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(All events on Oahu, unless noted)

2006

November
Aloha State Championship of BJJ
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)

August
Hawaiian Open of BJJ
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)

Icon Sport 46
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)

8/26-27/06
International Masters & Seniors Championships
(BJJ)
(Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)

7/22-30/06
CBJF World Championships
(BJJ)
(Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)

7/20-24/06
CBJJO World Championships
(BJJ)
(Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)

7/?/06
RAZE MMA Fight Night 2
(MMA)
(San Diego, CA)

5/26/06
Icon Sport 45
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)

5/20/06
3rd Maui Jiu-Jitsu Championships
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(Maui War Memorial Gym, Wailuku)

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)

3/25/06
Garden Island Cage
Match #3
(MMA)
(Kapaa H.S. Gym, Kapaa, Kauai)

Valley Isle MMA Event
(MMA)
(Maui War Memorial Gym, Wailuku, Maui)

3/18/06
Extreme Wars X-1
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)

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)
(Filipino Cultural Center, Waipahu)

UFC 58: USA vs Canada (MMA)
(Mandalay Bay Events Center, Las Vegas, NV)

2/26/06
Pride 31: Unbreakable
(MMA)
(PPV)

NAGA Hawaii State Championship
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(Honolulu)
*Cancelled until Summer*

2/25/06
Icon Sport 44
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)

 News & Rumors
Archives

Year 2006
February 2006 Part 3
February 2006 Part 2
February 2006 Part 1

January 2006 Part 3
January 2006 Part 2
January 2006 Part 1

Year 2005
December 2005 Part 3
December 2005 Part 2
December 2005 Part 1
November 2005 Part 3
November 2005 Part 2
November 2005 Part 1
October 2005 Part 3

October 2005 Part 2
October 2005 Part 1

September 2005 Part 3
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September 2005 Part 1
August 2005 Part 3
August 2005 Part 2

August 2005 Part 1

July 2005 Part 3
July 2005 Part 2
July 2005 Part 1

June 2005 Part 3
June 2005 Part 2
June 2005 Part 1
May 2005 Part 3
May 2005 Part 2
May 2005 Part 1

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

March 2006 News Part 1
 

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  Fighters' Club TV
The Toughest Show On Teleivision

Tuesdays at 9:30PM
Olelo Channel 52 on Oahu
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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

 3/10/06

Quote of the Day

"Happiness is something that comes into our lives through doors we don't even remember leaving open."

Rose Lane, 1886-1968, American Author and Journalist

Video Press Release on San Diego's First World-Class MMA event:
http://gofish.com/userVideoPlayer.gfp?gfid=30-1019652

PRESS RELEASE
Contact:
Patrick Freitas
RAZE MMA FIGHT NIGHT
Media & Sponsor Relations
(808) 375-1645
razemma@yahoo.com

RAZE M.M.A. FIGHT NIGHT COMING TO SAN DIEGO

March 10, 2006 Honolulu, HI Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) is the fastest growing sport in America. Many would argue that it is the world’s most exciting athletic competition. With an understanding of the safety, legitimacy, and popularity of this flourishing sport, the California State Athletic Commission opened its doors to this flourishing sport in December 2005.

On Saturday, April 29th, 2006 Southern California will experience its first world-class event as the promoters of two of the United States’ oldest and most established MMA promotions – Hawaii-based Icon Sport and Iowa-based Extreme Challenge – come together for their collaboration, RAZE MMA FIGHT NIGHT. This first-ever event will take place at ipayOne Center (formerly San Diego Sports Arena) in the heart of San Diego.

More RAZE MMA FIGHT NIGHT updates will be distributed in the coming week.

WHO: RAZE MMA FIGHT NIGHT
WHAT: San Diego’s First World-Class MMA Event
WHEN: Saturday, April 29th, 2006
WHERE: ipayOne center (San Diego Sports Arena)


Source: Patrick Freitas

STRIKEFORCE: Gracie vs. Shamrock
The HP Pavillion, California
March 10, 2006

A pretty amazing scene is ready to take place tonight as the first ever MMA show in California will be held in San Jose. Promoter Scott Coker is putting on the first ever MMA show under the Strike Force Promotion Banner featuring Frank Shamrock against Cesar Gracie.

Last night the weigh-in's took place in what may have been the longest weigh-in in the history of MMA. A three hour weigh-in was held as the California State Commission took their time going over paper work, paper work and more paper work, which frustrated some fighters who had to wait three hours to just weigh-in.

After the lengthly delay most of the fighters made weight. (A few of them will weigh in this morning) The HP Pavillion is housing the first ever show in California and has opened additional seating. It's believe that 15,000 tickets have already been sold and a few event coordinators told MMAWeekly.com last night that they will open the arena to hold it's capacity of 17,000 seats.

Jimmy Lennon Jr, who was the Master of Ceremonies, told the weigh-in crowd that the event already has become the largest North American crowd in attendance in MMA history with the tickets pre-sold.

One other interesting note about tonight's event is the fact that it's a coming out party for many former UFC fighters. Eugene Jackson is returning to the fight game for the first time in two years. Mike Kyle is looking to get back in the heavyweight mix facing Krzysztof Soszynksi. Josh Thomson makes his return to 155, while former WWE wrestler Daniel Puder makes his second apperance in MMA.

Gilbert Melendez looks forward to defending his Shooto title next month in Japan by getting a warm up fight against Harris Sarmiento tonight in San Jose, while Cung Le makes his MMA debut. Nathan Diaz, the brother of Nick Diaz is also on tonight's card.

A very confident Frank Shamrock looks to be in incredible shape against Cesar Gracie. Gracie who was announced having a record of 14-0 at the weigh in, tipped the scales at 181, while Shamrock stepped in at 185.

WEIGH-IN'S

Official Fight Order:

Prelims:
- Scott Graham - 195 vs Chris Yee - 198
- Anthony Juarez - N/A vs Nathan Diaz - N/A
- Jose Palacios - N/A vs Sean Bassett - 154

Main Card:
- Crafton Wallace - 185 vs Ray Routh - n/a
- Harris Sarmiento - 155 vs Gilbert Melendez - n/a
- Daniel Puder - 222 vs Jesse Fujarcyk - 211
- Brian Ebersole - 185 vs Matt Horwich - 185
- Mike Kyle - 237 vs Krzysztof Soszynski - 250
- Eugene Jackson - 183 vs Jorge Ortiz - 182
- Josh Thomson - 155 vs Clayton Guida - 155
- Cung Le 183 - vs Mike Altman - 183
- Frank Shamrock - 185 vs Cesar Gracie - 181

Source: MMA Weekly


HAWAIIAN CHAMPIONSHIP
OF BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU
Tomorrow

Saturday, March 11, 2006
Saint Louis School Gymnasium

3142 Waialae Ave - Honolulu, HI
Start Time: 10:00 AM / Rules Clinic

FORMAT: Gi & No Gi Sport BJJ Rules; Single Elimination / DIVISIONS: Various Age, Rank and Weight
This year we're expecting some Pan American caliber medals, great T-shirts as usual, and awards also going-out for 3rd place finishers. The Hawaii Institute of Massage Therapy will be back to provide all athletes with complementary massages.

REGISTRATION: $60 Adults / $30 Kids (Applications available at weigh-in) - fee provides entry to multiple divisions.

WEIGH-IN & REGISTRATION for Oahu Residents is FRIDAY, March 10th at: Site A) UH Athletic Complex Studio #4 / Noon-1pm, and again at 7:30-8:30pm; or Site B) HKF Martial Arts Center (Waipahu) @ 94-295 Pupuole St., 2nd Fl., 7:30-8:30pm (NOTE: All Oahu residents expecting to weigh-in on Saturday could be turned away or assessed a $10 late fee). Registration for Outer-Island Residents is SAT., March 11th at Tourney Site 7:30-9:00 am.

CONTACT: 223-9363 / 392-8330
or visit Website at
www.brazilian-freestyle.com
E-mail:
info@brazilian-freestyle.com

Source: James Tanaka

Tickets Almost Sold Out On Kauai!


Tickets are going fast, remember this is once in a lifetime event,
First ever womens MMA ever on Kauai
First ever outdoors MMA on Kauai
Largest card ever, 16 fights

Also getting this much UFC/Icon Fighters to attend was a tremendous feat with all their busy schedules.

Autographs, weigh ins, Kukui Grove, March 24th 5pm
Event, Hanapepe Stadium, March 25th 5pm

See you there!

Source: Event Promoter

CUNG LE READY FOR CALI'S FIRST MMA EVENT
by Mick Hammond

Since the announcement that California State Athletic Commission had finally approved MMA rules for events outside of Native American casinos, the community has been buzzing about the first state-sanctioned event taking place this weekend in San Jose. Among the featured fights on the undercard of highly anticipated showdown between Frank Shamrock and Cesar Gracie is the MMA debut of San Shao superstar Cung Le.

Le, who had shot to fame through K-1 PPVs and via exposure on Martial Arts specials produced by the likes of the Discovery Channel, will be entering into a cage for the first time in his fighting career to take on an old adversary in front of his hometown crowd. Recently MMA Weekly caught up with Le as he finalized preparations for his match to discuss the fight and his future inside and outside the combat arena.

MMA Weekly: It’s almost here, you’re just a few days away from making your MMA debut, how are you feeling Cung?

Cung Le: I’m very nervous but excited. I feel my preparation has been well balanced from the stand up to the ground to the takedowns. I’ve been working with the guys over at AKA (American Kickboxing Academy), especially Javier Mendez working with my boxing and Garth Taylor with my Jiu-Jitsu. I’ve got a lot of good sparring partners there and all my students/fighters who have stepped up and given me rounds.

MMA Weekly: I understand you’re quite familiar with the opponent you have lined up in this fight.

Cung Le: Yes, I fought him back in 1999, he took a San Shao fight against me on short notice. He’s a tough fighter out of Houston named Mike Altman. I don’t know much about him as an MMA fighter but I know him as a San Shao fighter. He’s got really heavy hands and good takedown defense. He’s been begging for a rematch for the longest time, ever since he took the San Shao rules fight with me a couple years ago at the last minute. He’s definitely looking for revenge.

MMA Weekly: So we can definitely expect a real war with him wanting revenge and you wanting to make a good showing in your debut?

Cung Le: Yeah definitely, I feel that he’s going to come swinging for the fences. He will be better shape this time, so he says, and he doesn’t think I’m going to be able to take him down, so we’ll see. I’m just looking forward to fighting in the cage in front of a huge crowd. I hear that over 14,000 tickets have been sold, from my gym alone we’re probably going to hit $80,000 worth of ticket sales for Scott Coker (K-1/ISKA Promoter).

MMA Weekly: How important was it for you to want to be a part of this historic MMA card in your hometown?

Cung Le: Very important, that’s a big reason I stepped up and took this fight on because it’s history in the making. It’s the first CSAC sanctioned MMA cage fight in California. Plus it’s going to be in San Jose and so I want to get out there and try it out and give the fans something to cheer. I’ve always been a big fan of MMA, I always enjoy watching it and going to the live events, so here’s the chance for me to get in there and have a little fun.

MMA Weekly: All right, let’s talk a little about what’s going on with your career away from the sport for a minute. I understand you’ve had a lot going on in your business life lately.

Cung Le: Business-wise the school is doing really good, the gym is doing well, but what’s taking off for me is my acting career. I was in Vietnam coaching the US National San Shao team, which under my coaching, 10 fighters earned six medals, 2 silver and 4 bronze, which was the most we’ve ever brought home, when I was told to call this guy about a movie.

Basically my mother had called me at like 2 in the morning telling me to call this guy, which I thought was crazy because I was coaching the finals the next day, but she pleaded with me so I called him. Two days later I was on a flight from Saigon to Hong Kong to Chicago to Toronto and 25 hours later I was being driven to the location of the set and was told I was the star of the movie.

MMA Weekly: What can you tell us about that project?

Cung Le: I’m not sure what the name is exactly because it’s in Russian, but translated it means “The Final Fight.” It’s going to open throughout the country in Russia and will probably come out here on DVD. I became the main actor, the hero of the movie, and my supporting cast is David Carradine, Cary-Hiroyuki Tagawa who was the villain in Mortal Kombat, Eric Roberts, Gary Busy, Oleg Taktarov (UFC vet), and Bolo (Yeung) who’s worked with Bruce Lee. They’re already talking to me about the next project we might be working on.

MMA Weekly: With all the traveling did you have any chance to train?

Cung Le: It was hard to be in New York for one week because it was during the blizzard time, but I did get a chance to do a lot of running and springs. One of my fighters came out to do a fight scene and they basically let us spar for like three hours without any gear while they were filming. It was pretty full contact so I did get my sparring in and came home banged up [laughs], so I got my work in.

MMA Weekly: What about your fighting career, what do you see for yourself in that part of your life this year?

Cung Le: I’m going to take one fight at a time. There’s a lot of great fighters in the MMA world and I’m just starting on the bottom in this new arena with a big name already, but I’m going to take one fight at a time and see what direction the lord takes me to. I’m always going to be a San Shao fighter at heart but once I cross into the MMA arena I would hope the fans would consider me an MMA fighter.

MMA Weekly: So we’ll be seeing you do this for quite some time to come huh?

Cung Le: I don’t want to jinx myself, I enjoy it but I’m already 33 years old. So I don’t know how long I’ll be it for, I mean I look up to Randy Couture, but I don’t want to be fighting when I’m 40 years old [laughs].

MMA Weekly: Understandable. Thank you so much for your time Cung, we appreciate it. Is there anything you’d like to say as we close out the interview?

Cung Le: The first thing I’d like to say is I’d like to thank all fans for their support not only to me but the world of MMA and Martial Arts in general. I’d like to thank my sponsor Xyience for taking care of me and giving me a chance to train full time as a fighter and also giving me unlimited supplies of NOX and supplements which helps in my training and progression as an athlete and hopefully an MMA fighter.

I’d like to thank Sprawl shorts for the shorts and support they’ve given me and Cobb 28 as well. I want to also thank you and MMA Weekly for the interview and for your support of me over the last couple of years. I want to let the fans know that I’m going to go into that cage and I’m going to fire both guns and once the smoke clears I’m sure they’re going to be happy with the fight that I’m going to put on.

For more information on Cung Le and his USH! Fight Team and gear please visit his official website www.CungLe.com.

Source: MMA Weekly

Shogun out of Pride GP Openweight

All the expectation around the participation of Maurício Shogun at Pride GP Openweight is now finally finished. Shogun went yesterday morning to the doctor that is taking care of his injury, Dr. Carlos do Vitta, and he said Shogun needs about two or three months to get healed. Shogun got hurt during the fight against Mark Coleman, at Pride 31. "I need to stay at home for about 45 or 60 days. I won't even take care of my physical condition. The first stage of the GP takes place on May 5 and will be very hard to me to be able to participate. I think that I'm out - said Shogun, who after falling down he broke a bone of his right arm.

Source: Tatame

 3/9/06

Quote of the Day

"Optimism means expecting the best, but confidence means knowing how to handle the worst. Never make a move if you are merely optimistic."

The Zurich Axioms


HAWAIIAN CHAMPIONSHIP
OF BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU
THIS SATURDAY!

Saturday, March 11, 2006
Saint Louis School Gymnasium

3142 Waialae Ave - Honolulu, HI
Start Time: 10:00 AM / Rules Clinic

FORMAT: Gi & No Gi Sport BJJ Rules; Single Elimination / DIVISIONS: Various Age, Rank and Weight
This year we're expecting some Pan American caliber medals, great T-shirts as usual, and awards also going-out for 3rd place finishers. The Hawaii Institute of Massage Therapy will be back to provide all athletes with complementary massages.

REGISTRATION: $60 Adults / $30 Kids (Applications available at weigh-in) - fee provides entry to multiple divisions.

WEIGH-IN & REGISTRATION for Oahu Residents is FRIDAY, March 10th at: Site A) UH Athletic Complex Studio #4 / Noon-1pm, and again at 7:30-8:30pm; or Site B) HKF Martial Arts Center (Waipahu) @ 94-295 Pupuole St., 2nd Fl., 7:30-8:30pm (NOTE: All Oahu residents expecting to weigh-in on Saturday could be turned away or assessed a $10 late fee). Registration for Outer-Island Residents is SAT., March 11th at Tourney Site 7:30-9:00 am.

CONTACT: 223-9363 / 392-8330
or visit Website at
www.brazilian-freestyle.com
E-mail:
info@brazilian-freestyle.com

Source: James Tanaka

UFC 58 : Full Report
By UFC.tv - Thomas Gerbasi

LAS VEGAS – It was supposed to be Rich Franklin’s toughest test yet, but after a five round battering of courageous challenger David Loiseau at UFC 58 – USA vs Canada before 10,362 at the Mandalay Bay Events Center, the only question has to be, who has a legitimate shot to challenge the UFC middleweight champion?

The unanimous five round decision read 50-42 twice and 50-43 for Franklin, who defended his crown for the second time and did it with a broken left hand - and possibly a broken foot and right hand - from the second round on.

“It’s the first fight where I’ve gone to a decision, so I’m very displeased with myself,” said Franklin, who could now be dubbed ‘The Punisher’ after his dominating performance.

Kicking was the weapon of choice early on. Loiseau missed his first high kick, but landed his second, producing nary a pause from Franklin, who responded with a kick of his own that was in turn answered by ‘The Crow’. Both decided to test their hands moments later, and though Loiseau’s handspeed was superior, it was Franklin who jarred the challenger and sent him sprawling into the fence briefly. Loiseau answered with a flush shot of his own, but Franklin took it well. With under 1:30 to go, Franklin picked up his pace a bit, though many of his shots were deflected or avoided by Loiseau. The respect both fighters had for each other was obvious though, and it appeared that the combatants were settling in for a long battle, something that almost didn’t happen when Franklin put Loiseau on the deck at the bell with a right to the jaw.

Looking to follow-up on his good fortune from the previous round, Franklin aggressively pursued Loiseau, who refused to engage when the champion attacked. Loiseau then suffered a delayed reaction to a punch from Franklin and the champ pounced and put the challenger on the mat. Once the two rose, Loiseau, with a nasty knot over his right eye and a bloody nose, was even less amenable to trading with the champ, even turning his back on Franklin on a few occasions. With under two minutes left, Franklin continued to dominate from corner to corner as Loiseau’s legs didn’t even seem to want to hold him anymore. With less than 30 seconds left, Franklin went for the finish, slamming Loiseau and pounding him, but the bell intervened.

Loiseau opened up with some kicks to start the third round and make a charge for the title, but again it was Franklin with a quick takedown that turned into a sequence where he got Loiseau’s back and looked to end the bout. ‘The Crow’ survived, but when he rose, the knot over his right eye worsened and he was cut over both eyes. After the doctor allowed the fight to continue, Loiseau finally struck paydirt, knocking Franklin to the mat with a left hook and suddenly putting the Cincinnati native in trouble.

“I wasn’t hurt, I wanted to create a little drama,” joked Franklin. “That’s a lie. Dave clipped me.”

Franklin was able to buy some time along the fence though, and he again put it on the Montreal native, whose face was battered beyond recognition. Loiseau, who was obviously having trouble seeing, started to paw with his arm to at least touch Franklin and know where he was, undoubtedly a bad sign, but he was able to survive the third stanza.

At the start of the fourth, the two combatants again touched gloves, this time even smiling at each other in appreciation of the courage both were showing. By the end of the opening minute, Franklin again got Loiseau’s back and battered the courageous Canadian, who refused to give in. A slam by ‘Ace’ at the three minute mark didn’t help matters, and referee John McCarthy was watching the fight closely, but when Loiseau rose, he was ready to fight again. Franklin, way ahead at this point, took the pace back a bit as looked to reload his guns for another run in the final round.

Far behind, Loiseau went for broke in the fifth, still throwing leg kicks with brutal power. Franklin was just too strong at this point in the fight, and he easily took ‘The Crow’ down again. Loiseau tried to fight his way out of trouble, but Franklin put him right back in a precarious spot and got his back once again – usually a sure way to end a fight, but it was as if Loiseau got it in his head that he would not give in at any cost.

He didn’t. And even though he lost his fight for the UFC middleweight title, David Loiseau definitely earned the crown as the toughest fighter in the world.

Georges St. Pierre was the spitting image of a 9 to 5 businessman when he entered the UFC Octagon at 5:08pm local time to warm up in a suit, tie, and no shoes. But once he returned to fight former UFC welterweight champion BJ Penn, he was all fighter, as he survived a bloody pounding in the first round to win the next two on two of the three judges’ cards and earn a split decision in the highly anticipated bout that actually lived up to the hype.

Scores were 29-28 twice and 28-29 for St. Pierre, who earned a rematch against current UFC welterweight king Matt Hughes with the win. Penn, who entered the bout wearing the championship belt he never lost in the Octagon, was disappointed with the verdict.

“I just feel that I probably did more damage,” said Penn. “But he fought well.”

Penn - making his first UFC appearance in two years after a contract dispute and lawsuit kept him out of the Octagon - was barely able to contain himself as he awaited the opening bell, and the roar of the crowd was ear-splitting. Penn came straight out at his foe, looking to land a bomb, but St. Pierre kept his cool in perhaps the biggest fight of his life. A flurry by Penn left St. Pierre blinking his eye from an inadvertent thumb, but also left his nose bloodied. “I “saw two BJ Penns,” said St. Pierre.

At the three-minute mark, the two clinched and St. Pierre walked Penn to the fence and tried to work his knees. Penn responded with knees of his own and fought off St. Pierre’s takedown attempts. After a break, the two traded, and St. Pierre picked up his pace with punches and kicks. Penn calmly stood in the pocket though and picked at his opponent with accurate shots that opened a cut under St. Pierre’s right eye.

“This is the first time in my career I bled a lot and I learned a lot,” said St. Pierre, who fought much of the fight with his face covered in crimson. “I was really hurt in the first round.”

Looking to turn the tide, St. Pierre came out fast in the second, shooting out jabs and kicks that surprised Penn. After locking up again, St. Pierre was finally able to put Penn on the mat, where he worked from inside the Hilo native’s guard briefly before standing and landing a couple of shots on the prone Penn. With a little over three minutes left, both fighters stood and St. Pierre was able to bully Penn back to the fence for a moment before ‘The Prodigy’ fought his way back to the center of the Octagon. Again, St. Pierre was able to land kicks, but his strikes were having little effect on Penn, whose hands were considerably heavier, though not as active. With under a minute to go, Penn opened up a bit more with his back to the fence, but it was St. Pierre who ended the round the strongest when he took Penn down to the mat just before the bell sounded.

With the fight seemingly up for grabs, the third began with both fighters looking to trade, but it was St. Pierre who was able to outland Penn, an amazing feat given the way the bout began and with the amount of blood lost by the Montreal fighter. With under four minutes left, St. Pierre scored his biggest takedown, picking up Penn and slamming him to the mat. Penn was able to work his way back to his feet, but St. Pierre put him right back against the fence. At the 2:15 mark Penn went for his first takedown of the fight, but St. Pierre avoided it adroitly and again smothered Penn against the Octagon fence before taking him down again with just under a minute left in the fight. Penn, a jiu-jitsu ace, looked to submit St. Pierre in a last ditch effort on the ground, but it was not to be.

“Do the fans want to see me fight for the title?” asked St. Pierre.

Yes we do.

Middleweight Mike Swick was forced past the 30 second mark for the first time in the UFC but he still didn’t see round two yet, as he submitted Quebec’s Steve Vigneault in the opening stanza of their swing bout.

“I gave him all the respect in the world and I trained like I never trained before,” said Swick, a member of the cast of the first season of ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ reality show.

Swick looked to make it three sub-25 second KOs in a row, but Vigneault smothered his foe’s attack and held on until referee Steve Mazzagatti broke the two. After another flurry that didn’t hit the sweet spot, Vigneault again clinched until a break. Swick was able to then land a flying knee, and while Vigneault held the knee and brought Swick to the canvas, ‘Quick’ immediately sunk in a guillotine choke and forced a tap out at 2:09 of the opening round.

“That’s a Swickotine,” said Swick. “It’s a little quicker and stronger.”

In another middleweight battle, Wyoming native Nathan Marquardt outlasted Manitoba’s Joe Doerksen in a quality bout between two of the most seasoned veterans in the sport.

All three judges scored the bout 30-27 in a bout that was a lot closer than the judges’ scores would indicate.

Marquardt, looking to erase the memory of his less than compelling debut win over Ivan Salaverry, immediately remedied that problem by scoring with punches and kicks and almost securing a guillotine choke, but Doerksen weathered the early storm and traded with Marquardt evenly until the two tumbled to the mat with a little over a minute to go. After a lull in the action, the fighters stood and looked for openings on the feet, with Doerksen scoring effectively with a couple of leaping punches to the head.

Doerksen started off the second round much the way Marquardt began the first, and he took his foe to the mat. Marquardt quickly got out of trouble though and soon reversed his position on the ground before the combatants stood again and traded for a bit before another trip to the floor. This time around, Marquardt was able to land a couple of strikes when Doerksen allowed him breathing room, and continued his good fortune when on the feet moments later. But just as soon as that line was written, Doerksen briefly stunned Marquardt with a bomb to the chin, but was unable to follow up. After the two wrestled on the mat, Marquardt stood and had his bearings back, and he ended the round behind some strong striking.

“He’s got a tough chin,” said Marquardt. “I’ve caught a lot of guys not as hard as that and they went down.”

In the third, both fighters came on strong, with Marquardt gaining the upper hand after sending Doerksen’s mouthpiece flying with heavy shots and then putting him on the mat. After a brief respite on the ground, referee John McCarthy stood the fighters up, and again Doerksen was rocked by Marquardt. To his credit, Doerksen stood in the pocket and fought back hard before tumbling to the mat with ‘Nate The Great’ in tow. With the fight apparently sown up, Marquardt ran out the final minute of the bout, and moved to 2-0 in UFC action.

Mark Hominick had plenty on his mind entering his UFC debut against one of MMA’s pound for pound best, Yves Edwards, but with his father’s fight against cancer inspiring him, the Ontario lightweight upset the heavily favored Texan, submitting him in the second round of a scheduled three rounder.

Both lightweights immediately got to business, with Edwards landing knees in the Thai clinch and Hominick fighting him off effectively and continuing to stalk his foe. ‘The Machine’ was cool under the pressure of his first UFC bout, and he was able to land uppercuts while in Edwards’ clinch. Edwards remained the consummate pro though, waiting for his opening while still being busy enough to score points. Hominick appeared to gain confidence with each passing second and aggressively pursued the Texan, but Edwards showed the little extras that don’t always appear in heavier weight bouts, including slick defense and body punching with both hands.

In the second, Edwards looked for the takedown, but Hominick fought it off and responded with a flurry of shots that stunned his opponent and put him on the defensive. Hominick’s aggression allowed Edwards to succeed on a second takedown attempt, but once on the mat, Hominick was able to sink in a triangle choke that forced Edwards to tap at the 1:53 mark of the second frame.

In undercard action…

In the first lightweight bout in the UFC since 2004, Sam Stout showed his ‘Hands of Stone’ as he pounded out a close three round split decision over Spencer Fisher in a bout that showed why the lightweight division has the most exciting fighters in mixed martial arts.

Scores were 29-28 twice, and 28-29 for Stout, who was scheduled to fight Kenny Florian until a back injury forced Florian out and brought Fisher in on three days notice.

The bombs went flying instantly, landing with a thud, and after a brief trip to the mat, the lightweight bombers got back to throwing heavy shots. One minute in, Fisher scored a beautiful takedown, but Stout immediately jumped up to this feet. Fisher walked forward with little regard for Stout’s punching power and landed a couple of flush shots before scoring another takedown. Fisher effectively worked his ground and pound on the mat, but Stout hung tough as he worked to better his position. Fisher stood and scored with a kick to the chest, but that decision also allowed Stout to get back to his feet and trade with his foe until the bell.

Stout opened the second round effectively, mixing in punches and kicks from long range as Fisher pursued. Fisher’s face started to show the wear of battle and he seemed to also be showing the effects of being forced to drop to the 155 pound weight limit from welterweight in just two days. ‘The King’ kept moving forward though, scoring well with a knee on the inside that caught Stout by surprise. The action didn’t let up throughout the round, and Stout’s strong round brought the first chants of ‘Canada, Canada.’ In the final minute, Fisher got Stout to the mat again and almost sunk in a heel hook, but the London, Ontario native escaped.

With the fight's result hanging in the balance, both fighters stood and looked for the shot that would turn the tide. Stout worked punches and kicks well from long range, and Fisher tried for the takedown but paid for getting inside by getting nailed with quick 1-2s. With a little under three minutes left in the fight, Fisher got his takedown, with Stout working his way out by the two minute mark. When the fight went to the mat again with 1:30 left, Stout scored with some strikes, but Fisher soon worked his way into side control. A move to full mount was avoided as Stout pushed his tired foe off and jumped to his feet, where the bout ended with a rousing cheer from the crowd.

The wait to get to the UFC was a long one, but for Jason ‘The Punisher’ Lambert it was worth it, as he submitted ‘The Ultimate Fighter’s Rob MacDonald in less than two minutes in a light heavyweight bout.

Long Beach, California’s Lambert – who owns wins over UFC vets Marvin Eastman and Travis Wiuff - immediately came out looking for the takedown, but MacDonald sprawled his way out of trouble. Not for long though. Lambert slammed MacDonald to the mat, and though the TUF 2 alum fought his way back up, Lambert dropped him a second time and this time quickly secured a kimura, forcing a tap-out at 1:54 of the opening round.

“It was so tight I though I was gonna rip it off and take it home with me,” said Lambert of the submission lock that ended the bout.

In the heavyweight opener, Tom Murphy, a cast member of season two of ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ reality show, got his first UFC victory with a dominating third round stoppage of late replacement Icho Larenas, who took the fight on one day’s notice after original opponent Christophe Midoux was forced out with a hernia.

Looking to make a good impression in his Octagon debut, Murphy struck first, bulling Larenas into the fence and following up with a loud takedown. From there, the Vermont resident worked on a ground and pound strategy as Larenas simply tried to stall enough to force a restart. He got his chance with 2:15 left, and both quickly locked up and traded inside the Thai clinch and a clash of heads left both men cut, with Larenas getting the worst of it as he emerged with a nasty gash on his forehead. Murphy quickly pounced and dropped Larenas to the mat again, where he opened up with his right hand until the bell rescued the Montreal native.

The second saw more of the same, with Larenas showing no defense at all for Murphy’s takedowns. And once on the ground, the TKO heavyweight champ was unable to deal with Murphy’s ground and pound. After a standup by referee Yves Lavigne, the bout was halted briefly to have the ringside physician check the cut on Larenas’ hairline, but when action resumed, Murphy put Larenas back on the canvas. After another standup, Larenas attempted to show some offense as he swung for the fences, but after a wild miss it was the same story as Murphy put Larenas down, got side mount and opened up with an array of forearms.

The chants of ‘USA, USA’ went up between rounds, and the third round began the same way the other two started. Murphy made a concerted effort to finish though, and after another series of unanswered shots, Lavigne finally called a halt to the one-sided bout at the 1:59 mark.

Source: Maxfighting

Puder Feeling ‘Tough Enough’ For
Shamrock vs. Gracie Challenge

New York, NY….World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) “Tough Enough” reality show winner, Daniel Puder (1-0), will return to his roots when he faces Jesse Fujarcyk (2-0), in a heavyweight contest during “Shamrock vs. Gracie,” California’s historic first mixed martial arts fight card that will take place on Friday, March 10th at San Jose’s HP Pavilion.

“I want to beat down a lot of people (laughs), but I haven’t set specific goals yet because I want to get past this first fight,” said the 6 foot 3 inch, 235 pound Puder, whose blonde hair, blue eyes, and surfer’s tan give him the All-American look that the sport has sought in an effort to further its mainstream appeal. A former protégé of “Shamrock vs. Gracie” main event constituent, Frank Shamrock, the 24-year-old has since been taken under the wings of American Kickboxing Academy trainers Javier Mendez and “Crazy” Bob Cook as well as Jiu-Jitsu expert Dave Camarillo. “It would be nice to knock him out in the first minute or two or armbar him. I don’t care if he takes me down or if he wants to stand up.”

The pinnacle of Puder’s run on the UPN-televised reality show, which aired between October and December 2004, came when he was granted the opportunity to grapple with 1996 Olympic Gold medalist and professional wrestling legend, Kurt Angle. To the amazement of WWE officials and the millions of TV viewers looking on, Puder successfully placed Angle in a “kimura” submission hold, bringing about a tremendous upset victory for the young contender.

Puder’s first place finish on the show earned him a one-year contract with the WWE, which he completed in October. “I probably learned more doing WWE for one year than I did in five years of my life just because I was on the road so much, I was by myself, I got to read the Bible a lot,” he noted. “I got to talk to a lot of my friends on the phone, but I wasn’t around too many people, so it was a good time.”

To date, Puder remains the only professional athlete officially endorsed by Myspace.com. According to the fighter, his presence on the wildly popular business and social networking website helped him capture the attention and gradually win the affection of “Tough Enough” viewers whose votes cast after each episode influenced the process by which competitors were eliminated from the show.

Puder’s big heart holds more than his love for sport combat, which explains why he dedicates a great deal of his leisure time to helping the youth of Northern California. His two non-profit organizations, “Puder Strength Training” and “Tough Enough Kids,” the second of which sends him on hospital visits to lift the spirits of terminally ill children, have had a significant impact on the community. “It’s a big reason why I’m doing professional sports,” he said. “Its nice to go into to a hospital where there’s a dying 12 year-old sad as hell and, when I walk in, he couldn’t be happier.”

Before he became a recognizable TV star and hero, Puder made his professional mixed martial arts debut in Japan on September 6, 2003. He earned a three round unanimous judges’ decision over fellow American Jay McCown.

The 13 bout “Shamrock vs. Gracie” card will be headlined by the long-awaited showdown between bitter rivals Shamrock (20-7-1) and Cesar Gracie (14-0) as well the mixed martial arts debut of Cung Le (16-0), who will face seasoned veteran, Mike Altman (19-8). Rising stars and former collegiate wrestling standouts Josh “The Punk” Thomson (10-1) and Clayton Guida (19-3) will square off with each other while undefeated prospect, Gilbert Melendez (10-0), will do battle with Harris Sarmiento (18-12). Fan favorite, Eugene “The Wolf” Jackson (12-7-1), will make his long-awaited return to action when he meets Jorge “The Naked Man” Ortiz (7-2). In the event’s other heavyweight matchup, Mike “Mak” Kyle (14-4) will take on Krzysztof “The Experiment” Soszynski (9-4).

Tickets for “Shamrock vs. Gracie” are officially on sale and can be purchased at all Ticketmaster (408-998-TIXS) outlets and Ticketmaster online (www.ticketmaster.com) as well as at the HP Pavilion box office (408-287-7070). Fans can also purchase tickets by logging on to the official “Shamrock vs. Gracie” website, www.shamrockvsgracie.com, and clicking on the “Tickets” link where a ticket order form is located. All completed forms should be returned for processing to Ms. Julie Lin either via fax: 408-863-0153 or email: juless8000@aol.com. Ticket prices start at $30.

Doors to the event will open at 5 PM Pacific Standard Time on March 10th. The first preliminary bout will begin at 6 PM.

The “Shamrock vs. Gracie” bill is being promoted and produced by Silicon Valley Sports and Entertainment (SVSE, www.svse.net), a leading producer of major sporting and entertainment events and the exclusive producer of such events for San Jose, California’s largest entertainment arena, the HP Pavilion. SVSE’s many properties include “Miller Lite Fight Night,” world championship boxing; the National Hockey League’s San Jose Sharks; and the annual ATP men’s professional tennis “SAP Open” event.

Source: Maxfighting

UFC is a "Joke" and a "Shame"
Charles:

Here’s my take on the UFC USA vs Canada. I have watched every UFC to date as well as all the PRIDE events. UFC 58 is a joke... the match ups suck except for BJ coming back. Also the 205 lbs class sucks for the UFC, and PRIDE has the top 205 lbers in the world. Liddell would lose to Shogun, Silva, little Nog and Arona, and if anyone says he wouldn't... “F” them and “F” the Iceman.

Brazilian top team rules and Liddell is the champ in weak 205 lbs class beside Babulu. (note: letter received prior to UFC 58 actually taking place).

Editor:

Hey Charles... Typically, Smokin Joe is our resident angry fan, but your attack on the UFC is welcome nonethe less. We are about exploring different views and drilling down on the issues. However, I dop want to say, I am not sure that I follow your point. I suppose your letter is just a general rant, which is fine. If so, I will just say that UFC 58 was a fine card on paper. BJ Penn returning was indeed something to watch, as is St. Pierre no matter who he faced. Franklin/Loiseau was something I was looking forward to, not to mention the return of the 155 lbers. Also the chance to see Mike Swick back in action and if Nathan Marquardt can get back on track to prove himself, both provide us with some fights of value. I have always said, we don't need 8 main-event fights on one card... The main-event, a couple of features, and some up-and-comers on the undercard is the right formula... That is pretty much what we got. Some results were expected, some were unexpected... For me, the Hominck/Edwards fight was the biggest upset of the night. Congrats to Hominick even though I personally could not see how he could win it. Good stuff I would say.

Then what's with the redirection on the Chuck Liddell attack??? While it may be true that he is the top dog in a weak field of 205 lbers in the UFC, he has paid his dues against some tough opposition and is worthy of a top 5 status. I have said this before also... A Silva/Liddell fight is a pickem, and I feel the same about Shogun, little Nog and Arona. Those guys could beat Liddell, and he could most definitley beat them as well... but then again, "F" me, right?

Bobby Lee

Rich, Excellent article you wrote on the UFCs questionable practices!!!

You covered all the questions that an educated fight fan asks regarding the sad state of affairs that the fight game is in today, especially the UFC. The first thing that jumps to mind as far as current fights go is "How the hell are B.J. Penn or GSP not fighting Matt Hughes for the title and Riggs is!!!!!!? Even worse, how is B.J. Penn not still the champ after whipping Huges' ass in convincing fashion!!!!?"

You'd think the most widely known MMA organization would try to have some structure about it, but for every knowledgeable fight fan there are 20 that just don't care what they see as long as they see two guys going at each other. Quantity NOT quality is the UFCs motto. What a shame! Keep up the excellent work.

Editor:

Hello Bobby, thanks for your letter. I am glad that you have found some value in my previous letter responses. You may notice from my response above (to Charles), I do think that the UFC occassionally puts a together a show properly, and I have no problem saying it and even defending them under those circumstances. But that is just one show, and there is so much more that needs to be done for the larger picture. As I have stated in other articles, their overall direction is off, especially if one considers them as the leader of MMA in the USA. I am not sure what any of us can do to make a difference, but time will tell.

About the Welterweight Title picture. We know that BJ was stripped of the belts so of course he did not come in as the champ. However, I have illustrated why it really doesn't matter since the UFC belt is merely an award that the UFC brass can pass around to whomever they choose (the mentality seems to be, why not give Riggs a title bout, since it essentially protects the champ and gives him another title defense to tout). Really, what may have been a more appropriate course, and this is a discussion I had with another maXfighting reader, was that there should have been a BJ/Hughes rematch for the title... then St. Pierre would be in line as the next contender. This makes sense, even in the murky world of the UFC Championship scene. But that is not how it happened, and that is not how things work apparently. Logic be damned, because Hughes is the TUF Coach this season, and we can't have him potentially losing the "title" just now.

The bottom-line is, and you hit it right on the head, for every "educated" fan that is pained by these issues, there are droves of casual fans and blind supporters who are satisfied just to see the action (honestly, I think your 1 to 20 ratio is a bit low, because even a number of long-term {I don't say "educated" fans for this group} are willing to swallow this stuff just because there are fights on regular TV... hooray!!!

Thanks again for your letter.

Source: Maxfighting

Reports are Buzzing Over the International Fight League's Debut
By Sean McClure

It is being reported that the International Fight League’s (IFL) inaugural live event date has been confirmed to be held at the Trump Taj Mahal, Atlantic City, New Jersey on April 29, 2006

Four teams will compete in the first LIVE event. Each team will consist of five fighters, one representing each weight division of the International Fight League (lightweight, welterweight, middleweight, light-heavyweight and heavyweight), and one head coach.

Team Name / Coach

#1 The Silverbacks / Pat Miletich

#2 The Pitbulls / Renzo Gracie

#3 The Anacondas / Bas Rutten

#4 The Tiger Sharks / Coming Soon

Tickets go on sale TODAY at 12pm EST and are available through Ticketmaster Online!

http://www.ticketmaster.com/event/02003C62CECF932F

http://www.ifl.tv

Source: Maxfighting

 3/8/06

Quote of the Day

"The successful person has the habit of doing the things failures don't like to do. They don't like doing them either necessarily. But their disliking is subordinated to the strength of their purpose."

E.M. Gray

Garden Island Cage Match 3 Tickets Now on Sale!


Garden Island Cage Match 3
Hanapepe Stadium, Hanapepe, Kauai, Hawaii
March 25, 2006


Hi All,
Tickets are now on sale at the following locations:

Meyvn skate and Surf- Lihue
Tropical Tantrum- Kapaa
Dynamic Tinting- Puhi
Tutu's Cafe - Kalaheo
Sweet and Sassy - Eleele
Wong's Restaurant- Hanapepe
M&H Service- Waimea
Westside sporting goods- Waimea

Thanks to our sponsors!
Kuhio Motors
Aloha Beach Resort
Garden Isle Disposal
Aloha Rainbow Screening
Tire Warehouse
M&H Service
Triple T Plumbing
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Dr Coy Rebmann DDS
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Island Radio 98.9

Source: Event Promoter

Extreme Wars X-1 2 Fight Card
Blaisdell Arena, Honolulu, Hawaii
March 18, 2004
Fights start promptly at 7:00 PM so come early!


MMA: 145lbs - 2 Rounds x 3 Minutes
Kevin Delima (Bulls Pen) VS Dave Moreno

MMA: 165lbs - 2 Rounds x 3 Minutes
Bryson Kamaka (808 Fight Factory) vs. Peter "Boy" Kahananuui

MMA: 210lbs - 2 Rounds x 3 Minutes
Randy Leuder vs. Derik Thornton

MMA: 145lbs - 3 Rounds x 3 Minutes
Albert Manners (BJ Penn's MMA) VS Lorenzo Coca

X-1 135lbs Championship Match:
MMA: 135lbs - 3 Rounds x 5 Minutes
Ed Newalu (808 Fight Factory) VS Lafayette Barelo

MMA: 145lbs - 3 Rounds x 3 Minutes
Eddie Yagin (Grappling Unlimited) vs. Donald Gonzalez Jr.

MMA: 160lbs - 3 Rounds x 3 Minutes
Jamal Perkins (808 Fight Factory) VS "Sugar" Shane Nelson (BJ Penn's MMA)

MMA: Open - 3 Rounds x 3 Minutes
Shane Carwin Vs Matt Nelson

MMA: 185lbs - 3 Rounds x 3 Minutes
Jay Carter (BJ Penn's MMA) vs. Joshua Ferriera

MMA: 205lbs - 3 Rounds x 3 Minutes
Walter Saliss Vs Jr Sua

MMA: 185lbs - 3 Rounds x 3 Minutes
Daniel "Death Roll" Higgins VS Fernando Gonzales

MMA: Open - 3 Rounds x 3 Minutes
Miles Tynannes VS Reuben "Warpath" Villareal

Open XMA: 3 Rounds x 2 Minutes
Mike Malone (Eastsidaz) VS Tupu AluAlu (Gee Yung)

X-1 155lbs Championship Match:
MMA: 155lbs - 3 Rounds x 5 Minutes
Harris Sarmiento (808 Fight Factory) Vs Kola Koka (Team MMAD)

MMA: 235lbs - 3 Rounds x 5 Minutes
John "The Bull" Marsh (228 St Gym) Vs John "Big J" Kailiuli

X-1 170lbs Championship Match:
MMA: 170lbs - 3 Rounds x 5 Minutes
Ross "Da Boss" Ebanez (BJ Penn's MMA) VS Mark Moreno (Bulls Pen)

Main Event:
MMA: 210lbs - 3 Rounds x 5 Minutes
Marcelo Tiger VS John "The Machine" Lober

Source: X-1

PRIDE FC official statement regarding pay per views

PRIDE FC released a statement today addressing untelevised fights and mismatches.

Here at Dream Stage Entertainment we are looking for ways to improve our products and services for you, the fan. We're always committed to the goal of providing you with the best possible product, whether through our live PRIDE Fighting events, pay per view broadcasts, or through our line of merchandise. The information that our fans provide us with helps us in our continuing process of improving our quality of products and services.

In the past, we have received complaints about all fights on the card not being televised. To address this issue, we have a disclaimer in our advertisements that states that all fights many not be shown due to a limited three hour time slot set by the PPV company. In addition, the order of the fights as they appear on the card may not always be the same as the actual live event because the fight order may not be preferred by Japan or the rest of the world.

As far as "mismatched fights" are concerned, mixed martial arts is not limited to fighting in the same weight class as your opponent. We allow practitioners of different sizes and weights to compete against one another to prove who is more skilled and which fighting styles are better.

Our ultimate aim is to create action packed PPV's that our fans will never forget. Keep in mind that we are reading all your emails and taking them into account.

For more information on PRIDE FC, visit pridefc.com!

Source: MMA Fighting

The mentor, part 1
The story of grandmaster Carlos Gracie, the first Gracie to ever learn Jiu-Jitsu


The Gracies’ first archenemy was no Japanese, but one tough native. In the early 1900s, little Carlos, grandson of a Scottish immigrant who had set up his home in Para, Belem’s capital, didn’t think twice before challenging a wide-eyed, sharp-nailed opponent. One would often see the kid play catch with an alligator that lived in the river nearby. Gracie would always take the edge: curious and owner of a keen sense of observation, Carlos had noticed the reptile couldn’t see under water, only swam in a straight line, and had to stick its head out in order to make turns. By simply getting out of the direction of the animal’s teeth, Carlos would always win.

This and many stories were rescued by daughter Reyla Gracie and will for the first time appear on the book where she wishes to tell the story of the man born September 14th, 1902, and the first family member to make contact with the martial art that, in all of the blooming century, would be bound to the name Gracie. Jiu-Jitsu, thus, was Carlos’s life (and vice versa) ever since his father, Gastao, trying to canalize the energy of the boy who seemed limitless, made him learn a new fight style with a Japanese friend of his, Mitsuyo Maeda, a.k.a. Count Koma. At 14, thus, Carlos began a saga that, to the whole world’s surprise, would pervade academies and rings across the planet. Or could anyone guess? “Out of all pupils Koma taught, and they weren’t few, as he used to travel the world teaching, only one fully understood the grandeur of that knowledge, adopting Jiu-Jitsu as a profession. I believe my father had, since the very beginning, a good idea of the thing he was learning. No wonder he created a school that’s been lasting 80 years,” says Reyla, who has been working on the book since 1999 gathering interviews, press clippings, books and documents on the subject.

Indeed, when Carlos became acquainted with Count Koma’s techniques, in 1916, the young Gracie was still a developing personality, much like Belem, which worked as an entrance to Brazil, with influence of European and Japanese cultures, and on the other hand was nearly wild, with Indians, woods and rivers where the fearless would play. “Jiu-Jitsu gave my life a direction”, Carlos used to say. Dedicated to the trainings and interested in the techniques, it didn’t take long for Carlos to stand out among the students. “Once, Count Koma needed a volunteer to demonstrate a type of choke, and Carlos offered himself. The professor declined and asked for another pupil, and afterwards told dad: ‘You are going to be a champion, and are not here to be choked,’” says black-belt Rilion, one of the 21 children of the patriarch. Despite Maeda’s constant travels, Carlos kept his training rhythm stable, by beginning to practise with another one of the count’s students, local entrepreneur Jacinto Ferro. “The astonishing thing is neither Ferro nor Loma set up an academy there, no pupil kept it up, and Jiu-Jitsu pretty much vanished from the state of Para. The person who took it back there, decades later, was someone who had learned at the Gracies’ school in South-Eastern Brazil,” Reyla recalls. With the family’s increasingly hard economic situation, the father took Carlos, along with younger brothers Osvaldo, Gastao, Jorge and Helio (the latter, 11 years younger than Carlos), to try and make a living in Rio de Janeiro, then Sao Paulo and then Belo Horizonte. At age 22, Carlos Gracie started to make a living out of Jiu-Jitsu. It was the time of challenges published on newspapers (“Want a broken rib? Look for Carlos Gracie,” one of them read), of the search for opponents, of the birth of mixed martial arts and of the suspicion by practitioners of other styles. “He didn’t look like a fighter, but like a chess player. He’d go to training in police academies. As they thought nothing of him, he had to demonstrate the efficiency of the art he believed in, that Jiu-Jitsu could do miracles and that he himself was a good fighter,” says Rilion. Sister Reyla adds: “Carlos was always against associating Jiu-Jitsu with violence. Of course, in the beginning Carlos would place the ads and challenge those huge stevedores because, in the 1930s, there was the need of establishing an identity. That was when such comments began: ‘The Gracies are invincible.’ ‘The Gracies settle businesses with their bare hands,’” she says amongst laughs. “But each historical moment is different. When, in the seventies, Jiu-Jitsu became a sport, there was no more need to prove anything. It’s like today, when fighting or not fighting m.m.a. starts being a personal choice; there is no longer the need there was in the times of my father and Helio, when they had to prove Jiu-Jitsu’s efficiency in the ring,” she concludes.

The influence Carlos had over his children and siblings was, therefore, much greater than fans can imagine nowadays. The old Gracie was a teacher, a strategist, a promoter, an idealizer and the clan’s creator – which Reylar intends to show in her book. “There is the man and the work. My father’s work was Jiu-Jitsu, family and nutrition, intertwined by his life story. The family is also a legacy he idealized, a product of his mind. Simply because the very project of making Jiu-Jitsu what it is today depended on the family, so that it would be possible to perpetuate the art,” says Reyla.

To Rilion Gracie, the ten years without Carlos indeed left a few gaps and many heritages: “One of the greatest heritages he left was the power of discipline and will. I never saw my father go by a day without exercising, and once he spent six months going every day to see the sunrise at Cristo Redentor [the gigantic statue of Christ atop a hill in Rio de Janeiro], where he’d meditate. Every day, never missed it,” the son recollects. “He was the family’s reference point, the nucleus, and in the 80s, at the end of each tournament, everyone gathered to evaluate each person’s performance, the rights and wrongs. I felt when he died that changed a little. And he never hit a child, nor said ‘Go, motherf., kick his ass,’ in front of opponents. He only let good things through. That’s priceless,” he says.

Nothing, however, deserved the family’s gratitude more than the nutrition method elaborated by Carlos Gracie, for years, based on studies and thousand of experiments. After making his children, nephews and grandchildren listen to their bodies and eat exclusively what is beneficial to the organism, it’s no exaggeration today to say that the last half decade meant 50 years of success of the Gracie Diet, whose basic principle is to avoid the excessive acidity in the nutrition, which to its creator was the main cause of the organism’s deterioration and consequent malfunction of organs. Thus the diet endeavours to keep the meals’ PH as neutral as possible, balancing substances by using the right combination. Notwithstanding, reducing Carlos’ science to this would be disregarding much of his work – one of the things Reyla most worries about in preparing her father’s story: “He anticipated many of the much-divulged discoveries of today, like carotene’s beneficial role, a substance found in the papaya and the carrot, the concept of free radicals and orthomolecular medicine, not mentioning his pioneering role regarding the habit of consuming acai, watermelon juice, coconut water, vitamins,” she stresses. “And, when nobody spoke of nutrition, he noticed how useful it was to cut off red meat before Helio’s fights, since meat gives you explosion power, but not long term resistance. The proof of the efficient didn’t take long to ensue: didn’t uncle Helio fight a much younger Valdemar Santana for 3h40m in 1955?”

The interest for life and nutrition, like everything else in the descendant of Scottish, was not random. Together with growing suspicion toward traditional medicine, the specialist of the blooming art noticed the need to, with the diet, look after the main work tool, the body. Carlos Gracie, indeed, made four or five famous fights, the last of which against Rufino, in 1931, whose picture Reyla keeps with her life, and another one – pure vale tudo (or ‘no rules,’ if you will) – in Rio de Janeiro, against capoeira practitioner Samuel. “At one point Samuel saw himself with no choice but to grab dad’s testicles,” Rilion recollects. The most famous one, nevertheless, was another Japan vs. Brazil classic, held in Sao Paulo, in 1924. Against Geo Omori, self-proclaimed Japanese Jiu-Jitsu representative, Carlos made his most memorable fight. Nearing the end of the third three-minute round, Gracie gave the foe’s arm an inexorable lock and looked at the referee, who told him to go on. Carlos broke the opponent’s arm, but the latter paid no heed and gave an unfocused Carlos a takedown, before the end of the fight, which ended with a draw and mutual respect by the contenders, in a time when fighters only lost bouts by tapping or passing out.

Legend has it, however, that the most unforgettable scene was played by rooters from Sao Paulo, who threw their hats into the ring as soon as the Brazilian broke the foe’s limb. “He excelled at the armbar,” says a proud Rilion. “For one thing is to apply it when the other guy is unfocused, but Carlos would warn beforehand, ‘I’m going to beat you by armbar,’ and the opponent would shrink their arm. Then he developed a technique of getting to the arm when the adversary knew they were gonna be armbarred. The way I see it, that was the beginning of the perfecting of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, characterized by leading the foe to erring, where the weaker can defeat the stronger.”

Source: Gracie Magazine

TRA AND SPRATT IN CHUCK NORRIS' WCL

Chuck Norris’ WCL (World Combat League) is set to make their Las Vegas debut this coming Friday, March 3rd at The Orleans Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. Among the talent involved in this innovated new combat sport are MMA veterans Guy Mezger (coaching), Pete “Secret Weapon” Spratt, and Tra “Trauma” Telligman.

Below is the line-up for the evening’s action which features team-based involving five men and one women combat split up by weight division in two three-minute rounds of action. This guarantees fast and furious action in the WCL’s unique circular ring with no ropes, cages, or any other obstructions, which allows the crowd to see all the action!

DENVER DESTROYERS (Jesse Finney) VS DALLAS DRAGONS (Guy Mezger)

Tim “Irish Pride” Connors (Kickboxing and Golden Gloves Champion)
VS
Luis Nazario (USA Extreme Champion)

Colby Snyder (Kickdown Striking Champion)
VS
Freddie Poole (International Kickboxing Champion)

Kevin “Hitman” Engle (2-Time National Kickboxing Champion)
VS
Pete “Secret Weapon” Spratt (MMA Veteran & International Kickboxing Champion)

Travis “Great One” Johnson (3-Time National Kickboxing Champion)
VS
Charles “Wolverine” Baines (North American Kickboxing Champion)

Dusty “Rhino” Miller (Pan-Am Champion)
VS
Tra “Trauma” Telligman (World MMA Champion)

Angela “The Bomb” Hayes (Karate & Kickboxing Champion)
VS
Marily Martin (Tae Kwan Do Champion)

LA STARS (Colin Van Deusen) VS LAS VEGAS GATORS (Dale Cook)

Hector Santiago (World Karate Champion)
VS
Angel Huerta (3-Time World Karate Champion)

Randy “Good Times” Pogue (World Kickboxing Champion)
VS
Thomas “Thunderkick” Longacre (Kickboxing Champion)

Mike Pombeiro (World Karate Champion)
VS
Ryan “The Lion” Madigan (World Rated Kickboxer)

Raymond Daniels (World Karate Champion)
VS
Ronnie “The Kid” Copeland (3-Time World Kickboxing Champion)

Steven Stienbeiss (K-1 Veteran)
VS
John “The Panther” James (Full Contact Tournament Champion)

Alicia “Slick” Ashley (World Kickboxing & Boxing Champion)
VS
Jeri Sitzes (World Kickboxing & Boxing Champion)

Go to www.WorldCombatLeague.com for further event info, video and everything WCL.

Source: MMA Weekly

 3/7/06

Quote of the Day

"The girl who can't dance says the band can't play."

Yiddish Proverb

Fighters' Club TV Episode 37 Airs Today!

Fighters' Club TV Episode 37 is cut and submittted to Olelo Programming.

This episode will air in our normal timeslot at 9:30pm, Tuesday nights on Oceanic Ch. 52 (Olelo - Oahu).

It will also be available to order on Akaku in Maui from February 21st.

Episode 37 features:

-Highlights from Icon Sport
- Jason "Mayhem" Miller vs Mark Moreno (+ interview with Jason)
- KJ Noons vs Bryson Kamaka (+interview with KJ)
- Falaniko Vitale vs "Ruthless" Robbie Lawler
(+ interview with both fighters and special report by Tommy Dakota)

Technique of the Week:
- Mauricio "Shogun" and Murilo "Ninja" Rua demonstrate a Chute Box Clinch
(Translations from Tatame Magazine's own, Eduardo Alonso)

- Footage from Icon's press conference with Jason Miller and Niko Vitale

And not to forget, Hawaii's two favorite FCTV hosts, Mark "Special K"
Kurano and Mike "the Icon" Onzuka shooting on location from the "Kicking it Up" event.

Comments, Questions, Suggestions?
Please email us at:
fctv@onzuka.com

MAHALO!

Interview with the Eastsidaz' Kaleo Kwan
By Brennan Kamaka

Were sitting here talking with Kaleo Kwan P.I.P Champion, How is trainning going for your fight..
RIGHT ON SCHEDULE. IN THE GYM EVRYDAY TRAINING HARD.

Rumors has that your opponent Zack Rapal is starting to become the publics favorite going into this Main Event.
WHO YOU BEEN TALKING TO? NAH,…….. I`M REALLY LOOKING FORWARD TO THIS FIGHT AND THAT`S JUST MORE FUEL TO MY FIRE... EVEYTIME I GET IN THE GYM THAT`S GONNA GET ME TRAINING EVEN HARDER.. THANX.

Zack fought SUPERBRAWL Veteran Eddie Yagin, And basically shocked alot of people with his skills, Do you think his boxing will cause problems in this fight for you..
THIS FIGHT IS RIGHT UP MY ALLEY, RIGHT WERE I WANNA BE, STANDING AND BANGING. BOXING ISN`T NEW TO ME ,IT`S WHAT I LOVE TO DO…

Have you been doing anything different for this fight knwoing his a boxer and his coming in hunger...
FOR THIS FIGHT I`VE BEEN GETTING BACK TO MY ROOTS,REALLY HITTING UP THE BOXING GYM HARD.AND HUNGERY, THAT`S MY MIDDLE NAME

You signed a year with P.I.P how is that going, And what direction you feel P.I.P is taking for 2006...
WELL THIS IS GONNA BE MY FIRST FIGHT ON THAT CONTRACT AND I`M REALLY EXCITED ABOUT THIS YEAR.WE GOT SOME GOOD EVENTS LINED UP ALREADY TO KEEP ME BUSY..THE LAST EVENT WAS SOLD OUT AND I WAS ABLE TO FIGHT IN MY HOMETOWN SO THAT WAS A PLUS FOR ME. I FEEL THIS YEAR P.I.P IS JUST GONNA GET BIGGER AND BETER.

Any predictions on your fight...
I REALLY DON`T KNOW ZACK OR HOW HE FIGHTS BUT IF HE`S AS GOOD AS EVERYONE SAYS, IT`S GOING TO BE A WAR. EXPECT FIREWORKS CAUSE I`M IN IT TO WIN AND I`M SURE HE IS TO.

You wanna say anything to your opponent or fans
GOODLUCK DOGG, AND LIKE I TELL ALL OF UM “HOLD ON TO YOUR SOX CAUSE IT`S GONNA BE A BUMPY RIDE” TO THE FANS THANX FOR COMING OUT AND SUPPORTING THE LOCAL FIGHTERS DON`T FORGET TO SUPPORT THE COMPANYS THAT SUPPORT THE SPORT. THEY ALLOW US TO CONTINUE TO TRAIN AND FIGHT…ALOHA

Source: Brennan Kamaka

UFC-IFL Draw: Judge Denies Injunction, Extends TRO
by Greg Savage

LAS VEGAS, March 2 — Judge Valerie Adair of the Nevada District Court issued a ruling extending the temporary restraining order against the International Fight League (IFL) pending the resolution of a narrowly crafted order between counsel for the plaintiff, Zuffa LLC, and attorneys for the IFL.

Unless both parties can come to a satisfactory arrangement regarding said order prior to March 15, both parties could be back in the Eighth Judicial District Court for a status check on the order.

UFC President Dana White and UFC Chief Operating Officer/general council Kirk Hendrick attended Thursday’s hearing on the plaintiff’s side, while IFL founders Gareb Shamus and Kurt Otto, as well as former Zuffa employees Keith Evans and Steven Tornabene, sat on the defendant’s side of the aisle.

Adair opened the 40-minute hearing with general comments regarding where proceedings stood and set the table for the litigants’ representatives to address her concerns.

Addressing Zuffa’s contention that valuable trade secrets were purposely taken by former Zuffa and current IFL employees Keith Evans and Steven Tornabene, Adair declared: “Truthfully, it seems a little unlikely to me that this information is something that these gentlemen, Mr. Evans and Mr. Tornabene … would have just had as part of their job and working at home, nights, what have you.”

As for the scope of what Zuffa claims are “trade secrets,” Adair made it clear that she had no problem figuring out the target demographic for an Ultimate Fighting patron, one of the broad assertions outlined by the Las Vegas-based promoter in its complaint.

“When this came in,” she told the court, “my law clerk came to my office and she said ‘OK, how old do you think the average [Ultimate Fighting patron] is?’ I got every single one correct except for the age, which I guessed was a 24-year-old male as opposed to a 26- [to] 30-year-old male. And so, you know, I don’t know that a lot of this — let’s face it, we’re not talking about the secret ingredient to Pepsi.”

This is not to say she failed to believe there was some merit to Zuffa’s claim that proprietary information was included in the materials taken by Evans and Tornabene. Adair alluded to certain types of information she felt were possibly protected, including “pricing information.”

After little discussion, Adair suggested that in lieu of a preliminary injunction she would issue an order enjoining the IFL from using any of the information in question. Dennis L. Kennedy (lead attorney for the IFL) and Ike Lawrence Epstein (lead attorney for Zuffa) agreed, but not before ironing out a couple of points.

Kennedy’s concern resided in his belief that the IFL would be the target of continued harassment by Zuffa if the order was not narrowly worded.

“That order will be used as a competitive weapon, as sure as I am standing here,” he told the judge.

To remedy this possibility, Adair barred Zuffa from using the extension of the temporary restraining order in further business dealings between now and the March 15 hearing.

Epstein, in turn, alluded to the fact that his client’s suit is barely a month old and that Zuffa is still in the early stages of research. In what seemed like an effort to prepare the court for the possibility that more evidence could be forthcoming, Epstein offered some specifics of the ongoing investigation.

“We have literally gone through thousands and thousands of records,” he said,” and we haven’t even come close to finishing all the forensic investigation we need to do.”

Zuffa’s lead counsel went on to explain that he could not rule out a return to the court.

“We may be back in front of you, Your Honor, because we really have not completed this investigation,” Epstein declared. “I mean, literally, this really is the proverbial tip of the iceberg.

Adair’s ruling allows Zuffa to keep the umbrella of protection offered by the temporary restraining order. However, for at least the time being, she opted against granting the preliminary injunction sought by Zuffa.

Source: Sherdog

K-1 MMA... Could Be / Should Be Bigger?
By Takimoto

Mixed Martial Arts events are happening everywhere and often. A large number of great fighters, are coming out of what is perhaps the largest Martial Arts prize-fighting company inthe world... K-1. But it is not just stand-up fighters like you may see on cable TV, but it is also MMA with its show called K-1 "HERO'S."
So with the big hit that MMA is becoming all over, why isn't K-1 really hitting the spotlight outside the Orient? The stand-up (kickboxing style) fights have made it to many countries around the world, with National Grand Prix's (Tournaments) leading to the World Grand Prix tournament. These events are even broadcast on TV in a number of countries... But not K-1's MMA format... Why???

This is a question that has come up several times for me. Even though I am MMA sports writer, I still have several questions every time I look into the media and what is happenning behind the scenes. I ask why isn't K-1 getting enough exposure despite that face it is the biggest fight promotion in the world. Please, do not look at me wrongly - I am not disregarding any other good fight promotion... I only would like to understand why K-1 does not have an intense focus that in my opinion the other major events do. Recently I tried to investigate the "why of it", and my conclusions were that the lack of more international fighters in the MMA version of K-1 has made the product less palpable for fans and TV executives around the globe, as compared to the K-1 Grand Prix (GP) events.

Brazil is known like the land of MMA, and the US has been airing the UFC and PRIDE on cable... with the creation of "HERO'S" by K-1, I would thought there would be some big things happenning. But the events are not available on PPV in either country just mentioned, even t thought PRIDE is (a Japanese MMA promotions) and despite the fact that K-1 Kickboxing is on ESPN somewhat regularly. Has K-1 not pushed the matter with foreign media outlets and cable networks??? Or have they been shut down due to lack of an international representation in HERO'S???

For someone like the promoters, and fighters, and of course the real enthusiastic fans the chance to see K-1 "HERO'S" in more places will likely take some time. K-1 has been cooperating with Rumble on the Rock, and perhaps there is an effort to penetrate this market. As an up note, things do have the tendency of changing, and we may see K-1 "HERO'S" hitting more foreign markets soon (hopefully within the next 12 months). This will add yet more competition for the MMA TV product, which will only benefit all of us. One step in the right direction, is the broadcast of a K-1 documentary in Brazil telling the story of K-1 since 1993 to nowadays. So if the things pickup in Brazil and are successful (one of the main lands for MMA popularity) then we may see things tune up in other places like the US, as well. We need to keep an eye out for what is one of the most important and exciting fight-promotions in the World... and hope that the globalization of is MMA format occurs soon.

Below take a look-back in the results of K-1 GP held in Asia on February 25th. The winner of this GP, Chin Bin Lim of Republic of Korea, is automatically scheduled for K-1 World Max of April 5th. And also see, the line-up of K-1 Oceania World GP in Auckland – New Zealand

K-1 ASIA GP:
February 25th at Busan - SOUTH KOREA

Reserve Fight:
Sang-Soo Lim over Jung Hwan Jung by decision (3-0)

Asia GP Quarter-Finals:
Chi Bin Lim over Jong Yoon Choi by decision (3-0)
Sung Hwan Park KO'd Ulzikhutga Gantumur at '57 of R2

Soo Hwan Lee KO'd Jae Sik Choi at '24 of R1
Jung Woong Moon over Shingo Garyu by decision (Ext.R Decision 3-0)

Super Fight 1:
Virgil Kalakoda over Tae Woong Shin Bi (Ext.R Decision 2-1)

Semifinals:
Lim over Park by decision (3R Decision 2-0)
Moon KO'd Lee at 1:53 of R1

Special Fight / ITF Tae Kwon Do:
Andrey Krilov over Nikolay Petrov Kehayov by decision

Super Fight 2:
Andy Souwer over Pan Soo Kim by decision (3-0)

Final:
Lim TKO'd Moon at 1:30 of R3

K-1 WORLD GP 2006 in AUCKLAND:
March 5th in Trusts Stadium, Auckland, New Zealand

Reserve Fights:
Ben Edwards x Jay Hepi
Sydney Asiata x Matt Samoa

Super Fights:
Semmy Schilt x Peter Aerts
Ray Sefo Francois x "The White Buffalo" Botha

Oceania GP:
Poul Slowinski x Rony Sefo
Badr Hari x Peter Graham
Pola Mataele x Jason Suttie
Ciryl Abidi x Hiraku Hori

Source: Maxfighting

Maurício Shogun "I want to fight with him again"
By Eduardo Ferreira

Maurício Shogun is already in Brazil to recover from his injury (suffered during the fight against American wrestler Mark Coleman at Pride 31). Shogun fell in his arm when Coleman put him down and now waits the doctor opinion to know how long he will have to stay away from the rings. "I was with my both arms hurt and when I fell down my arm was out of his place. I broke one bone and more some things. I did this week some exams, but the doctor said that doesn't know yet how long it will take", said Shogun in exclusive to TATAME.com. Read the full interview below.

What really happened to your arm? What the doctor said?

I was with my both arms hurt and when I fell down my arm was out of his place. I broke one bone and more some things. I did this week some exams, but the doctor said that doesn't know yet how long it will take. I need to do these exams for the doctor can see better my case, so now I will wait for next week I can take this out of my arm and I will start doing some physiotherapy to get better soon.

Your last fight was the one in the final of the GP in August of 2005. During this period you taught seminars, rested and commemorated the title. Do you think this disturbed you in your preparation? How long time did you train to face Coleman?

In any moment this factors disturbed me in my preparation. After the GP I had some rest and I was back to help Wanderlei (Silva) in his preparation for the Pride of the end of the year against Ricardo Arona. After that, I spent two weeks in US doing some seminars and I spent three weeks training hard to face Coleman. I was in my best physical condition and for the first time I fought without needing to lose some weight. I always have to lose about 10 kilos and that time I didn't need that. I don't think that it happened because of my preparation, which was a fatality. I'm sure that I would make a great fight against him, but I had bad luck.

Do you think you could make something else to defend yourself when he put you down?

Absolutely, but at the time everything is so fast. When he came with his leg I was waiting to attack, but he used the other leg and I hadn't got any base and I fell down really bad. I saw lots of people have been talking bad things about me, saying that I can't defend myself, but I think that this is jealous of who doesn't like the Chute Boxe and the union we have. By the way, I would like to leave a message for all my fans, can I do that?

Sure Shogun, do it...

I want to say thanks to all my family, the Chute Boxe family and to all my fans for all the support that they always gave me. They make me fell strong to win all my difficulties and to conquer all my objectives. They pass me this positive energy for I can make all my dreams true. That is what I wanted to say. I want to thank them all.

After the fight, have you seen Coleman?

Yes, we met. And he came to apologize me, but we didn't accept that and master Rudimar (Fedrigo) took me to the hospital, because I was feeling too much pain and I didn't see anything else. But it seems that was a mess out of the ring. The energy in the ring is huge, but he said a lot of bad things after the fight and was very impolite in the ring.

Do you wanna fight Coleman again?

Of course that I want another fight against Coleman. When I'll be feeling better, I will train to do this fight.

Source: Tatame

Coleman accepts fighting Chute Boxe

Mark Coleman guaranteed that the confusion with the Chute Boxe team after the fight between Maurício Shogun and him is something from the past. During a press conference after the Pride 31, Coleman remembered that everybody was hot because of the dispute, "they were a little bit upset with what happened" and understood Murilo Ninja, that went to the ring to protect his brother. But the veteran of the Hammer House didn't forget the possibility to face someone from Chute Boxe in a next Pride.

- They will want to face me, I don't care. Let's do it in the ring, professionally, for money. If Wanderlei wants to fight, let's do it. If Ninja wants, let's do it. If Shogun wants another fight against me, that's fine. These things happen and for me it isn't a problem. I like Chute Boxe. Problems happens in this world, but this is the time to life continue - remembered him.

The problem between Hammer House and Chute Boxe happened just after the Pride judge have difficulties to interrupt Coleman, that wanted to continue the fight even after Shogun have bawled of pain because of his hurt arm. Unhappy because of the American's attitude, Wanderlei Silva and Murilo Ninja went to the ring and they need to be hold by the Japanese security. "Phil Baroni went to the ring as well, this happens. It wasn't the first time that he made it for me, and I don't think it will be the last one", said Coleman.

Source: Tatame

 3/5/06

Quote of the Day

"Happiness is like a kiss. You must share it to enjoy it."

Bernard Meltzer, American Law Professor

Posted on: Sunday, March 5, 2006
Saint Louis' Low captures record 4th crown
By Wes Nakama
Advertiser Staff Writer

Saint Louis senior Brandon Low joined Patrick Higa and Jonathan Spiker as the only four-time boys champions.

ANDREW SHIMABUKU | The Honolulu Advertiser

After one last set of blood, sweat and tears, Saint Louis senior Brandon Low stepped into Hawai'i high school wrestling history last night by becoming the first to win four individual state championships at four different weight classes.

Low, competing at 130 pounds, fought off two-time state champion Daniel Morita of Kahuku, 8-4, before a screaming crowd of 2,484 at Blaisdell Arena. Low won despite suffering a cut under his left eye midway through the first period.

"It's a huge relief," said Low, who joins Iolani's Patrick Higa (1983-1986) and Saint Louis' Jonathan Spiker (2000-2003) as the only four-time boys champions in the 40-year history of the state tournament. "It's a fairy tale ending, it's everything I could ever ask for."

Low won his first state title three years ago by beating Morita, 8-4, at 112 pounds. Low then won the 119 crown as a sophomore and the 125-pound championship last season. Morita had defeated Low in a preseason tournament when both were freshmen, but they had not met since the 2003 state final.

"I felt I had a good chance to win, but he got that takedown (late in the first period) and just won it from there," said Morita, who won the 125-pound title in 2004 and the 135-pound championship last year. "He played me smart; he knew I was a good outside guy and I was trying to get a good five-foot gap (between us), but he would always close it. It was a good match; I lost to him my freshman year and hadn't lost to any Hawai'i wrestler since, so I have a lot of respect for him. Win or lose, I think we respect each other. He won, so he's the best."

Morita did get to take home a gold medal, as Kahuku won its second team state title in three years despite not having an individual champion. The Red Raiders scored 188.5 points, outdistancing Punahou (166), Saint Louis (144.5), Lahainaluna (130) and Kamehameha (117).

Kahuku had four runners-up, three wrestlers in third place, one in fourth and three in fifth.

"It was a true team effort," Red Raiders coach Reggie Torres said. "We didn't have any individual champions, but we placed 11 guys, and that was the biggest thing. They all displayed a lot of heart. They're all hard workers, and even when they lost, they battled, so I'm very proud of them."

Morita advanced to the finals by defeating Punahou's Brendan Whitt, 6-2, in the semifinals earlier in the day. Whitt beat Low in a preseason match last December.

"(Whitt) gave me a good match, that was the most tired I was this season," Morita said. "But it was a good burn. I felt strong (going into the finals)."

Morita showed that energy immediately, attacking Low and scoring a takedown 20 seconds into the match to go up, 2-0.

"I knew he was good on his feet, so I was looking to take him down early and work from there," Morita said.

Low said Morita was quicker than he remembered.

"He's very fast, and very strong," Low said. "He almost has the same style as before, but technically he's a much better wrestler now."

Low closed it to 2-1 with an escape, then got a takedown with 40 seconds remaining to go up, 3-2. Low suffered a cut below his left eye after the two butted heads, and the match was delayed while trainers examined the cut.

"It actually motivated me more," Low said of the cut, which caused blood to drip down his left cheek. "It was an intense match already, but that made it even more intense."

Morita said he did not believe Low would be affected by the cut.

"Every wrestler will tell you, you don't feel the pain with that," Morita said, "especially in a match like this."

Low went up, 4-2, with an escape early in the second period, then took a 6-2 lead with a late takedown. Morita got an escape at the end of the period to close it to 6-3, then got another escape to close it to 6-4 early in the third period. That's how the score remained until six seconds left, when Low scored a takedown.

Low said the first-period takedown proved to be the key points of the match.

"After that takedown, the crowd got really loud and I felt it was my match from then on," Low said. "I think that was the turning point for me."

Low improved his career record to 136-6. Higa and Spiker each won at three different weight classes.

Ka'u's Dylan Rush also joined elite company, winning his third individual state title with a 3-1 victory over Mid-Pacific's Russell Fisher at 275 pounds.

"When I was in the seventh grade, I told my dad I want to be remembered as the best wrestler ever from the Big Island," Rush said. "He told me, 'Well, no wrestler from the Big Island has ever won three state championships.' I finally did it, so it feels great."

Waiakea's Landon Kurata, Mililani's William Smithe and Kamehameha's Gerritt Vincent each won their second state championship. Kurata (125 pounds) defeated Lahainaluna's Michael Viloria, 9-5, in a rematch of last year's 119 final. Smithe defeated Maui's Jonathan Los Banos, 4-2, in the 152-pound finals; he won the 145-pound title last year. And Vincent defeated Kahuku's Clellan A'alona, 4-1, at 189 pounds; he won the 171-pound title last year.

Source: Honolulu Advertiser

Kahuku boys win as a team
By Paul Honda
phonda@starbulletin.com

Midway through the boys finals, contending coaches had already conceded.

The highly anticipated drama between evenly balanced title contenders was done early. Kahuku, they knew and confessed, ruled the roost. The Red Raiders, without a single individual champion, rolled up 188.5 points to win the Chevron/HHSAA Wrestling State Championship last night at Blaisdell Arena.

"It's good to win as a team. They've worked so hard," longtime coach Reggie Torres Sr. said.

"Some of them lost (in the finals), and it was heartbreaking, but it was ultimately a team effort."

Punahou, champion of the Interscholastic League of Honolulu, was runner-up with 166 points. Saint Louis (144.5), Lahainaluna (130) and Kamehameha (117.5) rounded out the top five.

"Between us, Saint Louis, Punahou, Lahainaluna and Kahuku, everybody could have won," Kamehameha coach Chris West said. "It was just a matter of who showed up. Reggie Torres is an incredible coach."

Kahuku got second-place performances by Daniel Morita (130 weight class), Richard Torres (135), Nevin Kamakaala (145) and Clellan Aalona (189).

Daymon Carr (152) and Kaeo Alo (215) placed fourth in their divisions to fill out a balanced Red Raider performance.

Punahou fared well after winning its first ILH boys crown in 28 years.

The Buffanblu crowned individual champions Bryson Fukushima (103), Daniel Chow (135) and Mike Egesdal (171).

Brandon Low of Saint Louis was spectacular, becoming the first wrestler to win four championships in four different weight classes. Low took the 130-pound championship with an 8-4 decision over Morita.

Low finished the season with a 30-1 record.

"Now I can eat a plate lunch," he said of the battle to stay at 130 pounds. "I want barbequed chicken from Yummy's, and some birthday-cake ice cream from Coldstone."

Dylan Rush became a three-time state champion by outlasting Russel Fisher of Pac-Five/Mid-Pacific in the 275 finals. Rush was a two-time champ at 215 while at Konawaena. He transferred back home to Ka'u for his senior wrestling season because he didn't have a training partner to work with at Konawaena.

Rush fought off the previously unbeaten Fisher and scored the winning points in the final minute for a 3-1 decision.

Rush became Ka'u's second individual champion ever. The first was Andrew Louis, who won the state 119 title in 1978, and was present for last night's Trojan win.

Lahainaluna enjoyed the efforts of Travis Okano and Bailey Ball, who won titles in the 119 and 140 divisions.

Team standings
1. Kahuku, 188.5;
2. Punahou, 166;
3. Saint Louis, 144.5;
4. Lahainluna, 130;
5. Kamehameha 117.5;
6. Pearl City, 63;
7. Waipahu, 58; t
8. Mililani, Waiakea, 51.5;
10. Iolani, 48;
11. Castle, 45;
12. Konawaena, 42;
13. McKinley, 41;
14. King Kekaulike, 40.5;
15. Maui, 39.5;
16. Molokai, 35;
17. Baldwin, 32;
18. Moanalua, 30;
19. Roosevelt, 28;
20. Kealakehe, 27;
t21. Aiea, Kau, 26;
23. Mid-Pacific, 25;
t24. Damien, Radford, 21;
26. Nanakuli, 20;
27. Campbell, 18;
28. Hilo, 14;
29. Kaiser, 10;
30. Farrington, 9;
t31. Kapolei, Leilehua, 8;
33. Pahoa, 6;
t34. Kalaheo, University, 5;
t36. Hawaii Baptist, Honokaa, Kalani, Kamehameha-Hawaii, Kamehameha-Maui, Waianae, Word of Life, 4;
t43. Maryknoll, Waialua, 3; t45. Hawaii Prep, Kaimuki, 1.

State Champions
103 Pounds
Bryson Fukushima
Punahou

Championship match
Bryson Fukushima (Punahou) def. Bryson Morita (Iolani) 3-0
Fukushima was utterly defensive, outdueling Morita in a battle of the ILH's top sophomores.
Fukushima had a simple game plan.
"My strategy was just going all out," the ILH 103 champion said.

Third-place match
Kirk Shiraki (Mililani) def. Jordan Lau (St. Louis)

Fifth-place match
Robert Herbst (Baldwin) def. Roger Ramones (Kahuku)

112 Pounds
Brandon Mina
Waipahu

Championship match
Brandon Mina (Waipahu) def. Reid Oshiro (Punahou) 5-4
Mina trailed 2-0 before pulling out a thrilling win in the final minutes against Oshiro. With 35 seconds left, he went ahead for good.
Mina, a junior, faced Oshiro in preseason action and won then as well.

Third-place match
Michael Kamiya (Kahuku) def. Nick Matayoshi (Iolani)

Fifth-place match
Mark Caberto (Saint Louis) def. Cody Gomes (Kamehameha)

119 Pounds
Travis Okano
Lahainaluna

Championship match
Travis Okano (Lahainaluna) def. Kelii Palencia (Kamehameha), pin
Okano (24-3) posted the lone pin in the boys finals, defeating Palencia of Kamehameha with 1:03 left in the second round.
"I just worked hard. I used a low fireman, then I half-nelsoned him," said Okano, a sophomore.

Third-place match
Richard Okinaga (Waiakea) def. Bobby Thompson (Saint Louis)

Fifth-place match
Royce Madarang (Waipahu) def. Maika Nagata (Punahou)

125 Pounds
Landon Kurata
Waiakea

Championship match
Landon Kurata (Waiakea) def. Mike Viloria (Lahainaluna), 9-5
Kurata (23-0) continued to defy the odds that have followed him all his life, winning his second state title.
"I can't believe we did it," said Kurata, who was diagnosed with epilepsy at a young age. "I just went off medication a little while ago."
He won the 119 title last year.

Third-place match
Kiani Nishigaya (Saint Louis) def. Jaysen Patao (Baldwin)

Fifth-place match
Sadrian Chee (Kahuku) def. Young Sub Suh (Moanalua)

130 Pounds
Brandon Low
Saint Louis

Championship match
Brandon Low (St. Louis) def. Daniel Morita (Kahuku), 8-4
Low (30-1) came out of his win over Morita bloodied and bruised, but smiling. "He's been chasing me since freshman year," Low said.
Morita went on to win titles at 125 and 135, while Low had three titles in all going into last night's final.

Third-place match
Brenden Whitt (Punahou) def. Lee Inouye (Roosevelt)

Fifth-place match
Jordan Tanoue (Castle) def. Matthew Higa (Aiea)

135 Pounds
Daniel Chow
Punahou

Championship match
Daniel Chow (Punahou) def. Richard Torres Jr. (Kahuku), 5-0
Another Buffanblu sophomore, Chow, was superb in a win over Torres Jr, the OIA champion.
"I knew he likes to do a spadle, and I know how the move works, so to stop it I took my head to the outside," Chow said. "And he had no control over me."

Third-place match
Michael Fujiuchi (McKinley) def. Kamaehu Matsuoka (Konawaena)

Fifth-place match
Reynell Transfiguracion (Kealakehe) def.
Shane Ahlo (Saint Louis)

140 Pounds
Bailey Ball
Lahainaluna

Championship match
Bailey Ball (Lahainaluna) def. Pat Eglinton (McKinley), 11-8
Ball, a senior, capped a perfect season with a decision over Eglinton.
Ball (29-0) won their previous match in preseason, 8-7. "Last time, I got caught in a head-arm (lock). He kinda tried to throw it again, and this time, I slipped out," Ball said. "He was probably waiting 'til I got tired."

Third-place match
Vincent Domingo (Kahuku) def. Josh Plechaty (Punahou)

Fifth-place match
Michael Feliciano (Konawaena) def. Chris Kardos (Saint Louis)

145 Pounds
Nicholas Pait
Pearl City

Championship match
Nicholas Pait (Pearl City) def. Nevin Kamakaala (Kahuku) 7-6
In one of the most dramatic comebacks of the night, junior Pait (16-3) rallied for a go-ahead point with 7 seconds left to down.
Kamakaala had gone ahead, 6-5, with 23 seconds left before Pait came through.

Third-place match
Lake Casco (Lahainaluna) def. Kekoa Rosales (Kamehameha)

Fifth-place match
Kenny White (Punahou) def. Fernand Baldonado (Maui)

152 Pounds
William Smythe
Mililani

Championship match
William Smythe (Mililani) def. Jonathan Los Baños (Maui) 4-1
Smythe, a three-time OIA champion, captured his second state crown. Smythe won at 145 last year.
"We used to wrestle together at Waikele when we were little," Smythe said of his foe. "I used my underhooks and two-on-ones."

Third-place match
Lowen Tynanes-Perez (Campbell) def. Daymon Carr (Kahuku)

Fifth-place match
Garrett Cockett (Moanalua) def. Cole Loewen (Lahainaluna)

160 Pounds
Bryson Vivas
Kamehameha

Championship match
Bryson Vivas (Kamehameha) def. Clinton Manley (Molokai) 3-1
Vivas fought off Manley in sudden-death for his first state title.
Vivas nearly won in regulation with a takedown at 9 seconds to go, but was ruled out of bounds. With 26 seconds left in sudden-death, he took the tough Molokai junior for a wallop, and Manley suffered an ankle injury.

Third-place match
Ira Casey (Kahuku) def. Christian Pavo (Pearl City)

Fifth-place match
J.J. Dollopac (Maui) def. Kapena Roy (Kealakehe)

171 Pounds
Mike Egesdal
Punahou

Championship match
Mike Egesdal (Punahou) def. Landon Kerbow (King Kekaulike), 6-5
Egesdal, a senior, scored on a breakout with 2 seconds left to win 6-5 over Kerbow.
Egesdal fought back into the match after trailing, scoring a point with 1:10 left to tie after an illegal hold was called on Kerbow.

Third-place match
Chas Albino (Molokai) def. Kelii Ahquin (Castle)

Fifth-place match
Truman Chun (Kamehameha) def. Charles Burd (Moanalua)

189 Pounds
Gerritt Vincent
Kamehameha

Championship match
Gerritt Vincent (Kamehameha) def. Clellan Aalona (Kahuku), 4-1
Vincent, last year's 171 champ, capped a strong senior season with a win over OIA champion Aalona.
It was Vincent's second win over Aalona this season.
"It was my toughest match all season," Vincent said.

Third-place match
Brandon Martin (Nanakuli) def. Justin Akau (King Kekaulike)

Fifth-place match
Nelson Fernandez (Roosevelt) def. Harrison Flores (Aiea)

215 Pounds
Jared Silva-Purcell
St. Louis

Championship match
Jared Silva-Purcell (Saint Louis) def. Kazden Ikehara (Kamehameha) 5-4
Silva-Purcell edged his longtime foe, Ikehara.
Silva-Purcell won all four of his battles with Ikehara this season, but none were easy.
Silva-Purcell scored the winning point with 10 seconds left.

Third-place match
Reid Moser (Lahainaluna) def. Kalani Rios (Castle)

Fifth-place match
Kaeo Alo (Kahuku) def. Kristopher Palea (Hilo)

275 Pounds
Dylan Rush
Ka'u

Championship match
Dylan Rush (Ka'u) def. Russel Fisher (Mid-Pac/Pac-Five), 3-1
Rush (23-0) brought home the school's first wrestling title since 1978, when Andrew Louis was the state's 119-pound champion.

Rush defeated ILH champion Fisher (17-1) in a thriller.

"Man, a lot of it was just scrambling around," Rush said. "He got tired out eventually."

Third-place match
Shannon Saili (Waipahu) def. Tyler Laulifi (Pearl City)

Fifth-place match
Edward Williams (Damien) def. Kyle Otineru (Saint Louis)

Source: Honolulu Star Bulletin

UFC 58: USA vs. Canada Results!

Mandalay Bay Events Center, Las Vegas, NV
March 4, 2006

- Tom Murphy defeats Icho Larenas at 1:59 of Rd 3 by TKO ref stoppage
- Jason Lambert defeats Rob McDonald at 1:54 of Rd 1 by Kimura
- Sam Stout defeats Spencer Fisher by split decision

- Mark Hominick defeats Yves Edwards by triangle choke at 1:53 of Rd 2
- Nathan Marquardt defests Joe Doerksen by unanimous decision
- Georges St. Pierre defeats BJ Penn by split decision
- Mike Swick defeats Steve Vigneault by Guillotine choke at 2:09 of Rd 1.
- Rich Franklin defeats David Loiseau to retain his UFC Middleweight title by unanimous decision


Penn vs GSP Fight Recap by MMA Fighting.com

Georges St. Pierre vs. BJ Penn

Penn enters wearing his old belt!!!

GSP enters dancing and having fun. Penn looks all business.

Round 1

Penn gets a huge fan ovation as does GSP. Fans know this fight is the big deal of the night.

Penn nails punchs while GSP ties kicks that miss. BJ chant by crowd. Striking by both with BJ poking GSP's right eye. Ref should have checked GSP right eye. Blood on the nose of Gsp. Spinning backkick by GSP but no damage. Penn doing more damage and has GSP off his game a little bit. Circling, clinch and GSP pushes penn into cage but eats a couple of knees to body. Short knees by both to body. GSP tries single leg but Penn shrugs him off. Penn has GSP bloody on nose and maybe...eye. GSP looking bloody and getting hurt. Penn is being surgical and looks very relaxed. GSP looks ok but can't seem to dodge Penns left fist.. leg kick by G. Body shot by Penn. Jab by GSP connects but no damage. GSP hits a spinning back kick but no power. Clinch as the round ends. GSP is very frustrated and bloodied up. Looks like a big gash under his right eye.

Ref should have checked GSP's eye. Looks like it might have been a Chxck style thumb from Penn.

Round 2.

Both thowing punchs and GSP tries kicks. Penn still connects on the left jab. Clinch and GSP tries to take Penn down and finally does on second try. GSP in Penns guard. GSP hoping for gnp but not getting it. Some small jabs to Penn's ribs but no damage. GSP stands up and comes down with 2 punches that connect to Penn's face. Penn very relaxed on the ground and he hops right up. Penn is connecting at will with punches even though GSP is defending--Penn gets thru. GSP's face is beaten up pretty good. Clinch at the fence, knee by GSP and fist by Penn. Penn is way more comfortable on standup than GSP. Nice roundhouse by GSP as they clinch against the fence again. Penn blocks knees by GSP. They separate the punch big at each other before clinching back again. More punches at fence as Penn connects, but no real damage by GSP. GSP takes down Penn and is in his guard as the bell rings. GSP face looks like a Ric Flair crimson mask. Penn looks very calm in his corner as Lindland lays down the law to him.

I have both rounds for Penn but Bravo thinks GSP won round 2. GSP's face looks like hamburger.

Round 3

Low kicks by GSP connect, punches by Penn. Both connect on punches. Clinch at fence and both throw fists. GSP seems to be handing on and tiring (or can't breathe through nose). GSP tries single leg and slams Penn down like Hughes--best move by GSP all night. GSP in Penn's guard as they grapple for position. Penn jumps right up and they clinch again. Penn seems to be countering more at this point and GSP is trying hard. Penn takes GSP down at the fence but he gets up and they clinch at fence. Fist and elbow by Penn. GSP more active so far as Penn is playing the coutner game. Takedown by GSP. GSP might actually win by the number of takedowns he has exectued. Penn tries shoulder lock and is punching the hell out of GSP's face. Elbow by GSP. Penn trying Omo Plata but GSP gets loose. End of round 3.

Penn wasn't nearly active enough in round 3 so GSP might get the decision for the takedowns. GSP looks worn out and bloody while Penn looks like he just finished a light sparring match. Penn did way more damage than GSP but GSP wouldn't quit and showed tons of heart. Bravo is saying GSP wins rounds 2 & 3 and thus the fight. Here comes the decision.

Split decision for GSP! Hughes seems happy with that outcome.

Rogan interviews GSP as fans are booing for some reason. GSP shuts down the crowd and says they are all one and he loves everyone. He didnt win for Canada, but for him and his son. He puts over Penn and asks fans if they want to see him fight for the title? They cheer. GSP wins the fans over in the end.

Rogan talks to Penn and thinks GSP lost which has crowd booing. Penn says GSP fought well, but he (Penn) did more damage. No real talk of what's next.

Rogan talks to Matt Hughes in his Xyience tee shirt as Michael Clarke Duncan applauds. Matt thinks GSP won the fight too. Rogan asks about Gracie and Matt wastes and opportunity to pimp the Gracie fight (May 27) by barely talking. He needs to watch Tito on how to build up a fight.

Source: MMA Fighting


HAWAIIAN CHAMPIONSHIP
OF BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU

Saturday, March 11, 2006
Saint Louis School Gymnasium

3142 Waialae Ave - Honolulu, HI
Start Time: 10:00 AM / Rules Clinic

FORMAT: Gi & No Gi Sport BJJ Rules; Single Elimination / DIVISIONS: Various Age, Rank and Weight
This year we're expecting some Pan American caliber medals, great T-shirts as usual, and awards also going-out for 3rd place finishers. The Hawaii Institute of Massage Therapy will be back to provide all athletes with complementary massages.

REGISTRATION: $60 Adults / $30 Kids (Applications available at weigh-in) - fee provides entry to multiple divisions.

WEIGH-IN & REGISTRATION for Oahu Residents is FRIDAY, March 10th at: Site A) UH Athletic Complex Studio #4 / Noon-1pm, and again at 7:30-8:30pm; or Site B) HKF Martial Arts Center (Waipahu) @ 94-295 Pupuole St., 2nd Fl., 7:30-8:30pm (NOTE: All Oahu residents expecting to weigh-in on Saturday could be turned away or assessed a $10 late fee). Registration for Outer-Island Residents is SAT., March 11th at Tourney Site 7:30-9:00 am.

CONTACT: 223-9363 / 392-8330
or visit Website at
www.brazilian-freestyle.com
E-mail:
info@brazilian-freestyle.com

Source: James Tanaka

PUNISHMENT IN PARADISE
Direction of 2006

Punishment In Paradise is moving in a POSITIVE direction for the year 2006, We are starting Professional Kickboxing Circuit, Also bringing back Shooto style fights. We are also helping Hawaii fighters get in Mainland circuits. We have fighters in Randy Coulture & Matt Linland show Sportfight (Oregon) and K-1 Affilate Ring of Fire (Denver. We are doing this at no cost to the fighters, Our goal is to get them out there so the world can see what Hawaii has to offer.

David Padilla was suppose to fight on the GRACIE vs. SHAMROCK card in California's first MMA event after being legalized but due to situations that recently occurred he cannot participate. David will be in Oregon on April 8th for Sportfight. Kaleo Kwan and David Padilla are also slated for Ring of Fire May.

If you anyone is interested in fighting in mainland we would love to help, with no cost to you. We believe by doing this we are bringing out the talent from Hawaii to different events around the U.S.. Again there are no fight finders fee and if managers want promoters contact information they can also contact me or John Kukahiko AND WE WOULD BE GLAD TO GIVE YOU THE INFO..

Brennan Kamaka
808-590-3824 or
bdkamaka@comcast.net

John Kukahiko
808-351-4898

Source: Event Promoter

10 Hawaii State Boxing Champions compete in the U.S. Championships

Ten Hawaii State Boxing Champions will compete in the 2006 U.S. Championships to be held at the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, CO. on March 3 - 12. Top four finishers will make up the National Select Elite Team to all International Competition. The Hawaii Delegation consists of 106lbs- Keola McKee (Wailuku Boxing Club), 112- Bruno Escalante (East Oahu Waimanalo B.C.), 119- Kawika Tangjian Jr ( Kawano/Tiki Ent. B.C.), 125- Amadeo Ezzo-White Jr. (unattached), 132- Isaac Arasato (Palolo B.C.), 178- Filipo Toelau (Kawano/Tiki Ent. B.C.), 201- Gabe Aio (Kawano/Tiki Ent. B.C.), 201+- Chad Davis (Fighters Unlimited B.C.), 95- Female- Gina Ramos (Kawano/Tiki Ent. B.C.), 101- Female- Colleen Loo representing the National P.A.L. Team Manager- Bruce Kawano, Head Coach- Jeff McKee, and coach- Joey Kim will instruct the team.

If you have any questions feel free to call me at 542-1181.

Thank You for Your Time!!

Bruce Kawano
2006 Regional Coordinator/Hawaii Team Manager.
USA-Boxing Hawaii Board of Dir./Gov.
USA-Boxing Hawaii Junior Olympic Chairman.
National Coaches Committee Appointed Member.

Source: Bruce Kawano

“MaXimum Exposure” with Matt Hughes
By Sean McClure

The UFC’s Welterweight Champion, Matt Hughes is one of the most respected champions ever to step into the UFC’s Octagon. He has been in some of the most memorable fights in UFC recent history and his fights always entertain. He lost his title to BJ Penn in a fight that left many people wondering if his run as champion was over. Matt regained his belt and years later is still the champion taking on all pretenders to his title. At UFC 58 Georges St. Pierre will take on BJ Penn and the winner most likely get a shot at the veteran Hughes’s title. A man of few words, Matt was gracious enough to talk to MaXfighting about Penn, Royce, his training, and more.

Matt, many people ask me about your training. How you stay in such good shape. The obvious answer is "hard work", but can you give us a day in the life of Matt Hughes getting ready for a fight?

Well I train about 4-6 hours a day. It is broken down on my website, Matt-hughes.com.

MaXfighting Note from Matt-hughes.com : When Matt is training in Hillsboro, he runs 30-45 minutes in the morning three times a week. His diet consists of no sugars and is made up of good carbs and protein. At 5:00 PM he runs another 30 minutes starting at level 6 on the treadmill and then going up 1/2 a level every 5 minutes.

When Matt is training in Iowa, he starts his day off the same with the 30-45 minute run three times a week. From 8:30 and 9:30 AM he lifts weights at the gym. After that he immediately goes into a "light technique" workout which could be anything from light treadmill work, grappling and striking, or sprints outside. Matt takes the afternoon to let his body recover but at 6:30 it is all business: Monday is sparring with takedowns, Tuesday is grappling, Wednesday is sparring with 16oz gloves and headgear, Thursday is grappling, and Friday is no practice but Matt sometimes gets another run in at this time.

After every workout Matt drinks Cytosport Musclemilk.

Matt, can you tell us who you are training with right now? On a daily basis?

Pat Miletich, Jens Pulver, and about 15 other top fighters in the Miletich camp.

Your fight with Royce Gracie is one of the most talked about fights in recent years. What was your initial reaction when this was presented to you?

I loved the match-up.

The reason I ask this is that some fighters train the same for each fight. Are you training / going to train any differently for this fight than others?

I seem to train to work on my weaknesses, and try to be more well rounded.

BJ Penn vs. Georges St. Pierre. The fight that many people have wanted to see for a long time. You definitely have a vested interest in this match-up. You are a totally different fighter than you were when you first faced BJ Penn. Do you want to erase that loss from memory by facing him again or does it matter to you at all?

Well, I do want to fight him again, but let me tell you I lose no sleep on the loss to him.

If you beat Royce what's next for you? Some people have suggested facing BJ Penn and then moving up in weight. Would you ever consider it?

I think my next fight will be the winner of BJ and George. Yes, I would move up in weight.

Is there a fight this year that you are really excited to see?

None that I can think of.

A fighter you really like to see fight?

I would love to see Pat Miletich fight again.

Matt, you are the real deal and true champion. Thank you for taking time out of your busy schedule for MaXfighting.

Thank you.

Source: Maxfighting

 3/4/06

Quote of the Day

"Biology is the least of what makes someone a mother."

Oprah Winfrey, American Television Talk Show Host

State Wrestling Championship Update 3:30 PM

I just spent my morning and afternoon at the Blaisdell and for the 130 lb boys stacked division, the two favorites came through. Brandon Low of St. Louis continued his dominance with a pin in the first period to advance to the finals. So far, he is three wins, all by pins. Daniel Morita of Kahuku (last year's 135 lb champ) had a tough match with the third state champion in this weight class, defending champ, Brenden Whitt of Punahou, but pulled away at the end of the third period to win 6-2 (I think). So it will be Morita looking for his 3rd state title vs Brandon Low trying to make history and be only the third young man to win four state wrestling titles and the first to win them in four different weight classes.

Ashley Jhun lost a tough battle in the semis via pin from the top seed from Punahou who had a bye in the first round and I did not see her match in the next round.

Shane Ahlo Jr also of St. Louis lost a heartbreaker in the semis 5-4 and then got caught in an extremely unlucky position and was pinned in his next match. I believe he has to win one more match to fight for 5th.

Congratulations to all the competitors and I'll be back tonight for the finals!

Posted on: Saturday, March 4, 2006
STATE TOURNAMENT
WHAT: Chevron/Hawai'i High School Athletic Association Wrestling Championships (boys and girls)
WHERE: Blaisdell Arena
TODAY'S SCHEDULE: Semifinals at 10:30 a.m., with girls finals at 4:30 p.m. and boys finals at 6:30 p.m.
ADMISSION (all day): $9 adults, $5 age 62 and older and students K-12. Blaisdell Arena adds a 50-cent surcharge to every ticket sold.
PARKING: $5

Kahuku's boys, girls lead in team standings

Kahuku leads the team standings in both the girls and boys tournaments after the first day of the 40th Annual Chevron/Hawai'i High School Athletic Association Wrestling Championships at Blaisdell Arena.

Heading into today's semifinals, the Red Raiders are atop the girls standings with 70 points, just ahead of Farrington (68) and Moanalua (65). Kahuku leads the boys standings with 85.5 points, followed by Saint Louis (75.5) and Punahou (75).

Saint Louis senior Brandon Low stayed on track in his bid to become only the third boy to win four individual championships, and the first to win in four different weight classes.

Low, competing in the 130-pound division, defeated Kaimuki's Thomas Keisling in the first round and then beat Kapolei's Alex Shin in the quarterfinals. Low, the Interscholastic League of Honolulu champion and No. 1 seed, will face O'ahu Interscholastic Association runner-up Lee Inouye of Roosevelt in today's semifinals, which start at 10:30 a.m. (See above, he pinned Lee Inouye in the first period this afternoon)

The girls championship finals and consolation finals are scheduled to begin at 4:30 p.m. and the boys championship finals and consolation finals are set for 6:30.

Inouye advanced with a quarterfinal victory over Maui Interscholastic League champ and No. 4 seed Chris Kaleikini of Baldwin.

In today's other highly anticipated 130-pound semifinal, Punahou's Brenden Whitt — the ILH runner-up and defending state champion — will face OIA champ and No. 2 seed Daniel Morita of Kahuku. Morita was last year's state champion at 135 pounds. (See above, Morita beat Whitt 6-2 today)

Whitt advanced after a quarterfinal victory over Big Island Interscholastic Federation champion and No. 3 seed Alan Nahale, and Morita won his quarterfinal over Castle's Jordan Tanoe.

Five other boys state champions advanced to today's semifinals: Iolani's Nick Matayoshi (112 pounds), Waiakea's Landon Kurata (125), Mililani's William Smithe (152), Kamehameha's Gerritt Vincent (189) and Ka'u's Dylan Rush (275). Rush is trying for his third individual state title.

Four girls state champions advanced to today's semifinals: Iolani's Carla Watase (103 pounds), Moanalua's Danica Kamakana (125), Punahou's Kara Takasaki (140) and Kamehameha's Hoku Nohara (220). Watase and Nohara are going after their third individual state titles.

Posted on: Thursday, March 2, 2006

Low has history in his grasp
By Wes Nakama
Advertiser Staff Writer

Saint Louis senior Brandon Low will be trying to become the third boy to win four individual state titles.

Saint Louis senior Brandon Low is at the doorstep of Hawai'i high school wrestling history, but he is not exactly standing on a welcome mat.

Low is two days and four victories away from becoming only the third boy in the 40-year history of the Chevron/Hawai'i High School Athletic Association Championships to win four individual state titles, and the first to do it in four different weight classes (112 pounds, 119, 125 and 130).

Threatening to block his path into immortality are two other reigning state champions, Daniel Morita of Kahuku and Brenden Whitt of Punahou. All three seniors will be competing for the 130-pound crown, starting with tomorrow's first round and quarterfinals and continuing into Saturday's semifinals and finals at Blaisdell Arena.

"It's certainly a unique situation," said longtime Punahou coach Matt Oney. "There's been years when we had two state champions going up against each other, but here you have one guy going for his fourth state title, another (Morita) going for his third and a third guy going for his second. It's pretty special, and it should make for an exciting Saturday. They can't all win."

That is true regarding Saturday's matches, but the three seniors have a long tradition of winning that dates to when they were freshmen, and they even have victories against each other. Morita defeated Low at 112 pounds during a preseason meet their freshman year, then Low came back to beat Morita, 8-4, in the state final.

They have not met since, because Morita moved up in weight classes his sophomore and junior seasons and won the 125-pound title in 2004 and the 135-pound championship last year.

Whitt defeated Low, 5-4, in December for the championship of the preseason "Officials" Tournament. Low avenged that loss in the regular season, 4-3, and then beat Whitt, 9-1, last Saturday to win his fourth straight Interscholastic League of Honolulu title.

"That was the most confident I've been this season, the most mentally prepared," Low said of Saturday's victory. "For three or four weeks, I trained for his style. But he's definitely going to be more hungry this week."

Whitt, who is in Morita's bracket and will likely face him in the semifinals, said Saturday's loss will serve as motivation.

"It kind of put everything back into perspective," Whitt said. "I think I let the crowd get to me. Now I just have to refocus for states — it'll be the best going after the best, and we all know what it takes to win. It'll bring out the best in everybody."

Whitt actually is the only one of the three who is returning at 130 pounds. After taking fourth in the state at 140 pounds in 2004, he dropped to 130 last year and won the title with a 6-3 victory over Roosevelt's Van Michael Shiroma.

Since they have been in different weight classes, Whitt and Morita have not faced each other since they were in the eighth grade.

"I think that match is gonna go down to the wire," Low said. "They're both great wrestlers who are strong and have good technique. It's going to come down to who wants it more."

Whitt and Morita have further motivation because Kahuku and Punahou are strong contenders for the overall team championships. Kahuku won its fourth straight O'ahu Interscholastic Association title last Saturday, and Punahou won its first ILH crown in 28 years earlier that day.

Morita said team success is the main reason he changed weight classes.

"Last year I wrestled at 135 for the team, because I wanted my friend (Nevin Kamaka'ala) to wrestle at 130," Morita said. "I never really grew out of 130, so I feel strong at that weight. The big thing is, if I win or if Brenden wins, it's going to help our teams. For me, that's my priority as a senior captain."

Some expect Low's biggest pre-final competition to come from Roosevelt's Lee Inouye, the OIA runner-up, and are predicting more energy to be spent in the other semifinal. But Morita said he will have more than enough left in the tank should he make it to the finals.

"I've had tough semifinals before and still came out strong in the finals," Morita said. "There's a lot of good competition, and that makes me excited. I remember (the 2003 finals match against Low) like it was yesterday. He beat me on foot. But all of us are champions now, and none of us wants to lose. We know that winning states is one of the best feelings in the world, and the better man is going to win."

If Morita had won that 2003 final, the spotlight may have been on him this weekend. But now it is on Low, who also carries a 4.16 grade point average and is on track to graduate as valedictorian.

He said he appreciates the rare feat he has a chance at achieving, but is not consumed by it and is taking nothing for granted before then.

"It's definitely something special," Low said. "There's been so many great wrestlers who have won three, so I'm just fortunate to have this opportunity."



Source: Honolulu Advertiser

Jhun Reaches State Wrestling Semi Finals

I wanted to congratulate and let everyone know that Ashley 'Kainani" Jhun daughter of UFC veteran Ron "Machine Gun" Jhun reached the Hawaii State girls wrestling semi finals. Ashley is only 10th grade and will face the returning State Champion from Punahou. As an Uncle who is a former State Wrestling Champion, I'm very PROUD of her and would like to wish her a GOOD LUCK in the finals tommorrow.

GOOD LUCK!

Uncle Brennan

Kickin It 14 Tonight!


KICKIN IT 2006 PART 2 (AMATEUR KICKBOXING)
MARCH 4 2006 (DOORS OPEN 6:30 PM)
WAIPAHU FILCOM CENTER

MAIN EVENT
DALE KAMAI 175# HANS LEE
TEAM SOLJAH ANIMAL HOUSE
2005 LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT KICKIN IT CHAMPION VS 2005 LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT JR KICKIN IT CHAMPION. ANIMAL AGAINST SOLDIER, CHAMPION VS CHAMPION, TITLE FOR TITLE

BILLY PINERO 75# TRISTON PEBRIA
TEAM DEVASTATION EWA BEACH FIGHT CLUB

TODD YOUNG 170# CLEMETTE HELEMANO
TEAM SOLJAH EWA BEACH FIGHT CLUB

KEOKI DAVIS SUPER HEAVYWEIGHT KEOKI GANDY
TEAM DEVASTATION THE UNKNOWN FIGHT TEAM

NYE DELASANTOS 165# OLA PLUNKETT
TEAM SOLJAH ANIMAL HOUSE

KAEO CANDENERO 75# KILEY RAMIRO
HSD HMC

NUI WHEELER 135# JAY BOLOS
TEAM SOLJAH ANIMAL HOUSE

TEARJA SELLERS 160# TIANNA HIGA
HSD TEAM ISLAND THUNDER

SAM PALOSAMI SUPERHEAVYWEIGHT TRAVIS
TEAM DEVASTATION ANIMAL HOUSE

RICKY MARILLO 145# KAIKA BULLOCK
TEAM DEVASTATION HSD

JORDAN SUA 125# DEVIN DAMO
FIGHTERS UNION ANIMAL HOUSE

KOICHI TANJI 125# EVAN QUIZON
HMC TEAM DEVASTATION

MILLER UALESEI 185# TBA
TEAM DEVASTATION HOUSE OF THUNDER

RICKI CASE 160# KONA AE
THE UNKNOWN FIGHT TEAM TEAM DEVASTATION

NATHAN NAKI 140# BRANDON AMANONCE
HSD TEAM DEVASTATION

ED PONTEZ 140 JUSTIN WONG
TTHE UNKNOWN FIGHT TEAM HMC

ALL PARTICIPANTS AND MATCHES MAY BE SUBJECT TO CHANGE
TICKET INFO. - CONTACT DOUG AT 721-6019

Source: Event Promoter

State Wrestling Championships Today!
Neil Blaisdell Center
Friday, March 3 11:00 AM to 9:00 PM
Saturday, March 4 10:30 AM to 9:00 PM

The best high school wrestlers complete their season in the state wrestling championships at the Blaisdell this weekend. The weight class to watch will be 130 lbs. Three time state champion Brandon Low will try to complete the sweep, but he has two other state champions in this weight class. Morita is also a favorite so who ever wins this weight class will have to be considered the best wrestler pound for pound in the state since they are facing the toughest competition.

The finals will probably be 6 or 7 pm.

UFC 58: USA vs. Canada Today!

The complete UFC 58 card has been announced with a total of nine bouts matching American fighters against Canadian fighters. The show takes place on March 4th at the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas.

David "The Crow" Loiseau (TKO Middleweight champion) vs. Rich Franklin (UFC Middleweight champion)
Georges St. Pierre (TKO Welterweight champion) vs.
 BJ Penn
John Alessio (Former TKO Welterweight champion) vs. Diego Sanchez (The Ultimate Fighter 1 winner)
*This match possibly scratched because Diego is sick
Sam Stout (TKO Lightweight champion) vs. Spencer Fisher
(Fisher replaces Kenny Florian, who dropped out due to back spasms.)
Mark Hominick (TKO Super lightweight champion) vs. Yves Edwards
Steve Vigneault vs. Mike Swick
Joe Doerksen vs. Nathan Marquardt
Rob MacDonald vs. Jason Lambert
Christophe Midoux vs. Tom Murphy

Source: MMA Fighting

Gracie Fighting Challenge Results!
From Columbus, Ohio.

Oceanic PPV Times!
3/3/2006 4:00PM 701 IN1
3/4/2006 11:00AM 701 IN1
3/7/2006 1:00PM 701 IN1
3/12/2006 11:30AM 701 IN1

Congratulations on a great debut for Rhalan Gracie (Relson's son) in his debut fight against a tough Dustin Hazlett. The fight was very close and could have gone either way. Rhalan showed great take downs and poise that go well beyond his years and experience. Great job! You made all the Relson Gracie academies proud!

Gracie Fighting Championships: Team Gracie vs Team Hammer House
Nationwide Arena, Columbus, Ohio
March 3, 2006

Ben Rothwell def. Dan Bobish via KO (Knee) in Round 1 at 4:20 minutes
Vitor Ribeiro def. Chris Brennan via Verbal Submission (Swollen Eye) in Round 2 at 3:25 minutes
Dustin Hazelett def.
Rhalan Gracie via SplitDecision [(27-30),(29-28), (29-28)] in Round 3 at 5:00 minutes
Mike Pyle def. Gustavo Machado via TKO (Punches) in Round 1
Forrest Petz def. Daniel Moraes via TKO (Wouldn't Stand Up From Butt Scoot) in Round 3 at 2:33 minutes
Matt Lindland def. Fabio Leopoldo Submission via (Rear Naked Choke) in Round 3 at 3:25 minutes
Daniel Gracie def. Wes Sims via TKO (Didn't Answer Bell) in Round 2 at 5:00 minutes

Unaired fights
Fredson Paixao armbarred Mike French in the second round
Phil Cardella def. Pat Horner
Michael O’Donnell def. Jon Koppenhaver

Unsure of results
- Carter Williams vs. Gary Turner (kickboxing)
- Steve Conkel vs. Brion Peoples

Penn Pre-St. Pierre: "I am the real champion!"
by Mike Sloan

All hail the return of the true UFC welterweight champion. Or so B.J. Penn would have you believe. The welterweight Penn is set to make his eagerly awaited return to action inside the Octagon on Saturday versus Georges St. Pierre.

“Yes, I am the real UFC welterweight champion,” a proud Penn declared to Sherdog.com. “I feel as though this will be my first defense of the title. I don’t care what anybody says: Matt Hughes is just a paper champion. Hughes is not the true champion. I am. He was given that belt. I am going to annihilate St. Pierre and then for my second defense, I will allow Hughes the chance to fight me for my title.”

“Hughes is a great fighter, don’t get me wrong,” he added. “But he is not the real champion. I am the real champion. I look forward to proving to the world why I am the best and why I am the real champion.”

Penn isn’t the only person who agrees that the Hilo, Hawaii native is the real champion in the welterweight division. Former UFC middleweight contender Matt Lindland, who has been training with Penn for his upcoming bout against St. Pierre, insists that Hughes’ title is only material.

“Let’s face it, B.J. is the true champion of the UFC, not Matt Hughes,” Lindland said. “This is nothing against Matt at all, but he is not the true champion. He may hold a belt around his waist, but we all know that B.J. never lost his title and that he is true welterweight champion. I love Matt Hughes and he is a tremendous warrior, but he isn’t the real champion. People may get mad when they read this, but it’s true.”

Anybody who follows the sport of mixed martial arts, particularly the Ultimate Fighting Championship, knows full well what happened between Penn and Zuffa, the company that owns the UFC, after the Hawaiian took the title from Hughes on January 31, 2004.

Following the fight, Penn and Zuffa butted heads on multiple issues. Penn’s fight contract with Zuffa expired and he expected to re-sign with the company, have a string of fights lined up and earn more money.

But when nothing immediately happened, he opted to defend his title as the world’s best pound-for-pound fighter outside of the Octagon. Penn craved a showdown with American Muay Thai star Duane Ludwig and wound up duking it out with him inside the confines of a K-1 MMA-ROMANEX ring. From there, things became quite sticky as a stipulation in UFC contracts deemed any fighter who became a champion in the organization would automatically come under a new contract.

Penn sought legal action against the UFC, verbal confrontations ensued and the court battle was ignited. Just weeks before the parties were to go to trial, the UFC settled out of court. And Penn eventually signed a new lucrative contract with Zuffa. Once that occurred, according to Penn, everything settled down between “The Prodigy” and the UFC.

“There isn’t any bad blood between me and Dana White anymore,” the Hawaiian sensation professed. “He’s an alright guy in person and he has actually been receiving a lot of flack lately. He’s a good guy but I don’t want to get into detail about our court case [that was settled]. It’s legal stuff. We have a great case and it’s over, so there is really no point in really going into details. That’s behind me and I’m sure it’s behind Dana, too. All I know is that [Dana and I] sat down, had a few conversations and we agreed that I’d come back to the UFC. And I am back to defend my title and then hopefully allow Matt Hughes to fight me for my title.”

But in order for Penn to square off against Hughes again he must first get past the extraordinarily talented St. Pierre.

Penn-St. Pierre is the chief support bout of UFC 58’s main event between UFC middleweight king Rich Franklin and St. Pierre’s teammate David Loiseau. Amid all the real/fake champion talk involving Hughes, one must not think that Penn is looking beyond St. Pierre.

“St. Pierre is a really good fighter, but I think it will be the experience of B.J. that will win the fight,” stated Renato Verissimo, one of Penn’s main teammates. “St. Pierre has fought some tough guys like Sean Sherk and Frank Trigg, but he hasn’t fought anyone on the level of B.J. He has fought at 170 for a long time, where B.J. has fought everywhere and beat some great guys. He beat Renzo Gracie, Rodrigo Gracie and Takanori Gomi, plus Matt Hughes. B.J. has done it all and he is ready for anything. Let’s hope that St. Pierre is equally as ready because it should be a great fight.”

Lindland agreed with that notion and stated that he couldn’t begin to think of a way in which St. Pierre would be triumphant.

“St. Pierre looks like a guy who can become great,” admitted Lindland. “From what I’ve seen of him, the guy is fantastic. He’s strong, elusive and has a ton of skills. But I don’t think he can win against B.J. St. Pierre is good, don’t get me wrong, but he has lost to guys that B.J. submits in the first round. The fight should be good, but I just don’t see how B.J. can lose. I just don’t.”

Penn stated that this recent training camp has been a tremendous success, probably the best he’s ever had in his career, a prime example of his concern with St. Pierre’s talents.

“BJ is looking terrific,” Verissimo claimed. “He is focused and has probably had the best training so far. He is very happy when he trains. Very relaxed. We brought in some top guys like Matt Lindland to help us out and I think B.J. is ready for anything that happens.”

“I am feeling really good for this fight and I feel great about coming back into the UFC,” Penn quipped.

“B.J.’s looking real good right now,” Lindland added. “I trained with B.J. for about eight days and he’s incredible. The guy just keeps improving every time out. I worked with him before for when he was training to fight Matt Hughes and he is almost a completely different fighter now. The guy is amazing. I’ve never seen someone who can keep improving constantly. To be a champion and keep improving is amazing.”

No matter how well Penn has performed during training, however, he still has to face St. Pierre, a fighter who is on the verge of greatness. Fresh off of a spectacular demolition of powerhouse Sherk and a slick submission over the durable Trigg, the Canadian expects to challenge Hughes after the Penn fight, a move he hopes will allow him to avenge the only blemish on an otherwise spotless professional ledger.

Many are predicting that St. Pierre is the future of the sport and are putting their reputations on the line by predicting his victory. St. Pierre is actually a slight favorite in the vast majority of the sports books taking wagers on MMA, a surprising circumstance considering Penn’s immense talents and legendary career.

“I put money on him to win and not just because I have been training with him,” Lindland said. “I don’t see how anyone can think St. Pierre stands a chance against him. So, I laid some money down and with B.J. being the underdog, this should be some easy money for me.”

Both Lindland and Verissimo predicted “The Prodigy” would triumph over St. Pierre via vicious ground-and-pound. But Penn was more reserved.

“I don’t have any predictions about this fight,” he said. “I am not going to say if I’ll knock Georges out or submit because I don’t know. All I know is that I will win. Believe me. But I can’t sit here and predict exactly how I’ll do it. That’s not my style. I don’t like guys who sit back, talk trash and make these wild predictions. I just don’t do that.

“But I will say this, however, Georges is a great guy. You probably will never meet a nicer, more genuine guy than Georges St. Pierre. He is friendly, doesn’t have a bad thing to say about anyone and is very humble. He has fun doing this and he enjoys everything about this sport, at least that how he seems to me. Georges is a great guy. Just a good human being. He’s a very good fighter, too, and it should be a good test for me. I look forward to fighting him.”

Source: Sherdog

 3/3/06

Quote of the Day

"You can fool some of the people all of the time... and all of the people some of the time...
but you can't fool Mom!"

Captain Penny's Law, by children's television host "Captain Penny"

State Wrestling Championships Today & Tomorrow!
Neil Blaisdell Center
Friday, March 3 11:00 AM to 9:00 PM
Saturday, March 4 10:30 AM to 9:00 PM

The best high school wrestlers complete their season in the state wrestling championships at the Blaisdell this weekend. The weight class to watch will be 130 lbs. Three time state champion Brandon Low will try to complete the sweep, but he has two other state champions in this weight class. Morita is also a favorite so who ever wins this weight class will have to be considered the best wrestler pound for pound in the state since they are facing the toughest competition.

The finals will probably be 6 or 7 pm.

Gracie Fighting Challenge Today!
Oceanic PPV Times!

From Columbus, Ohio.

3/3/2006 4:00PM 701 IN1
3/4/2006 11:00AM 701 IN1
3/7/2006 1:00PM 701 IN1
3/12/2006 11:30AM 701 IN1

Support a couple of the boys Rhalan Gracie (Relson's son) in his debut fight and Phil Cardella who started his Jiu-Jitsu career at Casca Grossa as they help feed this killer card!

Team Hammer House vs. Team Gracie:
- Wes Sims vs. Daniel Gracie
- Matt Lindland vs. Fabio Leopoldo
- Mike Pyle vs. Fabricio Cames
- Forrest Petz vs. Daniel Moraes
- Jon Koppenhaver vs. Michael O’Donnell
- Dustin Hazelett vs.
Rhalan Gracie
- Michael French vs. Fredson Pixao
- Chris Brennan vs. Vitor “Shaolin” Ribeiro
- Dan Bobish vs, Alexandar Ustinov (Ben Rothwell rumored but unconfirmed to be replacing Ustinov)
- Carter Williams vs. Gary Turner (kickboxing)
- Steve Conkel vs. Brion Peoples
- Pat Horner vs.
Phil Cardella

Ohio Announces Format Change at GFC Weigh-In
by Mike Fridley

COLUMBUS, Ohio, March 2 — Nationwide Arena, home of the NHL's Columbus Bluejackets, played host to GFC's "Team Gracie vs. Team Hammer House" weigh-in Thursday.

Ohio Athletic Commission Executive Director Bernie Profato shocked all in attendance, including the fighters, when he announced that Thursday's weigh-in was actually the first of two, with the latter coming prior to the event's kickoff at 7:15 EST tomorrow evening.

"You cannot be more than 10 pounds heavier than what you weighed-in tonight," Profato told the fighters. He fielded several questions regarding the weigh-in policy, but no disputes arose.

All fighters on Friday's card save Fredson Paixaomade weight in their first attempt. Gracie Barra Combat Team's Paixao, a bantamweight, had two hours to shed down to 146 from 148; the Ohio Athletic Commision allows athletes one pound over the limit. According to GFC promoter John Cooper, Paixao made weight with just five minutes remaining in his alloted time.

Main event fighters Wes Sims (249.5 lbs.) and Daniel Gracie (234 lbs.) avoided contact with each other as they gracefully parted after stepping off the scales.

GFC "Team Gracie vs. Team Hammer House" weigh-in results:
Patrick Horner (171) vs. Phil Cardella (165.5)
Steve Conkel (Pictures) (270) vs. Brian Peoples (Pictures) (274)
Ben Rothwell (Pictures) (277) vs. Dan Bobish (Pictures) (330.5)
Vitor Ribeiro (165) vs. Chris Brennan (Pictures) (165.5)
Rhalan Gracie (180.5) vs. Dustin Hazlette (176.5)
Fredson Paixao (Pictures) (148) vs. Mike French (143.5)
Michael O'Donnell (169.5) vs. Jon Koppenhaver (Pictures) (171)
Daniel Moraes (167) vs. Forrest Petz (Pictures) (170)
Mike Pyle (Pictures) (175.5) vs. Gustavo Muchado (176)
Matt Lindland (Pictures) (186) vs. Fabio Leopoldo (Pictures) (184.5)
Wes Sims (Pictures) (249.5) vs. Daniel Gracie (Pictures) (234)

Carter Williams and Gary Turner did not step on the scale, as their bout is being billed as a kickboxing exhibition.

Source: Sherdog

Kickin It 14 Tomorrow!
Weigh-ins Today



KICKIN IT 2006 PART 2 (AMATEUR KICKBOXING)
MARCH 4 2006 (DOORS OPEN 6:30 PM)
WAIPAHU FILCOM CENTER

WEIGH-INS TODAY:
THE FILIPINO COMMUNITY CENTER
(NOT CULTURAL CENTER, RIGHT NEXT TO GOLDEN COIN)
THE SAME PLACE THAT THE FIGHTS WILL TAKE PLACE.
6:00 - 7:00 PM

MAIN EVENT
DALE KAMAI 175# HANS LEE
TEAM SOLJAH ANIMAL HOUSE
2005 LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT KICKIN IT CHAMPION VS 2005 LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT JR KICKIN IT CHAMPION. ANIMAL AGAINST SOLDIER, CHAMPION VS CHAMPION, TITLE FOR TITLE

BILLY PINERO 75# TRISTON PEBRIA
TEAM DEVASTATION EWA BEACH FIGHT CLUB

TODD YOUNG 170# CLEMETTE HELEMANO
TEAM SOLJAH EWA BEACH FIGHT CLUB

KEOKI DAVIS SUPER HEAVYWEIGHT KEOKI GANDY
TEAM DEVASTATION THE UNKNOWN FIGHT TEAM

NYE DELASANTOS 165# OLA PLUNKETT
TEAM SOLJAH ANIMAL HOUSE

KAEO CANDENERO 75# KILEY RAMIRO
HSD HMC

NUI WHEELER 135# JAY BOLOS
TEAM SOLJAH ANIMAL HOUSE

TEARJA SELLERS 160# TIANNA HIGA
HSD TEAM ISLAND THUNDER

SAM PALOSAMI SUPERHEAVYWEIGHT TRAVIS
TEAM DEVASTATION ANIMAL HOUSE

RICKY MARILLO 145# KAIKA BULLOCK
TEAM DEVASTATION HSD

JORDAN SUA 125# DEVIN DAMO
FIGHTERS UNION ANIMAL HOUSE

KOICHI TANJI 125# EVAN QUIZON
HMC TEAM DEVASTATION

MILLER UALESEI 185# TBA
TEAM DEVASTATION HOUSE OF THUNDER

RICKI CASE 160# KONA AE
THE UNKNOWN FIGHT TEAM TEAM DEVASTATION

NATHAN NAKI 140# BRANDON AMANONCE
HSD TEAM DEVASTATION

ED PONTEZ 140 JUSTIN WONG
TTHE UNKNOWN FIGHT TEAM HMC

ALL PARTICIPANTS AND MATCHES MAY BE SUBJECT TO CHANGE
TICKET INFO. - CONTACT DOUG AT 721-6019

Source: Event Promoter

Ultimate Fighting Championship
vs.
International Fight League

Here is a rundown of the UFC vs. IFL situation.

February 2, 2006

Zuffa LLC (parent company of the UFC) filed a case against the International Fight League. The hearing date is set for March 2nd at 9:30 AM.

Zuffa believes and alleges that Kurt Otto and Gareb Shamus, the co-founders of the IFL, solicited key employees of Zuffa and conspired to obtain significant amounts of Zuffa's Confidential Information and Trade Secrets. Zuffa also claims that Shammus and Otto obtained unauthorized acess to UFC production facilities through improper credentials. Zuffa believes that Shammus and Otto lured the former UFC employees to join the IFL and bring along Zuffa's confidential information (market research information, strategic plans, sales histories, merchandising agreements and sponsorship information. Zuffa is requesting to be compensated for damages, that the IFL would stop interfering with Zuffa relationships and to stop using Zuffa's Confidential Information and Trade Secrets.

February 3, 2006

The IFL responded by filing a complaint. The IFL were prepared to enter negotiations with Fox Sports Network until Zuffa intervened with litigation threats that halted the television contract. Zuffa threatended to sue FSN if FSN went through with the contract to broadcast IFL events. The IFL is claiming that Zuffa's allegations are all false and Zuffa wants to destroy the IFL since Zuffa perceives IFL as a competitive threat. IFL The IFL believes that Zuffa's allegations have harmed the IFL's business reputation, damaged business relationships and caused financial losses.IFL seeks an injunction to prevent Zuffa from interfering with IFL's business relations., from making false misrepresentations to the public, from unfair competition and monetary relief.

Zuffa filed an ex parte application for temporary restraining order and motion for primary injunction to stop IFL from conducting any business using Zuffa's Confidential Information and Trade secrets.

The court granted the temporary restraining order and shortened the time for hearing on motion for primary injunction.

February 21 , 2006

Kurt Otto and Gareb Shamus's brief in opposition to Zuffa's motion for primary injunction. Shamus claimed that Zuffa's true motivation in the suit has nothing to do with protecting Confidential Information and Trade secrets but to put the IFL out of business. Shamus said that the IFL does not need Zuffa's confidential information and the two former employees were not under contract with Zuffa when the former employees seeked employment with the IFL.

Pat Miletich* made a declaration to support IFL's opposition to Zuffa's motion. Miletich said that during a phone call with Dana White in January, White stated "he was going to fucking crush these (IFL) guys." Miletich said that White threatened by saying that anyone from his camp that ends up association with the IFL will never be associated with the UFC. Miletich believes that White contacted Ken Shamrock and Randy Couture with simliar threats. In the declaration, Miletich stated that "I can honestly say that Zuffa's intent in bringing this litigation has nothing to do with protecting any confidential information. Rather, I believe, this litigation is about one thing, and one thing only -- stamping out legitimate and indeed, heathly, competition."

*Pat Miletich agreed to coach a team and and send his fighters to participate in the IFL.

March 2, 2006

Date of hearing scheduled for today at 10:30 AM.

Source: MMA Fighting

Tito Ortiz and Jackson select talents

The new formation of the Team Punishiment, owner by Tito Ortiz and Quinton Jackson, promises to make a market search to select new athletes. One of the new trainers of the team is the Brazilian Waldomiro Perez Junior, black-belt of Jiu-Jitsu responsible for the formation of great fighters as Jorge Patino Macaco and Roberto Godói. "The team is coming back stronger than never and Tito and Jackson are loving Jiu-Jitsu now. They want to dispute some Jiu-Jitsu event this year," said the Brazilian, also telling that the team must announce new fighters soon, they will select new talents.

Source: Tatame

 3/2/06

Quote of the Day

"Writing is the only thing that, when I do it, I don't feel I should be doing something else."

Gloria Steinem, American Journalist and Spokesperson for Women's Rights

BJ PENN VIDEO INTERVIEW:
"WORLD TITLE FIGHT"

Check out
MMA Weekly.com for the interview

"This is a World Title Fight" says BJ Penn about his upcoming bout against Georges St. Pierre this weekend at UFC 58. BJ wasn't one to mince words as he spoke with MMAWeekly TV, "There is not anybody out there who would deny that this is a world title fight who know, Dana White, Matt Hughes, everybody else out there."

When asked about if he feels if he is trying to regain the belt after returning to the UFC, BJ said,"Dana knows I have the belt, Matt knows I have the belt. Everbody else knows I have the belt."

BJ also talks about
- St. Pierre and what he needs to do to beat St. Pierre.
- his training partners for this fight
- about his desire to fight for the Middleweight title and the Lightweight title if the 155 division comes back!!!
- why he wants to fight for a 155 divison title

As BJ said, "This is it. This is a world title fight. This is important as hell, important as hell."

Source: MMA Weekly

Registrations for Pan-American of JJ

Registrations for the 12º Pan-American Championship of Jiu-Jitsu are already opened. The competition will take place from day 7 to 9 of April, at California State University Dominguez Hills, in California. Over the event, there is going to be the 4th Confrontation of Jiu-Jitsu Selections, Brazil x US. For the first time that will be disputed also the Pan-American Jiu-Jitsu Novices Championship, on April 7, congregating white-belts athletes of the categories adult and master masculine and just feminine adult. The registrations for the competitions goes until March 29 and must be made in the agency E&P Viagens and costs US$80.

Source: Tatame

CAN THE KING MAKE WEIGHT?

It looks as though the UFC will have a fight for Sam Stout after all. Kenny Florian had to drop out due to back spasms today. Now in comes Spencer Fisher who weighed 175 pounds this week visting family in North Carolina.

"He was drinking a coke when I called..." manager Monte Cox told MMAWeekly. "We will have Billy Rush wave his magic wand and fight." Fisher was thought to be a perfect replacement because he had all of his medicals complete in the state of Nevada.

Now the question becomes, can he make that kind of weight at Friday's weigh in? "Spencer Fisher is a fighter period. He will take on anybody at any time. Is it a dangerous fight this late? Absolutely. But this kid loves to fight and we are confident he will make weight and do well this weekend." Cox said.

Fisher last fought in the UFC at Ultimate Fight Night 3 against Aaron Riley on January 16th, 2006 as he won by TKO/Doctor’s Stoppage after the first round. Fisher is now 2-0 in the UFC as he defeated Thiago Alves at UFN 2.

Fisher's professional record is sensational is he is now 17-1 in MMA as a professional. Fisher's only loss was to Carlo Prater back in May 14th, 2004 at the Freestyle Fighting Championships by decision. Sam Stout is 8-1-1 and is the TKO Lightweight Champion.

Source: MMA Weekly

5x BJJ World Champion Fredson Paixao - Interview
By Takimoto

He is the Eight times Brazilian National Jiu Jitsu champion, and five times Mundial (BJJ World) Champion. Fredson Paixao, the black-belt from Gracie Barra, has earned these and many other titles in his time. Now he is focusing on MMA where he first tested his skills at Jungle FC 2. He collided with Rani Yahia in May 2004 and earned a unanimous victory - avenging a defeat suffered in a Submission match held the previous year.

"I like revenges, since I lost by points in Copa Cyclone de Submission to Yahia, I wanted to face him again. I got this by a nice way in my MMA debut, and I dominated a tough Yahia during the three rounds"

After that glorious MMA debut, Paixao fought more 3 times within the Jungle FC promotion; once at Papucaia Fight and once at Pancrase-Brave 7(August 2004) where he faced his first MMA defeat of his growing career. It was to Japanese veteran, Yoshiriho Maeda.

"Maeda mauled (laughs). No doubts that he got to hit me toughly. And I realized that after losing to him by unanimous decision in a fight where I got controlled, that I can eat punches, and survive (laughs)"

Even so Paixao is 5-1 in MMA, but he had to face some criticism that insisted his fights were 'soft' as were his opponents.

"Once I heard that people had an idea that I was a Jungle FC's boy, I did not care much about it. But I want to mention that I fought against fighters who had more experience in MMA than I do. And this was in a road of my first, and second fights when I beat Yahia, and a Bushido and DEEP veteran in BTT's Fabio Mello. So, if it is not a proof that I am fighting for real like everyone else, I do not know what is going to be"

Paixao, your last opponent (Miljan Djurasinovic) in Jungle FC 5 was not as tough. Do you agree?

"Okay, can be. But it is not my fault, I know Jungle FC is organized by people who are from my city, Manaus. But they're not protecting me from tough fighters. In the last one(Jungle FC 5), they did a great match between Jose Aldo Jr. and Luciano Azevedo. And Azevedo won. Maybe they'll book me against him, who already showed interesting on fighting me. I fight him, no problems"

Scheduled for fighting in Gracies x Hammer House challenge against Michael French on March 3rd, Paixao shares his pre thoughts:

"(Laughs) I only knew I was going to fight, and only it. I never know who is gonna be me opponent, and this always worked. I am the last person to know who is gonna be my opponent. If people see it such as a bad way of conducting a career, I do not see it this way. I do not worry myself with the adversary, I prepare myself for a war on the ring, and I expect "my troop" overcomes my opponent's "troop" on this war."

Before to be headlined again into the Gracies x Hammer house's card, Paixao's teammate Gustavo Machado told me that even so he expected to see Gracie Team to come across like the winner of this challenge. He only could pick one winner in all fights, and this was Paixao by the heavy hitter style. So Paixao, how do you feel about it?

"If fighters such as Machado talks it about me, I am confident to make my best to not disappoint only myself, but the teammates who believe in me. Even so I have no idea what Machado meant by heavy hitter style (laughs)"

Any final message for the maXfighting.com readers?

Thank you very much for the support. I know that the site is read by Americans most than Brazilians, but even I am going to fight against an American fighter in French, I want to thanks the American fans who like my BJJ and MMA style. I would like also to thank my sponsor Unamar Clube, Atama Kimonos and Governo do Amazonas"

Source: Maxfighting

***For Immediate Release***
For more information, contact Mike Afromowitz, (917) 566-8754 or muaythaimes@aol.com or visit www.shamrockvsgracie.com.

Krzysztof To ‘Experiment’ with Kyle
at Shamrock vs. Gracie

March 1, 2006; New York, NY…. Heavyweight contenders Krzysztof “The Experiment” Soszynski (9-4) and Mike “Mak” Kyle (14-4) will lock horns with each other in a three round preliminary bout during “Shamrock vs. Gracie,” California’s historic first mixed martial arts fight card that will take place at San Jose’s HP Pavilion on Friday, March 10th.

“This is definitely the biggest fight of my career. I think its going to be a really good matchup and I think, whoever is able to withstand the longest, is going to win this fight,” said Soszynski, 28, who stands 6 feet 2 inches tall and tips the scales at around 257 pounds.

“I look forward to fighting hard, fighting my fight, and leaving it all out there,” stated the 6 foot 4 inch, 240 pound Kyle. Originally from Boise, Idaho, the 25-year-old found a new home in San Jose where he has become highly skilled in both Muay Thai and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu with the help of specialists at American Kickboxing Academy.

Born in Poland, Soszynski, along with his family, fled his then-communist homeland for Canada when he was 10 years of age and has remained there since. Soszynski dabbled in professional wrestling before being introduced to Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and, later, to kickboxing by Shawn Tompkins.

“My standup game wasn’t anywhere near what it is now since I joined Team Tompkins,” said Soszynski. It was a simple ground and pound strategy that carried him to victory during his first few mixed martial arts matchups. “That’s the way I started and I’m still comfortable with that, but I’m also not afraid to stand up at all now.”

Soszynski’s improvement helped him earn the four-man International Cage Combat tournament championship in Minneapolis, Minnesota on April 30, 2004.

For both fighters, the meeting represents an opportunity to steer their careers back on track after suffering recent losses in fights that they accepted on short notice. Kyle’s defeat came three days after he agreed to face Devin Cole on January 13th. Five weeks ago, Soszynski suffered a loss at the hands of Brian Schall after the two engaged in a toe-to-toe war.

“He didn’t hurt me in any way,” commented Soszynski of his fight with Schall that was stopped at the three minute mark of the third round. “It was just a matter of me being tired and that’s why the ref stopped it – not because he landed a really hard shot.”

Soszynski noted that he feels 100 percent refreshed since the mishap and will be at his best for the fight with Kyle. “I know he’s got a really good right hand and a lot of power,” he said. “His ground skills are okay, but I don’t know if they’re better than mine. I feel really comfortable that, if I can take Mike Kyle down, I can definitely do some damage to him.

The 13 bout “Shamrock vs. Gracie” card will be headlined by the long-awaited showdown between bitter rivals Frank Shamrock (20-7-1) and Cesar Gracie (14-0) as well the mixed martial arts debut of Cung Le (16-0), who will face seasoned veteran, Mike Altman (19-8). Rising stars and former collegiate wrestling standouts Josh Thomson (10-1) and Clayton Guida (19-3) will square off with each other while undefeated prospect, Gilbert Melendez (10-0), will do battle with David Padilla (5-4). Fan favorite, Eugene “The Wolf” Jackson (12-7-1), will make his long-awaited return to action when he meets Jorge “The Naked Man” Ortiz (7-2). The star-studded card will also see former World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) superstar and “Tough Enough” reality show winner, Daniel Puder (1-0), make his return to the world of mixed martial arts.

Tickets for “Shamrock vs. Gracie” are officially on sale and can be purchased at all Ticketmaster (408-998-TIXS) outlets and Ticketmaster online (www.ticketmaster.com) as well as at the HP Pavilion box office (408-287-7070). Fans can also purchase tickets by logging on to the official “Shamrock vs. Gracie” website, www.shamrockvsgracie.com, and clicking on the “Tickets” link where a ticket order form is located. All completed forms should be returned for processing to Ms. Julie Lin either via fax: 408-863-0153 or email: juless8000@aol.com. Ticket prices start at $30.

Doors to the event will open at 5 PM Pacific Standard Time on March 10th. The first preliminary bout will begin at 6 PM.

The “Shamrock vs. Gracie” bill is being promoted and produced by Silicon Valley Sports and Entertainment (SVSE, www.svse.net), a leading producer of major sporting and entertainment events and the exclusive producer of such events for San Jose, California’s largest entertainment arena, the HP Pavilion. SVSE’s many properties include “Miller Lite Fight Night,” world championship boxing; the National Hockey League’s San Jose Sharks; and the annual ATP men’s professional tennis “SAP Open” event.

Source: Mike Afromowitz

 3/1/06

Quote of the Day

"Fire is the test of gold; adversity, of strong men."

Seneca, 3 B.C. - 65 A.D., Roman Philosopher/Statesman/Dramatist

State Wrestling Championships This Weekend
Neil Blaisdell Center
Friday, March 3 11:00 AM to 9:00 PM
Saturday, March 4 10:30 AM to 9:00 PM

The best high school wrestlers complete their season in the state wrestling championships at the Blaisdell this weekend. The weight class to watch will be 130 lbs. Three time state champion Brandon Low will try to complete the sweep, but he has two other state champions in this weight class. Morita is also a favorite so who ever wins this weight class will have to be considered the best wrestler pound for pound in the state since they are facing the toughest competition.

The finals will probably be 6 or 7 pm.

UFC Update on Diego Sanchez and UFC 58

MaXfighting has just learned that The Ultimate Fighter season 1 winner Diego Sanchez is most probably out for UFC 58. Sanchez was reportedly exhausted and dehydrated earlier this week from an illness and had to report to the emergency room. The doctors have not cleared as of today for the fight which means that John Alessio will be without an opponent for UFC 58 unless the UFC can find another fighter for him. This is disappointing to many, especially since Sanchez is on a win streak and was looking to be in title contention by the end of this year or early in 2007. Things may change but as of right now Sanchez is out.

Source: Maxfighting

Gracie Fighting Challenge Oceanic PPV Times!
From Columbus, Ohio.

3/3/2006 4:00PM 701 IN1
3/4/2006 11:00AM 701 IN1
3/7/2006 1:00PM 701 IN1
3/12/2006 11:30AM 701 IN1

Support a couple of the boys Rhalan Gracie (Relson's son) in his debut fight and Phil Cardella who started his Jiu-Jitsu career at Casca Grossa as they help feed this killer card!

Team Hammer House vs. Team Gracie:
- Wes Sims vs. Daniel Gracie
- Matt Lindland vs. Fabio Leopoldo
- Mike Pyle vs. Fabricio Cames
- Forrest Petz vs. Daniel Moraes
- Jon Koppenhaver vs. Michael O’Donnell
- Dustin Hazelett vs.
Rhalan Gracie
- Michael French vs. Fredson Pixao
- Chris Brennan vs. Vitor “Shaolin” Ribeiro
- Dan Bobish vs, Alexandar Ustinov (Ben Rothwell rumored but unconfirmed to be replacing Ustinov)
- Carter Williams vs. Gary Turner (kickboxing)
- Steve Conkel vs. Brion Peoples
- Pat Horner vs.
Phil Cardella

Just My Thoughts: PRIDE 31 “Unbreakable”
by Mike Sloan

I think it’s safe to say that Sunday’s PRIDE event raised a few questions about some fighters, answered questions about others and set the stage for what could be the most heated rivalry in MMA in a long time.

PRIDE 31, dubbed “Unbreakable” in the U.S. and “Dreamers in Japan (which is also the weakest, lamest event surname in history), also provided mixed martial arts fans a perfect segue into the Japanese organization’s anxiously-awaited open weight class grand prix, set to kick off in May.

Unbreakable was a good show. It certainly wasn’t the best offering PRIDE has ever given us, but it thankfully wasn’t exactly a reincarnation of an event full of Larry Holmes vs. Butterbean fights. The event, when all the dust settled, opened several cans of worms, though — and luckily for those of you reading this column, I’m about to go fishing.

Rizzo needs to pack it in

I’ve said this for quite some time now and after watching such a legendary knockout artist dropped dead on his butt, knocked completely cold, in 25 seconds, my opinion was reinforced: Pedro Rizzo is a fighter I have always openly admitted as being one of my all-time favorites, but “The Rock” has seen better times.

Every dog has his day and I’m afraid Rizzo has had just a few too many dog days.

The last awe-inspiring victory the Brazilian Bomber had was way back on March 22, 2002 on the UFC 36 card. In that bout, Rizzo knocked out current UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski with a single right hand. But in that battle, it took Rizzo 11 minutes and 45 seconds of dull, lifeless, plodding and boring nothing before he iced “The Pitbull.”

He looked terrible and before that, he won one out of his last three. From the Arlovski knockout until the time he was lifted from consciousness against unheralded Roman Zentsov last night, his record was a paltry 2-3; he was stopped twice and his wins were nothing to write home about.

Rizzo struggled mightily against Ricco Rodriguez before winning a decision in probably the second worst fight in UFC history and his other win was a gift from the heavens (he was being pummeled by Tra Telligman before a punch opened a severe laceration on “Trauma,” thus ending the fight). Rizzo got credited with a TKO win, but it truly wasn’t a victory.

I remember fondly the days when Rizzo crushed his opposition with crippling leg kicks and sinister punches. It was like Rizzo had grenades that detonated on his foes’ jaws attached to his gloves. His knockouts filled highlight reels until there was no room left. His superb KOs of Telligman (the first time), Josh Barnett , Tank Abbott, Vernon White and Tsuyoshi Kohsaka were things of beauty.

But Rizzo is much older and he has looked unsteady for years now. Sure, the punch that ended his night would have knocked out a zebra, but it’s seriously time for “The Rock” to hang ‘em up. He is too passive when he fights and can’t ever seem to pull the trigger when he needs to. He has taken too many beatings lately and now he can’t even last for half a minute. Rizzo, save yourself further punishment and train young guns instead. You have given countless MMA fans enough knockouts to last a lifetime and you have nothing else to prove.

Where did that come from?

I always thought Alistair Overeem was a talented, dangerous and underrated fighter. But this was ridiculous. I didn’t think he was going to last more than four minutes with Sergei Kharitonov, a much bigger and stronger fighter than he — but boy did Overeem make me eat my words. I’ve never seen Overeem look so relaxed yet so explosive in my life and he made Kharitonov look like an amateur.

Sure, the Russian warrior injured his shoulder at the start of the fight, but Overeem caved his head. Overeem dominated from the start, never relented and gave Kharitonov a beating he’ll never forget. Kharitonov, from what I know, is just as good on the ground as Overeem and hits equally as hard, plus he’s naturally bigger. But after watching Overeem decimate him for five torturous minutes, it makes me wonder why on earth he never captured a world title.

After watching Overeem pull off the most impressive victory in his lengthy career, don’t be surprised if he winds up as one of the finalists in the open weight grand prix later this year.

Wow.

Source: Sherdog

 3/1/06

Quote of the Day

"Writing is the only thing that, when I do it, I don't feel I should be doing something else."

Gloria Steinem, American Journalist and Spokesperson for Women's Rights

Need tickets to the Sold Out UFC this Weekend?

Want last minute tickets to the UFC this Sat? Our good friend is selling his. Buy them on eBay by clicking on this
link.


Oceanic Digital Cable
3/4/06 5:00 PM & 8:00 PM Channel 701
3/5/2006 3:00AM Channel 701
3/5/2006 12:30PM Channel 703
3/5/2006 2:30PM Channel 701
3/7/2006 3:00AM Channel 702
3/7/2006 6:00AM Channel 702
3/7/2006 9:00AM Channel 702
3/7/2006 12:00PM Channel 702
3/7/2006 3:00PM Channel 702
3/7/2006 6:00PM Channel 702
3/7/2006 9:00PM Channel 702
3/8/2006 9:00AM Channel 702
3/10/2006 2:00PM Channel 702
3/11/2006 8:30AM Channel 702
3/12/2006 3:00AM Channel 702
3/12/2006 9:00PM Channel 702

LATEST UFC ODDS

You could have made a lot of money from our newest sponsors at BetEagle.com this weekend if you bet the underdogs for Pride 31. This week, BetEagle.com releases the latest odds for UFC 58: USA vs Canada.

Anybody that signs up this week with BetEagle.com gets an extra .20 to their bets. What that means is if the line is at +180, then BetEagle.com will automatically give you an extra .20 to get that line to +200 instead of +180. Here is the official odds for this weekend's UFC.

ULTIMATE FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIP - Mar 04
UFC 58 - USA VS CANADA
AT MANDALAY BAY EVENTS CENTER - LAS VEGAS, NV

UFC MIDDLEWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
Mar 04 1501 RICH FRANKLIN -300
8:30 PM 1502 DAVID LOISEAU +230

-The fight is for the UFC Middleweight Championship and the champion, Rich Franklin is your favorite at -300. You would have to bet 300 dollars just to win 100 dollars on Franklin. If you like the challenger Loiseau he's a good bet as un underdog at +230, which means you only have to bet $100 bucks to win $230 at BetEagle.com

WELTERWEIGHTS
Mar 04 1503
BJ PENN -115
8:00 PM 1504 GEORGES ST. PIERRE -115

- Lots of money coming in on Georges St.Pierre. Penn was the slight favorite when the lines opened, now it is even at -115 for both fighters at BetEagle.com

MIDDLEWEIGHTS
Mar 04 1505 NATE MARQUARDT -200
7:00 PM 1506 JOE DOERKSEN +160
- This line at one time was a pickem line, now the public seems to be betting Nathan Marquardt who has moved to -200 at BetEagle.com

Mar 04 1507 MIKE SWICK -575
7:00 PM 1508 STEVE VIGNEAULT +275
- Swick continues to be the biggest favorite on the card as you would have to bet $575 on Swick to win just $100 dollars. If you like Vignenault you can make money on the underdog at BetEagle.com

LIGHTWEIGHTS
Mar 04 1509 YVES EDWARDS -550
7:00 PM 1510 MARK HOMINICK +250
- The second biggest favorite on the card is Yves Edwards at -550 at Bet Eagle.com

Mar 04 1511 KENNY FLORIAN -150
7:00 PM 1512 SAM STOUT +120
- Kenny Florian started at -180 but some money is coming down on the underdog Sam Stout at +120 at BetEagle.com

HEAVYWEIGHTS
Mar 04 1513 TOM MURPHY -160
7:00 PM 1514 CHRISTOPHE MIDOUX +130
- Tom Murphy has opened as a very slight favorite at -160 against Christophe Midoux at +130 at BetEagle.com

WELTERWEIGHTS
Mar 04 1515 DIEGO SANCHEZ -525
7:00 PM 1516 JOHN ALESSIO +225
- The Nightmare Diego Sanchez has been bet heavily as this line continues to go for Sanchez at BetEagle.com There is money to be made if you like the underdog at BetEagle.com

Source: MMA Weekly

Cyborg's opponent debuts at Hero's

After KOing Evangelista Cyborg at Cage Rage 15 and keeping the belt Light-Heavyweight of the event, Melvin Manhoef is preparing himself to debut in the Hero's. Manhoef will face Shungo Oyama on March 15 at the Japanese event, which will be disputed at Nippon Budokan, in Tokyo. The show's theme will be Japan against the world, but the card hasn't got any Brazilian yet. The expectation is because of Royler Gracie's presence, who in interview to site TATAME, in January, said that has a big possibility of he fights in the event of March.

COMPLETE CARD (subject to change):

Hero's
Wednesday, March 15th, 2006
Nippon Budokan, Tokyo - Japan

- Genki Sudo vs. Ole Laursen;
- Caol Uno vs. Rich Clementi;
- Yoshihiro Akiyama vs. Karim Ibrahim;
- Kazuyuki Miyata vs. Ivan Menjivar;
- Yoshihisa Yamamoto vs. Kim Min-Soo;
- Shungo Oyama vs. Melvin Manhoef;
- Kiuma Kunioku vs. Antonio McKee.

Source: Tatame

PRIDE.31 "Unbreakable" Pre-Fight Interviews
Yes, I know it's a bit late...
Saitama Super Arena, Tokyo, Japan
February 26, 2006


Pride replays on Oceanic Digital Cable Channel 701
3/1/06 11:30 AM
3/1/06 3:00 PM
3/2/06 12:00 PM
3/2/06 6:00 AM
3
/2/06 1:00 PM
3/4/06 2:00 PM
3/4/06 3:00 PM (Channel 703)
3/5/06 2:00 AM (Channel 703)
3/5/06 9:30 AM (Channel 703)
3/6/06 3:00 PM
3/8/06 4:00 AM
3/8/06 11:30 AM

MINOTAURO, PRIDE SUPERSTAR - Prefight Interview
By Takimoto

Minotauro was disappointed after being sidelined from PRIDE's New Year's Eve show, when he was rumored to face an opponent (Josh Barnett) in a highly anticipated match. However, for unknown reasons, the fight did not happen. Now, Minotauro faced his second test against U-FILE Camp's Kiyoshi Tamura, an 13-8 Japanese fighter who is looking to stabilize his PRIDE career. See what Minotauro had to say before the action took place.

Takimoto- A possible match between you and Josh Barnett was rumored. Were
you disappointed when the fight was not scheduled?

Rodrigo Nogueira: I would like to fight him soon, but I believe that we will fight each other still this year. Probably in May. Anyways, my next opponent is an excellent Japanese fighter (Kiyoshi Tamura) and I guess we will have a good fight because I know he will not adopt to the style of clinches. The fight will develop itself well for the fans.

Takimoto- Do you know the reason why Barnett vs. Minotauro was not booked?

Rodrigo Nogueira- I think this was PRIDE's choice. I did not know that Kazuhiro Nakamura was going to fight Barnett. I think the main attraction of this upcoming event (PRIDE 31) is the collision between middleweights and heavyweights.

Takimoto- What do you think about this absolute division?

Rodrigo Nogueira- I think it is good because middleweights are technical fighters and they had an excellent spot in the GP last year. This was a great idea, and the Japanese fighters will have opportunities inside this new division.

Takimoto- Barnett vs. Minotauro was a rumor, so did you fear that you would not fight on the PRIDE 31 show after this was cancelled?

Rodrigo Nogueira- I did not fear anything. If I did not fight, PRIDE would have lost a good fight because I put my heart into the matches and I fight very well. We from BTT display the best ground technique in all fights and we proved that we are complete fighters. If I did not get booked on this card, I was 100% certain that I would be on the next show.

Takimoto- You already submitted Tamura by armbar in the RINGS King of Kings 2000 tournament, so what do you expect from him in this upcoming match on the PRIDE 31 show?

Rodrigo Nogueira- Both of us improved our games. I think his ground and striking game is better, but I think I have improved much more than he has. I am mostly technically inside the ring, and I believe that we will have a better fight than the KOK 2000 match.

Takimoto- Are you talking about Tamura based on what you have seen of him or what you have heard about him nowadays?

Rodrigo Nogueira- I have watched his fights. This is not going to be an easy fight. I can not hesitate on taking him lightly. I know what kind of fighting I am going to do against Tamura. He is left-handed and thanks to God, I already fought against him and I trained with left-handed guys.

Takimoto- Is Tamura's left-handedness his main characteristic?

Rodrigo Nogueira-: Yes, I guess. The reach is different when you are fighting a left-handed fighter. I need to use my bigger reach against him and take advantage of every time that I close the distance or connect a punch.

Takimoto- You did not fight on the year-end PRIDE show. Did this bother you?

Rodrigo Nogueira- I think that not having the chance on the last show of the year was harmful to me. I was almost booked, but they did not find an opponent for me. I am a former champion and an appearance on the year-end show would have been an award for me. I spent two months of hard training for nothing and this was extremely bad for my career. I think a fighter has a short career and when you are going to keep high expectations for a fight, it is not only the expectation that goes down when a fight does not happen, but also your body suffers a lot with the training punishment.

Takimoto- How do you see your career after this fight against Tamura?

Rodrigo Nogueira- This is going to be a good year for me. I am very well prepared physically, and I fought at 102 kg last year and I am now 107 kg. I am stronger, faster, and my cardio is 100% now. I am confident not only for this fight against Tamura, but also for my upcoming matches this year.


MARIO SPERRY, BTT LEADER - Prefight Interview
By Takimoto

Takimoto- Were you expecting to fight on the PRIDE 31 card in Saitama?

Jose Mario- I was scheduled to fight at any moment. PRIDE sometimes has important events like the two GP tournaments last year, so I stayed a little sidelined but I was always training a lot, looking for an opportunity. When the end of 2005 approached, I realized that I would fight on the first event of 2006.

Takimoto- Were not you worried about this delayed booking on a PRIDE card?

Jose Mario- No, I did not, because we are here in the academy (BTT) with top fighters who are without fights for a long time (Minotauro, Minotouro, and Paulo Filho).

Takimoto- When did you start preparing for this upcoming fight against Tsuyoshi Kohsaka?

Jose Mario- Since last November, I guess.

Takimoto- Did this mean no year-end parties?

Jose Mario- I am too focused as a fighter, so I do not enjoy parties at all. This was not a problem for me, to not party at the usual year-end events.

Takimoto- A lot of Brazilians and commentators around the world talk about the Arona vs. Silva and Henderson vs. Bustamante matches. Do you have any words about these fights?

Jose Mario- This is part of the past for us, so let's train more and try to
get victories in future fights.

Takimoto- Those fights saw two losses for BTT. Are you hungrier to get a win
over Kohsaka because of this?

Jose Mario- Well, we have to train more, and we need to look for victory by all means possible with more aggressiveness and solidarity.

Takimoto- This fight against Kohsaka is going to be a heavyweight match. Do you like fighting in this weight division instead of the Middleweights?

Jose Mario- I like the Middleweight division, as I feel comfortable there. However, DSE offered me this fight and I am not in a position of refusing and choosing the division that I would like to fight in. I want to fight.

Takimoto- You watched a lot of RINGS events from the past, which was the home of Kohsaka. Plus, Minotauro and Minotouro fought him. Is this an advantage for you going into this fight?

Jose Mario- I observed a lot of his tactics. He is a complete fighter with good positions in all aspects. I believe his ground game is good, too. His experience in multiple MMA associations demands some respective from his opponents. However, I will go ahead and finish the fight as soon as possible.

Takimoto- Kohsaka held the Pancrase Heavyweight title and he vacated the belt 'to bet' everything in PRIDE. Does this make him more dangerous than ever?

Jose Mario- The will to win is a top goal in every fight. Fighters who do not think like that do not deserve a spot on events like PRIDE. I respect Kohsaka and I admire his attitude, but I am training strong and I am prepared to give it my all during this fight.

Takimoto- Brazilian fans were happy when DSE announced Sperry vs. Kohsaka.
In your opinion, what do you have that is special that captures the admiration of Brazilian fans?

Jose Mario- I never refuse fights. I would like to thank these fans and tell them that I have had the pleasure to fight. I am a guy who is not ordinary due to my age in fighting, so I am living my fighting career intensely.

Takimoto- What do you think about the open-weight tournament concept?

Jose Mario- I think it is good for fighters, as this is one more option to test your skills. The fans want to see it and DSE is trying to please the fans.

Takimoto- What can you tell us about your feelings on the death of Carlson Gracie?

Jose Mario- I felt very sad. Carlson was an icon in the sport of Jiu-Jitsu and he eveloped Jiu-Jitsu in a full way. He was the first of the Gracie family who opened the doors of Jiu-Jitsu for family outsiders. In the 80s and 90s, the Carlson Gracie Team dominated the Jiu-Jitsu scene and this was the result of his great work. This was a big blow not only to the people closest to him, but for all people in the MMA and Jiu-Jitsu communities.

Takimoto- Any final statement?

Jose Mario- I want to fight and show a perfect performance on the PRIDE 31 show. This fight will be a reason that I am invited to PRIDE again, and it does not matter if they invite me for their Absolute, Middleweight, or Heavyweight events, I will go with all of my strength to fight whoever is in the opposite corner facing me.

Source: Maxfighting

Kickin It 14


KICKIN IT 2006 PART 2 (AMATEUR KICKBOXING)
MARCH 4 2006 (DOORS OPEN 6:30 PM)
WAIPAHU FILCOM CENTER

MAIN EVENT
DALE KAMAI 175# HANS LEE
TEAM SOLJAH ANIMAL HOUSE
2005 LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT KICKIN IT CHAMPION VS 2005 LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT JR KICKIN IT CHAMPION. ANIMAL AGAINST SOLDIER, CHAMPION VS CHAMPION, TITLE FOR TITLE

BILLY PINERO 75# TRISTON PEBRIA
TEAM DEVASTATION EWA BEACH FIGHT CLUB

TODD YOUNG 170# CLEMETTE HELEMANO
TEAM SOLJAH EWA BEACH FIGHT CLUB

KEOKI DAVIS SUPER HEAVYWEIGHT KEOKI GANDY
TEAM DEVASTATION THE UNKNOWN FIGHT TEAM

NYE DELASANTOS 165# OLA PLUNKETT
TEAM SOLJAH ANIMAL HOUSE

KAEO CANDENERO 75# KILEY RAMIRO
HSD HMC

NUI WHEELER 135# JAY BOLOS
TEAM SOLJAH ANIMAL HOUSE

TEARJA SELLERS 160# TIANNA HIGA
HSD TEAM ISLAND THUNDER

SAM PALOSAMI SUPERHEAVYWEIGHT TRAVIS
TEAM DEVASTATION ANIMAL HOUSE

RICKY MARILLO 145# KAIKA BULLOCK
TEAM DEVASTATION HSD

JORDAN SUA 125# DEVIN DAMO
FIGHTERS UNION ANIMAL HOUSE

KOICHI TANJI 125# EVAN QUIZON
HMC TEAM DEVASTATION

MILLER UALESEI 185# TBA
TEAM DEVASTATION HOUSE OF THUNDER

RICKI CASE 160# KONA AE
THE UNKNOWN FIGHT TEAM TEAM DEVASTATION

NATHAN NAKI 140# BRANDON AMANONCE
HSD TEAM DEVASTATION

ED PONTEZ 140 JUSTIN WONG
TTHE UNKNOWN FIGHT TEAM HMC

ALL PARTICIPANTS AND MATCHES MAY BE SUBJECT TO CHANGE
TICKET INFO. - CONTACT DOUG AT 721-6019

Source: Event Promoter

Extreme Wars X-1 2 Fight Card
Blaisdell Arena, Honolulu, Hawaii
March 18, 2004
Fights start promptly at 7:00 PM so come early!


Walter Saliss Vs Jr Sua

Randy Leuder VS Derik Thronton

Jamal Perkins (808 Fight Factory) VS "Sugar" Shane Nelson (BJ Penn's MMA)

Peter "Boy" VS Bryson Kamaka (808 Fight Factory)

Kevin Delima (Bulls Pen) VS Dave Moreno

Albert Manners (BJ Penn's MMA) VS Lorenzo Coca

Ed Newalu (808 Fight Factory) VS to be announced

X-1 Title Fight
Jim Kikuchi (808 Fight Factory) VS Lafayette Barelo

Mike Malone (Eastsidaz) VS Tupu AluAlu (Grappling Unlimited)

Gabriel Kamakahi VS Jay Carter (BJ Penn's MMA)

Miles Tynannes VS Reuben "Warpath" Villareal

Super Heavy Weight
Shane Carwin Vs Matt Nelson

Danny"Death Roll" Higgins VS Fernando Gonzalez

X-1 World Title Event
Harris Sarmiento (808 Fight Factory) Vs Kola Koka

X-1 World Title Belt
Ross "Da Boss" Ebanez (BJ Penn's MMA) VS Mark Moreno (Bulls Pen)

John "The Bull" Marsh (228 St Gym) Vs John "Big J" Kailiuli

Marcelo Tiger VS John Lober

Source: X-1


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