Upcoming
Events
Do you want to list an
event on Onzuka.com?
Contact Us
(All events on Oahu, unless noted)
2007
2/10/07
Punishment In Paradise 13
(MMA, Kickboxing)
(Blaisdell Arena)
2006
November
Aloha State Championship
of BJJ
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
ROTR Qualfiers
(MMA)
(Kauai)
11/25/06
Kickin' It
(Kickboxing)
(Dole Cannery Ballroom)
October
Rumble On The Rock
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
September
ROTR Qualifers
(MMA)
(Maui)
9/16/06
Kickin' It
(Kickboxing)
(Waipahu Filcom Center)
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)
8/18/06
Kickin' It
(Kickboxing)
(Waipahu Filcom Center)
8/5 or 8/12
Rumble On The Rock
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
Garden Island Cage Match 4
(MMA)
(Kauai)
7/22/06
ROTR Qualifiers
(MMA)
(Hilo Civic Center, Hilo)
ROTR Qualifiers
(MMA)
(Guam)
7/22-30/06
CBJF World
Championships
(BJJ)
(Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)
7/21/06
Punishment In Paradise 12
(MMA, Kickboxing)
(Dole Cannery Ballroom)
7/20-24/06
CBJJO World Championships
(BJJ)
(Rio de Janeiro, Brazil)
7/?/06
RAZE MMA Fight Night 2
(MMA)
(San Diego, CA)
7/8/06
Ring of Honor
(MMA & Kickboxing)
(Waianae H.S. Gym)
7/7/06
Kickin' It
(Kickboxing)
(Waipahu Filcom Center)
6/25/06
Quest for Champions 2006 Tournament
(Sport-Jujitsu, Sport Pankration, Sub Grappling, Extreme Sparring)
(St. Louis H.S. Gym)
6/24/06
Lockdown in Lahaina Town
(MMA)
(Lahaina Civic Center, Lahaina)
6/17/06
ROTR Qualifiers
(MMA)
(Hilo Civic Center, Hilo)
6/10/06
X-1 Battlegrounds 4
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
6/4/06
PRIDE Bushido 11: 'Bushido
Survival '06'
(PPV)
6/3/06
X-2 Extreme Wars:
Bay Area Brawl
(MMA)
(Oakland Alameda Coliseum, Oakland, CA)
5/27/06
UFC 60:
Royce Gracie vs. Matt Hughes
(PPV)
5/26/06
Icon Sport 45
(MMA)
(Blaisdell 6Arena)
5/20/06
3rd Maui Jiu-Jitsu Championships
(BJJ & Sub Grappling)
(Maui War Memorial Gym, Wailuku)
5/13/06
Got Skills Fighter Event
(MMA)
(Pagoda Hotel)
4/29/06
RAZE MMA Fight Night
(MMA)
(ipayOne center , former San Diego Sports Arena
San Diego, CA)
4/21/06
Rumble on the Rock
11: Grand Prix
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)
4/15/06
UFC 59: Reality Check
(MMA)
(Arrowhead Pond, Anaheim, CA)
4/7-9/06
2006
Pan-American Jiu-Jitsu Tournament
(BJJ)
(California State University Dominguez Hills, Carson, CA)
4/6/06
Ultimate Fight Night on Spike TV
(MMA)
(Hard Rock Hotel & Casino, Las Vegas, NV)
4/1/06
Punishment in Paradise
(Kickboxing)
(Sea Life Park)
|
|
May 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! |
Quote
of the Day
"Do
not wait for extraordinary circumstances to do good; try to use
ordinary situations."
Jean Paul Richter, 1763-1825, German Novelist
|
3rd
Annual Maui Jiu-Jitsu Open Tournament
Today!
May 20,
2006
War Memorial Gym, Wailuku, Maui
Mike is taking up Team Casca Grossa and will be meeting up
with the rest of the Relson Gracie contingent there. See you
all there!
This will
be a GI Only event!
Fees
$55 Men
$45 Women
$30 Kids
For more info:
Luis (357-0657) or Lee (298-7698) or email mauibadboy@aol.com
|
The
Quest for Champions 2006 Tournament
The Quest for Champions 2006 Tournament
Hosted by Kempo Unlimited
St. Louis High School Gym
Sunday, June 25, 2006
Source: Event Promoter
|
POSTAL
CONNECTIONS: SAPP POSSIBLY TO PRIDE
By Tape Lord
Hello my friends, sources in Japan are telling me that the real
reason Bob Sapp suddenly left the K-1 show in Holland is because
he has recieved an offer from DSE/PRIDE that would supposedly
multiply his current K-1 salary by at least 5-6 times.
DSE/PRIDE
is basically at war now with the K-1 organization for signing
away Kazushi Sakuraba from their promotion, and they intend on
trying to sign as many of K-1's biggest stars as they can.
I
will have more news on this subject in a few days.
Source: Fight Sport
|
Interview
with PRIDE Bushido GP Fighter
Joey Villasenor
By Bernie Calderon
Joey Villasenor has risen through the ranks of King of the Cage
to become its Middleweight champion. He is even hailed as pound
for pound, one of KOTC’s best fighters. Joey has not only
gotten the attention of KOTC fans, but of other fight organizations.
As Joey reveals in this interview, he has been invited to fight
for Pride in a Welterweight Grand Prix. This is Joey’s chance
to prove to the world that he has the skills and ability to fight
with the world’s best welterweights. Joey took time out
from training for his next fight and the tournament for an interview
with MMAFighting.com and me.
BC: Let us get to know Joey Villasenor. How did you get started
in the fight game?
Joey
Villasenor: I’ve always been an athlete, played baseball,
football, and track. When I graduated high school, I took a look
at UFC 3 and from that point I was hooked. At 19, I started submission
fighting. I’ve been training since then.
BC:
What fighter inspired you to get into MMA?
JV:
I would have to say the fighter that inspired me and I think
inspired everybody was Royce Gracie. Royce worked technique that
was foreign to Americans and it inspired me. It basically rang
a bell in my head that strengths and strikes are just one aspect
of the game. I was just inspired by his technique as I’m
sure everyone was.
BC:
Speaking of Royce, do you have a prediction for his match against
Matt Hughes?
JV:
Wow that’s a tough one. It’s really hard to call that
one. I really think that Matt Hughes is no doubt one of the best
ever, so is Royce. Man that’s tough… my heart is with
Royce, but I think Matt Hughes has the overall better skill.
But Matt Hughes does have a problem with straight out Jiu Jitsu
guys… so it’s hard to call. I would call it a draw.
Yeah Imma call it a draw (Laughs).
BC:
When is your next fight and against who?
JV:
Well, I just talked to Pride and I will be fighting in the Bushido
Welterweight Grand Prix, the 16 man. (As to whom I’m fighting)
I don’t think I can release that information right now,
so I really can’t say who I’m going to fight. But I
got called just now and told who my opponent was so I’m
just going to let them be the ones to tell everybody. I don’t
want to get in trouble (laughs).
Editor's
Note: Villasenor's opponent will be Ryo Chonan.
BC:
When you read articles about the best middleweights in MMA, you
may read about Rich Franklin, Matt Lindland, and Dan Henderson.
Your name is rarely mentioned. Do you often feel disrespected
at times even though you are a champion?
JV:
No, not disrespected. I just haven’t had the big fights
they’ve had. Right now I’m getting my opportunity with
Dan Henderson being in (Pride) tournament. So I wouldn’t
say disrespected, its more understandable. I haven’t been
given a chance to get a fight like this. So now that I’ve
got this opportunity, I just gotta make the best out of it.
BC:
I recently read on the KOTC website that you have a fight coming
up in July. Will this be your last fight for KOTC before going
to Pride?
JV:
It really depends on what Terry (Trebilcock) wants to do. I signed
a two fight contract with him, but we’ve discussed openly
that if I were to God willing, take this tournament, then that
would make me Pride Champion. How could I fight for KOTC? I don’t
think Pride would let me. So it all depends on this tournament.
BC:
What was your thought process in wanting to go to Pride? Was
this something you’ve wanted to do for awhile now?
JV:
Of course. It’s been a dream of mine to fight in either
Pride or UFC. I’ve been KOTC world champion, and it’s
been nothing but good to me. I am honored that I’ve had
the opportunity to be their champion. So many of their fighters
have gone on to do bigger and better things. I have about 4-5
teammates that fight in the UFC and none of us have crossed over
into Japan yet, so basically I’m looking to open the doors
for my teammates and have a great performance so we can have
top 2-3 organizations running through our gym.
BC:
Your last fight was with Yuya Shirai for DEEP in April. Tell
us about that fight. (Win by unanimous decision)
JV:
It was a pretty technical fight. It didn’t have the explosive
fireworks that I’m usually known for. I think one of those
(reasons) was jetlag. It was my first experience fighting across
seas with such a time change and having being there a day and
a half before the fight. Cutting the weight and the jetlag I
think played a major factor. I just didn’t have the killer
instinct in me. When I watch the tape, I have bags under my eyes.
I got a double shot of coffee before the fight to stay motivated.
Other than that, I had his back at one moment to finish the fight
with a rear naked choke. I had mount numerous times. I controlled
him pretty decently. On the ground he held me down quite a bit.
When I was on top of him, he would just lock his hands and hold
me down which made for some stalling. Striking, he was real unorthodox
and it was kinda hard to get the timing on him. It wasn’t
until late in the second round is when I started timing him,
but it was only two five-minute rounds. I’ll go ahead and
take the unanimous decision, I’ll take the experience and
information we gathered from that bout and look forward into
using it this next bout.
BC:
What would you say are your biggest strengths and weaknesses?
JV:
I would have to say my biggest strengths are my teammates and
my coaches. Also a God given ability to learn techniques. Weakness…
I wouldn’t call it a weakness as much as learning experiences.
This is gonna be my 25th fight and I learned a little something
from each one.
BC:
What do you want people to think when they hear the name Joey
Villasenor, the Dream Smasher?
JV:
I want them to think of a dedicated athlete. Someone who eats,
lives, breathes the sport. Somebody that loves the sport and
is really trying to make a difference out there in the sport.
I want to be known as one of the greatest middleweights ever.
At 30 years old, I feel I’m just getting into my prime.
I just want people to recognize me as one of the best.
BC:
What is your ultimate goal in MMA?
JV:
Hopefully the goal is just to be successful. (A goal) is to motivate
underprivileged kids. I think I was one of them. I quite often
go to schools and speak to kids around my neighborhood. I really
want to make a difference in someone’s life. I wanna become
a champion in all major organizations. I’d love to become
the Pride Champion, UFC Champion someday. I’ve already became
and held KOTC championship. Basically I want to be a champion,
to seek greatness.
BC:
I noticed you touched upon being more socially responsible. Do
you feel fighters should be more active in their community and
be out there and be role models?
JV:
I definitely do. The public is starting to come around now. They
are starting to understand the sport. To most people our sport
looks brutal and they don’t see hard work and ethics. They
don’t see the respect, all they see is brutality. But I
think we are a fine example of all three of those traits. So
I think its our responsibility to tell people fighting on the
street isn’t that you want to do, but having a work ethic
and training hard in a team, is very positive.
BC:
Is there anything you would like to say in closing?
JV:
Yes, I’d like to thank my sponsors Warrior Wear, Defined
Fitness, Fitness Massage, all my teammates and coaches, friends
and family. And last but not least I would like to thank Project
240.
BC:
On behalf of MMAFighting.com and myself, thank you for taking
time out of your schedule for this interview. Good luck on your
fight in July and good luck on the Pride Bushido Tournament.
JV:
Thanks Bernie I appreciate it.
Source: Maxfighting
|
Quote
of the Day
"Peace,
like charity, begins at home."
Franklin D. Roosevelt, 1882-1945, 32nd President of the United
States
|
X-2
Sports Presents
Extreme Wars: Bay Area Brawl
Oakland Alameda Coliseum
June 3, 2006
Carter “The Beast” Williams
K-1 Superstar
VS
Terrell Dees
K-1, Ceser Gracie Camp
Buy
your tickets at Ticketmasters.com
Discounts
for Large Groups. Click Below
Be
their as we make history!
First
Time in Oakland!
Come
Watch!
UFC,
Pride, K-1 and X-2 Sports Veterans.
Plus
Special First time women’s match Lana Stefanac (2006 Pan
Am Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Champion) vs. California’s Martha
Salazar who is the current WIBF World Champion Boxer. What a
fight!!! Plus Carter Williams K-1 Champ, Carlos Conduit, John
Lober,
Antonio
Mckee, Tim “the Wrecking Machine” McKenzie, Daniel
Higgins, Ronald
Jhun and
more
Commentators
Frank Shamrock and Jeff Blatnick
Team
Hawaii
VS Team Bay Area
And
the list goes on BE THEIR. For info go to www.extremewars.tv
Source: Event Promoter
|
WANDERLEI
SILVA REPLACES FEDOR IN PRIDE GP
by Ivan Trembow
Dream Stage Entertainment has announced on its Japanese web site
that Fedor Emelianenko has been forced to withdraw from the Pride
Open Weight Grand Prix, and his replacement will be none other
than "The Axe Murderer," Wanderlei Silva.
Dream
Stage had hoped that Fedor would be ready to fight in time for
the second round of the Grand Prix when it takes place on July
1st, but the surgery to repair Fedor's severely damaged hand
has a very long recovery process. Fedor's doctor stated that
the metal plate in Fedor's hand would not be ready to be surgically
removed until June at the earliest, which would make it impossible
for Fedor to fight on July 1st.
Pride
Middleweight Champion Wanderlei Silva will now get the first-round
bye that was originally given to Fedor as the Heavyweight Champion,
and will complete what is arguably the best "final eight"
in any tournament in the history of MMA. The eight quarter-finalists
are Wanderlei Silva, Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira, Mirko Cro Cop,
Mark Hunt, Hidehiko Yoshida, Josh Barnett, Kazuyuki Fujita, and
Fabricio Werdum. The quarter-final match-ups will be announced
in the coming weeks.
The
announcement that Silva will be competing in the Pride Open Weight
Grand Prix brings to an end, at least temporarily, a contract
dispute between Silva and DSE that had lasted for several months.
Silva's contract with DSE expired after his split decision victory
over Ricardo Arona on New Year's Eve, and he had been working
out the terms of a new contract with DSE ever since. There was
also considerable interest in Wanderlei Silva as a free agent
from the rest of the MMA community at large, but it's not known
if the UFC in particular ever seriously pursued Silva with the
kind of money that it would take to sign him.
The
Wrestling Observer reported a few weeks before the first round
of the Pride Open Weight Grand Prix that DSE wanted to make the
match-up of Wanderlei Silva vs. Mark Coleman for the first round,
and that Silva and Coleman agreed to fight each other, provided
that they could each come to financial terms on their respective
Pride contracts.
Silva
didn't reach a financial agreement with DSE on his contract,
so the fight never happened. As for Coleman, DSE President Nobuyuki
Sakakibara inexplicably said at a press conference that he could
have chosen Mark Coleman or Zulu, Jr. to fight Antonio Rodrigo
Nogueira in the first round of the tournament, and he said that
he made the decision to go with Zulu, Jr. instead of Coleman
because, "Zulu, Jr. is like the Brazilian Bob Sapp."
While
the fact that Silva is participating in the Pride Open Weight
Grand Prix means that he is no longer a free agent at this moment,
that may or may not be the case a few months from now. The specific
terms of Silva's contract, such as how many fights are on his
new Pride contract, were not disclosed by DSE.
If
Silva's new contract is a long-term deal, then he'll be staying
with Pride for the forseeable future. If it's just a contract
for Silva to participate in the Open Weight Grand Prix and nothing
more, then he could be right back to being a highly sought free
agent a few months from now.
Source: MMA Weekly
|
Interview
with UFC 60 Fighter:
Fabiano "Pega-Leve" Scherner
By Takimoto
The Brazilian heavyweight Fabiano Scherner, a Tres Passo's native
who lives nowadays in Amsterdan-Holland is going to face another
Brazilian in UFC 60. Scherner already stepped in the UFC's octagon
at UFN 2, when heavy shots from Brandon Vera finished Scherner's
night by KO. Now, on May 27th, Scherner has extra responsibility
on his shoulders to capture a victory and keep himself in the
UFC's plans.
MaxFighting:
Which are you main titles in submission, BJJ and MMA and what
is your background?
Fabiano Scherner: Inside BJJ I captured several awards in a short
period of time, I won in all belts. In BJJ I got 6x Brazilian
Championship and World Championship(Absolute). In submission
I got the awards in Copa RFT, Copa America (absolute), runner-up
in ADCC Brazilian Trials 2003 and winner of first phase of ADCC
Brazilian Trials 2005, and at MMA I am North-America IFC heavyweight
champion. My weight is 118kg and I was born in June 20th-1974
at Tres Passos-Rio Grande do Sul.
MaxFighting: Why do you have this nick-name (take it easy)?
Fabiano Scherner: It started when I was training in BTT academy,
and I was still a purple-belt. So in that day Rodrigo "Minotauro"Nogueira
arrived to train and talked to Ricardo Liborio: -"Can you
"take easy" with me today" I am very-tired"…
Liborio answered him back: "I have a new student here and
he will take easy to you". I loved the opportunity because
I was in BTT during only one week and I was going to support
the trainings of Minotauro. In that period he was going to face
Mark Coleman, so we used a head-protector(helmet similar to the
goalkeeper of Hokei), but when we started on training hardly,
the perspiration did the head-protector to dim and Minotauro
was in bad position where I got to land a lot of strikes. When
the training-sessions finished, Minotauro turned to Liborio and
said:-"Hey Linborio, wouldn't you put a guy to take easy
to me?" So the teammates who were watching the training
talked looking to me: -"This is the pega-leve(take easy)".
So they started on nickname me like that.
MaxFighting: After UFN 2, you were supposed to fight in Europe.
Why didn't that fight happen?
Fabiano Scherner: I would fight in last December 17th at Ultimate
Nokaute in Croatia, but a few days before the show, the Croatian
government decided to prohibit professional MMA fights inside
the event and I could not fight.
MaxFighting: Are you living in Holland now? How has adapting
to life there been?
Fabiano Scherner: Yes, I do. I am here since last year- the adaptation
is not a hard task because people speak English pretty well here.
The Dutch citizens are like the Brazilian, no prejudice and very
hospitable.
MaxFighting: Are you still an ATT member anymore?
Fabiano Scherner: The team I am here has a partnership to ATT,
they send Muay Thau coaches to ATT and ATT sends BJJ coaches
to Europe. In one of these exchanges I came to train here, when
I arrived here I realized my Muay Thai was terrible. So I asked
Liborio if I could spend more time here to improve it. There
was no way of become a top fighter using only my BJJ.
MaxFighting: How have you been improved training in Holland?
Fabiano Scherner: I do not think I improved, when I think I got
some evolution, a light kid comes to train with me and lands
me to the canvas(laughs). So I have to have more training and
patience, because I can not improve quickly inside an aspect
that the guys here train during a lot of years.
MaxFighting: Who are you main teammates in Holland?
Fabiano Scherner: In Muay Thai there are a lot of them. Here
in Holland is fantastic, they've fighter since 50kgs until 130kgs.
The most known fighters are Kass, Drago, Melvin Manhoef, Lloyd
Van Dams, Badr Hari and a few others. In BJJ I have Thiago Tavares,
Thiago Jambo, Marcello Salazar and my brother Cristiano. Sometimes
Gesias "JZ" Cavalcanti, and Alexandre Lobinho from
Ataque-Duplo come here to support us. Ataque-Duplo was the academy
where I started my trainings in Brazil and I will never forget
them.
MaxFighting: When you lived in USA, you fought 5 times there.
Which are the main differences between fighting MMA in America
and Brazil?
Fabiano Scherner: At USA the fighters do not place the matches
like personal challenges such as in Brazil. In USA it is faced
like a job. In Brazil anyone looks to yourself such as a expert
in all- in Brazil there is not the second place(runner-up), the
mentality in Brazil is that the second-place is the first loser.
I expect to fight in Europe too, because I felt that here people
want to see good-shows, and doe not matter the final result of
it.
MaxFighting: Of those five fights in American, your only lose
was to Brandon Vera. Do you have a lot of frustration over that
fight?
Fabiano Scherner: Yes I do. I was very confident to that fight
and I stayed nervous for fighting at UFC. The first impression
I had of that show is that its size feared me. I meant the things
happened to me very quick in 2005. I left from Brazil with only
two fights in my resume, so in 6 months I captured the IFC belt
when I had only 5 years of BJJ and only 2 years training MMA.
SO when I saw myself at UFC, it was a little hard to control
expectations in a short period of time.
MaxFighting: What did you think about Brandon?
Fabiano Scherner: I felt he was nervous o the day of that fight,
but he got to "find himself" during the match, because
he realized I was making a wrong strategy to fight him. He is
a nice guy, we had a chat prior our fight, and he did not seem
to be arrogant. But he did a nice marketing of himself inside
the octagon.
MaxFighting: Do you think you had good moments that you missed
in that fight?
Fabiano Scherner: Yes, I took him down and I should pressure
him against the face and use my forearm to hurt him. But I was
not used on work with my forearms, I should have take him down
more times too.
MaxFighting: You mentioned a point I wanted to ask you. Brandon
is a known kickboxing specialist, so do you think it was risky
to stand with him?
Fabiano Scherner: We committed a mistake at elaborating a strategy
against Brandon, we studied his grappling and bjj fights, and
people had talked to me he was USA Wrestling champion. So you
can not believe in how my face stayed when Bruce Buffer announced
that Brandon ha d a lot of awards in Kickboxing. Other fact was
that all time I got to connect a strike, he felt, so I motivated
myself on fighting stand. His knees at my body harmed my cardio,
when we came back to our feet I did not get to breath and the
rest of the story everybody already knows.
MaxFighting: Was that fight(even you lost), the most important
of your life until then?
Fabiano Scherner: Sure, by the simple fact I was in UFC. I believe
if I had beaten Brandon I would be in a nice position to become
a heavyweight contender.
MaxFighting: Brandon and Assuerio Silva will fight at UFC 60
too. You fought both so, what's your opinion about this fight?
Fabiano Scherner: I think it will be a great fight, very-well
booked, I do not have a favorite to pick, but I will root for
Silva.
MaxFighting: Talking finally about your match at UFC 60 against
Gabriel "Napao" Gonzaga. Would you like to face a foreign
fighter or it does not matter to you?
Fabiano Scherner: I would prefer to fight a foreign, but I am
professional and I fight against anyone the promoters put in
my front.
MaxFighting: Do you think that several Brazilian versus Brazilian
matches will occur in UFC?
Fabiano Scherner: I do not know, I think UFC is testing the Brazilians,
like they test everybody. The good will stays and the loser will
not be interesting for the show.
MaxFighting: Gonzaga beat you at ADCC Brazilian Trials 2005.
What did you think about that fight and can you take some piece
of that to this UFC meeting?
Fabiano Scherner: In that day he was better, he fought well under
the ADCC rules to beat and he won. Now the story is going to
be different, I am going to win and to put our "personal
score" in 1-1.
MaxFighting: What do you intend to do on this your second fight?
Fabiano Scherner: I intend to make my game and please the crowd
with a good show. I will sweat blood if necessary. I have a very
good training with wrestler from Russia here in Holland and I
expect to make the differential with it.
MaxFighting: You mentioned you are training a lot of Muay Thai
in Holland, while Gonzaga comes from a KO victory at UFC 56.
So can we expect good trade of blows on the feet?
Fabiano Scherner: I learned a lot from my last fight, and I do
not intend to risky myself in a field that I am not specialist.
I am focused on beating him where I am good, it is the ground.
MaxFighting: But you are not limiting your game on just fighting
on the ground?
Fabiano Scherner: In any MMA match everything can happen. I want
to fight on the ground, but I do not know if it will run like
I am talking to
you.
MaxFighting: Final statements?
Fabiano Scherner: I would like to say thanks to the teammates
of Ataque-Duplo, mainly to Murillo Rupp, Tonicao and Ze Marcello.
Thanks also to BrazilianFightWear which supports me.
Source: Maxfighting
|
RIVERA
TO BE IN 'THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER' SEASON 4
The
following news was sent in to us by the MMA insider known as
'Ted Johnson':
"I
talked with Jorge Rivera the other day and he let me know that
he is going to be on the fourth season of 'The Ultimate Fighter'.
He claimed to not know any of the others who are going to be
on, but he did confirm the Jake R. scoop that Tim Sylvia and
Georges St. Pierre are slated to be the coaches.
He
also said that he is flying to Las Vegas this Friday. Rivera
stated that he is to be kept in a hotel room until early Saturday
morning, at which time he will have to turn over anything that
links him to the outside world, including cell phone and the
like. Rivera said that each contestant will stay in the hotel
room and not be allowed to leave it at all for any non-emergency
reason, until it's time to to go to the home.
Jorge
said that they told him that the winner of the 185-pound class
gets a shot at Rich Franklin. Jorge said that he thinks he'll
have a shot at beating Franklin this time, because it's going
to be Franklin's first fight back from the injury.
I
personally don't think he realizes that Franklin had trouble
making weight for their fight at UFC 50. Franklin is a better
fighter than Rivera faced last time, though it's true that he
could be rusty.
Shooting
starts this Saturday. First fight is one week from this Friday.
TUF 4 premieres in September."
Source: Fight Sport
|
Quote
of the Day
"Failure
is the condiment that gives success its flavor."
Truman Capote, 1924-1984, American Author
|
Kickin
It Schedule of Events!
July
7 2006 - Filcom Center, Waipahu
August 18 2006 - 2006 - Filcom Center, Waipahu
September 16 2006 - Filcom Center, Waipahu
November 25 2006 - Dole Cannery Ballroom, Honolulu
Source: Event Promoter
|
K-1
explains Sapp's absence
To All Press,
In
regards to the incident in which Mr. Bob Sapp didn’t fight
in the Amsterdam Arena on May 13th, there have been conflicting
reports including that he had been unwell. The K-1 organization
would like to set the record straight regarding the no-show:
Mr.
Bob Sapp still has the exclusive long-term fighting contract
with the K-1 organization. Based on the contract, Mr. Sapp arrived
in The Netherlands on May 10th, attended the event press conference,
the Fuji Television event promotion, and the event opening ceremony.
However, before the event Mr. Sapp made demands which were absolutely
impossible to meet. Even though we did everything possible to
persuade him to stay, he suddenly left the venue just before
his fight sporting a bandage.
We consider his behavior as both unprofessional and disappointing.
In order to prevent such incidents, we will do our best to handle
our fighters better and arrange fights more carefully.
Lastly, we would like to express our great appreciation to Mr.
Peter Aerts and his devotion to
K-1 as he did us the greatest favor of accepting the fight against
Mr. Hoost with only one hour's notice before the fight. And also
we would like to extend our most sincere apologies to the 20,000
fans who came to see the Ernesto Hoost versus Bob Sapp bout,
and to the millions of fans around the world who were looking
forward to this match-up.
Sincerely,
K-1
Event Producer
Sadaharu Tanikawa
Source: Maxfighting
|
Fedor
Emelianenko
Fedor Emelianenko was recently interviewed by the PRIDE website.
Here's what Fedor had to say (translation by Igor S.):
Interviewer:
What was your impression of the May 5th event?
Fedor:
Firstly, I feel bad that Aleks lost, very disappointed. That
is my first impression. Zentzov winning is my only consolation.
The results of the other fights were basically as expected.
Interviewer:
What was the cause of Alexander's loss?
Fedor:
Perhaps I think something was lacking in the preparation phase.
Also, what I want to say is that in the first round Josh Barnett
seemed to be rubbing something into his eyes and called for a
break in the action. That stopped the fight and there was a doctor
to check him, but the results were fine. It was apparent that
there was nothing wrong with the eye, so I don't understand why
he did that.
Interviewer:
Afterwards Josh pointed at you and provoked you.
Fedor:
I think that sort of demonstration is a very good thing (laughing).
Josh is a good fighter, a strong fighter, but he was defeated
twice by Mirko Cro Cop. Comparatively, I think Josh is less than
Mirko, and he will fail when faced with a fighter of that level.
Of course I respect him as a fighter.
Interviewer:
Is Josh worthy of fighting you, having defeated your brother?
Fedor:
It's not a matter of worthiness or not. I defeated Mirko, although
it was not without hard work. Considering that he lost to Mirko
twice, it's apparent that there is still a gap between us. But
I am ready to fight anyone, so I don't underestimate anyone.
Interviewer:
How about the comments by Mr. Sakakibara that he wants Fujita
or Yoshida to go against you, if you are able to participate
in the second round of the GP?
Fedor:
I feel Fujita-san is a good fighter. However, it took a while
for him to beat Thompson. I thought Fujita could've ended the
fight earlier. Yoshida, well this matchmaking was lucky for him.
Interviewer:
Did Fujita seem to have improved since fighting with you?
Fedor:
To be honest, it seemed he has not improved, although we haven't
seen him fight much so I don't know. He seemed weaker than the
time when he fought me.
Interviewer:
One year ago you said you were interested in fighting Yoshida,
as he is a gold medalist. What is your feeling now?
Fedor:
I still want to fight against Yoshida-san, because I always want
to fight against the wonderful player who has captured an Olympic
medal. Because Yoshida is the type of fighter who fights thinking
how to show a great technique. Fighting him is very interesting.
Interviewer:
T.K. Kohsaka retired after his fight. What did you think?
Fedor:
It was very strange to see that T.K. did not show his usual high
level technique. He dared to fight strike-for-strike with Hunt,
which is Hunt's strong point. I thought that being defeated by
Hunt without showing his own strong points was very strange.
Why did T.K.-san do that? Why were his good techniques not shown
and opportunities not taken? I think it was possible to show
the techinques in which he had more advantage.
Interviewer:
Do you have a message for T.K.?
Fedor:
That fight is only a strange impression for me, rather than any
feeling about retirement. I think T.K. could have put out his
strong points and shown his merit quickly. It is not necessary
to bravely show your weak points. Why did he not use his multiple
techniques, even in the mount? I am baffled.
Interviewer:
Since you fought against T.K., do you have any feeling about
his retirement?
Fedor:
No. If a professional athlete chooses to retire, there is no
special feeling about it.
Interviewer:
I see, then what do you think about Hunt's statement that he
will overthrow you in the second round?
Fedor:
He is a good fighter, but it is very doubtful that he can win
in the second round. I think he will possibly be defeated by
someone.
Interviewer:
Who then becomes the most formidable opponent for you in the
second round?
Fedor:
The fighter who has improved the most, especially with new techniques
that have not been used before. There are many fine fighters
and the results were roughly as expected, but no one showed any
new techniques or considerable growth. Therefore I don't think
there is a most formidable opponent for me. Perhaps I will get
to face such an opponent, but the fact is that for many of them,
this will be their second defeat by my hand. However, Noguiera
is there, but we have fought twice and he lost both fights. So
with that in mind, I don't think there is a significant foe.
If Nogueira has acquired some new skills then he might be a wonderful
opponent, but after seeing the first round I don't think he's
shown any considerable growth.
Interviewer:
That is a confident statement! What is the state of your right
hand now?
Fedor:
The doctor has seen it again, but nothing can be said at the
current stage. There is still a metal plate in it now.
Interviewer:
Will you be able to participate in the second round?
Fedor:
I want to participate very much. I will fight in July or whenever
the hand heals.
Source: Fight Sport
|
IFL
Clears Proving Ground For
Wes Sims VS Daniel Gracie Grudge-Rematch
By Cindy
Ortiz
The Wes “The Project” Sims VS Daniel Gracie main event
Super-Fight rumored to be on the IFL’s June 3rd “Legends
Championship” card was confirmed this afternoon. According
to IFL Commissioner Kurt Otto, “A request was made for the
IFL to allow these two heavyweight warriors another opportunity
to go at it because neither one of them felt their first fight
determined a definitive winner. We made adjustments to our June
3rd “Legends Championship” line up in order to accommodate
this grudge fight/grudge rematch… whatever you want to call
it because the fighters wanted it and the fans wanted to see
it. I’m expecting World War III when these two step inside
the ring!”
MMA
fans may recall the first time Wes “The Project” Sims
and Daniel Gracie faced off was at the Gracie Fighting Championship
in March in conjunction with the Arnold Sports Expo in Columbus,
Ohio. The much anticipated main event officially resulted in
a draw and Wes Sims was carried out of the convention center
on a stretcher. Spectators witnessed Gracie pile-drive three
illegal knees to the face of his opponent in response to Sims
landing what was deemed to be an intentional head-butt to Gracie
earlier in the fight.
After
the judges subtracted points for the fouls committed, as instructed
by the referee, the fight was declared a draw. In the aftermath,
Sims and his management filed an appeal with the Ohio State Athletic
Commission to have the result of Sims VS Gracie changed to a
disqualification of Gracie for the intentional knees that sent
Sims to the hospital. The request was denied Sims attorney has
filed an appeal to have the case reviewed at a higher level.
Sims
and Gracie both declared their interest in fighting the other
again, each citing they are positive they would reign supreme
if granted a rematch. Since it is not yet known if the Gracie
Fighting Championship will return to Columbus, Ohio as part of
the Arnold Sports Expo in 2007, a request was made asking the
IFL to consider featuring the rematch of Sims VS Gracie as part
of the upcoming event.
June
3rd “Legends Championship” Fight Card:
Silverbacks
VS Tigersharks for the IFL Team Championship Finals
Silverbacks LW Bart Palaszewski 20-7-0 VS Tigersharks LW Rafael
Dias 6-1-0
Silverbacks WW Rory Markham 6-1-0 VS Tigersharks WW Brad Blackburn
8-7-0
Silverbacks MW Ryan McGivern 7-1-0 VS Tigersharks MW Dennis Hallman
36-11-2
Silverbacks LHW Travis Wiuff 40-8-0 VS Tigersharks LHW Reese
Andy 2-0-0
Silverbacks HW Ben Rothwell 17-5-0 VS Tigersharks HW Devon Cole
5-1-0
The
IFL is also finalizing several “Super Fights” which
at this time will feature New York-based Erik Owings (1-0-0,
Covington, KY), Alex Schoenauer (9-4-0, Yakima, WA), New Jersey
native Jamal Patterson (1-0-0, Hoboken, NJ) and Long Island’s
son Jay Hieron (8-2-0, Freeport, NY). Additional details will
be announced shortly.
The
main event Super-Fight will feature the much anticipated rematch
of Wes “The Project” Sims VS Daniel Gracie!
Fox
Sport Net (FSN) will televise the June 3rd finals on June 4th
at 6PM (EST), the third installment of IFL special programming
produced and directed by Emmy award-winning producer Peter Lasser,
who has worked on several Olympic telecasts as well as with ESPN,
NBC Sports, NFL Films and FSN, among others. According to insiders
who have gotten a “sneak peek” of Lasser’s work
on the first two segments slated to air on FSN May 21st and May
28th, the production is spectacular and the action is non-stop!
Tickets
are on sale now for the IFL “Legends Championship”
taking place on Saturday, June 3 at 8pm at the Trump Taj Mahal
in Atlantic City. Tickets are priced from $35 - $150 and available
at all Ticketmaster outlets, www.ticketmaster.com (1.800.736.1420),
and the Taj Mahal Box Office.
Source: Maxfighting
|
Quote
of the Day
"The
greatest good you can do for another is not just share your riches,
but reveal to them their own."
Benjamin Disraeli, 1804-1881, British Statesman and Prime Minister
|
Don
"The Predator" Frye's return
to America ends in a draw
Don "The Predator" Frye returned to fight in America
yesterday night in the main event of King of the Cage at the
Apache Gold Casino in Arizona.
Frye
spent the last 10 years competing in Japan for PRIDE FC and K-1.
His last bout in America was at UFC: Ultimate Ultimate 1996,
where he defeated Gary Goodridge, Mark Hall and Tank Abbott in
one night.
Frye
battled Ruben "Warpath" Villarreal to a draw after
3 rounds. The final scorecard was 88-89, 88-83, and 88-88.
In
the other featured bout, Urijah Faber retained his banthamweight
title against Charlie Valencia with an arm bar submission in
the first round. In Faber's three previous fights, he has defeated
Krazy Horse, Ivan Menjivar and Cole Escovedo.
Results:
- Don Frye and Ruben Villereal went to a draw.
- Urijah Faber def. Charlie Valencia by arm bar.
- Bobby Hoffman def. Victor Vincelette by arm triangle choke.
- Brett Sloane def. Bryan Pardoe by KO.
- Matt Dell def. Matt Verhalen by split decision.
- Jacob Chagolla def. Kyacey Uscola by TKO.
- Bob Calnin def. David Carrasco by tap out due to strikes.
Source: MMA Fighting
|
POSTAL
CONNECTIONS: MORE INFO ON SAKURABA LEAVING DSE/PRIDE
By Tape Lord
Hello
my friends, sources in the DSE/PRIDE organization, the K-1 organization,
and the Japanese media are all telling me some of the reasons
for the abrupt departure of Kazushi Sakuraba from DSE/PRIDE to
K-1.
From
what I've been told, Sakuraba left DSE/PRIDE because he had a
falling out with Nobuhiko Takada. The reasons for the fall-out
are the following:
1.)
Sakuraba has felt for quite some time that he should have been
getting paid similar amount of money to what Hidehiko Yoshida
and Naoya Ogawa were making for their fights in PRIDE. According
to insiders, both Yoshida and Ogawa make high 6-digit to 7-digit
figures for most of their fights, especially on the New Year's
card, where it was rumored they each made almost USD$2 million
each. Sakuraba was supposedly making lower to mid 6-digit figures
for most of his fights.
2.)
Sakuraba basically had had enough of Takada matching him up against
the top heavyweights in the world and getting him almost crippled
in some instances, while getting underpaid and ruining what legacy
he had left.
3.)
Sakuraba supposedly wanted very much to enter last year's PRIDE
183-pound GP, but Takada didn't put him in it.
Source: Fight Sport |
WFA
Reborn?
Rampage vs. Lindland Headlines July 22 "King of the Streets"
Event
By Loretta Hunt
LOS
ANGELES, May 15 -- With a stroke of their pens, Quinton "Rampage"
and Matt Lindland put to an end rumors they would fight one another
in the re-launched World Fighting Alliance. Agreeing to meet
at 205 pounds for July 22's "King of the Streets" event
at The Forum in Inglewood, California, Jackson and Lindland headline
a card that will include Brazilian-Japanese K-1 standout Lyoto
Machida and former UFC middleweight contender Ivan Salaverry
among others.
The
WFA, once owned by fighter John Lewis and :"Club Rubber" traveling nightclub
magnate John Huntington, ran a trio of Las Vegas MMA events between
2001 and 2002 before funding for the promotion ran dry. It is
unclear if either Lewis or Huntington still have a connection
with the organization's reinvention.
"We
will be the premiere mixed martial arts organization in the world,"
WFA CEO Jeremy Lappen confidently relayed to an audience of selected
media in its LA offices. "We are a 'fighters first' organization.
We're going to be building our brand off the fighters themselves,
off their stories, off their personalities, off their unique
backgrounds they bring into play."
To
punctuate Lappen's words, Jackson was asked to unveil a sampling
of the WFA's billboard marketing campaign. Titled "Rampage
Reborn," the ad featured the chain-necklaced former PRIDE
personality Jackson in a menacing pose.
"Ka
Ching," Jackson voice spiked when asked why he chose the
WFA over a handful of rumored offers, which included the UFC...
"The WFA offered me the most money. All of these other so-called
'big companies' deals were lacking, they were kinda small, and
I knew the WFA would promote me the way I wanted to be promoted."
"The
more they take care of me, the more I'll take care of them,"
Jackson continued. "All the years I've been fighting in
these other shows, they've been pretending like they've been
treating me good, but backstage they've been dogging me to my
face."
"They're
a 'fighter first' organization," Lindland concurred. "They're
doing a great job of promoting the fighters, so we're gonna go
out there and provide a great show for the fans."
Lappen,
who has managed Jackson, Randy Couture, Jens Pulver, and Bas
Rutten in the past, refrained from commenting on his new position
with the promotion. Along with Lappen, the WFA's management and
ownership group also includes Las Vegas attorneys Ross Goodman
and Louis Palazzo, and retired businessman William McFarlane.
WFA
"King of the Streets" Announced Line-Up
Quinton
Jackson vs. Matt Lindland
Ricco Rodriguez vs. Ron Waterman
Lyoto Machida vs. Vernon White
Ivan Salaverry vs. Art Santore
Kimo Leopoldo vs TBA
Rob McCullough vs. TBA
Jason Miller vs. TBA
Source: FCF
|
KONDO
OUT OF PRIDE 183-POUND GP
DSE/PRIDE
announced that Yuki Kondo will not be participating in this year's
PRIDE 183-pound Grand Prix, which begins on June 4th.
According
to DSE/PRIDE, doctors did not clear Kondo to fight on the card
due to the knockout he suffered against Phil Baroni.
Source: Fight Sport
|
Quote
of the Day
"In
life you can never be too kind or too fair; everyone you meet
is carrying a heavy load. When you go through your day expressing
kindness and courtesy to all you meet, you leave behind a feeling
of warmth and good cheer, and you help alleviate the burdens
everyone is struggling with."
Brian Tracy, American Trainer/Speaker/Author
|
Ron
Jhun Fights For Shooto Pac-Rim Title!
PUNISHMENT IN PARADISE: EAST vs. WEST 3
JULY 21, 2006@ Dole Cannery
Ron
Jhun in Dream Fight!
To
some fighters they have a goal a dream in were they want to be
one day. Hawaii’s own Ron ‘Machine Gun” Jhun dream
has come to reality. After fighting the BEST out their in his
weight class and showing the HEART of a WARRIOR. This will be
history in the making an Hawaii base event holding a Shooto Championship.
Ron
Jhun dream was to fight for a Shooto Championship and come July
21, Jhun dream will come reality. Jhun will fight for Shooto
Vacant Pacific Rim Championship against a top ranked Japan fighter.
We
have 10 confirmed fights and closing in on the card so if you
want to get in email me bdkamaka@comcast.net.
Source: Event Promoter
|
POSTAL
CONNECTIONS: MORE PRIDE 183-POUND GP MATCHUPS
By Tape Lord
Hello
my friends, my postal connections in the DSE/PRIDE organization
are telling me that the following matchups will most likely take
place in the PRIDE 183-pound Grand Prix on June 4th:
Murilo
Bustamante vs. Murilo 'Ninja' Rua
Paulo Filho vs. Phil Baroni
Hector Lombard vs. Amar Suloev
Source: Fight Sport
|
Jake
Shields vs. Saulo Ribeiro
Jake Shields will be taking on multiple BJJ World Champion, Saulo
Ribeiro in a submission grappling match scheduled for the 26th
of May. Ribeiro comes in with an impressive grappling record
including a 1st place showing at the ADCC World Submission Wrestling
Championships. In his only competition event ever with the gi,
Shields won the Pan American purple belt championship and has
placed third at the ADCC Championship. His claim to fame however
has been made primarily in the MMA arena where he is one of today's
most accomplished fighters. He is a former Shooto World title
holder and is currently the reigning Rumble on the Rock GP World
Champion. This match up should be one of the best of the evening.
Source: Gracie Fighter
|
K-1
HOLLAND RESULTS
Peter Aerts vs. Ernesto Hoost
K-1
World GP 2006 in Amsterdam
May 13th, 2006
Amsterdam Arena
Amsterdam, Holland
Single
matchups (K-1 rules):
Ernesto Hoost defeats Peter Aerts by majority decision.
Remy Bonjasky defeats Jerome Le Banner by unanimous decision.
Semmy Schilt defeats Lloyd Van Dams by unanimous decision.
Ray Staring defeats Drago by unanimous decision.
Joeri Mes defeats Ramon Dekker by unanimous decision.
Rodney Faverus defeats Jon Delgado by majority decision.
Gokhan Saki defeats Rani Berbachi by unanimous decision.
Morad Deleski defeats Fikri Duabate by TKO, RD 1.
Single
matchups (MMA rules):
Hakeem Goran defeats Dave Darius by armlock, RD 1.
Europe
GP quarterfinals (K-1 rules):
Naoufal 'Iron Leg' defeats Attila Karacs by KO at 2:10, RD 1.
Bjorn Bregy defeats Freddy Kemayo by KO at 1:10, RD 3.
Tatsufumi Tomihira defeats Melvin Manhoef by KO at 2:10, RD 1.
Alexey Ignashov defeats Petr Vondracek by KO at 2:08, RD 2.
Semifinals:
Bjorn Bregy defeats Naoufal 'Iron Leg' by KO at 1:40, RD 2.
Gokhan Saki* defeats Alexey Ignashov by unanimous decision.
Final:
Bjorn Bregy defeats Gokhan Saki by KO at 1:44, RD 1.
*
Injury replacement
Source: Fight Sport
|
For
Immediate Release:
Contact: Greg Kalikas
Gladiators Fighting Series
ProKarateweekly.com
Greg@prokarateweekly.com
330-324-3034
Fight
Nite in the Flats 2 Update
Madigan
to make MMA debut
5/14/06
– Cleveland, OH: The countdown to Fight Nite in the Flats
2 has begun as less then thirty days remain until four new champions
are crowned in Cleveland, Ohio. In addition to what is already
a stellar fight card, the Gladiators Fighting Series announced
this week that kickboxing champion Ryan “The Lion”
Madigan will be making his pro MMA debut on June 10th. Madigan,
who is currently ranked #3 in the world by the IKF and is unbeaten
in two World Combat League appearances, will look to make the
transition to mixed martial arts as a welterweight. “I am
still very focused on my goal of becoming a world kickboxing
champion and excelling in the WCL but having the opportunity
to fight in front of my home fans was something I could not pass
up” said Madigan about his upcoming bout.
Coming
off a first round submission win on May 6th, UFC and Pride veteran
Dan “The Bull” Bobish will look to capture the GFS
Super Heavyweight title when he takes on three hundred pounder
Erik Knox in the night’s main event. Bobish, the former
King of the Cage Super Heavyweight Champion is looking forward
to fighting in Cleveland where he resides and plans on showing
the world that “The Bull is back”!
Cleveland’s
own Jeff Cox, a team mate of Bobish, will enter the cage for
the last time as a fighter when he faces Chris Myers for the
GFS Welterweight Title. Cox, who is coming into his June 10th
bout with a record of 12-3 as a professional has decided to retire
while still on top of his game and turn his attentions to training
the next generation of “Strong Style” fighters.
| |