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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)
|
|
March 2006 News
Part 2
Wednesday
night and Sunday classes (w/ a kids' class) now offered!
 
For the special Onzuka.com
price, click on one of these banners above! |
 |
Fighters' Club TV
The Toughest Show On
Teleivision
Tuesdays at 9:30PM
Olelo Channel 52 on Oahu
Akaku on Maui
Check
out the FCTV website! |
Fight
To Defend Mixed Martial Arts In Hawaii!
The Hawaii Government is trying to ban or restrict MMA in Hawaii.
Please
contact your local representative and let them know that you
support MMA in Hawaii. Click the link below to look up your Representative
and his contact info!
HB3223
has been passed with Amendments. Basically the bill has been
rewritten to create a MMA Commission to regulate MMA in Hawaii
and passed on to the Consumer Protection & Commerce Committee
and the Judiciary Committee for further hearings.
Get
all the details concerning the two MMA Bills by clicking here
|
Quote
of the Day
"A
desk is a dangerous place from which to watch the world."
John le Carré, English Suspense Novelist
|
War
on the Valley Isle II
March 25,
2006
War Memorial Gym
All questions
about the event can be forwarded to Tyson at 808-870-8940 or
email by clicking here
|
Vitor
Belfort Makes His Pro Boxing Debut
Vitor
“The Phenom” Belfort (13-6-0) will make his professional
boxing debut on March 31st in Salvador, Bahia at ‘Minotauro
Fight 3’ promoted by the Nogueira brothers.
The
Rio De Janeiro native returns to his homeland to compete under
the watchful eye of Brazilian Top Team’s Antonio Rodrigo
“Minotauro” Nogueira (26-3-1) , who returns as promoter
for his third instalment of ‘Mintotauro Fight’.
The
card will feature 11 MMA fights and two professional boxing bouts.
Card
subject to change:
Professional Boxing:
Kelson Pinto vs. TBA
Vítor Belfort vs. TBA
MMA:
Cezar Profeta vs. André Mussi
Edson Draggo vs. Mondragon
Cabo Jai vs. Junior Cigano
Renato Velame vs. Wugne Silva
Flávio Almeida vs. George Kleber Lima
Douglas Cavalcanti vs. Irailson Gama
Yure Fernandes vs. TBA
Edilberto Crocotá vs. TBA
Danilo Índio vs. TBA
Source: Maxfighting |
Exciting
170 lbs War is in the Making
From
UFC.tv - Welterweight contenders Nick Diaz and Sean Sherk will
fight to stay alive in the 170-pound title picture when they
square off in a spectacular matchup at UFC 59 – Reality
Check on Saturday, April 15th at the Arrowhead Pond in Anaheim,
California.
UFC
59, which is already sold-out, features a UFC Heavyweight Championship
bout pitting champion Andrei Arlovski against challenger Tim
Sylvia, and a light heavyweight bout between Tito Ortiz and Forrest
Griffin. The card will air live on pay-per-view beginning at
10pm ET / 7pm PT.
A
gritty warrior who is willing to take on all comers, Diaz will
be looking to rebound from hard-fought losses to Diego Sanchez
and Joe Riggs with a win on April 15th. Needless to say the pride
of Stockton, California will be firing on all cylinders when
he fights in front of his hometown fans for the first time since
2003.
Pound
for pound one of the strongest fighters ever to step into the
Octagon, wrestling ace Sean Sherk has some unfinished business
with two of the top welterweights in the world – Matt Hughes
and Georges St Pierre, the only fighters to ever pin a loss on
the over 30-fight veteran from Minnesota. Winner of 12 of his
last 13 bouts, ‘The Muscle Shark’ is aiming to make
13 unlucky for Diaz.
Source: Maxfighting
|
Gracie
Fighting Challenge 1 Interviews series - PHIL CARDELLA
Congratulations
to Phil Cardella who used to take classes with us a long time
ago and has a successful school now and a promising career!
Looking
into the Gracie Fighting Challenge 1 held in Nationwide Gymnasium
in Ohio - USA on March 3rd, maXfighting will be talking with
the winners from those match-ups (the first actual "team"
event for MMA, in light of the new developments with the IFL).
The
first to be interviewed is the winner protagonist of the challenge,
the Relson Gracie brown-belt, Phil Cardella.
Takimoto-
Can you please introduce yourself to the fans?
Phil Cardella- I run the Relson Gracie Austin Association. I
surf, spearfish, dive, fish, travel, hunt and of course fight.
I like Martial Arts and always consider my self a student even
as an instructor. I am 6 foot tall, 29 years old and prefer to
fight at 160 lbs but have fought in Grapplers Quest Heavy Weight
Pro division (Same division as Saulo) and many open weight divisions.
I wear a three stripe Brown Belt under Master Relson Gracie and
hang my previously earned Black Belts on the wall. I have tapped
out a Champion Black Belts in professional competition and have
won many tournaments by submission. I have been fighting "professional"
grappling tournaments here in the USA since I was a Blue Belt.
My Jiu-Jitsu has been forged in tournaments and reinforced by
Relson and his father. Phil Cardella's list of accomplishments
and credentials can be see here http://www.maxfighting.com/index.cfm?ac=news.detail&nid=1243.
Takimoto- How did you feel representing the Gracies at Gracie
FC 1 ?
Phil
Cardella- It was a great honor to be the 1st and only American
to earn the privilege of fighting for the Relson Gracie Team
in MMA It was also an honor to have Relson Gracie in my corner.
I felt unstoppable. When I was done with my fight I might have
been at the event a whole of 20 minutes, I just came to get the
job done.
Takimoto- Did you have feel and weight or burden in representing
the family or were you okay?
Phil Cardella- Relson put no weight on my shoulders only support.
I always want to make my students proud to have me representing
them, so that is the pressure I am used to. Since I get to go
home and tell them of my victories when I win I welcome having
to tell them of my future challenges so they can see me make
goals and
accomplish them.
Takimoto- How did you see your fight against Patrick Horner going?
Phil Cardella- I always envision victory, I go over how it is
possible before every match I ever do. I try to find weak spots
in my opponent's game and take advantage of that. I knew he was
an undefeated champion that had to earn his spot to fight on
the card by winning and he was much bigger than me. So I had
to make no mistakes and set the pace at the start of the fight
to make it my victory.
Takimoto- What did you know about Horner?
Phil Cardella- I knew Pat Horner was part of American Top Team
(he trains with Jorge Gurgel's team) and was an accomplished
wrestler that was undefeated in Professional MMA 7-0, all wins
by submission. I knew he had some amateur fights but I did not
know he was 10-0 in amateur MMA. I knew he was coming down from
almost 200 lbs to fight me. I knew that he would have very good
cardio and would be in his best shape ever to fight me. I also
knew he understood how to relax in the ring, win off his back
and win on top. I knew he boxed as well.
Takimoto- You had three years away from MMA fighting, why did
this happen and how did you prepare yourself for this fight after
so long off?
Phil Cardella- Because Relson wanted me to learn Jiu-Jitsu to
his standard. I was training my Jiu-Jitsu with the purpose of
representing our team the way Relson wanted eventually. So I
am on the mats 7 days a week. It has been that way for over two
years. I am one of the hardest workers known. I spar and work
hard on the mats everyday that my body will let me. During my
break from fighting I went to Brazil twice and did well in the
Mundials both times, and trained after the Mundials as well.
I fought in lots of grappling tournaments, gi, no gi at the toughest
levels possible. I trained with my students and training with
partners at my academy really hard for several months leading
into this bout. I have people that can challenge me in certain
aspects of my training that train under me. I have a monster
Brown Belt that is a Black Belt in Judo and a great wrestler,
Richard Giberson. He has helped me train for every professional
fight that I have done. For the Holidays I went to Relson's house
to sleep on the mats and trained during Christmas and New Years.
I conditioned under the water at Sandies Beach, running with
boulders under water with Rhalan Gracie, running sprints in the
deep sand and rough break waters. I stayed in the Rough Hawaiian
waters as much as possible when I was not on the mats. I came
back from Relson's and stayed healthy, and made sure to do rounds,
swim sprint laps with my mouthpiece in ride the bike, run and
spar with my students. I arrived 5 days before my fight and trained
with Relson's Columbus Ohio Association before I fought. I did
lots of 5 minute clinch work with strikes with a very good wrestler
that also trains boxing and Jiu-Jitsu. Before the Arnolds, the
Columbus Association always has some really great training and
some amazing champions on the mats. I was lucky to be surrounded
by that.
Takimoto- You were the first Gracie representative who entered
the ring. What did you think when watched HamerHouse turning
the score which was 3-0 to start and ended at 4-3?
Phil Cardella- I see it different, if you count the whole fight
card, the experienced Gracie Team won. I do not think that was
smart to have debut fighters on this card- two of this Gracie
Team for the event had zero fights before the GFC. It is like
having the first gi tournament for someone and putting them in
the Mundials.
Takimoto- Inside the challenge [Gracies v. HammerHouse] which
fight most impressed you?
Phil Cardella- I paid a whole lot of attention to my fight and
to hear how many people thought that it was the fight of the
night. I liked my fight the most because we both showed good
sportsmanship and it was a very exciting decisive aggressive
fight. I thought Vitor "Shaolin" Ribeiro versus Chris
Brennan was great, both showed lots of skill & heart.
Takimoto- How long have you been training with Relson? Which
brought you to him?
Phil Cardella- I have been training with Relson for over 10 years.
I had a Black Belt in Tae Kwon Do and had been exposed to lots
of different Martial Arts already. The first time I trained
Gracie Jiu-Jitsu was before I left home for the United States
Marine Corps with my little brother Steve Cardella who had trained
with Royce and Relson in Texas and Oklahoma during seminars.
My little brother grew up training with Rafael Lovato Sr. and
Jr. Then I started training with Relson's Aiea Association, University of Hawaii
Association and his main academy. You can tell my Jiu-Jitsu is
Relson Gracie Jiu-Jitsu because 90% of my matches end by me submitting
my opponents. Relson's Jiu-Jitsu is for fighting. When applied
properly you will win by submission. We don't care too much about
points because in a real fight nobody is counting points and
advantages.
Takimoto- Relson was the visionary for Gracie FC 1, so did he
invite you to compete and represent his name or did you show
interest on competing under Relson's name at this event?
Phil Cardella- I had known about the Gracie Fighting Challenge
when it was just a glimmer in Relson's eye. I was given a poster
from Relson over four years ago when he was just starting the
idea of promoting fighting events. I hung the poster at my apartment
till I got an academy, then I hung it there. When he gave me
the poster I was told if I wanted to fight I could when I was
ready and if my technique was up to standard. I always try to
do things the right way so I had to learn Jiu-Jitsu to the level
of a Relson Gracie Representative. I always have an intrest to
fight at the toughest level possible and I always support my
Instructors events, so it was something I was looking forward
to.
Takimoto- What has this event brought for you after your victory?
Did you get more recognition over your name?
Phil Cardella- It was good for Relson to see in person what I
can do in a limited rules environment when I do not have to be
nice. I had to make a good show and a mess to draw some attention.
I also wanted my students and team members to see what I am capable
of. I really wish my fight was part of the pay-per view show,
not the under card so more people could see what I am capable
of. I wish that I could fight in Japan's larger events NOW. I
know I can win in those ranks. It is good to stay current with
fighting pretty often, so I made my return. But, only time will
tell if I got much out of fighting at the Gracie Fighting Challenge.
I hope after this interview I get a sponsor.
Takimoto- After this fight against Horner, you added a sixth
victory in 8 fights as listed online. However it's not accurate,
so can you describe you real fight-resume?
Phil Cardella- This fight against Horner was my 12th victory
in professional competition. I did two amateur tournaments before
going pro. When I went pro I fought in an open weight 8-man tournament
that I won all three fights by submission. Since it was my first
professional event and I won I did not think it was that hard.
I have only lost two pro fights against Gracie Team Members
before I owned my own Gracie Academy. My longest match was against
Eddie Miller. I was a lightweight fighting a middleweight. I
won the stand up and the ground, but he is big and tough. I know
he had trained with Rampage Jackson, Yves Edwards, Saul Soliz
and more. Yves cornered him for the fight. The fight went to
the second round where I won by submission. I had a whole lot
of energy and confidence coming into my fight against Horner.
I had waited a long time to get to play by those rules. He took
some really hard hits and I played a tricky submission game that
he worked hard against. His base and boxing was better than I
expected. He is a champion that was undefeated before I fought
him.
Takimoto- Which are you goals for this year? Have you something
schedule for the next months?
Phil Cardella- The goals for this year are to work very hard
at getting my black-belt. I have been doing this for years. I
also want to fight in Japan very bad. I really want to fight
in PRIDE, K-1 or SHOOTO. I have returned from The GFC and have
been back on the mats, back to training for another MMA fight
and have been busy improving my training partners.
Takimoto- Last words?
Phil Cardella- I would like to of course thank Relson for the
chance to be the first American to represent our team in NHB.
It was an honor and I hope I made a great impression. I would
like to thank Christy Thomas for being supportive, Richard Giberson
for being a beast-training partner that can prepare me for battle.
I would like to thank Chad Glisson, Daniel Moraes, and Ryan Larson.
I would like to thank all the Relson Gracie Team Members, to
include my students, they keep me humble and support my training.
I would like for everyone to know I want to fight in Japan now.
I do not have any personal challenges I just want to fight the
best opponents in the best events. I think I match up very well
against any of the lightweights in PRIDE. All my fights are exciting
and I always try 100%. And go check out www.Austinjj.com
Source: Maxfighting
|
Quote
of the Day
Cherish
forever what makes you unique, 'cuz you're really a yawn if it
goes.
Bette Midler, American Singer/Actress/Comedian
|
Extreme
Wars X-1 2 Fight Card Results
Blaisdell
Arena, Honolulu, Hawaii
March 18, 2004
MMA: 145lbs - 2 Rounds x 3 Minutes
Kevin Delima (Bulls Pen) VS Dave Moreno
Moreno by reverse naked choke in round 1
MMA:
165lbs - 2 Rounds x 3 Minutes
Bryson Kamaka (808 Fight Factory) vs. Peter "Boy" Kahananuui
Kamaka by TKO in round 1
MMA: 210lbs - 2 Rounds x 3 Minutes
Randy Leuder vs. Derik Thornton
Leuder by arm triangle in round 1
MMA:
145lbs - 3 Rounds x 3 Minutes
Albert Manners (BJ Penn's MMA) VS Lorenzo Coca
Manners by unanimous decision
MMA: 145lbs - 3 Rounds x 3 Minutes
Eddie Yagin (Grappling Unlimited) vs. Donald Gonzalez Jr.
Yagin by corner throwing in the towel in round 3 due to elbow
injury to Gonzalez
X-1
135lbs Championship Match:
MMA: 135lbs - 3 Rounds x 5 Minutes
Ed Newalu (808 Fight Factory) VS Lafayette Barelo
Newalu by tap out in 4:41? min of round 2
MMA:
160lbs - 3 Rounds x 3 Minutes
Jamal Perkins (808 Fight Factory) VS "Sugar" Shane
Nelson (BJ Penn's MMA)
Perkins by unanimous decision
MMA:
Open - 3 Rounds x 3 Minutes
Shane Carwin Vs Kasey Jackson
Carwin by guillotine at 22 sec of round 1 (Jackson was put to
sleep standing)
MMA:
185lbs - 3 Rounds x 3 Minutes
Jay Carter (BJ Penn's MMA) vs. Joshua Ferriera
Carter by KO at 1:29 min in round 2
MMA:
205lbs - 3 Rounds x 3 Minutes
Derik Thornton Vs Jr Sua
Sua by unanimous decision (Walter Saliss did not show and Thornton
stepped up to fight again to fill the spot for his second fight
of the night).
MMA:
185lbs - 3 Rounds x 3 Minutes
Daniel "Death Roll" Higgins VS Fernando Gonzales
Higgins by rear naked choke in round 2.
MMA:
Open - 3 Rounds x 3 Minutes
Miles Tynannes VS Reuben "Warpath" Villareal
Split decision draw (one judge Tynannes, one judge Villareal,
one judge draw)
MMA
160 lbs - 3 Rounds x 5 Minutes
Kola Koka VS Mike Maestas
Koka by unanimous decision
MMA:
235lbs - 3 Rounds x 5 Minutes
John "The Bull" Marsh (228 St Gym) Vs Shane Faulkner
Marsh by KO in round 3
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)
Moreno via decision (Moreno broke his foot during the fight and
Ross fought with a cold)
Main
Event:
MMA: 210lbs - 3 Rounds x 5 Minutes
Marcelo Tiger VS John "The Machine" Lober
Tiger by arm bar in round 1
Source: X-1
|
MARCH
MADNESS IN MMA
Do You Believe In Miracles? With all of the recent upsets, is
the playing field leveling out in MMA?
By
Damon Martin, MMAWeekly
With
March Madness about to start, sports fans are always anticipating
the next great Cinderella story. Lately the world of mixed martial
arts has had its own run of underdogs taking out the heavy favorites,
and it begs the question, are the favorites getting sloppy or
has the new breed caught up?
Going
into UFC 58, Yves Edwards was making his return to the octagon
as the already uncrowned lightweight champion. He was considered
the number one fighter in the 155lb weight class prior to stepping
in against a virtual unknown named Mark Hominick. While having
mixed success in Japan, Edwards did manage to show well in all
of his fights and a chance to return to the UFC and the newly
reformed lightweight division had to excite him but unfortunately
the excitement was short lived.
After
enduring some good stand-up by Hominick, Edwards found himself
on the short end of a triangle choke. Once on the ground, despite
a valiant effort, Edwards had no choice but to tap out and Hominick
earned the biggest win of his career. Coming into the fight,
Hominick was seen by both critics and fans as a stepping stone
for Edwards to get his championship but the young Canadian had
other ideas and earned a hard fought victory over one of the
best in the game.
Another
fighter that has struggled as of late and that was recently dismantled
despite being the favorite going into the fight was former UFC
heavyweight contender, Pedro Rizzo. While the Brazilian heavy
hitter has definitely lost a step or two over the last couple
of years, his skill and experience cannot be denied. His loss
to Roman Zentsov at Pride 31 by knockout at only :25 seconds
of the very first round was still shocking to many, including
the fans that remember that it was only a few years ago that
Rizzo was knocking out fighters like Andrei Arlovski and Josh
Barnett.
Josh
Thomson took on Clay Guida recently as an undercard fight to
the Frank Shamrock/Cesar Gracie showdown, and while just about
everyone thought that Thomson would walk through Guida, the result
was much, much different. While the fight did go to a decision
and Thomson had some very good submission attempts throughout,
it was Guida who pounded and punished Thomson for all five rounds,
earning the victory and leaving his opponent a broken and bloody
mess afterwards.
The
common factor in all of these fights obviously is that the underdog
won and it left the favorites to wonder what they could have
done differently to change the outcome. Upsets are a natural
part of any sport but recently mixed martial arts has had a string
of unlikely winners topple the heavy favorites. While injuries
occur all the time, watching Mark Coleman, who most had pre-determined
to lose when he fought Grand Prix champion, Mauricio “Shogun”
Rua, walk out victorious stunned more than just a fair share
of fans.
Walking
into a fighter’s hometown as an underdog and not only winning
but putting on one of the most impressive performances of the
entire show is next to impossible. But that’s exactly what
New Mexico fighter Carlos Condit did when he stepped into Renato
“Charuto” Verrissimo’s backyard in Hawaii and
knocked him out in the first round at Rumble on the Rock in January.
While
Ricco Rodriguez is not quite the same fighter, size or otherwise,
as he was when he was UFC heavyweight champion, his recent loss
at Rage in the Cage to little known fighter Robert Beraun was
nothing short of shocking.
Training
centers for martial arts have been open all over the world for
what seems like forever but with the recent growth of MMA, many
of these places are starting to train their students for full
contact combat. The days of there only being Team Quest, Miletich
Fighting Systems and Team Punishment are well since past. Now
with the influx of more and more teams and training systems,
fighters from all over are starting to become complete mixed
martial artists, never focusing on one area and becoming true
fighters.
Greg
Jackson has started to churn out top level fighters at breakneck
speed as of late. City Boxing in California has a few champions
just waiting to be crowned. And Rich Franklin’s training
techniques along with his friends Billy Rush and Jorge Gurgel
are attracting fighters from all over the nation to take the
trip to Cincinnati to see what all the fuss is about.
The
fact is the playing field is starting to level out a bit and
the veterans will have to step it up or the new breed of fighter
will be forcing them to step out. No fighter is safe from the
hungry new comer who listened to Dana White’s verbal curse
ridden tirade asking if they want to be a *expletive deleted*
fighter and got a fire to compete and make it all the way to
the top of the ranks. The Ultimate Fighter is built on the hype
of showing new talent and making the dream of some young fighter
come true with their chance to compete in the legendary octagon.
In
the next few days another team will be crowned the Cinderella
of the NCAA tournament…but who will be the next upset victim
in MMA? Time will only tell but in all likelihood, the wait won’t
be for very long.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
DOLLARS
AND SENSE IN MMA
‘The Ultimate Fighter’ reality TV show and its wide
reaching audience has changed the face of Mixed Martial Arts
(MMA) in North America. We’re witnessing a growth spurt.
Ticket
sales are up as well as ticket prices. Both pay-per-view purchasing
price and buy-rates are at a record high. Over the weekend, StrikeForce’s
‘Shamrock vs. Gracie’ set an American record for attendance
at an MMA event with more than 18,200 spectators. Sponsorship
dollars are rolling in like the high tide. Fighters have become
recognizable public figures. Today, the only thing in the sport
of MMA not on the upward fast-track is fighter pay.
Georges
St. Pierre has been labeled "the future," but reportedly
only brought in $48,000 for his Ultimate Fighting Championship
(UFC) 58: ‘USA vs. Canada’ bout with BJ Penn, who only
took home a mere $25,000 for his efforts. Rich Franklin is one
of the sports biggest stars, but isn’t being paid like one.
The UFC Middleweight Champion reportedly only took home $34,000
for his title defense against David Loiseau.
While
MMA in the Unites States appears to be exploding into new markets,
are the fighters being short changed at the counter? Many think
so. Something tells me you’d be hard pressed to find a fighter
who doesn’t think he is worth more than the check he is
cashing.
MMA
has not only caught the eye of companies willing to throw sponsorship
dollars into a growing sports phenomenon, but it has caught the
eye of sportsbooks eager to cash in on the MMA’s sudden
popularity. Could the combination of the sport’s thirteen
year over night success story in the U.S. accompanied with sportsbooks’
interest and out of date fighter pay lead to the biggest taboo
in the sports world, fixing outcomes? MMAWeekly Radio recently
spoke with Josh ‘The Punk’ Thomson, and he made some
interesting comments concerning the subject of low fighter pay
leading to "worked’ fights.
MMAWeekly
nor Josh Thomson is suggesting that any fighter has or will fix
a fight’s outcome, but could the lure of easy money, and
a lot of it, sway a fighter to do the unthinkable? The Yves Edwards
vs. Mark Hominick opening odds had Hominick as a +600 underdog,
meaning if you placed one hundred dollars on Hominick you would
have earned six hundred. Because of the opening odds and the
eventual outcome of the match, we’ll use it as a hypothetical
example to illustrate how the combination of out dated fighter
pay and sportsbooks’ interest in MMA could be a deadly combination.
In
MMAWeekly Radio’s conversation with Josh Thomson, which
can be heard in its entirety by clicking on the radio archive,
he brought up an interesting scenario. He said, "Here is
something to look at. If a fighter, lets say he is making $16,000.
If he walked in there with say twenty grand and he dropped twenty
grand on himself and he was +600. He’s going to walk with
what? I think $120,000 at +600, so he’ll walk with $120,000
on top of the money he is getting back. So what is a fighter
to do? I’m not just pointing out the UFC, I’m saying
any organization is only paying $10,000 a fighter. You know?
They’re throwing odds on these fights. The fighters, they’re
not being paid enough. They’re going to eventually get smart
and throw their own fights . . . If the odds were +600 against
somebody else, whose to say that somebody just wouldn’t
go in there and throw one fight and make 120 grand? That is more
money than they would make in the next four fights."
MMA
is in a metamorphosis phase, making the transition from underground
to mainstream. Several online sportsbooks sponsor some of the
biggest names in the industry, getting their name out there to
a potentially lucrative market. But one has to question the competency
of some of the odds. Recently there have been a few match-ups
that odds makers have bit the bullet on. The ‘Pe De Pano’
Cruz upset over former UFC Heavyweight Champion Frank Mir was
a money maker for insightful gamblers who recognized the outrageous
odds in favor of Mir who was coming off a severe injury and an
extensive leave of absence from MMA competition.
Most
recently, Mark Hominick was an enormous underdog facing Yves
Edwards. He pulled off the upset costing sportsbooks an astronomical
amount in loses. Josh Thomson commented, "The Mandalay Bay
had them at -600. Someone went in there and they dropped twenty
grand. That is why the odds dropped from -600 to -400 in one
night against the Hominick and Yves fight. Someone went in there
and put twenty grand on Hominick, and that’s a big deal.
That is why these casinos and stuff don’t put betting lines
on really the undercards in boxing. They do maybe one undercard
if it is a good undercard, like one bout on the undercard. It
is always the betting lines on the main event and that is it.
You don’t see betting lines on all the other smaller events,
all of the other fighters underneath there because whose to say
those guys aren’t just going to go out there and throw the
fight? They’re only making four grand."
All
the ingredients are in place for the worst case scenario come
to fruition. It may not have happened yet, but low wages and
inflated, incompetent odds making is a recipe for disaster. "I
don’t think it has happened yet, but these odds were ridiculous.
Mike Swick was -600 against Vigneault, and so was Hominick. Hominick
was +600, so whose to say these fighters aren’t going to
do that, go drop twenty grand? Why not drop whatever they’re
going to make on their fight because they know they’re going
to get it right back after they throw it? – I’m not
saying that it hasn’t happened. I’m just saying that
I’m not aware of it happening. I mean, there is always talk
of people doing it, but I’ve never encountered someone really
saying yea, I’ve done it. Yea, on the DL. They’re not
telling me on the DL." Josh Thomson told MMAWeekly.
MMAWeekly
asked Josh Thomson point blank if he thought the Hominick and
Edwards fight was a "work." Josh immediately responded,
"No. I don’t think so." But the current conditions
of fighters being paid minimal amounts and sportsbooks posting
unrealistic odds, it is just a matter of time before fights are
fixed, if it hasn’t already happened.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Ninja
vs. Paulão at Pride Bushido 10
One
of the most awaited matches of Pride will put face to face Chute
Boxe and Brazilian Top Team once again. Dream Stage Entertainment
has announced the bout: Murilo Ninja (Chute Boxe) and Paulão
Filho (BTT) at Pride Bushido 10, MMA event scheduled to April
2, in Japan. The controversy between athletes comes from Pride
GP Middleweight 2005, when Paulão got at Ricardo Arona's
corner. DSE also announced three disputes. Denis Kang vs. Mark
Weir, Mitsuhiro Ishida vs. Paul Rodriguez and Akihiro Gono vs.
Dae Won Kim.
COMPLETE
CARD (subject to change):
Pride
Bushido 10
Sunday,
April 2, 2006
Ariake
Colosseum, Tokyo, Japan
-
Takanori Gomi vs. Marcus Aurélio;
-
Dan Henderson vs. Kazuo Misaki;
-
Yuki Kondo vs. Phil Baroni;
-
Murilo Ninja vs. Paulão Filho;
-
Joachim Hansen vs. Luiz Azeredo;
-
Jens Pulver vs. Mazakazu Imanari;
-
Denis Kang vs. Mark Weir;
-
Mitsuhiro Ishida vs. Paul Rodriguez;
-
Akihiro Gono vs. Dae Won Kim;
-
Seichi Ikemoto vs. TBA;
-
Ikuhiza Minowa vs. TBA.
Source: Tatame
|
Quote
of the Day
"Life
is the flower for which love is the honey."
Victor Hugo, 1802-1885, French Poet/Dramatist/Novelist
|
Extreme
Wars X-1 2 Fight Card Tonight!
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
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
|
Two
Bouts Added to UFC 59 – Reality Check
Middleweight veterans Jeremy Horn and Evan Tanner will look to
move further up the 185-pound ranks when they clash at UFC 59
– Reality Check, which will be held at the sold-out Arrowhead
Pond in Anaheim, California on Saturday, April 15th.
Also
added to the show, the UFC’s first in California, is a welterweight
battle between Drew Fickett and American Top Team fighter Thiago
Alves.
UFC
59 – Reality Check, which features a UFC Heavyweight Championship
bout pitting champion Andrei Arlovski against challenger and
former champ Tim Sylvia, and a light heavyweight bout between
Tito Ortiz and Forrest Griffin, will air live on pay-per-view,
beginning at 10pm ET / 7pm PT.
One
of the busiest fighters in mixed martial arts history, Jeremy
Horn has also established himself as one of the most intelligent
practitioners to ever step into the Octagon. Holder of victories
over the likes of Chuck Liddell, David Loiseau, Dean Lister,
Josh Burkman, Forrest Griffin and Vernon White, Horn is coming
off a close decision win over Trevor Prangley at UFC 56 last
November and would like to build upon that success on April 15th.
A
competitor with a never say die attitude, Evan Tanner is eager
to get back in the win column after back-to-back losses to Rich
Franklin and David Loiseau. Before those losses though, Tanner
was on a four fight hot streak that saw him defeat Phil Baroni
in consecutive fights, submit Robbie Lawler, and stop David Terrell
to win the UFC middleweight title. A little over a month from
now, the Texas native will look to start a new streak with a
win over Horn.
Source: Maxfighting
|
WFC
Release - Matt Ver Halen, Top of His Game
Denver
CO: Names like Urijah Faber, Cole Escovedo and Josh Thompson,
dominate the conversation when speaking of the top 145-pound
fighters, so Ver Halen is used to being out of the spotlight
– and in truth, he wouldn’t have it any other way.
“You
know, it doesn’t even bother me. I figure just let them
hype up the other guys, I mean the more press for this weight
class the better,” Ver Halen said.
35-year-old
Ver Halen has been training in Martial Arts since the age of
eight, and has excelled in Muay Thai kickboxing, Western Boxing
and No Gi Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Ver Halen trains with some of
the top names in the sport including Ultimate Fighting Championship,
veterans Drew Fickett and Joe Riggs as well as one of the original
stars of American MMA – Don Frye. Not only has Ver Halen
learned fighting techniques from these top-coaches, but has learned
the intangibles of how to win, while having a little fun while
doing it.
“Don
has taught me so much,” Ver Halen stated. “He has taught
me composure and respect. He has taught me not be a smack talker,
and be a respectful guy, not only to my opponents, but to everyone.
Drew (Fickett), he’s just nuts man, he’s all over the
place, he’s a lot of fun.”
Ver
Halen also takes coaching from one of his championship opponents
- a tactic that very few fighters employ. Ver Halen uses this
unique perspective to improve his game, and gain an insight that
can’t be taught through traditional methods. “Mike
Knight is my Muay Thai coach, and he is the guy that I fought
for the Rage In The Cage championship, you would not believe
how much training with him has raised my game. He is a great
asset to the team.”
“The
Warlock,” Ver Halen, holds championship belts in both RITC
and the WFC – a rare occurrence even among MMA elite. Ver
Halen is the current RITC 145-pound champion and then went on
to win the WFC belt in September, 2005. Ver Halen won the belt
in a three round war with Steve Horton at the first WFC event
“Clash of the Titans.”
Ver
Halen admitted that fans and other fighters might have misjudged
his performance against Horton. A performance he has labeled
“forgettable.”
“That
fight, was probably the most boring fight of my career. Going
in, I was concerned about the altitude in Colorado, so I was
a little reserved – defensive. That and he (Horton), was
really, really strong.”
Ver
Halen now looks towards defending his WFC belt as he steps into
the cage to battle upstart Steve Sharp, this Saturday night at
“Final Countdown,” at the state-of-the-art Budweiser
Events Center in picturesque Loveland, Colorado.
“I
have been training super hard for this fight. I can’t remember
the last time I was this fired-up for a fight,” Ver Halen
revealed.
“I
heard he (Sharp), wants to stand with me. That’s only because
he doesn’t know who I am. If he did know me there is no
way he would say that, but if he wants to keep the fight standing
– then you know, may God help him.”
With
a win over Sharp, Ver Halen is one step closer to being on the
shortlist of the bantamweight elite, one step closer to the spotlight,
and one step closer to the top of the mountain.
Source: Maxfighting
|
Campo
Grande Fight 1 - The Brazilian Grass Roots
People often talk about the grassroots circuit in the US and
how it helps fighters develop. Well, Brazil (the motherland of
Vale Tudo that has produced Vanderlai Silva, Rodrigo Nogueira,
Vitor Belfort, Ricardo Arona, and the of course the GRACIES)
also has a thriving grassroots scene. It has to... All the major
teams in Brazil (Brazilian Top Team, Gracie Barra, Nova Uniao,
Chute Boxe) all need places to get the up-and-comers into action
and build them up with hopes of bigger fights in MECCA, STORM,
Jungle FC, and even onto Japan and the US.
One
of those venues for the aspiring Brazilian athlete is Campo Grande
Fighting. This show brought together young hungry fighters from
across the Brazilian MMA community, and presented the action
in 12 exciting fights. The promoter took a chance, by making
the fights all 2x5 minute rounds, hoping to force the fighters
into action because of the short time limits and threat of draws.
The gamble paid off for promoter Jorge Turco, as the event was
one of the most exciting action-based shows in Rio de Janeiro.
In
the opening ceremony, promoter Turco paid homage to master Carlson
Gracie's memory through the presence of the best friend of Carlson,
the filmmaker Osvaldo
Paqueta, who shared some words with maXfighting after the Carlson's
unfortunate death.
And for the event itself, all the fighters in the show where
absolute first timers. However, if any of these fighters were
nervous, it did not show. Rarely we see an MMA event where the
first fight is "the fight of the night". The "debuters"
Roberto Vieira of UGF and Gracie Barra's Sergio Pim, came in
to trade heavy blows right away, on the feet. Vieira had more
tools on the feet and he pushed Pim out by using low-kicks that
forced him back. Vieira pursued Pim around the ring, and Pim
circulated to escape from the polished stand-up game of his opponent.
They met in the center of the ring again and blasted each other
heavily with sequences of straights and cross-punches. Vieira
gave more than he got, forcing his opponent to shoot to avoid
a KO. From the clinch Pim threw Vieira down. Vieira quickly turned
and sunk in a heel-hook, but Pim countered and the fight quickly
returned to the feet. They kept the fight at a distance, and
when it was at striking range Vieira unloaded with an arsenal
of knees, two of which connected with Pim's head. The Gracie
Barra fighter finally dropped at the 3:00 minute mark. He remained
conscious and tried to keep fighting, but Vieira followed him
to the mat and forced Pim to tap out from punches to the face.
An interesting match-up had BTT versus Nova Uniao when a clash
of the jovial Henrique Mello neutralized the 30 year old BTT
fighter Eduardo Mun-Ra. It was clear that Mun-Ra was better prepared,
but every time they exchange strikes on the feet, Mello connected
and Mun-Ra had to change gears to avoid damage. It happened several
times during the two rounds' of a fight that had very little
action on the ground. When the opportunities presented themselves,
Mun-Ra attempted a triangle choke that Mello used to pass the
guard. In the end Mello won by split decision over Mun-Ra.
MaXfighting was mentioned by promoter Turco when he addressed
the audience to tell about the presence of this humble MMA writer
who was covering the show. I felt proud about their appreciation,
and the promoter was very happy for the exposure!
In the main-Event, for the Superfight belt and to qualify for
the next level in MMA, Rio MMA Challenger 2: Vitor Hugo (Libra/JTT)
def. Wendell Negao (Rio Fight) by rear naked choke
In a great format form the sport, this fight was to qualify the
winner for a fight one
month later in the Turco's main promotion, the Rio MMA Challenger
which is the next step for aspiring young athletes. Edition 2
of that show is confirmed for May 12th where the winner will
appear, with a belt around his waist.
Negao put Hugo in the corner with a striking attack. Hugo tried
to take it down, but could not and he had to keep the pace in
a game where he wasn't comfortable on his feet. Twice Negao came
close to knocking Hugo out, but instead of a cross-punch or a
low kick, he preferred to take Hugo down. The fighters were clinched
in a neutral corner close to my position when Hugo finally dropped
Negao with a slam. Negao tried to get back on his feet position,
but Hugo was on his back and sunk his forearm under Negao's chin
to finish the contest and capture the CP Superfight belt.
Full Results:
Submission-grappling
Vitor Avilla (JTT) def. Joao Paulo (Rio Fight) by referee decision
MMA
Roberto Vieira (UGF) def. Sergio Pim (Gracie Barra) tapout from
strikes
Marcio Caverna (Top Brothers) def. Vinicius Russo (JTT) by deicsion(majority)
Henrique
Mello (Nova Uniao) def. Eduardo Mun-Ra (BTT) by decision(majority)
Sandro Gemak (AKTBERJ) def. Gilliard Patrick (Rio Fight) by guillotine
choke
Leandro
"Xia" Guapiacu (Libra/JTT) def. Alex Shock (Boxe Thai)
by decision(majority)
Felipe
Goncalves (Team Indio) def. David Belizario (Rio Fight) by TKO(doctor
stoppage)
Matheus
Trindade (BTT) def. Mark Scalon (RFT) by decision(majority)
Hugo
Ricardo (Rio Fight) def. Carlos Eduardo (Libra/JTT) by disqualification
Jorge Blade (AKTEBRJ) def. Di-Everton (Rio Fight) by TKO (referee
stoppage due to intense nose's bleeding)
Rafael
Barbosa (BTT) def. Ulisses Vieira (Freelancer) by armbar
Daniel
Almeida (Nova Uniao) def. Roque Oliver (BTT) by decision(majority)
For the CG Fight belt (Rio MMA Challenger 2 qualifier)
Vitor Hugo (Libra/JTT) def. Wendell Negao (Rio Fight) by rear
naked choke
Source: Maxfighting
|
Quote
of the Day
"Be
slow to fall into friendship; but when thou art in, continue
firm and constant."
Socrates, 469-399 B.C., Greek Philosopher
|
Tokoro,
Sudo and LeBanner are Budokan "HEROS"
TOKYO -- Japanese mixed martial arts fighter Hideo Tokoro, 27,
made it look easy -- taking just 49 seconds to submit compatriot
Yoshinori Ikeda in the main event of HEROS 2006.
Tokoro
executed a single leg takedown to start the 72kg weight-class
bout, then got into a full mount position. Ikeda, a Kyokushin
Karate fighter making just his second mixed martial arts start,
wormed his way out to get on top, only to be met with a triangle
choke. With the pressure increasing and no chance of escape,
Ikeda tapped out.
Held
at the historic Nippon Budokan in central Tokyo, this was the
first event of the year in FEG's HERO mixed martial arts fightsport
format. Bouts were contested under HEROS Rules (5Min. x 2R &
1R Extra for tiebreaking), with specific weight limits as noted.
Dutch
kickboxer Melvin Manhoef took on Shungo Oyama of Japan in the
first contest. The pair of 74kg fighters boxed for half the first
round before going to the mat with Manhoef in mount. Oyama pushed
and then bicycle-kicked his way back to his feet, but Manhoef
met him with a high kick that opened a cut on the Japanese fighter's
face. A doctor's check cleared Oyama to continue but Manhoef
laid in with the fists, socking his opponent good before the
doctor called a stop, giving Manhoef the victory.
K-1
veteran Jerome Le Banner of France met American freestyle fighter
Jimmy Ambriz in the second bout. Ambriz is a stocky customer,
at 139kg/306lbs he brought a 20kg/45lbs weight advantage to the
ring along with his 8-1 record in mixed martial arts. Ambriz
charged forward from the bell, and just seconds in the two were
on the mat. LeBanner kept the legs up and did well in guard,
forcing a stalemate and a standing restart. Again Ambriz came
rushing, his arms flailing, but LeBanner got the decisive blow
this time -- a right hook that dropped the American for the KO
win.
The
next matchup was a 70kg weight-class bout featuring Kazuyuki
Miyata of Japan and Erikas Petraitis of Lithuania. Petraitis
went down early and Miyata hovered overhead, passing the guard
with punches. Soon, Miyata came into a side mount, then deftly
twisted his way into position for an armbar and submission.
Another
70kg weight-class fight followed, with mixed martial arts specialists
and former SHOOTO Champion Caol Uno of Japan and Rich Clementi
of the United States mixing it up. The pair sparred a fair bit
in the early going before Clementi got the takedown and Uno went
to guard. Clementi worked to side then rear mount, but Uno twisted
round to get on top, and started putting the punches down, connecting
nicely with a few lefts before the bell.
In
the second, Clementi swept from the clinch for the takedown but
Uno worked his way into a mount and put the punches down once
again. After some squirming and bucking and a brief time on their
feet, the two went to the mat and finished the round in a deadlock.
His fists having put the most punishment across, Uno was rewarded
with the win by unanimous decision.
A
couple of big tough guys, Heath Herring of the United States
and Gary Goodridge of Trinidad and Tobago, met in the next bout.
Herring came in with a high kick which Goodridge grabbed for
a takedown and canopener, but couldn't work well on the mat.
After some writhing and strikes but no opportunities for submission,
the pair were given a standing restart. They boxed then mixed
it up a little but neither could take control.
In
the second Goodridge repeatedly found Herring on his back, but
could not pass, and so backed off to force a standing restart
and more boxing. It was during one of the sparring exchanges
that Herring surprised Goodridge with a right hook, knocking
him to the canvas for the KO win.
A
88kg-limit bout featured Japanese fighters Yoshihiro Akiyama,
a Judo Champion; and pro-wrestler Tokimitsu Ishizawa. Akiyama
is wildly popular in Japan, and the crowd went nuts as he railed
on Ishizawa with his fists during a first round which the pair
spent almost entirely on their feet. Whenever Ishizawa came forward
looking for the takedown, Akiyama put in more punches. Akiyama
also connected with a high kick, which might have ended the bout
but for Ishizawa's strong chin.
After
some clinching early in the second round, the fighters finally
went to the mat, where Akiyama took a side mount, then coolly
worked a choke hold to force the submission.
A
couple of hefty Judo stylists, Yoshihisa Yamamoto of Japan (190cm/6'3";100kg/220lbs),
and Min Soo Kim of South Korea (186cm/6'1";112kg/247lbs)
met in the next bout. There was unbridled boxing in the early
going, Kim with the better stuff. A takedown put the Korean into
a rear mount but not much happened there. Back on their feet
the pair boxed again, and now Yamamoto got some good licks in.
Back to the mat with Yamamoto on top, albeit in an awkward position,
and coming down with the fists. When they got back to their feet,
Yamamoto planted a spinning back punch before the boys finished
the round with another exchange of frenetic boxing.
Kim
was bleeding from atop the left eye at the start of the second,
but displayed superior stamina as the round progressed. Approaching
the midway point, the Korean got into rear mount again, this
time making no mistake as he worked a pull-up choke for the quick
submission.
In
a 72kg weight-class matchup, flashy and unorthydox Japanese fighter
Genki Sudo took on Ole Laursen of Denmark. Sudo started with
spinning kicks, and when the fight went to the mat looked ready
to put Laursen into a heelhook. But the Dane spun out of the
hold, and after shaking a Sudo rear mount was able to get into
a mount of his own. The two showed speed and technical prowess
here, with frequent reversals, but the first ended with neither
dominating.
They
went to the mat quickly in the second. Laursen worked some good
moves, but the slippery Sudo stayed out of danger. Laursen threw
Sudo from the clinch and passed with punches then leapt in with
a couple of stomps that were among the best attacks in this very
exciting fight. Back on their feet, Sudo missed with spinning
back punches to end the round. A close contest -- the judges
saw a draw and called for a tiebreaker.
Here
Sudo got into side mount early but Laursen's defenses gave the
Japanese fighter little to hit. But Sudo soon got a full mount
and did better with his punches. Laursen reversed and wanted
to stand and strike, but Sudo got the takedown and was better
with a side mount and triangle hold through the remainder to
take the win by unanimous decision.
In
the 75kg-class opening fight, Antonio McKee of the United States
beat Kiuma Kunioku of Japan by unanimous decision.
The
HEROS 2006 event attracted a sellout crowd of 8,770 to the Budokan.
It was broadcast live in Japan on the TBS Network, and in OnMedia's
Super Action TV in South Korea. Time-delay broadcasts are set
for 54 countries on EuroSport -- check with local broadcasters
for scheduling. As always, visit the K-1 Official Website (www.k-1.co.jp)
for complete coverage.
Source:
Maxfighting |
K1
HEROS PRESS CONFERENCE
The final press conference before tonight's K-1's HERO'S card
took place and Heath Herring had a simple message for Big Daddy
Gary Goodridge.
Herring
said that he felt maybe now he wouldn't have to be worried about
being kissed before his fight. (Herring alluding to the Nakao
kiss before the fight that ended up with Herring KO'ing Nakao
before the fight started.)
Goodridge
responded anything can happen since it is a "no rules"
match as everyone laughed. Other interesting news and notes from
the Press Conference you can watch right now on MMAWeekly TV
was the fact that Quinton Jackson was there at the event to corner
a couple of the fighters.
Some
of the media was wondering if K-1 would make a play at Jackson
since he is still a free agent. Jackson told the media that he
has not signed with Pride or anyone else at this point.
Also
Rich Clementi was not available at the press conference because
he was trying to make weight. It took him three times before
he was able to do so. So the Clementi vs Caol Uno fight is on
for tonight. Watch the press conference before tonight's card
right now on MMAWeekly TV. If you missed yesterday's weigh-in
there is only one website you can watch the exclusive action,
only on MMAWeekly TV.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
CALIFORNIA
LOVE: UFC BACK TO BACK SHOWS
Fans
are coming in force for upcoming MMA shows. UFC 59 sold out most
of their tickets the first three days they went on sale. Tickets
for UFC 60 are going at a frantic pace at the Staples Center.
So far fans haven't had a problem buying out the $50 and $100
dollar tickets which have already been sold out at Staples. Tickets
are still available for the more expensive seats at $1000, $800,
$600, $400, and $200.
As
far as the card goes, the official matchups should be released
shortly by the UFC and you can as always check the "rumors"
section at MMAWeekly.com for the latest rumors regarding the
card.
As
far as UFC 59 goes, that show is already sold out at the Pond
at Anaheim. The fight card takes place on April 15th and features
Tito Ortiz vs Forrest Griffin and Tim Sylvia vs Andrei Arlovski.
Also on the fight card is David Terrell vs Scott Smith, Evan
Tanner vs Jeremy Horn, Karo Parisyan vs Nick Thompson, Thiago
Alves vs Drew Fickett, and Nick Diaz vs Sean Sherk.
Matt
Hughes vs Royce Gracie is the main event for May's show at the
Staples Center for UFC 60 in Los Angeles. As already reported
a few weeks ago by MMAWeekly.com on the rumors section, Babalu
will be featured on the card in a Light Heavyweight battle. MMAWeekly.com
has had it confirmed from various fight camps that Jeff Monson
will face 'Pe De Pano' Cruz with the winner putting themselves
one step closer to a title shot.
Former
UFC Champion, Carlos Newton told fans at UFC 58 that he most
likely will return to the UFC for the first time in a couple
of years on this show. Joe Riggs and Chris Leben should be a
slug fest, while Nick Diaz vs Sean Sherk and Alessio Sakara and
Dean Lister will be interesting fights featured on the card.
California
has embraced MMA as the first ever show in San Jose sold out
with over 18,000 fans in attendance last weekend for Frank Shamrock's
fight against Cesar Gracie at Strikeforce. The Pond at Anaheim
is expected to seat somewhere in the ball park of just over 17,000
and if things continue to go the way things are progressing,
the UFC could have up to 20,000 at Staples Center.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
KERR
RETURNS TO FIGHTING
DENVER, COLORADO – Long considered one of the premier mixed
martial artists in the world, Mark Kerr makes his return to cagefighting
on May 6, 2006 in Denver, Colorado at the sophomore effort of
American Championship Fighting(sm) entitled “Exodus.”
Fighting for the first
ever ACF(sm) World Heavyweight Championship, Kerr will be competing
against Wes “The Project” Sims at the Denver Coliseum.
Tickets for the event go on sale Friday, March 17 at 10 a.m.
(MST).
A
celebrated collegiate wrestler, Kerr rolled through the competition
in the Ultimate Fighting Championship® and was doing the
same when he entered the Pride Fighting Championship. He entered
the year 2000 with an undefeated professional record looking
to take home the first ever Pride Grand Prix tournament championship.
As
documented by the highly acclaimed HBO documentary “The
Smashing Machine,” this is when Kerr’s world started
to fall apart. His personal life in turmoil and a life-threatening
addiction to painkillers brought his once promising career to
a halt. Now, more than two years since his last fight and nearly
nine years since he has competed on American soil, “The
One, The Only, The Original” Mark Kerr returns to the cage
to get his career and life back on track.
At
ACF(sm) Exodus, Kerr faces Wes Sims, who himself is a veteran
of the Ultimate Fighting Championship® and mixed martial
arts promotions around the world. Sims is a protégé
of mixed martial arts legend Mark “The Hammer” Coleman.
“We
couldn’t be happier to host the return of Mark Kerr,”
said ACF(sm) CEO Rico Vecc. “We consider it an honor to
have him stepping into The Ocho(sm) to compete with Wes Sims
for our first heavyweight title.”
Tickets
for Kerr’s return at ACF(sm) Exodus go on sale Friday, March
17, 2006 priced at $150, $100, $75, $50, $35, and $29. Tickets
for children 12 and under are available for $5 and children under
6 for
free. Tickets are available online at www.TicketsWest.com, by
calling 866-464-2626, or in person at all Front Range King Soopers
locations.
Other
fighters on the card will include ACF(sm) Welterweight Champion
John Cronk, Donald “The Cowboy” Cerrone, Donnie “Mad
Dog” Liles, Ray Elbe, and Chilo Gonzalez. The full fight
card for ACF(sm) Exodus will be released soon. Fight card subject
to change.
Source: ACF
|
Quote
of the Day
"An
optimist laughs to forget. A pessimist forgets to laugh."
Source Unknown
|
Ron
Jhun K-1 Style!!!
PUNISHMENT IN PARADISE
Sat April 1,2006 @ Sea Life Park
Yes..You
heard FINALLY Hawaii’s favorite son Ron “Machine Gun”
Jhun is in a stand up ONLY fight. Jhun is to face an instructor
from a affilate school of THE PIT from California. A lot of fans
was awaiting for Jhun to do a K-1 Style fight and P.I.P delivers
it to Hawaiian Fans.
|
Zé
Sperry returns only after July
One
of the leaders of the Brazilian Top Team, Zé Mário
Sperry just returns to the rings in the second semester of 2006.
After the KO suffered to Tsuyoshi Kohsaka at Pride 31, the Jiu-Jitsu
black-belt had two serious injuries that will let him away of
the rings for a long time. Zé Mário broke his hand
during one of the beats he made in Kohsaka and had a surgery.
Beyond his hand, Zé Mário also felt his right knee,
where the doctor said that he had a small injury.
-
I don't know yet if I will make an operation in my knee, but
I'm sure that it will take a long time. I was thinking about
making three fights in the Pride this year and a fight in Korea,
in a new event that they will make there. Now I can just make
plans for next semester - said Zé Mário, who complained:
"I got hurt, Maurício Shoun broke his arm, Sergei
Kharitonov also got hurt and Pedro Rizzo was KO'd by a punch
in the beginning of the fight... Awful, just awful," he
concluded.
Source: Tatame
|
Thales
Leites
Keeping the good phase
The
Nova Uniao Black Belt Thales Leites started 2006 in Vale Tudo
the same way he ended 2005, with victory. Undefeated in Vale
-tudo, Thales wants to stay on track towards success, for that
he is training in strong rhythm and hopes he will be fighting
in good events, especially the international ones. Check out
this interview with Thales at TATAME.com, all the details of
his win in MARS and his plans for the future
Tell
us a little bit about your fight with Osami Shibuya. It seemed
harder that your other fights, the decision went to the cards
differently from your other fights?
The
fight was good. I tried to impose my game, but Shibuya didn't
accept my ground game. I would take him down and he would find
a way to get up. I would clip him from his back and he would
lay his body on the ropes and stick his head out of the ring
trying to attack on the key-lock, nevertheless I dominated the
fight and he didn't put me at risk in any moment.
At
any moment were you worried?
No
moment was I worried. I was constantly going for the fight, But
my worst moment happened in the third round when he applied an
Uchi-Mata, I followed up with a leg lock and swept him, from
there I got him in a very tight Kata-Gatami that he resisted
well, I even thought he was going to pass out due to the hard
breathing I was hearing.
What
can you expect from the event after analyzing what you saw? Do
you know a date for the next event?
From
what I saw the event was very organized. The event was well organized
and had good fights. Don't know anything yet about the date for
the next event.
You
were doing good entertaining fights in 2005. What are your goals
for this year?
My
goals for this year are the same, keep training hard and wait
for the chance to fight good events, especially the international
ones.
The
gi calendar is about to start. Will we see Thales with a gi this
year?
In
concern of the calendar for gi, I don't have plans to fight this
year. To fight with a gi you need to be training hard and for
a long time and daily. If Vale Tudo fights keeps coming up I
will give priority for the Vale Tudo. But I would like to fight
with a gi, but it gets complicated, because there is a need for
dedication just for the gi alone.
Source: Tatame
|
Fabrício
Werdum
Searching for a gap at the GP
World-wide
champion of Jiu-Jitsu, Fabrício Werdum has been doing
a great job in Vale-Tudo. Differently of the Jiu-Jitsu, where
he already conquered a lot of gold medals, in the MMA Werdum
is searching his first belt. The fighter believes that his fight
against Jhon Olav Einemo on next February 26, at Pride 31, may
give him a chance to fight at the GP Openweight. Werdum is in
Brazil training with his professor Márcio Corleta, in
the academy Winner in Porto Alegre (RS) and during his break,
he talked to TATAME.com.
Why
did you come to Brazil to train for Pride 31?
After
the fight that Mirko Cro Cop faced Mark Hunt, we had ten days
of resting. Backing to training, Mirko was with his foot hurt,
was really bad, but I don't know if he broke his toe. He is a
warrior and trained, but after some days he felt pain and had
to stop. So, I called Maurição (Maurício
Miguel Pereira) and said that he would complete my training here
in Brazil and he loved the idea and I am here now.
Were
you training in Rio de Janeiro and now is in Porto Alegre...
I
was making good trainings in the academy of Maurição.
I trained there for about one week. But I saw that my passport
was expired and I couldn't let here with the Spain passport to
go to Japan. So, I had to renew my passport, but I had to go
to Porto Alegre to get my new passport and the visa, so I enjoyed
the opportunity to train in Winner with Márcio Corleta.
And
how are the trainings with Corleta?
I
am here for about one week and a half and Corleta have been training
with me differently. The best thing that I did was to came here,
because Márcio has almost the same size and weight as
John Olav Einemo and it helps me a lot. I've been training a
lot Boxing also with Cafuringa, that is giving me a lot of good
advices.
What
are you waiting of this fight?
I'm
really confident, I'm more experienced and with a much better
preparation. John Olav is good on the ground, he also came from
Jiu-Jitsu, but I'm really confident on my ground game. I want
to KO or to submit, because this victory can guarantee my vacant
in the GP Openweight. I want to fight in this GP and get my belt,
this is my main objective.
What
do you think of this GP Openweight?
They
are already making a test in this Pride making fights between
fighters of different weights. I don't think this is really good,
I'd rather if each fighter fight in his category of weight. The
Vale-Tudo today is not like in the old times.
Which
is your main objective for this year?
My
objective is to get a belt. I want to be at the final of the
GP and win. I don't wanna be more one fighter of the Pride. I
wanna be the champion of the Pride. For that, I'm training a
lot and I know that I must face the best ones as the Mark Hunt,
Rodrigo Minotauro, Emilianenko Fedor and Sergey Kharitonov. That
would be the good athletes of this category, but I would like
to make another fight against Kharitonov. Today I would be much
more aggressive with him and I would trust more in my hand.
Source: Tatame
|
Quote
of the Day
"If
you aren't fired with enthusiasm, you will be fired with enthusiasm."
Vince Lombardi, 1913-1970, Hall of Fame American Football Coach
|
X-1
Extreme Wars 2 Weigh-ins
24
Hour Fitness Kapiolani
Friday, March 17, 2006
1PM – Main weigh-ins
5PM – Late arrivals
Source: Event Promoter
|
SHOGUN
SPEAKS
Mauricio 'Shogun' Rua was recently interviewed by our friends
at Tatame magazine. (interview by Eduardo Ferreira, translation
by Ricardo Alonso):
Tatame:
What really happened to your arm? What did the doctor say?
Shogun:
I came into the fight with tendinitis in both my elbows, and
during the takedown when I hit the ground my elbow dislocated.
I ended up with a dislocated and fractured elbow and some torn
ligaments. I just did an MRI but the doctor is still examining
the results. We'll soon see if I'm able to take off this sling
next week and start doing some sort of physiotherapy to recover
soon.
Tatame:
You hadn't fought since the final of the Middleweight GP in August
of 2005. During that period you did seminars, took some time
off, and commemorated the title. Do you think this negatively
affected your preparation? How much time did you spend training
for Coleman?
Shogun:
At no moment did those factors negatively affect my preparation.
I rested a little bit after the GP and then I returned to help
Vanderlei prepare for his December 31st PRIDE fight against Ricardo
Arona. After that I spent two weeks in the Unites States doing
seminars, and I trained hard for three weeks to face Coleman.
I was in my best physical condition, and for the first time I
did not need to cut weight for a fight. I always have to lose
about 10 kg (22 pounds), but I didn't need to lose anything this
time. I don't think my injury happened because of my preparation,
it was just an accident. I was certain that I was going to do
a great fight with him, but I was unfortunate.
Tatame:
Do you think you could have done something to defend the takedown?
Shogun:
For sure, but during that moment everything happened very fast.
When he got one leg I even started to sprawl so that I could
pull out, but he got my other leg, leaving me without my base,
and I landed on a bad angle. I saw that there's a lot of people
criticizing me, saying that I don't know how to defend the takedown,
but I think it's just envy from the people who don't like Chute
Boxe and our unity. By the way, I'd like to leave a message for
all my fans, can I do that?
Tatame:
For sure Shogun, go right ahead...
Shogun:
I wanted thank all my family, the Chute Boxe family, and to all
my fans for all the support that they always give me. It's them
who make me strong enough to beat all the difficulties and conquer
all of my objectives. It's them who pass on to me that positive
energy to realize all of my dreams. That's what I wanted to say.
I just wanted to thank all of them very much.
Tatame:
After the fight, did you all run into Coleman at all?
Shogun:
We ran into him and he tried to apologize, but we did not accept.
Master Rudimar (Fedrigo) then took me to the hospital because
I was in a lot of pain, and I didn't see what else happened after
that. But it looks like more chaos almost happened outside the
ring. The adrenaline in the ring is incredible, but he said a
lot of foolish things after the fight and showed no class in
the ring.
Tatame:
Do you want a rematch against Coleman?
Shogun:
For sure I want a rematch against Coleman. When I am recovered
from my injury, I will train with that fight as my aim.
Source: Tatame
|
WEC:
Hermes França fights for a belt
Hermes
Fonseca will be the challenger for the Lightweight belt of the
World Extreme Challenge on upcoming March 17, in California.
The Brazilian will face Gabe Ruediger, who has a strong ground
game and already won nine fights and lost just one, in his debut
in Vale-Tudo. This fight may be redemption to Hermes in Vale-Tudo,
once Brazilian comes from three losses (Yves Edwards and Koutetsu
Boku and Ray Cooper). In the other belt dispute of the night,
Cole Escovedo will put his Bantamweight belt in game against
Urijah Faber, current champion of the King of the Cage.
COMPLETE
CARD (subject to change):
WEC
19
Friday,
March 17th, 2006
Leemore,
California
-
Jimmy Dexter vs. Kenny Ento;
-
Jay White vs. Jake O'Brian;
-
Savant Young vs. Ryan Healy;
-
Tiki Ghosn vs. Pat Healy;
-
Rob McCullough vs. Olaf Alfonso;
-
Shane Rice vs. Antonio Banuelos;
-
Lodune Sincaid vs. James Irvin;
-
Troy Miller vs. Tony Alanis;
-
Doug Marshall vs. Tim McKenzie;
Lightweight
belt bout
-
Hermes França vs. Gabe Ruediger;
Bantamweight
belt bout
-
Urijah Faber vs. Cole Escovedo.
Source: Tatame
|
SUNDAY
NIGHT CONVERSATION: MIKE SWICK
Tonight Mike Swick joins our Sunday Night Conversation at 8pm
PST/11pm Eastern to talk with the fans one on one! Swick will
talk about his latest win at UFC 58 USA vs Canada as he defeated
Steve Vigneault by KO.
Is
Swick ready for a title shot? Does he want to face Chris Leben
in a rematch? Find out tonight on the Live Fighter Chat exclusively
at MMAWeekly.com. MMAWeekly gets you
closer to the fighters every Sunday Night as we let you talk
with the fighters on one on one on our LIVE FIGHTER CHAT.
Best
of all it's absolutely free. We will see you tonight with the
one and only Mike Swick at 8pm Pacific/12 Midnight Eastern on
the LIVE FIGHTER CHAT for our Sunday Night Conversation.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Quote
of the Day
"When
you are content to be simply yourself and don't compare or compete,
everybody will respect you."
Lao Tzu, Chinese Taoist Philosopher
|
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!
|
2006
HAWAIIAN CHAMPIONSHIP OF BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU RESULTS
Kids Gi Division
Age
7 & under:
1) Hikina Gaughen
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
2) Teniya Alo
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
3) Noah Robinson
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
Ages
7 - 9:
1) Canaan Rabaino
Gracie Kailua
2) Teshya Alo
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
3) Bobby Castle
Kendall Goo Jiu Jitsu
Ages
8 - 10:
1) Elijah Galarza-Naeole
Gracie Kailua
2) Zolich Palimo'o
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
3) Nalukea
Cleaver-Purdy
Relson Gracie Papakolea Fight Club
3) Neysha Laumatia
Relson Gracie Papakolea Fight Club
Ages
10 - 11:
1) Brandon
Saiki
Relson Gracie Casca Grossa
2) Kai Simmons
Gracie Kailua
3) Kylan Fernandez-Irvine
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
Ages
11 - 12:
1) Jacob Palimo'o
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
2) Dannyray
Balera
Relson Gracie Papakolea Fight Club
3) Justin Kahalewai
Relson Gracie Papakolea Fight Club
Ages
11 - 12 (Heavy):
1) Keanu Ching
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
2) Dallas Correa
Relson Gracie KTI
3) Kawika Hattori
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu / HMC
Ages 13 - 14 (Light):
1) DJ Cremer
Relson Gracie KTI
2) Noah Cronin
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
3) Kaulana Davis-Ballao
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
Ages
13 - 14 (Heavy):
1) Taurus
Kanahele
Relson Gracie Papakolea Fight Club
2) Kawai Ching
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
3) Noah Mau-Espirito
Kendall Goo Jiu Jitsu
Age
15 & over (Light):
1) Daniel Rada
Animal House
2) Christian Dilullo
Gracie Kailua
3) Kamana'o Chun
Relson Gracie Kahaluu
Age
15 & over (Heavy):
1) Koa
Kekauoha
Relson Gracie Papakolea Fight Club
2) Keoni Hall
Gracie Kailua
3) Joshua
Asperilla
Relson Gracie Papakolea Fight Club
Womens Gi
Division
1)
Lara Franco
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu
2) Tamalyn Wasai
Central Oahu Jiu Jitsu
3) Mikiko Fox
Relson Gracie Kahaluu
Mens White Belt
123
- 135 lbs:
1) Jay
Bolos
Relson Gracie Casca Grossa
2) Sean Skiendiel
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu
3) Lee Morikami
Kendall Goo Jiu Jitsu
136
- 148 lbs:
1) Greg Yamasaki
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu
2) Jason Ibara
Relson Gracie
3) Mark Alejo
Relson Gracie
149
- 161 lbs:
1) Marshall Harvest
Animal House
2) Christopher Kawaihae
Gracie Kailua
2) Lance Fujioka
Baret Submission Grappling
162
- 174 lbs:
1) Brooks Narvaez
Gracie Kailua
2) Travis Kashiwa
Relson Gracie Team HK
3) Randell Kennedy
Relson Gracie Casca Grossa
175
- 187 lbs:
1) Bill Dorman
Gracie Kailua
2) Matt Mancuso
Central Oahu Jiu Jitsu
3) Jared Carlson
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu
188
- 201 lbs:
1) Kenneth
Gusman
Relson Gracie Papakolea Fight Club
2) Ryan Toole
Central Oahu Jiu Jitsu
3) Joshua
Lindsey
Relson Gracie Casca Grossa
202
- 214 lbs:
1) Junior Tuyo
BJ Penn MMA
2) Blane
Dorton
Relson Gracie Casca Grossa
3) Donavan Kapiko
Relson Gracie Papakolea Fight Club
Mens Blue Belt
136
- 148 lbs:
1) Masaya Sato
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu
2) Sadhu Bott
HMC
3) Kayle Quinn
Relson Gracie
148
- 161 lbs:
1) David Harrington
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu
2) Jim
Narahara
Relson Gracie Papakolea Fight Club
3) Beau Suh
Relson Gracie Casca Grossa
162
- 174 lbs:
1) Ahmed Diallo
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu
2) Shane Kahananui
Relson Gracie KTI
3) Nalu Myers
BJ Penn MMA
175
- 187 lbs:
1) Bo Lagmay
Relson Gracie KTI
2) Imiola Lindsey
Relson Gracie
3) Jesse Ware
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
188
- 214 lbs:
1) Kyle Enorijas
Relson Gracie
2) David Chew
Relson Gracie
3) Hiroshi Tominaga
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu
215+
lbs:
1) Darryl Stant
North Shore Jiu Jitsu
2) Patrick Kaawaloa
Gracie Kailua
3) Philip Baltanado
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
Blue Belt Masters
149
- 161 lbs:
1) Kevin Yoshida
HMC
2) David Hattori
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu
3) Jon
North Shore Jiu Jitsu
175
- 187 lbs:
1) Paul Champlin
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu
2) Charles Whang
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu
3) Grant
Arakawa
Relson Gracie Casca Grossa
Mens Purple
Belt
Lightweight:
1) Bernard Villanueva
Relson Gracie Team HK
2) Syrus Melandish
Kendall Goo Jiu Jitsu
Middleweight:
1) Dylan Clay
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu
2) Joel Patchen
Central Oahu Jiu Jitsu
3) Pono Pananganan
Relson Gracie KTI
Kids No Gi
Division
Age
7 & under:
1) Hikina Gaughen
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
2) Teniya Alo
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
3) Kamaehu Scott
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
Ages
7 - 9:
1) Canaan Rabino
Gracie Kailua
2) Teshiya Alo
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
3) Bobby Castle
Kendall Goo Jiu Jitsu
Ages
8 - 10:
1) Zorich Palimo'o
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
2) Makoa Gaughen
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
3) Austin Young
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
Ages 10 - 11:
1) Brandon
Saiki
Relson Gracie Casca Grossa
2) Kylan Fernandez-Irvine
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
3) Kainani Littlejohn
Gracie Kailua
Ages
11 - 12 years old (Light):
1) Jacob Palimo'o
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
2) Dannyray
Balera
Relson Gracie Papakolea Fight Club
Ages
11 - 12 (Heavy):
1) Keanu Ching
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
2) Kawika Hattori
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu / HMC
Ages
13 - 14 (Light):
1) Noah Cronin
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
2) Jason Nakashima
Baret Submission Grappling
3) Kaulana Davis-Ballao
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
Ages
13 - 14 (Heavy):
1) Keola Mayrual
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
2) Kawai Ching
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
3) Corey Freitas
Animal House
Age
15 & over (Light):
1) Daniel Rada
Animal House
2) Shawn Nakashima
Baret Submission Grappling
Age
15 & over (Heavy):
1) Keoni Hall
Gracie Kailua
2) Kaika Sasaoka
MMAD
Mens No Gi
Novice
110
- 135 lbs:
1) Joshua Martinez
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu
2) Sean Skiendiel
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu
3) Jay
Bolos
Relson Gracie Casca Grossa
136 - 148 lbs:
1) Richard Vavra
Central Oahu Jiu Jitsu
2) Ross Hirahara
Baret Submission Grappling / GU
148
- 161 lbs:
1) Marshall Harvest
Animal House
2) James Davis
Gracie Kailua
3) Aaron
Kawada
Relson Gracie Casca Grossa
162
- 174 lbs:
1) Brooks Narvaez
Gracie Kailua
2) Derek Dumlao
808 Fight Factory
3) Nalu Meyers
BJ Penn MMA
175
- 187 lbs:
1) Bill Dorman
Gracie Kailua
2) Jared Carlson
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu
188
- 201 lbs:
1) Cameron Silva
HMC
2) Ryan Toole
Central Oahu Jiu Jitsu
3) Kenneth
Gusman
Relson Gracie Papakolea Fight Club
202
- 214 lbs.
1) Junior Tuyo
BJ Penn MMA
2) James Craig
Central Oahu Jiu Jitsu
3) Brandon Nagata
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu
214+
lbs:
1) Thomas Ako
Relson Gracie Kaneohe
2) Robert Sanchez
Relson Gracie
Mens No Gi
Intermediate
149
- 161 lbs:
1) Lance Fujioka
Baret Submission Grappling
2) David Harrington
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu
3) Benjamin Corniel
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu
162 - 174 lbs:
1) Keith Inouye
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu
2) Shane Kahananui
Relson Gracie KTI
175
- 187 lbs:
1) Imiola Lindsey
Relson Gracie
2) Bo Lagmay
Relson Gracie KTI
3) Jason Bray
Team Mixed Plate
Mens No Gi
Intermediate Masters
149
- 161 lbs:
1) Kevin Yoshida
HMC
2) Jon
North Shore Jiu Jitsu
3) David Hattori
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu
Mens No Gi
Advanced
Lightweight:
1) Baret Yoshida
Baret Submission Grappling / GU
2) Beau
Suh
Relson Gracie Casca Grossa
3) Bernard Villanueva
Relson Gracie Team HK
Middleweight:
1) Sidney Silva
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu
2) Deshawn Johnson
HMC
3) Dylan Clay
Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu
Heavyweight:
1) David Chew
Relson Gracie
2) Kendall Goo
Kendall Goo Jiu Jitsu
Team
Results
1)
Team Relson Gracie
2) Brazilian Freestyle Jiu Jitsu / HMC
3) Gracie Kailua / Central Oahu / North Shore
|
MATT
LINDLAND PULLS OUT OF CAGE RAGE
After giving his assurance to Andy Geer just yesterday (Thursday
9th) Matt Lindland e-mailed the Cage Rage team and gave the bad
news that he has received an offer he can't refuse in the US.
Andy
Geer said, "It is difficult to hide our disappointment,
but MMA is getting so popular worldwide that the big money offers
are coming thick and fast to our world class fighters. All we
can do is wish him luck and move on; it is the fans I feel sorry
for but rest assured no-one will be disappointed with the replacement".
This
news came at the end of a week where Cage Rage also lost Vitor
'Shoalin' Ribeiro from the card to K1 and Andrei Seminov pulled
out due to injury.
Andy
Geer also said, "We find ourselves in a difficult situation,
we never announce a fight until we have a 100% commitment from
the fighter and their management, but we have not in the past
made our fighters sign a cast iron international contract as
we feel it would restrict people's careers. However the popularity
of MMA has now reached such a point in the US and Japan we may
have to look at our policy again."
Andy
then added, "I want to assure everybody these fighters will
be replaced, I have spoken to my partners and we all agree that
we will increase the budget and book at least equal calibre fighters.
We don't take this kind of situation lightly, the April event
is already 80% sold out with six weeks to go I guarantee that
no-one will be let down."
Please
watch this space for further announcements, and accept the apology
of the whole Cage Rage team.
Source: Maxfighting
|
Ultimate
Fight Night 4 Has Been Announced
UFN
will be an outstanding card from top to bottom. Some of the fights
thought to be set for UFC 59, will be on this line-up. Rashad
Evans vs. Sam Hogar will most certainly headline the card that
will showcase the Ultimate Fighter reality show talent. MaXfighting
will keep you updated with all of the latest info so stay tuned.
Rashad
Evans vs Sam Hogar
Luke Cummo vs Jason Von Flue
Josh Burkman vs John Fitch
Joe Stevenson vs Josh Neer
Stephan Bonnar vs Keith Jardine
Josh Koscheck vs Ansar Chalangov
Chris Leben vs Luigi Fioravanti
Trevor Prangley vs. Chael Sonnen
Brad Imes vs Gabriel Gonzaga
Source: Maxfighting
|
FIRST
CALIFORNIA MMA SHOW A SUCCESS
It took 15 years for MMA to make it's debut in California and
it took Frank Shamrock just :21 seconds to dismantle Cesar Gracie
in the main event of the first show ever in the state of California.
Over
18,000 people packed into the HP Pavilion in San Jose to witness
history, as the first mixed martial arts event took place. Celebrities
such as actor Forrest Whitaker, San Francisco 49er Dana Stubblefield,
actor Chuck Norris and model Tyra Banks packed in to see the
show, but it wasn't easy for promoter Scott Coker to pull off
the Strikeforce event.
Politicians
tried to pull the plug on the event at 3pm, just hours before
the show. An injunction was filed in San Jose courts to try to
pull the plug on the show yesterday afternoon, but it did not
go through.
That
may have been bad news for Cesar Gracie as Frank Shamrock landed
a crushing right hand just :21 seconds into the fight that knocked
out Gracie. Both fighters came out swinging, but it was Gracie
getting caught and knocked out. The shot that landed actually
broke the hand of Shamrock. Shamrock told the sold out crowd
that he is back and he will return to MMA full time.
The
shocker of the night was in the light weight division. Clayton
Guida, who improved to 20-3, dismantled Josh Thomson to win the
ISKA Lightweight Championship. Guida used a ground n pound style
that made him look like UFC Champion Matt Hughes in the fight.
Guida executed take down after take down to pound out the decision.
Thomson had Guida in trouble many times with guillotine chokes,
but couldn't finish the holds and would later pay for the submission
attempts as his right eye was battered shut.
In
the co-main event Cung Le was successful in his pro MMA debut
making short work of Mike Altman. Le won by KO in the first round
at 3:51 as he knocked out Altman with a great left hook. Altman
did not attempt a takedown in the fight.
Mike
Kyle hurt Krysztof Soszynski early in Round 1, but an accidential
finger by Kyle in the eye of Soszynski ended the fight. Soszynski
could not continue as the finger cut the eye lid (ala Randy Couture
vs Vitor Belfort 2)and the fight was ruled as a Technical Draw
in Round 1.
Eugene
Jackson made his return to MMA for the first time in two years
with a unanimous decision over Jorge Ortiz. Former WWE wrestler
Daniel Puder survived a huge right hand by Jesse Fujarczyk, then
settled down and looked impressive getting a rear naked choke
for the win in Round 1.
Gilbert
Melendez is starting to make a bid for being the best fighter
in the world at 145 by easily handling Harris Sarmiento. Melendez dominated from start to
finish winning by verbal submission due to strikes at :44 seconds
into Round 2.
Brian
Ebersole over powered Matt Horwich for three rounds to win a
unanimous decision. Nathan Diaz, the brother of Nick, looked
dominant in his fight as he got an easy TKO victory over Tony
Juares at 3:23 of Round 1.
Scott
Graham sunk in a rear naked choke at 2:37 of round one to get
the victory over Chris Yee, while Crafton Wallace knocked out
previously undefeated fighter Ray Routh at :35 seconds of Round
2 to win. Look for many more fights to come off in Northern California
as this shows was a huge success.
Source: MMA Weekly |
Quote
of the Day
"There
are two motives for reading a book: one, that you enjoy it; the
other, that you can boast about it."
Bertrand Russell, 1872-1970, British Philosopher/Mathematician/Essayist |
2006
Hawaiian Championships of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu
Team
Results
Team Relson Gracie - 204
Brazilian Freestyle/HMC - 99
Gracie Kailua/Central Oahu Jiu-Jitsu/North Shore Jiu-Jitsu -
92
Final results to arrive soon.
|
Punishment
In Paradise
“STAND & BANG”
Sat, April 1,2006 @ Sea Life Park
TICKETS
ON SALE!!
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OUTLETS BELOW..
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East Side
Smith
Taekwondo
Eastside
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Eastsidaz
723-0773
Koden
Kan 351-4898
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Rush 620-3004
Fighters
Corner
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Using Credit Cards & Cash
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SPECIAL
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|
Kickin'
It Results
KENJI
SAITO DREW CHAVIS VICTORIA
JUSTIN WONG DEFEATS ED PONTEZ - DECISION
NATHAN NAKI DEFEATS BRANDON AMANONCE - DECISION
OLA PLUNKETT DEFEATS NYE DELASANTOS - DECISION
KONA KE DEFEATS RICKI CASE - DECISION
KAEO CASTANEDA DEFEATS KILEY RAMIRO - DECISION
KEONI GANDY DEFEATS NOA - DECISION
RICKY MARILLO DEFEATS IKAIKA BULLOCK - DECISION
NUI WHEELER DEFEATS JAY BOLOS - DECISION
TODD YOUNG DEFEATS CLEMETTE HELEMANO - DECISION
KOICHI TANJI DEFEATS EVAN QUIZON - DECISION
TIANA HIGA DEFEATS TEARJA SELLERS - DECISION
RED DAVIS DEFEATS JORDAN SUA - DECISION
HANS LEE DEFEATS DALE KAMAI - DECISION AND TAKES TO BELTS BACK
TO THE ANIMAL HOUSE.
THE FIGHT OF THE NIGHT TROPHIES WERE AWARDED TO TRISTON PEBRIA
(2004- 8 YRS. OLD 60# KICKIN IT CHAMPION) AND JESUS SANTOS (
2005 8 - 10 YRS. OLD 65# KICKIN IT CHAMPION). THOUGH THESE TWO
FIGHTERS ARE ONLY 10 AND 11 YEARS OLD, THEY FOUGHT AS IF THEY
WERE ADULTS. THE HEART AND SKILLS THAT THESE TWO KIDS SHOWED
WAS CHAMPION MATERIAL. IN THE END THE DECISION WENT TO THE OLDER
BUT LIGHTER, JESUS SANTOS FROM HMC. MUCH PROPS FOR A JOB WELL
DONE
Source:
Derrick Bright
|
Shamrock
v. Gracie - WAS A HUGE NIGHT FOR MMA!!!
The
night’s action began with undefeated (10-0) 163 pounder
Gilbert Melendez vs. Harris
Sarmiento
who weighed in at 165 lbs. Round 1 was dominated by Melendez
who looked to take down Sarmiento early and often. He succeeded
on two separate occasions working elbows and punches in the side
mount for much of the first round. Melendez ended round one with
a pick up and slam that dropped Sarmiento hard on his right shoulder.
To begin round 2 both fighters exchanged punches in the stand
up with Sarmiento landing a heavy shot that rocked Melendez.
Melendez was forced to shoot on Sarmiento to avoid any more damage.
Sarmiento would not stay down and was quickly able to stand back
up. Melendez wanted to end the fight on the ground and he was
able to seconds later with his next take down. Sarmiento tapped
out from a flurry of punches at the 44 second mark of Round 2.
Melendez is now 11-0 and is now ready for hid SHOOTO 143 lbs
World title shot against Alexandre "Pequeno" Nogueira.
The
next fight on the card was battle of heavyweights as Daniel Puder
(6-3 222) took on Jess Fujarcyk (6-2 211). Puder the former WWE
tough enough star trains out of the American Kickboxing Academy
while Fujarcyk is fighting out of Boulder, Colorado and trains
with team Rojas. Both fighters came out missing multiple punches.
Puder was the first to act with a take down that put Fujarcyk
up against the cage. On the ground Puder looked to punch and
take control of Fujarcyk’s neck. Both men were restarted
standing up due to stalling on the ground; punches were exchanged
until Puder was able to sneak by a left that dropped Fujarcyk
to his knees. Puder rode Fujarcyk to the ground with punches
to the back of head. As Fujarcyk attempted to stand back up Puder
was able to apply a rear naked choke at 1:54 mark of round number
1 to end the fight. Puder’s night would not be complete
until he grabbed the mic, thanked his hometown and hyped the
crowd into a roaring frenzy.
Then
came Matt Horwich-Brain Ebersole which went the full 15 minutes.
This fight was for the MMA fan who loves the "chess match"
aspect of MMA. Horwich fighting for team Quest out of Oregon
was a good wrestler who spent the majority of the fight either
looking to shoot or defending from his back. Ebersole fighting
in his hometown trains at the Shamrock Martial Arts Academy,
and he showed good take down defense along with excellent striking
ability throughout the fight to win a unanimous decision of 30-27
on all three judge’s score cards.
6'4"
247 pounds of fighter known as Mike Kyle made his return to the
ring facing off against the 6'2" 250 pound Krzysztof Soszynski.
Kyle came out firing with leg kicks that left Soszynski’s
thigh beet red and his face wincing in pain. Soszynski looked
to counter Kyle’s kicks by tying him up on his feet; Soszynski
was interrupted by knees that connected to the sternum and below
the belt. Kyle was deducted a point and both men went to their
corners for the restart. The fight would eventually come to an
end almost immediately after the restart due to a left cross
by Kyle that poked Soszynski in his eye. The fight physician
came out and confirmed that Soszynski could not see thus the
fight was stopped at 2:02 of round number 1 and declared a technical
draw due to an unintentional foul.
Eugene
Jackson, fresh off a 3 year hiatus from MMA made his comeback
bout against a fighter from Mexico named Jorge Ortiz. The fight
began with Ortiz landing a big right that appeared to rock Jackson,
but the veteran Jackson was quick to counter with a combo of
punches then a quick double leg take down that caught Ortiz off
guard. Jackson was at his best working from the ground over powering
Ortiz for the first 4 minutes of the fight. Going into the 2nd
and 3rd rounds both fighters appeared gassed still from the 1st
round explosion. After 15 minutes of action Jackson was declared
the winner by unanimous decision. Jackson was able to show with
this fight that he can take a punch and deliver some punches
of his own.
The
only championship fight of the night took place for the Strikeforce
Lightweight Championship as Josh “the punk” Thompson
was pitted against Clay Guida. Guida was looking to rebound off
a loss in his last bout while Thompson was seeking to continue
with his stellar 10-1 record. Guida came out looking to go to
the ground and his first shoot attempt was met by a guillotine
choke from Thompson that just missed. Thompson was very aggressive
from his back landing punches and kicks. Guida showed his strength
by picking up and slamming Thompson who then attempted an arm
bar submission from his back. To finish off round 1 Thompson
showed his heart and toughness by ending on top of Guida landing
multiple punches to the head.
Round
2 began with Thompson wanting to stand up, but the pace of the
fight throughout the match was dictated by Guida although Thomson
nearly caught Guida in an arm bar triangle just seconds into
the round. Thomson would try to stand up from the guard but Guida
prevented his efforts with a variety of punches, which openned
up a nasty cut over Thompson’s right eye. Round 3 started
with another shoot by Guida, which gave Thompson an opportuntiy
to capture the victory with a tight guillotine choke. But Guida
was once again able to power out of Thompson’s submission
effort.
Rounds
4 and 5 can be summarized with Guida’s relentless take downs
and Thompson taking large amounts of punishment lying on his
back. This championship fight went the distance and was left
in the judges hands. Judges one and two scored the fight 49-46
with judge three scoring the bout 49-45. Clay Guida was named
Strikeforce Lightweight Champion by unanimous decision.
“He
might of used me as a warm fight maybe he thought I was going
to be a tomato can” said Light Heavyweight champ Clay Guida
post fight. “It felt great it hasn’t really set in
yet but it won’t until I get home and put the belt up in
my gym."
The
evening’s largest ovation was reserved for K-1 and San Shou
superstar Cung Le making his MMA debut in his hometown of San
Jose. Mike Altman of Houston, Texas came in as Le’s first
MMA opponent. The fight only lasted one round with Le dominating
the stand up. Le came out head hunting, landing kicks to the
body and one left high kick that rocked Altman. Altman was able
to recover from Le’s opening barrage but as Altman dodged
a spin kick he walked right into Le’s right fist and fell
fast to the canvas. Le won his first MMA match by way of KO at
3:51 of the round 1. The action never made it to the ground,
so there are still lots of questions about Le as an MMA fighter.
Shamrock
versus Gracie is not only a rivalry in name, but also now a cross
town rivalry here in northern California. Gracie trains out of
Concord with his Gracie school for Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Shamrock
out of San Jose with his newly opened Shamrock Martial Arts Academy.
Both competitors came to the ring in peak physical condition
- Cesar checking in at 5’10" 181 lbs. Frank weighing
in at 5’10" 185 lbs. The entrances were spectacular
and the intensity was so high that no one in the crowd was sitting
down during the fight. However, the match was over in less than
30 seconds so the amount of standing was not so bad.
Shamrock
opened with two quick kicks to Gracie’s legs. Gracie appeared
as though he wanted to keep the fight on his feet. ”He came
out to stand, he was flat footed and set in the center, his first
jab was real stiff” said Shamrock post fight.
Shamrock
threw one quick right cross that landed to Gracie’s temple.
Gracie instantly fell to the mat and Shamrock pounced; delivering
punches to the head until the ref jumped in to stop the match.
“I never hurt my hand before, but I’ve never hit anyone
that hard before” laughed Shamrock as he covered his right
hand in ice.
The
18,265 in attendance left the H.P Pavilion on a high note their
local legend Frank Shamrock was victorious, Clayton Guida earned
the Lightweight title and Cung Le is now 1-0 in MMA. After much
political jockeying for MMA in California so far things have
been an unquestioned success story for the growing sport.
Strikeforce
"Shamrock vs. Gracie" Results
Preliminary
Bouts
*
Scott Graham def. Chris Yee – Rear-naked choke 2:37 R2
* Nathan Diaz def. Tony Juarez – TKO (Ref stoppage - strikes)
3:23 R1
Main
Card
*
Crafton Wallace def. Raymond Routh - TKO (Ref stoppage - strikes)
0:35 R2
* Gilbert Melendez def. Harris Sarmiento – Tap out (strikes) 0:44 R2
* Daniel Puder def. Jesse Fujarcyk – Rear-naked choke 1:54
R1
* Brian Ebersole def. Matt Horwich – Unanimous decision
(29-28,30-27)
* Mike Kyle vs. Krzysztof Soszynski – Technical draw (Unintentional
foul (eye poke) to Soszynski) 2:02 R1
* Eugene Jackson def. Jorge Ortiz – Unanimous decision (29-28)
* Clay Guida def. Josh Thomson – Unanimous Decision (49-46,49-45)
* Cung Le def. Mike Altman – KO 3:51 R1
* Frank Shamrock vs. Cesar Gracie – KO 0:21 R1
Source: Maxfighting
|
Quote
of the Day
"It
is not the mountain we conquer but ourselves."
Edmund Hillary, New Zealand Mountaineer and Explorer
(known for the first successful climb of Mount Everest)
|
Fedor
Emelianenko Interview
Fedor Emelianenko was recently interviewed by a Russian website.
Here's what Fedor had to say:
Interviewer:
Fedor, we didn't see much of you last year. You finished 2005
with a win over the Brazilian fighter, Zuluzinho. The fight lasted
26 seconds. This was perhaps your most dominating performance
ever. How did you manage to win so quickly against a fighter
so much bigger than you in size and weight?
Fedor:
Yes, it was a really fast fight. I got in a good punch on him
and then I was able to keep position for the rest of the fight.
It's what I train for.
Interviewer:
Alexander's fight with Pawel Nastula was longer. Were you worried
for your brother? Did you think it was a special fight?
Fedor:
Alexander had a very prestigious opponent; gold medalist in Judo,
two-time world champion in Judo. During the fight there were
a few moments where I had to worry for him. Such a fight was
necessary to show Alexander how hard he was breathing, how his
conditioning was, but he won. It is important that he can fight
hard for the whole fight. In a fight with someone like Nogueira,
it's necessary to tinker around with strategies.
Interviewer:
What fights do we know Alexander will take part in?
Fedor:
He will take part in the Grand Prix. The opponent isn't known
yet, but the strong candidates are Sergei Kharitonov or Rodrigo
Nogueira.
Interviewer:
Considering these fights, can you make any predictions?
Fedor:
I'm quite sure of my brother's strength, and I hope for a victory
for him.
Interviewer:
How will Alexander prepare for the fight? Usually, you train
together. What happens now that you are unable to help him train
the same way?
Fedor:
It's necessary to help, so I will. By the way, we're going to
Holland already on February 11th. I'll watch how Alex trains,
and give him advice on technique... After Holland, we plan to
train in Kislovodsk again... I'll still be kicking and training
my legs. Hands, certainly, I won't punch a bag, but I can still
do shadowboxing.
Interviewer:
Right after your fight on New Year's, you went to France. You
met Jean-Claude Van Damme?
Fedor:
The basic purpose of the trip was a seminar with French fans.
Van Damme entered into negotiations with my manager.
Interviewer:
They offered you a movie role? Will you agree to it? Is it already
known what movie, and who you will play?
Fedor:
Jean-Claude has suggested that I be in "Bloodsport 2"
and that I play myself; the world champion fighter, I guess.
I don't know the script yet, it was a preliminary meeting. In
April, Jean-Claude is going to come to Russia; to Moscow and
St. Petersburg. Press conferences are planned, and he also wants
to train with me. As for my agreement to participate in the project,
I'd like to do it and it would be interesting too.
Interviewer:
Fedor, could you tell us more about the Paris seminar? What interests
French fight fans?
Fedor:
It was a four-hour seminar; practical stuff in a 130-person class.
It was not only professional fighters, but also people who didn't
really know anything about sports. The different kinds of strikes,
different elements of fighting... the participants were interested
in everything: Striking with hands and legs, tactics, ground
control...
Interviewer:
Literally, once you left France, you went on a visit to South
Korea. What was the basic purpose of this trip?
Fedor:
I was invited by the president of the world Sambo Federation,
Mr. Moon, to do a seminar on sambo. That is, with the purpose
of popularizating sambo. I did a sambo demonstration with Alexander
and my coach Vladimir Voronym, then a seminar.
Interviewer:
What are your strongest memories of the trip?
Fedor:
It was amazing how popular fights are in Korea. I found out some
of my fights, along with others, are broadcast almost every day.
And talking to Mr. Moon, the head of the Sambo Federation, I
am the most popular fighter here. I was so well known just to
go out on the street was impossible. People were simply going
crazy for us. The most memorable part? Being presented with a
new car. We went up a TV tower, where we had a huge panoramic
view of all of Seoul. Visiting an orphanage. Visiting a temple
where we were the guests of a tea ceremony. But the most pleasant
was how the Koreans receive visitors. I have brought such a big
quantity of gifts that at the airport, my luggage was overweight
by more than 100 kg (220 pounds). The most popular gift was a
kind of ginseng root in different varieties. The kind on a straw
mat was especially pleasant, the ginseng has been very interestingly
presented and scented on the grasses.
Interviewer:
After returning from Korea, you had the operation on your hand.
How did it go? What did the doctors say? How soon can you fight
again?
Fedor:
My operation was on January 26th. The doctors broke the bone,
then set it correctly, and it's all held together with a small
metal plate. You can see it all in the x-rays. The doctors are
satisfied by the result. I will do another operation to remove
the plates. Right now, my hand is definitely not capable of doing
much. For 2-3 weeks, even running is impossible for me, let alone
lifting weights...
Interviewer:
Someone helps you to get dressed and eat?
Fedor:
No, I do it myself. Though it is very unusual to do everything
with my left hand. It's inconvenient. I tried to write with my
left hand, but at the moment it's impossible to do, too awkward.
Eating is difficult, but I have almost learned to use chopsticks
with the left hand perfectly. It's much easier than with a fork
and spoon... But I hope that after the 2-3 weeks when they remove
the plaster, I will be able to slowly start using the right again.
Interviewer:
What do you plan to do during the rehabilitation period?
Fedor:
As I said before, in February I shall go with my brother to Holland,
then a couple of days layover in St. Petersburg for the doctors
will look at the hand. After that, I'll fly to Japan, since I
was invited to the PRIDE event. I will go to the PRIDE events
as a spectator. At the beginning of April, I meet with Van Damme.
I've been asked to do seminars in Korea again. In June-July,
I plan to do seminars in America.
Source: Fight Sport
|
Paulão
Filho fights at Pride GP 83kg
Black-belt of Brazilian Top Team, Paulão Filho confirmed
he will do the first fight of the GP until 83kg, which will take
place this year in Japan, according to declarations of the president
of the Pride Nobuyuki Sakakiraba, in interview to Pride's website.
Paulão doesn't know yet who he will face, but already
started to make some plans for the competition.
-
Zé Mário Said to me Murilo Ninja would face me
in the first stage, but it probably won't happen, because he
has some problems with the weight. But I believe that I will
probably face Ryo Chonan or Phil Baroni - said the fighter, who
commented the defeat of his partner Zé Mário, at
Pride 31.
-
Zé started the fight very well and the Japanese felt it.
But after he fell down, Zé told me that felt pain in his
knee and suffered a cross punch. When it catches in the chin
is really bad. Fighting is like a lottery! - said Paulão,
guaranteeing that Zé Mário is fine after the operation
in his hand.
Source: Tatame
|
PRIDE
OPEN WEIGHT GP CARD
Below is a list of fighters that the Japanese media is saying
will most likely be participating on the PRIDE Open Weight GP
card on May 5th:
Unofficially
confirmed:
Rodrigo 'Minotauro' Nogueira
Mark Hunt
Vanderlei Silva
Mirko 'Cro Cop' Filipovic
Fabricio Werdum
Mark Coleman
Josh Barnett
Ricardo Arona
Alistair Overeem
Dan Henderson
James Thompson
Hidehiko Yoshida
Kazushi Sakuraba
Tsuyoshi Kohsaka
Ikuhisa Minowa
Will
participate if recovered from injury:
Fedor Emelianenko
Possible
but not confirmed:
Mauricio 'Shogun' Rua
Sergei Kharitonov
Alexander Emeliananenko
Roman Zentsov
Source: Fight Sport
|
BEST
FIGHTER NOT IN THE UFC OR PRIDE?
by Mick Hammond
This past weekend a lot of the MMA community’s attention
regarding the welterweight division was focused on Las Vegas,
when it may have been better served looking to the Gracie Fighting
Championships. There Mike Pyle, a training partner of Randy Couture
and Forrest Griffin’s, decimated highly regarded Gracie
Barra fighter Gustavo “Ximu” Machado in just over one
minute to pick up his second win of the year.
“It
was just like I hoped,” said Pyle of his win over Machado.
“I was able to showcase my skills and get the job done without
getting hurt. I knocked him out in the first round 1:26, which
was it; you know not much to talk about when it lasts only 1:26
[laughs].”
Mike
continued, “There was a point where we were in the clinch,
I dominated there with knees and broke it with an elbow and backed
him off. We exchanged some leg kicks and I caught him with a
left hook right on the jaw and he went down. I went in and finished
him off on the ground and the ref stopped by the fight.”
Machado
had been highly touted coming initially out of the Ruas Vale
Tudo team before joining Gracie Barra with wins over the likes
of Kiyoshi Tamura, Nate Quarry and Allan Goes. But Pyle was not
to be denied in his quest for respect and opportunity to climb
the ladder towards a shot at the bigtime.
This
fight marks the first time that Mike had knocked out an opponent
after submitting nearly everyone he’s fought. As he explains,
it’s a sign of his continued growth as a fighter and now
opponents will have to worry about more than just his ground
skills when fighting him.
“It
feels great, like I said I’m showcasing my skills as well.
I can submit a guy; wrestle, box, and those are the three main
ingredients you need to be a successful Mixed Martial Artist,”
explained Pyle. “I showcased that to everybody and now everybody
knows that and they don’t know how to deal with me. They
(Machado and company) kept the fight standing purposely I think,
he never really tried to take me down, he kept it standing and
that was his mistake.”
With
the win Mike raises his record to 10-1-1 and he feels that sooner
than later he’ll get his opportunity to truly make a name
for himself in the sport. “With the people that I’m
involved with I believe I can get in the UFC. I don’t want
to be just a one or two time fighter and then you never really
hear of me. I don’t want to be cannonfodder or a gatekeeper,
I want to be the champ, so I want to make sure I’m really
prepared for it. There’s a couple of opportunities out there,
like the IFL, UFC, defending my title in the WEC, and I’ve
been passed on information that can open doors overseas, so we’ll
see.”
Pyle
continued, “I’m in a dilemma and it’s a good dilemma.
That’s the kind of thing I want, I don’t want to have
to go stand on people’s doorsteps and say, ‘let me
in.’ I’ve sparked interests and now there’s options
and I want to be smart inside and outside the ring. I want to
make sure I sit back, look at all the options, see everything’s
on the table and see what’s in my future for what each direction
holds. I want to see where my future is, not just the next couple
fights, I want to always keep my options open and not burn any
bridges and do this the right way.”
One
of those people that Mike is involved with is Randy Couture.
The two have been close training partners for over a year and
have given each other their share of bumps, bruises, and black
eyes in training. According to Pyle, Couture’s recent retirement
from active fighting is bittersweet, while Mike’s sad to
see Randy go, he knows first hand that Couture’s drive to
compete and succeed is far from diminished.
“It
was a sad day, losing as a team and him as an active fighter
in the UFC was a sad memorable day,” said Pyle. “But
it’s his time to concentrate on other things and he has
to do what he wants to do. He’s an inspiration, a great
guy, leader, and a great coach. Overall he’s a great person
and just to be involved with him is an honor. I’m honored
to be in his presence and be a part of his group. He’s still
active with us, he still comes in and kicks our asses, he’s
not done doing that [laughs].”
Mike
feels that his time is coming soon, and as he closed out the
interview he reiterated that not only should fans be on the lookout
for him, but any possible opponents as well.
“First
off all I’d like to thank WhosYourDaddyInc.com, Fizogen,
Howard’s Combat Kimonos, and Xyience Training Center as
well for their preparation in helping me get ready for the fight,
giving me a place to train and good people to be around,”
concluded Pyle. “I’ve got two wins in a row this year,
whatever I do I will make the right step and everybody’s
going to see me and know me. You have to be patient but I’m
coming, I’m coming hard and I’m going to be the champ.
Everyone in my weight classes, 170 and 185, watch out anyone
I have to fight. I can do it all, punch, kick, wrestle, jiu-jitsu;
I’m a complete fighter. I’m a happy fighter too, and
a happy fighter is a dangerous fighter.”
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Shinya
Aoki does a Jiu-Jitsu Super Fight in Japan
Shinya Aoki on Akira Kikuchi's back
Black belt under Ricardo De la Riva, Roberto Matsumoto won, o
last February 12, the light GP of the Dumau Kimonos GP. Now,
the Brazilian will join other Grand Prix. On this March 18, he
will dispute the title of the Professional Jiu-Jitsu X, which
takes place in Zepp Nagoya, in Nagoya. The brackets will be drafted
in the day of the event, which will put the Brazilians face to
face. Beyond Matsumoto, Rubens Corbinha Charles (TT Jiu-Jitsu)
and Cícero Costa (Barbosa JJ) will be also in the card.
Doing a super-fight, BJJ world champion André Galvão
(TTJJ) fights Naoya Uematsu (Cross Point) and brothers Maurício
and Marco Souza are also going to do super-fights.
COMPLETE
CARD (subject to change):
Professional
Jiu-Jitsu X GP
Saturday, March 18th, 1006
Zepp Nagoya, Nagoya, Japan
Tournament:
-
Rubens Charles (TT Jiu-Jitsu) vs. Koichi Kuwahara (Grasco BJJ);
- Takashi Watanabe (Paraestra Niigata) vs. Shinsuke Fukuzumi
(Nagoya BJJ Club);
- Koji Komuro (RJJ) vs. João Batista Yoshimura (BJJAJ);
- Toshiyuki Wado (Academia AZ) vs. Cícero Costa (Barbosa
JJ);
- Roberto Matsumoto (De la Riva) vs. Akira Kibe (Alive);
Super-fights:
-
Mauricio Souza (Bonsai) vs. Taisho (Barbosa Japan);
- André Galvão (TTJJ) vs. Naoya Uematsu (Cross
Point);
- Shinya Aoki (Paraestra) vs. Marco Souza (Bonsai).
Source: Tatame
|
Quote
of the Day
"You
can pretend to be serious; you can't pretend to be witty."
Sacha Guitry, 1885-1957, Russian-born Film Actor/Director/Screenwriter
|
HAWAIIAN CHAMPIONSHIP
OF BRAZILIAN JIU-JITSU
Today!
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
|
Frank
Shamrock KO's Cesar Gracie in 21 Seconds
Strike Force Results
The HP Pavillion, San Jose, California
March 10, 2006
Scott Graham def. Chris Yee via Submission (Rear Naked Choke)
in Round 2 at 2:37 minutes
Nathan Diaz def. Tony Juares via TKO in Round 1 at 3:23 minutes
Crafton Wallace def. Ray Routh via KO (Knee) in Round 2 at 0:35
minutes
Gilbert Melendez def. Harris Sarmiento via Submission (Strikes)
in Round 2 at 0:44 minutes
Daniel Puder def. Jesse Fujarczyk via Submission (Rear Naked
Choke) in Round 1 at 1:54 minutes
Brian Ebersole def. Matt Horwich via Decision (Unanimous) in
Round 3 5:00 minutes
Mike Kyle def. Krysztof Soszynski via Technical Draw (Thumb in
Krysztof's eye) in Round 1 at 2:02 minutes
Eugene Jackson def. Jorge Ortiz via Decision (Unanimous) in Round
3 5:00 minutes
Clayton Guida def. Josh Thomson via Decision (Unanimous) in Round
5 5:00 minutes
Cung Le def. Mike Altman via KO in Round 1 at 3:51 minutes
Frank Shamrock def. Cesar Gracie via KO (Punch) in Round 1 at
0:21 minutes
Source: Sherdog
|
Jenkins
ready for big fight
By Duane Shimogawa Jr. - The Garden Island
Hi All,
Check
out AJ's interview in today's paper. She will be making Kauai
History by having the first ever Women's MMA ( Mixed Martial
Arts) fight on the island! Oh I forgot to mention the Ringside
is SOLD OUT. General tickets are still available but I will see
if I can add more seating.
Thank
you all and see you at the fights!!!
Aloha
Vance
If
you ask most of Adrienna "AJ" Jenkins' classmates from
Kapa'a High School about what she's been up to the past seven
years since graduation, they'll probably tell you something very
different they'll probably tell you something very different
from what she's been doing.
"When
they see me on the internet with my fight photos, they're like
'What happened, she was so quiet in high school,'" Jenkins
said in a phone interview.
On
Saturday, March 25, her classmates and others will be able to
see for the first time — AJ in action against Arizona's
Mystee Blackwood at Hanation against Arizona's Mystee Blackwood
at Hanapepe Stadium.
The
Third Annual Garden Isle MMA Cage Match makes its outdoor debut
on the island, with a slew of Kaua'i fighters, as well as top
contenders from all over the mainland and state converging at
the westside venue.
"It's
my first fight on Kaua'i and in the state as well," Jenkins
said.
But
what's more exciting to Jenkins is the fact that she'll be in
her hometown with her biggest fans that she'll be in her hometown
with her biggest fans watching.
"This
is probably the biggest fight of my life. My mom guys get to
see it. It feels like a world title fight," Jenkins said.
But
there's more than in-the-ring action for the 5'9" 135 lbs.
mixed martial artist, who is currently in Iowa, studying to become
a physical therapist. Her roots in the islands remain strong,
with her mom holding down the fort on Kaua'i and her dad residing
on Moloka'i.
The
1999 Kapa'a graduate went to Kaua'i Community College (KCC) and
then ventured off to O'ahu and did a little bit of schooling,
before heading off to St. Ambrose College in Iowa.
Along
the way, she got engaged to former UFC Along the way, she got
engaged to former UFC lightweight champ, Jens Pulver, who was
basically the reason for her move to the midwest.
Last
year, Pulver and Jenkins held MMA seminars on the island, which
supported the Kapa'a Boys and Girls Club.
"It's
good for rape prevention and it just keeps me in really good
shape," Jenkins said about the sport. When she was 17, a
friend challenged her to become an MMA fighter, so to prove him
wrong, she started training with Bruno Ewald. "I started
flying to O'ahu to do tournaments and I also ended up training
with Relson Gracie. I really go into it after that. It's a constant
sport. There's always something to learn," Jenkins said.
She's
currently under the direction of world-renowned Team Miletech
and also trains with Alley Cat Boxing Club.
Though
she seems fairly new to the sport with just a 4-1 record, Jenkins
remains confident that she'll keep on fighting as long as there
are other women who want to fight.
"There
are two sides to it. There aren't many MMA women fighters, so
it might not go anywhere and in a way your confidence depletes,
but I do feel confident that I'm a part of something that not
a lot of people do," Jenkins said.
But
for now, she'll concentrate on her next opponent, Mystee Blackwood,
who mostly utilizes the art of kickboxing.
"I'm
figuring it's going to be a good stand up fight. I just usually
train for what I like to do," Jenkins said.
See
Kapa'a's Jenkins in the largest fight card ever on the island
on March 25 at Hanapepe Stadium. A special weighin and autograph
session is scheduled to rock Kuku'i Grove's Center Stage on March
24. General admission tickets are $25 and $30 at the door. Ringside
seats are available for $35. Tickets can be purchased at Meyvn
Skate in Lihu'e, Tropical Tantrum in Kapa'a, Dynamic Tinting
in Puhi, Sweet and Sassy in 'Ele'ele, Westside Sporting Goods
in Waimea, M&H Service in Waimea, and Wong's Restaurant in
Hanapepe. Doors for the event open at 5 p.m.
Duane
Shimogawa Jr., sports editor, may be reached at 245-3681 (ext.
257) or kauaisports@kauaipubco.com.
Garden
Isle MMA Cage Match #3
March
24: Weighins, autograph session, Kukui Grove, 5 p.m.
March
25: Fights at Hanapepe Stadium, doors open at 5 p.m.
Source: The Garden Island newspaper
|
THREE
MATCHES ANNOUNCED
FOR BUSHIDO VOLUME 10
TOKYO, Japan – Three bouts have been announced for PRIDE
FIGHTING'S upcoming event, BUSHIDO Volume 10, scheduled to premiere
on North American pay per view on April 3rd, 2006 at 10:00pm
EST, 7:00pm PST. Headlining matches will feature the return of
the 2005 Grand Prix tournament champions as lightweight champion
Takanori Gomi faces Brazil's Marcus Aurelio and welterweight
champion Dan Henderson goes head to head with Japan's Kazuo Misaki
… also announced, "Little Evil" Jens Pulver of
the United States versus foot lock-specialist Masakazu Imanari
of Japan.
BUSHIDO
Volume 10 will take place from the Ariake Coliseum in Japan and
is scheduled to debut on North American pay per view via iNDEMAND,
DIRECTV, DISH NETWORK, UrbanXtra, TVN1, VU!, and Viewer's Choice
Canada.
North
American Pay Per View Schedule:
PPV Premiere Date: Monday, April 3rd, 2006
Premiere Time: 10:00pm EST, 7:00pm PST
BUSHIDO
VOLUME 10
Fight Card
Takanori
Gomi (Japan) vs. Marcus Aurelio (Brazil)
Dan Henderson (USA) vs. Kazuo Misaki (Japan)
Jen Pulver (USA) vs. Masakazu Imanari (Japan)
(Fight
Card Subject to Change)
Additional Matches to be Announced Soon
Matchups (official):
Dan Henderson vs. Kazuo Misaki
Phil Baroni vs. Yuki Kondo
Takanori Gomi vs. Marcus Aurelio
Joachim Hansen vs. Luis Azeredo
Jens Pulver vs. Masakazu Imanari
BUSHIDO
VOLUME 10 will be available at a rate of $29.95.
For
additional replay times, please contact your pay per view provider.
Source: DSE
|
IFL
on for April 29 in Atlantic City;
Four Team Coaches Revealed
By Loretta Hunt
On the heels of successfully impeding an injunction sought by
UFC owners Zuffa LLC last week in a Las Vegas courthouse, the
International Fight League (IFL) has officially announced the
date of its first event for April 29 at the Trump Taj Mahal Hotel
& Casino in Atlantic City, New Jersey.
Owned
and operated by Wizard Entertainment Group founder Gareb Shamus,
and Kurt Otto, a successful architecture and real estate development
figure, the IFL proposes a league format where teams compete
against teams in a pre-determined points system under mixed martial
arts rules.
The
four debut teams to compete on April 29, which have been named
after "fierce, fast, and extreme animals," have also
unveiled their coaches and team names.
The Anacondas will be coached by Bas Rutten,
The Silverbacks by Pat Miletich,
The Pitbulls coached by Renzo Gracie,
and The Tiger Sharks by Maurice Smith.
Each team has been designated with its own logo as well.
The
IFL teams will consist of a lightweight, welterweight, middleweight,
light heavyweight, and heavyweight fighter. Competitors and match-ups
will be announced shortly, according to an IFL representative.
Tickets
for the April 29 event are now on sale at all Ticketmaster locations,
at www.ticketmaster.com, and at The Trump Taj Mahal box office.
Source: FCF
|
Royce
Gracie Interview
Royce Gracie
was recently interviewed by FightDVD. Here's what Royce had to
say:
Interviewer:
Being the son of the great Helio Gracie did you start learning
Jiu-Jitsu from an early age?
Royce:
Yes. As soon as we started to walk we started to learn. I have
3 boys and a girl. The youngest boy is three years old and he
has already done three demonstrations.
Interviewer:
Were you very competitive with your brothers growing up?
Royce:
Yeah, right now I am still very competitive. I like a challenge,
tell me what I can't do?
Interviewer:
At what age did you start competing and how successful were you?
Royce:
I started competing in tournaments back in Brazil when I was
seven years old and was most successful with the grappling tournaments,
now I best with the no hold bars tournament. The best thing I
have learnt from my father is not to be lazy, so I have a lot
of discipline, I know what has to be done and I just get up and
do it.
Interviewer:
How did the other children at school react to you being from
the famous Gracie Family?
Royce:
I've never had trouble. I've never had a fight on the streets.
I've not got a short fuse and I've never punch someone in the
face outside the ring. I've never hurt anyone, I probably wouldn't
be a fighter but the world is not perfect!
Interviewer:
Did you always want to be involved in martial arts or did you
have other career aspirations?
Royce:
As a kid you always want to do something else and be a snowboarder,
a policeman, a fireman. Getting involved and growing up watching
people to martial arts, especially Jiu-Jitsu, you get involved
and it becomes natural, by sixteen years old I was teaching class
and teaching other kids. Being around it was so natural for us,
to my brothers, my cousins and myself.
Interviewer:
In the early 1980s you moved to California - what prompted that
move?
Royce:
I actually moved to California to help my brother baby-sit his
kids. I was about 17-18 and we would teach classes out of the
garage. I then started to help him out teaching classes and we
got busier and busier, so we then opened up the main school.
Interviewer:
Was it hard adapting when you couldn't speak any English?
Royce:
I'm very open to travel. I didn't know where to go and how to
speak the language or have any friends. But I can travel anywhere.
I can travel anywhere and I don't mind, as I love the open road.
Interviewer:
You achieved black belt status in Jiu-Jitsu when you were 18,
was this a proud moment for you and your family?
Royce:
It was actually about the time I came to American. I had been
competing for black belt, and right before I came over my brother
signed me up for a black belt tournament and I took it. I don't
look at it as much of a promotion or a big deal. A belt only
covers two inches of your behind, the rest, you've got to back
it up on your own and you've got to know what you are doing.
A lot of people are very concerned about moving me up and getting
promoted. I understand this for kids, as it is encouragement
for them. You can't only do a martial art because they want to
build, you've got to know what you are doing.
Interviewer:
What led to the '$100,000 Gracie Challenge' and did anyone ever
collect the $100,000?
Royce:
It wasn't really a $100,000 challenge. My brother had a big problem
with one of the big American kick boxers. Somebody was going
to do the commentary for the chapter and they called my brother,
and asked if he wanted to face him. He said that he would face
any one in MMA. My brother had already faced him before and beat
him before. He told them to ask him if they knew who he was facing
as he should know who he is facing. Billy the Judd pretending
he didn't know 'I don't know who the Gracie's are' so they made
a bet to put a $100,000 down each and fight for something. Billy
the Judd backed down on that he didn't want to put his money
down so instead put his belt against the $100,000 and said if
my brother won he would become the World Champion in Kick Boxing.
My brother doesn't know kickboxing, he would give his belt to
my brother and if my brother would have to lose he would have
to give him a $100,000.
Interviewer:
In 1993 the first UFC event took place, why were you chosen to
represent the Gracie Family?
Royce:
Maybe because I was the best looking one!! Because I was on the
split of the weight division, I wasn't too big and I was too
light. I had brothers that could have done the same thing. I
had brothers who were built smaller than me, some were bigger
than me, but I was 178 pounds and having someone this weight
beating someone who was 240 pound, that was much more impressive
than someone of 200 pounds beating someone of 240 pounds. The
smaller brother could have probably done the same thing but it
would have taken him a little longer. At the end of the day I
was at the top of the weight divisions to represent us.
Interviewer:
After beating Art Jimmerson you faced Ken Shamrock in the semi-finals
- seen as the underdog by many, did you go into that fight expecting
victory?
Royce:
I always expect victory, if I didn't expect the victory I wouldn't
get in the fight. If I knew I was going to lose I wouldn't fight.
I think that was probably Ken Shamrocks worse fighting loss over
there. When I beat him he was a very tough opponent but I beat
him in 56 seconds.
Interviewer:
You faced and beat Savate World Champion Gerard Gordeau in the
final, how did it feel to become the first ever Ultimate Fighting
Champion?
Royce:
I trained for that, I'm not trying to be arrogant but I trained
for that day so it wasn't like "oh my god I won, I'm so
surprised that I won" I wasn't. That is what I have trained
for. Sometimes I see guys celebrate like they didn't expect to
win, if you don't expect to win, what are you doing here. We
are professional fighters, this is what you should be training
for. I look at victory as another day.
Interviewer:
You went on to win UFC 2 and looked en route to another final
at UFC 3, maybe against old perennial foe Ken Shamrock, but neither
of you made it to the final though neither of you lost in the
Octagon - what happened on that night?
Royce:
I had dehydration after one of my matches and I went into my
next fight but I couldn't see a thing, I was practically passed
out. So I think that's why I couldn't continue. Ken Shamrock
actually never won a UFC tournament. He only won single matches.
Interviewer:
You won your 3rd UFC crown at UFC 4 and then drew with Ken Shamrock
at UFC 5. After this you took a long break from competitive MMA
- why was this?
Royce:
Because I was under contract with the UFC and after the UFC 5
they started to change the rules. Once they changed the rules,
I said, 'I'm not interested in fighting with you anymore.' They
shortened time limits and putting the gloves on us. I mean, it
broke my heart for a while, what they were doing with the sport
that my family created, so I stepped out and waited for the other
contract to expire. Plus when I got an offer from Japan, I was
like, 'OK, let's try this again.'
Interviewer:
In 1999 Kazushi Sakuraba defeated your brother Royler at PRIDE
8. However, much controversy surrounded the end of this match
and many believe the fight should never have been stopped, as
it was just mere seconds from the final bell when the fight was
stopped and awarded to Sakuraba. What are your memories of this
fight?
Royce:
Three seconds before they ended the fight, they stopped the match.
If the fight ended with no one getting up, it would be a draw.
They assumed my brother was in danger. He was never in danger.
They are biased sometimes in Japan. He just wanted to fight.
Interviewer:
In 2000 you entered the PRIDE Grand Prix and insisted on altering
the rules such that there would be no time limits and no referee
stoppage - were you fearful of another premature stoppage in
any of your fights and in particular against Kazushi Sakuraba?
Royce:
Well prefer it without the referees, without any rules, let the
fighters decide who's the best fighter. Instead, they leave a
fight up to a judge. A judge or referee can win or lose the game
in any sport.
Interviewer:
You met Sakuraba in the semi finals in a fight that lasted 90
minutes. The end of the fight came when your brother threw in
the towel and the win was awarded to Sakuraba. Were you disappointed
not to win this fight?
Royce:
The round before the break, he kicked my shin. It was a partial
penalty. When I fell in the corner and I told my brother and
my father, 'I'm doing my job, I want you guys to do your job.
Tell me what to do now. I can get up, but I cannot walk. What
should I do?' If you are injured you are injured and that's when
they through the towel in.
Interviewer:
Kazushi Sakuraba went on to beat Renzo and Ryan Gracie and would
call himself the Gracie Hunter. How did your family react to
this?
Royce:
Well, it was actually a compliment because he learned from us.
Like every fighter out there, in one-way or the other, they learned
from us. Before we came around and made history and created the
NHB shows, there was no Sakuraba. He had to learn how to fight,
learn from books and DVD's and learn from students of ours. So
directly he learnt from us. We had a big influence. Any fighter
that says we didn't have an influence on training or fighting
styles is a liar. We weren't selfish. We shared our techniques
with the world. That's why I travelled all over the world teaching.
If I wanted to keep the techniques to myself, I wouldn't teach
anybody. I would just keep winning and not show anybody the techniques
that I use. Tomorrow, they're going to be younger, stronger,
better. If they win, hey, to me, it's a compliment.
Interviewer:
In November 2003, at UFC's 10th Anniversary show (UFC 45), along
with Ken Shamrock you were the first inductees to the UFC Hall
of Fame - how did that feel and how did you feel being inducted
with Ken?
Royce:
I told them, 'Please don't think I'm going to retire, because
I'm not.' It felt like when you get to the Hall of Fame that
you're all washed up and retired. I told them, 'Nah-uh. I'm still
going to fight guys.'
Interviewer:
After a second break you returned to PRIDE in December 2003 where
you went to a time limit draw against judo Olympic silver medallist
Hidehiko Yoshida. Being dominant for much of the match do you
ever regret not having this match judged under standard PRIDE
rules where you would probably have been awarded the victory?
Royce:
Well, the rules are that if I would to like to, I could take
the judges out, and leave the fighters to decide the fight. If
there were no judge decision, it would have been a draw because
no one quit. If you ever watch the fight, he never hit me, and
I sent him to the hospital. So you fight for 20 minutes and don't
take one punch and you send your opponent to the hospital, he
could barely get up at the end of the fight. That tells you about
the fight, it wasn't exactly a fight, it was a beating.
Interviewer:
In December 2004 you faced the 220 KG Sumo champion Akebono -
how did you prepare to face such a large opponent and were you
surprised at how quickly you won?
Royce:
I wasn't surprised at all and I actually told my brothers and
my coaches that I was going to beat him in less than 5 minutes.
They were yelling at me for that. 'Don't be cocky! Don't be so
over-confident!' I said, 'Guys, I have his address. I just have
to go make a delivery.' I told them after the fight, 'I told
you I could beat him in less than 5.'
Interviewer:
How did you prepare for the fight?
Royce:
Training with 2-3 guys together on top of me.
Interviewer:
Your last fight was a time limit draw in PRIDE against Hideo
Tokoro and your next fight is against UFC Welterweight Champion
Matt Hughes - how will you prepare for this fight and will you
be wearing your characteristic Jiu-Jitsu gi?
Royce:
In the UFC you're not allowed to use the gi. Preparing for the
fight the schedules pretty much the same. The training's going
to be a little bit different, so just different opponent, different
strategy. There's a lot of new strategy for the next one. It's
definitely going to be a challenge because he's been dominating
that weight division for a while. I like a challenge. I really
look forward to a challenge.
Interviewer:
Are you going to beat him in under 5 minutes?
Royce:
I cannot tell you that yet. You got to get closer. I will tell
you that in a couple of weeks.
Interviewer:
Is there anybody in MMA today that you would like to face and
why?
Royce:
Been there, done that! It's a question of who the promoters think
will be a good challenge.
Interviewer:
How do you see MMA has changed since the first days of UFC?
Royce:
In the beginning it was style against the style. Today, it is
fighter against fighter, man against man. Today, everyone is
so cross-trained.
Interviewer:
What is you opinion of the following fighters... Ken Shamrock...
Royce:
Sore loser Hah-hah!
Interviewer:
Kazushi Sakuraba...
Royce:
Very smart fighter.
Interviewer:
Chuck Liddell...
Royce:
Very tough opponent.
Interviewer:
Matt Hughes...
Royce:
Tough opponent.
Interviewer:
Randy Couture...
Royce:
Great fighter.
Interviewer:
Mauricio 'Shogun' Rua...
Royce:
Very good, one of the number ones out there. Up-and-coming, tough
opponent.
Interviewer:
Emelianenko Fedor...
Royce:
The champion.
Interviewer:
Tito Ortiz...
Royce:
Very tough, good guy.
Interviewer:
What do you consider your greatest fight in your professional
MMA career?
Royce:
I would say against Akebono.
Interviewer:
Is there anything left in MMA that you still want to achieve?
Royce:
Been there, done that! I've done it all. I just want to make
my business successful... I'm working on it, I've got a mate
running a company over here in England, I'm pushing it hard over
here in England.
Source: Fight Sport/FightDVD
|
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
|
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
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