will be the first defense of his title at
UFC 41. Ricco smashed Randy Couture into submission in the fifth
round of their memorable match in UFC 39 to win the belt, which
was forced to be vacated after the Barnett fiasco. Sylvia, a
seasoned fighter who hails from the legendary Miletich camp,
boasts an impressive 14-1 MMA record, with a solid majority of
his wins via knockout. Sylvia lost his professional debut to
Jorge Rivera, but has been perfect ever since.
Though
Sylvia is a tremendous puncher with an excellent record, does
he truly deserve a shot at Ricco’s title? He’s only
had one fight in the UFC and even though it was a seesaw slugfest
of epic proportions, that one fight alone shouldn’t warrant
his shot at the title so quickly. Now, believe me, I am taking
absolutely nothing away from Sylvia whatsoever. He definitely
deserves to have a crack at the UFC limelight, but it just shouldn’t
come so soon. And besides, can you blame him for stepping up?
Certainly not. This is the day he’s been dreaming of for
many moons. It’s not his fault that he has been catapulted
into the #1 ranking for Zuffa’s heaviest strap.
So
the question remains: whose fault is it? Not Ricco’s. Not
Tim’s. Certainly not the fans. And it’s not even us
MMA media guys.
It’s
Zuffa’s fault.
True,
Zuffa has done a remarkable job in transforming the UFC into
the mainstream mega-beast-in-training that it should be. With
the help of Lorenzo and Frank Ferttita and Dana White, who knows
where the UFC would be these days. They’ve done almost the
impossible, which is mutating their fighters into MMA superstars,
outdo themselves with seemingly every show and gain more and
more notoriety along the way. UFC, right now, is so much better
than what it used to be before Zuffa started doing their Copperfield-esque
magic tricks. The only thing is, why is the heavyweight division
in the UFC so bleak, so blue, so bland?
Alright,
check this: UFC has Randy Couture, once dubbed the invincible
warrior who’d never tasted defeat inside the Octagon, but
has lost two consecutive matches, one by TKO, one by submission.
Barnett, Couture’s first slayer, has banished himself from
his Vegas ties and is considering a move to fight in Japan or
pro wrestling. Pedro Rizzo, the always-deadly striker, has lost
three of four, two by TKO. Frank Mir, the Sin City native once
hailed as the next best thing in the heavyweight class, got his
arse handed to him by Ian Freeman and pulled out of his proposed
match at UFC 40. Freeman has since been blasted out of there
by Andre Arlovski, who has lost to Rodriguez and Rizzo. We have
Gan McGee, who stomped Rizzo, but he seems to be too big for
a shot at the title or something. So all we have left is Ricco
Rodriguez, a deserving champion if I’ve ever seen one, and
Tim Sylvia, a time-tested warrior who’s feasted on weaker
competition who gets a crack at the title.
Then
we have Pride. Ah, Pride, the “owner” of the world’s
#1 heavy, Rodrigo Antonio Nogueira. Those three words say enough,
not even mentioning his godly nickname. After him we come to
Fedor Emelianenko, fresh off of his dismantling of Heath Herring,
another top-notch contender. Moving down the list and we possibly
have Barnett. Just those three guys alone topple virtually Zuffa’s
entire stable of big guys, not even mentioning Igor Vovchanchyn,
Semmy Schilt or Don Frye. Oops, I just mentioned them. What gives?
Why is Pride so stacked and UFC is so toppled? The answers will
be forthcoming.
Aside
from Pride’s more desirable stable of 205+ lb. warriors,
another subject looms for Zuffa. He is none other than Tank Abbott.
Is he the best of the class, or even near the top? Hell no. But
he’s more exciting to watch than a pack of mako sharks feasting
on Taliban in a pool of carved up mackerel, that’s for sure.
Tank is set to face Frank Mir and there is no doubt that he’ll
explode towards Mir, blazing his guns and unloading everything
from his clips. The safe bet is to pick Mir because he’s
tremendously gifted in almost every aspect of his game, but after
seeing him stagger across the Octagon and doing the James Brown
from the pummeling courtesy of Freeman, can anybody really bet
against Tank? And what if Tank wins? He’ll assuredly be
rewarded with a shot at the title, either against Ricco or Sylvia,
whoever survives that battle.
It
seems to me that Zuffa realizes that their heavyweight class
is shedding thin and needed a name fighter to rescue it, in a
way that Ken Shamrock came out of nowhere and received a title
shot after losing a fight. But hey, bringing Tank back is an
ingenious move, certain to rake in cash over fist. There isn’t
any MMA fan out there who isn’t talking about, or at least
curious to see, what Tank will do. Can you just imagine the shockwaves
that would rage through MMA if Tank Abbott, the master of no-holds-barred
all-or-nothing mayhem and expert of no true discipline, became
UFC’s heavyweight champ in this, the era of all-around and
truly talented fighters? Utter BLASPHEMY!
Now
I’m not bashing Zuffa at all. Not whatsoever. It’s
just that with the departure of Barnett due to the steroid scandal
and Rodriguez as the only “great” heavyweight out there,
the division is just blah. Thankfully, I can’t say the same
thing about the other weight classes in Zuffa’s ranks. Liddell/Ortiz,
Bustamante/Baroni, Hughes/Newton III anyone? Okay, we all can
let Zuffa slide about the heavyweight situation…for now.
Source:
Sherdog |
INTERVIEW
OF THE WEEK: JENS PULVER
In his
first public interview since his loss to Duane "Bang"
Ludwig, MMAWeekly's Ken Pishna sat down with Jens Pulver as Pulver
reflected on his first loss in three years. Little Evil was very
candid in the interview and he talked about his fighting future,
IF there is one, not to mention leaving Iowa and moving to Las
Vegas to branch out on his own. Here's a sneak peak of the interview
that you can read in it's entirety tomorrow.
MMAWeekly:
So, Jens, what's been happening since your loss to Duane Ludwig
at UCC 12?
Jens Pulver: I've just been sitting at home, really. Reflecting,
trying to think about what it was that happened. And the more
I sit at home, the more I think about what was going on, I was
having a hard time. I'm not making excuses. Duane caught me.
Duane studied me, Duane beat me. I give all the props in the
world to him. But as far as me, if you watched the tape, I ran
out there brawling, I ran out there and threw two great big punches,
just wild. I got caught up in this whole stand up thing and I
went out there angry. And that's not my motif. I've never fought
like that. I'm always patient, kind of slow, calculated. And
Duane was ready for it. I've looked at a lot of things that are
going on. I've been keeping one big secret from the MMA world
and that is that I'm having a little girl, I'm having a baby
in a month.
MMAWeekly:
Really? Congratulations man!
Jens: Thank you, thanks. That's been tough. That's a lot of work,
a lot of preparation. I'm not married. The girl and I are friends,
we're dating. And watching Tony get his head split open, that
happened right before my fight. And it was just a lot of things
kind of built up and I just went out there angry. It wasn't a
fight for me no more, I was just angry. I wanted to throw and
get all my frustrations out. I lost my skill in the process.
MMAWeekly:
You had mentioned many times that you wanted to become more of
an exciting standup type of fighter. Do you feel like that kind
of got in your head and affected your game?
Jens: I know it did. I didn't even think about take downs, didn't
even think about grappling. I'm sitting here worried about this
guy, thinking his stand up is great. It never even crossed my
mind, Òh, just take him down and beat him on the ground.
I got so wrapped up in what I was doing. After 3 years of winning
and going undefeated and being on this big streak and holding
the belts that I held, you kind of have to invent things to keep
you motivated and get you going again. That's what I did. I just
wanted to be a stand up guy and that's what Duane was really
good at. I don't like being the favorite, I like to be the underdog.
Well, I'm an underdog in the standup game, so that's what I'm
going to go after is his stand up game. The weird thing is, a
lot of people talk and they talk about the whole fight. The truth
is after my second left hand, I was out. I do not remember the
rest of that fight, the takedowns, the stand up, rolling under
the ropes, I don't remember any of it. I was out the whole time.
I woke up back on the seat looking at Pat going, Hey, what happened?
He goes, Well, it's over. And I go, Really, that's the fastest
round I've ever done in my life man. Wow! That was a fast five
minutes, then I go, What the? Why's he putting his shirt on?
He goes, No, it's over Jens. You got knocked out. I go, Awe,
I got knocked out? Oh man.
MMAWeekly:
That's the first thing you remembered?
Jens: Yeah, then I'm sitting in the locker room and I go, Well
what's this bruise here? And they go, Oh, well that's where he
tried to kick you in the head. I'm like, Well, what are these
bruises right here? They go, That's when you shot in on him.
I go, What's this bruise on my chin? And their like, That's where
he caught you with the left hook. I'm like, God damn, how long
did we fight? A lot of people ask me, Are you hurt? Are you upset?
I'm doing fine, I don't remember it enough to be hurt. I can't
accept all the wins and all the great things that MMA has done
for me if I can't take a loss. It's just one of them things.
Look what happened last time I lost. I ended up beating the world.
I wouldn't want to be the guy that I fight next. It's given me
a lot of focus.
MMAWeekly:
Sounds like you have a great attitude about it. Have you started
planning a comeback yet or are you mulling things over?
Jens: I'm working on it. I think a big thing for me, and I make
no secrets about it, being in the UFC and then leaving the UFC,
it's been tough on me. You know, you had a belt. You had a motivation
going in to every fight. So now, you're just kind of going out
there for money. I thought that was what it was about, just getting
money.
MMAWeekly:
And now you think it's not so much about the money?
Jens: To me, it's not. I lost focus on why I was fighting. I
liked to fight in the UFC because my family got to watch me,
my friends. Like I said, I came from garbage. I came from nothing.
I was abused. And this is a great way for me to achieve my dreams.
Dana and Lorenzo and all those guys are great people, I just
miss them. I miss being around those guys. I miss being around
the fighters. Somewhere along the way, I just kind of went on
a little self destruction. The only thing that I'm thinking about
now, is when I fight again, I want it to be somewhere where I'm
going to be happy. I'm going to go back to what I used to be.
I'm not Jens Pulver the stand up guy.
MMAWeekly:
Do you think that your attempt to be a stand up fighter was a
failed attempt?
Jens: I don't think it was failed. I'm in MMA. There is a reason
why they don't box with 4 ounce Boxergenics on their hands. They
will sting yah. I got the stand up, but I just got to remember.
I got to go back to what I was. I was a wrestler. I came from
the ground and I got to keep that in mind. I forgot about my
ground all together. All I was thinking about was stand up. I
got to change that up. This is everything goes and I have to
go back to using everything.
MMAWeekly:
It sounds like a lot of your thoughts center around the UFC.
Are you going to make a hard push to get back into the UFC?
Jens: I'm not gonna make a hard push. But, I've got a little
girl on the way and there are a few things that I'd like to do
for myself. I'd like to beat Royce Gracie's record, I'd like
to go 10-0 in the UFC. But again, there's a lot of problems with
that. I don't know if they'll ever have me back. I don't know
if they want me back and the truth is, it's not necessarily the
UFC that I'm worried about getting into or getting out of. I
just want to be happy wherever it is that I'm fighting. I was
extremely happy when I was in the UFC.
MMAWeekly:
Do you regret deciding to leave the UFC?
Jens: I took some advice from people and made my decisions, and
I stick by my decisions. If I never go back, that's okay, I did
what I needed to do when I was there. I gotta be happy. I gotta
get hungry again. I gotta have fun. It's gotta stop being a job
and stop being about money. It's gotta be about the fans and
being about having fun again. If I don't have that, then I really
don't want to do it any more. I've contemplated quitting and
start training other people who are hungry and have what I had.
MMAWeekly:
The thought of quitting has come about since your fight in the
UCC?
Jens: Yeah, since the UCC. I still, I haven't fully made up my
mind. I may not fight anymore. I'm gonna help Rich Clemente get
ready for his fight in the UFC against Yves Edwards. I don't
know, there's just a lot more on my plate right now than there
was six months ago.
MMAWeekly:
So you're saying that you might not return to the ring?
Jens: I don't know if I will or not.
MMAWeekly:
I know a lot of people would be disappointed if they don't ever
get to see you fight again, myself included.
Jens: I don't want to disappoint anybody. I want to be the fighter
that they knew and grew to enjoy and grew to like. And if I don't,
then I'd be cheating them, just like I'd be cheating you and
I'd be cheating myself. So, that's what I'm after right now.
I'm looking at maybe making a move to Vegas for training. Not
because of anything wrong here. The things that I have set up
to do after fighting are in Vegas, working with elderly care
and things like that. Which is something that I've always wanted
to do, working with people.
MMAWeekly:
What would be your involvement with that?
Jens: Basically just running a business. Doing in-home nursing
and registered nursing and things like that. It'd be great for
fighters. The fighters could go spend some time with the elderly
people, just hang out with them and get paid. They'd have a job,
you know. Elderly people, they're the warriors. Anyone that can
make it as long as they have, my hat is off to them. Thats just
a job that I've been planning for a long time.
MMAWeekly:
So you would run the business?
Jens: Well, what it would do is, it would get me back to Boise
so I can complete the circle that I've been trying to complete
which is to run the office there in Boise and take care of Boise's
elderly. And then go back to fly fishing and get outdoors. Start
training fighters and start working with teams and possibly fight
myself. It's just time to make a move and get back to what I
was doing before and just always remembering, there's gonna be
an exit here pretty soon and your window is short as a fighter.
MMAWeekly:
Does this mean that you're leaving Miletich Fighting Systems
and Team Extreme?
Jens: No, I'll never leave Monte. Monte has been a great manager
to me.
MMAWeekly:
What about Pat?
Jens: The thing is with Pat is he's kind of like the nest. I
mean, he took care of me, he's mothered me and even he agrees,
maybe it's time for me to go. I have a lot of experience.
MMAWeekly:
So, you feel like you need to go out on your own?
Jens: Now, when I get into a big fight, I'm coming back here.
But, before that, it is time for me to go out there and make
my own life. I'm not really doing much here but training with
people and for three years, that was fun. That's what I wanted.
But I need more to do than just sitting around training all day
long. I've got to have an exit from the fighting world and that
was the other thing. Constantly being in the gym, never taking
yourself anywhere. Never giving yourself a reward for winning.
Never giving yourself time to forget that you're a fighter and
go be something else. There's nothing to do in Iowa man, that's
why the fighters are so good here, you're stuck, you train, that's
it. [laughs] It's just time for me to go out there and plan my
exit while I have the opportunity.
MMAWeekly:
Sounds like you've really been thinking things through?
Jens: Oh boy, I tell you what, it's been a spiritual thing man.
I go from I don't know if I even want to fight again to completely
accepting the fact that I got beat. I'm glad I got beat by such
a classy individual though. Duane was nothing but class. Bas
Rutten, I always loved him, he's a great guy. I got started in
his tournament in Denver. If it had to go, I'm glad it went to
him. Now I'll be ready. If a guy like B.J. comes at me, I'll
have to flatten him. Guys like him don't deserve it, but a guy
like Duane, very deserving, very humble, a guy who works hard.
If I had to go down, I'm glad I went down to a guy like him.
Problem is, I'm gonna come back up. That I know. I'm not gonna
go out on a low note.
MMAWeekly:
Despite what you said, you don't sound like you're done yet.
Jens: Not yet, there's still some fire in this belly. I'm just
trying to figure out which direction I want to shoot it.
MMAWeekly:
Well, thanks for talking to us at MMAWeekly.com Jens.
Jens: Thank you, I appreciate it. Anything for MMAWeekly.
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
Quote
of the Day
Faced
with the choice between changing one's mind and proving that
there is no need to do so, almost everyone gets busy on the proof.
Galbraith's
Law
|
808
Fight Factory Gladiator Challenge 14 Results!
Hot
off the presses! Kai Kamaka, one of the head trainers and coaches
at 808 Fight Factory, just called me with the result of his fighters
in the Gladiator Challenge 14.
Carl
Malenko vs. Nate Quarry
Carl Malenko got injured so Mac Danzig vs. 808 Fight Factory's
Tripson Kersiano was the main event!
Mac
Danzig (RAW) vs. Tripson
Kersisano (808 Fight Factory)
Quick Summary:
Tripson lost late second round by rear naked chokes, but won
the first round by grounding and pounding. Tripson picked up
the RAW fighter and slammed him as well as took him down numerous
times in round 1. Tripson also had a deep footlock and popped
his opponent's foot. Kai said that his foot almost touched his
leg.
Abe
Baxter vs. Dez
Miner (808 Fight Factory)
Dez Miner
wins in the middle of the second round by choke. He beat his
opponet down real good.
Albert Hill vs. Jim
Kikuchi (808 Fight Factory)
Jim Kikuchi
wins by tap out from shoulder pops in the second round.
Congratulations
to all the 808 Fight Factory Fighters who did an incredible job
and represented Hawaii very very well! |
|
Joao
Morais returning to Brazil!
After
13 years in Hawaii, Black Belt Joao Morais will be returning
to his native Brazil to pursue his dream. Morais, who has long
dreamed of having a fitness training camp, began to set the wheels
in motion and will be opening a surf ,jiu-jitsu,kite surfing
,fishing and wind surf camp in the southern Brazil's City of
Garopaba.
Joao
wishes to thank the 13 years of support from all his students
and friends and invites everyone to stop by and check out his
new digs as soon as it opens. Be sure to keep an eye on www.joaomorais.com for the latest. Aloha
Joao!
Source:
ADCC |
Kickin
it Again!
Derek
Bright and I are trying to give the fighters of Hawaii another
venue to fight in again if intrested in fighting in one of our
events coming up, We are planning another fight at the end of
May, please contact Derek Bright@ 554-7898...
The name of the event is called "Kickin it Again"
Date: April 5, 2003
Start Time: 6:00 pm
Location: Palama Settlement Gym
Cost for entry: $10 General admission
$15 Ringside
Tentative Main Event-
170lbs-
Shawn "Tornado" Taylor
vs
PJ Dean ( AFC 2 Champion )
Semi
Main-
150lbs-
Brandon Absher
vs
TBA
The rest of the fight card will be sent soon I'll be in touch
Thank you very much for your time and support.
Mahalo,
Danny Kaheaku |
Hawaii
International Muay-Thai Boxing Association
Tony
Giraldi, presents Hawaii International Muay-Thai Boxing Association.
Hawaii's Sanction Body for Professional, Amateur and Jr. Amateur
(ages 8-17), competition for American Kickboxing / Oriental /
Muay-Thai / Free-Style / Unarmed Combat. This is to build fighters
from Beginner to Advance levels in Amateurs, then turn Pro. Safety
equipment is mandatory to protect ALL Female and Male Amateur
Fighters.
Rounds/Time
Limit for Amateurs 18 year's old and above: March 29, 2003
American
Kickboxing: 3-rounds, 2-minutes each round, 1-minute rest.
Oriental:
3-rounds, 2-minutes each round, 1-minute rest.
Muay-Thai:
3-rounds, 2-minutes each round, 2-minutes rest.
Rounds/Time
Limits for Jr. Amateurs
American
Kickboxing/Oriental/Muay-Thai:
Ages
8-15, 3-rounds, 1:30 each round, 1-minute rest.
Ages
16-17, 3-rounds, 2-minutes each round, 1-minute rest.
Fighters
registation, rules, competition attire and fees $30.00. Contact
Tony Giraldi @ 623-6238 or e-mail giraldimuaythai@yahoo.com.
DEADLINE for ALL registration and fees March 15, 2003. Full name,
address, contact numbers, gym name, coaches name, weight, height,
want to fight American Kickboxing/Oriental/Muay-Thai, TRUE fight
record. NOTE: If you have fought Professionally, you cannot fight
in this Amateur Event.
Fighters,
mark your calenders for our monthly Amateur competition March
29, April 26, May 31, June 28, July 26, August 30, September
27, October 25, November 22, 2003. Event will be held at Giraldi
Muay-Thai Gym in Halawa Valley, 99-1421 Koaha Place # Bay 3,
located next to OICA Poison Ink. December 2003, date and location
pending for championships.
TWINS,
mahalo for ALL your help. Aloha, Tony
|
Copa
Pacifica
Cleber
Luciano's Copa Pacifica is getting a lot of attention. The traditional
event in its 6th year now has become the talk of tha academies.
The Copa is being viewed as the perfect opportunity for a last
tune-up prior to the 2003 Pan Ams by most of the teams and that
is generating a LARGE number of entries. The event is going to
be held on March 8 & 9 at the Estancia High School in Costa
Mesa, Ca.
Be
sure to call (714) 842-4554 or check out www.cleberjiujitsu.com for more info or to
sign up!
Source:
ADCC
|
|
The
Cricket Speaks!
Fresh
of his big sprint win over the Gracie Barra Team on the Pedra
da Gavea Challenge Royler Gracie 'AKA 'The Cricket' (shown right)
spoke with Kid about the race and future plans. The Challenge,
actually a friendly between the two super competitive schools,
actually began in ADCC 2001 during a breakfast gathering, the
day before the competition. The Gracie Barra table Renzo Gracie,
Nelson Monteiro, Cachorrao Almeida, Marcio Feitosa & Sean
Alvarez was discussing fitness training and the subject of climbing
the Pedra came up. The Barra team was raving about Monteiro's
speed and dominance of the climb. Royler interjected: 'I love
the climbing Pedra and my time is pretty good!' The Gracie Barra
team going: 'Yeah yeah! Sure sure!'
Fast
forward to 2003 and Royler sees Gordinho climbing the rock and
kids with him: 'Are you here for a nice afternoon walk?' The
fiesty and very competitive Gordinho didn't take the coments
lightly and the challenge began to take shape. Gracie Barra's
leader Carlos Jr, who has been coaxing his fighters to use the
climb as an important way for body/mind conditioning with obvious
great results (see most tournament Team wins), ran with the idea
and became the designated head judge. (see Luca's report for
details)
After
the win Royler commented: 'This is a great way to get everyone
fired up about the upcoming 2003 ADCC! What could be better way
than to get the competitve juices flowing along with some physical
conditioning on a dare that started in ADCC 2001?' Royler went
on to tell that he is already started his conditioning program
eyeing ADCC 2003, but had only trained two days for the climb.
He continued saying that after Gordinho's start he thought that
a record would be broken, and he wasn't planning on coming in
second. Royler continued: 'At this time, all my energies are
focused on ADCC. The tournament is THE definitive word in Professional
Grappling and I want to defend my title! The preparation has
already began. After the event I want to fight NHB, but we will
address that after May!'
When
asked about Nelsinho's demand for a rematch Royler quipped: 'Tell
them to run and practice and when someone in their team starts
to reach 17.5 min, they can start to call me!' . Gracie Barra's
second in command Marcinho Feitosa, who is currently in California,
wants to avenge his school: 'I want to get that 'Magrinho' on
the hill!' Marcio said laughing, 'we should have a big run-off
after ADCC snactioned by the CBJJ and the ADCC Commitee!'
Could
we be seeing a new event become a part of ADCC and the CBJJ events
? :) With May just around the corner, ADCC is already dominating
the thoughts and lives of the top grapplers in the World!
Source:
Kid Peligro/ADCC |
Eddie
Bravo and the Twister
“Twister, Twister!” Sometimes you’ll hear it yelled
at tournaments when he’s fighting. Sometimes you hear it
in class if you happen to be there when he’s training at
Jean Jacques Machado’s school in Tarzana, California. You
might even see some of the other students in the class trying
to “get the Twister” on another student in the class.
Eddie
Bravo started Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu over eight years ago after
seeing one of the early UFC’s when Royce Gracie won against
much larger opponents by fighting on the ground. Realizing that
his karate lessons weren’t cutting it, he signed up at the
Machado school and began his journey into the world of Brazilian
jiu-jitsu. Before that, he had played football and done some
wrestling in high school.
“The
Twister”, as it has come to be known, has it’s origins
in wrestling. “It’s called ‘the Guillotine’
and is one of the very few wrestling moves that’s actually
a finishing move. They call anyone that specialized in the Guillotine
‘Leg Riders’ and that’s what I was” Bravo
says. “When I started jiu-jitsu, I would always go for the
guillotine. The only setup in wrestling is when you have control
of someone’s back which is very common in wrestling. But
the thing with jiu-jitsu is I couldn’t get in on anybody
because I couldn’t get anybody’s back and if you get
someone’s back, you might as well try the rear naked choke.
So I figured out a few different ways to get it without having
the back. The most common way is side control. Also when a guy
shoots for a double and you sprawl on top of him, I can get it
from that spot. I made it work for jiu-jitsu.” Rigan (Machado)
and Jean Jacques had never seen it and didn’t know what
it was. “They just started saying ‘that’s a tweeest…that’s
tweesting.’ They just started calling it ‘Twister’
(there is already a choke in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu called the Guillotine)
and then they started calling me ’Twister’ and I hated
that because back then in ’95, that’s when that Disney
movie “Twister” was out. It was just so Taco Bell…plus
that game, Twister - a white, shiny sheet with colorful spots.”
It got to the point where he even asked Rigan and Jean Jacques
to stop calling him “Twister” and asked them to change
it to whatever ‘twister’ was in Portuguese. They told
him that the closest thing to twister in Portuguese was “toronado”
which he didn’t like any better. He gave up on the name
and it stuck. Now, he likes the name and enjoys it when he’s
at a tournament and people yell for him and the move.
Eddie
Bravo continues to train. He has a brown belt under Jean Jacques
Machado and trains other jiu-jitsu and NHB fighters including
Gerald Strebendt. He recently won a spot at the ADCC North American
trials and is headed for Brazil in May.
Source:
ADCC
|
Big
Dog beats Minowa in Japan
PANCRASE
/ 2/16/2003
Osaka, Japan - Osaka Grand Cube
PIC:
The BIG DOG swinging at PRIDE, against Akira Shoji
“It
was a good fight”, states a happy Ricardo Almeida as his
train pulls into Tokyo station after the trip from Osaka, where
he beat Ikuhisa Minowa by unanimous decision at the Pancrase
show a couple of hours before. Although Minowa is a very respected
grappler in the Land of Raising Sun, a calm and confident Big
Dog proved to be just too much for him. “We did not exchange
many punches and kicks, as I preferred to fight on the ground,”
describes a tired Ricardo who went to Osaka early this morning
(Japanese time), fought, and came back from there on the same
day, on the 8pm train.
All
the action was controlled by Almeida, who swept Minowa with good
“omoplatas” and almost submitted his opponent several
times. “I caught him in a guillotine choke right at the
beginning and he snored, but he didn’t tap. This guy definitely
has a strong heart”, says Almeida remembering another important
point of the match: “I got the side position and went to
his head, choking him holding his head and arm together. he even
left some slobber on my arm, but he did not give up. After spending
some time in that situation I released the hold in order to conserve
energy”.
During
the three five minutes rounds, Ricardo mounted, got Minowa’s
back and side position many times and, according to himwas hit
hard at any time, ending with no injuries at all. Big Dog’s
win was a big thing in the fighting world, especially in Japan.
It seems that Minowa, along with Kikuta and several other fighters
were part of a TV show, the theme of which was “How to beat
Ricardo Almeida”. In that program, they studied what they
thought were the strongest points the Big Dog had, and how avoid
them. The results prove they must study a little more!
COMPLETE
RESULTS:
Daisuke Hanazawa defeated Tetsuo Uehata at 1:39 of round one
due to rear-naked choke.
Satoshi
Watanabe DREW Kenji Takeshige
Daichi
Fujiwara defeated Kenji Matsui With a MASSIVE KO in only :11
of round one.
Yoshiro
Maeda defeated Shigeyuki Umeki in 1:41 of round two by rear-naked
choke.
Yuji
Hoshino bested Takaku Fuke by Judges decision (3-0).
Kengo
Watanabe over Koji Okuyama by Judges decision (3-0).
Hidehiko
Hasegawa defeated Kosei at3:05 of round two with an armbar.
Kenichi
Serizawa defeated Roland Fabre at 2:58 of round one with a rear-naked
choke.
Akihiro
Gono DREW Chael Sonnen.
Ricardo
Almeida ended
the winning streak of Ikuhisa Minowa.
Unanimous decision after three rounds. Pancrase was hoping Minowa
would win after promising the fans an 'undefeated 2003.'
Source:
ADCC
|
STEPPING
UP WITH DAN GABLE (Part One)
If
you don't know about Dan Gable, then you don't know about wrestling.
He had 181 straight victories, first in high school and then
in college at Iowa State, over a seven-year period, until his
last college match, that famous 13-11 loss to Larry Owings in
the 1970 NCAA finals. He was a freestyle world champion in 1971,
and then an Olympic gold medalist in 1972, where he did not surrender
even one point to his opponents. Then Gable entered coaching,
leading the University of Iowa from 1977 to 1997. In those 21
years, the Hawkeyes won 15 NCAA Div. I national championships.
He now serves as an Assistant to the Athletic Director at the
University of Iowa, as Interim Head Resident Freestyle Coach
for USA Wrestling, and unofficially as an ambassador for the
entire sport of wrestling.
All
those numbers and official titles, however impressive and unprecedented,
barely speak to the intensity, passion, and undaunted spirit
that this wrestler from Waterloo, Iowa, has brought to the world's
oldest sport.
Amidst
a blizzard of awards ceremonies, speaking engagements, and media
appearances, Dan Gable traveled to New York the weekend of Feb.
7-9 to be a featured part of the celebration of the 100th anniversary
of college wrestling at Columbia University. Almost having myself
to wrestle off an endless stream of well-wishers, admirers, and
media, I sat down with Dan Gable just prior to the Columbia-Princeton
meet that highlighted this 100th anniversary celebration. Fittingly,
we talked matside, as the teams prepared for action.
All
sports have legendary, historical figures. Gable is surely one
of wrestling's legends. But just because one has gone down in
history does not mean that one knows everything about it. We
started by discussing that the birth of college wrestling in
America did not take place in his home state of Iowa, or other
current American wrestling capitals such as Oklahoma or in the
Midwest, but in New York City, at a meet between Columbia and
Yale in 1903.
'I
should look into my history books a little bit more, I guess,
because I didn't know that,' admitted Gable. 'I didn't know exactly
that this was the birthplace. And now I do know that, and it
means a lot to me. I know a lot about the sport, and I just keep
learning. That's kind of my motto as a coach and as an athlete,
and now as somebody that deals with a lot issues. And it's certainly
important for me to know this, just from the standpoint of knowing
where it evolved.'
Gable
then referred to the many historical articles that were part
of the program for this 100th anniversary celebration. 'I was
reading the article that talked about the first match, and I
tell you, it was very interesting,' he said. 'And then yesterday
[Feb. 7] I was at the New York Athletic Club, watching an event
with Columbia and Cornell, and that was very interesting. Then
again, here we have one right here at Columbia, and I see some
of the same people that were at the New York Athletic Club that
are in the stands here. So I'm actually thrilled to be here.'
It
used to be almost automatic that college wrestling's top teams
would come from Oklahoma or Iowa. But with Minnesota winning
the past two NCAA Div. I National Championships, and top wrestlers
emerging on teams all throughout the country, college wrestling
has moved in a direction where things are beginning to even out
somewhat.
'You
just don't know what's going to happen as much,' agreed Gable,
citing the Iowa-Michigan State meet of Feb. 7. 'I figured Michigan
State matched up pretty good with them, so I gave them a chance
to win a couple of matches. But they won the dual meet on criteria.
So that just wasn't happening as much when I was coaching.' He
continued, 'It's definitely going to make some areas very excited,
and others probably not quite as excited. But they're already
established, so there's no going away for Iowa, I'll tell you
that.'
Right
in the mix of that evening out process is the Ivy League, which
has seen a resurgence of wrestling, both on the team and individual
levels. Harvard's Jesse Jantzen, Cornell's Clint Wattenberg and
Travis Lee, Princeton's Greg Parker, and even freshman Matt Palmer
of Columbia are among those who now can be seriously considered
as candidates for one year or another winning NCAA national championships.
'I
think that's great,' commented Gable. 'I think it should be that
way. The thing that's been amazing to me is, our sport has to
battle a bunch of issues right now, just to keep it around. But
we are stepping up. And we're stepping up and taking on these
issues. And some people are getting upset with us, creating a
little bit of factions here. But I'll tell you, when you believe
in something, you go for it. And our group has stepped up. But
you know what? I want to give a lot of credit to the Ivy League
schools, because they have had the ability to step up as much
as anybody else, just because they have not only wrestled, but
they have put themselves in a financial position to be able to
step up more than a lot of wrestling people. And that means a
lot to me, and to the sport it represents. I'm not just going
to say 'thanks.' I'm just going to say it's a good combination,
academics and sports, especially wrestling.'
At
the top of the list of these issues facing college wrestling
has been the interpretation and enforcement of Title IX, in particular
its 'proportionality' clause.
'You've
hit the main issue,' Gable continued. 'We just have to right
now get some things changed that will give a little bit more
flexibility in running athletic programs. Right now, they're
kind of hard-fast. You are either this way, or change it, or
you get sued. So right now we have to have some flexibility,
and hopefully that flexibility will happen in the near future.'
A series of battles at hearings and committees of the Department
of Education have drawn the lines on that contentious issue.
But
Gable sees wrestling imperiled by forces not only at home, but
abroad as well.
'The
other thing that's really going on right now is at the International
Olympic Committee level,' he stressed. 'We need to really step
up there as well, because there are a lot of people that are
in charge right now that are saying we should only have the sport
of wrestling, not freestyle, not Greco. We have men's wrestling
and women's wrestling. So they're thinking about trying to do
something with the style. We are so established in freestyle
and so established in Greco across the world that it would be
a shame.'
As
recently as the 1996 Olympics, there were ten weight classes
apiece in freestyle and Greco. These were reduced to eight in
2000, and now to seven each. Women's wrestling has seven weight
classes in international competition, except in the Olympics,
where there will only be four.
'We
already got cut back so many weight classes, that it puts too
many kids in the same weight class. I have six kids right now
that wrestle for me that were in five different weight classes,
that are all in the same weight class right now. That's unheard
of,' he said, speaking about the 145.5 lbs./66 kg weight class.
Still,
Gable remains the optimist.
'I'm
really looking forward to getting wrestling even more organized
than it has been,' he said. 'And it looks to me that we are doing
a pretty good job. Otherwise we would have got thrown out already.
I'll tell you why, because there were enough outside people,
with enough outside interests away from wrestling, that we could
have been gone. But we got some great people in here, and they
know what it means. And it's now the time to step up.'
To
be continued.
For
more information on Dan Gable, go to: http://www.dangable.com/
Source:
ADCC/Eddie Goldman, wrestlingeditor@yahoo.com
|
Quote
of the Day
"The
nearest way to glory is to strive to be what you wish to be thought
to be."
Socrates
|
The
Cricket: Royler is the King of the Mountain!
by: Luca Atalla
The morning was suitable for the challenge. Although the summer
in Brazil is often hard, the temperature was not too high warly
this Saturday, a cloudy day in Rio de Janeiro. Without eating
anything, Rafael 'Gordinho' Corrêa woke up and went straight
to Nelson Monteiro's house to catch a ride with his teammate
for the battle at the Pedra da Gávea hill against Royler
Gracie.
The
Gracie Barra team arrived at the foot of the hill nearly 20 minutes
ahead of the time scheduled. Royler arrived there with his own
'rabbit' - his student Mauro - right on time, 10:30am. The groups
were relaxed and joking with each other, but when the start time
was near they stopped talking, their faces showing the signs
of deep concentration.
Anyone
who has climbed the hill knows the exercise is tough. It is a
long, steep trail where there is not time to rest until the end,
the place known as 'The Boat' because the big rock that looks
like a hull. The route is used by the Jiu-Jitsu athletes to train
since the early eighties, when Carlos Gracie Jr. moved his academy
to the neighborhood of Barra da Tijuca, where 'Pedra da Gávea'
is located, and discovered that the effort to climb challenges
the mind just like a fight.
Most
people in good shape that are used to climb the mountain normally
make the route in 25 minutes. A handful have made it in 22',
23' and very few have done it in less than 20'. The under 20'
group are known by name, since they are very rare. Nelson Monteiro
(18'), Royler (17'30'') and Rafael (18'30'') are in that select
group, however they've never competed against the clock and each
other as they did today.
Rafael
started the race running like a maniac and pushed the group in
the very beginning, where usually people walk to warm up. 'At
that time, I thought that if he keeps that pace until the end
we would all suffer a heart attack' Royler stated after the contest.
Fortunately Rafael did not. When they arrived in the first steep
part, he slowed down and Royler immediately got the lead. From
there on Gracie simply disappeared from their opponents' view.
'It was unbelievable! He seemed like a cricket. Every time I
looked Royler was farther away.' Stated a baffled Rafael!
As
the minutes ticked by, things got even better for Royler, as
he surged in the last sprint, with a relaxed expression on his
face, and his opponents nowhere to be seen. With the hands on
his knees helping each big step, he crossed the check point just
16'25'' after the start. 16'25''!!!
His
student came in next clocking 18' and Royler started shouting:
'Where is Gracie Barra? ! ? !' while Nelson and Gordinho were
still climbing. The former finished in 19'13'' and the latter
in 19'35''. Both were ashamed. 'It was like been outscored by
15 points, and after that being submitted,' compared Gordinho
while the champion did not stop of joking: 'You were my rabbit.
If you did not rush in the beginning I would not had broke my
record!'
Gordinho
shrugged: 'I confess. I'm not able to make that time.' However
Nelsinho did not give up and wants more: 'I want a rematch. I'm
sure I can beat you', said the black belt. Royler laughed and
did not say anything more. He can keep quiet as he lets his time
speak for him.
Source:
ADCC |
PELE
LANDI - Bound For Rio De Janeiro!
by: Marcello Tetel
Many
who know him say the same thing - he is a great guy, but sometimes
his emotions overcome him! Inevitably, for some, thee are bad
feelings when his name arises.
After
a controversial decision to leave the team he was such a big
part of, it appears that Cuban born Jose 'Pele' Landi is ready
to make news again.
First
things first - the split between him and the ChuteBoxe Team is
irreversible. 'I don't want comment on that, but my love for
the team just ceased.' states Pele. There are rumors everywhere,
with money swirling as the central issue, but Pele will not feed
any of these rumors!
The
2nd big piece of news about Pele is that he is moving to Rio
de Janeiro!
Pele
will try to rebuild his career, and he is looking to Rio de Janeiro
for a fresh start. 'I love this city! I will be going back to
Curitiba from time to time to see how things are going in my
school.' states Pele.
We
don't know yet where Pele will be training in Rio, but his new
teammates better be ready, because his training methods are hard
and heavy, and he is hungry to fight again. 'I have been contacted
by the Battleship people but nothing confirmed yet.' states Pele.
Source:
ADCC |
Tamura's
U-STYLE
Kiyoshi Tamura's first U-STYLE show is in the books! This event
sold out, taking place in front of a 1,600 head standing room
only crowd. The enthusiasm at the event and the fan response
was described as enormous and extremely positive.
The
opening of the show featured a video presentation showing the
various stages of scoring with complete demonstrations. This
gave the crowd a detailed rundown of rope escapes, submissions
and how the fighters obtain points.
Most
observers believe the majority of the matches were legitimate,
but some still have the skepticism after some pro wrestling style
angles played out.
One
angle saw Dokonjonosuke Mishima, formerly of Shooto, challenge
Kiyoshi Tamura himself to a match at the upcoming April event.
There
is also serious talk about Josh Barnett coming in for a future
U-STYLE event. Barnett is a longtime fan of the UWF (now U-STYLE)
type of pro wrestling/fighting. Many believe the Barnett would
love this far more than New Japan but it's his call.
The
inaugural card went down as follows, with several MMa veterans
in there. More to come on whether the matches are real or not:
1.
Katsushisa Fujii defeated Ryio Echigo.
1:33 by referee stoppage due to a dangerous wrist-lock.
2.
Manabu Hara submitted Naoki Kimura.
7:41 with a choke sleeper.
3.
Yasuhito Namekawa tapped Kyosuke Sasaki.
9:14 with a kneebar.
4.
Ryuuki Ueyama defeated Hiroyuki Ito.
8:47 with a leglock.
5.
Takehiro Murahama defeated Kazuki Okubo.
7:14 when Murahama scored a brutal German suplex and followed
up with a straight armbar. Match was described as spectacular
and Murahama challenged Tamura after this match.
MAIN
EVENT. Kiyoshi Tamura defeated Wataru Sakata.
In match that was described as HOT, was a dramatic-style match
that got the crowd pumped. The score was tied but it was Tamura
scoring a guillotine choke at the 11:46 mark.
U-STYLE
returns to Differ Ariake in Tokyo, Japan in April with great
momentum from their first event.
Source:
ADCC |
Extreme
Challenge 49 - A Look Back
by: Keith Mills
Extreme Challenge 49 held last weekend in Davenport, IA kept
most of the standing room only crowd glued to the action, partly
due to faster stand-ups than most promotions. Guest referee and
UFC Welterweight champion Matt Hughes wasted no time in separating
stalled fighters, a good move considering the amount of regional
wrestling talent on the card.
Quickest
fight went to Jonathan Goulet with an :08 high kick KO to HOOKnSHOOT
vet Jason Rigsby in the first bout. Rigsby threw one distance
testing punch before Goulet fired off his right leg.
The
most surprising fight was Dennis Reed’s loss to Kyle Jensen.
For most of the fight Reed reversed takedowns in mid-air or threw
his opponent to land in the top position, arguably totally dominating
the fight but it was in round 2 that Reed appeared to be too
close to the ropes and didn’t have the room to flip Jensen,
landing up on his back where Jensen pined him down with his own
legs and fired off shots at his unprotected face.
Now
12-4 Jason Medina’s win over then 3-0 Eric Beaulieu was
the most uneven fight of the night based on the fact that Beaulieu
had only a week to train to replace Medina’s original opponent
Pain Peters. Beaulieu never quit and managed to go the distance
but Medina resisted Beaulieu’s ground strategy, even knocking
down the Canadian at which point the fight was obviously going
to Medina.
Fight
of the night would have to go to the tournament finals between
Buck and Seguin. At one point while the fighters were on their
feet Buck maneuvered behind Seguin and lifted him in the air
to slam him but Seguin managed to defend and escaped still on
his feet. Buck did manage to finally take Seguin down and land
some face shots while Seguin managed to land at least one of
his own from his guard but the TKO came when the fighters were
standing in the second round and Buck snuck in a straight right
that knocked Seguin down and followed it up with some strike
to the prone Seguin before Hughes stepped in.
Complete
Results:
Jay Buck def Ryan Stout 1:48 r2 by guillotine choke
Kyle Jensen def Dennis Reed 2:20 r2 by TKO
Jonathan Goulet def Jason Rigsby :08 r1 by KO (kick)
Brenden Seguin def Leo Sylvest :46 r2 by neck crank
Spencer Fisher def Kurt Illeman 1:15 r1 by KO
Jay Buck def Kyle Jensen by unanimous decision
Brendan Seguin def Jonathan Goulet :46 r3 by TKO
Jason Medina def Eric Beaulieu by unanimous decision
Jay Buck def Brendan Seguin 1:34 r2 by TKO:
|