Upcoming
Events
Do you want to list an
event on Onzuka.com?
Contact Us
(All events on Oahu, unless noted)
2006
November
Aloha State Championship
of BJJ
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
RWE Qualfiers
(MMA)
(Kauai)
11/25/06
Kickin' It
(Kickboxing)
(Dole Cannery Ballroom)
10/21/06
Pride Fighting Championships
(PPV)
(Las Vegas, NV)
10/14-15/06
Pacific
Island Showdown
International Invitational Ultimate Full-Contact Stickfighting
Championship
(Stickfighting)
(Filipino Community Center Ballroom, Waipahu)
10/13/06
RWE & PXC
(MMA)
(University of Guam Fieldhouse, Mangilao, Guam)
October
Rumble On The Rock
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
10/7/06
X-1 Battlegrounds
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
September
ROTR Qualifers
(MMA)
(Maui)
9/16/06
Kickin' It
(Kickboxing)
(Waipahu Filcom Center)
9/9/06
Punishment In Paradise:
Unfinished Business
(Kickboxing, MMA)
(Dole Cannery Square Ballroom)
9/2/06
Icon Sport 47
(MMA, Kickboxing)
(Blaisdell Arena)
August
Icon Sport 48
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
8/26-27/06
International
Masters & Seniors Championships
(BJJ)
(Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)
8/26/06
Got Skills 3
(Kickboxing/Boxing & Takedowns/Submission Grappling)
(Ilima Intermediate, Ewa Beach)
Palolo Gym Smoker
(Boxing)
(Palolo Gym)
8/21/06
UFC 62 Countdown: Liddell vs. Sobral
(Spike)
UFC: All Access Renato "Babalu" Sobral
(Spike)
8/18/06
Kickin' It
(Kickboxing)
(Waipahu Filcom Center)
8/17/06
Ultimate
Fight Night 4
(MMA)
(Las Vegas, NV)
The Ultimate Fighter 4:
The Comeback Premiers
(Spike)
8/12/06
Hawaiian Open of
BJJ
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
8/5/06
Rumble On The Rock
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
Garden Island Cage Match 4
(MMA)
(Kauai)
Island
Warriors Fighting Championship
(MMA)
(War Memorial Gym, Wailuku, Maui)
7/28/06
RWE & PXC
(MMA)
(University of Guam Fieldhouse, Mangilao, Guam)
7/22/06
RWE Qualifiers
(MMA)
(Hilo Civic Center, Hilo)
7/22-30/06
CBJF World
Championships
(BJJ)
(Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)
7/21/06
Punishment In Paradise 12
(MMA, Kickboxing)
(Dole Cannery Ballroom)
7/20-24/06
CBJJO World Championships
(BJJ)
(Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)
7/?/06
RAZE MMA Fight Night 2
(MMA)
(San Diego, CA)
7/8/06
Ring of Honor
(MMA & Kickboxing)
(Waianae H.S. Gym)
7/7/06
Kickin' It
(Kickboxing)
(Waipahu Filcom Center)
UFC 61
(MMA)
(Las Vegas, NV)
7/3/06
Got Skills 2
(Kickboxing/Boxing & Wrestling/Sub Grappling)
(Pagoda Hotel Ballroom)
s 2006 Tournament
(Sport-Jujitsu, Sport Pankration, Sub Grappling, Extreme Sparring)
(St. Louis H.S. Gym)
7/1/06
Pride
(MMA)
(Saitama Super Arena)
6/24/06
The Ultimate Fighter 3 Finale
(MMA)
(The Joint, Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas, NV)
6/17/06
RWE Qualifiers
(MMA)
(Afook
Chinen Civic Auditorium, Hilo)
USA-Boxing Hawaii
(Boxing)
(Palolo District Park)
6/10/06
X-1 Battlegrounds 4
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
6/4/06
PRIDE Bushido 11: 'Bushido
Survival '06'
(PPV)
6/3/06
X-2 Extreme Wars:
Bay Area Brawl
(MMA)
(Oakland Alameda Coliseum, Oakland, CA)
2006 Relson Gracie Jiu-Jitsu Associations Gi Tournament
(BJJ)
(Gracie Main Academy)
5/27/06
UFC 60:
Royce Gracie vs. Matt Hughes
(PPV)
5/26/06
Icon Sport 45
(MMA)
(Blaisdell 6Arena)
5/20/06
3rd Maui Jiu-Jitsu Championships
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(Maui War Memorial Gym, Wailuku)
5/13/06
Got Skills Fighter Event
(MMA)
(Pagoda Hotel)
4/29/06
RAZE MMA Fight Night
(MMA)
(ipayOne center , former San Diego Sports Arena
San Diego, CA)
4/21/06
Rumble on the Rock
11: Grand Prix
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
4/15/06
UFC 59: Reality Check
(MMA)
(Arrowhead Pond, Anaheim, CA)
4/7-9/06
2006
Pan-American Jiu-Jitsu Tournament
(BJJ)
(California State University Dominguez Hills, Carson, CA)
4/6/06
Ultimate Fight Night on Spike TV
(MMA)
(Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, NV)
4/1/06
Punishment in Paradise
(Kickboxing)
(Sea Life Park)
3/26/06
3rd Maui Jiu-Jitsu Championships
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(Maui War Memorial Gym, Wailuku)
3/25/06
Garden Island Cage
Match #3
(MMA)
(Kapaa H.S. Gym, Kapaa, Kauai)
3/11/06
Hawaiian Championship
of BJJ
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(St. Louis H.S. Gym)
Full Contact Showdown
(MMA)
(Kahuna's Sports Bar & Grill, Kaneohe Marine Corps Base)
3/4/06
Kickin It 2006
(Kickboxing)
(Venue TBA)
2/26/06
NAGA Hawaii State Championship
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(Honolulu)
*Cancelled
until Summer*
2/25/06
Icon Sport 44
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
2/4/06
Kick it Up
(Kickboxing)
(Pagoda Hotel Ballroom, Honolulu)
UFC 57:
Liddell vs. Couture 3
Mandalay Bay Events Center, Las Vegas, NV
(PPV)
1/27/06
So You Think You Tough
(MMA, Kickboxing)
(Kona Gym, Kona)
January
Grappler's Quest Hawaii
(Submission Grappling)
(TBA)
***Cancelled*** |
|
July 2006 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! |
 |
Fighters' Club TV
The Toughest Show On
Teleivision
Tuesdays at 7:00PM
***NEW TIME***
Olelo Channel 52 on Oahu
Akaku on Maui
Check
out the FCTV website! |
Fight
To Defend Mixed Martial Arts In Hawaii!
The Hawaii Government is trying to ban or restrict MMA in Hawaii.
Please
contact your local representative and let them know that you
support MMA in Hawaii. Click the link below to look up your Representative
and his contact info!
HB3223
has been passed with Amendments. Basically the bill has been
rewritten to create a MMA Commission to regulate MMA in Hawaii
and passed on to the Consumer Protection & Commerce Committee
and the Judiciary Committee for further hearings.
Get
all the details concerning the two MMA Bills by clicking here
|
Please
Help Me Sell My House in Pacific Palisades!
Warning:
Shameless personal plug which has nothing to do with martial
arts. Sorry,
I forgot the most important part, the listing price $579,000.
I (Chris) am selling my house due to my divorce. I need to get
the house sold so I can get out of my marriage! If you know anyone
that is interested or any real estate agents that you know that
can help get the word out to generate interest in my house, I
would really appreciate it!
This
is the house that I planned on growing old and dying in, so it
is a great property, has a lot of sentimental value and a hell
of a lot of sweat equity put into it. It is in a great neighborhood,
with great neighbors and is priced under other listed comparables
in Palisades, even though the house and the land area are larger.
Please
email
me
if you have any questions or if you know of anyone that would
like to arrange a viewing.
We are
holding an Open House next week Sunday, August 6th, from 2-5PM
(please check the Honolulu Advertiser to confirm).
Here
are some of the details:
2255 Amokemoke Street
Pearl City, Hawaii 96782
Listing
Price: $579,000
In Pacific
Palisades
1,698
sqft living area
200
sqft covered work area
8,998
sqft land area
Perimeter
lot with view of the valley, mountains, city, and ocean
New
exterior paint on the house, car port and surrounding hollow
tile walls.
New
cement walkways and large concrete slab for BBQs, kids bikes
or general entertaining
Retaining
wall recently installed to create a large usable front yard
Tangerine,
mango and lime trees in the back yard.
Hollow tile wall surrounds the house
All
exterior doors were just replaced with fiberglass doors and deadbolts
Security door recently installed
Security
bars on the windows for added security, also recently painted
Home
Security system
Pool
table
2
- 8,500BTU air conditioning wall units for the bedrooms, less
than 1 year old.
Wall to wall carpeting and ceramic tile floors
Off
the major street (Aumakua Street) in Palisades, so it is close
to bus stops, but not a lot of passing cars
Great
neighbors
$35
Annual Community Association dues, with no restrictions on house
color, hanging clothes, etc like many other communities.
2
comparable homes, four houses away selling for $43,000 &
$100,000 more.
Realtor:
Ron
Lee
Real Estate Incorporated
975 Kapiolani Blvd, Ste 200
Honolulu, HI 96814
Phone: (808) 596-0833
Fax: (808) 596-0834
Email: realest@pixi.com
|
Quote
of the Day
"It
is always with excitement that I wake up in the morning wondering
what my intuition will toss up to me, like gifts from the sea.
I work with it and rely on it. It's my partner."
Jonas Salk, 1914-1995, American Microbiologist
|
PUNISHMENT
IN PARADISE
“UNFINISHED BUSINESS”
Sat Sept 9, 2006
Dole Cannery Ballroom
Jhun, Sarmiento & Kwon K-1 Style
If
you missed the excitement of EAST vs. WEST you won’t want
to miss UNFINISHED BUSINESS. Not only will se a rematch of Kaleo
Kwon vs. Wayne Perrin. Kwon who was disqualified when corner
man rushed in to celebrate during an 8 count. Perrin's teammate
Undisputed Champion Domi Lopez will take on another Undefeated
Champion Bronson Mohika. Lopez has been tearing up Kickboxing
in Hawaii for 4 years as new comer Mohika who has an impressive
record of 6-0
Hawaii
will witness Ronald Jhun debut in K-1 Style Kickboxing as he
takes on a K-1 Veteran. Jhun is stated his tired of the ground
game and wants to just stand and BANG!!
Long
awaited return of Harris “Hitman” Sarmiento as he also
we face of against another K-1 Veteran. Sarmiento also would
rather just stand and bang then go to the ground. But is quoted
whether is an MMA o Kickboxing fight he is all game.
Also
Waianae's Talented Zack Rapal will return to the ring to face
off against a Kick’in It Champion whose name we will announce
soon
9
Bouts Already Confirmed!!
Anyone
want to compete email me asap bdkamaka@comcast.net
|
FEITOSA
FELLS MUSASHI IN K-1
SAPPORO, July 30, 2006-- Brazilian Kyokushin Karate fighter Glaube
Feitosa used his fists to score a late down and vanquish Seidokaikan
stylist Musashi of Japan in the Main Event today at the K-1 Revenge
2006 WGP in Sapporo.
Held
at the Sapporo 1972 Winter Olympics' Arena, the event featured
four "Revenge" matches providing an opportunity for
fighters who had lost against a particular opponent over the
last couple of K-1 GP seasons to step up and try to even the
score.
As
Japan's best K-1 fighter, Musashi hoped to exact payback from
Feitosa in their showdown. Feitosa beat Musashi in the semis
of the WGP Tokyo Dome Final in 2005, ending Musashi's run for
glory with a second-round KO.
Intensity
cut through the air in the hot and humid Makomanai Arena, and
the bout was smart and quick from the start, both fighters good
with low kicks through the first -- Feitosa in particular creative,
sailing a high kick up that Musashi deftly ducked, then just
missing with an axe kick.
Musashi
went with fists in the second, working the body blows and closing
with straight punches, Feitosa responding in kind. Both of course
also fired in low kicks, but blocking was sound and no damage
sustained.
The
third provided the most exciting action on the day -- Feitosa
starting with a hefty right hook, then chasing his opponent round
the ring with kicks. Musashi got some punches in on the counter,
but increasingly the Brazilian was assuming control. A Feitosa
right uppercut marked the beginning of the end for Musashi, who
was shaken and could not recompose. Feitosa pumped in body blows,
and when Musashi's guard relaxed, threw up the high and axe kicks.
Musashi was able to elude these, but suffered when Feitosa reverted
again to punches, scoring with a second uppercut.
Sensing
he was down on points, Musashi bravely undertook a late rally,
connecting with a left punch. But this attack strategy left him
open to counters, and Feitosa picked his spot expertly, dropping
the flailing Japanese fighter with a right hook to finish the
round. A unanimous decision for Feitosa.
"I
think my training with Ray Sefo in Tokyo over the last two months
has helped improve my boxing," said Feitosa in his post-bout
interview. "But Musashi's boxing is also better now, and
his defense is always tight, so I am happy I could get the late
down, or else the fight might have gone to an extra round."
In
another revenge match, this one actually a double revenge affair,
American-Japanese former Sumo Grand Champion Akebono took on
Korean behemoth Hong-Man Choi, who had prevailed in both of the
pair's previous bouts.
The
two stalked one another throughout this one, Akebono testing
with the jab, Choi better with a right straight punch midway
through the first and a flying knee, which landed on Akebono's
chest, at the clapper.
Unfortunately,
Akebono never found a way to get past Choi's reach. In the second
the Korean pounded in a left punch that stunned Akebono, then
followed with a hard right straight and a little left tap to
drop his opponent and pick up the KO win.
Said
Choi from the winners' circle: "I decided I wanted to win
it in the second round, and by KO because that is the best way
to win! So I'm happy!"
Back
at the WGP 2005 in Las Vegas, American Mighty Mo clocked then-WGP
Champion Remy Bonjasky with a right hook to notch an upset victory.
Bonjasky had a chance to even things out here, and while he didn't
get a KO or score a down, he was clearly the better man in the
ring.
Mo
barreled in with body blows to start this one, but Bonjasky's
blocking was good and he connected with a number of low kicks.
The Dutchman didn't find his form in the first, and Mo kept things
close with more tight hooks in the second -- Bonjasky coolly
answering with right low kicks. Now, finesse was starting to
get the better of brawn, as Mo's left leg was clearly stinging.
In
the third once again, Mo got in and pumped at the body while
Bonjasky worked the low kicks. Although Mo attempted a couple
of low kicks himself, Bonjasky showed a better switch game when
he went with the fists. Finally, at the clapper, Bonjasky unleashed
a couple of his spectacular flying knee attacks -- Mo was ready
and the effect was negligible. Easy to call this one, a unanimous
decision for Bonjasky.
"They
called this a 'revenge' fight," said Bonjasky afterwards,
"but for me it was more of a 'return' fight. After personal
problems last year such as splitting with my trainer and a divorce
from my wife, I now feel that I am finally mentally ready to
get back my title!"
The
fourth revenge match saw Peter Aerts of Holland step in against
Gary Goodridge of Trinidad and Tobago. It was Aerts by KO in
Nagoya the last time these two met, back in June 2004 -- the
lumberjack whacking out one of Goodridge's teeth en route to
the win. Goodridge somberly reflected on that fight at the pre-event
press conference, while Aerts countered, with a laugh, that he
might perform more ad hoc dentistry this time.
Aerts
laid in early with the kicks, and when Goodridge closed the distance
met him with punches. Goodridge is known for his fast starts
but could not get through here, while Aerts was perfect with
his attacks, positioning and defense. The best blow of the first
round was an Aerts left high kick that rattled Goodridge and
put him in the corner, closed up. Aerts maneuvered for the knee
but could not finish. In the second, Goodridge pounded in body
blows and hooks to effect. Aerts met the challenge, though, and
planted another left high kick across Goodridge's head.
The
final round began with Goodridge again throwing punches, Aerts
light on his feet and good again with his blocking then taking
control with front and low kicks. A comfortable unanimous decision
for the Dutch Lumberjack, whose experience, skills and power
have to make him a serious challenger in this year's World GP.
"I'm
sure Peter has noticed how much I've improved since the last
time we fought," said Goodridge in his post-bout interview.
"I lost the fight but I think I hurt him tonight, and I
doubt he'll be eager to fight me again."
Aerts
had a different take: "Well, Gary was good, yes, but I won
the fight and I know I hurt him! And anytime he wants to fight
me again, I'm ready!"
In
Superfight Challenges on the card:
Yusuke
Fujimoto of Japan, this year's Asia GP Champion, took on self-slighting
Japanese TV personality turned fighter Bobby Ologun of Nigeria.
Fujimoto
is possibly the all-round most powerful fighter in Japan, but
he had his hands full with Ologun, who charged in from the bell
to tie up in the clinch. Ologun used a kick-and-clinch tactic
to stay out of harm's way, but Fujimoto got a right punch through
midway through that sent Ologun stumbling back for a down. In
an often-comic second round Ologun repeatedly tangled up Fujimoto
and took him for a roll round the mat, and was warned for this.
Best blow here was a Fujimoto right that caught Ologun atop the
head.
The
third -- and many hadn't expected the fight to get this far --
featured further rassling, and now Ologun was shown the yellow
card. But the Nigerian surprised Fujimoto with a right knee shortly
afterward for his best chance. The fight ended with Fujimoto
scored well ahead on all three cards.
Paul
Slowinski of Australia outmuscled the field to earn the K-1 Oceania
GP title in Auckland earlier this year. In his first fight in
Japan he met the scrappy local Tatsufumi Tomihira.
Slowinski
started in with solid combinations and good defense, while Tomihira
couldn't do much of anything. Finally Tomihira saw his chance,
and put a punishing left hook around that cocked his opponent's
head back. With Slowinski bleeding from a cut above the eye caused
by accidental head-on-head contact, a doctor check was called,
but the Aussie was cleared to continue and the pair made a good
finish of the round.
In
the second, Slowinski shot in hard low kicks again, and Tomihira
struggled on the counter. It was the third when the kicks caught
up with Tomihira, and now he could scarcely stand on his brutalized
legs, let alone mount any meaningful attacks. A warrior's spirit
got Tomihira through to the final bell -- a no-nonsense style
and superior power got Slowinski the unanimous decision.
Bjorn
Bregy of Switzerland earned the K-1 Europe GP Crown with a convincing
performance in Amsterdam this year. Today he fought Tsuyoshi
Nakasako of Japan. Both these fellows have good power, both hail
from karate backgrounds and both turn 32 this year. One difference
-- Bregy brought a 12cm/5" height advantage to the dance.
He used his reach to control the distance early on, stepping
in with punch and low kick combinations, earning a standing down
when Nakasako turned away after eating a kick. Nakasako never
really recovered -- he was dropped again by a knee shortly after,
then another seconds later. A champion-worthy performance by
Bregy for the KO win..
Frenchman
Freddy Kemayo went up against Hiromi Amada of Japan. Depending
on your perspective, it could be said that Kemayo has had either
the honor or the bad fortune to have met the strongest K-1 forces
in his short time with the sport. But K-1 Japan 2004 Champion
Amada has also shown he can dance with the big boys.
Amada
worked the fists through an entertaining first, getting to the
body well, while a relaxed Kemayo stayed back with low and middle
kicks. Kemayo woke up somewhat in the second, planting a right
on his opponent's head -- but Amada has a tough head, and in
no time the scrappy Japanese was giving it back. Amada stepped
in with the body blows again and sustained the pressure through
a round that ended with the pair trading low kicks. In the third,
Amada stepped in repeatedly, Kemayo again closing up to block
then responding with low kicks. Amada's upper leg was badly bruised
by the end of this one and he was limping some, and although
he probably hadn't hurt Kemayo to that extent, he had been the
more aggressive fighter through the bout, and got out with a
majority decision.
In
undercard action featuring Japanese fighters, Noboru Uchida beat
Rikijyo and Mitsugu Noda beat Tsutomu Takahagi, both fights ended
by KO.
Four-time
K-1 World GP Champion Ernesto Hoost made a ring appearance to
announce that he is coming out of retirement to fight at the
Final Elimination in Osaka this September, with the goal of earning
a spot at the Tokyo Dome Final.
The
K-1 Revenge 2006 in Sapporo event was dedicated to the memory
of Andy Hug, the legendary Seidokaikan Karate fighter who embodied
the spirit of K-1. Andy passed away in Tokyo six years ago. In
this seventh year of remembrance, Andy's spirit lives on in the
hearts of K-1 fighters and fans around the world.
The
K-1 Revenge 2006 in Sapporo attracted a sellout crowd of 8,390
to the Makomanai Arena, and was broadcast live on the Fuji Television
Network and Fuji Satellite TV in Japan, and on MBC and MBC/ESPN
in South Korea. It will be time-delay broadcast on EuroSport
across Europe, ProTV in Romania, inDemand in the United States,
Viewers' Choice in Canada and GroboSat in Brazil. The event will
be seen in over 100 countries, please check with local broadcasters
for scheduling details.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
WHITEHEAD HEADLINES RITC THIS SATURDAY
After a lackluster stint on The Ultimate Fighter and losing to
Keith Jardine at UFC 57, Mike Whitehead returns to Rage in the
Cage for his third straight appearance on the promotion. He takes
on Rich Beecroft in the main event of Rage in the Cage 85, this
Saturday night, August 5th.
Celebrity
Theatre
August 5th
440 N. 32nd Street
Phoenix, AZ
Advance
tickets available thru:
Celebrity Theatre Box Office
(602) 267-1600
FIGHT
CARD
Triple Main Event
RITC
Heavyweight Title
Mike Whitehead ( 260 ) vs Rich Beecroft ( 235 )
Kyle Kingsbury ( 235 ) vs Bryan Ryan ( 235 )
John Wood ( 185 ) vs Danny Wren ( 180 )
RITC
Bantamweight Title
George Roop ( 145 ) vs Nick Hedrick ( 145 )
Roger
Mejia ( 205 ) vs Seth Baczynski ( 195 )
Joe Schnert ( 170 ) vs Melesio Perales ( 175 )
or Richie Reyes ( 165 )
Yaotzin
Meza ( 155 ) vs Joe Vigil ( 155 )
Ryan Potter ( 220 ) vs Mike Ashford ( 205 )
John Gilbert ( 200 ) vs Chris Devno ( 205 )
William
Shepstead ( 185 ) vs Daniel Jones ( 190 )
Chris McCloud ( 185 ) vs Joe Martinez ( 190 )
Lars Havens ( 195 ) vs Eric Markoff ( 200 )
Dominic Flores ( 210 ) vs Dave Connant ( 205 )
Dio
Grant ( 195 ) vs Dave Graff ( 190 )
Joe Cronin ( 160 ) vs Rogelio Chavez ( 160 )
Steven Hymer ( 270 ) vs Beau Canfield ( 300 )
Cameron Mayer ( 140 ) vs Danny Martinez ( 140 )
Greg
Saenz ( 140 ) or Eric Regan ( 155 )
TBA vs Benny Thompson ( 150 )
Johnny Saenz ( 150 ) vs Austin Pascucci ( 150 )
Jason Sterling ( 155 ) vs Jared Connolly ( 155 )
Alternates:
Tim Marquez ( 250 )
Ray Robinson ( 155 )
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Quote
of the Day
"Without
humility there can be no humanity."
John Buchan, 1875-1940, Scottish Novelist and Politician
|
PUNISHMENT
IN PARADISE
EAST vs. WEST
THANK
YOU!!!
We
sold out a second time in 2006, First off all I would like to
thank all the FANS, FIGHTERS along with the their teams. We wouldn’t
have done it with out your guys.
The
fights were awesome and fans was great! I hope you all enjoyed
it the way I did.
NEW
P.I.P Champions..
165LBS.
Keoni Bryant (Jus Rush)
135lbs.
Bronson Mohika (808 Fight Factory)
Retainning
Champion
Domi Lopez (Bigdogs, Waianae)
Domi
Lopez is the only undefeated fighter in P.I.P HISTORY
Source: Brennan Kamaka
|
X-1
Battlegrounds Scheduled for October 7th!
X-1 has just scheduled their next event for October 7th in the
Blaisdell Arena. X-1 is known for sparing no expense to bring
in top fighters from all over the country and pit them against
Hawaii's best. When more information becomes available we will
post it.
|
UFC
Fight Night 8/17 Complete Fight Card
The complete fight card has been released for August 17th's UFC
Fight Night.
Televised
Bouts:
170 lb: Diego "Nightmare" Sanchez vs. Karo Parisyan
185 lb: Chris "The Crippler" Leben vs. Jorge Santiago
185 lb: Dean Lister vs. Yuki Sasaki
170 lb: Josh Koscheck vs. Jonathan Goulet
Preliminary
Bouts:
170 lb: Joe Riggs vs. Jason Von Flue
HW: Jake O'Brien vs. Christophe Midoux
170 lb: Sammy Morgan vs. Forrest Petz
170 lb: Pat Healy vs. Anthony Torres
185 lb: Kalib Starnes vs. Crafton Wallace
The
live broadcast of UFC Fight Night on Spike TV starts at 8pm,
followed by the season premiere of The Ultimate Fighter 4 at
10pm.
Source: MMA Fighting
|
Rickson
evaluates JJ World Cup
Jiu-Jitsu legend, Rickson Gracie went to the World Black Belt
2006 finals, that were held at the Gymnasium Caio Martins, in
Niterói (RJ). Gracie was very happy about the black-belt
performances, specially the champion of the heavy category. 'Xande
had demonstrated a good work under a though guy, that is Bráulio
Estima. I liked to watch him winning and always trying a submission,
because in my opinion, Jiu-Jitsu is all about that', explained
Rickson, from the gymnasium audience.
The black-belt evaluated the championship. 'I think that this
type of investment, the production, the local is the right way
for us to get the next level of Jiu-Jitsu. Including some competitions
like these one that are good to increase the level of the JJ
Worlds. So this is something good, a championship that gives
money as a prize for who needs it', concluded Gracie.
Source: Tatame
|
Pequeno
vs. Koutetsu Boku at Hero's
As it was confirmed by site TATAME, in July 20th, Alexandre Pequeno
will do a superfight at the Hero's edition in August 5th. And
the Brazilian will face the Japanese Koutetsu Boku, the same
one that defeated Hermes França at the Hero's and Tuniko
Junior at Shooto. Pequeno travels in next day 30 knowing what
he must do to get the victory. 'He is an expert in Muay Thai.he
is a really though guy that I know very well.His game is alike
Aléssio Sakara's game.. he punches really well and kicks
well. So my idea is to take the fight to the ground and try the
submissions', said Pequeno, exclusivilly to site TATAME.
COMPLETE
CARD (subject to change):
K-1
Hero's
Saturday, August 5th, 2006
Ariake Colosseum, Tokyo - Japan
Grand
Prix Light Heavyweight
-
Kazushi Sakuraba vs. Kestutis Smirnovas (RINGS Lithuania);
-
Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Kin Tai Ei (Seido Kaikan);
-
Shungo Oyama vs. Rodrigo Gracie;
-
Carlos Newton vs. Melvin Manhoef;
Grand
Prix Lightweight:
-
Genki Sudo (Beverly Hills Jiu-Jitsu Club)
-
Kaoru Uno (Wajyutsu Keisyukai Tokyo Headquarters)
-
Kultar Gill (Revolution Fight Team)
-
Gesias Calvancanti (American Top Team)
-
Rani Yahira (Atiada Jr. Jiu-Jitsu)
-
Ivan Menjivar (Tristar Gym)
Other
bouts:
-
Don Frye (Team Frye) vs. Min Soo Kim (Rings Korea);
-
Alexandre Pequeno vs. Koutetsu Boku.
Source: Tatame
|
Quote
of the Day
"If
a man has common sense, he has all the sense there is."
Sam Rayburn, 1882-1961, American Politician
|
Mayhem
Seminar Today!
Fresh
off his dominating victory over The Ultimate Fighter contestant
Lodune Sincaid, Mayhem comes back to his second home to do another
one of his great seminars at an incredible price! Don't miss
it!
Jason
“Mayhem” Miller does it again! He is on this week’s
edition of the newspaper distributed in downtown Honolulu, The
Downtown Planet. The story features his fight with Lodune Sincaid
and Robbie Lawler. Check it out!
I
just got off the phone with Mayhem to talk to him about the cover
and he is ecstatic about it. He said that the training is done.
He is in great shape and he feels extremely confident going into
the fight. He is currently in Los Angeles, but will come back
to Hawaii after the fight, where he has a seminar scheduled at
HMC on Saturday, July 29th.
Jason
"Mayhem" Miller Seminar at HMC On July 29th!
Hawaii
Martial Arts Center (HMC)
King's Gate Plaza
555 North King Street
Honolulu, Hawaii 96817
July 29, 2006
Time: 4:00 to 7:00 pm
$30.00
|
Rest
In Peace Roger Silva
A
man that I liked to refer to as the Forest Gump of Jiu-Jitsu,
Roger Silva recently past away. I use the Gump moniker because
he seemed to be everywhere of significant importance. Roger can
be seen in the UFC 1 DVD as one of the last people walking out
of the cage before fights and in the cage celebrating Royce's
first UFC title. Or in Japan, in the ring celebrating Rickson's
wins. He was also in Hawaii for a long time, either at the Jiu-Jitsu
academy, tournaments or at every Jiu-Jitsu party. He spent a
lot of time in California, where he was always around the Gracie
family and if you looked close, it wasn't a surprise to see him
in pictures with Rickson and the rest of the family. We even
ran into Roger a couple of years ago when, by sheer chance, we
bumped into each other at a club in Copacabana, Brazil. What
is the chances of that? I told you, he was everywhere!
He
was definitely not slow like Gump. Roger's mind was always sprinting
as he was a successful business man and constantly working on
new opportunities. In fact, he was currently living in San Francisco
running a business last Saturday, when he was taken to see his
maker. Roger always had a smile on his face, laughing all the
time and was always happy to see you. He had the kind of personality
that could make you forget about your worse day, by bumping into
him for a few minutes.
There is definitely a special place in Heaven for Roger and he
is looking down at us right now. Rest in peace my brother. Another
very close friend of Roger, BJJ Black Belt and Head Instructor
of Brazilian Freestyle Jiu-Jitsu, Romolo Barros arranged a memorial
service for him. Details are below.
Roger
Silva Memorial Service
St Augustine
130 Ohua Ave
(corner of Kalakaua Avenue & Ohua Street in Waikiki)
Saturday, July 29, 2006
5:00PM
|
Ikuhisa
Minowa vs. Butterbean added to
PRIDE Bushido 12
Ikuhisa Minowa vs. Eric "Butterbean" Esch has been
added to PRIDE Bushido 12.
Current
Fight Card:
- WW GP: Dan Henderson vs. Kazuo Misaki
- WW GP: Akihiro Gono vs. Gegard Mousasi
- WW GP: Ryo Chonan vs. Paulo Filho
- WW GP: Denis Kang vs. Amar Suloev
- Tatsuya Kawajiri vs. Chris Brennan
- Shinya Aoki vs. Jason Black
- Gilbert Melendez vs. Nobuhiro Obiya
- Jeff Curran vs. Hatsu Hioki
- Mitsuhiro Ishida vs. TBA
- Hayato "Mach" Sakurai vs. TBA
- Takanori Gomi vs. TBA
- Ikuhisa Minowa vs. Eric "Butterbean" Esch
PRIDE
Bushido Survival 2006 Second Round takes place from the Nagoya
Aichi Rainbow Hall on Saturday, August 26th. Fox Sports Net will
air the event on August 27th at 7:00pm.
Source: MMA Fighting
|
Chris
Leben: Back on his Feet and Ready to Fight
By Sean McClure
If you watched the last Ultimate Fight Night then you will not
soon forget the calculated and devastating striking of Anderson
Silva that demolished Chris Leben in just 49 seconds of the first
round. Some would argue that Leben was unprepared for the caliber
of opponent the UFC set before him. Chris would beg to differ
and would like to prove that he is one of the top middleweights
in the UFC. He plans to do so when he steps in to the Octagon
August 17 on Spike TV’s Ultimate Fight Night against Jorge
Santiago.
Chris
Leben has openly admitted that he does not know a lot about his
opponent, but that is sometimes common in MMA. According to a
recent UFC article, Leben stated that he was “excited to
get back in there and compete”. He acknowledged that Santiago
was “a very tough guy from American Top Team”, but
that’s about all he had to say about him. Could the result
of the Silva fight have humbled Chris, as it would surely have
done to any veteran of the Octagon? We’ll have to wait and
see the pre-fight hype interviews before we can answer that.
Jorge
Santiago is 11-5 and a native of Rio de Janeiro who at the last
Ultimate Fight Night knocked out Justin Levens at 2:13 seconds
of the first round. Santiago said in the same article “I
think he is a tough fighter with a lot of heart”, referring
to The Crippler. Jorge is also a competent striker who will not
back down from Leben’s aggressiveness. “This will be
a hard fight, but I'm prepared to win”, said Santiago.
This
is the test of character, which many critics have stated Chris
would have the most trouble. I disagree with them somewhat because
of his misfortunes on the Ultimate Fighter season 1 reality show.
First losing a decision to Josh Koscheck and then losing to Kenny
Florian due to doctor stoppage. I think that Leben will shine
through this and become a better fighter just as he did after
the show ended.
On
August 17, Chris “The Crippler” Leben will face Brazilian
Jorge Santiago on Spike TV’s Ultimate Fight Night. The question
could be answered here as to Chris’s mental condition and
what he has learned from the loss. Will he be the 5-win streak
Chris we saw before the fight or will he be a shell of that tenacious
fighter completely?
Source:
Maxfighting
|
Shields
vs. Berger
Jake
Shields will be fighting Steve Berger in the upcoming show, Malice
at the Cow Palace. Shields is the reigning Rumble on the Rock
GP Champion and the former Shooto middleweight champion. He will
be looking for a victory over Berger who is a tough UFC veteran.
Also on the card will be fellow team mates Randy Spence, Moses
Baca and Dan Marks.
Source:
Gracie Fighter
|
Quote
of the Day
"Inventories
can be managed, but people must be led."
H. Ross Perot,
American Businessman/Politician/Founder of Electronic Data Systems
|
Please
Help Me Sell My House in Pacific Palisades!
Warning:
Shameless personal plug which has nothing to do with martial
arts.
I (Chris) am selling my house due to my divorce. I need to get
the house sold so I can get out of my marriage! If you know anyone
that is interested or any real estate agents that you know that
can help get the word out to generate interest in my house, I
would really appreciate it!
This
is the house that I planned on growing old and dying in, so it
is a great property, has a lot of sentimental value and a hell
of a lot of sweat equity put into it. It is in a great neighborhood,
with great neighbors and is priced under other listed comparables
in Palisades, even though the house and the land area are larger.
Please
email
me
if you have any questions or if you know of anyone that would
like to arrange a viewing.
We are holding an Open House next week Sunday from 2-5PM
(please check the Honolulu Advertiser to confirm).
Here
are some of the details:
2255 Amokemoke Street
Pearl City, Hawaii 96782
In
Pacific Palisades
1,698
sqft living area
200
sqft covered work area
8,998
sqft land area
Perimeter
lot with view of the valley, mountains, city, and ocean
New
exterior paint on the house, car port and surrounding hollow
tile walls.
New
cement walkways and large concrete slab for BBQs, kids bikes
or general entertaining
Retaining
wall recently installed to create a large usable front yard
Tangerine,
mango and lime trees in the back yard.
Hollow tile wall surrounds the house
All
exterior doors were just replaced with fiberglass doors and deadbolts
Security door recently installed
Security
bars on the windows for added security, also recently painted
Home
Security system
Pool
table
2
- 8,500BTU air conditioning wall units for the bedrooms, less
than 1 year old.
Wall to wall carpeting and ceramic tile floors
Off
the major street (Aumakua Street) in Palisades, so it is close
to bus stops, but not a lot of passing cars
Great
neighbors
$35
Annual Community Association dues, with no restrictions on house
color, hanging clothes, etc like many other communities.
2
comparable homes, four houses away selling for $43,000 &
$100,000 more.
Realtor:
Ron
Lee
Real Estate Incorporated
975 Kapiolani Blvd, Ste 200
Honolulu, HI 96814
Phone: (808) 596-0833
Fax: (808) 596-0834
Email: realest@pixi.com
|
Enson
Inoue presents "Kokoro" in August
There has been some buzz about Enson Inoue taking his vast
knowledge and experience in MMA to start his own event. Here
is the first thing that we have seen printed from a website referring
to it.
Enson Inoue is putting together a new MMA show called "Kokoro"
(Heart) that takes place on August 15th at the Korakuen Hall
in Tokyo, Japan.
PRIDE
veteran Hiromitsu Kanehara and Shooto veteran Tetsuji Kato will
be on the card.
Source: MMA Fighting
|
WEC
XXII "The Hitman" Ryan Bennett Benefit Today!
Tommorow, July 28th, World Extreme Cagefighting and the Tachi
Palace Hotel & Casino teams up to present WEC XXII "Hitman"
in Lemoore, California. All ticket sales will be donated to the
Ryan Bennett Memorial Fund. $20 tickets are available by calling
1-866-4-PALACE.
Fight
Card:
155 lbs: Robert “The Wrecker” Densley vs. Mike Joy
205 lbs: Rafael “The Real Deal” Del Real vs. Keith
Berry
205 lbs: Jeff Terry vs. Doug "The Rhino" Marshall
170 lbs: JT Taylor vs. Drew Dimanlig
265 lbs: Joel “The Godfather” Surprenant vs. Wes "The
Project" Sims
145 lbs: Trevor Harris vs. Colley Bradford (Swing Bout)
Intermission
Grappling Match: Urijah Faber vs. Cory Cass
170 lbs: Joel Thomas vs. Pat Murphy
170 lbs: J J Mix vs. Mario Rivera
205 lbs: Jack Morrison vs. Glover “The Brazilian Pitbull”
Teixeira
170 lbs: Troy Miller vs. Poppies “Tachi Kid” Martinez
155 lbs: Alvan Cacdus vs. Casey “The Underdog” Olsen
205 lbs: Alex Steibling vs. Jason Guida
If
you can't make it to the show and would still like to help, donations
can be made online or by mail to the Ryan Bennett Family Memorial
Fund.
(http://www.mmaweekly.com/bennettfund/)
Source:
MMA Fighting
|
Terrell-Okami
Added to UFC 62
On its Web site Wednesday, the Ultimate Fighting Championship
announced a middleweight match for August 26's "Liddell
vs. Sobral" card, pitting David Terrell against PRIDE and
Pancrase veteran Yushin Okami.
Terrell
last took to the cage in April, scoring a controversial submission
victory over Capital City Fighting Alliance's Scott Smith. The
27-year-old Smith criticized first-time UFC referee Marco Lopez
after the bout, saying because the official didn’t properly
enforce a break in the action he was forced into the submission
loss.
Okami,
the winner of two straight contests since being edged by Jake
Shields in the semifinal round of Rumble on the Rock's 175-lb.
tournament (a decision many cageside observers dispute), makes
his Octagon debut sporting an impressive 16-3 record, with his
lone stoppage loss coming at the hands of Amar Suloev.
The
middleweights join Stephan Bonnar and Forrest Griffin on the
undercard of Chuck Liddell's title defense against No. 1 light
heavyweight contender Renato Sobral.
UFC
62 "Liddell vs Sobral" Fight Card:
Chuck Liddell vs. Renato Sobral
Stephan Bonnar vs. Forrest Griffin
David Terrell vs. Yushin Okami
Source:
Sherdog
|
WASHINGTON
TIMES ARTICLE ON
UFC, ZUFFA, AND BOXING
Fierce Foe For Boxing
by Thom Loverro, Washington Times
LAS VEGAS -- It is 5 p.m. on a Saturday at Mandalay Bay Events
Center, where the doors have just opened for the first bout of
a fight show. It is one of several fights that will take place
hours before the pay-per-view battles start.
Typically,
there are more people working in the arena than watching the
first fight of a boxing card.
"You
can usually hear a pin drop," said Marc Ratner, the former
executive director of the Nevada State Athletic Commission.
Not
tonight. This night there is a crowd waiting for the doors to
open, and there are about 6,000 people already in the arena when
Kurt Pellegrino takes on Drew Ficket in a welterweight bout.
But
then, this isn't a boxing show.
It's
an Ultimate Fighting Championship mixed martial arts event, and
the sport that blends boxing, kick boxing, wrestling and jujitsu
is all the rage in Las Vegas.
"It
is amazing how big it has become," said Randy Couture, a
former UFC fighter and now a color analyst. "And it's getting
bigger."
On
July 8, more than 12,000 people filled sold-out Mandalay Bay
Events Center for UFC 61 for a highly anticipated mixed martial
arts battle featuring four of the sport's biggest stars. Ken
Shamrock, one of the first UFC fighters, faced Tito Ortiz in
a grudge match, and heavyweight champion Tim Sylvia, at 6-foot-8
and 255 pounds, defended his title in the third fight of a trilogy
against Andrei Arlovski.
Those
who were fortunate enough to obtain box office tickets paid between
$100 and $750 to attend. Some paid much more to buy tickets from
scalpers. Others paid to watch the show on closed circuit at
other casinos in town.
In
May, Staples Center in Los Angeles was sold out for UFC 60. The
month before, the Arrowhead Pond arena in Anaheim was sold out
for UFC 59.
Contrast
that with Saturday night's boxing pay-per-view show at MGM Grand
Garden in Las Vegas, considered to be the center of the boxing
universe.
Two
of boxing's biggest stars, Shane Mosley and Fernando Vargas,
fought in a rematch. There were thousands of empty seats, and
most likely a portion of the 9,800 fans who did show up received
complimentary tickets.
Or
contrast tomorrow's re-debut on ESPN of a recycled, failed network
boxing program, "The Contender," to the success of
Ultimate Fighting Championship's shows on Spike TV. The reality
program "The Ultimate Fighter" is the network's most-watched
program.
That
sound you hear in Las Vegas is not a pin dropping, but knees
knocking -- the knees of those in the boxing business who see
their sport being pummeled by Ultimate Fighting Championship,
the most prominent of the various mixed martial arts promotions
in America.
Most
boxing promoters don't want to even acknowledge the existence
of Ultimate Fighting Championship. Bob Arum at Top Rank did not
respond to questions about it, and a representative of Kathy
Duva at Main Events said the firm won't discuss it.
Promoter
Gary Shaw, however, is willing to address what he believes should
be a wake-up call for boxing, else it turns into a requiem for
the sport.
"I
think UFC is the up-and-coming wave and poses tremendous competition
to boxing," Shaw said. "It has been creeping up on
boxing without boxing being aware of it. They are getting the
younger fans, and our fans are getting older and older.
"Boxing
has to put on the best fights we can, with the least mismatches
and the most action."
Sometime,
though, they don't even put on the fights as scheduled.
In
June, a highly anticipated third fight between lightweights Diego
Corrales and Jose Luis Castillo was scheduled for Thomas &
Mack Center at the University of Nevada-Las Vegas, backed by
Las Vegas heavyweight Steve Wynn and his new Wynn Hotel and Casino.
The
day before the fight, however, Castillo failed to make the 135-pound
weight limit, and the fight was canceled. That meant money already
collected had to be returned.
When
promoters do manage to put the fighters in the ring, the results
often are unsatisfying.
The
fight between undefeated heavyweight Calvin Brock and Timur Ibragimov
at Ceasars Palace's outdoor arena last month was so bad that
the crowd walked out en masse. The few that stayed booed lustily
throughout most of the fight.
Even
the entertaining fights are carried out under circumstances that
turn off boxing fans.
The
fight between Mosley and Vargas -- the bout ended with a sixth-round
knockout by Mosley -- was on the verge of being canceled because
Mosley and his promoter, Oscar De La Hoya of Golden Boy Promotions,
were upset that Vargas was going to use Gatorade in his corner
per new Nevada rules.
Mosley
got a court order preventing Vargas from drinking Gatorade between
rounds.
The
biggest blow to boxing, though, might have occurred on May 13,
when Ratner, one of the most respected figures in the business,
quit the Nevada State Athletic Commission to accept a job with
Ultimate Fighting Championship.
"Boxing
is part of my life and I love the sport, but I felt so bad when
the Castillo-Corrales fight didn't happen," Ratner said.
"That broke my heart. You can't have those things happen
in this day and age, but it did.
"There
is plenty of room for both sports, but I think boxing needs to
change its culture and thinking. Oscar [De La Hoya] may be retiring
soon. What happens after Oscar? Nobody knows who the heavyweight
champion is when you ask people. Also, if your audience keeps
getting older and you're not getting new fans, it will become
a niche sport. This is the new sport appealing to young people."
That
Ratner, who through his work for the athletic commission helped
set whatever standards there are in boxing, would go to work
for Ultimate Fighting Championship is evidence of the success
that the owners of the company have had in legitimizing what
once was viewed as a renegade sport with no rules, one that was
bloodying itself out of business.
Former
boxing promoter Dana White and his partners, Las Vegas casino
owners Frank Feritta III and his brother Lorenzo, a former member
of the athletic commission, bought Ultimate Fighting Championship
and set about to change its image.
"I
had heard that UFC was in trouble and was about to go out of
business," White said. "We approached the owner and
a month later we owned the company, in January 2001. Once we
got involved, we knew what our game plan was."
"The
first thing we knew we had to do was to get it sanctioned by
all the major athletic commissions. We sat down with officials
from Nevada and New Jersey in 2002, and we got that done. We
felt we could go back to the cable industry then. The big problem
the old UFC had was that Senator [John] McCain went after them
because they refused to be sanctioned. We took the opposite approach
and embraced sanctioning."
Ultimate
Fighting Championship now is sanctioned in 20 states, and Ratner
is working on gaining sanction in the other 30.
It
also created weight classes. It went to a rounds system (five-minute
rounds, five rounds for championship fights). It trained referees
to move in quickly and stop a bout when a fighter was defenseless.
And
it began drawing not barroom brawlers, but legitimate athletes,
many of them, like Couture, former college wrestling champions.
And all fighters are subject to the same medical and pre- and
post-fight drug testing as boxers.
"We
went back to the cable industry and showed them that we were
sanctioned and legitimate," White said. "We started
to build our pay-per-view business back up. Then we needed to
get a TV show to introduce these athletes to the mainstream.
It was very hard trying to get a TV deal. But since reality television
was so popular, we figured that could be our Trojan Horse. You
are watching MMA [mixed martial arts] without realizing you are
watching MMA."
Couture
was a three-time NCAA Division I All-American wrestler and an
alternate for the Olympic team in 1988, 1992 and 1996. He said
it is a great opportunity for wrestlers who had no place to earn
a living with their talent. Much of the action in UFC can take
place on the mat, using both wrestling and jujitsu to get an
opponent into a submission move.
"It
was an outlet for me to use all those skills I had spent years
developing and make a living," Couture said. "A wrestler
that comes out of high school will be lucky if he can get a college
scholarship and get his education paid for, but after that there
are not a lot of other options."
White
grew up a boxing fan and insists that Ultimate Fighting Championships
is not going after boxing. But the comparisons are obvious. Michael
Buffer, for example, is the well-known ring announcer for most
major boxing events. The ring announcer for Ultimate Fighting
Championships? His brother, Bruce Buffer.
"You
can be a boxing fan and a UFC fan at the same time," White
said. "The problem with boxing, in my opinion, is all the
powers in boxing have done nothing to secure the future of the
sport. Guys like Don King and Bob Arum, they don't care about
the future of boxing. All they care about is how much money can
I put in my pocket right here and right now."
Of
course, a huge difference between Ultimate Fighting Championship
and boxing is that there are not as many pockets to fill.
There
are no Don Kings, no promoters, no sanctioning bodies like the
World Boxing Council and the various other entities that get
a piece of everything -- the people who often produce mismatched
fights and padded records in an effort to protect their boxers.
There
is only Ultimate Fighting Championship, which controls all the
fighters and dictates how much they get paid (paydays are not
revealed, and neither are the pay-per-view figures).
Whatever
the purse, both fighters receive a fee for showing up and the
winner gets a bonus.
"UFC
does a great job of matching fighters based on their skill level,"
Couture said. "No one is out there matching up fighters
just to build up their records and move them up in the rankings.
Anyone can win the fight, with so many different ways to win.
It becomes less predictable and more intriguing."
It
was a little less intriguing, though, at UFC 61, where the sport
finally may have fallen victim to its own efforts to become legitimate.
The
fight between Ortiz and Shamrock, which had the crowd pumped
up in anticipation, was stopped after 78 seconds when Ortiz had
Shamrock on the ground and nailed him with a series of forearms.
The
crowd thought the stoppage was premature and booed the decision
and threw beer into the ring. Shamrock thought so, too, and tried
to attack Ortiz after the fight. About a dozen Las Vegas police
rushed into the ring to restore order.
The
main event that followed, Sylvia vs. Arlovski, was hardly a repeat
of their first two fights, in which one fighter had knocked out
the other quickly in the first round to win. It was a five-round
affair without much action, just Sylvia using his reach and boxing
skills to keep Arlovski away. The fans booed throughout much
of the action near the end.
White
acknowledged after the show that it wasn't the best event. "There
were a lot of boos tonight," he said. "But we have
been on this tremendous roll."
At
the same time, the only roll boxing appears to be on is downhill,
toward a grave.
Source: Washington Times
|
Quote
of the Day
"I
think, at a child's birth, if a mother could ask a fairy godmother
to
endow it with the most useful gift, that gift would be curiosity."
Eleanor Roosevelt, 1884-1962, Former First Lady of the United
States
|
Palolo
Gym Smoker Boxing Event
Palolo
Boxing Club, and Kawano Boxing Club will be hosting a smoker
on Aug. 26, at Palolo Gym at 6:30 P.M. If you have any boxers,
email me their names, weights, age, birthdate, and how many bouts
they have.
All
boxers will have to register with USA-Boxing. We want everyone
to give the honest weight they will come in, they will weigh-in
on that same day. We don't want any mismatches.
Also,
let me know if they have braces I can mail you the braces release
form. Pass the word around.
Thank You,
Bruce
Kawano
USA-Boxing Hawaii Junior Olympic Chairman.
USA-Boxing Hawaii Board of Dir./Gov.
National Coaches Committee.
Ringside Board of Advisors.
|
Team
Hawaii Brings Home Medal!
Teshiya Alo Wins Triple Crown!
Congrats
to Teshiya Alo for winning the triple crown of judo this summer.
Teshiya won the USJO, USJA, and USJF judo nationals this summer!
She
is a national champion in wrestling and Judo.
She
is also a part of the Relson Gracie Kaneohe Team and has been
tearing up the state Jiu-Jitsu scene! Please wish her the best
as she represents Hawaii's Future!!!!!!
Hawaii
Judoka's Make Big Impact in Florida!
Congrats to Shobukan Judoka's who represented Hawaii at the United
States Judo Federation's National Championships in FT. Lauderdale,
Florida. Of twelve youth competitors ten medal in the top three!
1st place Josh Terao
1st place Jacob Palimo'o
2nd place Cory-Joe
2nd place David Terao
2nd place Hikina Gaughen
2nd place Chade Wong
3rd place Makoa Gaughen
3rd place Trevor Allen
3rd place Tyler Allen
3rd place Jessica Oda
Congrats for a job well done and lots of luck for the US Open
of Judo this weekend!
|
Mayhem
Seminar this Saturday!
Fresh
off his dominating victory over The Ultimate Fighter contestant
Lodune Sincaid, Mayhem comes back to his second home to do another
one of his great seminars at an incredible price! Don't miss
it!
Jason
“Mayhem” Miller does it again! He is on this week’s
edition of the newspaper distributed in downtown Honolulu, The
Downtown Planet. The story features his fight with Lodune Sincaid
and Robbie Lawler. Check it out!
I
just got off the phone with Mayhem to talk to him about the cover
and he is ecstatic about it. He said that the training is done.
He is in great shape and he feels extremely confident going into
the fight. He is currently in Los Angeles, but will come back
to Hawaii after the fight, where he has a seminar scheduled at
HMC on Saturday, July 29th.
Jason
"Mayhem" Miller Seminar at HMC On July 29th!
Hawaii
Martial Arts Center (HMC)
King's Gate Plaza
555 North King Street
Honolulu, Hawaii 96817
July 29, 2006
Time: 4:00 to 7:00 pm
$30.00
|
Champions
of World Black Belt 2006
The
JJ World Championship, organized by CBJJO, was held from day
19 to 23 of July in Niterói city (Rio de Janeiro). The
Brasa team was the great champion of the competition. The athlete
André Galvão got the medium title defeating in
the final Guto Campos, from BTT. In the super heavy final, the
athletes from Brasa Rodrigo Comprido and Robert Drysdale made
a friendly bout, where Comprido defeated his team mate Drysdale
by points. The athlete from TT Jiu-Jitsu Rubens Charles 'Cobrinha'
was very well getting the featherweight title and also closing
with Eduardo Pessoa, from Nova União, the light absolute
heading. In the heavy category, Xande Ribeiro was the champion
defeating Bráulio Estima (Gracie Barra) by submission.
Check out now the complete results of black belt bouts of the
World Black Belt 2006:
COMPLETE
RESULTS:
World
Black Belt
Sunday,
July 23, 2006
Caio
Martins, Niteroi
Rooster:
Felipe Costa (Brasa) defeated Samuel Braga (Gracie Barra BH)
by
points;
Featherweight:
Rubens Charles 'Cobrinha' (TT Jiu-Jitsu) submitted Armando
Guedes
(Nova União) by choke;
Pluma:
Ricardinho Vieira (Brasa) defeated Rodrigo Ranieri (Brasa) by
points;
Light:
Cláudio Calazans (Liga Jiu-Jitsu) defeated Ramon Lemos
(Brasa) by
points;
Medium:
André Galvão (Brasa) defeated Guto Campos (BTT)
by points;
Half
heavy: Delson Pé de Chumbo (Gracie Barra) submitted Rômulo
Barral
(Gracie
Barra BH) by choke;
Heavy:
Xande Ribeiro (Gracie Humaitá) submitted Bráulio
Estima (Gracie
Barra)
by strangulation;
Super
heavy: Rodrigo Comprido (Brasa) defeated Robert Drysdale (Brasa)
by
points;
Heaviest:
Gabriel Napão (Macaco Gold Team) defeated Márcio
Pé-de-pano
(Gracie
Barra) by 2 advantages;
Absolute
light: Eduardo Pessoa (Nova União) closed with Rubens
'Cobrinha'
(TT
Jiu-Jitsu);
Absolute
heavy: Márcio Pé-de-pano (Gracie Barra) closed
with Bráulio Estima
(Gracie
Barra).
Source: Tatame |
Pequeno
does K-1 Hero's super fight
Seven
times champion of Shooto, Alexandre Pequeno is already confirmed
to make his second fight in the K-1 Hero's GP, on next August
5th, at Ariake Colosseum, in Tokyo, Japan. With no adversary
confirmed yet, Pequeno goes to Japan on next July 30th. 'After
a hard 2005, I want to came back with my best in 2006 and I want
my belt', said the Brazilian, that in his last participation
in K-1 Hero's GP, in 2005, was eliminated by Hideo Tokoro, in
a very polemic bout.
Pequeno
won't be alone at this match. Gesias Cavalcanti and Rani Yahria
will fight the second stage of the GP Lightweight, and Rodrigo
Gracie now know his first adversary in Hero's Grand Prix Light
Heavyweight. That will be Shungo Oyama, who already faced Wallid
Ismail, Wanderlei Silva, Ryan Gracie and one victory under Renzo
Gracie, in Pride 21. The GP Lightweight bouts are not defined
yet, because Kid Yamamoto was out of the event to train for the
2008 Pequim Olympic Games, where he will be part of the Wrestling
team.
COMPLETE
CARD (subject to change):
K-1
Hero's
Saturday,
August 5th, 2006
Ariake
Colosseum, Tokyo - Japan
Grand
Prix Light Heavyweight:
-
Kazushi Sakuraba vs. Kestutis Smirnovas (RINGS Lithuania)
-
Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Kin Tai Ei (Seido Kaikan)
-
Shungo Oyama vs. Rodrigo Gracie
-
Carlos Newton vs. Melvin Manhoef
Grand
Prix Lightweight:
-
Genki Sudo (Beverly Hills Jiu-Jitsu Club)
-
Kaoru Uno (Wajyutsu Keisyukai Tokyo Headquarters)
-
Kultar Gill (Revolution Fight Team)
-
Gesias Calvancanti (American Top Team)
-
Rani Yahira (Atiada Jr. Jiu-Jitsu)
-
Ivan Menjivar (Tristar Gym)
Other
bouts:
-
Don Frye (Team Frye) vs. Min Soo Kim (Rings Korea);
-
Alexandre Pequeno vs. TBA.
Source: Tatame |
FULL
WFA REVIEW: RAMPAGE AND RUTTEN WIN
CHECK OUT THE PHOTOS BY SCOTT PETERSEN IN THE PHOTO GALLERY NOW
or
click this link to go directly to the gallery: http://69.46.29.2:8080/absoluteig/gallery.asp?categoryid=747
The
World Fighting Alliance returned with its first show in almost
four years on Saturday night in front of a national pay-per-view
audience. Looking to make a big impression with fans in its return
show, the WFA's management signed former Pride star Quinton “Rampage”
Jackson and top middleweight Matt “The Law” Lindland
to fight in the main event. In addition, this card saw the return
of MMA legend Bas Rutten to active MMA competition after seven
years on the sidelines.
The
event looked promising, but the WFA hit its first snag just a
couple of days before the event was to unfold. Kimo, who was
scheduled to fight Bas Rutten in his return fight, was unable
to fight because he tested positive for anabolic steroids. Scrambling
to find an opponent to fight Rutten on short notice, the WFA
finally settled on Ruben “Warpath” Villareal as Kimo's
replacement. When the dust had finally cleared on the event,
a night of mismatches and a controversial decision in the main
event emerged from what once was a promising event.
In
his first fight outside of Japan in four years, Quinton “Rampage”
Jackson was expected to not have much trouble with the smaller
Matt Lindland. The Law held his own with Jackson during their
15-minute war, as the fighters traded slams in an exciting fight.
Both fighters looked to get the first takedown of the fight when
they clinched along the fence at the beginning of the first round,
but it was Rampage who scooped Lindland up into the air and slammed
him for the first takedown of the night.
Not
to be outdone, Lindland then worked his way back up to his feet,
scooped up Jackson, and slammed him to the mat. Jackson was able
to get back to his feet, and they traded strikes in the clinch
until Lindland went for a takedown and was able to get Jackson's
back. Lindland locked on a tight rear naked choke, and while
most fighters would have tapped out, Jackson gutted it out and
somehow managed to escape.
In
the second round, Jackson was finally able to land some strikes
that looked to have Lindland hurt at one point. Jackson was also
able to get takedowns and appeared to win the second round. Going
into the final round, it appeared that each fighter had won one
round, so the fight would be decided in the last stanza. Rampage
landed a few nice punches, but Lindland responded with punches
of his own and a high kick.
During
another clinch up against the fence, Lindland worked for a guillotine
choke from a dominant position. At that point, Lindland went
for broke and attempted to finish the fight by submission by
pulling guard with the guillotine choke still applied. Jackson
managed to escape, and just 25 seconds remained on the clock.
Jackson tried to pound on Lindland from the top in the final
25 seconds, and while he didn't land any flurries, he did land
an elbow that caused a cut on Lindland's nose.
When
the judges' scores were read, it was revealed that one judge
had the fight scored 29-28 in favor of Lindland, while the other
two judges scored the fight 29-28 in favor of Jackson, so Jackson
picked up the split decision win. Going into the fight, most
doubted that Lindland would be able to hang with Jackson due
to the size and strength factors, but Lindland more than held
his own and deserved to win the fight in some fans' eyes.
Bas
Rutten made his triumphant return to MMA by quickly dispatching
his grossly overmatched late replacement opponent, Ruben “Warpath”
Villareal. Rutten came out and landed some fast punches, while
Villareal showed his incredible chin by just taking them and
coming forward. Realizing that Villareal wasn’t going down
easily, Rutten switched his focus to low kicks, the first of
which sounded like a baseball bat when it made contact with Villareal's
knee area.
After
a couple more low kicks on the same spot, Villareal was limping,
and an additional low kick put Villareal down for good. Villareal
could no longer continue and had to receive medical attention
for his leg after the fight. Much respect should be given to
Villareal for stepping up to fight Rutten on less then two days'
notice.
When
asked if he would be back for another fight, Rutten responded
by saying that he needs to heal up before he can make that decision,
and then he revealed that he came into the bout with more than
one major injury. Rutten came into the fight with a torn groin
muscle (which is what made him hesitant to use low kicks), a
dislocated rib (which caused him the most short-term pain during
the fight), and a torn ACL in his knee (which is the most serious
injury with the longest recovery time). Rutten said that he will
be going in for surgery on his knee in the near future. Rutten's
foot was also discolored after the fight as a result of the final
low kick that he landed.
In
a lackluster fight, Ryoto "Lyoto" Machida made his
U.S. debut against MMA veteran Vernon “Tiger” White.
Both fighters looked to counter-punch for the vast majority of
the fight, and what ensued was both fighters stalking the other
without doing much. Lyoto landed more in the way of offense than
White, but that’s not saying much. In the final round, Lyoto
finally took White down and took his back, but was unable to
secure the choke.
Lyoto
won a unanimous decision in a fight that most fans would probably
like to forget. Next time around, U.S. fans will hopefully see
the Lyoto who knocked out Rich Franklin in 2003, because that
Lyoto didn’t show up on Saturday night.
In
what looked like the biggest mismatch of the night, Jason “Mayhem”
Miller easily dominated Ultimate Fighter alumni Lodune Sincaid
before submitting him with a rear naked choke late in the first
round. Shortly after the fight started, Miller was able to land
a knee to the body that appeared to hurt Sincaid.
Miller
pulled Sincaid to the ground and got his back, but was unable
to secure the choke. Sincaid reversed him, but Miller went for
a leg lock and used the submission attempt as a way to get Sincaid's
back again. This time, Miller did secure the choke, as he first
applied the choke to the chin before he was able to slide it
down to the throat area for the tapout.
In
an exciting fight, Ivan Salaverry showed what made him a top
contender in the UFC's middleweight division by dispatching a
very game Art “Pachuco” Santore in the second round
by TKO. Santore came out with punches and kicks, while Salaverry
was content to be more technical and counter Santore’s aggressiveness
with kicks.
Salaverry
landed an array of leg kicks that appeared to hurt Santore's
legs, and body kicks that appeared to knock the wind out of Santore.
The variety of kicks paid off for Salaverry late in the second
round when he landed a high kick that rocked Santore. Sensing
that the end was near, Salaverry dropped Santore to the mat with
punches, then mounted Santore and landed punches at will until
the referee stopped the fight. Although he was still alert, Santore
was unable to defend himself from the barrage of punches, hence
the stoppage.
In
his most impressive performance since winning the UFC Heavyweight
Title in 2002, Ricco Rodriguez battered Ron Waterman with punches
to get the TKO victory. Waterman was unable to take Rodriguez
down, and the effort seemed to cause Waterman to gas out. Rodriguez
made him pay for it with a couple of overhand rights, which spelled
the beginning of the end for Waterman in this fight.
Though
he was also winded, Rodriguez landed punches and knees for the
rest of the round. After the first round, Waterman's eye was
swelling up, and the doctor stopped the fight.
The
opening fight on the live PPV broadcast looked more like a kickboxing
match than an MMA bout, as "Razor” Rob McCullough won
a one-sided decision over Harris Sarmiento. McCullough landed
at will throughout the fight, particularly with leg kicks. As
the leg kicks added up, Sarmiento was much less aggressive in
the final two rounds. Sarmiento's swollen and discolored leg
seemed to limit his explosiveness and mobility, and McCullough
won all three rounds handily.
On
the non-televised undercard, Jorge "Van Damme" Oliveira
and Marvin Eastman fought to a draw, as neither fighter was able
to impose his will on the other during the fight. Both fighters
seemed to be holding back in the early stages of the fight, as
neither landed anything significant in the first round. The same
could be said for the second round until late in the round when
the two fighters traded some hard punches. Eastman got the better
of the exchange and opened a cut under Oliveira's eye.
The
two fighters started the third round aggressively, with both
fighters landing good shots, but the action stalled for rest
of the fight and neither fighter looked committed to finishing
the other. After three rounds, one judge gave the fight to Oliveira,
another judge gave it to Eastman, and the third judge scored
the fight a draw, so the end result of the fight was a draw.
Coming
in as a late replacement for Jose "Pele" Landi-Jons,
Martin Kampmann looked good in disposing of Edwin Aguilar by
TKO in the first round. Kampmann landed a few heavy shots that
downed Aguilar, and the referee stepped in to prevent Aguilar
from taking further punishment.
Source: MMA Weekly |
Quote
of the Day
"The
production of too many useful things results in too many useless
people."
Karl Marx, 1818-1883, German Political Philosopher and Social
Theorist |
GOING
DEEP WITH TIM SYLVIA
Tim "The Maine-iac" Sylvia successfully defended his
UFC Heavyweight Title by defeating Andrei Arlovski at UFC 61
on July 8th. Sylvia spoke with MMAWeekly last week about his
three fights with Arlovski, how he matches up against the top
Pride heavyweights, and the possibility of a unification bout.
MMAWeekly:
First of all, congratulations on defending your title against
Andrei Arlovski. Have you recovered physically? At the post-fight
press conference, you were limping a little bit.
Tim
Sylvia: Oh yeah. I was a little banged up after twenty-five minutes,
but I’m fine now.
MMAWeekly:
The first two fights with Arlovski ended early. Were you a little
surprised that this one went the distance?
Sylvia:
Yeah. I think we just both learned so much from each other that
we were both really cautious. I just executed a better game plan
than he did, and was able to come off with the victory.
MMAWeekly:
You both looked tentative throughout the fight...
Sylvia:
After I hurt him in the first round really bad, he didn’t
want to get hit by punching.
MMAWeekly:
You were the underdog in all three of the fights with Arlovski.
Putting together back-to-back wins, do you feel vindicated in
any way?
Sylvia:
I would like to think so, yeah. I knocked him out the second
time, and really put a beating on him the third time, so I’d
like to think that I’m the best there is. I don’t know
why they picked him over me.
MMAWeekly:
Is it correct that requested for him to get an immediate rematch?
Sylvia:
Yes.
MMAWeekly:
Was that a little bit to dispel the critics?
Sylvia:
Exactly. I mean, that, and I didn’t want him to get on a
roll again. Arlovski’s mentality... I knew what type of
guy he is. He’s the type of guy with that bully mentality.
When things go his way, things are great, but as soon as you
stand up to him, he folds. That’s what I did.
MMAWeekly:
How did your game plan change from your first two fights to that
third match? It looked like you were counter punching a little
more . . .
Sylvia:
That, and I wasn’t as slow with my jab. I established power
first in the second and third fight. The first fight, I just
came out there and was poking my jab, and he just countered me
with the overhand right and submitted me. You give credit where
credit is due. He had a great game plan. As soon as it hit the
ground, he submitted me. He went after a leg. Now, I didn’t
have a good game plan the first fight. I really wasn’t ready
to fight Arlovski. I just thought, I had the fighter’s mentality,
"I’ll knock this guy out. I knock everyone else out."
He was a lot tougher than I thought he was, and he was a lot
faster. Going into the second fight, I gave him the respect that
he deserved, knowing that he hits hard and is a great submission
guy, and he moves really well. So, I went out there and we established
a great game plan, and it worked... and in the third fight, same
thing. We developed a great game plan, and he was just a little
bit more cautious and didn’t commit on things, so we weren't
able to land the big punches that I wanted to land.
MMAWeekly:
You definitely staggered him back in the first round, and it
looked like it could end early, but you showed some patience
there. You didn’t rush in and make the same mistake he did
in the last fight.
Sylvia:
Exactly.
MMAWeekly:
Let's talk about what you have in the UFC as far as for the future.
You’ve beaten pretty much everyone that there is in the
division. Frank Mir got a win over Dan Christison. Is that a
loss you’d like to avenge?
Sylvia:
I would give anything to fight Frank Mir. I hope he can put a
couple of more wins together. That way, we can fight down the
road. Jeff Monson gets a title shot next, so it’s not fair
to Jeff. Maybe [Mir] can get one or two more wins together, and
I can get a chance to fight him again.
MMAWeekly:
You mentioned Jeff Monson getting the next title shot. What do
you think about the match-up?
Sylvia:
It potentially could be a tough fight if I don’t train properly,
but I have a great training camp and some great coaches. We’ve
already established a great game plan. We’ve talked about
it already. We’re bringing in some guys to assimilate Jeff
Monson, and I’m going to go out there and knock him out
in the first round.
MMAWeekly:
With the possibility of Chuck Liddell and Wanderlei Silva fighting,
how long until we see a heavyweight unification bout?
Sylvia:
I tell you what, I was drooling when I saw that. Hopefully, they’ll
bring Fedor [Emelianenko], and he and I will get it on.
MMAWeekly:
Looking at the Pride heavyweights, how do you think you match
up with some of them? We’ll start with Mirko “Cro Cop”
Filipovic.
Sylvia:
I think I would beat Cro Cop. My hands are better than his. He’s
got great kicks, but I’m tall, so that’s going to eliminate
a lot of power he generates from his kicking. So, I’ll just
stay close enough with my hands that hopefully I can beat him
that way.
MMAWeekly:
What about Josh Barnett?
Sylvia:
Barnett, same thing... I’ve just got to make sure that I
keep the fight standing up. He is very good on the ground. I’ve
just got to stay strong with my takedown defenses, and I know
my hands are better than his, so just work my hands and knees
in the clinch, and stuff like that.
MMAWeekly:
How about Mark Hunt?
Sylvia:
He’s a really big, strong, tough guy. I’d probably
put Mark on his back.
MMAWeekly:
What about Fedor?
Sylvia:
It’s interesting. The only style we haven’t seen Fedor
fight yet is a tall striker who is good at takedown defenses.
I would try to keep the fight standing up with him and utilize
my hand skills, and hopefully the reach would give him a tough
enough time where he wouldn’t be able to hit me.
MMAWeekly:
Not long ago, Jerome LeBanner called you out. Do you think that
fight will ever happen, or has that fight just faded away?
Sylvia:
To be honest with you, I hope it doesn’t happen because
I think he is a jackass. He needs to earn his way into MMA, not
just being a great kickboxer and trying to call out the best
guy in the UFC and trying to get a fight. I hate sh-- like that.
That’s how Wes Sims got fights. He’s a horrible fighter,
Wes Sims was, yet he ran his mouth so much that they gave him
a chance. They found out how horrible he was. He never won a
fight in the UFC. He sucks. I’m not saying Jerome LeBanner
is horrible, but I don’t like the way he is going about
trying to get fights. I just don’t like that way. I think
you need to earn your way into the UFC. It’s the Super Bowl
of mixed martial arts. Therefore, you need to get MMA fights.
Once you get recognized as an MMA fighter, they invite you. They
say, "Hey, we’ll give you a shot in the UFC."
He wins two or three fights in the UFC, he gets a title shot.
If he earns his way, I have no problem fighting him. I just don’t
think I should fight him because he’s running his mouth.
MMAWeekly:
We’re kind of entering a new era of mixed martial arts,
or I think so. We’re seeing Pride fighters like Wanderlei
come over. We’ve seen UFC fighters go over there, and K-1
fighters come in. Do you feel like the sport is completely opening
up for the fighters with opportunities to fight everywhere?
Sylvia:
I think that’s the way it needs to be, yes, to establish
who are the best fighters in the world. They allow boxing to
unify belts, so why can’t we?
MMAWeekly:
It was announced again that your teammate is fighting Georges
St. Pierre in a rematch. What are your thoughts on that match-up?
Sylvia:
I like Georges St. Pierre. He’s a great fighter. It’s
going to be an awesome fight. It’s going to be an exciting
fight, but I just think Matt is on the top of his game right
now, and I think he’s going to get the best of Georges,
get in his head, and do the same thing he did last time.
MMAWeekly:
Thanks man, and good luck in the future.
Sylvia:
All right, bro. Thank you. Bye.
Source: MMA Weekly |
AMERICANS
ANNOUNCED FOR PRIDE BUSHIDO 12
It seems more so now than ever the lightweight division is continuing
to develop and infuse talent into the biggest MMA shows around.
In particular American lightweights have begun to show their
dominance after years of foreign rule.
At
Bushido: Survival 2 this upcoming August 26th in Japan, four
American lightweights have been added to an already stacked card
which includes the second round of Pride’s 2006 Welterweight
Grand Prix.
Among
the four Americans added to the card are two Pride veterans Chris
Brennan, who will be taking on top ranked contender Tatsuya Kawajiri,
and Jason Black, who will be making his second appearance for
the company going up against Shooto’s Shinya Aoki.
The
remaining two slots on the undercard are going to two debuting
Pride fighters in veteran Jeff Curran, who is matched up with
TKO Champion Hatsu Hioki, and rising young star in the making
Gilbert Melendez who is scheduled to face Nobuhiro Obiya.
MMAWeekly
caught up with both Jeff Curran and Gilbert Melendez shortly
after the official announcement was made by Pride this week.
“I’m
totally excited,” said Curran about his opportunity to fight
in Pride. “It’s like of like when I fought in the UFC,
but now I get time to prepare and will get to show everyone what
I’ve got.”
Jeff
added, “It’s something I’ve been waiting for,
for a long time. It’s great for Pride to take a chance on
me and bring me out and I’m hoping I can make a home and
some money there [laughs].”
For
Curran, this match-up with Hioki not only is an opportunity for
him to showcase his skills in Pride, but it also represents an
opportunity for him to get a little revenge for a close friend.
“He
just beat Mark Hominick in TKO for his title, so I have a personal
mission in this fight as well,” explained Jeff. “It’s
a chance for me to get some redemption for Mark who I train with
and who is a good friend.”
“I
saw Mark have opportunities on the ground in their fight, so
I should have an edge if I’m able to clinch and take him
down,” further commented Curran.
While
Jeff has had an opportunity to perform on a PPV situation with
the UFC, Gilbert Melendez is getting his first chance to show
a large audience what he possesses as one of the division’s
top young prospects.
“It’s
the most exciting moment of my life,” Melendez told MMAWeekly
about signing his Pride contract. “I’ve been working
for this forever and it’s a dream come true. Hopefully this
will lead to the finishing of my goal [at lightweight] when I
get a shot at the belt.”
Gilbert
continued, “This is where I want to be, with the best in
the world. I’m going to do my best and prove that I belong
with them.”
When
it comes to Melendez’s opponent, Nobuhiro Obiya, Gilbert
is expecting a tough fight, but plans to send a message with
his performance.
“I
know he’s undefeated and he just beat Miltion Viera and
Ryan Bow [for a Deep Championship] and I know he’s one of
Takanori Gomi’s teammates so it’s going to be a tough
fight,” said Melendez of Obiya. “With this fight I’m
going to let Gomi know I’m out there. If he doesn’t
know me before the fight he’ll know me after.”
With
the addition of four American fighters to the upcoming Bushido
card, it could be a sign of things to come as Pride continues
to build-up for its debut US show in October and looks to bring
in established talent for the show.
Pride
Bushido: Survival 2 complete line-up:
Welterweight
GP Matches
Dan Henderson (USA) VS Kazuo Misaki (JPN)
Ryo Chonan (JPN) VS Paulo Filho (BRZ)
Gegard Mousasi (FRA) VS Akihiro Gono (JPN)
Denis Kang (USA) VS Amar Suloev (ARM)
Lightweight
Undercard
Tatsuya Kawajiri (JPN) VS Chris Brennan (USA)
Nobuhiro Obiya (JPN) VS Gilbert Melendez (USA)
Shinya Aoki (JPN) VS Jason Black (USA)
Hatsu Hioki (JPN) VS Jeff Curran (USA)
*Fight
Card and Participants Subject to Change
Source: MMA Weekly |
STRIKEFORCE'S
GUIDA LOSES IN SHOOTO DEBUT
Former Strikeforce ISKA Lightweight Champion Clay Guida lost
in his Shooto debut this past weekend, as he fell victim to an
armbar from Yusuke Endo in the first round.
Guida
was an injury replacement and took the fight on short notice
against Endo, who was Shooto's 2004 Rookie Champion in the 154-pound
weight class. With the win, Endo improved his record within the
Shooto organization to 5-1.
The
fight was Guida's first in Japan. In his previous two fights,
Guida defeated UFC and Pride veteran Josh Thomson in March to
win Strikeforce's ISKA Lightweight Title, but Guida then lost
the title in June to the undefeated Gilbert Melendez. While his
overall MMA record is still an impressive 19-6, Guida has now
lost three of his last four fights.
In
the main event on the card, Akitoshi Hokazono won Shooto's 132-pound
title with a unanimous decision victory over Kenji Osawa. Also
on the card, the six-fight winning streak of American Top Team
member Cole Miller was snapped in his Japanese debut. The 145-pound
Miller lost by unanimous decision to "Lion" Takeshi
Inoue, who extended his own winning streak to four fights.
Full
Results
-Akitoshi
Hokazano def. Kenji Osawa by unanimous decision
-Takeshi
Inoue def. Cole Miller by unanimous decision
-Yusuke
Endo def. Clay Guida by submission (armbar) in Round 1
-Ryota
Matsune and Takeya Mizugaki fought to a majority draw
-Masatoshi
Abe def. Junji Ikoma by TKO (doctor stoppage) in Round 1
-So
Tazawa def. Hiroyuki Tanaka by unanimous decision
Shooto
Rookie Bouts:
-Daisuke
Ishizawa def. Hiroshi Nakamura by KO in Round 2
-Teruyuki
Matsumoto def. Kazuya Tamura by submission (rear naked choke)
in Round 1
-Takuya
Mori def. Takayuki Kobe by majority decision
-Yoshihiro
Koyama def. Yoshiki Noguchi by unanimous decision
Source: MMA Weekly |
Quote
of the Day
"Friendship
is the only cement that will ever hold the world together."
Woodrow Wilson, 1856-1924, 28th President of the United States |
Fighters'
Club TV New Episode Tonight!
Episode
41 is cut and submitted to olelo programming. It will run in
our new timeslot of 7pm,
Tuesdays on Oceanic Ch52. Episode 41 will air
on July 18, 25, August 1, and 8.
We
kick off our new season featuring:
-highlights
from Rick Lee and Derek Brights, GOT SKILLS at the Pagoda
-highlights
of Tyson Nam vs Bill "the Spider" Dexter (+intvw w/
Tyson)
-highlights
of Ray "the Big Easy" Seraille vs Gary "Iron Bear"
Myers
(+intvw w/ the fighter previously known as "kong")
-Technique
of the Week, Shooto Middleweight Champion, Shinya Aoki
demonstrating a wicked achilles lock
-a
brief cameo by Jason "Mayhem" Miller
-a
short tribute to the Ring Girls of the last ICON event
+Hawaii's
3 favorite FCTV crew in action, Mike "the Icon", Chris
"The
Handsome One", and Mark "the other guy w/ no radio
show"...
Comments,
Questions and Suggestions to fctv@onzuka.com please
|
Island
Warriors FC
War Memorial Gymnasium
Kahului, Maui
August 5th, 2006
Tentative
fight card:
Amateur
4man LW Tournament Participants- 155lbs: 3R/3M (twice in the
night)
-Brandon Piper (EFC, Wailuku, Maui)
-Bronson Piper (EFC, Wailuku, Maui)
-Alika "Mountain Boy" Rincon (Young Guns de Luta, Volcano,
Hawaii)
-Gene "Bino" Gregory (MixedBreed, Waianae, Oahu)
Amateur
4man FW Tournament Participants- 145lbs : 3R/3M (twice in the
night)
-Mike "The Pitbull" Pedro (Brazilian Freestyle, Kahului,
Maui)
-Gerald Gamit (Freelance, Kahului, Maui)
-Maluhia Kuahiwinui (Da Barn, Hilo, Hawaii)
-Phillip Llamas (MixedBreed, Waianae, Oahu)
Amateur
WW Bout- 170lbs: 3R/3M
Dillon "The Villain" Clay (Brazilian Freestyle, Kihei,
Maui) vs TBA
Amateur
LHW Bout- 205lbs: 3R/3M
Jon Rivera (Impact Zone, Wailuku, Maui) vs TBA
Amateur
WW Bout- 170lbs: 3R/3M
Colby Jones (Brazilian Freestyle, Wailuku, Maui) vs TBA
Amateur
MW Bout- 185lbs: 3R/3M
Kawika Maddella (Central BC, Kahului, Maui) vs TBA
Amateur
LW Bout- 160lbs: 3R/3M
Joe Bissen (Central BC, Paukukalo, Maui) vs TBA
Amateur
BW Bout- 132lbs: 3R/3M
Both participants not yet confirmed
Amateur
FW Kickboxing Bout- 150lbs: 3R/2M
Both participants not yet confirmed
Source:
Hawaii Fight Network
|
After
a 4 year hiatus, the WFA makes a sucessful return
After
a four year hiatus the World Fighting Alliance returned to the
United States with a successful pay per view debut.
The
night’s action began with two under card bouts.
Dutch
striker Martin Kampmann a late replacement was victorious in
his WFA debut over Edwin Aguilar. Kampmann landed a stiff knee
strike that stunned Aguilar mid way through round number one.
Kampmann did not hesitate to pounce on his wounded opponent and
he was able to finish Aguilar via strikes at the 2:43 mark of
round one.
The
WFA’s former 205 lb champion Marvin Eastman fought young
Brazilian Jorge Oliveira to a three round draw. Both fighters
were unable to stand out during this match each man clearly won
a round apiece and both ended up being cut. All three judges
disagreed and scored the bout three different ways resulting
in a draw. 30-27 for Eastman, 29-28 for Oliveira, 29-29 draw.
The
pay per view portion of the fight card open with light weight
Rob McCullough looking for revenge against the man he lost to
two years ago Harris Sarmiento.
McCullough
was riding a six fight winning streak going into the match while
Sarmiento was trying to halt a four fight losing streak. Round
one opened with McCullough quickly establishing his game plan
of working low kicks to the left leg of Sarmiento. McCullough
a Muay Thai fighter never allowed Sarmiento within his reach
for the duration of the three round fight.
With
Sarmiento’s lead leg bruised and battered the judges awarded
this bout at 155 to McCullough who was declared the winner via
a unanimous decision with each judge scoring the fight 30-27.
In
the heavyweight battle between Ricco Rodriguez and Ron Waterman,
Rodriguez showed brief flashes of why he once was a UFC heavyweight
champion while Waterman showed why he is now a part time fighter
and a full time high school art teacher.
The
struggle in the fight came down to whether Rodriguez could keep
the fight on the feet or if Waterman could takedown his bigger
opponent. Rodriguez came out throwing punches an overhand right
would graze Waterman enough that the “H-2O” man would
attempt to shoot on Rodriguez and take him down. After a couple
failed takedown attempts Rodriguez would land two right hands
that would put Waterman out of it for a good couple of seconds.
Though Rodriguez would not be able to capitalize and put Waterman
away in round one, he did do enough damage that referee Nelson
Hamilton would stop the fight before the start of round two and
declared Rodriguez the winner.
Ivan
Salaverry made his return to the ring in impressive fashion after
nearly a year removed from action. Salaverry finished an game
Art Santore in round number two with a series of strikes that
included a high leg kick to Santore’s chin and a left hook
from Salaverry that would put Santore on the canvas for good.
Salaverry would deliver a few more strikes from the top before
the referee stepped in at the 4:18 mark of round two.
Jason
Miller made his mark quickly on the WFA stage. His entrance was
classic Mayhem and his performance in the ring was typical of
Miller’s superior submission skills. Lodune Sincaid did
not have a second to get his bearings before Miller had him wrapped
in the clinch and was delivering a sequence of knees to the body
that would allow Miller to take Sincaid to the mat.
Once
on the ground Mayhem quickly gained back control and showed that
he still possessed quickness on the ground even when fighting
at 205lbs. Miller eventually out maneuvered Sincaid and slapped
on the rear naked choke for the tap out victory at 4:29 of round
one.
The
most disappointing debut in recent memory has to go to Ryoto
Machida. The Brazilian star is still undefeated after a unanimous
decision win over Vernon White but his first WFA win left something
to the imagination. The fight was marred by little action on
the feet or on the ground by both fighters and an overall lack
of aggressiveness shown by Machida. The crowd’s excitement
quickly turned to boos and neither fighter did anything to change
that for the duration of the three rounds.
The
feeling out process for the fight seemed to last the entire 15
minutes and despite his impressive resume of wins Machida may
still have something left to prove to the American MMA fan base.
The
highly anticipated return of Bas Rutten was finally over after
seven long years. Though not the man Rutten was originally slated
to face Ruben Villareal was as ready as any fighter could possible
be on such short notice. Filling in for the suspended Kimo on
late Friday afternoon Villareal was looking to trade blows with
the legend from the opening bell.
Bas
would not disappoint as he came out throwing punches with out
missing a beat or showing any sign of ring rust. Rutten showcased
his hands early but finished the fight with his equally dangerous
leg kicks. Villareal stood toe to toe with Bas taking punishment
from Rutten before succumbing to a succession of legs kicks that
dropped him at 3:24 of round one. Though the final kick that
dropped Villareal appeared to be glancing the three solid kicks
prior forced the big man to a limp. After the fight Rutten stated
that he would like to compete again.
In
the co-main event of the evening Quinton Jackson showed that
he still possessed a “never say die” attitude while
Matt Lindland illustrated why that any weight he is the type
of fighter that will give all competition problems.
Round
one saw a slam from Jackson and not to be out done a takedown
slam by Lindland. The fight appeared headed for a early ending
as Lindland took Jackson’s back and applied a rear naked
choke. Jackson was able to power out of it to finish round one.
Jackson
looked frustrated to start off round two but he would land yet
another slam that dropped Lindland on his head. Lindland would
show off his well rounded skills as he was able to escape and
stand up with Jackson riding on top of him. Rampage would end
the round with some punches including a uppercut that connected.
Going
into the final round both men had a chance to establish themselves
and walk away with the win.
In
the middle of the third round Lindland would catch Jackson sleeping
again as he applied a guillotine choke that nearly forced Jackson
to tap. Jackson once again powered out of a submission attempt
and Rampage closed out the round with a flurry of elbows and
punches that Lindland survived until the final bell was sounded.
The
judges awarded a spilt decision win to Quinton Jackson over Matt
Lindland.
The
WFA’s King of the Streets show was tailored made for Quinton
Jackson to make a impressive U.S return. Matt Lindland was the
uncalculated variable that nearly stole the show. No matter how
you scored the fight, in the end both fighters came off looking
impressive, Jackson for his heart and Lindland for stepping his
game up in a new weight division.
*
Martin Kampmann def. Edwin Aguilar-TKO via strikes 2:43 RD 1
* Jorge Oliveira vs. Marvin Eastman-declared a draw 30-27 Eastman,
29-28 Oliveira and 29-29
* Rob McCullough def. Harris Sarmiento-Unanimous decision 30-27,
30-27,30-27
* Ricco Rodriguez def. Ron Waterman –TKO Ref stoppage 5:00
RD1
* Ivan Salaverry def. Art Santore-TKO ref stoppage 4:18 RD 2
* Jason Miller def. Lodune Sincaid- via Submission rear naked
choke 4:29 RD 1
* Ryoto Machida def. Vernon White- Unanimous decision 30-27 30-27
29-28
* Bas Rutten def. Ruben Villareal KO Leg Kicks 3:24 RD 1
* Quinton Jackson def Matt Lindland- Spilt Decision 29-28 29-28
Jackson Lindland 29-28
Woodrow Wilson, 1856-1924, 28th President of the United States |
Murilo
talks about Minota and Paulão
One
of the leaders of Brazilian Top Team, Murilo Bustamante has been
working hard at the moment preparing his athletes for the semifinals
of the two GPs of Pride. In the absolute GP, when Rodrigo faces
the American Josh Barnett, Bustamante affirms the old injuries
will not disturb his teammate. 'Minotauro had some injuries during
this year, but thanks God he didn't get hurt in the last two
months and is training hard. We will study Barnett's game and
we will analyze his not good points', said Bustamante.
Talking
about the possible confrontation between the champion of the
category until 83kg Dan Henderson and Paulão Filho, Bustamante
opines. 'Paulão has great chances to win. Dan Henderson
is one of the best ones of the category, but Paulão is
also very good and takes down better than him. He knows how to
put him down and make a good ground game. Now he will just train
more Boxing', finished him.
Source:
Tatame |
Quote
of the Day
"Friendship
is the only cement that will ever hold the world together."
Woodrow Wilson, 1856-1924, 28th President of the United States |
PUNISHMENT
IN PARADISE
EAST vs WEST RESULTS!
Punishment In Paradise 12
Dole Cannery Ballroom, Honolulu, Hawaii
July 21, 2006
Shooto
Middleweight Pacific Rim Championship Class A (3x 5 Minute Rounds)
Keita Nakamura (Shooto, Japan) Vs. Ronald Jhun (808F.F, Waipahu)
Nakamura by rear naked choke at 3:55 of round 1.
Lightweight
Shooto Bout Class B (2x5 Minute Rounds)
Hayate Usui (Shooto, Japan) Vs. Ed Newalo ( 808 F.F, Kaneohe)
Majority Draw (19-19), (19-19), (18-19)
165lbs.
PIP Kickboxing Championship (3x2 Minute Rounds)
Kaleo Kwon (Eastsidaz, Kailua) vs. Wayne Perrin (Team Bigdogs,
Waianae)
Kwon by KO at 1:14 of round 1 by a wicked left hook
135lbs.
P.I.P Kickboxing Championship Bout (3x2 Minute Rounds)
Nui Wheeler (Team Soljah, Waianae) Vs. Bronson Mohika (808 F.F.,Kailua)
Mohika by TKO (injured knee from kick) at 44 seconds of round
2.
140lbs.P.I.P
Kickboxing Championship Bout (3x2 Minute Rounds)
Ryan Lee (Bulls Pin, Kailihi) Vs. Domi Lopez (Team Bigdogs, Waianae)
Lopez by unanimous decision (30-26),(30-26),(30-26)
150lbs.
P.I.P Kickboxing Championship Bout (3x2 Minute Rounds)
Marcus Moreno (Bulls Pen, Kailihi) Vs. Duke Saragossa (808F.F,
Wahiawa)
Saragosa TKO (injured rib or elbow) at 1:26 of round 1.
165lbs.P.I.P
Kickboxing Championship K Bout (3x2 Minute Rounds)
Keoni Bryant (Jus Rush, Kailua) vs. John Visante Jr (Sit You
Down, Waianae)
Bryant by majority decision (29-29), (29-28),(29-28)
183lbs.
Light Heavyweight Amatuer Shooto Bout (2x3 Minute Rounds)
Jesse Ware (Kaneohe Team, Kahalu'u) Vs. Joey Corn (Universal
Combat Sport, Waianae)
Bout cancelled due to weight discrepancy.
160lbs
Kickboxing (3x2 Minute Rounds)
Dean Henze (Smith Taekwondo, Kaneohe) Vs Jason Santos (Discples
of Puhui, Kuaui)
Santos by unanimous decision (29-28),(29-28),(27-30)
200lbs
Kickboxing (3x2 Minute Rounds )
Koali Castillo (Koden Kan, Kailua) Vs. Lance Ta'aFaasu (Sit You
Down, Pearl City)
Castillo by majority decision (30-26),(30-26),(28-28)
205lbs
Cruiserweight Shooto Class B Bout (2x5 Minute Rounds)
JJ Richardson (Jus Rush, Kailua) Vs. Miller Ualesi (Sit You Down,
Waianae)
Ualesi by TKO (Richardson disqualified for multiple groin shots)
in round 2.
175lbs.
Kickboxing (3x 2 Minute Rounds)
Weston Victorino (Disciples of Puhi, Kuaui) Vs. Zane Kamaka (Sit
You Down, Waianae)
Victorino by KO at 1:26 of round 1.
132.3lbs.
Featherweight Shooto Class B Bout (2x5 Minute Rounds)
Justin Anderson(Jus Rush, Kailua) Vs. Jay Bolos (Animal House,
Ewa Beach)
Bolos by unanimous decision (20-18), (20-18), (20-18).
Welterweight
Shooto Class B Bout (2x5 Minute Rounds)
Dominic Ah Nee (Universal Combat Sport, Maui) Vs. Hugh Jones
(Fighters Union, Waianae)
Ah Nee by majority decision (20-18),(20-18),(19-19)
145lbs.
Kickboxing Bout (3x2 Minute Rounds)
Sam Choong (Smith Taekwondo, Kaneohe) Vs. Erwin Celes (Sit You
Down, Waianae)
Choong by TKO (referee stoppage) at 55 seconds of round 2.
130
lbs. Kickboxing Bout (3x2 Minute Rounds)
Christian Chang (Team Hooligan) vs Jared Matsuda (Koden Kan)
Matsuda by majority decision (29-28),(29-28),(29-29)
Middleweight
Shooto Class B Bout (2x5 Minute Rounds)
Anthony Ornellas (Jus Rush, Kailua) Vs. Micheal Cuban (Team Uprising,
Wahiawa)
Cuban by TKO (referee stoppage) at 3:18 of round 1.
Middleweight
Shooto Class B Bout (2x5 Minute Rounds)
Keoki Cyrpiano (Jus Rush, Kailua) Vs. David Pedro (Freelance,
Kailua)
Cypriano by TKO (referee stoppage due to punches standing) at
3:47 of round 1
80lbs
Kickboxing Bout
Kylan Ancheta (Team Uprising) vs. Ronald Matautia (Sit You Down,
Waianae)
Matautia by unanimous decision (29-28),(29-28),(29-28)
70lbs.
Kickboxing Bout (3x1 Minute Rounds)
Nainoa Mesiona (808 F.F, Salt Lake) Vs. Jacoby Visante (Sit You
Down, Waianae)
Vistante by unanimous decision (29-28),(29-28),(29-28)
Heavyweight (3 X 11/2 Minute Rounds) |
KID
leaves MMA
Norifumi
“Kid” Yamamoto has left the world of MMA to return
to wrestling. His sights are set for the 2008 Olympics in Beijing
(free-style wrestling), preparing to participate in the 60 kg.
weight class. Yamamoto said that he decided to make this decision
based on the fact that he is 29 years old and he feels this is
his last chance to live out his dreams of being in the Olympics.
Kid will participate in the All Japan wrestling championships
in November, and if he wins in that competition he will likely
make it to the Olympic team.
Source:
Fight Opinion |
AUCTION
ITEMS END SOON FOR RYAN BENNETT MEMORIAL FUND
Randy Harris of Talking Sports Radio has put together an auction
for Ryan Bennett's family. In his ongoing efforts to help out
Ryan’s family, Randy has obtained more items up for auction
now on eBay.
Some
of the most recent items include:
-UFC
60 full poster signed by Matt Hughes, Royce Gracie, and everyone
else on the card
-UFC
59 full poster signed by Tim Sylvia, Andrei Arlovski, Tito Ortiz,
Forrest Griffin and everyone else on the card
-Hermes
Franca signed used fight gloves from UFC 61
-Hermes
Franca signed worn shirt from UFC 61
-Hermes
Franca signed fight used shorts from UFC 51
Click
on the following link to view all of the items that are currently
up for auction. http://search.ebay.com/_W0QQfgtpZ1QQfrppZ25QQsassZryanbennettmemorialfund
If
you have a favorite fighter or player, let Randy know and he
will get something from them to auction off. You can check out
the www.myspace.com/ryan_bennett_memorial site that Randy has
set up to check out all sorts of tributes to Ryan.
ALL
PROCEEDS from the auctioned items goes directly to the Bennett
Family Fund.
ANY
FIGHTERS OR PERSONALITIES THAT WISH TO HELP OUT AND DONATE ITEMS
FOR AUCTION:
Please
mail any auction items to:
Ryan Bennett Charity Auction
PO Box 1363
Pinellas Park, FL 33780
To
get in touch with Randy Harris, please email him at:
tampabayradio@aol.com
Source: MMA Weekly
|
HERO’s
8/5 Tokyo card finalized
A press conference was held on Saturday to announce the participation
of Kaoru Uno, Hiroyuki Takaya, and Hideo Tokoro for the Middleweight
tournament (8/5 Tokyo, Ariake Colosseum event). Genki Sudo will
not work the show due to injury (K-1 claims Sudo has a herniated
disc, causing numbness in his left hand). Updated 8/5 Tokyo card
line-up:
Light
Heavyweight Tournament: Kazushi Sakuraba vs. Kestutis Smirnovas
(RINGS Lithuania)
Light Heavyweight Tournament: Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Kin Tai Ei
(Seido Kaikan)
Light Heavyweight Tournament: Shungo Oyama vs. Rodrigo Gracie
Light Heavyweight Tournament: Carlos Newton vs. Melvin Manhoef
Middleweight Tournament: Hideo Tokoro vs. Ivan Menjivar
Middleweight Tournament: Hiroyuki Takaya vs. J.Z. Calvan (that’s
what K-1 uses as the name for Gesias Cavalcanti)
Middleweight Tournament: Kazuya Yasuhiro vs. Rani Yahira
Middleweight Tournament: Kaoru Uno vs. Black Mamba
Source: Fight Opinion |
Quote
of the Day
"Work
is the meat of life, pleasure the dessert."
B.C. Forbes, 1880-1954, Scottish-born Financial Journalist and
Author
|
WFA
Results
Sarmiento Loses Rematch with
McCullough
Miller Chokes Sincaid
WFA 4:
King of the Streets
The Forum, Inglewood, CA
July 22, 2006
Complete
Results:
Quinton Jackson def. Matt Lindland by Spilt Decision after 3
rounds (29-28, 29-28, 28-29)
Bas Rutten def. Ruben Villareal by KO 3:24 into round 1
Lyoto Machida def. Vernon White by unanimous decision after 3
rounds (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Jason Miller def. Lodune Sincaid
by RNC 4:29 into round 1
Ivan Salaverry def. Art Santore by TKO via referee stoppage due
to strikes 4:18 into round 2
Ricco Rodriguez def. Ron Waterman TKO (doctor stoppage, Waterman's
left eye was swollen shut) end of round 1 5:00
Rob McCullough def. Harris
Sarmiento
unanimous decision after 3 rounds (30-27, 30-27,30-27)
Marvin Eastman vs. Jorge Olivera - DRAW after 3 rounds (30-27,
28-29, 29-29)
Martin Kampmann def. Edwin Aguilar by TKO via referee stoppage
at 2:43 into round 1
|
Developing
revisionist history
By Zach Arnold
On
Friday, Josh Gross wrote an article on Sherdog titled Liddell
vs. Silva: Why now? talking about the upcoming co-promotional
matchmaking between PRIDE & UFC. The PRIDE source Gross quotes
(and doesn’t dispute in the article) is engaged in amazing
spin-doctoring, to the point that you start laughing at the claims
being made. History and facts show a completely different story
than the one being spread through official channels.
Source: Fight Opinion
Liddell
vs. Silva: Why Now?
by Josh Gross
Since
Saturday, when it was announced PRIDE champion Wanderlei Silva
(Pictures) would fight UFC champion Chuck Liddell (Pictures)
in November, speculation has run rampant as to the motivations
of mixed martial arts’ most prominent promoters, which after
three years finally agreed to what appears to be this sport’s
first true world title bout.
While
the path towards Dana White’s decision remains cloudy, PRIDE’s
reasoning has become clear.
As
little as two months ago, PRIDE reigned atop the MMA heap. It
had launched the largest tournament of the year; been awarded
a date to promote its first Stateside card; enjoyed a prosperous
deal with its Japanese broadcast partner; and held in its stable
the finest collection of mixed martial artists in the world.
The
probability, it seemed, of PRIDE and UFC — and thus many
of the world’s preeminent fighters — coming together
was so small, it could only be found through quantum mechanics.
But
then allegations began to spread about PRIDE’s top brass
being involved with shady figures in the Japanese underworld.
The press was bad and Fuji TV, due in large measure to its own
set of unfortunate events, flipped the switch on PRIDE, removing
anything from the ship it perceived as a drag. Adding insult
to injury, for the first time in a long time a top-tier fighter,
Quinton Jackson, fled to another organization during his free
agency period.
Yet,
said one high-ranking PRIDE executive, through adversity comes
opportunity.
Though
many on the outside saw Fuji TV’s severed relationship with
PRIDE as the death knell for the promotion, those on the inside
believed that a unique opportunity had presented itself.
No
longer hamstrung by television executives that often had as much
say in matchmaking as PRIDE officials, DSE was free to do what
it wished.
Believing
the UFC holds an estimated 70 to 80 percent of the American market
share, said the same PRIDE official, the promoter had two options
if it wanted to flourish while establishing itself in the U.S.:
Strike a deal with the No. 1 company or partner with its competitors.
With
new kids on the block — Strikeforce, the World Fighting
Alliance (which signed Jackson away from PRIDE) and the International
Fight League (which continues to be embroiled in lawsuits with
the UFC) — and established events — King of the Cage,
et al — grappling for the remaining market share, PRIDE
moved for the former*.
That
meant a serious discussion was underway to send one of the best
fighters in the organization’s history to battle someone
of equal standing on the other side of the world. Just a month
ago, a deal was struck.
It’s
basic Marketing 101 stuff, said the PRIDE executive.
If
the UFC’s presence in America was about half of what it
is today, an alliance with the third and fourth competitors (PRIDE
considers itself the second biggest MMA promoter that does business
in the U.S.) might have paid off. But since the Las Vegas-based
company has so effectively branded UFC as mixed martial arts
in this country, the smart move was to work directly with Zuffa.
Relative
to what it could gain — an increased market share from 18
to somewhere near 25 percent, DSE said — PRIDE appears to
be risking very little.
Silva
remains under exclusive PRIDE contract, meaning he fights where
and when DSE officials tell him. The UFC will pay his purse in
November. And a loss would not officially remove him from the
belt.
The
UFC, it seems, is the one gambling in this scenario.
It
was widely reported that the UFC again topped the Yahoo! Buzz
charts after Saturday’s UFC 61 Pay-Per-View, yet few mentioned
that because of his presence on the broadcast the number of searches
on Wanderlei Silva increased an astronomical 444 percent —
head and shoulders the biggest gain of any search on Yahoo! related
to the UFC.
For
an organization that has struggled to market itself to the American
audience, last weekend, from an awareness standpoint, may well
have been worth the decision on its own.
Over
the past six days Silva has received far more attention in the
U.S. than he ever had before, and PRIDE is the company that will
reap the early returns with its Open-Weight Grand Prix Pay-Per-View
on September 10.
More
important, the PRIDE executive explained, if this arrangement
works the way DSE hopes it will, the Japanese company will have
insured its future for the next 20 to 30 years while establishing
its legacy as a standard bearer when people look back in a century’s
time.
And
what does the UFC gain? If Liddell wins, a ton of credibility.
But should he falter, a Super Bowl mega card the company has
tabbed as its first 1 million-plus Pay-Per-View could fall into
peril. Though some have speculated this is an opportunity for
the UFC to increase its presence on WOWOW!, the promotion’s
Japanese broadcast partner, that hardly seems worth the roll
of the dice.
Yes,
Silva will fight Liddell on the UFC’s home turf under rules
preferred by the UFC. There won’t be a co-promotion. All
profits will belong to Zuffa.
But
is this all that Zuffa has garnered because of this monumental
agreement?
That
is one of many questions that remain about the genesis of Liddell
vs. Silva and why, at this moment in the sport’s history,
these two promotions have come together.
One
thing is clear, however: competition breeds innovation. And that
is a good thing, for everyone involved, particularly PRIDE.
*The
author incorrectly wrote that PRIDE chose the "latter"
option.
Source: Sherdog
|
MATCH
UPS ANNOUNCED FOR BUSHIDO SURVIVAL
TOKYO, Japan – Four tournament bouts have been announced
for PRIDE FIGHTING'S upcoming event, BUSHIDO SURVIVAL: DAN HENDERSON
vs. KAZUO MISAKI, RYO CHONAN vs. PAULO FILHO, GEGARD MOUSASI
vs. AKIHIRO GONO, and DENIS KANG vs. AMAR SULOEV. Others scheduled
to participate in non-tournament bouts include "The Fireball
Kid" TAKANORI GOMI and IKUHISA "The Punk" MINOWA.
PRIDE
FIGHTING'S BUSHIDO SURVIVAL is the second round of an exclusive
16-man welterweight tournament, spanning three events. BUSHIDO
SURVIVAL is scheduled to premiere in the United States on Fox
Sports Net on Sunday, August 27th, 2006 at 7:00pm nationwide.
U.S. Premiere Schedule:
Premiere
Date: Sunday, August 27th, 2006
Premiere Time: 7:00 pm nationwide
FIGHT
CARD
Tournament
Bouts:
Dan Henderson (USA) vs. Kazuo Misaki (Japan)
Akihiro Gono (Japan) vs. Gegard Mousasi (Armenia)
Ryo Chonan (Japan) vs. Paulo Filho (Brazil)
Denis Kang (Korea/Canada) vs. Amar Suloev (Russia)
Non-Tournament
Bouts:
Takanori Gomi (Japan) vs. TBA
Ikuhisa "The Punk" Minowa (Japan) vs. TBA
Fight
Card Subject to Change.
These
are the world's elite mixed martial artists squaring off in the
PRIDE ring exclusively on FSN!
FSN
reaches more than 81 million homes through its network of 20
regional sports channels. FSN, based in Los Angeles, serves as
the cable TV home to 62 of the 82 MLB, NHL and NBA teams based
in the United States, and produces over 4,500 live events each
year. In addition to home team games, FSN telecasts a wide variety
of national sports events and programming, including Best Damn
Sports Show Period and Beyond the Glory. For the latest up-to-the-minute
sports news and opinions, visit the FOX Sports/FSN website at
www.FoxSports.com.
Source: DSE
|
UFC
61 Payouts
By Stephan Marceau
The following are the official pay outs from the UFC 61 “Bitter
Rivals” pay-per view from July 8th. Keep in mind that a
few, definitely Ken Shamrock and Tito Ortiz, also received a
percentage of the PPV sales profits.
Tito
Ortiz ($210,000) def. Ken Shamrock ($100,000)
Tim Sylvia ($120,000) def. Andrei Arlovski ($90,000)
Frank Mir ($56,000) def. Dan Christison ($5,000)
Joe Stevenson ($24,000) def. Yves Edwards ($8,000)
Jeff Monson ($20,000) def. Anthony Perosh ($3,000)
Drew Fickett ($12,000) def. Kurt Pellegrino ($2,000)
Josh Burkman ($10,000) def. Josh Neer ($6,000)
Hermes Franca ($8,000) def. Joe Jordan ($4,000)
Cheick Kongo ($6,000) def. Gilbert Aldana ($2,000)
Source: Fight Opinion
|
NICK
DIAZ VS. JOHN ALESSIO ON AUGUST 12TH
Nick Diaz and John Alessio will return to action on August 12th
in Stockton, California, as the two UFC veterans will square
off at the Warrior’s Cup event in Diaz’ hometown.
Diaz
is coming off of a three-fight skid in the UFC, where he lost
three unanimous decisions in a row to Diego Sanchez, Joe Riggs,
and Sean Sherk.
After
starting his MMA career with a record of 11-3 and being regarded
as a top contender to Matt Hughes’ Welterweight Title, Diaz
has been involved in some heady situations both in and out of
the cage, and he will be looking to turn things around against
longtime veteran Alessio.
Alessio,
with an overall record of 16-8, is also making an attempt to
get his career righted, as he also lost a unanimous decision
to Diego Sanchez. The loss came at UFC 60, so Alessio will be
attempting to use Diaz as a stepping stone to get back into contention
in a very robust welterweight division.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Quote
of the Day
"You
can live a lifetïme and, at the end of it,
know more about other people than you know about yourself."
Beryl Markham, 1902-1986, English Aviator
|
FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 21, 2006 Honolulu, HI
T.Jay Thompson,
Icon Sport President, is stepping into the ring to compete.
We just happened to have this picture of T. Jay from his last
fight. Just kidding.
T.Jay turns 40 this year. His mid life crisis? Not a flashy car
or a young girlfriend (he's already got those). He is going to
compete in MMA. Those who know him may have noticed his body
changing over the last year. 13 months ago he was carrying over
205lbs. He will compete in MMA in the 165lb class next month.
He has trained hard for a year, eaten right, exercised, and drank
cases of Rockstar Energy drinks.
Besides fulfilling the "mid life crisis," T.Jay is
also taking this fight for a number of other reasons. First,
he loves MMA and, as he says, he wants to "play" too.
Think about all the executive fantasy camps there are for the
NBA, MLB, and NHL. This really isn't that different for him.
T.Jay is also taking this fight as a nod of respect to all the
fighters who have fought for him. He wants to show them that
he appreciates their hard work, dedication, and commitment to
excellence. T.Jay is also taking this fight to let the critics
know that MMA is a safe, legitimate sport.
Most importantly, T.Jay is NOT taking the fight for money, fame,
fan adoration, etc. He purposely chose not to compete in Hawaii,
where he would draw attention to himself. In fact, it was only
in the last few weeks (under my incessant urging) that he decided
to share his story.
If you want to follow up with T.Jay or myself on this, please
contact me.
Patrick Freitas
Icon Sport
808 375-1645
T.Jay will compete in the AX Fighting event against Ryan Alverez
(1-0). The event will take place Aug 5 in the Everett National
Guard Armory in Washington. www.axfighting.com.
He is not taking the fight on a whim. He has trained many years,
but decided to fully commit last year. He began practicing the
sport he promotes 8 years ago under the tutilege of Ray Cooper
at the Jesus is Lord gym. He later trained under Egan Inoue at
Grappling Unlimited. In the last 12 months he has trained full
time at HMC in Honolulu. This summer he spent 3 weeks in Thailand
training at the camp of legendary Muay Thai fighter/coach Sang
Tien. Today he is returning from 2 weeks training under jiu-jitsu
black-belt Jay Jack at the Academy of MMA in Portland, Maine.
Local MMA insiders also know about the Hawaii Kai "Sunday
sessions" in T.Jay's garage, which he converted into a training
facility about a year ago.
Source: Patrick Freitas
|
PUNISHMENT
IN PARADISE
EAST vs WEST RESULTS!
Punishment In Paradise 12
Dole Cannery Ballroom, Honolulu, Hawaii
July 21, 2006
Coming soon!
|
WFA
is Tonight!
First WFA odds released...
By Sean McClure
According to www.2betdsi.com here are the latest odds for the
WFA event this Saturday night. Interesting to note is that Quinton
Jackson is significantly favored over Matt Lindland. Ricco Rodriguez
and Ron Waterman are dead even despite Ricco losing to Waterman
in August of 2005 by unanimous decision.
BAS
RUTTEN -665
KIMO LEOPOLDO +540
QUINTON
JACKSON -225
MATT LINDLAND +195
JASON
MILLER -375
LODUNE SINCAID +315
LYOTO
MACHIDA -700
VERNON WHITE +550
RICCO
RODRIGUEZ -110
RON WATERMAN -110
IVAN
SALAVERRY -300
ART SANTORE +250
Source: Maxfighting
Kimo Is Out of WFA Due
to Steroids!
WFA: King of the Streets Fight Card
Kimo tested positive for
steroids and has been taken off the WFA show. Wes "The Project"
Sims will step in on 2 days notice to challenge Bas Rutten.
Fight
Card
-
Quinton "Rampage" Jackson vs. Matt Lindland
- Bas Rutten vs. Wes Sims
- Ryoto "Lyoto" Machida vs. Vernon "Tiger"
White
- Ricco Rodriguez vs. Ron "H20" Waterman
- Ivan Salaverry vs. Art Santore
- Jason
"Mayhem" Miller vs. Lodune Sincaid
- Rob McCullough vs. Harris
Sarmiento
- Marvin Eastman vs. Jorge Oliveira
- Antonio McKee vs. Adam Arredondo
- Martin Kampmann vs. Edwin Aguilar
Source: MMA Fighting
|
Matt
Hughes vs. Georges St. Pierre
announced on ESPN
UFC President Dana White appeared on ESPN's "The Hot List"
to announce Georges St. Pierre vs. Matt Hughes 2 at the Arrowhead
Pond in Anaheim on September 23rd. Tickets go on sale August
12th.
GSP
and Matt Hughes were interviewed in the studio.
-
In the first meeting, GSP said he was not ready for a championship
fight. He is a different fighter now.
-
When asked if Hughes felt guilty for beating legend Royce Gracie,
Hughes said "no" since Gracie signed on the dotted
line to fight.
-
Being a trainer on The Ultimate Fighter 4, GSP said he learned
just as much as the other fighters because he got to train with
his hero Randy Couture. Said his English got better.
The
match was actually announced last April.
Source: MMA Fighting
|
Pé-de-Pano
at World Cup & Cage Rage
Gracie Barra black belt Márcio Pé-de-Pano is confirmed
in the Jiu-Jitsu World Cup, which will take place from this Wednesday
(19) until Sunday. "There are two years that I am out of
the Jiu-Jitsu events and I am always saying that I would like
to fight JJ again. I didn't have any fight before and after this
Championship, so I talked with my technician and I decided to
fight", told Pé-de-Pano, who will dispute the heavy
and absolute ones. "I know that I am more one athlete and
I am not a favorite. I must make my name again, but I am always
fighting to win", concluded the black belt fighter, who
will fight with his team mates, the black belts Lúcio
Lagarto and Felipe Oliveira.
As
the Nova União team, the Gracie Barra team will also participate
of the competition, with a lot of names in the registrations
list, which is available at the official website of the Olympic
JJ Brazilian Confederation (CBJJO), as Sérgio Lúcio,
Gustavo Franco and Alexandre Valverde. "The Gracie Barra
always wants to win, beyond having not many names", said
Pé-de-Pano, who can go back home with R$15 thousand of
prize. "I think it is important the prize, because all the
athletes must pay their trainings, which are quite expensive.
This is a motivation", finished him.
But
his time off has a deadline. According to the official website
of Cage Rage official website, the Brazilian is confirmed in
the 18° edition of the event, which will take place in September
30th, at Wembley Arena, in England. Called Battleground, the
Brazilian grappler doesn't have a confirmed adversary. In the
main bout of the event, Mark Epstein faces Ian "The Machine"
Freeman by the English light heavyweight title.
COMPLETE
CARD (subject to change):
Cage
Rage 18
Saturday, September 30th, 2006
Wembley Arena - England
- Mark Epstein vs. Ian "The Machine" Freeman;
- Mark Weir vs.TBA;
- Marcio (Pe De Pano) Cruz vs. TBA;
- Robert Berry vs. Rob Broughton;
- Tony Fryklund vs. Alex Reid;
- Dave Legeno vs.TBA;
- Gregory Bouchelaghem vs.TBA;
- Mustafha Alturk vs. Henry Miller;
- Sol Gilbert vs. Paul Daley;
- Brad Pickett vs. Robbie Oliver;
- Zelg Galesic vs. James E-Nicolle
Source: Tatame
|
UFC
vs PRIDE take 2
A while back I did an article on PRIDE vs UFC (read all about
that using the link. In that article I broke down the history
of the 2 organizations and things they do different and the same.
I took a lot of comments by reffering to the UFC as "the
big show". It's almost a full year later and things have
changed so today I decided to break down what I like about each
show, some of the fighters who have crossed over, some of the
champs and some of the others.
I
will say that based on the payout amounts I've seen, PRIDE does
a better job. Although when I see payout amounts they are not
confirmed so who really knows. All in all I think MMA Fighters
deserve more than what they get.
THE
PROGRAMS
I do like the fact that the UFC is live. Since PRIDE is held
in Japan it is difficult to broadcast to the United States live.
And, yes, I do live in the United States. PRIDE can get rid of
a lot of unneeded fluff and bring more fights which I like. All
and all there is just more of an excitement watching a live event.
Advantage
~ UFC
Both
organizations are continueing to commercialize everything, bringing
in more money that they do not share with thier fighters.
Advantage
~ Push
I
don't know this for fact either but it seems as though the UFC
fighters get better endorsments and sponsers than the PRIDE fighters.
If you look at Quinton Jackson's interviews when leaving PRIDE
and going to the WFA he seemed to imply that PRIDE doesn't do
a good job of getting fighters extra sponsers.
Advantage
~ UFC
I
love the enthusiasm of the PRIDE crowd, it just seems to be more
true fans and less drunken idiots screaming. Go USA! I've been
to some of the UFC's, sorry fellow fans but we do tend to bring
in a lot of drunken idiots.
Advantage
~ PRIDE
I
like the cage over the ring but like the system of PRIDE over
the UFC. In PRIDE you can still knee to the head. I understand
why the UFC doesn't allow those things when someone's head can
be trapped between the mat and the cage, a knee or stomp could
cause a lot of unneeded damage.
Advantage
~ Push
I
like the judging of PRIDE. The UFC's boxing-like 10 point must
system just doesn't belong in MMA, plus the judges don't seem
to know as much about the sport. The judge that voted for Stephan
Bonnar over Rashad Evans the other night is a perfect example.
I guess he scored highly on the vicious headbutt's Bonnar was
landing to Rashad's fist! But I think judging the whole fight
rather than each round is the way to go. Like boxing, you still
have some 'round stealing' with last minute action.
Advantage~
PRIDE
THE
CROSSOVER FIGHTERS
Anderson
"the Spider" Silva
Silva brought his 3-2 PRIDE record to the UFC to fight Chris
Leben last week. Silva had lost his last 2 PRIDE fights to Daiju
Takase and Ryo Chonan. He dominated Leben from the 1st jab to
the final outcome which lasted all of 49 seconds. You could tell
from that 1st jab that it was going to be a quick one. Silva
also holds victories over Jeremy horn and Jorge Rivera outside
of PRIDE and UFC. He made the PRIDE talent look pretty damn good.
Advantage
~ PRIDE
We
will then go from the most recent to probably the most decorated,
Jeremy "Gumby" Horn. Horn is a mere 6-4 in his 10 UFC
bouts while keeping an undefeated 3-0 in PRIDE. Horn's 77-14-5
record (according to Sherdog) would indicate that the UFC talent
is pretty stiff since he is well below average when fighting
there.
Advantage
~ UFC
Phil
"The New York Badass" Baroni couldn't by a win at the
end of his UFC career, everyone said he was washed up. Baroni
posted a 3-5 record in the UFC, losing to Evan Tanner and Matt
Lindland twice. Baroni was able to come over to PRIDE and KO
Ryo Chonan and Ikuhisa "the Punk" Minowa. Overall he
is 3-2 in PRIDE. The UFC fighters figured Baroni out, stand in
front of him, get knocked out. Some of the PRIDE fighters tried
to trade with Baroni and got knocked out. Hopefully they have
figured him out.
Advantage
~ UFC
Yves
Edwards has also done a bit of crossing over. Yves is 2-1 overall
in PRIDE and 6-3 in the UFC. This doesn't help us at all.
Advantage
~ Push
THE
CHAMPS
Chuck
"The Iceman" Liddell is an interseting one to look
at. Chuck is 13-2 in UFC and 2-1 in PRIDE. His loss to Jeremy
Horn 7 years ago can be chalked up to being in a fight with someone
more experienced. Losing to Quinton Jackson and Randy Couture
can be chalked up to fighting to top flight guys and coming out
on the losing end. He has come back to beat Randy 2 times and
eagerly awaits an opportunity to fight Jackson again.
Wanderlei
"The Axe Murderer" Silva is another champ that crossed
over. His 1-2 UFC record didn't look so hot, his PRIDE record
of 22-2-1 with 1 no contest looks real good. Like Chuck you shouldn't
make the mistake of looking at his early losses, he's much better
than he was back then.
There
is not a fan out there that would not love to see this fight.
This would be UFC vs PRIDE at it's finest. Chuck has proven KO
power with a freakish ability to avoid the takedown. Wandy loves
to take people down and ground and pound them into the mat. No
doubt chuck would want to stand and Wandy would want to ground
and pound, but Wandy can trade standing up also. I believe that
Wandy is more of a complete fighter, I also believe Chuck would
land one of his big right hands and send Wandy home.
Advantage
~ UFC (barely!)
Time
"The Maine-iac" Sylvia is the current Heavyweight Champ
of the UFC. At 6ft 8 and 250-265 he is a menace to MMA. He's
a good striker who brings with him an incredible reach advantage.
Sylvia has 2 submission losses in his 23 fights, 16 KO's in his
21 wins. Arlovsky did put him on the floor before dropping into
a Achilles Lock, he also put him on the floor before getting
KO'd in there 2nd fight. Sylvia has shown a chink in his armour,
a small chink mind you!
Fedor
Emelianenko is a monster. 23-1 overall with his 1 loss coming
in his 2nd fight. Fedor has not shown a chink anywhere. He has
the power to knock you out and he has the smarts to submit you.
He has one of the greatest comebacks in MMA history when he took
a vicious slam from Kevin Randleman, looked completely composed
and landed an armbar for victory.
Sylvia
would want this to stay on the feet and need to use his reach
advantage to keep Fedor at Bay. This may actually work for a
while, Crocop was able to keep Fedor away at times. But Fedor
would, in the end wear the Maine-iac down and beat him.
Advantage
~ PRIDE
Rich
"Ace" Franklin is the current 185 pound champ in the
UFC. It's hard to put up a better fighter right now. Many will
look forward to seeing him fight Anderson Silva, that fight will
probably take place next year. Franklin is an incredible striker,
more polished than Chuck Liddell with an equal amount of KO potential.
Dan
"Hollywood" Henderson won the Grand Prix 185 pound
championship last year. Henderson is a former wrestler with impressive
stand up skills.
Although
Henderson is from Team Quest I would pick against him in this
fight. I think Franklin is one of the best fighters out there
right now. I really think he could beat Liddell if he fought
at 205.
Advantage
~ UFC
In
the 170 pound weight class you don't have much for PRIDE representation.
It would be hard to find someone to stand up to the power of
the UFC in this category, they bring Matt Hughes, Georges "Rush"
St. Pierre and BJ "The Prodigy" Penn to the table.
Advantage
~ UFC
In
the 155 pound weight class you don't have a champ in the UFC.
PRIDE brings Takanori "The Fireball Kid" Gomi to the
table in this weight class. I know he recently lost a fight to
Marcus Aurelio but I don't think that would happen again. Gomi
is good, real good. Soon the UFC will crown a champ, I think
it will be Kenny Florian. It will be an interesting match up
to talk about when the Champ is crowned.
Advantage
~ PRIDE
On
my points I have UFC with 7 (1 Barely), PRIDE with 5 and 3 pushes.
That about sums up how I feel about the 2 shows. I love them
both, I'd love to see more crossover action but if you put me
to a decision I'd pick the UFC. Although I'll give PRIDE a bonus
point on the fact that they show 8-10 matches where the UFC will
maybe show 6-7 on a good night. That makes the decision very
close.
As
always feel free to comment, argue, discuss or whatever it is
you do.
Source: Flying Python
|
Quote
of the Day
"Change
before you have to."
Jack Welch, American Businessman and Former CEO of General Electric
|
PUNISHMENT
IN PARADISE
EAST vs WEST TONIGHT!
Punishment In Paradise 12
Dole Cannery Ballroom, Honolulu, Hawaii
July 21, 2006
Heavyweight
(3 X 11/2 Minute Rounds)
Sam Parker (Fight Unit, Ewa Beach) vs. Carl Sua (Fighters Union,
Waianae)
70lbs. Kickboxing Bout (3x1 Minute Rounds)
Kai Kamaka III (808 F.F, Salt Lake) Vs. Jacoby Visante (Sit You
Down, Waianae)
Sam
Choong (Smith Taewondo, Kaneohe) Vs. William Armstrong (Team
Upraising, Wahiawa)
80lbs
Kickboxing Bout
Jesus (HMC, Kailihi) vs. Ronald Matautia (Sit You Down, Waianae)
135lbs.
Kickboxing Bout (3x1 ½ Minute Rounds)
Dayne Tanaka (HMC, Kalihi) Vs. Christian Wong (Team Molokai)
145lbs.
Kickboxing Bout (3x2 Minute Rounds)
Leonard Ja-reaux (Smith Taekwondo, Kaneohe) Vs. Erwin Celes (Sit
You Down, Waianae)
Middleweight
Amatuer Shooto Bout (2x3 Minute Rounds)
Anthony Ornellas (Jus Rush, Kailua) Vs. Micheal Cuban (Team Uprising,
Wahiawa)
132.3lbs.
Featherweight Amatuer Shooto Bout (2x3 Minute Rounds)
Justin Anderson (Jus Rush, Kailua) Vs. Jay Bolos (Animal House,
Ewa Beach)
Middleweight
Amatuer Shooto Bout (2x3 Minute Rounds)
Keoki Cyrpiano (Jus Rush, Kailua) Vs. David Pedro (Freelance,
Kailua)
175lbs.
Kickboxing (3x 2 Minute Rounds)
Weston Victorio (Disciples of Puhi, Kuaui) Vs. Zane Kamaka (Sit
You Down, Waianae)
200lbs
Kickboxing (3x2 Minute Rounds )
Koali Castillo (Koden Kan, Kailua) Vs. Lance Ta'aFaasu (Sit You
Down, Pearl City)Welterweight
Amatuer
Shooto Bout (2x3 Minute Rounds)
Dominic Ah Nee (Universal Combat Sport, Maui) Vs. Hugh Jones
(Fighters Union, Waianae)
205lbs
Cruiserweight Amatuer Shooto Bout (2x3 Minute Rounds)
JJ Richardson (Jus Rush, Kailua) Vs. Lee Jay Gatewood (Sit You
Down, Waianae)
160lbs
Kickboxing (3x2 Minute Rounds)
Dean Henze (Smith Taekwondo, Kaneohe) Vs (Discples of Puhui,
Kuaui)
183lbs.
Light Heavyweight Amatuer Shooto Bout (2x3 Minute Rounds)
Jesse Ware (Kaneohe Team, Kahalu'u) Vs. Joey Corn (Universal
Combat Sport, Waianae)
150lbs.
P.I.P Kickboxing Championship Bout (3x2 Minute Rounds)
Marcus Moreno (Bulls Pen, Kailihi) Vs. Duke Saragossa (808F.F,
Wahiawa)
135lbs.
P.I.P Kickboxing Championship Bout (3x2 Minute Rounds)
Nui Wheeler (Team Soljah, Waianae) Vs. Bronson Mohika (808 F.F.,Kailua)
140lbs.P.I.P
Kickboxing Championship Bout (3x2 Minute Rounds)
Ryan Lee (Bulls Pen, Kailihi) Vs. Domi Lopez (Team Bigdogs, Waianae)
165lbs.P.I.P
Kickboxing Championship K Bout (3x2 Minute Rounds)
Keoni Bryant (Jus Rush, Kailua) vs. John Visante Jr (Sit You
Down, Waianae)
165lbs.
PIP Kickboxing Championship (3x2 Minute Rounds)
Kaleo Kwon (Eastsidaz, Kailua) vs. Wayne Perrin (Team Bigdogs,
Waianae)
Lightweight
Shooto Bout (3x5 Minute Rounds)
Hayate Usui (Shooto, Japan) Vs. Ed Newalo ( 808 F.F, Kaneohe)
Shooto
Middleweight Pacific Rim Championship (3x 5 Minute Rounds)
Keita Nakamura (Shooto, Japan) Vs. Ronald Jhun (808F.F, Waipahu)
|
Congrats
to JD & Reagan Penn on
getting their Black Belts!
A little late, sorry about that, but the coconut wireless had
a bit of bad reception. We wanted to formally congratulate the
two Penn brothers, JD and Reagan on getting their black belts
in BJJ a few months ago.
JD was the first brother to start Jiu-Jitsu and you could tell
from the very beginning that he had a God given gift for learning
JJ. No one knew at that time that Jiu-Jitsu was in the whole
Penn family's blood. After a few months of training, Reagan was
given a blue belt to wear so he and BJ could fly to Brazil and
enter the BJJ World Championships and Reagan ended up winning
it and BJ ended coming in second place in another division. Both
brothers are BJ's primary training partners and with the hugely
successful Rumble On The Rock event, they apparently earned their
Black belts in MMA promotion too!
|
Interview
with Ron "Machine Gun" Jhun:
"My Best is Yet to Come."
By Kawika Veeka
Hawaii Fight Network: Every fighter has found an inspiration
to compete in MMA. What sparked your interest to fight?
Ron
Jhun: My brother-in-law Ray Cooper was into wrestling. When he
came home from college, he started getting into the fight game
and was training with one of the first guys who competed here
in Hawaii, Kawika Pa’aluhi. Ray was training and I started
getting interested too. Then Ray told me, “Eh Ron! I doing
one ultimate fighting.”
HI-FN:
So it was Kawika Pa’aluhi who got you into it?
RJ:
Yeah. I pretty much had to asked my wife about it and she said,
“I don’t think so!” Then when Ray got the opportunity,
I got to go in his corner and see it first hand. I was kinda
like, “Whoa!” It looked kinda crazy, but exciting too.
HI-FN:
Did you do wrestling in high school?
RJ:
I did some my junior and senior year. I played football. Other
than that, nothing else special.
HI-FN:
You get into a lot of fights when you were young?
RJ:
Yeah! I had to fight for my lunch money. (laughs)
HI-FN:
Seeing Ray compete, did that get you more comfortable to do the
same.
RJ:
Yeah. I saw him do well and that made me want to do it. I didn’t
say anything to anyone. I just kept training and working hard.
Then the promoter approached me to see if I was interested. He
asked me and I was like, “Shoots!” That was it. After
the first time I got in there, I found something I liked and
I knew what I needed to do.
HI-FN:
You trained out of Jesus is Lord at the time. Was that directly
linked to your church or was the incorporation of God and Jesus
on your own as you trained?
RJ:
My brother-in-law and Monica gave themselves to the Lord. I was
going through some trials and tribulations in my life, going
through my ups and downs. I ended up going to church with them.
Then the promoter labeled us Jesus is Lord because we came out
with that on our shirts. TJ (Thompson) called us the Jesus is
Lord Team. Everyone recognized us as that so we just left it
as that. We were on our own, but we did seek formal advice from
our pastor to see if we were stepping out of our boundries as
Christians. He told us that as long as we go in looking at this
as a sport and competition, there are no guidelines saying that
what we are doing is wrong. Since we did it out of the passion
for the sport rather than the violence, we can carry on with
it.
HI-FN:
You now train out of 808 Fight Factory. Do you still work with
Jesus is Lord?
RJ:
I kinda stemmed out. Jesus is Lord had a closed door policy.
A lot of guys were coming to train, but weren’t doing it
under the rules and guidelines that we would train under. I had
a lot of friends that wanted to train, but couldn’t commit
to that. The schools are next to each other so I still train
with them. It’s all family. I look at it like a church.
When it gets too big, you have to expand. The vision of helping
people is the same. I still proclaim Jesus as my Lord and Savior
and appreciate what he did for my life.
HI-FN:
You’ve been in the fight game for a fairly long time and
have had over 40 professional fights against many recognizable
names in the MMA game. Are there still butterflies or are you
more than comfortable in the final moments?
RJ:
There’s still them jitter bugs. I think if you become accustom,
you learn how to control it after a while. You gotta have that
adrenaline and butterflies because that’s what drives you.
You know that excitement? (laughs) I’d say it’s like
parachuting. Even if you jumped outta that plane a hundred times,
you still gonna have the butterflies. That’s because you
know that behind what you’re doing, there’s a possibility
that your chute may not open. It’s the same thing with fighting.
No matter how much times you train and train, there’s still
a possibility in the back of your mind that something can go
wrong. You know it’s there, but you just hope and pray for
the best to happen.
HI-FN:
Great comparison. It hasn’t been said better than that.
What’s your protocol in the final moments before a fight?
Do you sleep? Get hyped up?
RJ:
I try to rest and keep my heart rate down. I’ve learned
that you get excited from the event without even realizing. Watching
the earlier fights, your heart rate gets up and you burn yourself
out without you even knowing. I try to get some rest during the
preliminary fights. Then at the middle of the event, I walk around,
get taped up, and start warming up to get my blood circulating.
I have kind of a ritual I go through. It works for me. I just
listen to Kirk Franklin and other kind of
gospel music, and get The Word into me, and get strengthened
inside. That’s
the difference for me. I get more inner strength and have it
come inside-out. Then I work on the physical side after that.
I feel the music and feed my soul. Some people get all nuts and
let the emotions of the fight and event get them worked up. That’s
only human nature. You start getting excited. You see a fighter
come to the back all buss up. Things run through your mind. You
have to guard your mind from the negative things people say at
the event. That’s when you have to fill yourself with positive
things and strengthen yourself from the inside-out.
HI-FN:
What was your most memorable moment in your career?
RJ:
One that stands out would be winning the King of the Cage welterweight
title against Shonie Carter in Las Vegas. That fight stands out
the most. We fought to a draw in Superbrawl and the crowd was
just booing. So we fought again in Vegas for the vacant King
of the Cage welterweight belt. That and the war I had with Pete
Spratt. That was four or five years ago. It was just back and
forth. The crowd was just going nuts. That was a Warriors Quest
fight.
HI-FN:
You’re a family man and also keep a day job like most other
fighters here in the islands. What’s the typical day for
“The Machine Gun” when he’s in preparations
for a fight?
RJ:
I’m a sheet metal worker. I get up at 5 o’clock, make
my breakfast, take my pills, get on the road at about 6, start
work at 7. My work schedule is from 7 til 3:30. I get home at
4. Monday, Wednesday, Thursday, I go to the chiropractor and
straighten my back. Then I get home, get showered up, eat dinner,
and get the family together. Then we’re on the road at about
6. I head to the gym and start my workout at about 6:30 til about
9:30. That’s a daily plan there from Monday through Friday.
As I get closer to a fight, I also go on Saturday and work more
technical stuff there.
HI-FN:
You really juggle a lot then.
RJ:
I rather have it that way. I’ve tried staying home and just
train and it seems like I have no balance like that. I like the
working and coming home and training. It works more on my mental
strength. I come home and I’m beat and it makes me kick
it into overdrive. It seems hard, but once I get my sweat going,
I can train for five hours straight. It’s just me getting
out of the gym and winding down. I cannot got to sleep until
11:30 or even midnight. Then I’m hanging the next day. My
work partners know when I had a hard practice the night before.
(laughs)
HI-FN:
The 808 Fight Factory is known for being a freestyle fight team.
Who are the important players in the evolution of the different
elements of your team?
RJ:
To me, the unique part of our team is that we’re just a
bunch of guys in the gym. Guys like Harris Sarmiento, Keali’i
(Ed) Newalu, Niko Vitale coming together. No particular coaches,
I watch videos. It’s pretty much self taught and we roll
with it. I also cross train with Anthony Torres and the Wolfe
Twins at MMAD to work on wrestling and grappling.
HI-FN:
Tell us about what we can expect from some of your fighters there.
RJ:
Harris “The Hitman” Sarmiento is one of our professional
fighters. He’s fighting “Razor” Rob McCollough
a day after my fight in the WFA in a rematch on the same card
as Bas Rutten versus Kimo. He’s making some waves in the
155 division. We’ve got Ed Newalu who is the 135lb Icon
and X-1 champion. He’s going to be fighting one of the top
shooto fighters at 143. He’s gonna try to make a splash
in the SHOOTO sanctioning body. We also have Bryson Kamaka who
has gone through some ups and downs in his career. He’s
out there expanding himself with cross training in Wahiawa and
at North Shore JJ. We even have some upcoming guys like Fatu
Tuitafi who’s now 2-0. Also Aaron Rose is coming up. We
also have 3 or 4 guys on the back burner who are either having
children or having to work and train. They’re telling me
that it’s some hard to work and train.
(laughs)
HI-FN:
What’s the status of Niko Vitale?
RJ:
His wife is pregnant with twins right now just like my wife and
I had. They’re expanding their family right now. Niko’s
going through a family-phase in his life right now. He’s
taking a break with training because of it and pops in when he
can.
HI-FN:
You’re fighting the undefeated K-Taro Nakamura for the vacant
SHOOTO Pacific Rim MW Title. Explain the feeling of anticipation
that has been going through your mind since the announcement
was made that you’ll be fighting for the belt.
RJ:
It’s almost like the time I got the call from the UFC. It’s
like a dream come true as far as my goals for the sport are concerned.
I set out a few goals and fighting for a SHOOTO title is one
of them. I’ve been on Cloud 9 when I first heard the news
from the promoters. Since I’ve dropped weight, I’m
more focused on my weight than my fight. I’ve been taking
my mind off my opponent and more focused on my diet and watching
what I’m eating. I think that’s the difference with
going down a weight class.
HI-FN:
You are going down to 167 for this one right? Are you more accustomed
at 170, and didn’t you fight at 185 before?
RJ:
Yes, that’s correct it’s at 167. I was fighting at
185 pretty much my whole career. I was eating plate lunches and
didn’t even care about my weight. I was walking in at 187
and hit a crossroad. Then somebody, I think it was Ray, asked
me to fight at 170. I came to the conclusion that I might as
well try it. The Shonie Carter fight was my first fight at 170.
I realized I could make the weight. Whoa, but 167 is pushing
the envelope. That extra 3 pounds is kinda livin rough, but I
think I’ll make it. (laughs)
HI-FN:
Have you been preparing differently for Nakamura?
RJ:
I’ve never really trained specifically for a fighter. I
just train everything, but most of all cardio. I’m pretty
much ready to fight whoever it is and whatever style he is. My
experience will be able to overcome adversities in the ring and
adapt to the fighter. During the round, I’ll make changes
of my own. I’ve never really studied fighters because it
seems like they’re also studying me. They probably won’t
come out the way you seen them according to the way they fought
somebody else. I never go out with a game plan. I just go out
there and be prepared for whatever happens.
HI-FN:
Have you been informed on the career projection of the winner?
Will there be an immediate World Title fight against Aoki since
you’re the #3 ranked SHOOTO middleweight?
RJ:
They haven’t promised it, but it looks like the winner will
fight Aoki in the Year End Show. I know he’s a good judo
player and I heard his jiu jitsu is phenomenal. I told myself
that I always wanted to test myself with the best fighters in
the world. I think he’s one of the unkept secrets right
now. They have him ranked in the top ten in the world. SHOOTO
hasn’t got him out to where he’s competing on US soil
to really showcase his fighting style. I’m not looking past
Nakamura, but I can see myself competing against Aoki.
HI-FN:
How many SHOOTO fights have you had and what is your comparison
to SHOOTO and all out MMA?
RJ:
I’ve had nine SHOOTO sanctioned bouts. I think SHOOTO is
more of a sportsman’s event. There’s no elbows on the
ground. The strikes need to be made with the knuckles. Therefore
you cannot do any kind of fancy striking on the ground. You get
knockdown and you’re given a count to recover or redeem
yourself versus the other circuits where you get pummeled when
you go down. There’s the pros and cons about SHOOTO, but
overall, I like it.
HI-FN:
Has the standing 8 count ever saved you?
RJ:
Yeah! (laughs) It was against Suda. We fought to a decision.
In the third round, I caught him with a one-two. He rolled-out
the right hand that I caught him with. Then he came in with a
spinning backfist right on my chin. He kind of phased me. I stumbled
backward and in the process of him coming forward, I dropped
into guard. So the ref stood us up and gave me a standing 8 because
it came off of a standing punch. I remember that he was counting
and he was on 7 or 8, and when I got up I felt wobbled. The standing
8 kind of saved me. (laughs) He had the title at the time, and
I was scheduled to fight in a Superbrawl about a week after that
fight. I was ready because of that and that’s when Japan
called me to fight him. His original opponent got hurt and they
needed a replacement. If I beat him, I’d be ranked #1. It
was a non-title fight, so if I won, I’d get to fight him
again for the title. I figure take the fight. Japan? I’ll
fly up there! (laughs)
HI-FN:
Was that the first time to Japan?
RJ:
That was my fourth trip there, but my third time fighting in
Japan.
HI-FN:
What’s the difference between fighting Japan compared to
anywhere else?
RJ:
You know what? The fans in Japan make you feel special. You go
up there and they no shame. They ask you for autographs. They
just go nuts and let their emotions show. Down here in Hawaii,
local fans see you and the give you the “Ho! Wassup bah!”
In Japan, the fans come running up to you with pictures and magazines
for you to sign. They wanna take pictures and stuff. You feel
special. It was motiviating and I was in the gym to go back t.
It was a good experience for me.
HI-FN:
What went through your head as Rumble proposed the fight with
Pele? Why didn’t it take place?
RJ:
His management said that his visa expired and wasn’t going
to be able to get it by the date of the show. That’s what
the Rumble management informed me about. I was excited to hear
about the fight though. Everytime I get proposed to fight a world
class fighter I get all excited.
HI-FN:
You beat TUF2 welterweight contract winner, Joe Stevenson a while
back in Warriors Quest. Rumors say that the UFC was planning
to get you back in the cage with him for his first official UFC
bout. Any truth to that?
RJ:
I don’t know if it was me being on a losing streak that
swayed them from making that decision, but I know that Joe did
an interview and was saying that I was on the top of his list
for him redeeming himself. I’m not sure, but I’ve had
a lot of people coming up to me saying that he wanted a rematch.
I don’t know. That was just rumors flying around.
HI-FN:
What Hawaii fighter has made the biggest impact on the sport
here?
RJ:
I would have to say BJ Penn. In the amount of time that he did
it and the level of fighters he fought along with the way the
marketed him. I trained with him a couple of times when I was
working in Hilo. The guy is unreal. He’s real explosive,
good balance. I would say that he’s strong and really technical.
He uses a lot of leverage. He’s a guy who put wrestling,
jiu jitsu, and streetfighting and conformed it into his own style.
He was fighting at 155 when I trained with him and walked around
at about 170. I was walking around at 180 or 190 and I couldn’t
hold him down. The guy has cat-like reflexes. You flip him over,
he’s gonna land on his feet no matter what. (laughs) I was
blown away when I worked out with him. He’s unreal.
HI-FN:
Anyone outside of Hawaii that has made a big impact on the sport
here?
RJ:
I would have to say Royce Gracie. If you was to mention his name,
everybody would know. He was tapping out everybody in his gi
from back in
the day.
HI-FN:
What did you think of his loss against Hughes?
RJ:
That was just the passing of the torch. I don’t think he
expected Matt Hughes to be as dominant as he was in their fight.
It was probably a reality check in his training methods. Look
at Matt and who he trains with. He’s got almost every belt
in the UFC training with him. It was the young versus the old,
but you gotta say that jiu jitsu was the foundation for everybody.
HI-FN:
I’m going to mention something about MMA. You tell me the
first thing that comes to mind: Harris Sarmiento.....
RJ:
Bloodline. He’s Bloodline to the end.
HI-FN:
WFA.....
RJ:
The next best thing.
HI-FN:
PRIDE Openweight Grand Prix Champion.....
RJ:
Wanderlei or Nogueira
HI-FN:
The Ultimate Fighter “The Comeback”.....
RJ:
Wish I was in it. (laughs)
HI-FN:
Punishment in Paradise.....
RJ:
Destiny!
HI-FN:
Mayhem Miller.....
RJ:
One crazy haole. (laughs)
HI-FN:
Shinya Aoki.....
RJ:
Diamond in the rough.
HI-FN:
Carlos Condit.....
RJ:
The next generation of fighter.
HI-FN:
Antonio McKee.....
RJ:
LUCKY!! (laughs)
HI-FN:
Jose “Pele” Landi.....
RJ:
Icon
HI-FN:
BJ Penn.....
RJ:
Exactly what his nickname is. He's a prodigy.
HI-FN:
SHOOTO.....
RJ:
What fighting really should be.
HI-FN:
K-Taro Nakamura.....
RJ:
The fighter that stands in my way.
HI-FN:
Ron “The Machine Gun” Jhun.....
RJ:
My best is yet to come.
HI-FN:
Thanks for the interview. Do you have anyone to thank before
we go?
RJ:
I’d like to say thank you and mahalo to all the locals.
From Lanai to Kaho’olawe to Maui, all the islands. When
I’m down and out, all of you that support me, I’ll
fight for you guys. Mahalo again to everyone that supports me.
I promise you, my best is yet to come. Mahalo and Aloha!!!!
Source:
www.hawaiifightnetwork.com
|
From
Middleweight to Light-Heavyweight
By Denis Martins
After a busy calendar year in the USA, with three UFC events
keeping the attention turned to the UFC, the countdown to the
July 22 WFA: "The King Of Streets" has begun. And to
kick things off, MaxFighting will start its coverage with an
interview with one half of the main event. This is Matt "The
Law" Lindland, who's fight against one of the world's best
lightheavyweight's in Quinton "Rampage" Jackson.
MaxFighting:
You've recently moved up to lightheavyweight and fought Mike
Van Arsdale, but were rumored to fight Anderson Silva. Was it
your intention to move up?
Matt Lindland: I am a prize fighter and the prize I fight for
is money not belts. I was offered a much better deal to fight
Mike. I like the idea of fighting Anderson Silva, but this is
how I make a living and my mortgage company does not take belts.
MaxFighting:
How do you feel fighting at lightheavyweight?
Matt Lindland: Good.
MaxFighting:
Do you think you'll find it more challenging in this division?
Matt Lindland: Yes I do.
MaxFighting:
If I am not wrong, you fought early in your career at lightheavyweight
at IFC 6? How do compare then to now?
Matt Lindland: In those days there was only over 200 pounds and
under 200 pounds, and the guys these days are a lot better.
MaxFighting:
Are you a lightheavyweight fighter from now or will you move
around?
Matt Lindland: Move up, move down. Where ever I get paid to fight.
MaxFighting:
You're used to fighting at middleweight, did you feel weaker
at 205 versus Van Arsdale?
Matt Lindland: Mike may have been a lot stronger than me, but
I won the fight early in the first round.
MaxFighting:
That fight didn't make it three minutes, was it your plan to
end it quick?
Matt Lindland: No. It took me a lot longer than I planded, but
I am still happy with the outcome.
MaxFighting:
What kind of preparation did you do to overcome the similarities
and dictate the pace of the fight?
Matt Lindland: We might have similar styles, but I was better
that night. I guess I would have just trained like I would if
I fought myself.
MaxFighting:
Your upcoming fight at WFA is your 3rd in 7 months, is this your
ideal for you or would you like to fight more often?
Matt Lindland: I enjoy fighting and the more I fight the more
I get paid so more is always better.
MaxFighting:
Your fight against Rampage is the main-event of the show, but
there is no belt involved?. Would you like to fight for the belt
soon?
Matt Lindland: I do not think I get a belt. A trophy "belt"
would be nice but at this point in the sport every organization
has their own trophy and they really do not mean much.
MaxFighting:
Quinton "Rampage" Jackson is your third opponent this
year, and he is considered a striker, while your first two opponents
Fabio Leopoldo Van Arsdale are considered BJJers and wrestler
respectively. So you think this fight is a good test for you?
Matt Lindland: Every fighter has certain strengths and each fight
is a test. Rampage is a great opponent and a big test. I look
forward to this opportunity.
MaxFighting:
What is your key to victory in this fight?
Matt Lindland: I think the key is to hit him more often and harder
than he hits me, where ever the fight goes.
MaxFighting:
Last words? Sponsors to thanks?
Matt Lindland: I want to thank all the fans for watching. The
promoters for booking me and my sponsors for their help: Bet
Eagle, Sprawl, Cobb 28, Benchmade Knifes ,Tactical Assault gear,
and Latus Motors.
Source: Maxfighting
|
Network
fighting to the top
Once the underdog,
The Fight Network is now the most-watched digital sports channel
in Canada
CHRIS ZELKOVICH
When The Fight Network launched last September, more than a few
people in the TV business wondered if its owners hadn't taken
a few blows to the head themselves.
How
could a digital channel that had only six employees and no studio
expect to compete against the giants of Canadian broadcasting?
Less
than a year later, no one is asking that question any more. The
Fight Network is giving more shots than it's taking and last
month rose to the top of the digital sports channels heap.
Granted,
that's a small heap. It outdrew all other digital sports channels
by attracting an average of 3,500 viewers a minute.
While
that pales in comparison to conventional and specialty channels,
it was almost double the next most-watched digital sports channel,
Fox Sports World Canada, which averaged 1,900 viewers.
But
when the other channels are owned by the likes of CanWest Global,
CTV and Maple Leaf Sports and Entertainment, that's no TKO.
"In
many ways we knew a lot of this was going to happen," says
TFN president Mike Garrow. "Our business plan is coming
true, but in some areas this has been accelerated way beyond
what we expected."
In
fact, the channel is so confident that it is planning to expand
to the U.S., Britain and Australia. It recently signed a deal
to supply headlines and updates to Verizon, Sprint and Cingular
cellphone users in the U.S.
It
has also hired an agent in hopes of getting American distribution.
After
launching as part of a Rogers free preview, the channel finds
itself on 14 cable or satellite systems with more to come. The
original six employees has grown to 25 full-time and eight part-time.
The channel is also moving into a 14,000-square-foot office space,
its first home.
``When
we started we used to meet at Timothy's near Eglinton and Yonge,"
says Garrow. ``We were so small we could have met in a phone
booth."
The
secret to the channel's success has been airing exclusive events,
which is what programming head Brian Sobie has concentrated on.
Though sports like kickboxing and Japanese wrestling have a small
following compared with mainstream sports, most will be watching
if this is the only place to see it.
``We
offer things that people can't get anywhere else," says
Garrow.
That
explains why a recent airing of a Japanese series called Pride
Fighting attracted 45,600 viewers — a huge audience for
a digital channel. In fact, some Maple Leafs games on Leafs TV
barely surpassed that last winter.
The
other factor has been the phenomenal growth of mixed martial
arts, which features a mix of judo, jujitsu, karate, boxing and
wrestling with no apparent rules. It's been called human cock-fighting
by some.
It
has given a shot in the arm to the Spike channel, whose Ultimate
Fighting Championships (UFC) series has averaged more than 2
million viewers and is Spike's top draw among young males. It
has drawn larger audiences than the NBA from that hard-to-reach
demographic.
The
Fight Network doesn't carry the no-holds-barred ultimate fighter
matches, but has mixed martial arts from around the world. It
also supplies pre- and post-match Ultimate Fighter coverage surrounding
the Spike bouts.
"UFC
has done a great job of promoting mixed martial arts and that's
helped raise awareness of the sport," says Garrow. "It
appeals to young men, who love the fact that the athletes have
to have multiple skill sets, from Muay Thai kickboxing to Greco-Roman
wrestling."
It
also doesn't hurt that a series of UFC video games have primed
young audiences for the all-out violence.
While
the channel hasn't come close to making a profit yet, Garrow
says that's not far off, thanks in part to keeping costs at a
minimum. After all, rights to Amazon wrestling don't cost quite
as much as NHL rights.
But
the channel is only part of the operation. In addition to the
cellular deals, The Fight Network website is selling a clothing
line, fight gear, memorabilia and pay-per-view events. More is
planned.
"We
want to be the one-stop shopping place for fight fans,"
says Garrow.
Source: The Toronto Star
|
|
