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(All events on Oahu, unless noted)
2005
11/14/05
3rd American National BJJ Championships
(Torrance Unified School District, Torrance, CA )
10/29-30/05
Brazilian Team Titles
(Equipes)
(Brazil)
8/27-28/05
International
Masters & Seniors BJJ Tournament
(Tijuca Tenis Clube, Tijuca, Brazil)
7/23-31/05
World BJJ
Championships (Mundial)
(Tijuca Tenis Clube, Tijuca, Brazil)
5/7-8 & 14-15 & 21-22/05
Brazilian National BJJ Tournament
(Youth, Adult, Master & Senior)
(Tijuca Tenis Clube, Tijuca, Brazil?)
4/1-3/05
Pan American
& Team Title USA vs Brazil BJJ Tournament
(BJJ)
(California State University Dominguez Hills, Carson, CA)
3/12/05
The Second Annual Maui
Jiu-Jitsu Open
BJJ tournament
(BJJ)
(Maui War Memorial Gym, Wailuku, Hawaii)
3/6-7/05
Hawaii State High School Wrestling Championships
(Blaisdell Arena)
3/5/04
So You Think You Tough 7
(Boxing, MMA)
(Kauai)
2/5/05
UFC 51: Super Saturday
(MMA)
(Las Vegas, NV)
1/29/05
Kid's BJJ Tournament
(BJJ)
(Relson Gracie Main Academy, Honolulu)
1/22/05
Punishment In
Paradise 9:
Hawaii vs. Mainland
(MMA, Kickboxing)
(Kapolei H.S. Gym)
2004
12/31/04
Pride
(MMA)
(Japan)
K-1
(MMA, Kickboxing)
(Japan)
|
|
December 2004 News
Part 2
Wednesday night and Sunday
classes (w/ a kids' class) now offered!
 
For the special Onzuka.com
price, click on one of these banners above! |
Tuesdays at 8:30PM on
Olelo Channel 52
New Time! |
Mike
is selling his Integra...again!
Just
when you thought that his Integra was long gone, it is recovered
and still in great shape. Of course, there is no stereo, but
all the wiring is in place for someone to install a new stereo.
All the bolt-on components are still there (Akimoto Intake, DC
Sports Stainless Steel Header, JET Chip, Greddy Exhaust, but
the exhaust will need to be changed soon). Three out of four
17" rims and tires are on it right now so if you want to
buy new rims, you just have to buy one tire and you are good
to go. The car is very reliable and I did all the maintenance
on time. In fact, I did more than the scheduled maintenance because
I was not driving the car that much.
The
finishing touches are being put on it as we speak. I am selling
the car for $9,000.00 which is way lower
than any other car near this year with way more mileage than
the just over 46,000 that I have on it is going for. I want to
get rid of this car as soon as I can.
For
more details and pictures click on:
http://www.onzuka.com/acura1.html
If
you are interested, please contact Mike by phone (381-9530) or
email me at Mike@onzuka.com.
|
Quote
of the Day
"Success is not to be pursued; it is to be attracted by
the person you become."
Jim Rohn, American Businessman, Author, Speaker, Philosopher
|
Another
Pro Wrestler Added to Pride Card
Japanese pro wrestler Yoji Anjoh has been added to the December
31st Pride event, and will be taking on Ryan Gracie, who has
three straight wins in Pride over Shungo Ohyama, Kazuhiro Hamanaka
and a controversial decision victory over Ikuhisa Minowa.
As
noted, Anjoh is primarily a pro wrestler, but does have some
MMA experience, although he's never won a fight, posting an 0-4-1
record, with a number of matches in UFC at their Ultimate Japan
events to Murilo Bustamante, Matt Lindland and Tank Abbott. Ryan
Gracie is 4-2, with the two losses being against pro wrestlers
Tokimitsu Ishizawa (wrestles under the name of Kendo Ka Shin)
and Kazushi Sakuraba.
There's
a bit of a backstory here, as this match pertains to an infamous
feud between Anjoh and the Gracie family that actually inadvertently
led to the birth of Pride. Anjoh, at the time a pro wrestler
for UWF-I which was a shoot-style (meaning the fights looked
as real as possible but were still worked) pro wrestling company
which had Nobuhiko Takada as its big star, decided to venute
into the Gracie studio in Torrance, CA to challenge Rickson Gracie
to try and make a name for himself, figuring that with his submission
wrestling training and size advantage, he would be able to defeat
Rickson. Rickson was a big name in Japan at that time because
he was considered the "king" of the Gracie family,
and had won two straight annual tournaments in that country.
As it turned out, Rickson was able to mount and bloody Anjoh
in their challenge match. The fight was videotaped, and when
word got out in Japan regarding the story, people wanted to see
Nobuhiko Takada exact revenge on Rickson, because Takada, of
course, was the major star of UWF-I. People in Japan didn't know
that UWF-I was worked and thought Takada was legit and a very
skilled fighter, and couldn't understand why he didn't fight
Rickson. UWF-I, which was a huge hit at one point, saw its popularity
shrink, and eventually it folded. Takada had formed a smaller
shoot-style promotion named Kingdom, but took the opportunity
to fight Rickson Gracie in a legit match at the debut Pride event
at the Tokyo Dome in 1997. Takada lost the match, and lost the
subsequent rematch a year later, and never won a legit match
in his career.
Source: Maxfighting |
Update
on K-1 Grand Prix Judging Controversy
K-1 recently issued a statement by Nobuaki Kakuda regarding the
controversy of the ringside judging at the December 4th K-1 Grand
Prix Finals event at the Tokyo Dome. The controversy was regarding
three fights specifically, the two first round matchups of Ray
Sefo vs. Musashi and Ernesto Hoost vs. Remy Bonjasky, and the
finals between Musashi vs. Bonjasky.
They
claimed that the judges' observation was fair, and concluded
that there was nothing wrong with the judging on that night.
Sefo had complained openly regarding the judging in his fight
against Bonjasky, and Hoost complained about the judging in his
fight against Bonjasky, feeling that he landed more combinations
than Bonjasky. Hoost made a call for international judges in
K-1, which of course makes no sense because Hoost lost to another
Dutchman and it's not like international judges would have made
a difference there. K-1 claimed that Hoost vs. Bonjasky was a
very close fight, and that if they had awarded the decision to
Hoost instead of Bonjasky, that it would have been Bonjasky complaining
instead.
K-1
also claimed that the reason they sent the finals between Musashi
and Bonjasky into the fifth round was that the final match of
the tournament can be sent into a second overtime if there is
a half-point difference in scoring. I personally feel Bonjasky
dominated the fourth round of the fight against Musashi and that
the fifth round was not justified and the judging was bad.
Source: Maxfighting |
UFC
Movie
From the Daily Variety...
By
MICHAEL FLEMING
John
Herzfeld will write and direct an untitled film that taps into
the no-holds-barred world of the Ultimate Fighting Championship.
Station
Casinos owners Lorenzo and Frank Fertitta, who also own UFC,
will exec produce the film via their Insomnia Entertainment banner.
Insomnia's Trent Othick will produce.
UFC
matches boxers, wrestlers and martial artists from every discipline.
The gladiators square off in an octagonal ring in five-minute
rounds. They pound, kick and half-nelson each other until one
is KO'd or quits. Padding is minimal, and blood is common.
Herzfeld,
an amateur fighter from New Jersey before he became a writer
and director, said fight choreography has been a priority in
his films, from the catfight between Charlize Theron and Teri
Hatcher in "Two Days in the Valley" to a scrap between
Robert De Niro and former UFC champ Oleg Taktarov in "15
Minutes."
Herzfeld
was a good match for the Fertittas, who formed a film division
partly to finance pictures that focus attention on their entertainment
interests, from casinos to poker. They took over UFC when the
sport was on the ropes. UFC is now a major event in such venues
as the MGM Grand and Mandalay Bay, and the Fertittas just completed
13 episodes of "The Ultimate Fighter," a reality series
for Spike TV.
"I've
watched the sport since its inception because I was fascinated
by the mix of martial arts styles," Herzfeld said. "This
movie will be about a soldier who returns from the Middle East
and works his way up from backroom brawls, bar fights and last-man-standing
tournaments, all the way to the UFC."
Herzfeld
plans to cast a star, one who can be believable in the ring,
and he will be surrounded by real UFC fighters. The director,
who is also developing "Trophy Wife" at Mandalay, hopes
to be in production by next summer.
Insomnia
will either place the film at a studio or self-finance. Dana
White, who runs UFC, will exec produce along with Insomnia's
Tom Breitling.
Source: MMA Weekly |
Quote
of the Day
"When you get to the end of your rope, tie a knot and hang
on."
Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1858-1919, Twenty-sixth President of the
USA
|
Casca
Grossa's Boys' Status in Maui
Kyle Snyder-Olivares takes 3rd Place!
Kyle Snyder-Olivares (Pearl City)
Kyle came back with a vengence on Saturday. In the first match,
he won by points 14-2 against an Oregon wrestler, the second
match had Kyle up 9-0 against Roosevelt wrestler and then his
opponent was disqualified because of his uniform (what we heard
was that his boxers came out of his singlet. Go figure). He then
beat his teammate, 12-1. And for 3rd place, he got revenge against
the Zilla wrestler who beat him on Friday by a score of 4-3.
Brandon Low (St. Louis)
Brandon won his first match, but nothing more was given about
him. Sorry.
Source: "Scoop" Olivares
|
Dispelling
BJ Penn Rumors
It is not true that BJ Penn will be featured on the next UFC
card against Frank Trigg. This was brought up on a couple of
news pages, probably due to the postings that had BJ and JD Penn
talking with UFC President Dana White at this past Super Brawl.
K-1 wanted BJ to be on the New Year's Eve card, but BJ is not
100% and he only goes into a fight when he is 100%, so that will
have to wait.
Look for BJ to fight possibly in early 2005, possibly on the
newly invigorated Korea MMA event.
|
1st
Ever ALL KIDS BJJ Tournament
Plans are getting put together for the first ever ALL KIDS Brazilian
Jiu-Jitsu tournament. This is being put on by the Relson Gracie
academy, which is where it will be held, and organized by Kaneohe
Team instructor, Ronn Shiraki. There is no limit on the age of
the kids at this time, it depends on the amount of interest that
is garnished by everyone. In BJJ, a 16 year old can be given
an adult belt (Blue, Purple, Brown), so the tournament will probably
be for kids under 16 years old.
The tournament is open to every school in the state and the tournament
mission is simple, to help promote kids in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
and grappling.
Please spread the word as plans are just getting put together
so input, comments and suggestions are welcomed. For now, you
can email
us and
we will forward them on to Ronn.
|
Tanner
Leaves Team Quest
Insidefighting.com has reported that Evan Tanner has "officially
left Team Quest." Tanner apparently contacted the website
today and informed them of the news. It is unclear with whom
Tanner will now be training with or what the circumstances were
that led to his departure. What is clear is that on February
5th he will not have his old team cornering him as he faces David
Terrell from across the Octagon.
Source: Gracie Fighter
|
Smack
Girl 2004: "World ReMix"
Sunday, December 19, 2004
Twin Messe Shizuoka - Shizuoka City, Shizuoka - Japan
COMPLETE
CARD (subject to change):
Reserve:
-
Tama Chan Vs TBA;
Bracket
A:
-
Marloes Coenen Vs Youko Takahashi;
-
Erin Toughill Vs Miwako Ishihara;
Bracket
B:
-
Megumi Yabushita Vs Amanda Buckner;
-
Ana Carolina Vs Roxanne Modafferi.
Source: Tatame
|
Randy
Couture on the cover of American Health and Fitness
American Health and Fitness will feature the UFC's Light Heavyweight
Champion, Randy Couture, on the cover of their next issue. Randy
Couture who just finished filming the new Spike TV reality show
featuring himself and Chuck Liddell has been busy not only with
the TV show but playing a role in Steven Segal's upcoming movie.
Couture recently talked with Ryan Bennett and Frank Trigg on
MMAweekly Radio, where he talked about filming with Liddell,
who he will be fighting again in April at UFC 52. In which Couture
said,"You know, Chuck and I have a similiar approach to
this sport , we look at this as a competition and it's nothing
personal, you know we get along great and we'll get along great
after the fight no matter who wins....we'll hang out and beat
the snot out of each other and have a good time doing it."
He also talked about his experience with Steven Segal.
AHF
magazine hits the stands January 4th.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Quote
of the Day
"My goal is simple. It is complete understanding of the
universe,
why it as it is and why it exists as all."
Stephen Hawking, 1942-, British Theoretical Physicist
|
Casca
Grossa's Boys' Status in Maui!
Kyle Snyder-Olivares (Pearl City), Shane Ahlo (St. Louis) and
Brandon Low (St. Louis) left Honolulu today for the Maui Wrestling
Invitational tournament. The tournament features mainland wrestlers
against Hawaii's own and is a double elimination tournament.
Kyle Snyder-Olivares (Pearl City)
Although heavy at 171lbs, he received a bye in the first round
and won in the second round 12-0 against an Iolani wrestler.
He lost his third match by points to a Zilla High School wrestler.
After a failed shot attempt by Kyle, his back was taken, he chased
him to take it back, but could not. Kyle is still in the tournament
and will wrestle tomorrow morning.
Shane Ahlo (St. Louis)
Loss his first two matches by pin.
Brandon Low (St. Louis)
Brandon received a bye in the first round and won in the second
round by points. He lost his third match by points in over time.
It was a very close match, but his opponent edged him out.
More news as it comes in.
Source: "Scoop" Olivares & "Double Scoop"
Ahlo
|
THE
GRAPPLING HALL OF FAME
RECOGNIZES THE MOUTH OF NHB, FCF's JOEL GOLD
Ø If you would like to go, please make your reservations
today. There are only 60 tables, the event will sell out.
Ø
Only 12 people can sit at a table, please let us know who you
would like to sit with.
Ø
Make your reservations today with your credit card. The deadline
is January 17, 2005.
Ø
YOU CANNOT SIGN UP AT THE DOOR or AFTER THE JANUARY 17th CUTOFF
DATE
Seating
Chart available at http://www.grapplinghalloffame.com
RESERVED
TABLES:
TABLE
29 = Renzo Gracie & Guests
TABLE
25 = Royce Gracie & Guests
TABLE
38 = Lloyd Irvin & Guests
TABLE
19 = Hall of Fame Announcers/Staff
TABLE
20 = Ricardo Liborio & Guests
TABLE
21 = Jacare Calvalvanti & Guests
TABLE
33 = Joel
Gold &
Guests
TABLE
39 = Danny Schulmann & Guests
TABLE
37 = Bob Schirmer & Guests
TABLE
7 = Fernando "Cabeca" Sarmento
Grappling
Hall of Fame’s Instructor of the Year = Fernando "Cabeca"
Sarmento
Grappling
Hall of Fame’s Magazine/Newspaper = Full Contact Fighter
– Joel Gold
Source: Kipp Kollar
|
Official
K-1 PREMIUM 2004 Dynamite fight card
K-1 PREMIUM 2004 Dynamite!!
Friday, Decenber 31, 2004
Osaka Dome, Japan
Hawaii's own 2 time BJJ Champ, Kendall Goo is reportedly flying
to Japan to help Royce prepare for his fight against Akebono.
[MMA
Fight Rule]
Akebono vs. Royce Gracie
(Japan/Team Yokozuna) (Brazil/Team Gracie Jiu-jitsu)
Kazuyuki
Fujita vs. Karam Ibragim
(Japan/INOKI Office) (Egypt/Free)
*Karam Ibragim got Gold medal in Greco wrestling at Athens Olympic
Mike
Bernardo vs. Bobby Ologun
(South Africa/Steve's Gym) (Nigeria)
[K-1
Rules]
Masato
vs. Norifumi "KID" Yamamoto
(Japan/Silver Wolf) (Japan/PUREBRED TOKYO)
Ray
Sefo vs. Gary Goodridge
(New Zealand/Ray Sefo Fight Academy) (Trinidad and Tobago/Free)
Musashi
vs. TBA
(Japan/Seido Kaikan)
Line
up fighter:
Yoshihiro
Akiyama (Japan)
Jerome Le Banner (France/Boerboel & Tosa Gym)
Bob Sapp (USA/Team Beast)
Source:
Koichi "Booker K" Kawasaki
|
More
match ups of PRIDE "OTOKO MATSURI"
Ryan Gracie
Takes on Yoji Anjo
PRIDE "OTOKO MATSURI" -SADAME-
Date: December 31st 2004
Place:Saitama Super Arena
Open:15:30 Start:15:30
Yoji
Anjo vs. Ryan Gracie
(Japan/Free) (Brazil/Ryan Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Academy)
Makoto
Takimoto vs. Sentoryu
(Japan/Yoshida Dojo) (USA/Free)
* Takimoto got Gold medal in Judo at the Sydney Olympic
Stefan
Leko vs. Ikuhisa Minowa
(Krefeld/Golden Glory) (Japan/Free)
Giant
Silva vs. Choi Mu Bae
(Brazil/Free) (Korea/Team Tackle)
Ryo
Chonan vs. TBA
(Japan/Free)
Already
announced
Kazushi
Sakuraba vs. Wanderlei Silva
(Japan/Takada Dojo) (Brazil/Chute Boxe Academy)
Yuki
Kondo vs. Dan Henderson
(Pancrase Ism) (USA/Team Quest)
Takanori
Gomi vs. Jens Pulver
(Japan/Kiguchi Dojo) (USA/Team Extreem)
Fedor
Emelianenko vs. Rodrigo 'Minotauro' Nogueira
(Russia/Red Devil Fight Club) (Brazil/BTT)
Hidehiko
Yoshida vs. Rulon Gardoner
(Japan/Yoshida Dojo) (USA/Team Quest)
Source:
Koichi "Booker K" Kawasaki
|
ZUFFA
COMMISSIONS UFC MOVIE
Obviously Fight Sport is not a big fan of Dana White.
UFC owners Frank and Lorenzo Fertitta will executive produce
a film about the UFC. The film will be released via their Insomnia
Entertainment banner.
John
Herzfeld will write and direct the film, while Trent Othick will
produce. Lifelong Fertitta cronie and former boxercize instructor
Dana White (who has no background in big business or movie producing)
will be handed a job as an executive producer.
Source:
Fight Sport
|
FRYE
IN GODZILLA MOVIE
MMA star veteran Don Frye has an acting part in the newest Japanese
Godzilla movie.
Frye
plays the submarine captain who seals Godzilla in ice, and then
helps to release him in time to fight off an alien invasion of
monsters.
Here
is a description of Frye's performance according to the movie
review site Fangoria.com:
"Tough-guy
Frye gets the Schwarzenegger-style one-liners (gems like "There's
two things you didn't know about Earth: me... and Godzilla",
and utters them all with robotic gruffness."
Source:
Fight Sport
|
CARLOS
NEWTON UPDATE
Carlos Newton has been one of the most consistent forces in MMA
since his debut almost eight years ago. He’s faced some
of the toughest competition all over the world and remains one
of the most popular fighters in the sport thanks to his humble
and engaging personality.
Recently
Newton suffered his third straight loss at Bushido 5 earlier
this year to Ryo Chonan. After weeks of media silence to concentrate
on his personal life Newton took time out of his busy schedule
to spend a few minutes talking to MMA Weekly’s Mick Hammond
about what’s going on with the man known as “The Ronin.”
Firstly
Newton addressed why he’s been so quiet over the past few
months and what he has planned for his immediate future, “I
just got back from fighting in Japan and am putting some other
things I’ve been working on, on the back burner again until
early next year and take the rest of the year off. I probably
won’t fight again until probably May of 2005. I’ve
got to get some things wrapped up.”
Newton
continued, “I’ve been on trips that are all basically
business related. I also took my friend Wojtek (Kaszowski) down
to the Pride tryouts. He was trying out and I went a long with
him to give him some support, try to bypass some of the lines
(laughs). It went very well I thought, the tryouts were pretty
awesome.”
The
conversation then turned to Newton’s lightly touching on
what happened against Chonan in October, “Ryo was just ready.
I don’t know what happened really, I had him in the arm
bar he just didn’t give up and finally got out. Things went
from there.”
Newton’s
decision to take time off from fighting means he will not be
competing at Shock Wave 2004. However he did think about it,
“I really would like to fight on the New Year’s Eve
show but I need the time off so I can come back stronger later.
Your mind and body will tell you that they want to do it, but
there is only so much you can do. At the end of the day sometimes
you just look in the mirror and say ‘I’m tired.’
Even some of the Pride staff had told me, ‘you need a break,
you haven’t been fighting as well as you can so go home
and take a break and get yourself well.’ So I thought about
it with my manager and decided that’s what I needed.”
Newton
continued, “I am at a point now in my career where I need
a break and really just have to take a step back and get some
rest. I was constantly going from one fight to another and at
the same time it doesn’t allow for personal things to happen.
So I just need to get some rest and let my soul rekindle. I have
a lot of important things in my life that I need to focus on.
I just want to step back and allow myself that. I’m only
28 but that fire inside me has dulled a bit because of outside
things so I want to get some rest and get it back to what it
was when I first started and return with a fresh soul.”
When
asked if his decision to not fight until May would effect his
training routine Newton replied, “Yeah for the next five
or six months I’m going to train lightly. I’m not going
to do the hard rolling like I normally do, I’m basically
staying away from second gear.”
As
the talk ended Newton made sure to reiterate the fact to his
fans that he was by no means retiring, only taking time off,
“Just expect me back, I want to get back in there recharged
and do what I do best and put on a great show.”
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
AFC
Brazil features Gracie B. Vs BTT
The following edition of AFC Brazil may release a new phase of
Brazilian MMA. Doing similar as Pride Bushido, the event's producers
will be working to feature a special challenge on next March
15, in Nova Friburgo (RJ). They want to set up a challenge between
Gracie Barra Combat Team and Brazilian Top Team.
- It would be like a Team BJJ competition. I guess it would improve
the Brazilian fight scene. We are already thinking about a challenge
between Nova União and BTT, Chute Boxe taking on Gracie
Barra. We already have great teams like Ruas Vale-Tudo, RFT,
Kimura. It will be everybody facing everybody - stated Bebeo
Duarte, one of Brazilian Top Team's leaders.
Source:
Tatame
|
Shooto
changes Robinho's fight result
Still crying because his pupil Vitor Shaolin's loss at last Shooto,
André Pederneiras arrived in Brazil yesterday with a good
news for Nova União's crew. According to Dedé,
after a long time evaluating the referee's decision of the bout
between Róbson Moura and Mamoru, the Shooto commission
called a draw. The dispute for the Bantamweight belt was contested
even by Shooto's president Kazuhiro Sakamoto. Now Japanese are
choosing a new date to the new confront.
Source:
Tatame
|
VANDERLEI
SPEAKS
Vanderlei Silva was recently interviewed for the PRIDE website.
Here's what Silva had to say:
PRIDE:
Many people have said that your fight against Quinton "Rampage"
Jackson in PRIDE 28 was your best bout yet.
Vanderlei:
I'm glad that they say that. I think that was one of my best
bouts, too.
PRIDE:
When did you begin training for this bout?
Vanderlei:
From November, when I began to think about fighting. I train
over-all, without just focusing on striking or groundwork.
PRIDE:
You continue to have amazing fights but which do you personally
feel was your greatest fight?
Vanderlei:
Probably my first fight with Sakuraba, of course. That fight
had the deepest meaning for me.
PRIDE:
Is there one you think was your worst bout?
Vanderlei:
Not at all. I think all fights are great fights.
PRIDE:
What about the fights you lost outside of PRIDE against Vitor
Belfort or Tito Ortiz?
Vanderlei:
Those fights didn't turn out well but, for me, they were good
experiences and that makes them good fights.
PRIDE:
Why did you lose?
Vanderlei:
I didn't have much jujitsu technique then. That's why I lost.
PRIDE:
(DSE) President Sakakibara has said that he wants to invite those
two and Randy Couture to the Middleweight Grand Prix planned
for next year. Do you want to fight those guys?
Vanderlei:
(answers without hesitation) Of course. I think it's good if
they will really fight in PRIDE. I would like to fight all three
of them.
PRIDE:
After your fight with Jackson, you said that you'd like to fight
Couture before he retires.
Vanderlei:
Well, his age is what it is and he'll probably retire in the
near future. So, I want to fight him before then. He's the UFC
Champion, after all.
PRIDE:
Do you think you have any weak points?
Vanderlei:
Mmm... I've never thought about that. Even I don't know. I'm
always training to get rid of my weak points.
PRIDE:
Do you ever think about skipping practice and having fun?
Vanderlei:
Never. I think I have strong perseverance.
PRIDE:
Where does that power come from?
Vanderlei:
I think it's God's power, of course.
PRIDE:
Have you ever felt fear?
Vanderlei:
Actually, I feel fear in every fight but every fighter feels
that fear. It's important to make that fear work for you. When
you feel fear, you have to face it head on and fight. That's
the best. Running away is the worst.
PRIDE:
Have you ever dreamed before a fight that you would lose?
Vanderlei:
Honestly, yes. I've seen many nightmares. Sometimes it scares
me and I jump out of bed when I see them because, for me, losing
is my greatest fear.
PRIDE:
Have you always had this strong mental drive to conquer your
fears?
Vanderlei:
No, not really. It just came to me as I grew up.
PRIDE:
Is it something that you gained from training at Chute Boxe?
Vanderlei:
Exactly.
PRIDE:
Is the support of people around you important to you?
Vanderlei:
Yes. I think it's all because of them and I think of everyone
as my family.
PRIDE:
What gives you the most strength?
Vanderlei:
That's God. I think everyone has their own way of thinking and
there are some that won't believe me or will think it's stupid,
but God's power is really important to me. I'm always going to
believe in God.
PRIDE:
Do you pray to God before your matches?
Vanderlei:
Praying before matches and asking for protection has become my
custom. I ask Him to give me strength, to take my fear and to
prevent injuries. Finally, I pray that He will give me the victory.
Source:
Fight Sport
|
Quote
of the Day
"Destiny is not a matter of chance, but of choice. Not something
to wish for, but to attain."
William Jennings Bryan, 1860-1925, American Lawyer, Politician
|
BLOODLINE
Presents..
PUNISHMENT
IN PARADISE 9: "GAME TO THE END"
Kapolei, Hawaii
Saturday, Jan 22, 2005
MAIN
EVENT ANNOUNCEMENT
UFC
Veteran Ron "Machine Gun" Jhun from Hawaii will face
#7 Shooto Ranked Shigetoshi Iwase of Japan in what will be a
THRILLER. Jhun has had his claims in titles like IFC, KOTC and
Warriors Quest, Jhun is once again on a different quest SHOOTO
title. Iwase a season shooto fighter who is currently ranked
#7 will try to make his claim also for a title spot.
Shooto
Light Heavyweight Class B
Casey
Daniels (Team MMAD, Kailua)
Vs.
Bob Ostovich (Jesus Is Lord, Waianae)
We
will have tenatively 15 ACTION Shooto & Kickboxing Fights
that will be
announced SOON!!
FAN APPRECIATION
SALE
We
wanted to show our apperciation to all fans and famalies that
come out and support Hawaii fighters so we will drop our prices
to OLD SCHOOL RATES.
Buy your tickets in advance and pay just $25.00 for any seat
in the house by FRIDAY JAN 21,2005. Because the day of the event
tickets will be back at $35.00
SEATS
ARE LIMITED TO 2,000 PEOPLE
808-620-5638
or 808-330-9483
Source:
Event Promoter
|
K-1
and Akebono Fly Special Trainer
to Japan
by Jeffrey Thaler
K-1 and Akebono have flown in Mak Takana, a world renowned personal
trainer, to Japan to help Akebono prepare for his December 31
fight against Royce Gracie. Takana, who has worked with a number
of world champion fighters in the past, left his home in Los
Angeles to working with Akebono full-time.
Sherdog.com
was able to catch up with Takano, and speak to him about Akebono’s
training. “It is an honor to train Akebono,” Takana
said. “You have to remember that he is a grand champion
of Sumo, and the fact that he wanted me to help him for this
fight is an absolute honor.”
Takana
has been helping Akebono work on his endurance and strength,
and Takano reports that training is off to a fast start. “Akebono
is doing very well. He has a very good attitude about getting
involved in mixed martial arts, and it is so much closer to what
he has done in the past than the stand-up he has been doing in
K-1. But the experience he has had in K-1 is going to be invaluable
for him because he has had a year of stand-up training and has
fought top competition. I expect him to do quite well against
Royce Gracie.”
Takana
became known in the fight world after training Oscar De La Hoya
during a three-year run of undefeated fights. He has gone on
to train former UFC and current Rumble on the Rock champion B.J.
Penn, super-lightweight boxing champion Genaro Hernandez, welterweight
champion Vince Phillips, and cruiserweight champion Vassiliy
Jirov. Takano has also trained NBA All-Stars Magic Johnson and
Vlade Divac.
Source:
Sherdog
|
PRIDE
NEW YEAR CARD
Below the matchups that have been officially announced for the
PRIDE show on December 31st. The final card is scheduled to have
a total of ten match ups:
Officially
announced matchups:
Rodrigo 'Minotauro' Nogueira vs. Fedor Emelianenko
Rulon Gardner vs. Hidehiko Yoshida
Vanderlei Silva vs. Kazushi Sakuraba
Mirko 'Cro Cop' Filipovic vs. Kevin Randleman
Crosley Gracie vs. Ryo Chonan
Jens Pulver vs. Takanori Gomi
Dan Henderson vs. Yuki Kondo
Stefan Leko vs. Ikuhisa Minowa
Henry 'Sentoryu' Miller vs. Makoto Takimoto
'Giant' Silva vs. Choi Mu Bae
Source:
Fight Sport
|
GROSSMAN
INSIDER: PRIDE, K-1, & UFC 51 NEWS
By Josh Grossman
PRIDE New Year show: The matchup of Crosley Gracie vs. Ryo Chonan
is a done deal for the December 31st show. This will pit two
fighters coming off big wins in the recent PRIDE Bushido show.
K-1
New Year show: K-1 is actually entertaining the idea of having
Bob Sapp face the small Thai Boxer Kaoklai, who KO'ed 'Mighty'
Mo Siligia in in the K-1 GP Finals.
UFC
51: B.J. Penn will make his return to the UFC, and will face
Frank Trigg. The number one contender ranking will be on the
line. Apparently Penn has been calling Zuffa trying to get back
in the show for a while now.
Source: Fight Sport
|
'MINOTAURO'
TO ADD KNEE STRIKES AGAINST FEDOR
The Japanese media reports that Rodrigo 'Minotauro' Nogeuria
has added in some new knee strikes to his arsenal for his upcoming
fight against Fedor Emelianenko on December 31st.
The
Japanese media also reports that according to Fedor, his strategy
for defeating Minotauro is now complete.
Source: Fight Sport
|
MOST
UNDERRATED FIGHTER?
Maybe
it's how quiet he is, maybe it's how he carries himself in and
out of the ring. Chris Lytle may be overlooked by some. But,
if you ask his opponents, they will tell you how tough he really
is.
It’s
been a great year for Chris Lytle. He’s gone undefeated
in both MMA and boxing in 2004 but still remains one of the most
underrated fighters in the world today.
It’s
hard to believe that even though he’s won all but one of
his matches in the UFC, he still finds himself on the outside
looking in as far as a title shot goes. MMAweekly’s Mick
Hammond caught up with Lytle to discuss his year and what lays
ahead for him both in the octagon and the boxing ring.
When
asked what he’s been up to since his last MMA fight, a victory
over JT Taylor at WEC 12 in October, Lytle said, “I had
a boxing match not too long after that. It was on a riverboat
here in Indiana and I won, and that’s about it. Training
has been good. It’s been good to have a little time where
I don’t have to fight immediately. I can concentrate more
on the whole technique type things; instead of, just constantly
worrying about having a fight come up in a couple weeks and having
to do this, this, and this to get ready. I get a little bit of
time, I can actually work on other things.”
Looking
back over 2004, it’s easy to understand why Lytle is enjoying
the short bit of rest he has had after successfully competing
four times each in MMA and boxing, “Yeah it’s been
a good year. I’m really happy with it. You win all your
fights, you can’t complain. I’m sure there are some
things I could have done a little bit better; especially, in
MMA. I mean all year fighting tough competition and not losing,
I think is pretty impressive because everybody is getting so
good at this sport. I don’t think people realize that there
are not a lot of easy fights anymore. Even if you’re fighting
on a smaller show, it’s still a dangerous fight.”
Lytle
has been fighting in MMA going on five years, but has only been
boxing for two and he credits that for his improved striking,
“Well, actually people don’t realize that I haven’t
been boxing that long. So give me a whole other year of boxing
and having professional fights it could get better. That’s
why my stand up has come a long way. I think that’s the
main area that I’ve improved on lately.”
With
his success in boxing it’s understandable that fighters
in MMA would avoid standing and trading shots with Lytle, he
addressed this by saying, “It all depends on if my striking
is going well, then people are going to keep me on the ground
more. It all depends on how people approach me. I still work
on my ground to try to tweak things here and there and make it
harder for people to get me to the ground and get in dominant
position.”
Recently,
word has broken that Lytle will be facing Karo Parisyan at UFC
51 in February. Lytle seemed very enthusiastic about the match-up
with the possibility of it being a very competitive bout with
title implications, “Yeah that’s kind of what I’m
hoping for with this fight. It sounds like a pretty good match-up
to me, anytime I get to fight in the UFC it’s a good thing.
I’m really looking at we’re both coming off of really
good wins, so I’m hoping this will lead to fights against
upper echelon competition and working towards get a title shot.
That’s what I’m going to do and that’s why it’s
a good match.”
Lytle
then discussed gameplans for the fight, “If he’s had
a lot of time to work on his gameplan and look at some tapes
he might have spotted some holes in my game but you never know.
I’ve had times where I watched tapes and saw someone was
left handed and does this, this, and this and then the guy came
out right handed and I was all confused because he didn’t
come out as I expected. So I try to make sure I train for a little
bit of everything, but there are areas I try to concentrate on.”
“I
like to go out there with a gameplan but most of the time the
fights go nothing like my gameplan,” continued Lytle. “Of
course I’m going to try to keep him from doing things out
of the clinch where he’s good with Judo. I’m going
to try to work on keeping him in striking range or taking him
down and being in the dominant position so I can work my submissions.
It all kind of depends on how he comes out, if he comes out throwing
then I’m going to push him against the fence and try to
counter what he’s doing. If he tries to take me down right
away I’ll try to counter and reverse him and get myself
in good position to do what I have to do to win.”
With
the current state of the welterweight division in the UFC it
is very plausible to think the winner of Lytle and Parisyan could
become the number one contender for Matt Hughes’ title.
Lytle discussed the possibility, “Of course, I’d really
like a title shot but that’s not my decision to make. I’m
not sure exactly what their (the UFC) take on it is. To me it
makes sense the winner of me and Parisyan gets a title shot.
The other people on top like Frank Trigg have already had title
shots and us two haven’t. We have about the same amount
of wins in the UFC, so it doesn’t make much sense to me
for them to have a rematch when you have guys who haven’t
had a shot at the title yet. Like I said though that’s not
my decision. Of course I try to push for it, but it’s out
of my hands.”
When
asked his thoughts on getting an opportunity to face Hughes down
the line Lytle said, “There’s not really a fight I’m
exactly thrilled about, but that’s the person who has the
title. For right now I have things in front of me that I have
to concentrate on first and foremost and that’s not easy
to take care of. I think a lot of times people start to think
too far down the road and that doesn’t pay off. So I’m
concentrating on what’s coming up and I’ll worry about
the other stuff later.”
The
conversation finished out with Lytle discussing what he has planned
for the future, “As far as the whole MMA thing goes I hope
to get a shot at the title. That is one goal, my other plans
are around boxing. It’s possible to get some pretty good
fights lined up, possibly an intercontinental fight over in Germany.
I’ve had two times where they talked to me about boxing
on ESPN 2 but they’ve fallen through, which is disappointing
but I’ll be on there at some point. Other than that I’m
just trying to keep my options open, trying to get better at
boxing and in all sports basically.”
Source:
MMA Weekly
|
HERRING
VS. GRECO
The Japanese media is reporting that an mma-rules matchup of
Heath Herring vs. Sam Greco will take place on the K-1 card on
December 31st.
The
Japanese media added that Herring has left DSE/PRIDE, and will
be fighting for the K-1 organization.
Source:
Fight Sport
|
Getting
to Know Sean O'Haire
by Marco Antico
MA: Sean, I sense a buzz about you that normally doesn’t
exist for fighters after only one fight. I think people are excited
at the prospect of a pro wrestler making the transition to MMA.
Do you think this gives you a running start at building up your
reputation in the sport?
SO:
Well, I hope so (chuckling). I was on TV. Many wrestling fans
recognize my name and many wrestling fans are MMA fans. So if
that helps me, great!
MA:
On the flip side, do you think there are people out there that
are going to be suspicious because of your experience at executing
pre-determined pro wrestling fights.
SO:
Oh ya, of course. But, once they see me in the ring I think any
doubts they have are going to go right out the window.
MA:
There have been internet rumors that you may be fighting LeBanner
or Fujita on the K-1 NYE show. Care to comment?
SO:
I don’t think there’s any substance to that at all.
I think some people got excited after watching me knockout Oyama
at Rumble
on the Rock and
started talking about that. But, to my knowledge there’s
nothing to those rumors.
MA:
Do you know what’s next for you?
SO:
Nothing signed right now. My management is in negotiations with
one of the big promotions though.
MA:
Hypothetically speaking of course (pause), if that organization
was K-1, would you like to compete in MMA or kickboxing?
SO:
I prefer MMA.
MA:
Why MMA and why professional fighting in general?
SO:
Oh man, I’ve been fighting for the longest time! I’ve
fought in Georgia in Toughman competitions and in some other
local shows. Basically, where ever I could get a fight I was
there.
MA:
MMA is quite the leap from shows like Toughman of course. What
are you doing to sharpen your MMA skills?
SO:
I train at the Shark Tank will Eddy Millis. That’s in Rancho
Cucamonga, California. Mighty Mo is there with us. My background
is in Thai Boxing. I’m now trying to focus on my wrestling
and submissions.
MA:
Why’d you cut your hair?
SO:
Uhm, because I was tired of looking like a male stripper?
MA:
(laughing) Ya, I guess you did have that Fabio/Patrick Swayze
kind of look going on.
SO:
Never again am I ever going to have long hair. I hated it! I
needed to change my image when I went to the WWE so that’s
what I did it.
MA:
What pays better, wrestling or MMA?
SO:
If you’re one of the top guys in wrestling you’ve got
the potential to make a lot of money. As for my professional
wrestling career, I’d say that I was popular but never famous.
MMA has the potential to pay well too so I’d say they’re
pretty similar in pay.
MA:
Are there any MMA athletes that you try and model yourself after?
SO:
Ken Shamrock for sure. I had the pleasure of meeting him and
watching him train with Guy Mezger for the UFC 50 fight. What
a shame that was what happened to Guy. Ken’s precision of
doing things really impressed me. His technique seemed flawless.
I’d also have to say I admire Tito Ortiz for the intensity
he brings with him into the ring.
Source:
MMA Fighting
|
ANDERSON
SILVA VS. SAKURAI POSSIBILITY
The Japanese media is reporting that a rematch of Anderson Silva
vs. Hayato Sakurai may take place on either the PRIDE show on
December 31st or on the next PRIDE Bushido card.
Source: Fight Sport
|
TANNER
WAITING FOR THE TITLE
Evan Tanner is currently one of the top ranked middleweights
in the world. He’s a veteran of the sport and has seen and
achieved just about everything. Now with the talk that the UFC
is looking to crown a champion in their Middleweight Division
for the first time in over two years, Evan Tanner sits at the
forefront of that discussion. MMAweekly’s Mick Hammond spoke
to Tanner about his career, growth as a fighter, and where he
sees himself in the grand scheme of things.
MMAweekly:
So Evan, tell us what you’ve been up to; since, your last
fight at UFC 50.
Evan
Tanner: Actually just kind of taking it easy. Just now getting
back into training, the heavy training. I took a little bit of
time off, been goofing around, Ebaying and stuff like that.
MMAweekly:
So that’s where the fight checks go to huh?
Evan
Tanner: (Laughs) No, it goes to making house payments and stuff
like that.
MMAweekly:
It’s been a pretty busy year and a half for you wouldn’t
you say?
Evan
Tanner: Yeah it’s been fairly busy; I’ve been fortunate
enough to fight Phil Baroni twice and then Lawler. In this game
as a fighter you’ve got to feel fortunate enough to have
steady work and have something to do.
MMAweekly:
Looking back over the year do you feel you’ve made good
progress in your game?
Evan
Tanner: Yeah, I think I’m really with the way things have
progressed. I think I’ve found some holes in my game and
have made a lot of progress in my stand up and ground game and
all around working on my techniques and starting to fine tune
my game.
MMAweekly:
Obviously the decision to move down in weight has paid off.
Evan
Tanner: Absolutely, going into 205lb fights I was weighing at
195/198lbs at weigh-ins with my pants on. It’s not a good
thing, at that level it’s not a smart thing giving up that
much weight. The guys at that weight are dropping down from 220lbs,
at that level they’re not small, they’re a ripped 220lbs,
not a chubby 220lbs. You definitely do not want to give up that
much of a weight advantage to your opponent. At first I was just
stubborn with it, because I started out at light heavyweight
and wanted to stay there, but after really thinking about it,
it really made sense to drop down to 185lbs. I feel much stronger
and much more comfortable here.
MMAweekly:
Has the change in weight affected your training/workout routines?
Evan
Tanner: Yeah, I thought I was doing a bit too much weightlifting,
building muscle for cosmetic reasons, just trying to look good
out there, putting on muscle mass to gain weight to make weight
at 205lbs. Dropping down to 185lbs changed my workout routine
and the way I do things. Now, I’m not doing as much weights,
I’m doing lots of push-ups and pull-ups, building functional
strength, not the cosmetic muscle I was before. I changed that
up a bit, it’s taken a little getting used to cutting weight,
but again I’m much more comfortable now at this weight.
MMAweekly:
Have you noticed any change in your quickness?
Evan
Tanner: I can’t really say I’ve noticed a huge difference
in that. We’ve been training the movement and stuff like
that; feeling quicker and better is more just a result of training
different styles and movement.
MMAweekly:From
what we’ve heard, February could be a very interesting month
for you.
Evan
Tanner: Yes, there’s some things that are possible, I’ve
had some names thrown out there, I haven’t signed anything
yet. It could be a very interesting month for me.
MMAweekly:
Let’s just say that if what many people are speculating
comes true and you end up facing David Terrell for the UFC Middleweight
Championship at UFC 51, how do you feel about that fight?
Evan
Tanner: It’d be a great fight, Terrell beat my teammate
Matt Lindland at UFC 49, so a little payback would be in order.
It’d be a tough fight though, the kid is tough. He’s
only been in one UFC, so we’ll see how he handles the pressure
of another one, and not only a second UFC but jumping straight
into a title fight after only one fight. It seems kind of odd
to me, but you know if that happens I’m going to jump on
that opportunity. It’s going to be a great fight.
MMAweekly:
What are your thoughts about the possibility that someone who’s
not been in the fight game as long as you have getting a shot
at a title so quickly?
Evan
Tanner: That’s always the way it is in this game. It’s
a lot of politics, a lot of it is the people in charge deciding
that “this fighter has the particular kind of charisma,
look, or something about him that we think the fans are going
to buy into so we are going to push this guy.” Sure I’ve
been fighting a long time but I don’t think they’ve
ever decided that I was a fighter to get behind or push.
MMAweekly:Speaking
of looks, jumping back to your fight at UFC 50 for just a second,
what was up with sporting the cornrows?
Evan
Tanner: (Laughs) I wasn’t making any kind statement. It
wasn’t any kind of racial thing or anything. I’m growing
my hair out long again and just wanted to do something to keep
it out of my way. You put it in a ponytail it comes out, you
do other things it comes out, that’s a good way to get it
out of the way and keep it out of the way. That’s basically
all it was.
MMAweekly:
So we’re not going to see you coming down to the octagon
with any bling-bling with the cornrows in the near future huh?
Evan
Tanner: (Laughs) No, I don’t think so. It was purely functional.
MMAweekly:
You seem a lot more driven in your fights recently, do you see
that continuing on into next year and to get even better?
Evan
Tanner: Absolutely, I really feel that up until recently, I haven’t
been taking the sport seriously or my career in this sport seriously,
I’ve just been kind of goofing around. I think all that’s
changing, if I dedicate myself full force to this I could do
some things. I definitely expect things to happen next year and
my skills to improve drastically.
MMAweekly:
That could be a scary thought to a lot of fighters out there
if you’ve only just now started to take things seriously
and where you could go from here.
Evan
Tanner: That’s what I’m thinking.
MMAweekly:
Does the opportunity to become a champion and a focal point of
a division for the UFC motivate you even more to succeed?
Evan
Tanner: They’re still not pushing me; they can’t deny
the fact that I’ve won fights. I don’t have what the
UFC is looking for obviously. I’ve been fighting for them
a long time and they’ve never gotten behind me. I don’t
take that personally, it’s just business, they don’t
feel I have what they’re looking for. But if a guy gets
out there and wins fights he can’t be denied, that’s
where I stand, I’ve been winning fights. That’s not
the reason I’m more dedicated to the sport, winning a belt
really was never my dream, I just was just kind of doing the
sport fun. Having the belt would be nice. The reason I’m
more focused and more dedicated is because I’m getting older
and there’s potential if you’re the top guy in this
sport at your weight you can make some money. I’m looking
at making enough so I can save up and actually do something with
it and take care of myself for the rest of my life with it.
MMAweekly:
Well, your teammate Randy Couture does pretty good at his age
and he’s a little older than you are.
Evan
Tanner: (Laughs) Oh yeah, he’s an animal.
MMAweekly:
So, there’s a good possibility that the best has yet to
come for you.
Evan
Tanner: That’s kind of how I’m looking at it. It could
be, I think my highest achievement is in the future. Like I’ve
said, I’ve been kind of dinking around in it until now.
MMAweekly:
How much better can Evan Tanner get?
Evan
Tanner: You know, I don’t know, I’ve been working everything.
People were really surprised that I finished Robbie with a triangle,
but what people don’t realized on the ground, underneath,
and groundwork that’s actually my strongest point. I think
people only know me for ground n pound because in my fights I
happen to be better than the guy at takedowns, so I take him
down and work the ground n pound and think that’s all I
know. But actually working from underneath, working submissions
and stuff like that is one of my strong points. That’s going
to continue to improve, all around it’s going to improve,
my striking, everything, I’m taking it to another level.
MMAweekly:I
know Team Quest had made a commitment to not only supply the
current crop of top fighters but also concentrate on producing
the next generation of athletes in our sport. Have you ever considered
maybe a few years down the road on doing something like training
others?
Evan
Tanner: I haven’t really pictured doing that. That hasn’t
really been something I’ve seen myself doing in the future.
I don’t see myself as a coach or teacher or anything like
that, but you never know how things will pan out.
MMAweekly:
So for now the thoughts of what to do after your fighting career
is far off and the emphasis is to continue to concentrate on
what’s going on for you and securing your place in the sport.
Evan
Tanner: That’s what I’m going to do, is focus on my
career and keep improving. A lot of it comes down to me liking
the sport or I wouldn’t be doing it for so long. That’s
one aspect of it, the other is to make a little bit of money
doing what you like. That’s what I’m focusing on, everybody’s
got to pay their bills, me included.
MMAweekly:
Thanks a lot for the interview Evan, is there anything you’d
like to say before you head out?
< | |