Sign our Guestbook!
Experience the Man Page!

Upcoming Events
Do you want to list an event on Onzuka.com?
Contact Us
(All events on Oahu, unless noted)

2006

Grappler's Quest Hawaii
(Submission Grappling)
(TBA)

2005

12/10/05
Proving Grounds -
ROTR Qualifer
(MMA)
(Hilo Civic Center)


11/19/05
ROTR 9

(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)


11/14/05
3rd American National BJJ Championships
(Torrance Unified School District, Torrance, CA )

10/29-30/05
Brazilian Team Titles
(Equipes)
(Brazil)

10/05
Proving Grounds -
ROTR Qualifer
(MMA)
(Lahaina Civic Center, Maui)


9/25/05
NAGA 2005 Hawaiian State Championships
(Submission Grappling & BJJ)
(
Leilehua High School, Wahiawa)

2005 American National Jiu-Jitsu Championship

(BJJ)
(Torrance, CA)


9/05
Proving Grounds -
ROTR Qualifer
(MMA)
(Kauai)


8/27-28/05
International Masters & Seniors BJJ Tournament
(Tijuca Tenis Clube, Tijuca, Brazil)

8/20/05
Garden Island Cage Wars #2
(MMA)
(Kapaa H.S. Gym, Kapaa, Kauai)

Kickin' It 2005 Part IV
(Kickboxing)
(Pagoda Ballroom)

8/13/05
Kickin It 11
(Kickboxing)
(Dole Cannery Ballroom?)

Toughman Hawaii
(Kickboxing)
(Hilo Civic Center, Hilo)

8/6/05
Hawaii Grappling
Grand Prix
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(Pearl City H.S. Gym,
Pearl City)

7/29/05
ROTR 8
(MMA)
(Aloha Stadium)


7/23-31/05
World BJJ Championships (Mundial)
(Tijuca Tenis Clube, Tijuca, Brazil)

7/23/05
Super Brawl 40: Icon
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)

7/21-23/05
World Cup of BJJ
(BJJ)
(São Paulo, Brazil)

7/16-17/05
Richard Bustillo 2 day Seminar
(
Jun Fan Jeet Kune Do, Cacoy Doce Pares Eskrima, and Muay Thai concepts)
(HMC)

7/15/05
Kickin It 2005 Part III
(Kickboxing)
(Dole Cannery Square)

7/9/05
Proving Grounds -
ROTR Qualifer
(MMA)
(Hilo Civic Center)

7/3/05
Warriors Quest 11
(MMA)
(Kapaa H.S. Gym, Kapaa, Kauai)

Super Braw: Full Contact Showdown 4
at Bayfest
(MMA)

7/2/05
Extreme Wars X-1: Hawaii's Top Team vs. Next Generation's Top Team
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena, Honolulu)

7/1/05
Dan "The Beast" Severn Seminar
(Farrington H.S. Gym)


 News & Rumors
Archives

Year 2005
July 2005 Part 1
June 2005 Part 3
June 2005 Part 2
June 2005 Part 1
May 2005 Part 3
May 2005 Part 2
May 2005 Part 1

April 2005 Part 3
April 2005 Part 2
April 2005 Part 1
March 2005 Part 3
March 2005 Part 2

March 2005 Part 1
February 2005 Part 3
February 2005 Part 2
February 2005 Part 1

January 2005 Part 3
January 2005 Part 2
January 2005 Part 1

Year 2004
December 2004 Part 3 December 2004 Part 2 December 2004 Part 1
November 2004 Part 3

November 2004 Part 2
November 2004 Part 1
October 2004 Part 2
October 2004 Part 1

September 2004 Part 3
September 2004 Part 2
September 2004 Part 1
August 2004 Part 3

August 2004 Part 2
August 2004 Part 1
July 2004 Part 3
July 2004 Part 2
July 2004 Part 1
June 2004 Part 3
June 2004 Part 2
June 2004 Part 1
May 2004 Part 3
May 2004 Part 2
May 2004 Part 1

April 2004 Part 3
April 2004 Part 2
April 2004 Part 1
March 2004 Part 3

March 2004 Part 2
March 2004 Part 1
February 2004 Part 3
February 2004 Part 2
February 2004 Part 1
January 2004 Part 3
January 2004 Part 2
January 2004 Part 1

Year 2003
December 2003 Part 3
December 2003 Part 2 December 2003 Part 1
November 2003 Part 3
November 2003 Part 2
November 2003 Part 1
October 2003 Part 2
October 2003 Part 2
October 2003 Part 1
September 2003 Part 2
September 2003 Part 1
August 2003 Part 3
August 2003 Part 2
August 2003 Part 1
July 2003 Part 3
July 2003 Part 2
July 2003 Part 1
June 2003 Part 3
June 2003 Part 2
June 2003 Part 1
May 2003 Part 3
May 2003 Part 2
May 2003 Part 1
April 2003 Part 3
April 2003 Part 2
April 2003 Part 1
March 2003 Part 3

March 2003 Part 2
March 2003 Part 1
February 2003 Part 3
February 2003 Part 2
February 2003 Part 1
January 2003 Part 3
January 2003 Part 2
January 2003 Part 1

Year 2002
December 2002 Part 2
December 2002 Part 1
November 2002 Part 2
November 2002 Part 1
October 2002 Part 3
October 2002 Part 2
October 2002 Part 1
September 2002 Part 3
September 2002 Part 2
September 2002 Part 1
August 2002 Part 2
August 2002 Part 1
July 2002 Part 3
July 2002 Part 2
July 2002 Part 1
June 2002 Part 3
June 2002 Part 2
June 2002 Part 1
May 2002 Part 3
May 2002 Part 2
May 2002 Part 1
April 2002 Part 3
April 2002 Part 2
April 2002 Part 1
March 2002 Part 3
March 2002 Part 2
March 2002 Part 1
February 2002 Part 2
February 2002 Part 1
January 2002 Part 3
January 2002 Part 2
January 2002 Part 1

Year 2001
December 2001 Part 2
December 2001 Part 1
November 2001 Part 2
November 2001 Part 1
October 2001 Part 2
October 2001 Part 1
September 2001 Part 3
September 2001 Part 2
September 2001 Part 1
August 2001 Part 2
August 2001 Part 1
July 2001 Part 3
July 2001 Part 2
July 2001 Part 1
June 2001 Part 2
June 2001 Part 1
May 2001
April 2001 Part 2
April 2001 Part 1
March 2001
February 2001
January 2001

Year 2000
Nov-Dec 2000
October 2000
Aug-Sept 2000
July 2000
March-May 2000

July 2005 News Part 3
 

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 9:30PM on Olelo Channel 52

 7/31/05

Quote of the Day

"Excellence is the result of caring more than others think wise, risking more than other's think safe, dreaming more than others think practical, and expecting more than others think possible."

Anonymous

JACARÉ ROCKS X BJJ WORLDS!!!

Open class champion in 2004, Ronaldo Jacaré had a great time at Tijuca Tênis Clube after winning weight and open class of X BJJ Worlds, whcih ended few minutes ago, in Rio de Janeiro. In the end of the weight class (meio-pesado), Jacaré applied a take down in Bráulio Estima (Gracie Barra) and caught his back, scoring 6x0. In open class final, Jacaré battled once again Roger Gracie. Very balanced game, Jacaré applied a kataguruma take down in Roger in the last 20 seconds of bout and got the title, driving the audience nuts.

COMPLETE RESULTS:

X Mundial de Jiu-Jitsu

Tijuca Tênis Clube, Rio de Janeiro

Sunday, July 31, 2005

Galo: Samuel Braga (Gracie Barra) defeated Gabriel Morais (Ac Monteiro) by referee's decision

Pluma: Bibiano Fernandes (Gracie Barra) defeated Carlos Vieira (Oswaldo Alves) by 1 advantage (6x6)

Pena: Fredson Paixão (Gracie Barra) defeated Mário Reis (BTT) by 5x0

Leve: Celso Vinícius (Gracie Barra) defeated Tiago Alves (Barbosa JJ) by 2x0

Médio: André Galvão (TT JJ) submitted Felipe Cranivata (Gracie Barra BH) by leg-lock at 6:18

Meio-pesado: Ronaldo Jacaré (Brasa) defeated Bráulio Estima (Gracie Barra) by 6x0

Pesado: Robert Drysdale (Brasa) defeated Fernando Boi (Fernando Boi JJ) by 2x1 (advantage)

Super-pesado: Roger Gracie (Gracie Barra) defeated Xande Ribeiro (Gracie Humaitá) by 12x2

Pesadíssimo: Francisco José (Gracie Barra) defeated Marcio Corleta (Behring) by 3x1 (advantage)

Absoluto: Ronaldo Jacaré (Brasa) defeated Roger Gracie (Gracie Barra) by 2x0

Female:

Leve: Leka Vieira defeated Kyra Gracie por 3x2 by advantage
Pena: Bianca Andrade defeated Letícia Ribeiro by 6x0

Purple belt:

Galo: Ivaniel Cavalcante (Carioca Team)

Pluma: Helder Medeiros (Brasa)

Pena: Otávio Ferreira (Gracie Barra/PE)

Leve: Alan do Nascimento (Brasa)

Médio: Gregor Gracie (Gracie Barra)

Meio pesado: Theodoro Prata (TT Jiu-Jitsu)

Pesado: Valdson Gomes (Gracie Humaitá)

Pesadíssimo: Juan Francisco (De la Riva)

Brown belt:

Galo: Bruno Malfacine (UGF)

Pluma: Lúcio Flávio (Orlando Araújo)

Pena: Yukinori Sasa (Paraestra)

Leve: Lucas Leite (Brasa)

Meio-pesado: Rômulo Barral (Gracie Barra BH)

Source: Tatame

Toughman Hawaii Returns on August 13th in Hilo!

Toughman Hawaii
Hilo Civic Center, Hilo, Hawaii
August 13, 2005

The premier striking event on the big island returns and has 20, count 'em, 20 match ups featuring a ton of names that sound familiar from the MMA world;

Justin Mercado, Mike Aina, Jay Carter, Ashton Castro, and Aaron Carvalho.

Other fighters slated to be on the card are:

Raymond Castro, Abraham Kaleopaa, Kana Hyatt, Carlos Rincon, Gavin Matta, Tyrone Ferriera, Chris Cissneros, Dave Mareno, A.J Verieato, Tallon Torres, Miles Campbell, Edward Williams, Aaron Castro, Donald Gonzales Jr, Kekoa Wong, Kalai Wong, Steven Willis, Robert Midell

Aaron Carvalho Chris Cissneros

Aaron Carvalho and Chris Cissneros will both fighting for Title Belts at Toughman Hawaii.


Waylan Silva

Keep your eyes on Waylan Silva , who there is big expectations, will be making his amatuer debut in the Junior division

August 13th 2005 at the Hilo Civic

All about 20 match-ups all stand up fighting Amateur matches 1 minute rounds with headgear. In the Pro fights 1 1/2 Minute rounds 10 ounce gloves no headgear every thing above the waist.

SEE YOU RINGSIDE!!

Source: Event Promoter

KICKIN IT 2005 PART IV's NEXT EVENT!

WHAT : KICKIN IT 2005 PART IV (AMATEUR KICKBOXING)
WHEN : AUGUST 20, 2005 - DOORS OPEN AT 6:30 P.M.
WHERE : PAGODA BALLROOM (2ND FLOOR-CEST SI BON)

RYAN LEE SUPER LIGHTWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP DAVID BALICAO
BULLS PEN 136-141 HSD

DAVID AND RYAN DIDN'T GET TO FIGHT ON PART III DUE TO AN INJURY THAT CAUSED RYAN TO PULL OUT. BUT RYAN HAS TOLD KICKIN IT PROMOTERS THAT HE IS READY TO FACE DAVID IN PART IV. RYAN IS A PROFFESIONAL MMA FIGHTER WHO HAS MADE HIS MARK IN THE MMA SCENE. ON THE KICKIN IT CARDS, PROFFESIONAL MMA FIGHTERS MUST PARTICIPATE AS A SEMI-PRO KICKBOXER (NO HEADGEAR, NO FEETPADS, AND 10 OZ GLOVES) THOUGH THEY HAVE HAD LITTLE OR NO KICKBOXING FIGHTS. AND SINCE DAVID HAS TURNED 18 YEARS OLD A FEW DAYS AGO. HE AND HIS TRAINERS HAVE AGREED THAT HE WILL DEFEND HIS BELT LIKE A REAL CHAMPION (IN THE SEMI-PRO STYLE LIKE RYAN LEE). DAVID HAS NEVER BEEN INTRODUCED TO THE CANVAS (WITH A HEADGEAR ON). SO IT WILL BE INTERESTING TO SEE HOW THIS YOUNG ADULT WILL REACT WHEN HE GETS A TASTE OF WHAT A KICK OR A PUNCH FEELS LIKE WITH NO PROTECTION.

JUSTLY LAQHION 65-70 MASON
HMC JESUS IS LORD

COLIN MACKENZIE 130-135 DARREL LABRADOR
JESUS IS LORD HSD

SHANEN KIRA 160-165 KAMANA GOMES
TEAM MIXBREED GOODSPORT KICKBOXING

JAY WESTBROOK 300 PLUS MIKE AKI
TEAM SOLJAH HSD

KAWIKA HONG 105-110 FRED RAMAYLA
GOODSPORT KICKBOXING HSD

ERIN GUILLORY 135-140 KAIKA BULLOCK
ANIMAL HOUSE HSD

MIKE TIBBITS 225-240 KANA HONG
TEAM MIXBREED GOODSPORT KICKBOXING

DALE KAMAI 170-175 SEAN CASTRO
TEAM SOLJAH TEAM MIXBREED

JARLOW ILANO 140-145 DEREK MINN
JKD UNLIMITED LAUPAHOEHOE MUAY THAI

JEREMY 185-190 LOWEN
TEAM ISLAND THUNDER ANIMAL HOUSE

NUI WHEELER 130-135 TAVIS KAGAWA
TEAM SOLJAH LAUPAHOEHOE MUAY THAI

VERN KAPOI 120-125 DALVIN KIM
HMC EWA BEACH FIGHT CLUB

RED DAVIS 135-140 EDMUND LEE
ANIMAL HOUSE HMC

VINNIE DELASANTOS 150 155 MMAHNU KAETAWARA
TEAM SOLJAH LAUPAHOEHOE MUAY THAI

JUSTIN WONG 140-145 SHAISON LAUPOLA
HMC JESUS IS LORD

PARTICIPANTS AND MATCHES MAY BE SUBJECT TO CHANGE

Source: Event Promoter

Sluggish Penn Does Enough
by Josh Gross (joshg@sherdog.com)

For those who believe that B.J. Penn’s future hovers at or above 185 pounds, they may want to look closely at his uninspired decision victory Friday night over Renzo Gracie (pictures), who despite his family name and early success was 1-5 since 1999 and had not fought for nearly two years following an ACL injury.

Considering his résumé over the last half-decade, little was expected from the 38-year-old Gracie. Instead, the pre-bout focus shone on Penn, who entered the ring Friday night looking neither like the svelte lightweight that battled Jens Pulver (pictures) for the UFC 155-pound belt in 2002 nor the solidly built welterweight who stunned Matt Hughes (pictures).

To be fair to the 26-year-old, packing on the pounds on a five-foot-nine frame has come largely during a crusade to fight heavier men, which began following the defeat of Hughes in January 2004. But versus Gracie, always a slender middleweight, Penn looked nothing if out of shape.

Gone was Penn’s trademark rush to fight, which fans first saw in his UFC debut before he smashed Caol Uno (pictures). Friday he moved to the K-1 ring with the grace of a recreational marathoner, not the explosiveness of a world-class sprinter. And his fight followed much the same pattern.

Gracie fought well early, scoring the bout’s first takedown. With the Brazilian jiu-jitsu master in his guard, Penn, who despite his size retained much of the flexibility he was famous for among jiu-jitsu circles, relaxed and offered little offense.

In the opening seconds of the second period Penn went to Gracie’s body and head, connecting accurately almost every time. A jab snapped Gracie’s head and soon Penn stalked his way around the ring, swatting oncoming punches and kicks like he would a mosquito.

When takedowns became increasingly difficult for Gracie to finish, he began reaching with punches. Penn countered nicely, bouncing his red five-ounce gloves off the Brazilian’s face.

These were the finest moments the night for the Hawaiian, who faced Gracie in the main event of K-1’s first-ever open-air promotion outside of Japan which, according to K-1, drew almost 12,000 spectators to Honolulu’s Aloha Arena.

The pro-Penn crowd desperately wanted to erupt for their man. But he gave them few opportunities.

Gracie flicked jabs and low kicks to began action in round three. However Penn soon brought the fight to the blue canvas, where it remained until the final bell.

"Renzo fought harder than I expected, and I wish I'd only had 30 more seconds, because I think I had him at the end and then the bell sounded,” Penn said of a fight he won by unanimous decision (30-28, 29-28, 29-28).

Had Friday’s version of Penn fought the Renzo Gracie (pictures) that warred with Kazushi Sakuraba (pictures) in August 2000, he would have been blown out. Yet Gracie’s age and injuries changed the dynamics of this fight and in spite of his appearance Penn’s physical attributes — balance and power (speed used to be in there, too) — took hold in rounds two and three.

Whether anyone close to Penn will tell him, after sluggish performances versus two natural middleweights and a light heavyweight it is clear that he is at his best at 170 pounds.

Though Penn cannot make 155 anymore, the welterweight limit is clearly in reach. Unlike so many less talented fighters, however, it seems Penn’s refusal to cut weight is a result of his unwillingness to make the sacrifices necessary to realize his potential. And he is the only one responsible for that.

Could Penn, who fancies himself the best fighter in the world, possibly challenge Wanderlei Silva (pictures), the PRIDE 205-pound champion mentioned repeatedly in recent Penn interviews? What about UFC middleweight champion Rich Franklin (pictures)?

It doesn’t seem possible, not if he continues to fight out of shape and flat-footed like he did Friday. At this point, the question for Penn and his handlers has to be: If he stays on his current path, how long until fans give up on him and move on?

Source: Sherdog

LUTTER VS. PRANGLEY

Travis Lutter will replace David Terrell on the upcoming UFC 54 card in August. Lutter's opponent will be Trevor Prangley.

Source: Fight Sport

 7/30/05

Quote of the Day

"Sometimes our light goes out but is blown into flame by another human being.
Each of us owes deepest thanks to those who have rekindled this light."

Albert Schweitzer, 1875-1965, German Born Medical Missionary, Theologian, Musician, and Philosopher

Rob Kaman Seminar TODAY!
Date: Saturday, July 30
Time: 2:00 to 5:00 pm
Location: HMC
Cost: $50

For more info click
here.



Source: The Vince

K-1 World GP 2005 Results!

K-1 World Grand Prix 2005
Aloha Stadium, Honolulu, Hawaii
July 29, 2005
By Chris Onzuka - Chris@Onzuka.com

The largest martial arts fighting organization, K-1 made its way to Hawaii for the very first time. Previously, K-1 has graced the US by way of Las Vegas. K-1 promoters have partnered with Rumble World Entertainment to put on the K-1 World Hawaii Grand Prix 2005, the winner of which will earn a birth in the K-1 World GP Final Elimination in September. With the exception of 2003 K-1 USA Champion, Carter Williams and Gary Goodridge, who has performed well recently in K-1, the field of tournament fighters was far from top notch, but it made up for it with the "freak factor." Fans got to see the King of the 3 Rounders, Butterbean take on a monster of a man in Marcus Royster, UFC heavy hitter and heavy punch taker, Cabbage Correira pitted his granite chin against knockout artist Big Daddy Goodridge. Toping off the card was one of Japan's elite kickboxers in Musashi taking on Swedish sensation Rickard Norstrand.

The preliminaries featured some of Norfumi "Kid" Yamamoto's Killer Bee team members. Both fighters won their bouts against up and coming Hawaii fighters, Okano and Wolff. The Hawaii fans were on their feet to witness the main event featuring an MMA match, pitting arguably the best pound for pound fighter in the world, Hawaii's own BJ Penn taking on the legendary Renzo Gracie. Gracie has not performed well recently, winning only one of his last six matches, but he has mentioned in a few interviews that he is in the best shape that he has ever been and that this fight will spark a rejuvenation of his MMA career. Renzo is a different fighter than most of the Gracies, much more aggressive, so there was a lot of anticipation leading up to this fight because everyone expected it to be an exciting fight due to the match up of fighting styles. The main event was either going to be a fast paced fight that would not go the distance or it would be a longer, more methodical match. It turned out to be the latter as both great fighters countered each other's styles. However, Penn's versatility as a fighter became the deciding factor.

MMA:
Michihisa Asano (Killer Bee) def. Steven "Iwi" Okano (BJ Penn's MMA)
Submission via guillotine (choked unconscious) at 2:06 minutes in Round 1.

MMA:
Riki Fukuda (Killer Bee) def. Brandon Wolff (Team MADD)
TKO via referee stoppage due to punches from the back mount at 2:49 minutes in Round 2.

MMA:
Allan "Brazillan Samurai" Goes vs. Lyle Nicely (Team MADD)
Cancelled because Goes slipped while checking the ring before the event and got knocked out.

Reserve Figth: K-1 Rules: 3 Rounds - 3 Minutes
Mike Malone (Eastsidaz) def. Dustin Haning (Team VooDoo)
Unanimous decision [(10-9), (10-9)), (10-9)] after 3 rounds and 1 overtime round.

Hawaii GP Tournament Quarter Final / K-1 Rules / 3 Min.
Gary 'Big Daddy' Goodridge (Trinidad and Tobago / Freelance) def. Wesley 'Cabbage' Correira (U.S.A. / B.J. Penn MMA, HI)
TKO via referee stoppage at 2:43 minutes in Round 1.

Hawaii GP Tournament Quarter Final / K-1 Rules / 3 Min. 3R
Carter Williams (U.S.A. / Team Voodoo U.S.A.) def. Nobu Hayashi (Japan)
Unanimous decision [(30-26), (30-26), (30-26)] after 3 rounds.

Hayashi proved one thing in this bout, he is tough as stone. Williams threw bombs that landed on Hayashi and

Hawaii GP Tournament Quarter Final / K-1 Rules / 3 Min. 3R
Eric 'Butterbean' Esch (U.S.A. / Team Butterbean) def. Marcus 'XL' Royster (U.S.A. / Team VooDoo)
Unanimous decision [(30-27), (30-26), (30-27)] after 3 rounds.

Hawaii GP Tournament Quarter Final / K-1 Rules / 3 Min. 3R
Yusuke Fujimoto (Japan / MONSTER FACTORY) def. Scott Junk (U.S.A. / B.J. Penn MMA)
KO at 1:20 minutes in Round 3.

Super Fight / K-1 Rules / 3 Min. 3R
Musashi (Japan / Seido Kaikan) def. Rickard Norstrand (Sweden / Vallentuna Boxing Camp)
Majority decision [(30-29), (30-28), (30-30)] after3 rounds.

Hawaii GP Tournament Semi Final / K-1 Rules / 3 Min. 3R
Gary 'Big Daddy' Goodridge (Trinidad and Tobago / Freelance) def. Carter Williams (U.S.A. / Team Voodoo U.S.A.)
KO at 1:15 minutes in Round 1.

Hawaii GP Tournament Semi Final / K-1 Rules / 3 Min. 3R
Yusuke Fujimoto (Japan / MONSTER FACTORY) def. Marcus 'XL' Royster (U.S.A. / Team VooDoo)
TKO count not answer the 10 count at 2:16 minutes in Round 1.
*Eric 'Butterbean' Esch withdrew due to injured leg.
Reserve winner Mike Malone withdrew due to injury.
Marcus Royster replaces both fighters.

Super Fight / K-1 Rules / 3Min. 3R
Hong-Man Choi (Republic of Korea / Freelance) def. Akebono (Japan / Team Yokozuna)
TKO, Akebono could not answer the 10 count at 2:53 minutes in Round 1.

Hawaii GP Tournament Finals / K-1 Rules / 3 Min. 3R
Gary 'Big Daddy' Goodridge (Trinidad and Tobago / Freelance) def. Yusuke Fujimoto (Japan / MONSTER FACTORY)
TKO via corner throwing in the towel at 1:19 minutes in Round 3.
*Gary Goodridge is the K-1 World Hawaii Grand Prix Tournament Champion.

Super Fight / Mixed Martial Arts Rules / 5Min. 3R
B.J. Penn (U.S.A. / B.J. Penn MMA) def Renzo Gracie (Brazil / Renzo Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Academy, NYC)
Unanimous decision [(23-28), (30-28), (29-28)] after 3 rounds.

More on Aloha Stadium Attendance
By Jeremy Wall

As a follow up to the report on maXfighting regarding the ticket sales being slow for Friday night's K-1 event at Aloha Stadium, the Honolulu Star-Bulletin has reported that K-1 is expecting an attendance figure of around 13,400 for the event, which is headlined by BJ Penn against Renzo Gracie in an MMA rules match.

MaXfighting had previously reported that ticket sales would come in way under capacity for Aloha Stadium, and we were right on the money. The goal with the event, besides the traditional K-1 goal of simply drawing a hit rating on Japanese network television, is to break the North American attendance record for mixed martial arts. The record currently is roughly 13,700, held by UFC 41 in Atlantic City in February 2003, a show coming off the heels of the highly successful Ken Shamrock-Tito Ortiz fight that was also headlined by the return to MMA of Tank Abbott.

13,400 of course comes up about 300 or so bodies short of the North American record. Since K-1 doesn't have to report real figures that are made public via a governing body, then odds are we won't really know if they broke the record or not.

The record paid attendance in North America still is UFC 40 with Shamrock vs. Ortiz at 13,055 bodies, and the record gate is $2,575,450 for UFC 52 with Randy Couture vs. Chuck Liddell coming off the first season of "The Ultimate Fighter". UFC 52 would also easily be the highest grossing overall event in North American MMA history. The all-time attendance record for MMA worldwide is 71,000 fans at the co-promoted Pride and K-1 "Dynamite" event at National Stadium in Japan in August 2002, headlined by Kazushi Sakuraba vs. Mirko Cro Cop. The fake attendance figure that Pride claimed for that event was 91,000.

Source: Maxfighting

Sherdog.com Exclusive Q&A
Candid
Penn: “I Want to do it All”
by Josh Gross (joshg@sherdog.com)

Despite recent troubles with the law, a contentious court case in which he sued his former promoter and the pressures that come from headlining a fight in his home state against a man with a legendary last name, life is good for B.J. Penn.

With the grandiose vision of filling 20,000 seats inside Honolulu’s Aloha Stadium, home for the NFL’s Pro Bowl, K-1 approached Penn about fighting Renzo Gracie, who, despite a serious downturn in his career over the past four years, still carries with him the stature that colors the first family of mixed martial arts.

Before it’s all said and done, Penn hopes that his surname holds as much weight. And he’s got a vision, very much his own, on how to make that happen.

His is a story of defiance. Of breaking rules and, smartly or foolishly, challenging authority. With B.J. Penn, there is much to discuss, particularly on the eve of his first K-1 main event, which will be carried throughout North America via tape-delayed pay-per-view this Sunday.

Josh Gross: I remember talking to you before you fought Jens Pulver, which was ages ago, and you said one of the reasons you trained in San Jose with AKA was because the Islands offered so many distractions and there was trouble out there. Was [the incident with the police, in which Penn was arrested for allegedly assaulting a police officer outside a night club in Waikiki] a situation where you were prophetic, that’s exactly what happened?

B.J. Penn: This is just something that happened. Something that took place. Life is like a box of chocolates. There’s nothing I could do about it.

Gross: Have you felt that way at all since returning to Hawaii or has it been a purely positive thing for you?

Penn: Yeah, purely positive. Back home I don’t have to wait in traffic to go anywhere because the other island, Oahu is just like a regular city. Hilo is like a small town. One minute to get to the gym. One minute to get home. Not like an hour to get to the gym and an hour to home and wasting all that time. But I’m a lot better. I’m a lot happier fighter. I don’t take fighting as serious as I did back then. I just have fun. That’s why if it’s not fun for me I don’t want to even do it. So just having a good time.

Gross: So if it’s not fun for you, there’s no point. What are you current goals? What keeps you fighting?

Penn: My only goal was to get the UFC belt. After that happened, I don’t know, I just fight for fun now. Just to have a good time. I still like fighting. I enjoy it. Everything else is just boring to me. I mean I’m a human being first. I do whatever I want first and fighting comes second to me. I just live my life and have a good time and just have fun.

Gross: You’re fortunate. You grew up in a pretty good financial situation. You didn’t have to worry about much. Did that have a big impact on how you handled the situation with the UFC? You figured, “I’m going to go off and do my own thing because I can do it”?

Penn: No. I always wanted to fight in the UFC. It was just me looking at what K-1 could offer me. They could offer me new fighters to fight with. They could offer me exposure in Japan. They wanted to pay me a bunch of money. And I told the UFC, “I don’t want to hold you guys hostage. I’ll fight for whatever you guys want me to fight for too. Let’s do it both. Look, I got it written in this K-1 contract I can fight in UFC, too. You know what I mean? Let’s do it. I’ll fight in different weights or in each one, you know. And it doesn’t really come down to, like you said, I could live a good life. I don’t fight to live, I live to fight. You know what I mean? I’m not somebody who has to fight to eat a piece of food that night. I’m not a billionaire or something but I got food on the table. I always eat. I’ll never go hungry. But I live to fight because I love to fight. You know what I mean? I’m not forced to do it. It’s just something I love to do and the situation was just good exposure for me in Japan, good exposure for me in the U.S. I was trying to become a worldwide fighter but the UFC cut the neck on me on the U.S. side. So, whatever.

Gross: I heard there was a deal on the table for you to re-sign with the UFC but it was contingent upon you apologizing. Is that true?

Penn: Yes, that is very true.

Gross: Who demanded that you apologize and who were you supposed to apologize to?

Penn: It was demanded that I say I’m sorry to all the fans. That I let them down, and this and that. And let down the UFC and that I know I made a mistake and now I know that. It was a mistake leaving and now I know it was a mistake.

Gross: So this was supposed to be a public apology. It wasn’t behind closed doors to [UFC President] Dana (White) or anything like that?

Penn: Yeah, strictly public apology. I mean if would have done it I would have been on “The Ultimate Fighter” season two probably with Hughes now, and this and that. Getting my face out there. But, yeah, that’s how it goes. That’s how things are. Everything happens for a reason. But I’m sure things will work its way out later and I think I’ll be fighting in the UFC one day.

Gross: Are there any regrets? Obviously apologizing, it’s not something you want to do or be forced into. Unless you really mean it, there’s no point, right?

Penn: If I really meant it then I’d do it in a second. “Hey man, I’m really sorry for leaving. This and that.” But I don’t really believe it, so why am I going to go out and do it? If Dana wants to feel that he saves face that way, then that’s how he feels and that’s his business. And if I feel that I want to save face my way, then that’s my business. I’m not going to go up there and do something that I don’t believe I should be doing just to get my face on TV and do this and this and that. And basically just give up everything, trying to take my manhood asking me to do something I don’t believe is right.

Gross: So why do you feel — I mean it sounds like there is, maybe animosity is not the right word, but there is still hard feelings — why do you feel that one day you’ll be back in the UFC?

Penn: I don’t think it’s hard feelings. Of course, everybody knows how Dana is on a professional level when he gets mad. A lot of decisions from him are made emotionally. But it still is business and I think business-wise we will be in there again. We just keep winning our fights. We keep learning our things. We keep growing as a fighter. Getting my name out there. I’m still doing things. This next show will be shown in 60 countries around the world. We’re the main event, the first time a mixed martial arts fight has been in any kind of [K-1] Grand Prix. We’re the main event. We probably won’t be huge on pay-per-view in the U.S., but the hardcore fans will probably watch it. So we’re still getting our name out there a little. But in the other countries we’re blasting our name out there. My last fight with Lyoto wasn’t shown on TV. It was a lackluster fight. But the Ludwig fight was shown on TV. So we’re pushing. We’re getting our name out there.

Gross: How much are you guys doing behind the scenes to get K-1 more interested in promoting MMA fights and putting MMA fights on TV? If you’re doing anything at all.

Penn: No, no. We’re pushing Rumble World Entertainment. But when K-1 comes to town and they want some help with stuff we have a good business relationship with them and we help them out.

Gross: Since you fought Hughes, obviously you fought Rodrigo Gracie and you fought Ryoto Machida and you had another fight. But do you feel that you’ve been challenged at all since you started taking those fights? They’re good fighters but they’re not the top-level fighters — not Gomi and Hughes.

Penn: Definitely. I got a lot from this last fight with Lyoto. I really learned a lot. What really works. That was definitely stepping into the fountain of knowledge in that fight. I found out what I can do in there, a lot of different stuff. I really grew a lot, I feel, as a fighter in that fight. But I mean, to say that those guys aren’t the same kind of caliber as Gomi and Hughes when I finished Gomi and I finished Hughes and I didn’t finish Rodrigo and I didn’t finish Lyoto, those guys are very good fighters too. It’s just perception of people. But I’ve been in the ring with all those guys. I know if I’m in the ring with Hughes again, I’ll finish him again. Gomi same thing. Actually, next time I fight Rodrigo, if it ever does happen, I’d put him away and finish him. Definitely, I’ve grown as a fighter since these last couple fights. Not to say Gomi and Hughes haven’t grown. I mean they’re awesome. They’re great fighters. Look what Gomi’s done, knocking everybody out. Hughes coming back, beating all those guys again and this and that. So, I mean, it’s not like they’re on a tear but I feel I’m a great fighter and contend with anyone.

Gross: There’s an argument out there that basically the fights that you’ve taken against these heavier guys puts you in a “no lose” situation. If you lose the fight, so what? You fought a bigger guy. If you win then you get a lot of accolades. Do you feel you’re putting yourself in a “no lose” situation where a loss doesn’t really hurt you and there’s really not much to gain out of it?

Penn: The only thing they can say that about is about the Lyoto fight or something because I fought Ludwig — if I had lost that would have been terrible. I fought Rodrigo, who was the same size. If I had lost that, that would have been terrible. I fought Lyoto. You know what I mean? F__k man, I thought I was going to win that fight. I still think I can go in and do good. I want to have better training partners. I don’t want to make any excuses. If I ever fight him again I want to have better training partners. People like Chuck Liddell. People like that kind of people to train with if I fight Lyoto. And Renzo. If I lose, where is my career going? It’s f__ked.

Gross: Renzo is 1-5 in his last six fights and hasn’t been a player in that division in a long time. So why did you accept that fight?

Penn: I think it’s all about filling up a 20,000-seat arena, you know what I mean. I think that’s what K-1 wants to do and what they want to try to put together to fill up a 20,000-seat arena. But besides that, it’s a good fight. It’s going to be an exciting fight. I mean, if you look at every single one of the people—you know, fighting in a show it’s all about who’s going to watch the thing—if you look at all the people in the UFC welterweight division, even I think the middleweight division, a lot more people know who Renzo is, especially worldwide, not just in the U.S. Because the UFC is just in the U.S. market. But this is going to be worldwide on television in 60 countries and stuff like that. I guess it was a no-brainer for them to try and put that together.

Gross: This is a mega-fight in Hawaii and this arena is huge. What’s that like headlining a show in your home state, obviously in front of a pro-B.J. Penn crowd?

Penn: It’s awesome. I like fighting over here. The day of the fight I can sleep all day. It’s nothing new. It’s not in my hometown, but on another island. Same state. So I just feel comfortable. It’s the same air I breathe everyday. It’s good. When I get in that ring, I like how Renzo stares people down, I’ll be on the other side walking around looking at him. We’re looking at each other. The hype and the energy and everything is building up. I’m going to feel it. I’m going to feel the hair on my body standup and look across the ring. It’s going to be excitement. There’s going to be electricity in between the two of us standing across the ring looking at each other. Renzo’s a crazy guy to count out. He can fight good with a lot of people. I don’t know how much he’s been training in his last fights. I heard he just showed up the fights. He was teaching, doing business and this and that, not taking it serious though. He’s a lot older. He’s 38 years old. He’s had a lot of time off. That’s the best thing a lot of times. When you fight so often, you’re so active you take a year off and you’re just on it. You’re ready to train. You’re ready to fight. There’s something missing in your life for that one year. So it’s back. He’s got a challenge like me to step up to fight and I’m sure he’s going to come in hard, fighting hard.

Gross: If you don’t stop him or submit him, will you be disappointed?

Penn: Who’s the last person who did stop him or submit him? Sakuraba right? Oh, Henderson knocked him out. Of course I’m going to go full bore to stop him or submit him. But I’m not going to say I’m going to be disappointed in myself. As long as it’s an exciting fight, you know what I mean. As long as fans can say, “I got my money’s worth. This is what I paid for.” As long as the fans go home happy, I’ll go home happy.

Gross: There are still a lot of fans who wish you would stick with a division and clean it out and fight the best. Beating Gomi and beating Hughes you have a good argument that you already did that. But do you feel at all for the fans who really want to see you fight the best of the best, at least that’s how they’re perceived?

Penn: If they want to see me fight the best of the best, let me fight all the guys. I’ll fight Hughes again in a second. We’re trying to put a fight together with Jeremy Horn at 185, so it’s not like I’m trying to jump out of the weight class. Because I’m walking around at 185 right now. That’s what I’m fighting at. And when I said I really want to test myself against someone like Wanderlei Silva and people like that, I’m serious. I want to do those kind of things. I want to fight those kinds of people. I want to take it as far as I can take it, especially for myself too. I want to know how good I am. I don’t want to sit back later and be like, “yeah man I was the best welterweight ever. Nobody in the whole world ever, ever could mess with me. No one could ever touch me.” I want to see. I want to know my limit. I want to know how far I can take it. I want to know who I am. I want to face all these people. I want to look across the ring and look at them in the eyes and stare at them and see how it feels and feel all that emotion. I want to do it all.

Source: Sherdog

Terrell out of UFC 54

David Terrell has pulled out of UFC 54 against Trevor Prangley on the advice of his doctor. An MRI report came back positive showing a tear in the cartilage of his elbow and Terrell was subsequently sidelined from fighting or training.

"I feel terrible about pulling out of this fight. My shape is excellent and I was looking forward to fighting again. I injured my arm and tried to train through it but it was impossible. After the cortizone shot had no affect I decided to get an MRI and the doc said I wasn't going to heal without giving it rest for the next several weeks." -Terrell

Source: Gracie Fighter

COFFEE GUY EXCLUSIVE:
REAL REASON TITO WANTS TO FACE FORREST

By Coffee Guy

Forrest Griffin, the new face of American MMA in the mainstream media.

Before reading any further, please read our disclaimer first.

The following exclusive report was sent to us by our Zuffa informant called 'Coffee Guy':

"My sources are telling me that the real reason Tito Ortiz is pushing hard to start a public rivalry on the internet forums with Forrest Griffin is because he'd like to sign a main event matchup between him and Griffin for a pay-per-view event he is trying to co-promote with the Maloof brothers, who are also the billionaire owners of the Sacramento Kings of the NBA.

The reason that they'd like Tito's opponent to be Griffin is because they want to try and capture 'The Ultimate Fighter' viewing audience.

As MMA fans will remember, Griffin eventually won the light heavyweight tournament of The Ultimate Fighter show, and became a mainstream media poster boy for American MMA in the process.

Most experts I've talked to feel Griffin has become more famous then Tito ever was, and he did it all by himself. He wasn't handed his poster boy status the Tito was with Zuffa. According to these same experts I've talked to, they think a Forrest Griffin vs. Tito Ortiz matchup would do great ratings if it gets the right marketing and media exposure."

Source: Fight Sport

UFC 55 news
By Mark Pickering / Sean McClure

It appears that former UFC Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir will no longer be facing Andre Arlovski at UFC 55 for the anticipated title unification bout. A graphic on the home page of http://www.paulbuentello.com/ reveals a "coming in UFC 55" by-line and features images of Paul Buentello and Arlovski apparently signifying a potential clash in October.

Details are scarce with UFC remaining tight lipped on the UFC 55 fight card and the recovery of 25 year old Mir. An announcement should be expected on UFC's upcoming TV special's on Spike TV, commencing on August 6th.

Buentello knocked out Justin Eilers, who himself was granted a title shot at Arlovski at UFC 53, and then he forced Kevin Jordan to submit. UFC fans have been buzzing about this fight since Paul’s arrival back at UFC 51 and many have speculated that this would happen in the next few UFC’s. It is doubtful that they predicted it to be this soon, especially since word came out of Frank Mir’s camp that the was getting healthy. This should be an incredible stand up battle and in my opinion is worth the price of admission alone.

Source: Maxfighting

 7/29/05

Quote of the Day

"The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy."

Martin Luther King,1929-1968, American Black Leader, Nobel Prize Winner, 1964

INOUE IN AUTO ACCIDENT

Our prayers go out to Enson for a quick and speedy recovery if this is true.

The Japanese media reports that Enson Inoue was in an auto accident. No severe injuries were sustained, but the car was totalled.

Source: Fight Sport

K-1 Is Finally Here!

K-1 World Grand Prix 2005
Aloha Stadium, Honolulu, Hawaii
July 29, 2005

HAWAII GP Tournament Quarter Final / K-1 Rules / 3 Min. 3R
Yusuke Fujimoto (Japan / MONSTER FACTORY) VS
Scott Junk (U.S.A. / B.J. Penn MMA)

HAWAII GP Tournament Quarter Final / K-1 Rules / 3 Min. 3R
Eric 'Butterbean' Esch (U.S.A. / Team Butterbean) VS Marcus 'XL' Royster (U.S.A. / Team Voo Doo)

HAWAII GP Tournament Quarter Final / K-1 Rules / 3 Min. 3R
Carter Williams (U.S.A. / Team Voodoo U.S.A.) VS Nobu Hayashi (Japan)

HAWAII GP Tournament Quarter Final / K-1 Rules / 3 Min.
Gary 'Big Daddy' Goodridge (Trinidad and Tobago / Freelance) VS
Wesley 'Cabbage' Correira (U.S.A. / B.J. Penn MMA, HI)

Super Fight / K-1 Rules / 3 Min. 3R
Musashi (Japan / Seido Kaikan) VS Rickard Nordstrand (Sweden / Vallentuna Boxing Camp)

Super Fight / Mixed Martial Arts Rules / 5Min. 3R
B.J. Penn (U.S.A. / B.J. Penn MMA) VS Renzo Gracie (Brazil / Renzo Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Academy, NYC)

Super Fight / K-1 Rules / 3Min. 3R
Akebono (Japan / Team Yokozuna) VS Hong-Man Choi (Republic of Korea / Freelance)

TRIGG BREAKS DOWN PENN VS. GRACIE

When it comes to the topic of BJ Penn, UFC welterweight contender, and MMAWeekly Sound Off Radio co-host, Frank Trigg, has never been at a loss for words especially when asked for his opinion. Trigg was asked about the up coming match between BJ Penn and Renzo Gracie July 29th in Hawaii.

Frank Trigg was questioned what Renzo can do to win this fight. Trigg commented, "Well BJ's hands are too good to make that huge of an improvement for Renzo's style between now and then, so what Renzo's going to have to do, what he hasn't done in his last couple of fights, is come in, in amazing shape. That's probably the one thing that he's going to do differently is come in, in just incredible shape to be able to handle BJ's high energy when he fights. And like I said, I don't think there's enough time to improve his hands enough to beat BJ's hands, but he's going to have to be sneaky about it. If I were Renzo, knowing Renzo's style, and knowing BJ's style, if I were going to change something to fight BJ, the only thing really that Renzo can do to improve upon in this amount of time that he has is to just come in, in the best shape he's ever been in."

Who's better on the ground, BJ Penn or Renzo Gracie? In Trigg's opinion, "I think BJ's a little bit better on the ground just because he's a little bit more flexible. He can get in some strange positions that most guys can't get their legs and their bodies into. I think he's got just a little bit of a better spot on the ground, but I think Renzo's a little bit better on top from the top position than BJ is as far as the fight game goes, but I think BJ's better on the bottom, and I think BJ's better on the bottom with Renzo on top than the roles reversed...I just feel BJ has a slight, slight edge in that. I really think the big edge in this fight is going to be who's in better shape, and BJ's hands. I think that's going to be a huge factor in this fight."

Trigg picked BJ Penn to defeat Renzo Gracie. He feels that BJ has the better hands of the two, and has the edge on the ground. The only question in his mind was which fighter will show up in the better shape. July 29th, all the questions will be answered.

Source: MMA Weekly

Sato Surprises Shooto Dojo with Visit
By Roxanne Modafferi

Revered Shooto veteran Rumina Sato made a rare guest appearance at Cross Point Kichijouji in Tokyo, Japan on July 21st to fill in for regular instructor Naoya Uematsu, also a Shooto vet, who had already gone to Brazil to prepare to compete in the famed Mundial Jiu-Jitsu World Championship. The 23-8-2 fighter, who has graced the Shooto stage since 1994, gave students an impromptu lesson in some of the intricacies of MMA.


Sato teaching at Cross Point Kichijouji
Cross Point Kichijouji is home to many professional and amateur fighters of Shooto, kickboxing, MMA, as well as Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, whose enthusiastic students pack themselves into the underground dojo in a collage of white, blue, black and red gis.

On this night, however, a large percentage of the BJJ participants took off their gi tops and stayed to learn from K'z Factory fighter Sato, while some new faces joined in to participate in what might as well have been a free seminar. The deadly yet congenial MMA fighter taught for a solid hour and a half, covering arm-drag techniques from standing, heel picks, takedowns off of slipping punches, and a particularly unusual reverse triangle choke from spider guard.

After he finished showing technique, Sato opened the class to free training and even rolled with some of the students. Sato will be competing in an upcoming Shooto event against Cesar Gracie-trained fighter and rising star Gilbert Melendez (7-0) on August 20th at the Yokohama Cultural Gymnasium.

Source: FCF

Rickson to Corner Renzo

Rickson Gracie will be cornering Renzo in his bout with Hawaii's BJ Penn. Also in Renzo's corner will be Ryan and Ralph Gracie. BJ was a former student of Ralph's and in a twist of fate will now be fighting Ralph's older brother, Renzo.

The matchup between the 2 jiu-jitsu fighters is an interesting one. Renzo was at one time one of the world's best MMA fighters. He entered any tournament regardless of the weight of his opponents. However after years at the top Renzo started losing more than he won. Many commented that he just wasn't coming in to fights in good shape. Raising his family, running his school and his rigorous seminar schedule had taken a toll on his fighting.

During this time Penn was methodically making his way to the top defeating Uno, Hughes, Ludwig and others. Now a reinvigorated Renzo will be facing the self proclaimed best pound-per-pound fighter in the world.
With all of the emotions coming in to this fight and the tempe
rment from both sides we can only hope that this event doesn't turn out to be more than just a professional one.

Source: Gracie Fighter

COUTURE AND LIDDELL NEWS

Randy Couture

The following was sent in by the MMA insider known as 'POOPCHUTEBOXE':

"I talked to a usually accurate source, and he says that Randy Couture is not taking his upcoming fight against Mike Van Arsdale as seriously as he should be taking it.

His current girlfriend, who he hooked up with after splitting with his wife, is supposedly a stripper. So yes, he really is 'Captain America', a 40+ year old man trading in the 1960 junker for a brand new shiny 1985 model.

On a sidenote, I'm hearing that Chuck Liddell may possibly have some sort of leg injury, that has been affecting his training. I can personally vouch for the fact that back at the last UFC in Atlantic City, we were walking down the boardwalk together, and he was noticably favoring one leg, and when I asked him about it, he didn't admit what it was, but he seemed concerned with it.

I'm just speculating, but after he lost to Quinton Jackson, his camp seemed to floated a rumor that he had a torn leg muscle, so it could possibly be related to that.

Another side note, I noticed that Chuck sure does like his alcohol."

Source: Fight Sport

CBJJ announces BJJ Worlds schedule

Young fighters will start tomorrow (28) the X edition of Jiu-Jitsu BJJ Worlds. On the chronogram set up by BJJ Confederation, all bouts will start at 11am with weights: galo, pluma, pena and leve. The first day will also feature other young categories and also female blue belt, purple and blue belt adult. On Friday, blue belt return to the mats at 11am (pesadíssimo and super pesado) plus open class, which ends the day. At 12:20 purple belt take over the mats. On Saturday, the highlights are black belts, who fight the open class at 15:30. The day begins with brown and purple belts.

BJJ Worlds closes the day with the main names of Jiu-Jitsu. Around 9am, fighters as Gabriel Moraes, Ricardo Vieira and Mário Reis will be fighting at galo, pluma and pena divisions. At 11am, André Galvão, Daniel Moraes and others will be fighting for titles. Ronaldo Jacaré and Demian Maia are confirmed at meio-pesado, which starts at 2:40pm. At 4pm, fighters as Roger Gracie, Fernando Margarida, Leonardo Leite and others will be fighting at pesado, super-pesado and pesadíssimo.

Sunday will also feature girls on the mat at 5:40pm. After Leka Vieira, Kyra Gracie and Letícia Ribeiro's bouts, audience will be able to see at Tijuca Tênis Clube (Rio de Janeiro) BJJ brown belt open class ar 6pm. The finals are scheduled to happen at 5.pm.

Source: Tatame

 7/28/05

Quote of the Day

"Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds you plant."

Robert Louis Stevenson, 1850-1895, Scottish Essayist, Poet, Novelist

BJ READY FOR TOMORROW'S WEIGH-IN
From what I was told, the weigh-ins will be at the Hilton Hawaiian Village Tropics (near Alii Tower) at 10:00 am. Don't quote me on the time.


MMAWeekly.com is out in Hawaii covering the big fight this Friday night between
BJ Penn and Renzo Gracie. The press conference is going on in a few minutes from Hawaii and BJ Penn and Renzo Gracie talked briefly with MMAWeekly before the press conference.

BJ Penn is walking around at 191 pounds today and says "superior conditioning will win this fight and I have it for this fight." BJ looked to be in good shape as he gets set for tomorrow's weigh-in. MMAWeekly's Ryan Bennett, who is doing the play by play for K-1 on Friday night said "BJ looks pretty solid to me. BJ isn't going to win any body building contests because of his body structure put when I hit him on the shoulders today he was a rock. He looks ready to go and we will all find out Friday night."

Renzo Gracie was with Ricardo Almeida and Matt Serra today and he is currently walking around at his weigh-in weight of 185. He told MMAWeekly "People will be surprised by the condition I am in. I will surprise a lot of people this weekend." Ricardo Almedia told MMAWeekly "I've never seen Renzo in this kind of shape in years. He knows what lies ahead and he will be the best Renzo Gracie in many years."

Early tomorrow morning we will have video interviews up with Renzo Gracie, BJ Penn, Ricardo Almeida who breaks down the fight, Carter Williams, Cabbage, the Press Conference and more. NOW IS THE TIME to get hooked up with MMAWeekly's Premium package because we are the only american site that has the Gracie vs Penn showdown covered with pictures, video and interviews, not to mention MMAWeekly Radio goes live for two hours on Thursday in primetime at 5pm Pacific/8pm Eastern. It's just five bucks a month and gets you the most video and radio archived insider information that you can't get anywhere else.

Source: MMA Weekly

RIGGS OUT, LINDLAND TO FACE DOERKSEN

MMA Weekly has learned that Joe Riggs is indeed out of his fight with Matt Lindland scheduled for UFC 54 on August 20th. According to our sources, Riggs has two bulging disks in his neck, which obviously precludes him from fighting.

According to Lindland, with Riggs out, the fight has been offered to and accepted by Canadian fighter Joe Doerksen. A two-time UFC veteran, Doerksen will step in to take Riggs’ slot against Lindland. Doerksen is coming off his first win for the company. At UFC 52, he defeated fellow Canadian Patrick Cote via rear naked choke.

The change in opponents doesn’t make much difference to Lindland though, “I’m a little disappointed that I don’t get to beat up Riggs, but I’m looking forward to beating up Doerksen. I’m just glad I’m still fighting. I’m glad they got an opponent and didn’t cancel the fight.”

He’s not even changing up his training for Doerksen. “I don’t change my style. I’m just going to go out there and do what I do. I’m going to finish the fight and take care of business,” according to Lindland.

After a convincing win over Travis Lutter at UFC 52, Lindland had been guaranteed a shot at Rich Franklin’s middleweight title by UFC President Dana White, but it doesn’t sound like he is letting that affect his thinking at the moment. ““I would love to see that, but I’m not the one that does the match making for the company. I’m going to do my part and go out and put on a great show and give the fans an exciting finish, it’s up to the UFC what happens after that,” he said.

Doerksen and Lindland are no strangers to each other. Late last year, Doerksen fought for Lindland’s Sportfight promotion and defeated Lindland protégé Ed “Short Fuse” Herman via triangle choke in the third round of the fight. In fact, he’s done quite well in general against Team Quest fighters with a perfect 3-0 record. “He’s the Team Quest killer at this point. He took out Chris Leben, Ed Herman, and recently Art Santore. He’s 3-0 against Team Quest but he’ll be 3-1 after the UFC,” promised Lindland.

Consistently ranked as one of the top five fighters in the world in his weight class, Lindland is sure to be looked upon by most as the veteran of this matchup. Doerksen may not have the UFC experience that Lindland does, but in all actuality, he has vastly more mixed martial arts experience with 37 fights compared to Lindland’s 17. Of course, Lindland makes up for much of that difference with his background in competitive wrestling, including a Silver Medal at the Olympics in Sydney, Australia.

Many people were looking forward to the fight between Lindland and Riggs primarily due to the trash talking between the two on the Internet. That same fire doesn’t exist between Lindland and Doerksen, but what they don’t bring to the fight verbally, they should more than make up for in the Octagon, as both are highly skilled and extremely competitive. And Doerksen’s new moniker as “the Team Quest killer” does add a little spice to the matchup as well.

Source: MMA Weekly

Royler faces Yamamoto at Hero`s GP

Hero's GP Middleweight has just announced the card of its second round, on September 7th, in Tókio, Japan. The only Brazilian still disputing the competition, Royler Gracie will face Japanese star Norifumi Kid Yamamoto. On the first round, on July 6th, Royler beat Koji Yoshida, while Yamamoto defeated Ian Schaffa. The winner of Royler/Yamamoto fight will fight, also on September 7th, the winner of Caol Uno vs Hideo Tokoro, the guy who beat Alexandre Nogueira in the first round. GP final bout is scheduled to K-1 Dynamite on December 31st.

COMPLETE CARD (subject to chance):

Hero's GP Middleweight
Wednesday, September 7th 2005
Ariake Colosseum, Tokyo - Japan

- Genki Sudo vs Kazuyuki Miyata;
- Remigijus Morkevicius vs Hiroyuki Takaya;
-
Royler Gracie vs Norifumi Kid Yamamoto;
- Caol Uno vs Hideo Tokoro;
- Winner of Sudo/Miyata vs Winner of Morkevicius/Takaya;
- Winner of Royler/Yamamoto vs Winner of Uno/Tokoro.

Source: Tatame

David Loiseau vs. Evan Tanner

Canadian David “The Crow” Loiseau is rumored to be fighting former UFC middleweight champion Evan Tanner at UFC 55 in October. It will be the biggest fight in the short career of the Montreal product and “The Crow” has nothing but respect for Tanner and told MMA Ring Report, “Its an honor, and I really believe its time for me to fight a UFC veteran like Evan Tanner. It is done now, I made my adjustments in my fighting style, whoever I fight, I will make sure that the fight WILL be exciting. The MMA fans show me sooo much love man!... I will refuse to let them down. REFUSE!” Loiseau is excited about the possibilities in the UFC middleweight division and gave us his thoughts on a burgeoning division. “The UFC MW division is very stacked, full of crazy, athletic and skilled fighters in this division. Everyone's a threat to everyone. And the one's, who don't believe that, will not stay around for long. Rich Franklin is a solid MW a complete fighter, but like I said, everyone is dangerous in that division. One thing's for sure though, "the Crow" is definitely UFC championship material, but right now, it's all about staying focused and beating one man.”

Source: MMA Ring Report

Quinton Jackson at ADCC
Rampage outside of the Pyramid in Long Beach , California site of the 2005 ADCC.

“I don't got to prove nothing to nobody.”

Quinton ‘Rampage' Jackson was one of many MMA stars that attended the recent Abu Dhabi 2005 World Submission Wrestling Championships held in Long Beach , California . Rampage has become one of the most popular fighters to represent the Pride Fighting Championships organization-winning fans over because of his ferocious body slams in bouts against such fighters as Kazushi Sakuraba, Igor Vovchanchyn, and Ricardo Arona. Rampage made hordes of new fans with his showing in the 2003 Pride Middleweight Tournament finishing off Chuck Liddell by technical knockout but losing to who would become his nemesis in Wanderlei Silva. Rampage would later lose to Silva again in a rematch, which many would call the 2004 Fight of the Year. In his two losses to Silva, Rampage has shown a heart that is matched by few. Rampage's popularity has grown, not only because of his never say die attitude, but also as a result of his humorous nature.

Rampage has had a recent change in his personal philosophy and religion, becoming a born again Christian. This change along with some devastating losses have made some of his fans question not only his abilities, but also his new way of life. One of the most charismatic fighters in the game today, Rampage had swarms of fans asking for photos and autographs at the ADCC. Rampage was more than gracious with his time, taking the opportunities to talk to his fans and making new ones in the process.

MMA Ring Report's Yoshi Minigishi and Mike Torres were able to get a quick interview with the busy and comical Pride fighter and ask him about his future.

M. Torres: In your last fight you faced Shogun Rua…

Rampage: Interview over! Interview over!

M. Torres: How is your rib?

Rampage: I'm healing up fast. It's doing good. Thanks for asking. Interview over!

M. Torres: That's it?

Rampage: No, I'm joking, I'm joking.

M. Torres: You have recently converted, how is the new philosophy of Rampage going?

Rampage: Interview over! Okay. Since you've got a Japanese guy,
Rampage speaks to Yoshi in Japanese
Y. Minigishi: Answers in Japanese…

Rampage: (Speaks gibberish)…. Okay, the thing with my faith is I've been born again, born again Christian. Do you know what that means? A lot of people think they know what it means…

M. Torres: Tell me.

Rampage: It means that Jesus has chosen me to be his chosen one. I received the Holy Ghost's Spirit and if something happened to me right now. I get shot, died, crushed. I go to heaven; it's a great feeling.

M. Torres: So a great burden has been lifted off of you?

Rampage: Yeah, yeah, yeah. Well, it don't mean I don't never have problems anymore. It don't mean I don't never have troubles, you know. It means you still gotta grow, you know what I'm saying? It's just now I know God's got my back, he take care of me. I'm not perfect. I still sin; I'm just not a slave to sin. Just born again. Its like the old Rampage died and there's a new Rampage.

M. Torres: Do you think there is a conflict with you fighting and your new found religion?

Rampage: No, no. The only conflict is that I don't have good training partners. It's been…before I was born again…See I'm kind of getting upset now because a lot of people, you know what I'm saying, are bashing me on the Internet. That's why I don't read it. They think because I'm losing fights, they think it's because I've been born again. They quick to jump on Christianity, when they don't look behind the scenes at my gym and my training and see that “maybe he's been training different.” They don't think about that the first thing they say is “oh look, it's because he's born again.” So that's all I have to say about that. I don't got to prove nothing to nobody. All I've got to do is recruit me some good training partners, come back and do my thang, and when I do my thang my thang's gonna be done.

M. Torres: So you are a free agent is that correct?

Rampage: Interview over! I thought I was but my manager…You know I'm a fighter. I'm not a book man, a genius, a philanthropist, I don't even know what that means, or cryptographer, I don't know what that means neither! You know what I'm saying, I got five more months and my manager told me that I'm not a free agent. So I thought I was, but I've got to wait a while before I got to negotiate.

M. Torres: So we'll get to see you in Pride at least one more time?

Rampage: I ain't saying that! I'm just saying as of now, right now I'm not a free agent, yet. But I ain't got no more fights on Pride. In like four more months then I'm a free agent.

M. Torres: So we won't get to see you fight again for least four or five months?

Rampage: Interview over! Oh, he tired of it already. No, I'm doing movies and stuff man. Everything happens for a reason. Right now, I've got time off. I'm not training. I got a little injury, it's healing up good but I'm doing movies. I think if I would have won that fight, I would be in that tournament training real hard. So I wouldn't be able to do this movie. I think this movie is gonna be bigger than…

Rampage gestures with his hands and hits Yosh in the face and apologizes in Japanese.

Rampage: You know if I would have been doing the movie…I mean if I wouldn't have gotten hurt, then I really couldn't have done the movie. And God has opened up brand new doors for me…

Rampage gestures with his hands and hits Mike in the face and apologizes in Japanese.

Rampage: Oh…Now he knows. The first time…

Y. Minigishi: You can be a comedian in Japan .

Rampage: Okay, you gonna be my manager?

Y. Minigishi: Yeah

Rampage: All right, lets make some money!

Y. Minigishi: Okay

M. Torres: What's the name of that movie?

Rampage: Interview over! Bad Guys. Ray Sefo in there too.

Y. Minigishi: Oh yeah?

Rampage: Yeah, yeah. Frederico Lapenda is the producer, we gonna do some big thangs. We got some big name actors in there; I just don't know their names yet.

M. Torres: Are you going to be fighting Ray Sefo in this movie?

Rampage: Yeah, yeah. I'm the big black... I'm the Yakuza in the movie.

Y. Minigishi: Oh…

Rampage: I got two parts, I already got killed…I ain't gonna tell y'all the movie. Interview over!

M. Torres: Thanks Rampage. Interview over. Thanks. We appreciate it.

Rampage: All right

Source: MMA Ring Report

 7/27/05

Quote of the Day

"Happiness is when what you think, what you say, and what you do are in harmony. "

Mahatma Gandhi. 1869-1948, Indian Political, Spiritual Leader

Brandon Low Falls Short for Greco, but Shoots for Freestyle All American

We received this report from Brandon's mother. If you don't know who Brandon Low is, you have not been reading our news page as regularly as you should. He is a multiple time Judo National Champion, three-time state high school wrestling champion and on his way in to the to the elite as possibly only the third 4-time state wrestling champion. Along with his great athletic career, this young man is a stud in academics as well.

We are all behind Brandon and he is in our prayers to obtain All-American status in Freestyle.

"Well, the quest for All-American status in Greco wrestling has ended. Brandon lost his first match on Sunday but came back to win 3 in a row. He then won his first match on Monday but lost in the last 19 seconds in his 2nd match of the day. The last match would have put him at the top
eight All-American status. Now on to freestyle, which starts on Thursday."

Guess who else is coming to K-1?


A little birdy told us that Scott Coker from K-1 will also be coming to the event to discuss some bidness with Mike Tyson. Bob Sapp is also said to be coming which may lead to a Mike Tyson vs Bob Sapp fight? Let's hope so.

Finally, the legendary Rickson Gracie is flying in to Hawaii to corner his cousin Renzo Gracie against Hawaii's own BJ Penn.

Not only is the card full of interesting match ups, now K-1's going to have some celebrity power in Hawaii.

Don't miss your opportunity to witness how big a dude Bob Sapp is in person!

Don't wait until the last minute to buy your tickets.

Rob Kaman Seminar this Saturday!
Date: Saturday, July 30
Time: 2:00 to 5:00 pm
Location: HMC
Cost: $50

For more info click here.



Source: The Vince

***For Immediate Release***
For More Information and Interviews, Contact: Mike Afromowitz, (917) 566-8754 or
mike@k-1usa.net.

Lighty Prepares For K-1 Tournament Debut

His skills are unquestionable and he's proven that he's got the resolve to match. Now, it will be up to 26-year-old Scott Lighty to assert himself with some of the world's most dangerous strikers when he makes his debut in the main draw of a K-1 Grand Prix tournament at Las Vegas, Nevada's Mirage Hotel and Casino on Saturday, August 13th.

"There's gonna be a rude awakening in Vegas," said the confident Lighty, a winner of both K-1 tournament reserve bouts in which he has taken part. On both occasions, Lighty's success landed him in the semifinal round of the cards' single-elimination main event after an original member of the draw was unable to continue due to injury sustained in a previous tournament bout. "I think I've paid my dues. This is something I've been looking forward to ever since I started doing this seven years ago, so it's an honor."

The quarterfinal round of the "Mayhem At The Mirage" tournament pits Lighty opposite 29-year-old Japanese Karate stylist, Tatsufumi Tomihira. Touted as his country's top martial arts fighting prospect, the 6 foot 1 inch, 200 pound Tomihira has also been dubbed "Mr. Yellow Card" for his routine, blatant misconduct in the squared circle. "He looks good and he's fast, but he's beatable," said Lighty. "His wildness doesn't mean a thing. The same thing's gonna happen no matter what. We're gonna get in there and fight and I'm going for the knockout."

Lighty's success amongst the ranks of the promotion's reserve roster began during his K-1 debut last August when he scored a second round stoppage of fellow Muay Thai stylist, Frank Cota, during the "Battle at Bellagio III" card in Las Vegas. On April 30th, he returned to Sin City and secured a three-round, unanimous decision over a previously undefeated Patrick Barry.

Unfortunately for the California-bred talent, his reserve bout triumphs did not carry over to tournament play. After his win over Cota sent him into single-elimination action, it was eventual "Battle at Bellagio III" tournament winner, "Mighty Mo" Siligia, who brought about Lighty's downfall with a vicious overhand right. On April 30th, it was "Big Daddy" Gary Goodridge who pelted him with repeated leg kicks and dropped Lighty twice in the opening round of their meeting, bringing about a referee stoppage due to K-1's two-knockdown rule that mandates a bout be stopped if a fighter suffers two knockdowns in a single round. Lighty is confident that things will play out differently on August 13th.

"I just need to be more focused and a little more careful," he explained. "(Last time), I took a lot of leg kicks. But, this time I'm going in a lot smarter and I'm going to be a little more patient and pick my shots."

Lighty certainly has the appropriate kind of training under his belt. A former student of San Francisco's Fairtex Combat Sports Camp, he has found a home at The Pit, the gym that also serves as training ground to mixed martial arts champion, Chuck "The Iceman" Liddell.

The August 13th single-elimination affair will also mark the return of three-time K-1 tournament champion, Michael McDonald. A pair of featured Superfights during the card will see Siligia square off with former world boxing champion, Francois "The White Buffalo" Botha, and K-1 Max (154 pound limit) contender and world Muay Thai champion, Duane "Bang" Ludwig, take on three-time French Muay Thai champion, Remy Bonnel, respectively.

Tickets for K-1 "Mayhem At The Mirage" are on sale on K-1 North America's official website, www.k-1usa.net, and are priced at $300, $200, $100, and $50, respectively.
K-1 is a martial arts fighting sport that derives its name from its inclusion of a wide array of combat disciplines, including Karate, Kung-Fu, and Kickboxing ("K"), and its intent to determine one champion in one ring ("1"). After being staged for the first time in Japan in 1993 under the direction of founder Master Kazuyoshi Ishii, it later evolved into the country's most popular sport and achieved popular culture status there as its athletes turned into larger-than-life celebrities.

Source: Mike Afromowitz

16 FIGHTERS IN 16 DAYS: JOSH NEER

Josh "The Dentist" Neer makes his UFC debut live on Spike TV August 6th, on "Ultimate Fight Night," against Drew Fickett. Josh recently spoke with MMAWeekly SoundOff Radio about how he got into Mixed Martial Arts, how he got the nickname "The Dentist," and his opponent, Drew Fickett. MMAWeekly continues to bring you sixteen fighters in sixteen days with Josh Neer.

Josh Neer has always been a fighter, or it certainly seems that way. He started wrestling when he was barely older than a toddler, and started fighting when he turned 18. He eventually made the decision to drop out of college to pursue fighting full-time. When asked about his background in combat sports, Josh replied, "I started wrestling when I was 6 years old, and then I didn't really do any boxing or anything until I started fighting when I was 18. Then I started fighting when I was 18, and then I started training when I was like 19."

Josh added, "I wrestled in high school. I got 4th at state my senior year, and then I wrestled in college for a year, but I ended up breaking my nose in a fight, so I kind of got hurt half way through my first year at college, but I finished out the year...I started fighting before I went to college, but it was just amateur fights. They had a weekly show in DDes Moines and I fought there whenever I could. After my first year of college I quit college because I didn't really like to go to school, and then I started fighting full-time."

Coming from a wrestling background, Josh has worked hard on his striking. He said, "I've worked with a lot of boxers, and I got my hands pretty good...I like to go forward a lot, throw my hands, do wrestling, whatever. I mean whatever comes, I take it. I like to stand up, but I can go to the ground too."

"The Dentist" may seem like an odd nickname for a fighter, or it may seem perfectly fitting depending on your perspective. With a nickname like that, there's usually a story behind it. "I got that name from an announcer. I was fighting in a weekly show, and this dude was running his mouth, so I fought him. I ended up picking him up and slamming him on his head in like ten seconds, and then he started to get back up, and I soccer kicked him in his teeth, and it knocked out his front four teeth I think. The next week I kicked out someone Else's, so the announcer was like I'm going to start calling you the dentist, and then it kind of just stuck."

Discussing his August 6th opponent, Drew Fickett, Neer stated, "I know he's a wrestler. I've watched his tapes. It looks like he likes to stand up a little bit. I don't really know very much about him...From what I've heard is he is a wrestler." If Josh Neer had his way, the fight with Fickett would be a stand up war. He commented, "We'd come out and just stand for how ever long the fight went, so if it went three rounds we'd just stand up for three rounds, and bang for three rounds."

An opportunity to fight in the UFC doesn't come around too often for most fighters. The opportunity to fight in the UFC on live TV is a chance of a lifetime. Josh Neer plans to seize the opportunity, and put his name on the MMA map. The only thing standing in his was is Drew Fickett. In closing, Josh said, "It's going to be fun man."

Source: MMA Weekly

 7/26/05

Quote of the Day

"Well done is better than well said."

Ben Franklin, 1706-1790, American Scientist, Publisher, Diplomat

T. Jay Needs Mats!

I know what you are thinking and we are thinking the same thing. This page is turning in to T. Jay's personal Swap Meet. First, we help him getting a place. Now, he has a garage and needs some mats.

Who does he first ask? Please don't insult us by something other than Onzuka.com. Our readers have all the hook ups. Ok, now to business. T. Jay indeed has a garage that he wants to put mats in. What he needs is any info from our loyal readers if they have mats to sell or referrals of places that he can get decent mats from.

Don't turn us in to liars and leave him high and dry. Hawaii Kai rich dudes need to get some rolling in too. heh heh

Shoot T. Jay an email if you have any contacts or ideas by clicking here!

Please skip the "I know a guy who is a great fighter that deserves to be in Super Brawl" or "I am the best thing since sliced bread" emails ok? Prove it in the smaller shows and I guarantee that T. Jay and Pat will be hunting you down for a future show if you are worth it.

Mahalo from Super Brawl/Icon Sport

Icon Sport, the new face of Super Brawl, would like to thank all of our news media partners who generously covered our recent Super Brawl: ICON event. We believe that this was our highest quality event to date in terms of media coverage, fan support, corporate sponsorship, and dramatic M.M.A. action. It is only with your support that we are able to adequately expose the excitement of Icon Sport M.M.A. events to Hawaii’s sports fans

The “local boy” didn’t keep his middleweight belt, but that’s okay. Niko will rise again…and very soon. He is already dreaming of his next opportunity to recapture the belt. After tending to nagging knee-injury (torn right meniscus), Niko will begin preparation for his return to the ring.

“Mayhem” has already expressed a strong interest in making Honolulu his permanent address. The fans either love him or love to hate him. We’ve never come across an athlete with as much charisma as “Mayhem.” It also appears that he has become a part-time member of Egan Inoue’s Grappling Unlimited academy in Halawa Valley. Should Hawaii become his new home, expect the one-time foes to be daily training partners.

We were especially please on Saturday with the amazing performance of the two flyweight warriors, Mark Oshiro and Ed Kelii Newalu. Super Brawl President T. Jay Thompson declared that their State Title match was one of the greatest battles ever to grace the Super Brawl & Icon Sport ring.

Lastly, we would like to highlight our ongoing relationship with Japan’s premier M.M.A. organization, Pride Fighting Championship. Besides allowing us the use of their legendary referee Yuji Shimada, Pride F.C. has also put rising stars K.J. Noons, Reese Andy and Nick Ring into Icon Sport & Super Brawl events. We look forward to a promising future with Pride F.C.

What’s next for Icon Sport? Don’t be surprised by a Niko v. “Mayhem” match-up with the winner earning the opportunity to challenge Lawler for the Middleweight belt. We hope to see the return of Pride F.C.’s K.J. Noons, who has quickly established himself as one of the most dangerous strikers to enter the ring. You can also expect war-veteran Marine sergeant Steve Byrnes to get his first shot at competing in Icon Sport. The middleweight has dominated at Icon Sport’s developmental series, Full Contact Showdown, and now holds the event’s title belt. We would also like to see the exciting Flyweight State Champion Ed Kelii Newalu in competition at our next Icon Sport event.

Again, Icon Sport would like to extend its most sincere mahalo for all of your support.

Source: Patrick Freitas

MMA ON NATIONAL TV ON SPIKE AND FOX

Spike TV and Fox Sports Network will be giving MMA the most television coverage in the history of the UFC for the month of August.

Tonight we will see plenty of fights that most of you haven't seen from the Ultimate Fighter Finale on Spike TV. Spike will release Unleashed tonight which will feature four fights. Three of those, we've never seen on t.v. Here's tonight's schedule.

July 25th - 11:05 pm et
Unleashed #1 Spike TV
Stephan Bonnar vs. Forrest Griffin
Diego Sanchez vs. Kenny Florian
Alex Karalexis vs. Josh Rafferty
Mike Swick vs. Alex Schoenauer

Then next Monday get ready for MMA every week. Unleashed show #2 takes place with FIVE fights. Two of the fights will be featuring Ivan Salaverry who is in the main event against Nathan Marquardt on Friday August 6th's LIVE show on Spike TV. So we will have MMA on MONDAY AND FRIDAY next week!

August 1st - 11:05 pm et
Unleashed #2- Spike TV
Ivan Salaverry vs. Tony Fryklund
Ivan Salaverry vs. Joe Riggs
Chris Leben vs. Jason Thacker
Josh Koscheck vs. Chris Sanford
Nate Quarry vs. Lodune Sincaid

August 6th - 8:00 pm et
Unleashed #2 Replay - Spike TV
Ultimate Fight Night LIVE - Spike TV
Ivan Salaverry vs Nathan Marquardt
Stephan Bonnar vs Sam Hoger
Kenny Florian vs Alex Karalexis
Mike Swick vs Gideon Ray
Josh Koscheck vs Pete Spratt
Nate Quarry vs Pete Sell
Chris Leben vs Patrick Cote
Drew Fickett vs Josh Neer

Then Spike TV will give us another edition of Unleased with a third installment of the program for Monday August 8th. We do not know yet what fights will be shown. Here is the entire tv schedule for a busy August on Spike AND Fox Sports Network.

August 8th - 11:05 pm et
Unleashed #3- Spike TV
Content TBA

August 11th - time tba
The Ultimate Rematch - Spike TV
Coutdown Special to Liddell vs. Horn

August 14th - Check local listings time
Fox Sports Network
Liddell vs. Horn
Liddell vs. Babalu
Horn Highlights

August 15th - 11:05 pm et
Unleashed #4- Spike TV
Content TBA

August 19th - time tba
The Ultimate Rematch Replay- Spike TV
Countdown Special to Liddell vs. Horn

August 20th - 10:00 pm et
UFC 54: Boiling Point - pay per view
Chuck Liddell vs. Jeremy Horn
Randy Couture vs. Mike Van Arsdale
Diego Sanchez vs. Brian Gassaway
Frank Trigg vs. Georges St. Pierre
Tim Sylvia vs. Tra Telligman
Matt Lindland vs. Joe Riggs
Dave Terrell vs. Trevor Prangley
James Irvin vs. Terry Martin

August 21st - time tba
Unleashed #1 Replay - Spike TV
Unleashed #2 Replay - Spike TV
Unleashed #4 Replay - Spike TV

August 22 - 11:05 pm et
The Ultimate Fighter 2 - Spike TV
Welterweights & Heavyweights compete for two UFC contracts.

Source: MMA Weekly

MENNE INJURED, LOSES IN MAIN EVENT


HAYWARD, Wis. -- Anybody wishing to look into the future of the middleweight division need look no further than the talented, young lineup at the Extreme Challenge 63 eight-man tournament.

While many fighters showed potential to be among the best at 185 pounds, Brock Larson showed he is ready to compete right away. Larson improved his record to 12-0 with three impressive victories en route to claiming the tourney title. Larson could see his future as current UFC welterweight champion Matt Hughes, the last tourney winner at LCO Casino, attended the event.

In the main event, Ed Herman of Team Quest was awarded the victory over former UFC middleweight champ Dave Menne after one round when a pulled groin injury prevented Menne from continuing. The first round was very competitive, although all three judges had Menne winning by a 10-9 score.

"I hurt it a few days ago, but didn't think it was serious... I trained on it a couple times and nothing happened," Menne said. "But toward the end of the round, I defended a takedown and felt it pop... I knew I was in trouble. I couldn't even stand in between rounds."

A sellout crowd filled LCO Casino for the event. Most were on hand to cheer for Larson, who lives near Minneapolis, Minn. Larson finished all three of his opponents, including Miletich Fighting Systems fighter Ryan McGivern in the final.

Complete results:

Tourmey first round
Ryan McGivern def. Tom Jones, 9:00, unanimous dec.
Joey Guel def. Chris Clements, :56 Rd. 3 (6:56), rear choke.
Brock Larson def. Damarcus Johnson, 1:02 Rd. 3 (7:02), key lock.
Ryan Jensen def. Neil Rowe, 2:00 Rd. 1, rear choke.

Tourney semifinals
McGivern def. Guel, 2:30 Rd. 1, doctor stoppage due to cut.
Larson def. Jensen, 1:39 Rd. 1, tap due to strikes.

Tourney final
Larson def. McGivern, 2:09 Rd. 1, key lock.

Main Event
Ed Herman def. Dave Menne, 5:00 Rd. 1, verbal submission due to injury.

Source: MMA Weekly

Silva & Overeem talk about Pride

Right after the 2nd round of the Pride GP, the four semi-finalists started to talk about their possible opponents as the tournament continues. During the press conference right after the event, the current champion, Wanderlei Silva stated that he would like to face Overeem. 'Mr. Sakakibara will decide, but my main goal is always to give a good show to the fans. Being a striker, Alistair is the one I think can make a great fight with me. He is excellent with the knees, but I think I can knock him out with my knees' guaranteed Silva.

The Dutch fighter told the Japanese press that he wants to face Ricardo Arona. 'We were going to face each other last year, but he got hurt, so I would like to face him now' explained the new 'king of the guillotine'. When informed about Wanderlei's statement Alistair, said. 'Maybe Wanderlei can knock me out with his knees in his dreams. For the first time, Chute Boxe will face the real Muay Thai' answered Overeem, promising the following: 'You will see a Dutchman rule this Brazilian party'.

When Wanderlei Silva was informed of Overeem's statement, The No1 fighter in the Chute Boxe stable replied: 'Dutch Muay Thai is pretty efficient, but what counts in Pride is Vale-Tudo. I'll deform his face' promised the Axe Murder.

Source: Tatame

 7/25/05

Quote of the Day

"Treat people as if they were what they ought to be,
and you'll help them to become what they are capable of becoming."

Johann Wolfgang Von Goethe, 1749-1832, German Poet, Dramatist, Novelist

Mike Tyson at Hawaii's K-1?

Onzuka.com has heard from a reliable source that Mike Tyson will be attending the K-1/Rumble on the Rock Mega Event at the Aloha Stadium this Friday.

K-1 is going for the American attendance record and putting on a great show with Hawaii's own and pound for pound the best fighter in MMA BJ Penn taking on the legendary Renzo Gracie. Also, Hawaii's Yokozuna Akebono will be facing another giant in Hong Man Choi. Finally, a K-1 kickboxing tournament will also be held featuring Hawaii's hardest hitter Cabbage and rising star Scott Junk after an impressive performance against Rico Rodriguez.

Make sure you get your tickets early to avoid the last minute rush at the box office because you do not want to miss any of the fights! Also, make sure you leave early because I am sure the traffic will be insane as well.

Source: MMA Weekly

Xande: great name of BJJ World Cup

Black belt from Gracie Humaitá, Xande Ribeiro has won open class and super-heavyweight categories at BJJ Black belt Worlds, which has just ended, in São Paulo. Xande did great bouts and defeated important opponents as BJJ World Cup finalists Ronaldo Jacaré and Fernando Margarida. Take a look at the full results below and watch the ebst moments of BJJ Black Belt Worlds at TATAME's pay-per-view for only $4.10.

COMPLETE RESULTS:

BJJ Black Belt Worlds
Sunday, July 24, 2005
Ibirapuera gymnasium, São Paulo

Galo: Gabriel Morais (Monteiro) defeated Samuel Braga (GB BH) by 3x2
Pluma: Ricardo Vieira (Brasa) submitted Bernardo Pitel (Nova União) by triangle choke at 8:40
Pena: Rubes Charles (TT JJ) defeated Felipe Vidal (Nova União) by 4x0
Leve: Leo Santos (NU) submitted Rodrigo Feijão (NU) by katagatame at 1:30
Médio: Gustavo Campos (BTT) defeated André Galvão (TT JJ) by referee's decision
Meio-pesado: Demain Maia (Brasa) defeated Ronaldo Jacaré (ASLE) by advantage
Pesado: Robert Drysadale (Brasa) defeated Fernando Margarida (BTT) by verbal submission
Super-pesado: Xande Ribeiro (Gracie Humaitá) defeated Roberto Tozzi by advantage
Pesadíssimo: Leo Leite (Brasa) defeated Gabriel Napão (Macaco Gold Team) by 4x2
Absoluto pesado: Xande Ribeiro (Gracie Humaitá) defeated Ronaldo Jacaré (ASLE) by 2x0

Source: Tatame

MaXpreview: K-1 Grand Prix Hawaii

On July 29th, K-1 will be attempting to set a U.S. MMA attendance record by running Aloha Stadium in Hawaii with a show headlined by Hawaiian superstar BJ Penn as he takes on Renzo Gracie. Aloha Stadium seats 50,000 people, and should the event merely sell to half capacity, it will still blow away the big attendance records set by the UFC in Las Vegas.

The Penn-Gracie fight will actually be the only match on the card held under mixed martial arts rules, as the rest of the card, including a one-night tournament, will take place under regular K-1 kickboxing rules. There will also be a superfight under K-1 rules between Chad "Akebono" Rowan, another Hawaiian, against 7'2" South Korean giant Hong-Man Choi in a freakshow match. This is a rematch of their fight at the K-1 Asian Grand Prix in South Korea. Choi should be able to score his second victory over Akebono if everything goes smoothly.

BJ Penn will have his work cut out for him when he faces Renzo Gracie, in what promises to be a competitive grappling match between two Brazilian Jiu Jitsu experts. Penn is coming off his loss to highly underrated Japanese talent Ryoto Machida, although Penn, a former UFC Welterweight champion and top contender for UFC's Lightweight title, was giving up a ton of weight against the light-heavyweight Machida and may have overextended himself in taking a fight against a much bigger opponent whose skill level was just too good.

However, Penn holds a previous win in Hawaii over Renzo's cousin, the talented Rodrigo Gracie, whom also fights in heavier weight divisions then Penn (although Penn has always been considered a humunguous lightweight fighter). Renzo is certainly far more aged than Rodrigo, which doesn't bode well for his chances against Penn. Both fighters are simply too talented when it comes to grappling for either of them to be caught in a submission by the other. Despite that, a BJ Penn decision victory seems highly likely.

Swedish kickboxer Rickard Nordstrand, coming off a match with Remy Bonjasky in Europe where Nordstrand was surprisingly competitive, will be taking on Seidokaikan fighter Musashi. Musashi, a finalist in the last two World Grand Prix Finals (losing to Bonjasky both times), is a methodical, textbook fighter who should be able to keep Nordstrand at bay en route to victory. A win for Nordstrand here would turn many heads and up his stock value with K-1 hardcore fans.

The one-night tournament, featuring eight fighters, will determine the final spot in the elimination round for this year's Grand Prix Finals, which takes place at the Osaka Dome in September. Most of the top K-1 fighters have already qualified for the elimination round, with Remy Bonjasky, Mighty Mo, Peter Aerts, Ernesto Hoost, Frans Botha, Ray Sefo, Musashi, Kaoklai Kaennorsing, Semmy Schilt, Hong-Man Choi, Glaube Feitosa, Jerome LeBanner and Bob Sapp having qualified. Three spots remain open going into Hawaii.

The first round fights in the tournament are Yusuke Fujimoto vs. Scott Junk; Eric "Butterbean" Esch vs. Marcus Royster; Carter Willians vs. Hiromi Amada; and Gary Goodridge vs. Wes "Cabbage" Correira. The tournament is very b-level, with Scott Junk, Cabbage, Marcus Royster and Butterbean barely qualifying as K-1 level kickboxers. You can almost say the same about Goodridge.

Fujimoto should get past Junk, a BJ Penn MMA trainee who recently lost to Ricco Rodriguez in Hawaii. Fujimoto is not the most talented kickboxer in the world, but at least he has some high level experience. Butterbean is the freakshow Toughman fighter and boxer who, of course, holds little skill in kickboxing, but should get past Royster, who recently fought and lost to Kimo in Hawaii. That fight in particular could end up looking like a sloppy brawl.

Carter Williams, who on paper is the favourite to the win the tournament although his career in K-1 up to this point has largely been disappointing, should get past journeyman fighter Hiromi Amada. However, an upset in that fight is not out of question. Cabbage Correira is the UFC veteran with a good chin and heavy hands, although he certainly does not qualify as a K-1 level striker. Neither does Gary Goodridge, although Goodridge has far more experience under these rules than many in this tournament. Cabbage should be able to get past Big Daddy into the semi-finals.

That leaves Yusuke Fujimoto, Butterbean, Cabbage, and Carter Williams. Fujimoto and Butterbean are bracketed together. I think Cabbage vs. Butterbean would have been more interesting. Fujimoto's experience should propel him past Butterbean into the tournament finals. Williams should also be able to get past Cabbage, and should he meet Fujimoto, he should also win that fight to take the tournament. But both Fujimoto and Cabbage could pull off upsets against Williams and go on to win the tournament themselves.

The show airs on Fuji TV in Japan, and will be airing on North American pay per view starting on July 31st (two day tape delay).

Source: Maxfighting

Jose Aldo from MECA to the BJJ World Cup

BJJ black belt of Nova União, José Aldo has been ruling over the MMA rings. He's done a great job at Shooto Brazil and Rio MMA Challenger... then just ten days ago, he dominated Anderson Silvério, at Meca 12, which took place at Pedro Jahara gymnasium, in Teresópolis (RJ) on July 9. "I took him down and applied a penalty kick in his head. It was a Shogun kick style...," he stated making clear who his actual idol in MMA.

Mauricio Shogun was at the tournament and saw Aldo KO'ing Silvério during the first round. Now São Paulo will have a chance to see Aldo in action on the mat, during the 4th edition of BJJ World Cup, which will be held at Ibirapuera Gymnasium, on next July 24. MaXfighting exchanged few words with Aldo and now you know his plans thus far.

About Meca 12, Aldo believes he has been truly excelling in Vale-Tudo competition, but he recognizes that things are tough and a different result is just one technique or one moment away. “I applied a high kick in Anderson Silvério and I slipped out... and I thought: 'I am screw up' But I stood up and I defended myself. Then I ruled the fight on the feet, took him down and applied a penalty kick in his head. It was a Shogun kick style...”

“I spent the whole week before Meca watching the tape of his fight with Rogério Minotouro and I wanted to do the same as he's done. It was great Mauricio Shogun was at the audience. After the fight I went to talk with him. I am a great fan,” he finished.

After winning in so many venues like Shooto, Rio MMA Challenge and Meca, José also hopes for a chance to fight abroad. "I think is very cool fighting in Japan, and my dream is stepping inside Ultimate Fighting Championship's cage. I learn to fight with André Pederneiras and with Pedro Rizzo and I've always wanted to fight in that cage. I want to do the same as Rizzo did there and conquer a belt,” he elaborates, adding that alot of his teammates are fighting in Shooto. “To be honest I feel like I am very aggressive to fight in Shooto..., it's not my style."

However, now he is taking a break of Vale-Tudo and is ready to fight at this weekend BJJ World Cup, which takes place on Sunday, July 24, in São Paulo. “I am focused at BJJ Black Belt Worlds. It will be a great event and I will do my best to be at the podium and get some of the money prize. In spite of my debut, I will impose my game and I will not care about my opponent's game. I play on the top or bellow and its better they notice me, because I will rule this competition. I have been training a lot and I will surprise them.”

After BJJ World Cup, Aldo has a new Vale-Tudo scheduled: “I have been dealing with Pederneiras to fight some events, like Arena Combat, in August. But I will fight at Minotauro Fight for sure. I will take on Fernando Vieira (Anderson Silva), on next August 5,” he concludes.

Source: Maxfighting

 7/24/05

Quote of the Day

"Always do right; this will gratify some and astonish the rest."

Mark Twain, 1835-1910, American Humorist, Writer

Super Brawl Results

Super Brawl 42: Icon
Blaisdell Arena, Honolulu, Hawaii
July 23, 2005
By Chris Onzuka -
Chris@Onzuka.com


Photo courtesy of Connie S.

Super Brawl went almost head to head with Rumble On The Rock/K-1 which takes place the following week, so there were many questions as to both event's attendance by splitting up Hawaii fight fans. Super Brawl promoters were ecstatic with the attendance of a reported 6,500, which is one of their best ever! It could have been the drawing power of Super Brawl champ Niko Vitale taking on an exciting fighter in Robbie Lawler or the grudge match between Hawaii's heavy hitter, Mark Moreno taking on the Jason "Mayhem" Miller. Either way, this event mixed modified kickboxing rules (leg kicks allowed) with MMA action to bring the crowd to their feet. In my opinion, action-wise this turned out to be one of the best Super Brawls ever due to some of the best fights all in one event.

The heavy hitters with a ton of heart came out as there were a lot of punches and kicks that ended many a fight. One of them was Kala Kolohe Hose's come back win with one punch that brought the bloody warrior victory. Pride Auditions winner, KJ Noons looked extremely confident and sharp with a spectacular head kick KOing up and comer Bryson Kamaka.

The fight of the night had to be the absolute, drag out war between Ed Newalu and Mark Oshiro. This match went back and forth between Oshiro's extremely close submission attempts to Newalu's bombs thrown on the ground, back to Oshiro's knees while standing leading to Newalu's pick ups and slams. This fight was extremely close and could not be better, control of the fight literally changed hands throughout each round, which each fighter coming very close to ending the fight only to have the other fighter gut it out and make a comeback. In the end one judge saw it even and two of the three judges gave Newalu the nod and the first ever Super Brawl Hawaii State Flyweight Champion.

A bloody and nearly beaten Ryan Diaz proved that there is always a chance if you stay in the fight when he stole a victory from Kolo Koka by way of a quick arm lock from the guard when Koka let up his defenses for one second. The grudge match that started in Super Brawl 37 was on when Miller came out in sporting a Chinese outfit, a Hockey mask and Japanese samurai sword on his way to the ring. Miller definitely wanted to deliver some payback on Moreno and that he did. Controlling the match throughout and punishing Moreno on the ground up to about 15 seconds left in the first round, he performed what he called the "Shaka Arm Locka," by wrapping up Moreno's arm and making the Shaka sign while pulling it back for the submission. Normally, the Hawaii crowd is adamantly behind the local boy, but because of Miller's antics, coupled with his fighting ability, he has become a Hawaii fan favorite.

The main event was Niko Vitale's first title defense and what a way to do it against Pat Miletich's young stud Robbie Lawler. This was exactly what the crowd expected it to be an all out striking war. Both fighters exchanged bombs, rocking each other throughout the bout. In the end, both fighters were exhausted, but Lawler was able to land a knee and a couple of left hooks that sent Vitale to the canvas. The crowd was on their feet as these warriors battled it out. Right after the fight, two women stormed the ring and attacked Lawler and had to be pulled off of him. Once everything settled down in the ring, the always gracious Vitale, a champion even in defeat, placed the Super Brawl World Middleweight Championship belt around Lawler's waist and congratulated the new champion.

Kickboxing: 175-lb
Ben Rodriguez (Animal House, Ewa Beach) def. Kalani Ng (Jesus is Lord Gym, Waipahu)
TKO via referee stoppage at 30 seconds in Round 1

MMA: 205-lb:
Kala Kolohe Hose (Bad Intention, Waianae) def. Corey Daniels (Team MMAD, Kailua)
TKO via referee stoppage at 2:58 minutes in Round 2.

Kickboxing: 160-lb:
Ikaika Choy-Fu (Jesus is Lord Gym, Waipahu) def. Stoka Solla (Lee's Shaolin Boxing, Honolulu)
TKO via referee stoppage at 12 seconds in Round 3.

MMA: 185-lb:
Reese Andy (AMC Pankration, Kirkland, WA.) def. Trevor Garrett (Dayton, OH)
Submission via rear naked choke at 4:15 minutes in Round 1.

Kickboxing: 135-lb:
Tyson Nam (Lee's Shaolin Boxing, Honolulu) def. Frankie DeJesus (808 Fight Factory, Waipahu)
Unanimous decision [(30-27), (30-27), (30-27)] after 3 rounds.

Kickboxing: 155-lb:
Harris Sarmiento (808 Fight Factory, Waipahu) def. Alex Zarriello (Lee's Shaolin Boxing, Honolulu)
Unanimous decision [(30-27), (30-27), (30-27)] after 3 rounds.

MMA: 185-lb:
Nick Ring (AMC Pankration, Kirkland, WA.) def. Kimo Woelfel (Kodenkan, Kaneohe)
Submission via rear choke at 2:06 minutes in Round 1.

MMA: 160-lb:
K.J. Noons (City Boxing, San Diego) def. Bryson Kamaka (808 Fight Factory, Waipahu)
KO via kick to the head at 1:20 minutes in Round 1.

MMA: 135-lb Hawaii State Flyweight Title Fight:
Ed Kelii Newalu (808 Fight Factory, Waipahu) def. Mark Oshiro (Bulls Pen, Honolulu)
Majority decision [(28-28), (29-28), (29-28)] after 3 rounds.
*Ed Kelii Newalu becomes the first Super Brawl Hawaii State Flyweight Champion.

MMA: 162.5-lb:
Ryan Diaz (Gibson Pankration, British Columbia, Canada) def. Kolo Koka (M.M.A.D., Kailua)
Submission via arm bar from the guard at 4:01 minutes in Round 2.

MMA: 175-lb North American Welterweight Title Fight:
Jason "The Mayhem" Miller (Cobra Kai, Las Vegas) def. Mark Moreno (Bulls Pen, Honolulu)
Submission via arm bar from the mount at 4:54 minutes in Round 1.
*Jason Miller becomes the first Super Brawl North American Welterweight Champion.

MMA: 185-lb World Middleweight Title Fight:
Robbie Lawler (Miletich Fighting System, Iowa) def. Falaniko Vitale (808 Fight Factory, Waipahu)
TKO via referee stoppage at 4:36 minutes in Round 2.
*Robbie Lawler becomes the new Super Brawl World Middleweight Champion.

Marc Laimon Seminar at Grappling Unlimited
TODAY!
SUNDAY (JULY 24TH)

WHERE: GRAPPLING UNLIMITED

COST: $35/Person

WHEN: This Sunday (JULY 24) from 11am – 1pm

WHO: OPEN TO ALL SCHOOLS

DIRECTIONS:
-G.U. is located in the Halawa industrial area
-From Ewa, take the Halawa cut off from H1 eastbound
-proceed to the Halawa industrial area by taking a left at the first light, then a right at the second light, and another left at the third light—this will put you into the industrial area
-then your first left and first right. GU is the about 200 yards on the left side of the road in a beige warehouse.
-99-930 Iwaena St.
-From Town, Take the Halawa cut off from H1 westbound
-Take the first right at the light then your first left and first right. directions as above.

You can always type in your address and Gus address at map.com

Hope to see you there.

Source: Egan Inoue

Hayato Sakurai SHOOTO update

There was a recent report that former SHOOTO Champion Hayato Sakurai would be making his return to the the SHOOTO ring on August 20th in Yokohama. His return bout would possibly against the current Champion - Akira Kikuchi. However, negotiations with the title holder have soured leaving the promoters searching for a replacement to keep Sakurai on the card...

This could have been a very big "fast track" return for Sakurai, with a non-title match against the champion, who won the title from the man that defeated Hayato in his final SHOOTO performance back in December of 2002 (Jake Shields). Perhaps this it the reason that Kikuchi chose not to take the fight with Sakurai... so that the former champ could not leap frog into a title bout so quickly should he win and become the number 1 contender.

Other opponents are being considered for Hayato Sakurai, including Shields, which would certainly be a an intriguing rematch that will allow the Japanese figther to avenge a loss (just as Shields did when he defeated Ray Cooper of Hawaii to win the SHOOTO title)... and it should catch the attention of the SHOOTO fans, to see Sakurai return in a match with such a good back-story.

After losing the SHOOTO belt to Kikuchi (in what was yet another avenged loss) Shields has been absent fom SHOTOO competition. If he could put down Sakurai in his "triumphant" return, it would send a clear message that he should not be forgotten in the SHOOTO circuit.

Source: Maxfighting

MaXpreview: K-1 Grand Prix Hawaii
By Jeremy Wall

On July 29th, K-1 will be attempting to set a U.S. MMA attendance record by running Aloha Stadium in Hawaii with a show headlined by Hawaiian superstar
BJ Penn as he takes on Renzo Gracie. Aloha Stadium seats 50,000 people, and should the event merely sell to half capacity, it will still blow away the big attendance records set by the UFC in Las Vegas.

The Penn-Gracie fight will actually be the only match on the card held under mixed martial arts rules, as the rest of the card, including a one-night tournament, will take place under regular K-1 kickboxing rules. There will also be a superfight under K-1 rules between Chad "Akebono" Rowan, another Hawaiian, against 7'2" South Korean giant Hong-Man Choi in a freakshow match. This is a rematch of their fight at the K-1 Asian Grand Prix in South Korea. Choi should be able to score his second victory over Akebono if everything goes smoothly.

BJ Penn will have his work cut out for him when he faces Renzo Gracie, in what promises to be a competitive grappling match between two Brazilian Jiu Jitsu experts. Penn is coming off his loss to highly underrated Japanese talent Ryoto Machida, although Penn, a former UFC Welterweight champion and top contender for UFC's Lightweight title, was giving up a ton of weight against the light-heavyweight Machida and may have overextended himself in taking a fight against a much bigger opponent whose skill level was just too good.

However, Penn holds a previous win in Hawaii over Renzo's cousin, the talented Rodrigo Gracie, whom also fights in heavier weight divisions then Penn (although Penn has always been considered a humunguous lightweight fighter). Renzo is certainly far more aged than Rodrigo, which doesn't bode well for his chances against Penn. Both fighters are simply too talented when it comes to grappling for either of them to be caught in a submission by the other. Despite that, a BJ Penn decision victory seems highly likely.

Swedish kickboxer Rickard Nordstrand, coming off a match with Remy Bonjasky in Europe where Nordstrand was surprisingly competitive, will be taking on Seidokaikan fighter Musashi. Musashi, a finalist in the last two World Grand Prix Finals (losing to Bonjasky both times), is a methodical, textbook fighter who should be able to keep Nordstrand at bay en route to victory. A win for Nordstrand here would turn many heads and up his stock value with K-1 hardcore fans.

The one-night tournament, featuring eight fighters, will determine the final spot in the elimination round for this year's Grand Prix Finals, which takes place at the Osaka Dome in September. Most of the top K-1 fighters have already qualified for the elimination round, with Remy Bonjasky, Mighty Mo, Peter Aerts, Ernesto Hoost, Frans Botha, Ray Sefo, Musashi, Kaoklai Kaennorsing, Semmy Schilt, Hong-Man Choi, Glaube Feitosa, Jerome LeBanner and Bob Sapp having qualified. Three spots remain open going into Hawaii.

The first round fights in the tournament are Yusuke Fujimoto vs. Scott Junk; Eric "Butterbean" Esch vs. Marcus Royster; Carter Willians vs. Hiromi Amada; and Gary Goodridge vs. Wes "Cabbage" Correira. The tournament is very b-level, with Scott Junk, Cabbage, Marcus Royster and Butterbean barely qualifying as K-1 level kickboxers. You can almost say the same about Goodridge.

Fujimoto should get past Junk, a BJ Penn MMA trainee who recently lost to Ricco Rodriguez in Hawaii. Fujimoto is not the most talented kickboxer in the world, but at least he has some high level experience. Butterbean is the freakshow Toughman fighter and boxer who, of course, holds little skill in kickboxing, but should get past Royster, who recently fought and lost to Kimo in Hawaii. That fight in particular could end up looking like a sloppy brawl.

Carter Williams, who on paper is the favourite to the win the tournament although his career in K-1 up to this point has largely been disappointing, should get past journeyman fighter Hiromi Amada. However, an upset in that fight is not out of question. Cabbage Correira is the UFC veteran with a good chin and heavy hands, although he certainly does not qualify as a K-1 level striker. Neither does Gary Goodridge, although Goodridge has far more experience under these rules than many in this tournament. Cabbage should be able to get past Big Daddy into the semi-finals.

That leaves Yusuke Fujimoto, Butterbean, Cabbage, and Carter Williams. Fujimoto and Butterbean are bracketed together. I think Cabbage vs. Butterbean would have been more interesting. Fujimoto's experience should propel him past Butterbean into the tournament finals. Williams should also be able to get past Cabbage, and should he meet Fujimoto, he should also win that fight to take the tournament. But both Fujimoto and Cabbage could pull off upsets against Williams and go on to win the tournament themselves.

The show airs on Fuji TV in Japan, and will be airing on North American pay per view starting on July 31st (two day tape delay).

Source: Maxfighting

WIUFF TALKS HORN AND IFC FIGHT
by Mick Hammond

When he fights at the upcoming July 30th “Rock ‘N Rumble” IFC show in Reno, Nevada, UFC veteran Travis Wiuff is not only fighting for a world title, but is looking to take another step towards returning to the big stage of MMA.

Currently Wiuff is in the final preparations for the fight and took time out to speak to MMA Weekly about the bout, his move to Utah and training with the man that will challenge Chuck Liddell for his title at UFC 54, Jeremy Horn.

“I’m fighting William (Bill) Hill and I think it will be a good fight,” said Wiuff. “He seems experienced and has had a handful of fights against quality people. I feel confident I can win though. I’m living in Utah now and training with Jeremy Horn full-time. You know in just a few weeks here I feel like a much better fighter.”

Wiuff has won his last two fights after suffering his first loss in over two years at the hands of Renato “Babalu” Sobral at UFC 52 in April. Now that he has moved to Utah to train with Horn, Travis feels his game is getting even better and that his weight will no longer be an issue thanks to someone whose helped out some of Travis’ Team Extreme brethren.

“It’s just the little things that Jeremy sees that no one else had before that’s really adding to my game,” proclaimed Travis. “The elevation here is helping my cardio immensely and my diet has changed since I got here. Bill Rush is the same guy that helped Rich (Franklin) get ready and he’s helping Jeremy with his diet. I’m following the same diet now as those guys and the weight is coming off a lot easier than it was before. This will definitely be the easiest cut I ever had. I’m walking around at 219lbs, eating 6 meals a day, and it still drops off. I’ve got to give all the credit in the world to Bill for it.”

Wiuff continued, “Jeremy’s got abs, pecs, and biceps now, he looks totally different. Everyone that’s seen him is totally surprised at how different he looks. Bill Rush is the man when it comes to that stuff, he’s really helping us out. He’s added an early morning cardio lift and conditioning drills to the end of practice that I haven’t done before. Bill’s just amazing and this is really going to help Jeremy take the title at 205lbs”

Not only has the move to Utah done wonders for Travis’ training, it’s had a positive impact on his personality, even though at first the decision to move was a tough one. “I love it here. You know it’s a big move for me, moving away from my family was difficult. For a while there I was debating staying in Minnesota and debating going back and forth between there and here for training. But I decided to make the move and I couldn’t have asked for anything more. I try to explain the mountains and stuff like that to people back home and they don’t believe me. We didn’t have that kind of stuff in Minnesota. It’s something you have to witness for yourself, it’s indescribable, hiking and biking through the mountains is so much fun and I’m just really enjoying life now.”

With everything that’s going so well in his life right now, it would be easy for Wiuff to overlook his upcoming opponent with an eye towards the future. But according to Travis, that won’t happen. “I just want to stay active. Getting back to the UFC is a goal, but I’ve got a lot to do before then. I’m not going to underestimate Hill, even though I feel I have a really good chance to win. After this I want to get three or four more fights in and continue to improve my game before getting back into the bigger shows.”

Source: MMA Weekly

 7/23/05

Quote of the Day

"Tell me I'll forget, show me , I may remember, but involve me and I'll understand."

Chinese Proverb

Super Brawl Tonight!
Blaisdell Arena
July 23, 2005
Fights begin at 7:30 pm


Kickboxing: 175-lb
Ben Rodriguez (Animal House, Ewa Beach) vs. Kalani Ng (Jesus is Lord Gym, Waipahu)

MMA: 205-lb:
Corey Daniels (Team MMAD, Kailua) vs. Kala Kolohe Hose (Bad Intention, Waianae)

Kickboxing: 160-lb:
Stoka Solla (Lee's Shaolin Boxing, Honolulu) vs. Ikaika Choy-Fu (Jesus is Lord Gym, Waipahu)

MMA: 185-lb:
Trevor Garrett (Dayton, OH) vs. Reese Andy (AMC Pankration, Kirkland, WA.)

Kickboxing: 135-lb:
Tyson Nam (Lee's Shaolin Boxing, Honolulu) vs. Frankie DeJesus (808 Fight Factory, Waipahu)

Kickboxing: 155-lb:
Harris Sarmiento (808 Fight Factory, Waipahu) vs. Alex Zarriello (Lee's Shaolin Boxing, Honolulu)

MMA: 185-lb:
Kimo Woelfel (Kodenkan, Kaneohe) vs. Nick Ring (AMC Pankration, Kirkland, WA.)

MMA: 160-lb:
K.J. Noons (City Boxing, San Diego) vs. Bryson Kamaka (808 Fight Factory, Waipahu)

135-lb Hawaii State Flyweight Title Fight:
Ed Kelii Newalu (808 Fight Factory, Waipahu) vs. Mark Oshiro (Bulls Pen, Honolulu)

MMA: 162.5-lb:
Kolo Koka (M.M.A.D., Kailua) vs. Tyler Jackson (Gibson Pankration, British Columbia, Canada)

170-lb World Welterweight Title Fight:
Jason "The Mayhem" Miller (Cobra Kai, Las Vegas) vs. Mark Moreno (Bulls Pen, Honolulu)

185-lb World Middleweight Title Fight:
Falaniko Vitale (808 Fight Factory, Waipahu) vs., Robbie Lawler (Miletich Fighting System, Iowa)

Source: Super Brawl

Marc Laimon Seminar at Grappling Unlimited
THIS SUNDAY (JULY 24TH)

WHERE: GRAPPLING UNLIMITED

COST: $35/Person

WHEN: This Sunday (JULY 24) from 11am – 1pm

WHO: OPEN TO ALL SCHOOLS

DIRECTIONS:
-G.U. is located in the Halawa industrial area
-From Ewa, take the Halawa cut off from H1 eastbound
-proceed to the Halawa industrial area by taking a left at the first light, then a right at the second light, and another left at the third light—this will put you into the industrial area
-then your first left and first right. GU is the about 200 yards on the left side of the road in a beige warehouse.
-99-930 Iwaena St.
-From Town, Take the Halawa cut off from H1 westbound
-Take the first right at the light then your first left and first right. directions as above.

You can always type in your address and Gus address at map.com

Hope to see you there.

Source: Egan Inoue

POSTAL CONNECTIONS:
MURRAY MAY BE MAKING PRIDE DEBUT SOON

By Tape Lord

Hello my friends, my postal connections in both the DSE/PRIDE organization and the United Kingdom are telling me that Lee Murray is close to signing with the DSE/PRIDE, and may be making his PRIDE debut by the end of the year.

Source: Fight Sport

HANSEN LEAVES PRIDE GP FOR SHOOTO?

MMAWeekly's Scott Petersen reports from Japan that Joaquim Hansen could be out of the Bushido Grand Prix for Shooto's super card.

Shooto currently has a show scheduled for August 20th as they are trying to stack their summer show. Right now the promotion is in negotiations to have Hansen come back to Shooto to face Akira Kikuchi. Here's the proposed lineup in Japan.

SHOOTO CARD AUGUST 20th

Gilbert Melendez (Cesar Gracie Academy, USA) -vs- Rumina Sato (K'z Factory, Japan)

Mitsuhiro Ishida (Team TOPS, Japan) -vs- Takashi Nakakura (Shooto Gym Osaka, Japan)

(Lightweight Rookie Tourney Semifinal)
Kyotaro Nakao (Shooto Gym Yokohama, Japan) -vs- Hiroshi Nishioka (Paraestra Matsudo, Japan)

Hayato "Mach" Sakurai (Mach Dojo, Japan) -vs- Akira Kikuchi (Killer Bee, Japan)

Joachim Hansen (Team Scandinavia, Norway) -vs- Kotetsu Boku (Killer Bee, Japan)

Source: MMA Weekly

ANDERSON SILVA TO MAKE PRO BOXING DEBUT

Brazilian magazine 'Tatame' reports that MMA veteran Anderson Silva will make his professional boxing debut on the 'Minotauro Fight' card on August 5th.

Source: Fight Sport

HERO'S GETS BIG RATINGS IN JAPAN

The numbers are back from Japan and the Hero's fight promotion has to be smiling ear to ear with the ratings they pulled from their last show.

MMAWeekly's Scott Petersen reports that the Japan Times reports that the Hero's show featuring Kid Yamamoto and Bob Sapp, not only sold out the arena with close to 11,000 fans but the show did a 16.6 rating.

To give you an idea of how good of a number that is, the Pride Grand Prix show featuring Sakaraba, Tamura, Wanderlei Silva, and Mirko Cro Cop among others last month did a 14.6.

The Wrestling Observer reports that the Hero's show went head to head with baseball's Tokyo Giants vs Chunichi Dragons baseball game and Hero's a home run over the baseball competition as baseball hit a measly 9.4 rating compared to Hero's 16.6.

The show is a draw on TV and Pride has to be concerned already that a new promotion, with K-1 ties is already a hit in just a couple of shows. It will be interesting to see how Pride counters this summer with plenty of shows scheduled each month.

Source: MMA Weekly

PRIDE SIGNS TV DEAL WITH FOX SPORTS

Sources in Japan are saying that DSE/PRIDE has signed an American TV deal with the Fox Sports Network.

The deal will see Fox Sports air a 1-hour PRIDE highlight show on a weekly basis. The time slot for the show will most likely be on Sunday night.

Source: Fight Sport

Ramon Dekker beats Bang Ludwig

K-1 World Max Final 2005 Results
Wednesday, July 20 2005
Yokohama Arena in Japan

- Akeomi Nitta def. Koutetsu Boku via 3-0 decision.

- Reserve Fight: Kazuya Yasuhiro def. Darius Skliaudys via 3-0 decision.

- Quarter Finals: Masato def. Mike Zambidis via 3-0 decision.

- Quarter Finals: Andy Souwer def. Takayuki Kohiruimaki via 2-0 decision.

- Quarter Finals: Albert Kraus def. John Wayne Parr via 3-0 decision.

- Quarter Finals: Buakaw Por Pramuk def. Jadamba Narantungalag via 2-0 decision.

- Ramon Dekker def. Duane "Bang" Ludwig via 3-0 decision.

- Semi Finals: Andy Souwer def. Kasuya Yasuhiro via TKO at 2:24 of round 1.

- Semi Finals: Buakaw Por Pramuk def. Albert Kraus via 3-0 decision.

- Virgil Kalakoda def. Yoshihiro Sato via 2-0 decision.

- Finals: Andy Souwer def. Buakaw Por Pramuk via 2-1 decision.

Source: MMA Fighting

Latest Pancrase Official Rankings
(as of 7/21/2005)

[Open-weight]
the 10th Open-weight K.O.P. Josh Barnett(U.S.A./ New Japan Pro-Wrestling)
#1 Yuki Kondo(PANCRASEism)
#2 Tsuyoshi Kosaka(Team Alliance)
#3 Ron Waterman(U.S.A./ Team Impact)
#4 Yoshiki Takahashi(PANCRASE)
#5 Sanae Kikuta(GRABAKA)

[Super heavyweight(221lbs. and over)]
the 1st Super heavyweight K.O.P. Tsuyoshi Kosaka(Team Alliance)
#1 Ron Waterman(U.S.A./ Team Impact)
#2 Keigo Takamori(Pancrase MEGATON)
#3 Alex Roberts(U.S.A./Kujuken Kaikan) *UP from #4
#4 Jimmy Ambriz(U.S.A./ New Japan Pro-Wrestling) *DOWN from #3
#5 Jun Ishii(Chojin Club)

[Heavyweight(199lbs.~under 221lbs.)]
the 2nd Heavyweight K.O.P. VACANT
#1 Ryuta Noji(Pancrase MEGATON)
#2 Sehaku(Wajutsu Keishukai RJW)
#3 Tsuyoshi Ozawa(Zendokai)

[Light heavyweight(181lbs.~under 199lbs.)]
the 3rd Light heavyweight K.O.P. Yuki Kondo(PANCRASEism)
#1 Sanae Kikuta(GRABAKA)
#2 Akihiro Gono(GRABAKA)
#3 Nilson de Castro(Brazil/Chute Boxe Academy)
#4 David Terrell(U.S.A./ Cesar Gracie Academy)
#5 Kestutis Arbocius(Lithuania/ Latvia Shidokan)
#6 Daisuke Watanabe(PANCRASEism)
#7 Gustavo Ximu(Brazil/ Gracie Barra Combat Team)
#8 Fabio Leopoldo(Brazil/ Renzo Gracie Jiu Jitsu Academy)
#9 Yuki Sasaki(Pancrase GRABAKA)
#10 Keiichiro Yamamiya(GRABAKA)

[Middleweight(165.7lbs.~ under 181lbs.)]
the 5th Middleweight K.O.P. Nathan Marquardt(Pancrase U.S.A./ H.A.M.A.)
#1 Izuru Takeuchi(SK Absolute)
#2 Kazuo Misaki(GRABAKA)
#3 Yushin Okami(Wajutsu Keishukai Tokyo Hombu)
#4 Eiji Ishikawa(GRABAKA)
#5 Hiromitsu Miura(Pancrase TOKIN)
#6 Yuichi Nakanishi(freelance)
#7 Daisuke Hanazawa 13(MMA Dojo Cobrakai)
#8 Osami Shibuya(freelance)
#9 Kiuma Kunioku(freelance)
#10 Crosley Gracie(U.S.A./ Ralph Gracie Jiu Jitsu Academy)

[Welterweight(152.5lbs.~ under 165.7lbs.)]
the Interim Welterweight K.O.P. Katsuya Inoue(Wajutsu Keishukai RJW)
#1 Satoru Kitaoka(PANCRASEism)
#2 Hidehiko Hasegawa(SK Absolute)
#3 Koji Oishi(PANCRASEism)
#4 Heath Sims(U.S.A./ Team Quest)
#5 Hidetaka Monma(Wajutsu Keishukai A-3)
#6 Takafumi Ito(PANCRASEism)
#7 Yuji Hoshino(Wajutsu Keishukai GODS)
#8 Takuya Wada(SK Absolute)
#9 Kenji Arai(PANCRASE)
#10 Daizo Ishige(SK Absolute)

[Lightweight(141.4lbs.~ under 152.5lbs.)] TBD

[Featherweight(under 141.4lbs.)] TBD

Source: Pancrase

 7/22/05

Quote of the Day

"Start by doing what's necessary; then do what's possible;
and suddenly you are doing the impossible."

St. Francis of Assisi, 1181-1226, Italian Preacher, Founder of the Franciscan Orde

Marc Laimon Seminar this Friday
Change of Venues!

Marc Laimon Seminar Canceled

Due to a conflict of interest Marc Laimon's seminar has been canceled. We apologize for the inconvenience this may have caused those who were planning to attend.

Source: Ronn Shiraki

Laimon Seminar now at HMC

Kevin Yoshida of HMC just notified us that Marc Laimon (Cobra Kai) will be holding a seminar at HMC tomorrow 7/22/04 from 7pm-9pm.

Source: Kevin Yoshida

Exclusive Interview: B.J. Penn
By Michael Afromowitz

“The Prodigy” speaks about his upcoming Pay Per View fight with Renzo Gracie and life and times in the world of K-1 mixed martial arts

When B.J. Penn parted ways with the UFC last year, many felt the Hawaiian hero left a lot of questions on the table in terms of his capacity to thrive in a sea of talent, the depth of which has been continuously argued. After all, he had just defied logic by gaining a considerable amount of weight and choking out the naturally and noticeably much bigger and stronger heralded champion of the heavier class. Whether it was granting Matt Hughes a rematch or taking on another top contender in the UFC’s welterweight division, fans wanted to see just how far “The Prodigy” could run in the octagon with his skills.

Penn’s new employer, the K-1 organization, has since thrown at him a handful of worthy opponents and, with the exception of his last adversary, Ryoto Machida, its marquee mixed martial arts figure has continued to be a dominant force in the sport. His successful leap to yet another, heavier weight class, the 180-pound limit group, allowed him to meet and defeat Rodrigo Gracie and boost his name and status to unprecedented heights.

The first-ever K-1 “World Grand Prix in Hawaii” card that will premiere on Pay Per View television on Sunday, July 31st, situates Penn in a position of being a target for revenge. Rodrigo’s cousin, fifth degree Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt, Renzo Gracie, is putting to end a two year layoff for a date with Penn at Honolulu’s Aloha Stadium. Penn, however, doesn’t seem to be overly alarmed.

Q: This is going to be your second fight in a year with a member of the Gracie family. Is this part of a bigger plan that you’ve mapped out for yourself or is it just another challenge to you?

A: This is just another fight, like a strictly business type of fight. But if they take it personal and they want to keep coming, I’ll keep fighting them.

Q: So, you think that a grudge may be building from their end and they want revenge?

A: Yea, after this fight they might want it.

Q: After you jumped weight classes for the second time during your career and beat Rodrigo, it seemed like you were somewhat unstoppable. Then, you lost a decision to Machida. Did you take that fight lightly because of all the success that you had been having?

A: I wish I had more time to train for that fight and had better training partners for it. I’m not trying to take anything away from Ryoto. He’s a good fighter.

Q: So, you feel like it was a lack of preparation that contributed to the loss?

A: When you fight a guy as good as Ryoto, you have to be more prepared than I was. I took the fight on only four weeks, but everybody in (K-1) Hero’s (the name of the fight card on which Penn fought Machida) took the fight on short notice. So, it wasn’t just me and I can’t really say anything about it.

Q: From what you’ve seen of the Gracie style, how different do you feel this fight with Renzo will be from the one with Rodrigo in terms of how you match up with him?

A: I think it’s gonna be very similar to the Rodrigo fight. He’s gonna have some tricks up his sleeve, but it’ll be very similar. He’s Rodrigo’s teacher and I’ve seen a lot of his fights so I understand how he fights.

Q: What’s life like for you now that you’re on the K-1 roster?

A: It’s been a whole different experience. It’s been fun - just like the UFC, but fighting in different places, I guess.

Q: A lot of people were expecting to see you defend the UFC welterweight title after you beat Matt Hughes. How would you respond to people that criticize you for leaving the UFC?

A: I want to do what makes me happier and I want to fight everybody. Of course, the whole thing that’s going on with the UFC – all the legal stuff – not many people know what’s happening and I really can’t talk about that much. But as far as staying in one position or moving on, I’m sure I’ll get to fight a lot of those guys in the future anyway. I’m sure I’ll be able to fight Matt Hughes again and the Sean Sherks and Frank Triggs. It’s not like those fights are never going to happen. Plus if you limit yourself to fighting only those guys, you can never fight anybody else. I think that’s what happens in boxing all the time. People think you should have to do something a certain way. But I’m in this for fun so it’s no big deal. I just want to have fun.

Q: So you think if you would have stayed with the UFC exclusively, you would have limited your options in the long-term?

A: Oh, that’s for sure. I’ve said it the whole time – I’ll fight in the UFC tomorrow if they want me to fight there. Dana (White, UFC President) knows now that I’ll fight Hughes any day, any time. It’s them holding things up.

Q: Speaking of the fight with Hughes, you haven’t had any trouble adjusting to each of the two weight increases you made to fight bigger guys. How big do you feel you can get without the extra weight impairing your ability to perform your best?

A: That’s a good question. I’ll only find out when it happens. It may have even happened last time in the Ryoto fight, for all I know. But, I just think that Jiu-Jitsu’s such a great martial art that it’s gonna enable me to fight any opponent any time. I think as long as I’m prepared and I’ve got the right training partners and everything’s good, I feel I can fight anybody. At least, I’m prepared and know what I’m getting into. For the Ryoto fight, I wish I had training partners like Chuck Liddell and another big guy good at Jiu-Jitsu. I didn’t have that option at that time.

For this fight, I have Alan Goes and a good wrestler down here – Joel Clark. So, I know I’m gonna be prepared for this fight. In Jiu-Jitsu, you’re only as good as who you train with.

Q: Some people have been speculating that you might gain even more weight to fight Vanderlei Silva. Is this a possibility?

A: Oh, yea. I’ll fight him any time. That would be perfect. All I need is training partners that’ll push me and get me ready for that fight.

Q: What can people expect to see from BJ Penn when you step into the ring at the end of this month to fight Renzo Gracie?

A: I’m gonna be relentless. I’m gonna try to put him away and I’m not gonna play around as much as I did with Rodrigo. I’m just gonna go straight in. If he can stop it, he can stop it. If he can’t, I’m gonna put him away fast.

Source: Michael Afromowitz - muaythaimes@aol.com

Pequeno defends Shooto's title again

After suffering the first loss in thee years, Alexandre Pequeno says he is ready to defend his lightweight Shooto belt for the eight time. The challenge was made by Japanese Rumina Sato on last July 6, during Hero's Middleweight GP, which took place at Yoyogi National Stadium, in Tokyo, Japan. 'He said: 'You are next' and I replied: 'You better be ready because it's not going to be easy to take it from me,' Pequeno told. The fight hasn't be scheduled yet.

Source: Tatame

Chute Boxe News..Sakuraba and Ninja

Kazushi Sakuraba is reportedly on his way to Brazil to train at the Chute Boxe Academy. According to Chute Boxe patriarch , Rafael Cordeiro, Sakuraba will be arriving in the city of Curitiba to adapt his style to the highly successful fight team and to further his training.

The UFC had previously allowed some fighters to fight in Pride and now Pride will be returning the favor.

Murilo "Ninja" has reportedly finalized a deal to fight in the October UFC as a Pride representative. Ninja will be fighting in the Light-Heavyweight division.

Source: Gracie Fighter

PRIDE GP CARD

Below are some officially announced and unoffically announced matchups that will most likely take place on PRIDE GP finals card on August 28th:

PRIDE middleweight GP semifinals (official):
Vanderlei Silva vs. Ricardo Arona
Mauricio 'Shogun' Rua vs. Alistair Overeem

Single matchups (official):
Fedor Emelianenko vs. Mirko 'Cro Cop' Filipovic

Single matchups (unofficial):
Mark Hunt vs. Sergei Kharitonov or Fabricio Werdum
Fabricio Werdum vs. Alexander Emelianenko or 'Tank' Abbott
Vitor Belfort vs. TBA (possibly Yuki Kondo)
Hidehiko Yoshida vs. TBA (possibly Gilbert Yvel)

VANDERLEI SPEAKS

After DSE/PRIDE officially announced the semifinal matchups for the PRIDE middleweight GP finals card on August 28th, each of the GP semifinalists released statements to the Japanese media. Here's what GP semifinalist Vanderlei Silva had to say:

"I hoped that I would fight Alistair after the second round fight in June, because his striking style and my style will match well in the PRIDE ring, and it would be very thrilling. But after the fan poll, it's decided that I'm fighting Ricardo Arona. I heard that the Japanese fans hope I get revenge for Sakuraba against Arona. I always keep in mind that the most important thing for us is to make fans happy, as Sakuraba always says. All the Chute Boxe team members respect Sakuraba a lot, and this time I will teach Arona what the real professional fight is. The result will be pretty much the same as how Quinton ended up. In the final, I'll probably end up fighting against "Shogun". I'll fight him with 100 percent, and I'll show everybody the Chute Boxe style. Thank you for supporting us." -Vanderlei Silva

ARONA SPEAKS

After DSE/PRIDE officially announced the semifinal matchups for the PRIDE middleweight GP finals card on August 28th, each of the GP semifinalists released statements to the Japanese media. Here's what GP semifinalist Ricardo Arona had to say:

"Finally I get to fight Silva and I'm very excited. He's been ducking a fight against me, but there's no way to escape from me now. In June, Rogerio lost against a Chute Boxe guy, so this time the Brazilian Top Team will become a team again and beat Silva. It's time for me, the tiger, to eat the champion. I'll be the champion in August." -Ricardo Arona

'SHOGUN' SPEAKS

After DSE/PRIDE officially announced the semifinal matchups for the PRIDE middleweight GP finals card on August 28th, each of the GP semifinalists released statements to the Japanese media. Here's what GP semifinalist Mauricio 'Shogun' Rua had to say:

"I was already thinking that I'm going to face Arona, but now I heard I'm facing Alistair and I'm happy that he's my opponent. He's a striker like myself, so it's going to be a very exciting fight. And also we're both kind of new faces to the fight world. We're not only strikers, but also he has some ground skill too. So I want to prove which fighter deserves to win this whole tournament as a new face of PRIDE. In the final round, I think I'll face Vanderlei. I respect so much about him, but for the final I don't hesitate to fight him because that's our Chute Boxe style, and I hope I win the fight. We'll put on a great show so please support us." -Mauricio 'Shogun' Rua

OVEREEM SPEAKS

After DSE/PRIDE officially announced the semifinal matchups for the PRIDE middleweight GP finals card on August 28th, each of the GP semifinalists released statements to the Japanese media. Here's what GP semifinalist Alistair Overeem had to say.

"I'm very happy that I'm facing "Shogun" because I was always hoping to fight him. We both have a striking background, but also we're all-around fighters. So this fight will be an awesome fight. Whoever the winner is, the audience is the winner of this Grand Prix. Thank you." -Alistair Overeem

Source: Fight Sport

Ortiz to Headline... in the Movies???
By Sean McClure

Tito Ortiz is back on television.........well, sort of. If you are a fan of 'The Crow' film series and the UFC then the latest big screen edition, titled "Wicked Prayer", may be right up your alley. In a role as one of the main villains known as Famine, is none other than 'The Huntington Beach Bad Boy' Tito Ortiz. The former UFC Light Heavyweight Champion is getting praise for his role from many review sites despite the film as a whole garnering less favorable ones. Time will only tell how Tito is 'ultimately' received as a working actor since his departure from the UFC earlier this year. The DVD hit shelves July 19th.

Source: Maxfighting

TANNER VS. LOISEAU

Evan Tanner

Sources in Canada report that the matchup of Evan Tanner vs. David Loiseau will take place in UFC 55.

Source: Fight Sport

 7/21/05

Quote of the Day

"The tragedy of life doesn't lie in not reaching your goal. The tragedy lies in having no goal to reach."

Benjamin Mays, President of Morehouse College in Atlanta

Marc Laimon Seminar this Friday!

Marc Laimon (Cobra Kai) will be doing a two hour seminar at Kaneohe Gracie from 730-930 this Friday night (July 22). As you well know, he is one of the main reasons Jason Miller’s JJ is so sharp. All Relson Gracie Academys are welcome to attend.

WHEN: this Friday night (July 22) from 730-930

COST: $30 (a total bargain)

WHERE: Relson Gracie Kaneohe Team

Here are the directions to Kaneohe Gracie:

from Likelike:

-take Kahekili cut off.

-make a right turn at the fourth traffic signal (Kahuhipa street.)

-go passed the first traffic light.

-two building down on the right you’ll see the Academy. There is a BIG sign in the front. It is right next to Kikuya Japanese restaurant.

-just across the street from the old King Winward Nissan.

From H3

-take the Kaneohe cut off (first exit after the tunnel) then proceed w/ the Likelike directions

From Pali:

-Turn left onto Kam Highway—the first signal after coming over the mountain

-follow Kam Highway passed the golf course, H3 overpass, HI Mem. Park, Toyota, Honda, the Fire Dept., Jack n the Box, Papa Johns, then turn left onto Kahuhipa St.

-follow Kahuhipa for about 100yards. You will see the old King Nissan.

-Just across the street from Nissan is the Gracie Academy

For more info please contact Ronn Shiraki @ 387-1961

Business Seminar

For More information or to register, please contact Daynin Dashefsky at:

GFI Associates
263-8160
Daynin@GFIassociates.com

or email by clicking
here.

Check out the seminar webpage by clicking here!

Source: Daynin Dashefsky

LISTER CHALLENGES FILHO

Dean Lister realeased the following statement regarding Paulo Filho and some disparaging remarks Filho made about Lister in a recent interview:

"Here is what I have to say to Paulo Filho:

Apparently Paulo has a problem with me even though I have no idea why. If he's not careful he will have a problem with me (his first MMA loss). Actually if he would fight me, I'd be happy to buy him a step ladder for our fight, that way he could reach me. I would love to fight Paulo because I feel I couldn't miss any of my punches or kicks, I mean look at how big his mouth is, all I have to do is aim for the mouth and I can't lose.

He has a big mouth and needs to have it shut (the hard way) with my fists. So he thinks I look away from him when he looks into my eyes (actually I usually don't look down so never noticed him looking up at me), what the hell? Why is he trying to look into my eyes, I never noticed because I only look into the eyes of girls, never men. He thinks I am afraid of him, I can't stop laughing about that. So I'd like to see how much of a man he really is and accept a fight against me sometime in the near future. I've also heard he's said that I can't stay in the same room when he enters because I'm afraid. Actually I've never noticed him enter any room I am in so I have nothing more to say about that.

I've never even talked to the guy and have no idea why he started talking bad about me to the press and the public, I don't know why he started these problems but I'm ready to finish them and show I deserve respect. In only one interview, I gave him credit for a good fight against Suloev and expressed my understanding how frustrating it is to get injured like that, the respect I gave him was not returned. He has so far talked bad about me in at least three interviews I saw on the internet.

As far as him destroying Amar Suloev who 'destroyed' me, thats laughable. I had bad family problems at the time and had absolutely no strategy against my opponent and by the way the fight was close. If Paulo had fought me that night after Suloev I promise he wouldn't have found the same opponent Amar had found almost a year before.

I'd like to see Paulo or as I like to call him Paulinho try to armlock me or better yet footlock me. I've never made a challenge like this to anyone, it's not my style but, Paulo, you are officially challenged! Do you like challenges?'

Dean Lister"

Source: Fight Sport

Margarida will fight BJJ World Cup

Main Brazilian teams have already subscribed to Jiu-Jitsu World Cup. They will run for more than R$120,000 in cash prizes. Who didn't have a chance to watch the final of BJJ World Cup 2004, may have a chance to see both of fighters in action this year. Fernando Margarida and Ronaldo Jacaré will be fighting for R$15,000. Brazilian Top Team back belt, Margarida - who will defend will team by Fernando Paradeda, Roverto Tozzi, Mário Reis, Luiz Felipe Big Mac's side. Ronaldo Jacaré will be supported by Brasa's teammate Felipe Costa, Ricardo Vieira, Rodrigo Comprido, among other fighters. It will be 85 in total. The only absence will be Leozinho Vieira, who got injured and doctor didn't allow his to fight. Nova União will not joke around. Are confirmed at Ibirapuera gymnasium: Leonardo Santos, Leonardo Peçanha, José Aldo, Rodrigo Feijão and Eduardo Pessoa. Brothers from Gracie Humaitá Saulo and Xande Ribeiro have also confirmed their passport to fight on July 24.

Who wants to watch BJJ World Cup, you might do it by only R$ 4.10. Click here for more info.

Source: Tatame

Super Brawl / Icon Sport Announces Full Contact Showdown #5 at MCBH-Kaneohe Bay:


Honolulu, HI, July 18, 2005 - Today Super Brawl / Icon Sport announced its fifth installment of the Full Contact Showdown (FCS). FCS#5 will take place at 8 p.m. on Saturday, September 3, 2005 in the Kahuna's Sports Bar & Grill "E-Club" Ballroom at MCBH-Kaneohe Bay ("Marine Core Base Hawaii").

The FCS series provides amateur and young professional mixed martial arts athletes the opportunity to compete in a professionally-produced promotion. The events also provide both civilian and military fans the chance to enjoy exciting mixed martial arts bouts in an intimate, fan-friendly setting. The Kahuna's Sports Bar & Grill , which has a full bar, multiple beer stations, and superb and affordable dining, comfortably seats 800 fans in its "E-Club" Ballroom. Every seat in the house gives fans up-close viewing of the amazing action.

Successful FCS fighters earn the opportunity to "move up" to the high-profile Super Brawl / Icon Sport promotions, where international exposure, competition, prize money greatly increases. The FCS series have drawn large groups of fans to Windward Oahu's MCBH-Kaneohe Bay, with every show reaching near sell-out capacity.

Rising Middleweight super-star Steve Byrnes, a war-veteran sergeant stationed at MCBH-Kaneohe Bay, will once again headline the event. Byrnes won the FCS Middleweight belt at Bayfest's outdoor presentation of FCS#4 on July 3, 2005. After a quick exchange of strikes, Byrnes quickly submitted his opponent, Aaron Rose, via "rear naked choke" in round one of the main event. FCS#5 will be Byrnes' first title defense.

Kaipo Kalama (Middleweight - Team M.M.A.D.), Ray "King Kong" Seraille (Heavyweight - Grappling Unlimited), Mike Leonguerrero (U.S. Marine; Lightweight - Bulls Pen), Justin Holcombe (U.S. Marine; Lightweight - Bulls Pen), Austin Hernandez (Flyweight - Bulls Pen), and Kyle Miyahana (Welterweight - freelance) are among a number of young fighters scheduled to compete at FCS#5.

Tickets for FCS#5 will go on sale on Friday, July 29 at Dreamworld Tattoo, located behind famous Keneke's restaurant in Waimanalo.

$35 Ringside (first two rows)
$20 Military general admission
$20 Non-Military pre-sale general admission
$25 Non-Military day-of general admission

SPECIAL TICKET & T-SHIRT OFFER:
Receive one general admission ticket and one official Full Contact Showdown T-Shirt (sizes L and XL available) for just $33.
OR
Receive one ringside ticket and one official Full Contact Showdown T-Shirt for just $45. T-Shirt designs are attached to this email. This offer applies to pre-sale tickets only at Dreamworld Tattoo in Waimanalo.

For more information about Full Contact Showdown #5, contact Patrick Freitas, Super Brawl / Icon Sport / Full Contact Showdown Director of Promotions at (808) 375-1645 or
superbrawl21@yahoo.com.

The Full Contact Showdown is sponsored by:
Steinlager
Dreamworld Tattoo
Military Nutrition
Fighter's Corner
En Fuego Grill & Poke
Sugoi
Fatboy's Diner

Source: Patrick Freitas

Super Brawl on K5 The Home Team...
Last Chance To See It!!!


If you missed the broadcast of Super Brawl's TV show, Super Brawl: ICON, you have just one week to catch it! The program is a half-hour preview of this Saturday's match-ups of Falaniko Vitale v. "Ruthless" Robbie Lawler and "The Mayhem" Jason Miller v. Mark Moreno.

The show airs exclusively on K5 The Home Team (channel 5 - KFVE, Honolulu). Here are the times and days for the remaining broadcasts:

1 p.m. Sunday, July 17
11 p.m. Monday, July 18
11 p.m. Tuesday, July 19
11 p.m. Thursday, July 21
11 p.m. Friday, July 22

And don't miss the official weigh-in, press-conference, and autograph session at 2 p.m. on Friday, July 22 at the Eastside Grill Eastside Grill is located on the mauka-side of Puck's Alley on University Avenue. There is validated parking at Puck's Alley. This event is open to all media and general public.

Source: Super Brawl

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Contact:
Patrick Freitas
Super Brawl / Icon Sport
(808) 375-1645
superbrawl21@yahoo.com

“Ruthless” Robbie Lawler Hunting
Falaniko Vitale’s Belt;


Super Brawl: ICON Complete Card & Press Conference Announced.

Honolulu, HI July 15, 2005 – On Saturday, July 23rd at the Blaisdell Arena in Honolulu, Hawaii, Super Brawl World Middleweight Champion Falaniko Vitale will step into the ring for his first title defense against Ultimate Fighting Championship (U.F.C.) veteran “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler in the main event of Super Brawl: ICON. Vitale won the belt from Masanori Suda with his amazing aerial knockout punch at the April 9, 2005 event, Super Brawl: DESTINY. Lawler, now 23 years old, came into the U.F.C. like a hurricane when he was just 19. The south-paw gained instant fame by ending most of his fights by KO or TKO. Lawler, who has put his multi-fight U.F.C. contract in jeopardy by challenging Vitale, is confident that he will take the Super Brawl Middleweight belt back to his home in Bettendorf, Iowa.

“I saw Niko Vitale’s knockout of (Masanori) Suda. It looked good, but no one hits harder than I do. I’m not worried about my U.F.C. contract because I am going to win. The (Super Brawl) belt is mine and I’m taking it home with me.” – “Ruthless” Robbie Lawler

Official Super Brawl and Pride Fighting Championship (Japan) referee Yuji Shimada will oversee the action.

Super Brawl: ICON Card

185-lb World Middleweight Title Fight:

Falaniko Vitale vs., Robbie Lawler (Miletich Fighting System, Iowa)

170-lb World Welterweight Title Fight:

Jason “The Mayhem” Miller (Cobra Kai, Las Vegas) vs. Mark Moreno (Bulls Pen, Honolulu)

135-lb Hawaii State Flyweight Title Fight:

Ed Kelii Newalu (808 Fight Factory, Waipahu) vs. Mark Oshiro (Bulls Pen, Honolulu)

162.5-lb: Kolo Koka (M.M.A.D., Kailua) vs. Tyrone Jackson (Gibson Pankration, British Columbia, Canada)

160-lb: Bryson Kamaka (808 Fight Factory, Waipahu) vs. K.J. Noons (City Boxing, San Diego)

160-lb: Mike Taniguchi (Animal House, Ewa Beach) vs. Tyrone Glover (City Boxing, San Diego)

185-lb: Kimo Woelfel (Koden Kan, Kaneohe) vs. Nick Ring (AMC Pankration, Kirland, WA.)

185-lb: Trevor Garrett vs. Reese Andy (AMC Pankration, Kirland, WA.)

205-lb: Corey Daniels (Team MMAD, Kailua) vs. Kala Kolohe Hose (Bad Intention, Waianae)

Kickboxing:

135-lb: Tyson Nam (Lee’s Shaolin Boxing, Honolulu) vs. Mike DeJesus (808 Fight Factory, Waipahu)

160-lb: Stoka Solla (Lee’s Shaolin Boxing, Honolulu) vs. Ikaika Choy-Fu (Jesus is Lord Gym, Waipahu)

175-lb Nick Tiqui (Animal House, Ewa Beach) vs. Kalani Ing (Jesus is Lord Gym, Waipahu)

PRESS CONFERENCE, WEIGH-IN, AUTOGRAPH SESSION:

2 p.m., Friday July 22, Eastside Grill (Pucks Alley @ University Avenue)

THIS EVENT IS OPEN TO ALL MEDIA AND GENERAL PUBLIC

Super Brawl: ICON:
7:30 p.m., Saturday July 23, Blaisdell Arena
Tickets: $35 upper / $49 Riser / $75 Ringside / $150 V.I.P.
Blaisdell Box Office, www.ticketmaster.com, 1-(877)-750-4400

Source: Event Promoter

Fighters' Club TV Episode 30.5 Complete!

This episode airs once only this coming Tuesday (July 12) at our
new timeslot of 930pm on Ch. 52.

This episode features:

-Highlights fm Punishment in Paradise 9 as reported by FCTV's own Chris
Onzuka.
--Ronald Jhun vs Shigetose Iwase (plus intvw w/ Ron)
--Casey Daniels vs Kaimi Santiago (this one's for those who like to
"BANG")

-Tech of the Week
--Jason Miller demos an x-guard sweep + intvw on UFC debut

-Proving Ground at Dole Can.
--Harris Sarmiento vs Kaleo Kwan

and as always, hosted by Hawaii's favorite FCTV heart throbs: Mike "the
Icon" Onzuka and Mark "Special K" Kurano

I know, I know, when's the next new episode? JULY 19!!! Don't
forget...

Fighter's Corner/K-1 Ticket Offer!

***For Immediate Release***
For More Information and Fighter Interviews, Contact Mike Afromowitz, (917) 566-8754 or
mike@k-1usa.net.

Penn Tackles Another Gracie In Hawaii

Mixed martial arts superstar BJ Penn (9-2-1) will take on another member of martial arts fighting's most heralded family in Renzo Gracie (10-5-1) at Honolulu, Hawaii's 50,000 crowd capacity Aloha Stadium on Friday, July 29th. The bout, which will be presented as a featured contest during the K-1 "World Grand Prix 2005 in Hawaii" extravaganza, will premiere on Pay Per View television along with the remainder of the card on Sunday, July 31st.

Penn's appearance in his home state will be his second in a period of eight months. On November 20th of last year, he defeated Renzo's cousin, Rodrigo Gracie, by way of unanimous judges' decision at Honolulu's Blaisdell Center.

Penn's latest challenger is an eight-time veteran of Japan's Pride Fighting Championship and the owner of a fifth degree black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, the style of combat founded by his grandfather, Carlos Gracie. The matchup with Penn will mark Gracie's first start since October 5, 2003 when he lost a split decision to former UFC welterweight crown holder, Carlos Newton. During his 13 year professional career, Gracie has claimed wins over the likes of martial arts fighting legends Maurice Smith and Oleg Taktarov.

Last year, Penn defected from The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he had reeled off six of his nine career victories, to the K-1 organization that recently expanded its repertoire of combat sports promotions to include mixed martial arts competition. Penn's dramatic career move came shortly after he had made a jump from the UFC's 154-pound limit division to its 168-pound class and easily defeated the heavier weight category's reigning champion, Matt Hughes, by way of rear naked choke.

K-1 "World Grand Prix 2005 in Hawaii" will also feature an eight-man, single-elimination tournament and a pair of "Superfights" that will be contested under the promotion's traditional, stand-up fighting rules. Amongst the talent enlisted for the tournament affair are 2003 K-1 USA champion, Carter Williams; UFC and Rumble on the Rock veteran Wesley "Cabbage" Correira; and "Big Daddy" Gary Goodridge. In Superfight action, four-time K-1 Japan Grand Prix tournament winner, Musashi, will meet Sweden's Richard Nordstrand while sumo wrestling legend turned K-1 fighter Akebono will do battle with 7 foot 2 inch giant, Hong Man Choi, who captured the K-1 Grand Prix tournament championship in Seoul, Korea earlier this year.

K-1 is a martial arts fighting sport that derives its name from its inclusion of a wide array of combat disciplines, including Karate, Kung-Fu, and Kickboxing ("K"), and its intent to determine one champion in one ring ("1"). After being staged for the first time in Japan in 1993 under the direction of founder Master Kazuyoshi Ishii, it later evolved into the country's most popular sport and achieved popular culture status there as its athletes turned into larger-than-life celebrities.

Source: Mike Afromowitz

Marcello Garcia Seminar!


Friday, Aug 26 6-9 pm
Sunday, Aug 28 3-6 pm

The price of the Marcelo seminar is just $150 until August 1st. It
then goes up to $175. It is a two day event, Friday evening from 6-9 and
Sunday afternoon from 3-6 in the Kaimuki area. (Palolo Hongwanji).

For more details email Burton by clicking
here.

Source: Burton Richardson

NAGA 2005 HAWAII STATE CHAMPIONSHIP

WHEN: Sunday, September 25, 2005
TIME: Doors open at 8:00 a.m.
WHERE: Leilehua High School, Wahiawa, HI
WHAT: 108 Gi & No-Gi Divisions!
RANKED: This event is Nationally Ranked
PHONE: 860-632-2753
EMAIL:
President@nagafighter.com
WEBSITE:
www.NAGAFighter.com

INFO: For further information, including registration, travel, and lodging, please visit HERE.

Sunday, September 25, 2005
Doors open at 8:00 a.m.
Leilehua High School, Wahiawa, HI
108 Gi & No-Gi Divisions!
This event is Nationally
860-632-2753
President@nagafighter.com

www.NAGAFighter.com

For further information, including registration, travel, and lodging, please visit HERE.

Pre-register click HERE.

Sunday, September 25, 2005 NAGA returns to Hawaii. We have a new fantastic venue this year, Leilehua High School which holds over 1700 spectators. Come as an individual or as a team to compete. This event is Nationally RANKED!

Championship belts (sponsored by Fökai) to the No-Gi and Gi Absolute Champions!

Samurai swords to all other first place division winners!

Source: NAGA


Counter courtesy of www.digits.com