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(All events on Oahu, unless noted)

2005

3/12/05
The Second Annual Maui Jiu-Jitsu Open
BJJ tournament

(BJJ)
(Maui War Memorial Gym, Wailuku, Hawaii)

2/20/04
Punishment In Paradise 9:
Hawaii vs. Mainland

(MMA, Kickboxing)
(Kapolei H.S. Gym)

2004

12/11/04
Super Brawl
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)

12/10/04
Kickin It Again
(Kickboxing)
(Kapolei HS)

12/4/04
So You Think You Tough 7
(Boxing, MMA)
(Kona Gym, Kona)

Ring of Honor
(MMA, Kickboxing)
(Waimea H.S. Gym, Kauai)

Proving Grounds 3
(MMA)
(Hilo, HI)

12/3/04
Punishment In Paradise 8:
East vs. West

(MMA, Kickboxing)
(Kapolei H.S. Gym)

11/27/04
Grappler's Paradise
(Grappling)
(
Chiefess Kamakahelei Middle School, Kauai)

11/20/04
Rumble On The Rock 5
(MMA)
(Blaisdell Arena)

11/13/04
SUMA 2:
The Battle At The Hyatt

(Kickboxing)
(Hyatt Regency Waikiki Ballroom)

 News & Rumors
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Year 2004

November 2004 Part 2
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November 2004 News Part 2
 

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New Time!

 11/20/04

Quote of the Day

"What would you do if you knew that you could not fail?"

Robert Schuller, 1926-, American Minister (Crystal Cathedral), Author, Social Leade

Rumble on the Rock 6 Press Conference
Ala Moana Shopping Center
Center Stage
By Michael Onzuka
Mike@onzuka.com

The powerhouse organization known as K-1 has teamed up with promoter JD Penn to back Rumble on the Rock 6, ROTR's biggest show to date. Once again, JD puts his famous little brother to work, this time moving up yet another weight class to the 185 lb. division. JD Penn was the man who placed his number one ranked 155 lb brother against then number 2, Takanori Gomi, in this same octagon to determine who was the best at 155 (Everyone knows BJ won). The UFC then matched up the Prodigy against the most devastating force at 170 lbs, Matt Hughes, whom was choked by Penn to claim the number one spot at 170 lbs. This time Rodrigo Gracie, grandson of the one of the two brothers that founded Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, Carlos Gracie, puts his undefeated record on the line as Penn attempts to climb to the top of the 185 lb division. If BJ does succeed tomorrow night and a dominate 185 lb fighter is clearly determined, you can probably bet that may be the next ROTR main event. This would solidify his place in MMA history as the best MMA fighter ever, but first a very talented young fighter with an enormous family history in the fight business wants to de-rail the BJ Penn train. During the press conference, Rodrigo Gracie, showed a lot of class by acknowledging Penn's skills and said that he was looking forward to the fight. BJ, when asked why was he moving up, stated that he would fight anyone at any weight, even a 300 pounder because if he got knocked out, he wouldn't remember it anyway.

This star studded card also features K-1 superstar Carter Williams in an MMA match with the Green Beret Tom Howard. UFC veterans Wes "The Project" Sims faces a lesser known Antoni Hardonk and Hawaii's own Cabbage Correira is locked up in a heated battle with Yoshihiro Nakao. There seems to be a little grudge going on here. Cabbage needs a win badly to get his career back on track as he attempts to raise his stock in the heavyweight division. Rodrigo's second cousin and one of the most successful grapplers of all time, BJJ black belt and Abu Dhabi world champion, Royler Gracie, makes his Hawaii fighting debut after a brutal loss to Genki Sudo in the last K-1 event. Royler thanked K-1 for giving him another opportunity and will face 2000 Sydney Olympian, freestyle wrestler Kazuyuki Miyata who will be making his fighting debut. Dennis "Superman" Hallman jumped in after a number of opponents dropped out for local boy, Ross "Da Boss" Ebanez. Ebanez, who usually fights at 170 agreed to fight at 180 to match Hallman. Hallman stated that he has been working a lot on his upper body Karate which he plans to use tomorrow night and after the fight he will be looking for a lady to practice some lower body Karate. Ex-pro-wrestler, Sean O'Hare had some funky hair and dropped 20 pounds to fight a very small, but rugged Shungo Oyama. The fight of the night may be the first fight were BJ Penn's Kaynan Kaku challenges one the fastest raising fighters at 155, Cesar Gracie's Gil Melendez. Both fighters come in with undefeated records and may possibly make a jump to fight the division's best at 155 in a fight or two.

Ticket sales have been going through the roof and the big screen had to be taken down to add more seats to satisfy the Hawaii fans. Other notables at the press conference were Kid Peligro, Renato Barreto (Royler Black Belt), Claudio Coelho (Royler's boxing coach), Mark "The Hammer" Coleman, newly crowned Pancrase champ, TK Tsuyoshi Kosaka, and Pride veteran Gilbert Yvel. ROTR has brought in Bruce Buffer to announce for the event to solidify that he is the voice of the octagon(s) and Larry Landless to referee. At the end of the press conference, K-1 revealed that the headline fight for the huge end of year show would be none other than Hawaiian Chad "Akebono" Rowen vs Royce Gracie. Both fighters showed mutual respect for each other and Royce even joked that his strategy was to just survive against the mountain of a man, Sumo Yokozuma (or Grand Champion) Akebono. This is one of the biggest weight differential for quite some time with Royce coming in at a lean 185 lbs and Akebono listed at 460 lbs. Yours truly will be doing the color commentary with Ryan Bennett and I will be looking forward to a number of fights on this card as well as the main event. Stay tuned to FCF for the full write up.

Rumble on the Rock 6 Fight Card Tonight!
11/20/04
Neil Blaisdell Arena

Come early because I can guarantee that traffic will be a nightmare because of the large attendence!

Fight Card

BJ Penn (180 lbs) vs Rodrigo Gracie (182 lbs)
Carter Williams (249 lbs) vs Tom Howard (239 lbs)
Royler Gracie (155 lbs) vs Kazuyuki Miyata (150.5 lbs)
Wesley "Cabbage" Correria (268 lbs) vs Yoshihiro Nakao (227 lbs)
Sean O'Hare (245 lbs) vs Shungo Oyama (204.5 lbs)
Juda A'Alona (236.5 lbs) vs Spencer "Aitor" Canup (204.5 lbs)
Mike Malone (214 lbs) vs Kristof Midoux (224 lbs)
Wes Sims (251 lbs) vs Antoni Hardonk (239 lbs)
Ross "Da Boss" Ebanez (178 lbs) vs Dennis Hallman (179 lbs)
Kaynan Kaku (154.5 lbs) vs Gilbert Melendez (154.5 lbs)

 
Rodrigo Gracie vs BJ Penn

 
Tom Howard vs Carter Williams

 
Kazuyuki Miyata vs Royler Gracie

 
Yoshihiro Nakao vs Cabbage Correira

 
Shungo Oyama vs Sean O'Hare

 
Juda A'Alona vs Spencer "Aitor" Canup

 
Kristof Midoux vs Mike Malone

 
Antoni Hardonk vs Wes Sims

 
Dennis Hallman vs Ross Ebanez

 
Akebono Chad Rowen vs Royce Gracie

 
TK Tsuyoshi Kosaka, Gilbert Yvel, & Larry Landless

 
The Press Pit

My apologies to Kaynan Kaku and Gil Melendez. The pictures I took did not come out.

Falaniko Vitale Added to Already Stellar Super Brawl Card!

Hawaiian Sensation Falaniko Vitale will fight Cincanatti's Ron Fields on the December 11, Super Brawl Ultimate card.

Source: Event Promoter

Rumble on the Rock Tonight!
Kid Peligro Jiu-Jitsu News . . .
Rumble on the Rock Edition
by: Kid Peligro / ADCC JJ Editor

Rumble On The Rock Set to Rock Hawaii

The weight in and press conference for ROTR show was held Friday November 19th. ROTR is set to raise their event to a new level and whoever had not realised that by the stature of the names of the fighters in their card, had to see that they were serious when none other than 'The Voice of MMA', Bruce Buffer, entered the conference room to start the weight in meeting.

All the fighters appeared ready to rock, main event stars Rodrigo Gracie weighed in at 182.0 while BJ Penn surprised everyone weighting in at 180.5. The weight in was the first opportunity for some of the fighters to see their opponents up close and from the look of things some fireworks are ready to go of! Cabbage had the day's staredown with his opponent and Rodrigo and BJ exchanged some very intense looks. A couple of hours later at the press conference fighters lined up for the press core, whe aksed by the press core about going up in weight yet once again BJ Penn stated: ' I am ready to fight anyone at any weight! If I get knocked out fighting a 300 pounder it won't matter!'

Then the announcement of the day came, K1 New Year's will feature Royce Gracie v Akebono! Both legendary fighters in their own specialty, their careers exploded at the same time in the early 90's and both professed admiration for each other. When asked about why he would fight someone 2 and a half times his weight Royce quickly responded: 'It is the challenge, I like to have challenges!'

Akebono for his part stated: 'I want to thank K1 for setting this up nad thank Royce for being my opponent. at this point I don't have my strategy down but I have time.'

Tonight in Honololu, the fireworks begin at 7:00 PM local time

Kid Peligro reporting from location:
Hawaii! Objective: covering Rumble on the Rock's greatest card ever.

After arriving in Hawaii on Tuesday Kid was quickly hauled away to for (professional surfer) Andy Iron's rave celebrating his 3rd consecutive World Title. The party, hosted and organized by BJJ Black Kai Garcia, had some of the top surfers and fighters of the island talking story etc. Details of the party remain sketchy, suffice to say it was open bar and open chow but everyone at the party was talking about the upcoming ROTR.

On to the event info:

Earlier in the day Rodrigo Gracie was doing some last minute training adjustments with friend and sparring partner Matt Serra at Jason Izaguirre's Gracie Kailua's Academy. BJ Penn has been preparing for the fighting the Big Island and is due to arrive in Honolulu Thursday night. BJ has been making the rounds promoting his fight in local TV and print, one of his interviews was featured in the sports page of the Islnds paper. ROTR is already a sellout and is showing on Pay-per-view in 6 Countries.

Thursday morning the last of the fighters arrived at the event Hotel and organizers, JD Penn and many of the event sponsors were going full bore to make sure everyone was taken care of. JD and ROTR people want to make sure this is an epic event and that it will project their event to the highest level. Event Sponsor Da Hui, had two of his top guys, Leif and Cliff, in the lobby making sure everyone was feeling welcomed and taking care of any missing details. Da Hui is not only sponsoring the event but also sponsoring 'Local Phenom' BJ Penn.

Terere Update

This past Tuesday, Fernando Terere had his day in court. Terere was sentenced to 2 months in prison for his Federal Offense in relation to the incident on a flight from Miami to Rio. The sentence was considered a victory by Terere´s lawyers and friends and his record for his work with needy communities was a big help and was taken into account by the presiding judge. Terere was given credit for time served and should be released in 2 weeks.

Terere's family and friends want to thank all that supported him throughout this ordeal.

Source: ADCC

Rumble on the Rock 6 - Preview
by James Hirth

Kaynan Kaku vs. Gilbert Melendez

KAKU: Undefeated Hawaiian fighter Kaynan Kaku out of BJ Penn's MMA camp has a record of 5-0. "Da Monsta" (a.k.a. "The Barbarian") Kaku is a four-time ROTR veteran and has beaten solid competition in the form of RITC/KOTC veteran Santino Defranco and KOTC/Superbrawl veteran Harris Sarmiento.

MELENDEZ: Cesar Gracie fighter and WEF Lightweight Champion Gilbert Melendez is 7-0 in MMA and a three-time World Extreme Cagefighting veteran. You can get a look at the colorful lightweight on the Rumble on the Rock 4 DVD on sale here at Sherdog.com. He took the upset victory over Stephen Palling, stopping "Bozo" via strikes from the mount with just a few ticks left in the second round. Gilbert also stopped WEC poster boy Olaf Alfonso with strikes on the ground in the third round to take the lightweight title. His style, much like his look, is somewhat wild but he possesses good takedowns and uses his elbows effectively on the mat.

MY PICK: As the saying goes, "one of the 0's has to go." Both fighters have comparable experience and have faced more seasoned competition that the opponent in front of them, so it may take few rounds to settle this one. Melendez is riding high and I feel he has the edge.

Ross Ebanez vs. Dennis Hallman

EBANEZ: Also fighting out of BJ Penn's MMA camp is Ross Ebanez. Ross "Da Boss" (these guys must all be Chicago Bears fans or something with all "da" monikers) is 6-1 in MMA with his biggest wins coming over Pride veteran Shannon Ritch and Hallman stable-mate Eddy Ellis. Ebanez's only loss came at the hands of then 808 Fight Factory member Nassor Lewis by decision at ROTR 1.

HALLMAN: Newly recognized American Top Team fighter Dennis Hallman is on board as a late replacement for Antonio Inoki fighter Luciano Nogueira. Hallman has an extensive MMA career with a record of 52-9-4 and three UFC appearances. The 1994 Washington state wrestling champion and Ultimate Ring Challenge promoter is a former member of the AMC Pankration camp and originally a student of Matt Hume. "Superman" Hallman has been training with Benji Radach, Aaron Riley, Paul Purcell, Joey Guel and Eddy Ellis as part of the Victory Athletics team and will now help UFC veteran Jeff Monson run the new ATT location in Washington.

Hallman is best known for his pair of impressive submission wins over UFC welterweight champion Matt Hughes. And when Dennis loses, it usually takes one of the best in the division to beat him. The list includes Jens Pulver, Dave Menne, Caol Uno and Frank Trigg (twice). Hallman has scored two submission victories since his UFC loss to Trigg last June.

MY PICK: With Ebanez's penchant for stopping people with strikes and Hallman's ability to pull submissions out of a hat, we could have a scrap worth remembering. Even with the short notice, I have to think Hallman's experience will shine through.

Wes Sims vs. Antoni Hardonk

SIMS: "The Project" Wes Sims attempts to end 2004 on a positive note as he recovers from a four-fight slide. Sims got back on the winning track in September at Extreme Fighting Challenge 9 (just five days after his knockout loss to Ricardeau Francois at the Apex show) by beating Joe Mellotte with strikes.

The Hammer House wrestler trains with Mark Coleman and Kevin Randleman and brings a 7-5 record in MMA. With his four consecutive losses dating back to his DQ loss to Frank Mir at UFC 43, his most recent win prior to the EFC bout dates back to December of 2002. There he won the HOOK'n'SHOOT Absolute Fighting heavyweight championship by defeating UFC veteran Marcus Silveira. Sims has shown some rare skills for a big man, the ability to apply submissions and proven difficult to submit. He also works to finish the bout, having only gone the distance once in his debut against UFC triple-crown winner Dan Severn.

HARDONK: Antoni Hardonk trains in Holland at the Johan Vos Gym with Ernesto Hoost, Jerrel Venetiaan, Ivan Hippolyte and Clyde Petres. Hardonk was an accomplished swimmer in his youth and took up kickboxing and jiu-jitsu at age 16. At 9-3, "The Monk" has a fair amount of MMA experience and has fought for both the RINGS Organization and K-1 MMA.

MY PICK: Hardonk is not as big as Sims (about 6-foot-3 and 235 pounds), but he has the same amount of experience and may be the better overall athlete. Is big Wes back on track or will his bad luck against seemingly overmatched competition continue to haunt him? Sims needs the win. That's why I think he'll find a way to fall to the Dutchman.

Falaniko Vitale vs. Kristof Midoux

VITALE: Falaniko Vitale is a Kaneohe, Hawaii native submission fighter with four years of Brazilian jiu-jitsu training and kickboxing experience. "Niko" played wide receiver at the University of Hawaii and went on to play in the Arena Football League. Before he took up fighting, Falaniko wrestled and took jiu-jitsu from Kelly Matsukawa at the Kaneohe Jiu-Jitsu Klub. He has trained with Ronald Jhun and the Jesus is Lord/SWAT team, Joe Silva from Waimanalo Kickboxing and with Egan Inoue at Grappling Unlimited.

With an 18-3 record in MMA, Vitale is a veteran of King of the Cage, Universal Combat Challenge, Rage in the Cage, Warriors Quest, RINGS USA, and a longtime fixture in Superbrawl. The two-time UFC veteran split a pair of bouts with wrestler Matt Lindland and has won three bouts in a row (including a decision win over Dave Menne) since his UFC 45 appearance. Falaniko has stopped Aaron Riley, John Renken and Justin Ellison with strikes and finished Dennis Reed, Sean McCully and Tyrone Roberts by submission.

MIDOUX: "The French Hurricane" Kristof Midoux (a.k.a. "The Phoenix") fights on K-1 fighter Jerome LeBanner's Xtreme Team. He has trained at the Versace Gym with Fofo and with Christian Bruzat in Russian Sambo. Kristof's UCC Team includes Sean Peters, Stephan Potvin, Jonathon Goulet and Yan Pellerin. Midoux had a serious car accident in 2000 after the BJJ Pan-Am Championship. A truck hit him from behind, breaking two bones in his neck and nearly ending his career. He made a miraculous recovery and continues to practice BJJ and Kyokushin Karate. Kristof has trained at the Elite Training Center for many years and competed in Abu Dhabi against UFC veteran Sean Alvarez, losing in the overtime period.

The Frenchman has a 3-4 record in MMA and is a three-time IFC veteran (lost to Travis Fulton by KO) and a veteran of the former UCC, now called TKO (lost to Jeremy Horn by submission). Last year he battled Mirko Filipovic trainer Fabricio Werdum (losing by submission) and most recently fought in the K-1 Dynamite show last New Year's Eve against ROTR 6 card-mate Tom Howard (winning by rear-choke).

MY PICK: This could be one of the more exciting fights of the undercard. Weight may be a factor here as Midoux (who will have LeBanner in his corner) usually fights heavyweight or light heavyweight and the seasoned Vitale is a solid middleweight. "Niko" in Hawaii is usually a sure thing. With Midoux's spotty record, I think Vitale takes it by submission.

Kurt Kipapa vs. Aitor Canup

KIPAPA: Making his MMA debut is Hawaiian Kurt Kipapa, a student of former Sumo Grand Champion Chad "Akebono" Rowan and leader of Team Akebono. "Akebono" will be facing Pride veteran Bob Sapp under MMA rules on the eagerly anticipated K-1 New Year's Eve show. As you can tell from that unwarranted plug, I know very little about Kipapa.

CANUP: Aitor Canup is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu brown belt under Royce Gracie and Muay Thai kickboxer. "Spenser" Canup, an AMMA instructor, fights out of Chapel Hill, North Carolina under Greg Thompson and has a 16-1 record in MMA.

Aitor has fought in the Battle of Seven Hills, Kickfest, Battlejax, The Gauntlet Trials, The Kaizen Challenge and The Dangerzone. He finally made it to a more mainstream show this year, making his King of the Cage debut last February against Jason Keaton at KOTC 34 (and won by rear-choke).

MY PICK: With "Akebono" in his corner, Kipapa should have more confidence in his first time out but can he compete with far more experienced Canup? I don't think so. He's a Gracie disciple with Muay Thai skills. That's a lot to ask in your first go.

Sean O'Haire vs. Shungo Oyama

O'HAIRE: Former WWE/WCW and current UPW professional wrestler Sean O'Haire is 6-foot-6 and 275 pounds. He has an extensive martial arts background, having trained karate with Jerry Mills, Muay Thai with Philip Nurse, kung fu with Tim Quickmeier and submission grappling with Rick Davis. O'Haire is part of the Valor Fighting camp of pro wrestlers who actually fight for real. Teamed with Eddy Millis and the Shark Tank, O'Haire along with fellow wrestlers Tom Howard, Stefan Gamlin, Sylvester Terkay, Nathan Jones and others are fighting under the Valor banner as part of Team UPW.

Sean carries a 9-0 record in MMA (I've seen it reported as high as 17-0 but that's unsubstantiated) and a 10-0 record in kickboxing. The bouts have been in small underground shows in Florida and North Carolina but now he is set to follow Howard, Gamlin and Terkay and make his big-time debut on a K-1 card.

OYAMA: Shungo Oyama is a sambo and judo stylist who trains out of Hiranaka's Gym in Okinawa Japan. He is the winner of the 2000 All Japan Amateur Shooto light-heavyweight championship and the 2000 All Japan Sambo Championship. He has represented Takada Dojo and worked out with Hidehiko Yoshida, Tsuyoshi Kohsaka and Hirotaka Yokoi.

No one will ever say "that Oyama, all he ever does is take easy fights." In the past three years he has faced Dan Henderson, Wanderlei Silva, Mirko Filipovic, Renzo Gracie, Ryan Gracie, Wallid Ismael and undefeated UFC veteran Philip Miller. The tragedy is he started out strong and could've been huge with the proper management. Shungo debuted in MMA in the U.S. at King of the Cage 7 with a knockout victory over Pride competitor Mike Bourke. He has always shown a lot of toughness but his main weakness appears to be his inability to say "no" to anyone. At 2-6, his best bouts may be behind him, but no opponent will ever forget they fought him.

MY PICK: This one will fall along the lines of Sapp-Nogueira, Schilt-Kondo and Silva-Herring. All of those bouts were competitive, if just for a moment or two. If O'Haire is a big man who can actually move, K-1 has struck gold. If he's all hype, Oyama will bag himself a pro wrestler. I have to think O'Haire knows what he's doing so I think he'll stop Oyama with a slam and follow up good ol' traditional ground-and-pound.

Wesley Correira vs. Yoshihiro Nakao

CORREIRA: Wesley Correira is 20-6 in MMA and an islander who went through the local tough guys easily. From 2000 to 2002, he was a regular on SuperBrawl cards and has gone back to fight there on occasion as well as appearing on the ROTR 1,3 and 5 cards. Correira is known for his huge rock-hard head and possesses ultra-fast hands for a big man.

He has stopped Aaron Brink, Travis Wiuff, Kauai Kupihea and Joe Riggs with strikes and took Justin Eilers the distance in a war. He was submitted early in his career by both Eric Pele and Travis Fulton. "Cabbage" had an impressive UFC debut, even in defeat, against Tim Sylvia and scored back-to-back wins over Sean Alvarez and David Abbott before being dropped by Andrei Arlovski in a last-minute match-up. His last bout, a loss to Pride (and almost UFC) veteran John Marsh at ROTR 3, went the distance and had many feeling Correira was out of shape.

NAKAO: Yoshihiro Nakao is the 2001 and 2002 Emperor's Cup All Nippon Freestyle Wrestling Champion for the 97-kilogram division. Nakao was also the Meiji Dairies Cup All Nippon Freestyle Wrestling Champion of the 97-kg division in 2002 and in the 96-kg division in 2003. He was a tentative 2003 World Championships of Freestyle Wrestling entry and was showcased at a Shin Takanawa press conference (lifting up the K-1 event producer to show his "power") as a new force in sport fighting.

In Nakao's MMA debut, he battled Barcelona Olympics Judo Gold Medallist David Khakhaleishvili in the K-1 New Years Eve show. The judo champion showed some striking ability on the feet early in the fight but when Nakao grounded him with a single-leg takedown he was able to finish him with strikes on the mat. He returned to face Don Frye at the K-1 Romanex show in May of this year. The bout was stopped when the fighters cracked heads, opening a large cut on Frye's forehead and calling a halt to the bout in the first round.

MY PICK: Nakao may be tough but I doubt he can hang with "Cabbage," especially fighting on his home turf where the crowd will pump him up. This fight is about redemption and getting back on track for a title. Correira will stop him with strikes.

Royler Gracie vs. Yoshihiro Nakao

GRACIE: Royler Gracie, the 5-foot-8 150-pound brother of UFC champion Royce, is the five-time BJJ World Champion and five-time Abu Dhabi Submission Wrestling World Champion. Gracie, a 6th Degree black belt, began training the family style when he was 3 and has won grappling titles since the age of 7. He began fighting MMA in 1996 and fought twice beating Ivan Lee and Noboru Asahi. His Pride bout was against Takada Dojo's Yuhi Sano (who is 0-4 in MMA) and he submitted the Japanese wrestler via armbar after more than half an hour of combat. It would be Royler's last win in MMA as he went on to face Kazushi Sakuraba at Pride 8 in a bout rife with controversy. Gracie never tapped to the shoulder lock submission but the referee gave Sak the victory. Royler had a draw in DEEP with shootboxer Takehiro Murahama and was knocked out by Japanese superstar Genki Sudo at the K-1 Romanex show last May.

In addition to his professional fighting career, Royler is also known for his hotel brawl with Luta Livre fighter Eugenio Tadeu (who was scheduled to meet Ralph Gracie in Extreme Fighting years ago). Royler had been working boxing with Claudio Coelho and sharpening his ground game with BJJ black belt Vinicius Aieda. He represents Gracie Humaita and brings a MMA record of 3-2-1.

MIYATA: Kazuyuki Miyata is a wrestler who represented Japan in the Sydney Olympics (Matt Lindland, Heath Sims, Alexandre Karelin, Rulon Gardner and Ibragim Magomedov all wrestled there). He is rumored to have a 7-1-4 record in MMA and will be making his professional debut at ROTR 6. The word on Miyata is that he is a solid grappler with explosive hands.

MY PICK: Royler has not been one of the more dominating Gracies in the fight game. He has not won an MMA fight since '98 and is 0-2-1 in his last three outings so it is no sure thing. However, Miyata couldn't help but be somewhat intimidated facing a Gracie. Royler got caught by one of the best at his weight when he fought Sudo. He has been training consistently so he should be able to take out Miyata or at 39, this may be the last time we see him in the ring.

Carter Williams vs. Tom Howard

WILLIAMS: Carter Williams won the K-1 World GP 2003 championship in Las Vegas defeating Michael McDonald, Yusuke Fujimoto and Rick Roufus. He has also faced Alexey Ignashov, Ray Sefo, Dewey Cooper and Mighty Mo (from the same Shark Tank as Howard). Williams carries a 36-9 record in kickboxing and was both the W.K.A. North American super-heavyweight champion and the I.K.F. US Amateur super-heavyweight Muay Thai champion. He is 2-1 in MMA and fights for Team Voo Doo.

Carter won his MMA debut in 2002 by submission defeating Gary Marshall at IFC 17. He followed it by competing in the Gladiator Challenge 13 eight-man tournament where he beat Dan Quinn with strikes in the quarterfinals and lost to tournament champion Jamie Jara in the semifinals.

HOWARD: Pro-wrestler Tom Howard is the former UPW heavyweight champion and former NWA Intercontinental Tag Team champion as well as competing for both the Zero One and WWE promotions. These things mean very little in the sport of MMA. However Howard, known as "The Green Beret,", is 6-foot-4 and 260 pound, and has an extensive martial arts background. Tom studied Russian Sambo and Korean Hwa Rang Do as well as both freestyle and Greco-Roman wrestling. In 1996, Howard began training MMA with Gokor Chivichyan and Gene LeBell and in 1998 he started the Ultimate Pro Wrestling/Ultimate University program with Rick Bassman (Extreme University) and began training with Mark Kerr, Mark Coleman, Oleg Taktarov and Kimo Leopoldo.

He is currently part of the Valor Fighting camp of pro-wrestlers along with Sylvester Terkay, Stefan Gamlin, Sean O'Haire and Nathan Jones as part of Team UPW. They train with Eddy Millis and the Shark Tank and many of them have already competed in MMA bouts in K-1 events. Howard made his MMA debut in the K-1 Dynamite 2003 event last New Year's Eve against ROTR card-mate Kristof Midoux and lost by rear-choke. He returned to the K-1 Romanex show to battle Serjubee Dolgorsuren "The Blue Wolf," but again came up short, falling to strikes late in the second round.

MY PICK: This could be another exciting match-up. Howard has all the credentials and has trained with the right people to be a solid heavyweight, but he has not been able to put it together in the ring yet. Williams is a little smaller (about 6-foot-2 and 245 pounds) but he has a ton of kickboxing experience compared to Howard's pro wrestling experience. The ground should tell it all here. Has Williams worked on his ground game and takedown counters? Has Howard developed ground skills and will he be able to keep the kickboxer on the mat? I feel Williams stays on his feet and does his damage standing for the win.

BJ Penn vs. Rodrigo Gracie

PENN: Hawaiian born BJ Penn is a Brazilian jiu-jitsu black belt and trains with the UFC veterans Wesley Correira, Renato Verissimo and other ROTR fighters as part of BJ Penn's MMA team. He was given his black belt by Andre Pederneiras and was the first American to compete at the black belt level in Brazil and win the World Championships. He began training in Tae Kwon Do and boxing-style sparring but his TKD teacher pushed him in the direction of Ralph Gracie. He trained with Ralph and continued to train in Hawaii with "Charuto" Verissimo.

Penn debuted in a preliminary bout at UFC 31 against Chicago fighter Joey Gilbert. BJ dismantled him and the footage of him sitting in rear mount pounding Gilbert is shown on every highlight of Penn's UFC career. BJ caught Din Thomas with a knee flush on the chin in the first round and his most impressive achievement at the time was his 11-second knockout of top contender Caol Uno. Penn battled with Jens Pulver and the two battled for five rounds with the decision going to Pulver. BJ beat Renzo Gracie product Paul Creighton with strikes and then took a decision from (Rodrigo Gracie training partner) Matt Serra. He took Caol Uno to a draw in a rematch and them submitted the top Shooto fighter in the world, Takanori Gomi, at ROTR 4. The bout showed the old BJ was back and he followed it up by taking Matt Hughes' welterweight title at UFC 46 and choked out Duane Ludwig in the K-1 Romanex show last May.

GRACIE: Rodrigo Gracie trains with his cousin Renzo Gracie and his team of fighters including Ricardo Almeida, Matt Serra and Nick Serra in New York as well as Ricardo "Cachorrao" and Mark Colangelo. He was born in Rio de Janeiro Brazil and is the son of Reylson Gracie and grandson of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu founder Carlos Gracie. He is a four-time NAGA champion and has tapped out "The Prince of Leg Locks" Robert Ferguson. Before moving to the U.S., Rodrigo trained for many years under his father and earned his black belt at 18.

Gracie attended the first Abu Dhabi World Submission Wrestling Championships in 1998 and won the 77-87-kilogram division that year by winning three bouts. He faced UFC and Pancrase veteran Adrian Serrano in the opening round and choked him out. Gracie advanced to face former UFC welterweight champion Carlos Newton and won their match on points. In the final he faced Warrior's War and European Cagefighting veteran Kareem Barklaev and won their half-hour encounter.

He was back in Abu Dhabi in 2001. In his opening match he beat UFC and Pancrase veteran Genki Sudo on points and Australian submission wrestler Galvin Kupler in the quarterfinals. Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner and eventual divisional title winner Marco Feitosa Souza beat Rodrigo on points to advance to the semifinals. Gracie fought for third place against Leonardo Silva Dos Santos but again lost on points.

Gracie is 5-0 in MMA and all but one of his wins came against Japanese opponents. He debuted in Pride 19 submitting Daijiro Matsui and had fought exclusively for the PFC prior to this bout. He has fought three quality fighters in the form of Yuki Sasaki, Daiju Takase and Hayato Sakurai and went the distance with all of them.

MY PICK: I'd be hard pressed to pick against Penn in his own promotion, right? The fact is I really think he'll win. Gracie is good, no doubt about it, but he hasn't fought an aggressive accomplished grappler like Penn before. Sakurai was his biggest competition to date, but Hayato now and Hayato two years ago are not the same thing. Penn, in Hawaii in front of all his crew, will be electric and nearly impossible to contain. I see BJ submitting Rodrigo and setting up the showdown with former mentor Ralph Gracie.

Source: Sherdog

ADCC Brazil announces trial's fighters

The ADCC organization has announced four athletes, per category, which will join the final phase with invitation. All disputes will be held on December 4 and 5, at Ibirapuera gymnasium, in São Paulo. The athletes bellow will join to the four finalists of the first phase of the trial, held on November 27 and 28, in Campos dos Goytacazes (RJ). Tickets are available R$20 (general admission) and R$30 (special chair). For ticket information call Corporis academy at (55-11) 6914-7276) or Kickboxing Brazilian Confederation at (55-11) 6914-3796).

Confirmed athletes:

Under 66 kg
-Wagney Fabiano;
- Rani Yarhya;
- Fábio Mello;
- Rodrigo Damm;

Under 77 kg
- Daniel Moraes;
- Júnior Buscapé;
- Fabrício Morango;
- Lucas Leite;

Under 88 kg
- Fernando Margarida;
- Rodrigo Comprido;
- Jorge Patino Macaco;
- TBA

Under 99 kg
- Fabiano Capoani;
- Roger Gracie;
- Rubens Macula;
- TBA

Over 99 kg
- Carlão Barreto
- Alex Paez
- Leonardo Leite
- Gabriel Napão

Source: Tatame

LARRY HOLMES: 'SHAMROCK WOULDN'T HAVE A CHANCE AGAINST MY JAB'

Heavyweight boxing icon and former world champion Larry Holmes regularly answers questions from fans on his messageboard on LarryHolmes.com, and had some interesting replies when asked about how he'd do against MMA fighters. Here's what Holmes had to say:

Larry Holmes on fighting a grappler: To fight a wrestler type you have to throw jab combinations and right hooks to the body. The body shots will stop the guy.

Larry Holmes when asked how he'd do against a grappler such as Ken Shamrock: If I ever get the chance to fight Ken Shamrock I would jab and move. Shamrock would not have a chance against my jab. I would make him move around and throw jabs and right hands for a few rounds until I stop him in the 8th round. I haven't seen Ken too much, but I do know he can't handle my jab and right hand.

Larry Holmes on how he'd do against Bob Sapp: I would kick Sapp's butt. He is big but can't fight. Sapp won't fight me because he knows my jab and right hand will stop him.

Source: Fight Sport

Fernando Tererê is on the way home

News about Tererê's case points that BJJ world champion Fernando Tererê may be back to Brazil in the end of November. During an audience held two days ago, in US, American Justice decided to deport Tererê. The decision was celebrated by the defense.

On the next days, Tererê, who is at FBI Detention Center, in Miami, will be conducted to emigration and return process may take 10 to 2 months long. However his return has been expected by TT leader's family. 'I am very excited about his return and I don't even know what will be my reaction when I see him for the first time. I am definitely hugging him and supporting him... we gonna talk. The attorney said to me he might be home in two weeks. It was a final decision. My son is free,' celebrated Dona Helena, Tererê's mother.

Tererê was arrested last October 10 during a United Airlines' flight on the way to Brazil because he was involved in an altercation on board. Known as a national fight idol in Brazil and a peace defender, Tererê is responsible for many social projects held into poor communities in Rio de Janeiro. He had never got into trouble and his resume is fulfilled by victories, in life and on the mat. Team TATAME solidarities with his personal drama and keep tuned at TATAME.com to know more about his case.

Source: Tatame

JAKE R REPORT: BARONI VS. LAWLER AT UFC 51

Longterm and reliable sources in Iowa have informed this cyber reporter that Phil Baroni and Robbie Lawler will be squaring off at UFC 51. As my sourceexplained to me, Dana White is a big fan of both fighters and wants to see one of them get back on a winning streak. I was also told that whoever wins this matchup will be given a push by Zuffa for a later Middleweight title shot, provided he can win one or two more fights.

As usual, stick to the Jake R Report, where all the news that is fit to scoop is printed.

Source: Fight Sport

 11/19/04

Quote of the Day

"One cool judgment is worth a dozen hasty councils. The thing to do is to supply light and not heat."
Woodrow Wilson (1856-1924), 1856-1924, Twenty-eighth President of the USA

Rumble on the Rock Weigh-ins and Press Conference
Today!
November 20, 2004
Neal Blaisdell Arena
Fights start at 7:30 PM

The official
weigh-ins will be held at Rumors Night Club from 12:30 -3:00 with the press conference to follow from 4:00-6:00 at Ala Moana Center Stage. This is a great opportunity to meet the big name fighters that will be on this card including:

Hawaii's own
BJ Penn, currently the best pound for pound MMA fighter on the planet and BJJ Black Belt World Champion

One of the most decorated and successful grapplers of all time, Abu Dhabi and World Black Belt Jiu-Jitsu Champion, Royler Gracie

Undefeated Pride and K-1 fighter, Rodrigo Gracie

K-1 fighter Carter Williams

WWE wrestler and MMA fighter, Sean O'Hare

The monster of a man, Wes "The Project" Sims

The only man, other than BJ, to submit Matt Hughes, Dennis Hallman
(he is the only man who did it twice)

Top local fighters Ross "Da Boss" Ebanez and Kaynan Kaku


Tentative Fight Card

BJ Penn vs Rodrigo Gracie

Carter Williams vs Tom Howard

Royler Gracie vs Kazuyuki Miyata

Cabbage Correria vs Yoshihiro Nakao

Sean O'Hare vs Shungo Oyama

Kirk Kipapa vs Spencer Canup

Falaniko Vitale vs Kristof Midoux

Wes Sims vs Anthony Hardonk

Ross Ebanez vs Dennis Hallman

Kaynan Kaku vs Gilbert Melendez

TITO ORTIZ TO FIGHT VITOR BELFORT IN MAIN EVENT OF UFC 51: SUPER SATURDAY, ON FEB. 5

Tickets Go On Sale at 10 a.m., Friday, Nov. 19, For 8-Fight, All-Star Card at Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas

LAS VEGAS -- In a fight many Ultimate Fighting Championship® fans have waited more than three years to see, “The Huntington Beach Bad Boy” Tito Ortiz will step into the Octagon Feb. 5, 2005 at the Mandalay Bay Resort & Casino Events Center to fight Brazilian star Vitor “The Phenom” Belfort in the main event of UFCâ 51: Super Saturday. Tickets for the all-star fight card go on sale at 10 a.m. (PST) Friday, Nov. 19, at the Mandalay Bay Box Office (877-632-7400) in Las Vegas, at all Ticketmaster locations, and on the internet at www.ticketmaster.com and www.mandalaybay.com.

Tickets for this event are priced at $350, $250, $150, $75 and $35. To order tickets by telephone call 877-880-0880 or 702-891-7777. Ticket purchases are subject to transaction fees. UFCâ 51: Super Saturday will be available LIVE on pay-per-view at 10 p.m. EST on iNDemand, DirecTV, Dish Network, TVN, Bell ExpressVu and Viewers Choice Canada. The suggested retail price is $29.95.

Ortiz (12-4-0 in mixed martial arts) from Huntington Beach, Ca., is determined to defeat Belfort (12-4-0) from Sao Paulo, Brazil, in a bout that should have taken place more than three years ago – on Sept. 28, 2001 at the same venue, the Mandalay Bay Events Center.

Ortiz-Belfort was set to be the main event of UFC 33: Victory in Vegas, but had to be canceled two weeks prior to fight night when Belfort sustained a serious right elbow injury while training. Vladimir Matyushenko, a tough competitor, stepped in on short notice to replace Belfort, but Ortiz was too strong and retained the UFC World Light Heavyweight Championship by judge’s decision. Ortiz later lost the title to Randy “The Natural” Couture at UFC 44: Undisputed.
In the meantime, Belfort recovered from his injury and went on to defeat Couture to win the championship belt at UFC 46: Super Natural. Belfort caught Couture with a glancing left hook in the first 30 seconds of the fight that opened a deep cut under Couture’s left eye. As the fighters clinched, referee John McCarthy stopped the fight at the :48 mark so Nevada State Athletic Commission doctors could check the cut. Couture suffered a corneal abrasion that impaired his vision and NSAC doctors advised that Couture could not continue.

Couture’s eye injury healed and he returned to recapture the championship belt from Belfort at UFC 49: Unfinished Business.

Each fighter now hopes to improve his future by winning this big match from the past -- one that fans have talked about, dreamed about, and hoped would take place ever since its disappointing cancellation. It has been three-plus years in the making, but it is here now. Both fighters are already promising a swift and decisive victory, and fans are anxiously waiting to see this dream match-up take place.

The remaining all-star bouts of UFC 51: Super Saturday will be announced in the coming weeks.

Look for UFC’s reality television show The Ultimate Fighter to premier Jan. 17 on Spike TV. Follow 16 fighters each Monday night for 13 exciting episodes as they train, workout and live together. At the end of each week, one fighter from each of the two teams must fight in the Octagon® to avoid being kicked out of the UFC Training Center™ until only two remain in each of the two weight divisions. In the end, The Ultimate Fighter™ will be decided by a competition match -- a head-to-head fight to the finish inside the Octagon.

The Ultimate Fighting Championship, based in Las Vegas, Nev., is the world’s premier mixed martial arts sports association. Owned and operated by Zuffa, LLC, the UFC programs six live pay-per-view events yearly through cable and satellite providers. In addition, UFC programs are distributed on iNDemand, DirecTV, Dish Network, TVN, Fox Sports Net, Bell ExpressVu and internationally through Viewers Choice Canada, WOWOW, Inc., in Japan and Globosat in Brazil.

Zuffa, LLC, licenses the distribution of UFC video games through Crave Entertainment and Take Two TDK Mediactive, its fight show DVDs through Studioworks Entertainment, a Ventura Distribution company and its music CDs are published by Nitrus Records/DRT Entertainment, the official publisher of UFC music. “Ultimate Fighting Championship,” “Ultimate Fighting,” “UFC,” “Submission,” “As Real As It Gets” and the Octagon cage design are registered trademarks or trademarks owned exclusively by Zuffa, LLC, in the U.S., Japan and other jurisdictions. All other marks that may be referenced herein belong to their respective holders.

Locate the UFC on the internet at http://www.ufc.tv.

Source: ADCC

Preview -
JAPAN's NEW YEAR's EVE SHOWS HEATING UP!

Saitama Super Arena 'Man Festival 2'
December 31st, 2004

NOTE: The source of some of this data is http://www.puroresupower.com/ a phenomenal site featuring Zach Arnold, with an intense focus on the Japanese MMA and pro wrestling scene.

PRIDE has announced several matches for their upcoming New Year's Eve event. This line-up doesn't include Japanese stars Sanae Kikuta, Yuki Kondo, and Yoshiki Takahashi, all who are rumored to be entertaining offers.

Speculative Lineup (Subject To Change):

- Dokonjonosuke Mishima vs. Jens Pulver
- Dan Henderson vs. Antonio Rogerio Nogueira
- Takanori Gomi vs. Luis Buscape
- Takashi Sugiura vs. Giant Silva
- Naoya Ogawa vs. Sentoryu (Henry Miller)
- Kazushi Sakuraba vs. Kiyoshi Tamura
- Vanderlei Silva vs. TBA (Kosei Inoue or Keiji Suzuki - Judo stars)
- Mirko Cro Cop vs. Mark Hunt
- Hidehiko Yoshida vs. Rulon Gardner

PRIDE GP 2004 Championship & PRIDE Heavyweight Title Match:
- Emelianenko Fedor vs. Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira

Meanwhile, the Japanese scene braces itself for K-1 and Antonio Inoki's event, Inoki Bom-Ba-Ye 2004, which will be running on New Year's eve as well. On November 13th, Inoki made an appearance at a Japanese pro wrestling event to begin promotion for the card - Akebono, Bobby Orogon, and Yoshihiro Akiyama were accompanying Inoki, and Naoya Ogawa participated in the pro wrestling Main Event. There is also speculation that 5-0 star Lyoto Machida, who has been absent from action since May of 2004, will return for the New year's eve event. At the 2003 event, Machida defeated highly regarded Rich Franklin.

There are also beginning to be rumors about 'headhunting', as Inoki is said to have a lot of money to put this event together, and he is looking to procure talent. Heath Herring, a 17-yime PRIDE veteran who is said to be contractless with PRIDE right now, may be first on the list to sign.

Source: ADCC

BRUCE BUFFER IS SET TO 'RUMBLE ON THE ROCK'

The 'Voice of MMA' is off to Hawaii to announce the 'Rumble on the Rock' Saturday night Nov. 20th at the Neil Blaisdell Center in Honolulu. With an exciting card featuring BJ Penn squaring off against Rodrigo Gracie, who will be going for his sixth straight win, Bruce Buffer has accepted the call to make the call.

'The 'Rumble on the Rock' card is action packed with excellent match-ups and of course I am going to be a huge MMA fan sitting ringside watching BJ Penn and Rodrigo Gracie go for it all. This is going to be a combination of work and pleasure for me both as an MMA fan and as a surfer. I will be working and doing what I love at night in the fighting arena, but be assured I will also head up to the North Shore for some classic Hawaiian surf during the day.' states Bruce Buffer.

Source: ADCC

King Of the Cage
Results


San Jacinto, CA -- The evening of November 14th turned into a long one at King Of The Cage's debut at sixty million households for their pay-per-view broadcasts. For almost six hours most of the biggest names in the current KOTC stable fought for a range of career goals, most notably the five titles on the line. For some of the fighters it was enough to be on pay-per-view in what is said to be literally every household in the United States while for others it was a significant turning point, such as for KOTC hype machine Krazy Horse, AKA Charles Bennett. Benett was the largest of the non-title fights and he showed improved work on the ground if a more cautious approach but after slamming has way out of two submission attempts the third time Dave Hisquierdo got the triangle from the top position to finish the fight and possibly Krazy Horse's dreams of international stardom for now.

The title fights had some changes along the way with defending champion Eric Pele dropping off the card leaving opponent "Scary" Jerry Vrbanovic to fight Kadillac Marshbanks for a superfight belt as opposed to the original Unlimited belt. Vrbanovic also looked improved on the ground and much of his spare tire from last year seems to have been sculpted into upper-body muscle since his losses to Mike Kyle and Ron Waterman. Marshbanks won the majority decision largely due to impressive takedowns and damage from strikes on the ground.

Paul Buentello returned to KOTC to defend his Heavyweight title for the first time. Not much can be said about his 0:45 TKO over Bo Cantrell other than they went toe to toe standing and Buentello got the better of Cantrell.

Uriah Faber, the Gladiator Challenge Bantamweight Champion, took the vacated KOTC belt in an exciting defeat over Eban Kaneshiro. Uriah is known as a headhunter on the ground that critical fans say isn't known for controlling the positions before unleashing barrages of strikes while fans that praise Uriah view it as Uriah strikes before an opponent is used to strikes coming in and from unorthodox angles, resulting in an accumulation of blows that so far have always won him fights.

Takumi/Kohler was one of the most evenly matched fights of the night, with Takumi walking away with the belt in a fight where he for most of the fight controlled the top position on the ground.

The crowd did not like the judges' decision that gave James Fanshier the Welterweight belt over Thomas Denny. Denny controlled the takedowns and James did more damage with strikes in a very close fight but it was probably the dominant first round by Fanshier that won him the fight. As the bell rang Denny was stunned or even knocked out, leading many to jump to the wrong conclusion the fight was over. Denny recovered between rounds and got his gameplan going in the second but that dominant round was probably the edge that won Fanshier the title.

Look for a full report in an upcoming issue of Full Contact Fighter.

Ray Lazama def. Carlos Jimenez 4:31 R1 by choke
Mike Guymon def. Joe Frainee 2:22 R1 by TKO
Russ Muira def. Abe Hiroyuki 2:29 R1 by disqualification (knees to head)
Randy Velarde def. Robert Emerson by majority decision (2 rounds)
Shonie Carter def. John Cronk 5:00 by TKO (doctor stoppage between rounds)
Anthony Ruiz def. Brian Sesma 5:00 R1 (doctor stoppage between rounds)
Cal Worsham def. Will Scott 0:52 R1 by TKO
Dave Hisquierdo def. Charles "Krazy Horse" Bennett 1:56 R2 by triangle choke
Kadillac Marshbanks def. "Scary" Jerry Vrbanovic by majority decision (3 rounds)
Marshbanks is new KOTC Unlimited Superfight Champion
Uriah Faber def.
Eban Kaneshiro 4:33 R3 by TKO
Faber is new KOTC Bantamweight Champion
Takumi Nakayama def. Charlie Kohler 2:36 R2 by TKO
Takumi is new KOTC Lightweight Champion
James Fanshier def. Thomas Denny by split decision
Fanshie is new KOTC Welterweight Champion
Paul Buentello def. Bo Cantrell 0:45 R1 by TKO
Buentello retains KOTC Heavyweight belt
Frankie Bollinger def. Billy Thompson 1:47 R1 by submission to strikes
Fernando Gonzalez def. Reggie Orr 2:38 R1 by verbal submission (toe dislocation)
Robert Breslin def. Frank Guerrero 4:17 R1 by rear choke
Sost Infante def. Jose Ramirez 0:28 R2 by TKO (doctor stoppage)
Jeff Clark def. Tony Llamas 0:45 R1 by submission
Alex Rickards def. Paul Karsky 3:42 R1 by submission

Source: FCF

'CRO COP' VS. RANDLEMAN POSSIBILITY

Mirko "Cro Cop" Filipovic

The Japanese media is reporting that a Mirko 'Cro Cop' Filipovic vs. Kevin Randleman matchup may now be taking place on the PRIDE card on December 31st.

Source: Fight Sport

A MESSAGE FROM PRIDE

PRIDE president Sakakibara spoke with the Japanese media and had the following statement to say regarding their show on December 31st:

"I think the fighters that fight today understand the style of fighting that we are looking for. PRIDE fighters live for fighting. They need to fight. I think that was what motivated them to give us these great matches.

I'd like to set up a rematch between Josh (Barnett) and Mirko (Filipovic) as soon as possible but that will depend on Josh's shoulder and the will of the two fighters. If they are in shape to do it, New Year's Eve would be fine.

DSE is proud to have (Vanderlei) Silva as our Champion and we want to show our respect for him. Those at the top often lose their motivation but, even now, he stoically continues to become stronger. Because Silva is that kind of guy, he doesn't want to have an easy match on New Year's Eve. He himself said that he wants 'to fight a heavyweight', so it may be a heavyweight that he fights.

I would like to see UFC fighters participate in next year's Middleweight Grand Prix. Last year, Chuck Liddell participated. Next time, I hope that Randy Couture, Vitor Belfort and Tito Ortiz will participate. We plan on beginning negotiations with the UFC from tomorrow.

I believe that (Rulon) Gardner will train under Dan Henderson and be in shape by the day of the fight. I'm sure he has a lot of strength when grappling and there are many dangers for (Hidehiko) Yoshida if the fight goes to the ground.

I'm not really considering (Naoya) Ogawa for the New Year's Eve show, as he is quite busy with the HUSTLE promotion.

Nobuyuki Sakakibara
DSE President

Source: Fight Sport

Kimbo Slice vs. Sean Gannon Fight Tidbits

This illegal fight has garnered a lot of attention, so we thought this would be of interest to read.


This is reportedly from Sean Gannon from Sherdog's forum:

hi everybody, i'm just got back from the hospital, was reading the threads, am touched by the support i've gotten from so many people.

would like to clarify a few points - i don't like being accused of being a cheater, especially by people who don't have a clue what the rules actually were. we originally wanted a no rules match, but kimbos people demanded special rules to protect their fighter. we wrote a (very) short list of rules and both parties signed off on it prior to the fight. they asked for no groundwork and this was agreed to. we never agreed to no submissions, and we can't be held responsible if his team was so ignorant of our sport that they didn't realize you could do submissions standing. same with knees. they asked for no kicks and we agreed. kicks were clearly defined as "striking with any part of the shin or foot". knee strikes were completely legal. i followed the rules to the letter, but kimbos team violated them repeatedly.

the rules were signed by both parties prior to fight time. our team was completely aware of the rules, and all the chaos stemmed from a lack of real fight experience on his team. it was like when tyson had his buddies work his corner in the buster douglas fight, and they didn't even bring an endswell. kimbo is tremendous competitior and deserved better.

i don't know if his medical insurance is as good as mine, and i wrote to iceberg about setting up a fund to help him if he needs it. if he isn't hurt, he still deserves some bread for being such a warrior and having a tremendous heart. anyone who was entertained by the fight should kick him a little something, he earned it.

And again, thank you for your support.

Source: Sherdog

CAGEFIGHTER'S CORNER: GANNON IS A DISGRACE TO CAGE FIGHTERS!
By the Predator

What Sean Gannon did was both illegal, immoral, and highly dangerous. He shamed the honorable profession of cagefighting like no one else possibly could. His actions could end up banning MMA in several states, possibly everywhere if enough media figures get a hold of it.

I would also like to get Gannon to Arizona and into the cage to teach him a lesson in respect, but only if it is a legal, sanctioned sporting event, not some slugfest illegal streetbrawl with questionable characters sitting ringside. I speak for cagefighters nationwide when I say we need to rid this sport of all the bad apples who hurt its image, and Gannon is definitely one of them.

GROSSMAN INSIDER: REVIEW OF KIMBO VS. GANNON
By Josh Grossman

LOL at this so called 'win' for Mr. Gannon. He cheated at least 4 times according the rules that were put in place. He did manage to rock Kimbo early with a punch but other than that he was getting beaten like a drum for the legal portion of the fight.

The 2 guillotine holds won the fight for him in my opinion. Especially the second one which seemed to take Kimbo's energy completely away. I also found it very amusing to see how much the mma.tv fanboys were lying about this fight. Gannon looked horrible standing up and got drilled constantly by Kimbo's superior technique. Considering that Kimbo has nothing but street training that is hilarious.

Gannon has professional training at an NHB gym and with the police force. He is also supposedly a several times Golden Gloves Champion in his state. Yet his head looked worse than Enson Inoue's did after his fight with Igor Vovchanchin.

Gannon may have won this fight with his excess cheating, but he clearly lost the battle. If he had not cheated he would have recieved even worse damage. I hope they have a rematch and the rules are followed. Kimbo clearly showed he could wreck Gannon during the legal portion of this match.

What also impressed me was the fact that the older Kimbo was pushing the taller and bigger man around the mat with ease while they were both fresh. If Kimbo trained even a little for this fight he could possibly kill Gannon in the process of kicking his ass.

Source: Fight Sport

LEBANNER, GOODRIDGE READY FOR K-1 GRAND PRIX

Two-time K-1 “World Grand Prix Finals” runner-up, Jerome LeBanner, and veteran knockout artist, “Big Daddy” Gary Goodridge, will each see action in tournament reserve bouts during Saturday, December 4th’s K-1 World Grand Prix Finals event. LeBanner will face Hiromi Amada while Goodridge will square off with Cyril Abidi during the card that will air live on United States Pay-Per-View television from Tokyo, Japan’s Tokyo Dome.

LeBanner, who reached the championship round of the world’s most esteemed martial arts fighting tournament both in 1995 and 2002, failed to qualify for this year’s eight-man draw when he suffered a defeat at the hands of former world boxing champion, Francois “The White Buffalo” Botha on September 25th. One of seven matchups that awarded each of its winners a spot in the December 4th, single-elimination tournament, the showdown between LeBanner and Botha was a highly competitive one that was ordered into three minutes of overtime “sudden death” after the ringside judges were unable to determine a winner at the close of the three scheduled rounds. After LeBanner declared that he would be unable to answer the bell for the added round due to damage he had suffered to his left arm, the referee awarded Botha the win by way of technical knockout.

Earlier this year, Goodridge, a familiar face to fight fans worldwide, signed a two-year contract with the K-1 organization. The hard-punching brawler from Barrie Ontario, Canada has since made a statement in “The New Fighting Sport” by defeating back-to-back opponents during events in Las Vegas, Nevada. On April 30th, he scored a thunderous first round technical knockout on New Zealand’s “Toa” and, on August 7th, he earned a unanimous judges’ decision over Dewey “The Black Kobra” Cooper.

Goodridge’s opponent, Abidi, is a 28-year-old native of France and a seven-year veteran of the K-1 tournament circuit. His finest year to date as a K-1 competitor came in 2000 when he twice recorded first round technical knockouts on three-time World Grand Prix Finals champion, Peter Aerts.

Should one of the original, eight tournament competitors sustain an injury that prevents him from returning to the ring after claiming victory in a tournament bout, one of the reserve fight winners will take the hurt competitor’s place in the draw.

The live Pay-Per-View television broadcast of the K-1 World Grand Prix Finals event will commence at 12 AM Eastern Standard Time (9 PM Pacific Standard Time) on December 4th.

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

Source: MMA Weekly

Charles Maccarthy - PRIDE Tryouts Bound!

Recently Charles McCarthydefeated UFC vet Keith Rockel by armbar in the second round of their match at AFC 10. We have already heard Charles’ perception of that fight. Now with Charles participating in the Pride auditions in L.A. on Saturday we finish up hearing about the team he fights out of, Freestyle Fighting Academy in Miami, Florida.

KM: You fight out of FFA, Freestyle Fighting Academy. To a lot of people outside Florida can you describe FFA? CM: I think the main reason why people haven’t heard of FFA as far as fighting goes is up until about a year and a half ago NHB fighting was illegal in Florida. It is hard to get an opu-of-state fight when you have never fought before. We have a lot of guys who are ready to beat a lot of top guys, not just in FFA but in Florida in general. We couldn’t get flown out to fight if we didn’t have the record to to show for it. AFC coming down here, that really gave us a venue to display what we got down here in Florida. I think everyone in Florida is showing we have a really good record against good guys.

KM: It seems that American Top Team is still what people think of when they think of Florida fighters, like Miletich Martial Arts in the Iowa area. Now here comes FFA. CM: I think it’s a little bit different than the Miletich situation. American Top Team is a great team and they have given themselves opportunities. Once they have been presented with opportunities they did a good job of seizing them and doing what they need to do to move on. They, more so than Miletich, have to stay sharp to be competitive in Florida because there are so many other good fighters in Florida. I know Miletich, there is nobody around for states that comes close to Miletich’s level.

KM: My perception of Florida right now is the original impressive ATT guys have moved on like Dustin Denes in Shooto, Marcus Aurelio in ZST and Pride, etc. What is coming up now out of ATT in Florida shows is the next wave of ATT fighters taking on like FFA guys and we are seeing what is really going on in Florida. You live there, train there…how accurate is that perception? CM: I don’t think that is going to happen as much to be honest with you. We have a kind of gentleman’s agreement sort of…we’re trying to move Florida up the map and us fighting them (ATT) in our own back yard isn’t doing that. We’re not trying to put ourselves in a position where one of us will succeed and the other will be held back. The fight you saw against Ferreira in King Of The Cage, that was the first and probably only for a long time of FFA vs. ATT.

KM: Should I use the term “working together” or “truce” or something else? CM: They brought this up to us before the KOTC fight after we accepted. They spoke with Marcus Avellan and Mike Cordoso and the guys in charge of FFA. Everyone came to an agreement. It’s a different culture in Brazil as far as vale tudo goes. They don’t fight guys in their back yard because it’s a more personal thing. They felt that grappling events were a much different situation than doing vale tudo against each other. It made a lot of sense and we all agreed to it, in every aspect of it. Just like you said it was that fight that made people realize FFA produces MMA fighters. Until recently you didn’t realize ATT produced MMA fighters until the last year and a half. By not fighting each other in Florida but bringing in good fighters for us both to fight we can both succeed and put ourselves on the path. In that respect it was a good idea and it’s working out for both of us.

KM: Does that mean FFA will move beyond Florida and if so to the same shows as ATT or different ones? CM: We’re trying. I’m taking fights wherever I can get tehm. I’ve fought a couple times in Georgia and had a coupe great opportunities presented after this fight (against Rockel in AFC October 30th). I know we have George Masvidal, Efrain Ruiz, and Marcus Avellan all looking for fights. It just happens we are big draws in FloridaWe all are looking for fights, we just have to get a decent opportunity.

KM: Of course any promoters should contact Marcus? CM: They can reach all of us at the academy and speak with Marcus Avellan. The number is 305-225-4610.

KM: As far as your training at FFA…Marcus won the North American qualifier in his weight for the ADCC worlds next May. CM: He went up in weight to win it. He fights as well at 155 and he went up to 193 for this one.

KM: What is training with him like? I understand he is the main instructor at FFA? CM: He owns FFA and is the head instructor along with Erfain Ruiz. I tell you, he is the hardest person to beat on the mat. I would say the style I have where I attack in transition came directly from Marcus. He has such a strong wrestling base added to his ground work he’ll wear you out. Five minutes with him on the mat is like thirty minutes with anybody else. Because of that I know I’m coming in in good shape if I can hang with Marcus on the mat.

KM: You previously mentioned working on your boxin and standup. Do you get that at FFA? CM: I’m working that with Efrain and George at FFA. I get the majority chunk of my kickboxing training with El Tigre at Fierce Fighters. The kickboxing training is in the mornings from 12-2:30 and I’ll go back to FFA around 5:30.

KM: How much time do you need to prepare for a fight? CM: I’m looking for a fight in December right now. If I can get one I’ll be thrilled. I try to give myself two months but try to keep myself in fighting shape. When you win a fight other fights present themselves. In my mind I try to tell myself after fighting I’ll take one month off. I like to be in the ring every other month. As long as I can stay healthy after a fight and keep my weight down I’ll go in there and take it.

KM: KOTC was your only cage fight so far, the rest have been in rings. Does it matter to you? CM: I’ll fight in a ring or a cage or a platform or anywhere. If I were in a cage in that situation (under the ropes against Keith Rockel) I’d be a lot better off. His leg was kind of between the first and second rope which stopped me from turning out. In a cage that situation wouldn’t have been there. In a cage it’s a little bit harder mentally, being closed inside a cage. It’s much harder to stop the takedown inside the cage or at least the cage I fought in.

KM: Have all your fights been at Middleweight? CM: All except my last fight against O’Malley which was at 190. I had one other fight at 190 in Georgia. I’m trying to walk around lighter and this last fight making 185 was much easier than usual.

KM: I don’t want to put anybody in the position of calling fighters out but what is the next step in your career? What is your career strategy? CM: I want to fight FC vets so it becomes apparent to the UFC they need to have me in their show. My goal from day one was going to the UFC and being successful in the UFC. It would make my day to get a call from the UFC to come fight in February but if that doesn’t happen I know the way to get there is to beat UFC vets. Hopefully with AFC I sent Miguel a list of names and hopefully I can get one of them.

Source: ADCC

WINKY WRIGHT-SHANE MOSLEY 2 ANALYSIS BY LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPS ANTONIO TARVER AND GLEN JOHNSON

When Winky Wright first fought 'Sugar' Shane Mosley to unify the 154-pound championships on March 13 of this year, the outcome was a clear-cut unanimous decision for Wright. He won by scores of 117-111 twice and 116-112, and thus became the owner of the WBA, WBC, and IBF titles. That brought Wright's record to 47-3 with 25 KOs, and dropped Mosley to 39-3 with 35 KOs.

Then boxing's notorious politics began to grind away at that title unification, and Wright was stripped of the IBF belt. The reason was that he was granting an immediate rematch to the highly-talented Mosley, who had triumphed twice over Oscar De La Hoya, and is himself a lock in the future for the Hall of Fame.

Nonetheless, the Wright-Mosley rematch is set to go ahead Sat., Nov. 20, from the Mandalay Bay Casino in Las Vegas, NV. In the U.S. it will be televised live on HBO, beginning at 9:45 PM ET/ 6:45 PM PT.

This fight will be for the WBA and WBC versions of the super welterweight championships. More importantly, virtually every honest and neutral boxing observer will regard the winner as the best boxer in the world in this weight class.
Two other fighters who will be squaring off on Dec. 18 in Los Angeles to determine the best boxer in the world in the light-heavyweight division, Antonio Tarver and Glen Johnson, have issued a most interesting press release with their analysis of Wright-Mosley 2. Here is that press release:

---FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE---

ANTONIO TARVER AND GLEN JOHNSON PREVIEW SHANE MOSLEY vs. WINKY WRIGHT II

175-POUND STANDOUTS TO ENGAGE IN THEIR OWN SUPERFIGHT DECEMBER 18 IN LOS ANGELES

LOS ANGELES, November 17 - On Saturday, December 18, live from the Staples Center in Los Angeles, Antonio Tarver will face Glen Johnson in a 12 round championship bout that will determine, once and for all, who is the best 175-pound fighter in the world. Both Tarver and Johnson took time out of their busy training schedules this week to break down another highly anticipated bout, this Saturday's junior middleweight championship rematch between champion Winky Wright and challenger 'Sugar' Shane Mosley. Here's what the two best light heavyweights in the world had to say about Wright-Mosley II:

The Breakdown

Antonio Tarver - 'I know Winky Wright, and he's a personal friend of mine. I feel that Mosley's going to try and come out and be a little bit more aggressive and let his hands go, but I see a lot of the same from Wright-Mosley I. I know Winky is a hungry fighter. He's just got a little taste of this and he's not ready to give it up. I can go on record saying that I feel Winky will come out with a unanimous decision, even more decisively than the first time.'

Glen Johnson - 'The way Winky took control of the first fight is the way I expect him to fight this fight. He definitely took Mosley apart and took what Mosley gave him. He really didn't overwork himself, and I expect him to do the same thing again. Mosley needs to make some adjustments from the last time because he lost the fight for real; it wasn't like he got ripped off or anything. He just needs to box a little bit more, move around, and make himself a little bit more difficult to hit. He needs to be a little bit lighter on his feet, show a little bit more head movement and then he stands a chance. But I still think Winky is going to win the fight.'

The Intangibles

Both Antonio Tarver and Glen Johnson came up the hard way, fighting without the safety net many fighters operate with. Winky Wright had a similar fistic upbringing. How does that toughen a fighter for when he finally does get his big opportunity, like Wright did in the first fight against Mosley?

Antonio Tarver - 'They're not spoiled, and they're not expecting things to go their way, and when the going gets tough, they're thinking 'I may get robbed,' or 'I can't let this fight get close because they're going to go with the favored fighter.' That's what's in the back of your mind and when you go through a situation like I did November 8th (the first fight with Roy Jones Jr.). I don't trust any judge. I'm in there trying to get a guy out of there within the distance. If I can't get him out of there I'm going the distance only by necessity. That's what it boils down to. You're more focused, you're more hungry, and if the opportunity comes, you're going to get a guy out of there because you don't want to go to the scorecards. You never know how the judges are seeing the fight.'

Glen Johnson - 'When you have promoters picking your fights and giving you wins that you don't deserve, you basically kind of develop that attitude where you think you really don't have to work as hard because you're protected. You kind of have a softer frame of mind. Only the real skillful guys can have that and still be able to rise above and maintain for a long time. But us, the guys who don't have that blanket, we have to try harder each time and that causes you to have a different hunger, and it also forces you to learn more, train harder, run harder, and do everything harder, so you develop a stronger mentality. And with the mental and physical strength you develop and the skills you develop, that combination is tough to beat after awhile.'

Shane Mosley has a new trainer for his fight Saturday night, highly regarded Joe Goossen, who replaces Jack Mosley in the corner. Can a new trainer make a difference for Mosley the second time around with Wright?

Antonio Tarver - 'I had a different focus when I got with Buddy McGirt. I had received a broken jaw from Eric Harding and I lost a fight where I thought I was the better fighter (Tarver knocked out Harding in the rematch). I had to do a real gut check, and that's what happened. The transformation had already taken place prior to me meeting Buddy. He just put the icing on the cake. I got a trainer that I could believe in, that I trusted, and all of those things are intangibles when you look at getting to the top and staying at the top. Maybe Shane Mosley is thinking the same way, but I think we've seen the best of Shane. Shane has been out there for some years; he's fought his super fights already, he fought De La Hoya two times, was in some tough fights with Vernon Forrest, and I don't know what you can do with a guy like that. But we'll see. If he's able to make some adjustments, I think the fight will be a lot closer, but I think Winky wins because he's the bigger, better boxer, better fighter.'

Glen Johnson - 'A trainer could make small adjustments, but mainly, it's what the fighter brings to the table. A trainer can only do so much. If the trainer was the key to it, then he could take any guy and make him into a world champion, which is not the case. So the trainer could play a part, but it's mainly up to the fighter. Mosley had his share and he did his thing. I'm a big Mosley fan, but I'm sticking by Winky because I believe he's the guy now who deserves to get some big paydays, and I think he has what it takes to beat Sugar Shane Mosley; it doesn't matter who his trainer is. Maybe if Joe Goossen can get him to box a little bit more, he might prevent him from taking all the punches he took before, but I still believe that Winky will win the fight because of his defense. Winky's not a guy that's easy to hit, and that's the difference between Winky and Mosley.

The Picks

Antonio Tarver - Winky Wright / Glen Johnson - Winky Wright

Tarver-Johnson, which is presented by Joe DeGuardia's Star Boxing, in association with Goossen Tutor Promotions, will be televised live Saturday, December 18 on HBO World Championship Boxing beginning at 9pm ET / 6pm PT. Tickets for Tarver-Johnson, priced at $25, $50, $125, $250 are now on sale and are available at STAPLES Center Box Office (open 9am to 6pm Monday through Saturday) and Team LA at Universal City Walk or by calling Ticketmaster at 213-480-3232. Tickets are also available online at:

Source: ADCC

 11/18/04

Quote of the Day

"It is well to remember that the entire population of the universe, with one trifling exception, is composed of others."

John Andrew Holmes

Mike's Acura Integra is for sale!

If you didn't know it yet, Mike is trying to sell his Acura Integra. If anyone is interested, please checkout details on his car. He just reduced the price to $13,000.

Check it out by clicking here.

Rumble on the Rock Weigh-ins and Press Conference
November 20, 2004
Neal Blaisdell Arena
Fights start at 7:30 PM

The official
weigh-ins will be held at Rumors Night Club from 12:30 -3:00 with the press conference to follow from 4:00-6:00 at Ala Moana Center Stage. This is a great opportunity to meet the big name fighters that will be on this card including:

Hawaii's own
BJ Penn, currently the best pound for pound MMA fighter on the planet and BJJ Black Belt World Champion

One of the most decorated and successful grapplers of all time, Abu Dhabi and World Black Belt Jiu-Jitsu Champion, Royler Gracie

Undefeated Pride and K-1 fighter, Rodrigo Gracie

K-1 fighter Carter Williams

WWE wrestler and MMA fighter, Sean O'Hare

The monster of a man, Wes "The Project" Sims

The only man, other than BJ, to submit Matt Hughes, Dennis Hallman
(he is the only man who did it twice)

Top local fighters Ross "Da Boss" Ebanez and Kaynan Kaku


Tentative Fight Card

BJ Penn vs Rodrigo Gracie

Carter Williams vs Tom Howard

Royler Gracie vs Kazuyuki Miyata

Cabbage Correria vs Yoshihiro Nakao

Sean O'Hare vs Shungo Oyama

Kirk Kipapa vs Spencer Canup

Falaniko Vitale vs Kristof Midoux

Wes Sims vs Anthony Hardonk

Ross Ebanez vs Dennis Hallman

Kaynan Kaku vs Gilbert Melendez

KICKBOXING CHAMPIONSHIPS
KICKIN IT 2004 "THESEQUEL"

DECEMBER 10, 2004
KAPOLEI HIGH SCHOOL GYMNASIUM

7-YEAR OLD 55# CHAMPIONSHIP
DAHWEN BRIGHT VS. KILI POMROY
HSD AP BOXING

THE FIRST TIME THESE TWO 7-YEAR OLDS MET WAS IN THE RING AT THE BIG ISLAND. DAHWEN SPOTTED KILI 9 POUNDS IN A BOXING MATCH AND LOST. KILI WAS OBVIOUSLY THE STRONGER FIGHTER THAT BROUGHT THE FIGHT TO THE WEAKER DAHWEN. DAHWEN LOOKS FORWARD TO REDEEM HIMSELF AGAINST KILI BOY IN A KICKBOXING MATCH AT HIS HOMETOWN IN KAPOLEI. EXPECT A GOOD FIGHT FROM THESE TWO 7-YEAR OLDS.

8-YEAR OLD 60# CHAMPIONSHIP
TRISTON PEBRIA VS TRISTON KAMAKA
EWA BEACH FIGHT CLUB 808 FIGHT FACTORY

THESE TWO TRISTONS HAVE A HISTORY OF COMPETING AGAINST ONE ANOTHER. BUT THEY HAVE ONLY FOUGHT EACH OTHER AS EXHIBITIONS WHERE THE FIGHT AUTOMATICALLY ENDS UP IN A DRAW. THIS TIME JUDGES WILL SCORE THE FIGHT AND DECLARE A CHAMPION. BOTH FIGHTERS ARE EQUAL IN SPEED AND POWER. IT WILL BE A WAR.

9-YEAR OLD 65# CHAMPIONSHIP
DIDO RODRIGUES VS ABE REINHARDT
WAIANAE KICKBOXING WAILUKU KICKBOXING

10-12 YEAR OLD 105# CHAMPIONSHIP
SAGE YOSHIDA VS SHAUN AHLO
HMC

WELTERWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP ((149-146#)
NICK CORREA (2-1) VS KAIPO GONZALES (SEMI PRO)
HSD EASTSIDAZ

MIDDLEWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP (153-159#)
WAYNE KAMEALOHA (1-1) VS NICK GEGA (3-0)
HSD LAUPAHOEHOE MUAY THAI

SUPERLIGHTWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP (135-139#)
DAVID BALICAO (5-1) VS RYAN LEE (SEMI PRO)
HSD BULLSPEN

SUPER FEATHERWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP (125-129#)
CHAD PAVAO (3-0) VS TAVIS KAGAWA (2-2)
HSD LAUPAHOEHOE MUAY THAI

SUPER BANTAMWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP (115-119#)
TONY PERERA (3-0) VS KOICHI TANJI (1-1)
WAIANAE KICKBOXING HMC

WHEN THESE TWO GUYS MET THE FIRST TIME, IT WAS INSANE. PERERA(13) SHOWED OUTSTANDING SKILL AND MOVEMENT. WHERE TANJI(18) SHOWED UNBELIEVABLE HEART AND POWER. PERERA PULLED OUT THE WIN BUT SOME SAY IT WAS CONTROVERSAL. THESE TWO TEENAGERS WILL MEET AGAIN TO SETTLE THIS ISSUE.

SUPER HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP (210-ABOVE)
BOB ATISANOE (3-0) VS LEVI JOSEPH
HSD TEAM YOKUZUNA

LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP (167-174#)
BEN RODRIGUES (3-1) VS CONRAD PASSI (1-1)
HSD ADVANCED KENPO

THIS IS ANOTHER REDEMPTION FIGHT WHEN A COUPLE OF MONTHS AGO, PASSI TKO'D RODRIGUES IN THE THIRD ROUND. IN THAT FIGHT RODRIGUES SPOTTED 18 POUNDS TO PASSI BUT MADE NO EXCUSES FOR THAT LOSS. RODRIGUES HAS STEPPED UP FROM THAT 160# TO A STRONGER 167LBS. TO REMATCH PASSI FOR THE BELT. ALL OF RODRIGUES WINS AND LOSS HAS NEVER MADE IT TO THE END OF THE THIRD ROUND. THESE TWO 16-YEAR OLD TEENAGERS WILL FACE OFF ONCE MORE TO SEE WHO HAS WHAT IT TAKES TO BE A CHAMPION.

OPEN MIDDLEWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP (160-166#)
KALEO KWON (SEMI-PRO) ZACH ILIZARO
EASTSIDAZ WAILUKU KICKBOXING


OTHER EXCITING BOUTS
JOHN VISANTE 145# JOON LEE
WAIANAE KICKBOXING SPIRITUAL MARTIAL ARTS

DENVER GONZALVES 190# ERIC THOR
HSD TEAM PERCEPTION

MIKE 185# TBA
ANIMAL HOUSE DOGZ 4 LIFE

WALLACE RODRIGUES 120# DEVIN DAMO
WAIANAE KICKBOXING ANIMAL HOUSE

MUAY THAI BOUTS-LEG KICKS, CLINCHING, AND KNEES WILL BE ALLOWED IN THESE MATCHES

TYSON NAM 135# DEREK MINN
GEE YUNG LAUPAHOEHOE MUAY THAI

TBA 200# SEBASTIAN
LAUPAHOEHOE MUAY THAI


MATCHES MAY BE SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE

Source: Promoter

Kanoa Leahey signs with Super Brawl!


Kanoa Leahey will fill the play by play chair of the Super Brawl broadcast team. Long time color analyst
Mike Onzuka will remain as Super Brawl's "go to" man with his keen insight to the nuances of the rapidly changing MMA scene.

Kanoa, who recently joined KHON2 as sports director in August 2004 after five years as a KITV reporter and anchor. He continues a long family tradition of sports broadcasting. Grandfather Chuck Leahey was the radio "Voice of the Rainbows" in the 1960s and '70s, and father Jim Leahey is known for his television broadcasts of UH sports.

Source: Promoter

Royce Gracie faces Akebono at the K-1

Royce Gracie has already set a date to his return at the rings of MMA. Royce has confirmed to us that he will face the Sumo giant, Akebono at the K-1 event, on December 31st. Prior to that, he will watch his family in action at the
Rumble on the Rock 6, in Hawaii this Saturday November 20th: 'I´m going to Hawaii to watch Royler, Rodrigo and a student of mine fighting. After that I head off to Japan a the press conference announcing the fight against Akebono at the K-1.'

Source: ADCC

Aloha Martial Arts Festival 2004



8:30am The weigh-ins will start

9:30am the continuous sparring will start first!

11:00am Pankration and Sport JJ simultaneously

We are planning to end the tournament by 2:00pm!

ADCC 2005 - Ticket Pre Sale To Begin in December!
6th Submission Wrestling World Championships
The Pyramid - Long Beach, CA
Saturday and Sunday, May 28th and 29th, 2005

Check out one of our event sponsors at www.DOGSofWAR.net for fight gear, clothes, books and more!

'In the last month, we have visited the Pyramid, and chosen a hotel in Long Beach, California' states ADCC spokesman Miguel Iturrate. 'The venue and the city of Long Beach appear happy to host this event, and the facilites are state of the art! Next May, the 6th ADCC Submission Wrestling World Championships are going to rock!'

When asked for details about the venue, the spokesman revealed 'The Pyramid is on the Cal State Long Beach campus, and it is a phenomenal, state of the art arena that seats 4,200 people. There are really no bad seats. Tickets will be on sale thru the Long Beach box office and TICKETMASTER four months before the event.'

'We do know that there will be a wide demand for tickets, so we are also planning a TICKET PRE SALE for December. Basically, the hardcore fans that want to assure their seats as early as possible, as well as travelers, will have the first chance at tickets in a mail order pre-sale. These tickets will be the first crack at assuring seats in the arena, and the orders will be filled first come first serve as they come in via the mail. MOre details wil lbe announced within the next few days!'

CURRENT ADCC 2005 LINEUP:

under 65.9 KG
2003 Champion: Leo Vieira (BRAZIL)
NA Trials Champion: Javier Vazquez (USA)

66-76.9 KG
2003 Champion: Marcelo Garcia (BRAZIL)
NA Trials Champion: Cameron Earle (USA)

77-87.9 KG
2003 Champion: Saulo Ribeiro (BRAZIL)
NA Trials Champion: Marcos Avellan (USA)

88-98.9 KG
2003 Champion: Jon Olav Einmo (Norway)
NA Trials Champion: Jamal Patterson (USA)

99 KG +
2003 Champion: Marcio 'Pe De Pano' Cruz (BRAZIL)
NA Trials Champion: Karim Byron (Canada)

14 more men to be announced in each weight class, plus a 16 man ABSOLUTE Tournament - the toughest test in MMA!

SUPERFIGHT:
(Champion) Ricardo Arona (Brazil) versus
(Challenger) Dean Lister (USA)

Dont forget to check out one of our event sponsors at www.DOGSofWAR.net!

Source: ADCC

 11/17/04

Quote of the Day

"If I am not for myself, then who will be for me? And if I am only for myself, what am I? And if not now, when?"

Rabbi Hillel, 30B.C - 9 A.D., Jewish Rabbi, Teacher

KOTC: 'Revenge'
November 14th, 2004
Soboba Casino
Saboba, CA

Alex Richard defeats Paul Karsky by submission, RD 2.
Jeff Clark defeats Tony Llamas by triangle choke at 0:28, RD 1.
Sost Infante defeats Jose Ramirez by TKO, RD 1.
Robert Breslin defeats Frank Guerrero by rear naked choke, RD 1.
Fernando Gonzalez defeats Reggie Orr by TKO, RD 2.
Frankie Bollinger defeats Billy Thompson by TKO at 1:40, RD 1.
Paul Buentello defeats Bo Cantrall by KO at 0:45, RD 1.
James Fanshier defeats Thomas Denny by split decision.
Takumi Nakayama defeats Charlie Kohler by TKO at 2:35, RD 2.
Urijah Faber defeats
Eben Kaneshiro by TKO at 4:33, RD 3.
'Kadillac' Marshbanks defeats Jerry Vrbanovic by majority decision.
Dave Hisquierdo defeats Charles Bennett by triangle choke at 1:56, RD 2.
Cal Worsham defeats Will Scott by TKO at 0:52, RD 1.
Anthony Ruiz defeats Brian Sesma by TKO at 5:00, RD 1.
Shonie Carter defeats John Cronk by TKO at 5:00, RD 1.
Randy Velarde defeats Robert Emerson by majority decision.
Russ Miura defeats Hiroyuki Abe by DQ at 2:29, RD 1.
Mike Guymon defeats Joe Frainee by TKO at 2:22, RD 1.
Ray Lazama defeats Richard Villes by submission at 4:31, RD 1.

Source: ADCC

WILL HE BE THE NEXT BIG NAME GRACIE?

Rodrigo Gracie brings more than an undefeated Mixed Martial Arts record of 5-0 with him when he engages
BJ Penn in combat this weekend at Rumble on the Rock; he also brings the Gracie name. Rodrigo spoke with MMAWeekly recently about the pressure of being a Gracie in the fight game and his match up with "The Prodigy" himself, BJ Penn.

There is no other name in Mixed Martial Arts that carries with it the prestige of the name Gracie. To be a Gracie has its advantages but, at the same time, it brings with it the weight of the world. "Once you're a Gracie, once you win, you help the whole family. You know what I mean? Because sometimes, when a Gracie loses, they generalize all of us," said Rodrigo. He tries to not think about it, put it in the back of his mind, and not pile on any more pressure than having a fight brings.

Being a Gracie in MMA not only brings with it the pressure of the legacy, but it often times raises the question; how are you related to Royce? Rodrigo is second cousins to Royce, first cousins to Renzo Gracie.

Rodrigo Gracie has been living in the United States for over a decade and considers it his home. Last week, Rodrigo took the final of the necessary steps in the long process of becoming a United States citizen. Congratulations to Rodrigo for that achievement.

His fight for citizenship is over but he has a fight on his hands this weekend when he faces off against BJ Penn on BJ's home turf and family fight promotion of Rumble on the Rock in Hawaii. It will be BJ Penn's debut bout at 185. During negotiations for the fight, there were talks for Rodrigo to make 175 but, in the end, both sides agreed on 185.

Rodrigo considers it an excellent opportunity to fight BJ Penn. About Penn, Gracie said, "He's good on the ground. He's good standing so I think he's going to be a good fight for me. I'm excited about it." Rodrigo further commented, "I think it's a good match up, the perfect match up," with neither of the two having a clear cut advantage.

Rodrigo will have a weight advantage in the fight and about the weight disparity between he and BJ, Gracie stated, "Some fighters, they go up in weight and they feel more explosive and sometimes it doesn't really matter. I guess since he was fighting at 155 and now he's going to be 185, you know, we've got to see when we get in the ring." Rodrigo added, "I feel pretty confident."

This fight could play out any number of ways but Gracie is ready for whatever comes. He commented, "I'm ready for whatever he comes. You know, I've been training standing, takedowns, Jiu-Jitsu, everything. So, whatever the outcome of the fight, I'm ready for anything. You know, standing, on the ground, takedowns, whatever."

Rodrigo has been training with Matt Serra, who fought and lost to BJ Penn at UFC 39, just over two years ago. Gracie said, "He's telling me a lot of things because he's a guy that, you know, he actually fought BJ.....When you guys see the fight, you're going to see the strategy."

Is a jump up to another weight class too much for BJ Penn? If the bout ends up being a strategic ground battle, can Penn submit a Gracie? This fight raises many questions and you can find out the live results in the SoundOff Forum this weekend. Will BJ Penn further the argument for him being the pound for pound best fighter in the world or will a Gracie get yet another win?

Source: MMA Weekly

RUMBLE ON THE ROCK, FOUR DAYS AND COUNTING

When he steps into the squared circle at Honolulu, Hawaii’s Blaisdell Arena on Saturday, November 20th, mixed martial arts star Rodrigo Gracie (5-0) will be in for his greatest competitive challenge to date in former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) welterweight crown holder, BJ Penn (8-1-1). Gracie is looking at the mega-fight, not as a risk, but as an opportunity to take his career to all new heights.

“I am in the best shape of my life,” said the 29-year-old Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu second degree black belt who will take on Penn during the main event of “Rumble on the Rock 6,” a star-studded mixed martial arts fight card that will be presented by the newly-formed K-1 Fighting Network. “I take this fight seriously because BJ is a top competitor with great skills; the kind of fighter that you cannot afford to make mistakes against. I am going into the fight 100 percent ready physically and mentally.”

The grandson of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu founder, Carlos Gracie, Rodrigo has helped extend the dynasty of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu’s most heralded family by securing victories in all five of his professional mixed martial arts appearances. Four of his career starts have taken place in Japan. “This is as important as any fight is, but up until now, all of my opponents have been Japanese,” commented Gracie. “Fighting B.J. in the United States will give me larger exposure to the American fans.”

At the tender age of four, Gracie began studying the fighting art pioneered by his grandfather. After relocating to California from his native Brazil, he once again hit the road before settling down on Long Island, New York.

Recently, Gracie opened his own Jiu-Jitsu school on Long Island where he has been preparing for the November 20th bout. Strength and conditioning Coach Martin Rooney as well as cousin Crosley Gracie and UFC veteran Matt Serra have all played major roles in the fighter’s training camp.

In other Rumble on The Rock 6 action, 2003 K-1 USA champion, Carter Williams (36-9), will make his fourth career start under mixed martial arts rules when he takes on Tom “Green Beret” Howard (0-2) while another member of the famed Gracie clan, Royler (3-2-1), will face Kazuyuki Miyata (7-1-4). The event will also see a return to action by UFC heavyweight veterans Wesley “Cabbage” Correira (13-6) and 6 foot 9 inch Wes “The Project” Sims (5-5).

Tickets for Saturday, November 20th’s Rumble on the Rock 6 event are priced at $30, $60, $65, $100, $150, and $200, respectively, and can be purchased online at www.ticketmaster.com as well as at all Ticketmaster locations.

Rumble on the Rock is a Hawaii-based mixed martial arts fight promotion that was launched by Prodigy Productions two years ago. Recently, Prodigy Productions partnered with K-1 Fighting Network, a division of the Japan-based K-1 Corporation, to bring mixed martial arts sporting events to a growing fanbase.

Source: MMA Weekly

Pulver signed to fight #1 Ranked Shooto Lightweight in December

Shooto announced that the fight between #1 ranked LW Hiroyuki Takaya and #3 ranked LW and former UFC champion Jens Pulver has been signed for the 14th of December in Shooto. He still is waiting to fight Shooto's Lightweight Champion, but if he wins this Champ should be next.
The card features some big names including Rumina Sato, Alexandre Nogueira, Jake Shields and Shaolin Ribeiro.

Makoto Ishikawa vs. Ian J. Shaffa
Katsuya Toida vs. Rumina Sato
Alexandre F. Nogueira vs. Hideki Kadowaki
Hiroyuki Takaya vs. Jens Pulver
Jake Shields vs. Akira Kikuchi
Vitor 'Shaolin' Ribeiro vs. Tatsuya Kawajiri

Source: MMA Weekly

Gurgel talks about Alliance's future

Coming from United States, where he was conducting seminars with Romero Jacaré, Fábio Gurgel evaluates Alliance's future. 'I cannot graduate a BJJ black belt in one day. Alliance has been working hard and all team has been training a lot,' said. Asked about ADCC, when first released Marcelinho Garcia, Gurgel does not hide information.

- We do still bet on Marcelinho, but we might have great news of Tarsys. He has been showing up a great Jiu-Jitsu, but we don't want to overcharge them, even because it's bad. But at the same time we expect a great job. There are some guys from Santos, as Soluço, who have working hard - bets Gurgel.

Source: Tatame

Fernando Tererê calls home from USA

Arrested a month ago in United States, BJJ world champion Fernando Tererê did call his family for the first time last week. "I didn't even believe when I heard his voice. He seemed freaked out and he is not used to be far from home for so long time. He is a good boy and he would never hurt anyone.. He told me he misses being at home," said in tears Dona Helena, Tererê's mother. But it was good to hear his voice". Meanwhile, in United States, BJJ black belt's situation remains the same. "The attorney still waits for a date to schedule an audience with the prosecutor," said Alliance's leader Fábio Gurgel.

Tererê was arrested last October 10 during a United Airlines' flight on the way to Brazil because he was involved in an altercation on board. Known as a national fight idol in Brazil and a peace defender, Tererê is responsible for many social projects held into poor communities in Rio de Janeiro. He had never got into trouble and his resume is fulfilled by victories, in life and on the mat. Team TATAME solidarities with his personal drama and keep tuned at TATAME.com to know more about his case.

Source: Tatame

 11/16/04

Quote of the Day

"I shall adopt new views as fast as they shall appear to be true views."

Abraham Lincoln, 1809-1865, Sixteenth President of the USA

Fighters' Club Episode 26 Debuts Tonight at 8:30PM!

Fighters’ Club TV episode 26 has been cut and submitted to Olelo programming. It will air in our normal timeslot—830pm, Tuesday nights, on
Oceanic Olelo Channel 52. (Nov 16, 23, 30, and December 7th). This is our best work as of yet (in my humble estimation) and I’m sure everyone will REALLY like this one.
Episode 26 features:

Highlights from Soljah Fight Night

-Rumina Sato vs. Bao Quach (+ a rare intvw w/ Shooto star, Sato)
-Jens “Little Evil” Pulver vs. Stephen “Bozo” Palling (+ a double intvw w/ both Bozo and Little Evil)—The “Fight of the Night”
-Vitor “Shaolin” Ribeiro vs. Mitsuhiro Ishida
-Jake Shield vs. Ray “Braddah” Cooper for the Shooto Middleweight Belt (+ intvw w/ Jake)
-and we even have some Ring Chics doing their thang…

-we also had a chance to speak w/ Team Punishment’s Quinton “Rampage” Jackson on his fight/slam w/ Arona, and pre-fight thoughts on Vanderlei Silva (Quinton takes the FCTV 2004 Bleep Award for this interview)

-Technique of the Week—Jason “Mayhem” Miller

-and, stay tuned for the credits for outtakes from pre-ROTR intvw w/ JD Penn.

Dennis "Superman" Hallman added to Rumble On The Rock Show


Dennis "Superman" Hallman has replaced Luciano Noguiera for the 11/20 fight against Ross "Da Boss" Ebanez. And, Nathan Diaz is out due to an injured hand. Here is the upcoming card for ROTR next week.

BJ Penn vs Rodrigo Gracie

Carter Williams vs Tom Howard

Royler Gracie vs Kazuyuki Miyata

Cabbage Correria vs Yoshihiro Nakao

Sean O'Hare vs Shungo Oyama

Kirk Kipapa vs Spencer Canup

Falaniko Vitale vs Kristof Midoux

Wes Sims vs Anthony Hardonk

Ross Ebanez vs Dennis Hallman

Kaynan Kaku vs Gilbert Melendez

Source: MMA Weekly

Interview – Wanderlei Silva

Wanderlei is back from Japan, where he did one of the best fights of his career against the American Quinton Jackson. To test the hearts of his brazilian fans, the Brazilian warns that there´s much more to come soon.

TT- Tell me about your fight against Quinton Jackson? WS- It was a very important victory since my title was on the line and he is a really good opponent. I was fighting under a lot of pressure, there were many people saying this time Quinton would win and it was a hard fight. I started the bout with a good pace, punching him, then he stalled and succeeded in taking me down. Actually the only moment I was in danger was in the end of the first round when he scored a knockdown. He stayed on top, but I could recover and get between his legs putting back the guard. I tried a triangle and he passed (the guard) and delivered some shots. When the round ended I went right to the corner breathing, to recover , because I did not know how long the fight would last. The second round started in the same pace, we had some exchanging and we went to the ground. Suddenly the lady announces '3 minutes', there were still 3 minutes, plenty of time. I recovered my breat, we were stood up and I could hit him with two right hard punches, I gave him one knee and tried two more that didn't connect. Then I delivered one knee that hit him really strong, I could feel the impact of his face in my knee, at that moment I knew it was over. After that just happiness.

TT- You could see in your last fight, that you are kind of comfortable on the ground, trying submissions several times. Tell me about this? VS- I knew the fight would be on the grounnd in the guard, so I figured it out, how the fight would turn. I trained a lot with Cristiano and the guys, fighting from my back, so I got used with this situation. That's why I could show up a good performance in the ground.

TT- When you were entering the ring, what did you think seeing Quinton Jackson on the phone, as he wasn't worried with the fight? WS- He tried to freak me out emotionally or make a mind game with me, but I was decided and very focused in the fight, really determined and anything would get the goal out of my mind, I mean I was with the victory in my mind.

TT- What have you told him in the end of the fight? Was it a “finish”, like it was the last time? WS- This time, since he became a Christian, he was more polite. Not much, but he is learning. He stood up and came to congratulate with all the politeness possible, then I could just tell him that was just our job and we would see each other soon. I am pretty sure that another one will happen, this fight has become a classic, next year there will be another!

TT- And how about Ricardo Arona? After his victory in the event, is he in the line again? WS- Arona will have to fight a few more times before he is able to face me. If he wants to fight me this could happen in the GP next year; if he wins one fight in the tourney, then probably we will face each other. It would be a pleasure for me to fight with him.

TT- Are you going to enter in the GP again? WS- To tell you the truth, yes,I want. I want to enter because it’s a huge show and I don’t want to stay out of it, just watching. I want to be in the ring, fighting. If God makes the path for this to happen I am going with pleasure.

TT- There are rumors about you facing Mirko Cro Cop in the New Years Eve show. But now he has his opponent already set. Who’s going to be left for you to face on December, 31st? WS- The three guys I was thinking are already tied up. They have to see who’s will be left for Silva.

TT- Maybe it would be Randy Couture? WS- Wow, if it’s him, Santa Claus is going to be saying “ho ho ho” for me (laughs). That would be my Christmas gift! It would be awesome, because I amfeeling pretty good and the last fight stimulated me. Since the fight against Yoshida I haven’t fought a long bout and I felt happy for being tested. My limits, thank God, are expanding even more, I am absorbing more punches, my physical condition is great and I can face anyone!

TT- In the end of the year, Pride will have a few great matches, like Minotaruro against Fedor, Yoshida against Rulon Gardner. Are you going to steal the spotlights again? I always try to fight well, but the most important is to put a good show. I was seeing a Jiu-jitsu match, the guy pass the guard, score some points and lay and pray there waiting for the victory. For me winning is not just the victory. Winning is to put a great show to the fans, make the crowd vibrate, that’s what I think is worthy! In my last fight I left with the victory, I was happy and so, but fighting great is what matters. I don’t give a shit, winning is just a detail.

TT- What’s your secret formula to sustain this winning strike for more than 4 years? WS- First it’s the Lord’s protection. He is blessing me more everyday. As I told my wife, God is taking care of me, only good things are happening in my life. Business is going great, in the gym, we lost some fighters that used to train with us, but now we got some guys that are even better, these guys are really determined to train, giving their face to slap. I see these guys with 20, 22 years old. There is Shogun, Ninja, Cyborg and everybody and then I realize how important this team is. The team training me, Cristiano, Rafael and Master Rudimar, all the technical staff, they are working really hard, you could see how everybody is doing great. Next year Chute Boxe will be head and shoulder above everyone. We are going to conquer many more titles in several tourneys.

Source: ADCC

Confirmed: Vitor Belfort now is BTT

Team TATAME camped this Thursday at Brazilian Top Team headquarter, in Rio de Janeiro, to follow the first day of Vitor Belfort returning to the team. Vitor arrived in Rio de Janeiro on Wednesday, coming from São Paulo and went to Top Team around mid-day with his lawyer, to sign the deal. According to the contract, BTT is responsible for Vitor’s training and also to manage his fighting career. In addition to Belfort, the BTT’s leaders Murilo Bustamante, Zé Mário Sperry and Bebeo Duarte were on the meeting today.

— When he is sharp, Vitor Belfort is the best name of his category in the world. We have just to do a psychological work on him — guarantees Bebeo.

Brazilian Top Team was celebrating the presence of Vitor Belfort in the middle of a constellation of fighters that has names such as Rodrigo Minotauro, Ricardo Arona, Murilo Bustamante and Zé Mário Sperry, among others.

— I’ve many friends at Brazilian Top Team and I really love this team. I’m sure I’ll have the professional environment I need to be well-prepared for the next fights. After all, I’ll have some of the best fighters in the world training with me — celebrates Belfort.

Source: ADCC

A LOOK BACK AT SHOOTO BRAZIL's RETURN
SHOOTO Brazil-'Never Shake'
Gymnasium Municipal de Cotia - SAO PAULO - Brazil

After almost 1 year, SHOOTO Brazil returned showing young guns on its card. The event happened in Cotia, Sao Paulo instead of Rio. The show will be aired on Brazilian TV broadcasting, Band Sports, and this is a very important step to turning SHOOTO popular in Brazil.

Besides the normal SHOOTO matches; a good MMA fight was on the card too.

MMA bout:
Diego Braga (GBCT) def. Ricardo Rato (Macaco Gold Team) by TKO R2
Braga came out very aggressive with punches and kicks, Rato felt the pressure, and traded blows and also landed good kicks. Braga didn't back poff and started punishing Rato with strikes by the end of R1. At the beginning of R2, Diego imposed a flurry of punches over Rato, who dropped in butt-scoot position. Braga kicked Rato's legs until he tapped.

B Class bouts (2x5 min rounds minutes)
-70kg:
Luciano Azevedo (RFT) def. Rodrigo Damm (Alliance) by split decision
An intense fight where Azevedo displayed more versatility in the first round punching Damm, who was a bit nervous and didn't return the strikes, but Damm accepted the parade of blows like a warrior. This was the pace until the second minute of the fight, when Damm took Azevedo down, but Azevedo nearly submitted Damm with an arm bar. They started back on their feet and Azevedo stayed attentive for the takedown attempts of Damm and it worked! When Damm would shoot, Azevedo counter-attacked; putting Damm on the mat.

R2 started and Damm was more aggressive with kicks, Azevedo kicked too, but Damm took advantage with punches to Azevedo's face. Azevedo bled a bit from the mouth and nose and threw Damm with a nice takedown. They came back to their feet and Damm took Azevedo down too and started to ground and pound. But the round finished and Azevedo was called the winner. During the fight Damm grabbed the ropes twice and for sure he lost points in the judges' opinion.

-76kg:
Paulo Boiko (BTT) x Luis 'Besouro' Jr. (RFT), draw
This fight should have been a class A match! Each fighter imposed his game in different rounds. Boiko took Besouro down, but Besouro used his Boxing and cornered Boiko. They kept clinching and Besouro landed a straight-right on Boiko's face. But Besouro attacked Boiko's groin of and the fight was declared draw after two rounds.

-76kg:
Leonardo Pecanha (Nova Uniao) def. RUIZ (SP) by rear naked choke R1
After a strong low kick, the Nova Uniao fighter Pecanha, took down his opponent and went to half guard. RUIZ tried to escape, but Pecanha got his back and put the hooks and Pecanha landed some punches to guarantee his victory by rear naked choke in less than 3:00 of fight.

-80kg:
Regiclaudio 'Kexada' (Marcelo Giudicci) def. Sergio 'Muralha' (Roney Alex) by rear naked choke R2
A minute into the fight Kexada shot for a takedown and Muralha got a guillotine choke that looked very secure. Kexada got out of it and the fight stalled on the ground. Back to their feet Kexada shot and Muralha got another guillotine choke, Kexada got out again and landed strikes on Muralha, who seemed to be tired. Back on their feet for the third time, Kexada started trading blows and took Muralha down, threw some punches and Muralha turned his back and was finalized by a rear naked choke.

-95kg:
Vitor Viana (Never Shake Brasil) def. Genivaldo Barbosa (Morganti JJ) by rear naked choke R1
Barbosa is very strong and technical, but he faced a determined Viana who furiously traded blows on the feet and took the fight down. On the ground Barbosa nearly got a heel-hook but Viana got out and punched Barbosa's face. Barbosa turned his back to Viana, securing a rear naked choke and submitting Barbosa.

A Class bouts (3x5 min rounds minutes)
-60kg:
Jose Aldo (Nova Uniao) def. Hudson Rocha (BTT) by TKO (doctor stoppage)
Rocha started the fight trying to trade blows on the feet. On his first attempt he felt Aldo's better game and tried a few takedowns attempts that Aldo defended well. He took Rocha down, and from there, Aldo pounded Rocha in the face. When the fight came back to their feet, Aldo imposed his boxing and threw a flying knee that cut Hudson's eyebrow. The doctor stopped the fight due to the huge cut. Aldo performed what SHOOTO want to see, strikes, Wrestling and Submission. Rocha didn't agree with the final result and showed bad sportsmanship by cursing at the people on the ring.

-83kg:
Ivan 'Batman' (Carlson Gracie Team) def. Fabio 'Tigrao' (ChuteBoxe) by rear naked choke R3
The best Brazilian fighter on Carlson Gracie Team, 'Batman', is now 4-0 in MMA with this victory over 'Tigrao'. 'Batman' and 'Tigrao' traded some blows on their feet, but 'Batman' took it to the ground where he schooled 'Tigrao', who accepted Batman's game of striking from the half guard. The whole fight was like this, until the last round 'Tigrao' landed good kicks and punches, nothing that affected 'Batman', who took 'Tigrao' down again and got his back to finish the fight via rear naked choke.

-83kg:
Fabricio Monteiro (Never Shake Brasil) def. Walter 'Curio' (Macaco Gold Team) by KO
An intense trade of blows on the feet ensued until Curio received a strong punch on his chin and started to fall. Monteiro finished the fight by landing more strikes to the face when Curio was falling.

+99kg:
Gabriel 'Napao' Gonzaga (Macaco Gold Team) def. Walter 'Aba' Farias (WFC) by neck-crank R2
The difference in level of technique was noticeable. 'Aba' was heavier, without good technique. 'Aba' was taken down three times, and in all opportunities 'Napao' attempted a neck-crank. 'Aba' resisted twice, but on the third opportunity 'Napao' put more strength and submitted the mammoth 'Aba' via neck-crank in R2.

Source: ADCC

SHOOTO RESULTS

SHOOTO NOVEMBER 12TH RESULTS

SHOOTO: WANNA SHOOTO 2004
November 12th, 2004
Kourakuen Hall
Tokyo, Japan

Class-B

Fight 1, Rookie Tournament Final Banthamweight
BJ (AAAC) draws with Toshimichi Akagi (Cobra Kai) 1-0 (18-18, 17-17, 19-18)

Fight 2, Rookie Tournament Final Welterweight
Yusuke Endo (Kiguchi Dojo) def. Seiki Uchimura (Paraestra Tokyo) by Round 1 1:42 TKO

Fight 3, Rookie Tournament Final Lightweight
Lion Takeshi (SG Yokohama) def. Hayate Usui (RJW Central) Round 2 4:58 TKO

Fight 4
Kenji Osawa (WKSS) def. Seiji Otsuka (Purebred Omiya) by 3-0 Deciscion (20-18, 20-19, 20-18)

Fight 5
Daiji Takahashi def. HIRO by 3-0 Deciscion (20-18, 20-18, 20-19)

Class-A

Fight 6
Danilo Cherman (Nova Unio) def. Takeshi Yamazaki (Team Grabaka) by 3-0 Deciscion (30-28, 30-28, 29-28)

Fight 7
Jani Lax (Team Scandinavia) def. Kohei Yasumi by Round 2 3:25 Submssion (guiltone choke)

Fight 8
Justin Bruckman (Shah Franco) def. Yoichi Fukumoto by 3-0 Deciscion (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)

Fight 9 Welterweight
Mitsuhiro Ishida (Team TOPS) def. Daisuke 'Amazon' Sugie by 3-0 Deciscion (30-29, 30-28, 30-28)

Fight 10 World Featherweight title fight
Ryota Matsune (Pareastra Matsudo) def. Kentaro Imaizumi (SK Absolute) by 2-1 Deciscion (30-29, 29-30, 30-28)

Source: MMA Weekly

Gan McGee Retores Order at Bar Fight

REMATCH A YEAR LATER BETWEEN NAVY SEAL AND MMA FIGHTER

THERE'S A LOT MORE TO THE STORY THEN WHAT HAS BEEN CIRCULATING AROUND ON MESSAGE BOARDS ABOUT AN ALTERCATION BETWEEN GAN MCGEE AND A FEW NAVY SEALS.

IN ANOTHER MMAWEEKLY EXCLUSIVE, IT'S ALMOST ONE YEAR LATER TO THE DAY, THAT MOTHERS TAVERN, A LOCAL BAR IN SAN LUIS OBISPO HAD A RUN IN WITH NAVY SEALS FROM SAN DIEGO.

SOME OF THE SAME NAVY SEALS RETURNED TO DOWNTOWN SAN LUIS OBISPO TO LOOK FOR TROUBLE ACCORDING TO ONLOOKERS. TEN FRIENDS, INCLUDING THE NAVY SEALS RETURNED BACK TO THE SAME SPOT THEY FOUGHT A YEAR AGO.

ONE CAL POLY STUDENT TOLD MMAWEEKLY THAT 27-YEAR-OLD GAN McGEE RECOGNIZED SOME OLD ENEMIES THAT WERE AT THE BAR A YEAR AGO AND TOLD A FEW OF THE SECURITY PEOPLE ABOUT IT; INCLUDING, UFC FIGHTER CHUCK LIDDELL.

SCOTT MICHAEL FOXX, A 32 YEAR OLD NAVY SEAL, ATTACKED SEVERAL PEOPLE OUTSIDE THE BAR THEN WENT INTO THE BAR AND ATTACKED THE SECURITY OF MOTHERS TAVERN. THE NAVY SEAL THEN WENT AT IT WITH GAN MCGEE. HE APPARENTLY TRIED TO EYE GOUGE MCGEE AND MCGEE KNOCKED HIM DOWN WITH A RIGHT HAND. TWO OF FOXX'S FRIENDS TRIED TO JUMP ON MCGEE; BUT TO NO AVAIL, AS THE 6'10 MCGEE BRUSHED THEM OFF WITH EASE ACCORDING TO ONLOOKERS.

MEANWHILE 15 TO 20 OTHER PEOPLE WERE FIGHTING IN THE STREET IN FRONT OF THE BAR AS THE FIGHT WENT OUTSIDE FROM THE BAR. THE CAL POLY STUDENT TOLD MMAWEEKLY, "ONE SEAL TRIED TO ATTACK CHUCK LIDDELL AND CHUCK LAID HIM OUT WITH A KICK." ALTHOUGH, LIDDELL THOUGH TOLD MMAWEEKLY'S RYAN BENNETT, "NAH, I GOT THERE TOO LATE. I WAS JUST MAKING SURE EVERYONE WAS O.K. GAN DID A GOOD JOB OF RESTORING ORDER BY HIMSELF. TYPICAL BAR FIGHT STUFF, NO BIG DEAL."

MEANWHILE FOXX, THE NAVY SEAL, RAN FROM POLICE...HE WAS LATER CAUGHT FOUR BLOCKS FROM THE BAR. LT. STEVE TOLLEY SAID FOXX HAD BEEN DRINKING AND REMAINED IN THE COUNTY JAIL ON THURSDAY WITH BAIL SET AT $20,000.

"WHEN THE DUST SETTLES WE WANT TO GO BACK AND FIND OUT WHO THESE OTHER VICTIMS ARE", CROCKER SAID IN A STATEMENT. HE SAID POLICE WILL CONTINUE TO INTERVIEW THE OTHER NAVY SEALS WHO WERE AT THE BAR.

Source: MMA Weekly

 11/15/04

Quote of the Day

"Discipline is the foundation upon which all success is built. Lack of discipline inevitably leads to failure."

Jim Rohn, American Businessman, Author, Speaker, Philosopher

Fighters' Club Episode 26 Debuts Tomorrow!

Fighters’ Club TV episode 26 has been cut and submitted to Olelo programming. It will air in our normal timeslot—830pm, Tuesday nights, on Oceanic Olelo Channel 52. (Nov 16, 23, 30, and December 7th). This is our best work as of yet (in my humble estimation) and I’m sure everyone will REALLY like this one.
Episode 26 features:

Highlights from Soljah Fight Night

-Rumina Sato vs. Bao Quach (+ a rare intvw w/ Shooto star, Sato)
-Jens “Little Evil” Pulver vs. Stephen “Bozo” Palling (+ a double intvw w/ both Bozo and Little Evil)—The “Fight of the Night”
-Vitor “Shaolin” Ribeiro vs. Mitsuhiro Ishida
-Jake Shield vs. Ray “Braddah” Cooper for the Shooto Middleweight Belt (+ intvw w/ Jake)
-and we even have some Ring Chics doing their thang…

-we also had a chance to speak w/ Team Punishment’s Quinton “Rampage” Jackson on his fight/slam w/ Arona, and pre-fight thoughts on Vanderlei Silva (Quinton takes the FCTV 2004 Bleep Award for this interview)

-Technique of the Week—Jason “Mayhem” Miller

-and, stay tuned for the credits for outtakes from pre-ROTR intvw w/ JD Penn.

KICKBOXING CHAMPIONSHIPS
KICKIN IT 2004 "THE SEQUEL"

DECEMBER 10, 2004
KAPOLEI HIGH SCHOOL GYMNASIUM

THERE ARE 12 BOUTS SCHEDULED FOR BELTS AND ALL FIGHTERS COMPETING FOR BELTS HAVE A LOT OF MARTIAL ARTS BACKGROUND. ALL OF THESE TITLE BOUTS SHOULD BE ACTION PACKED DUE TO THE FACT THAT FIGHTERS HAVE BEEN MATCHED UP BY WHO HAS THE BEST RECORDS OF EACH WEIGHT DIVISION IN THE "KICKIN IT" EVENTS. ANY FIGHTER WHO HAS FOUGHT FOR MONEY WILL BE CONSIDERED AS A SEMI PRO FIGHTER (EVEN THOUGH THEY HAVEN'T COMPETED IN THE KICKIN IT CARDS) WHICH MEANS THAT THEY WILL HAVE THE OPTION TO FIGHT WITH OR WITHOUT A HEADGEAR. MOST PEOPLE WHO HAVE COMPETED FOR MONEY, HAVE FOUGHT WITHOUT HEADGEARS. IT WILL MAKE THINGS A LITTLE MORE INTERESTING BECAUSE MOST OF THESE SEMI-PRO FIGHTERS WILL BE FIGHTING AMATEUR KICKBOXERS.


7-YEAR OLD 55# CHAMPIONSHIP
DAHWEN BRIGHT VS. KILI POMROY
HSD AP BOXING

8-YEAR OLD 60# CHAMPIONSHIP
TRISTON PEBRIA VS TRISTON KAMAKA
EWA BEACH FIGHT CLUB 808 FIGHT FACTORY

9-YEAR OLD 65# CHAMPIONSHIP
DIDO RODRIGUES VS ABE REINHARDT
WAIANAE KICKBOXING WAILUKU KICKBOXING

10-12 YEAR OLD 105# CHAMPIONSHIP
SAGE YOSHIDA VS SHAUN AHLO
HMC

WELTERWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP ((149-146#)
NICK CORREA (2-1) VS KAIPO GONZALES (SEMI PRO)
HSD EASTSIDAZ

MIDDLEWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP (153-159#)
NICK GEGA (3-0) VS NICK CORREA (2-1)
LAUPAHOEHOE MUAY THAI HSD

SUPERLIGHTWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP (135-139#)
DAVID BALICAO (5-1) VS RYAN LEE (SEMI PRO)
HSD BULLSPEN

SUPER BANTAMWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP (115-119#)
TONY PERERA (3-0) VS KOICHI TANJI (1-1)
WAIANAE KICKBOXING HMC

SUPER FEATHERWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP (125-129#)
CHAD PAVAO (3-0) VS TAVIS KAGAWA (2-2)
HSD LAUPAHOEHOE MUAY THAI

SUPER HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP (210-ABOVE)
BOB ATISANOE (3-0) VS LEVI JOSEPH
HSD TEAM YOKUZUNA

LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP (167-174#)
BEN RODRIGUES (3-1) VS CONRAD PASSI (1-1)
HSD ADVANCED KENPO

OPEN MIDDLEWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP (153-159#)
KALEO KWON (SEMI-PRO) ZACH ILIZARO
EASTSIDAZ WAILUKU KICKBOXING

AT THIS EVENT, THERE WERE ONLY SUPPOSE TO BE CHAMPIONSHIP BOUTS BUT BECAUSE THAT A LOT OF FIGHTERS WANTED TO FIGHT ON THIS CARD. THERE ARE OTHER BOUTS THAT HAVE BEEN ADDED ON. AND IT GOES A LITTLE SOMETHING LIKE THIS. CHECK IT OUT...

JOHN VISANTE 145# JOON LEE
WAIANAE KICKBOXING SPIRITUAL MARTIAL ARTS

DENVER GONZALVES 190# ERIC THOR
HSD TEAM PERCEPTION

MIKE 185# TBA
ANIMAL HOUSE DOGZ 4 LIFE

WALLACE RODRIGUES 120# DEVIN DAMO
WAIANAE KICKBOXING ANIMAL HOUSE

MUAY THAI BOUTS-LEG KICKS, CLINCHING, AND KNEES WILL BE ALLOWED IN THESE MATCHES

TYSON NAM 135# DEREK MINN
GEE YUNG LAUPAHOEHOE MUAY THAI

TBA 200# SEBASTIAN
LAUPAHOEHOE MUAY THAI

MATCHES MAY BE SUBJECT TO CHANGE WITHOUT NOTICE.

Source: Promoter

Gracie Primed For War With Penn

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

When he steps into the squared circle at Honolulu, Hawaii’s Blaisdell Arena on Saturday, November 20th, mixed martial arts star Rodrigo Gracie (5-0) will be in for his greatest competitive challenge to date in former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) welterweight crown holder, BJ Penn (8-1-1). Gracie is looking at the mega-fight, not as a risk, but as an opportunity to take his career to all new heights.

“I am in the best shape of my life,” said the 29-year-old Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu second degree black belt who will take on Penn during the main event of “Rumble on the Rock 6,” a star-studded mixed martial arts fight card that will be presented by the newly-formed K-1 Fighting Network. “I take this fight seriously because BJ is a top competitor with great skills; the kind of fighter that you cannot afford to make mistakes against. I am going into the fight 100 percent ready physically and mentally.”

The grandson of Gracie Jiu-Jitsu founder, Carlos Gracie, Rodrigo has helped extend the dynasty of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu’s most heralded family by securing victories in all five of his professional mixed martial arts appearances. Four of his career starts have taken place in Japan. “This is as important as any fight is, but up until now, all of my opponents have been Japanese,” commented Gracie. “Fighting B.J. in the United States will give me larger exposure to the American fans.”

At the tender age of four, Gracie began studying the fighting art pioneered by his grandfather. After relocating to California from his native Brazil, he once again hit the road before settling down on Long Island, New York.

Recently, Gracie opened his own Jiu-Jitsu school on Long Island where he has been preparing for the November 20th bout. Strength and conditioning Coach Martin Rooney as well as cousin Crosley Gracie and UFC veteran Matt Serra have all played major roles in the fighter’s training camp.

In other Rumble on The Rock 6 action, 2003 K-1 USA champion, Carter Williams (36-9), will make his fourth career start under mixed martial arts rules when he takes on Tom “Green Beret” Howard (0-2) while another member of the famed Gracie clan, Royler (3-2-1), will face Kazuyuki Miyata (7-1-4). The event will also see a return to action by UFC heavyweight veterans Wesley “Cabbage” Correira (13-6) and 6 foot 9 inch Wes “The Project” Sims (5-5).

Tickets for Saturday, November 20th’s Rumble on the Rock 6 event are priced at $30, $60, $65, $100, $150, and $200, respectively, and can be purchased online at www.ticketmaster.com as well as at all Ticketmaster locations.

Rumble on the Rock is a Hawaii-based mixed martial arts fight promotion that was launched by Prodigy Productions two years ago. Recently, Prodigy Productions partnered with K-1 Fighting Network, a division of the Japan-based K-1 Corporation, to bring mixed martial arts sporting events to a growing fanbase.

Source: K-1

"The Most Dangerous Haole Since Captain Cook Returns!"

The Dec 11th fight card to be held at the Blaisdell Arena just keeps getting bigger! Jason "Mayhem" Miller, the fighter Hawaiians love to hate will step back through the Super Brawl ropes to face local tough guy Mark Moreno

Source: Promoter

3rd American National Quick Report

The 3rd American Natinal has just finished. With over 250 athletes competing for the title of American Champion the event had some great competitive fights. Standouts for the day were Edurado Telles winning the Black Belt weight (final v Mike Rose 16 x 2) and the Absolute (closing out the bracket with Arthur Ruff).

In the Blue belt it was 16 year old Kron Gracie (son of Rickson) fighting in the adult division. Kron submitted his first opponent after running up the score, then defeated current Pan-Ams Champion by points in the semis and taking the finals again by points for the title. When asked about the difference between the Youth and the adult divisions, Kron pointed out: 'The strength of these guys is in another level, but I am very happy to come out the victor!'

Other Blue belt standouts were Eric Soderberg who submiited every match he fought, Matt Keifer and Leo Santos, who won the weight and the absolute.

In the purple Daniel Mc Gowan put an end to Jeff Glover's winning streak and Gold dreams in the finals, while Nick Diaz submitted Terragossa. Rickson Gracie's Kevin Casey won his weight and then fell short in the finals of the Absolute.

In the Brown Belt it was Ryan Gregg winning his weight with a barn burner finals against Demetrius Verardi while Steve Spangler beat Pedro Elias in the finals.

The Black Belt lightweight was a 3 man bracket with Cleber Luciano, Walter Nakagawa and Joao Silva. Cleber beat Walter in the first match by points. The Walter faced Joao Silva, the match was full of action and went back and forth until in the end Nakagawa came out the victor. For his win he won the right to face Cleber again in the finals.

Cleber put the pedal to the metal and got Walter tired mid way through the match and ended up submitting Nakagawa with a collar choke. Black Belt Senior ever green Pat Hardy got another gold.

Source: ADCC

MADISON SQUARE GARDEN HEAVYWEIGHT BOXING QUICK RESULTS AND FLASH QUOTES

DON KING PRODUCTIONS IN ASSOCIATION WITH MADISON SQUARE GARDEN & FIGHT NIGHT PRESENT: RENDEZVOUS WITH DESTINY: BATTLE FOR SUPREMACY

Sat. November 13
MADISON SQUARE GARDEN
Pay-Per-View
WBA WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
JOHN RUIZ def. ANDREW GOLOTA UNANIMOUS DEC.
Ruiz retains title
Supervisor: Noah Reandu
Referee: Randy Neumann
Judge: Tom Schreck 114-111 R
Judge: Frank Lombardi 115-112 R
Judge: Oscar Perez 114-111 R

IBF WORLD HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
CHRIS BYRD def. JAMEEL McCLINE SPLIT DECISION
Byrd retains title
Supervisor: Al Meier
Referee: Wayne Kelly
Judge: Glenn Feldman 114-112 M
Judge: Don Trella 115-112 B
Judge: Luis Rivera 114-113 B

WBC/IBF HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP ELIMINATION
HASIM RAHMAN def. KALI MEEHAN TKO END 4
Supervisors: Mahasin Scott, IBF - Rex Walker, WBC
Referee: Eddie Cotton
Judge: Tom Kaczmarek 40-35 R
Judge: Julie Lederman 39-36 R
Judge: Joe Dwyer 40-35 R

NABC HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
LARRY DONALD def. EVANDER HOLYFIELD UNANIMOUS DEC.
Supervisor: Ed Hutchinson
Referee: Mike Ortega
Judge: Melvina Lathan 119-109 D
Judge: Wynn Kintz 119-109 D
Judge: Bob Gilson 119-109 D

HEAVYWEIGHT ATTRACTION
10 ROUNDS
DAVARRYL WILLIAMSON def. OLIVER McCALL UNANIMOUS DEC.
MIDDLEWEIGHT ATTRACTION
KO 5 - 2:33
AARON 'Homicide' MITCHELL def. CARLTON HOLLAND
SUPER WELTERWEIGHT ATTRACTION
YURI FOREMAN def. SHAKIR ASHANTI TKO 2 - 1:07

LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT ATTRACTION
MARCUS JOHNSON def. MATEEN HALEEM TKO 3 - 2:59

BANTAMWEIGHT ATTRACTION
4 ROUNDS
THOMAS McCUISTON, II def. SAMUEL ROHENA UNANIMOUS DEC.

LIGHT HEAVYWEIGHT ATTRACTION
6 ROUNDS
OLEKSANDR GARASCHENKO def. RON BODDIE UNANIMOUS DEC.
Madison Square Garden Saturday, Nov. 13, 2004
FLASH QUOTES

OLIVER MCCALL VS. DAVARRYL WILLIAMSON

OLIVER MCCALL

'I felt a little rusty tonight. I was aggressive and that was part of my game plan. I didn't get to spar like I wanted to. I just didn't execute, but I am not making any excuses.

'It was a tough loss for me. I will go back to the drawing board.'

DAVARRYL WILLIAMSON

'I absolutely did enough to win. McCall was tough as nails. He kept beating my jab, left hook and body shots. I thought I hurt him in the sixth or seventh round and again the 10th. His strategy seemed to be to walk me down and I was sticking and moving all the way. In the end, I think I scored the most telling blows.'

NABC HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
EVANDER HOLYFIELD VS. LARRY DONALD

EVANDER HOLYFIELD

'It was a tough fight. I did my best. I thought I improved. I might have bit off more than I can chew. Larry's style is difficult. I might have had the wrong fight at the wrong time. In life you have setbacks.

'I have never given up on anything. If I have a change in the heart, I could change my mind. But I will have to pray on it. I still believe that I can still rise to the occasion. Why not continue to pursue my dream? I did and felt a lot better than last time. I thought I hurt him a few times. I just did not get off enough. I feel good. He was a quick guy with good movement. I saw all the shots coming.'

LARRY DONALD

'I want to thank God, Don King and HBO Pay Per View for the opportunity to fight for this title. I have a new trainer, Colin Morgan, and he changed me around. I am getting my right hand off more.

'Evander is still a great champion. I did what I had to do to win. I didn't look at him as being too old.

'Don King has put me in position to get a chance at these champions. Ain't no doubt I won the fight. I won every round. He is a seasoned veteran and he can hurt you if you go to sleep. He is very sneaky with his punches. This is the first step for me to become world heavyweight champion, which is my goal.
(on people who have doubted him in the past) People will always doubt you. People always doubted Muhammad Ali and other fighters. I never doubted myself. I want to challenge all the other belt holders because I earned a shot tonight.

WBC/IBF HEAVYWEIGHT ELIMINATION

HASIM RAHMAN VS. KALI MEEHAN

HASIM RAHMAN

'Thanks to all my fans. I was going to be aggressive tonight. I was ready to go 12 rounds. I stepped it up. I watched one tape of this guy and I knew I had to go get him. I love to be here. We stepped it up against him and it doesn't matter who we fight.

'I went back to the gym and I was focused. I am ready to fight one of these champions tonight. I will stay right here and when they are done, we can get it on.

'I'll fight Klitschko or either one of these champions. Whoever brings the most money to the table will make the most sense. We fight from round one to round 12. I am in the best position in heavyweight boxing now. WBA, WBC, WBO, IBF…I'll take my pick. We are ready to fight for the title. I am only going to be better my next fight.”

KALI MEEHAN

'He had a good defense and he's a strong puncher. I was unable to get the shots off I wanted. I'll be back to fight another day.'

IBF HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
CHRIS BYRD VS. JAMEEL MCCLINE

CHRIS BYRD

(The knockdown?) 'I can't believe it happened. He hit me right behind the ear. It was a perfect shot. He came at me really hard.

(The weight advantage) 'It is not too much. He pushed me and I pushed him back.

(How did you feel in 3rd round after taking knockdown?) 'I got my eyes back in the third. The way I fought back showed I am a true champion. I had to dig down deep. He weighed 270 pounds, that's Jesus Christ.

'I definitely did enough to the win the fight. I am the champion.'

JAMEEL MCCLINE

'This was just about business. It was not like I imagined it would be because I expected to walk out with the title. I trained really hard. I thought I hit him perfect. I was surprised when he got up. It looked like I fell apart a little at the end and it cost me. He has fast hands and took me out of my game plan. That was the difference.'

WBA HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
JOHN RUIZ VS. ANDREW GOLOTA

JOHN RUIZ

'After that first round, he was getting away with a lot of stuff. He could do whatever he wanted to and I had to be on my best behavior. After they threw out Stoney, that motivated me. Every fight is tough. Golota came to fight. I was focused and that is what I did to win the fight.'

'I felt like I was fighting two fighters in the ring. He hit me too many times behind the head and I felt that they wanted to take my belt away. I was very disappointed with the referee and I was very discouraged. I had to motivate myself and in the back of my mind, I knew I was behind. I knew I had to fight hard to get this win.

'I want to fight to unify all the belts and I have no preference.'

ANDREW GOLOTA

'I thought I won the fight. He went down twice. I controlled the fight. I am confused here. I am upside down. I have no idea. I am going to watch the tape and see what is going on. This is very confusing to me. Maybe the judges were watching the fight outside the ring and not inside the ring.'
Source: ADCC

 11/14/04

Quote of the Day

"Abundance is not something we acquire. It is something we tune into."

Wayne Dyer, 1940-, American Psychotherapist, Author, Lecturer

Stand Up Martial Arts (SUMA) 2: Battle at the Hyatt
Results

Hyatt Regency Waikiki Ballroom, Honolulu, Hawaii
November 13, 2004
By Chris Onzuka -
Chris@Onzuka.com

The premier kickboxing event in Hawaii returns for their second event. SUMA is the highest paying kickboxing event and the only one allowing fighters to compete in K-1 style rules. SUMA is planning on holding four events, each one featuring an 8-man tournament in a different weight classes with the top two fighters from each tournament competing in the SUMA Grand Finals. The promoters plan on pitting Hawaii's best kickboxers against some of the best kickboxers from across the rest of the country. The inaugural event was very well received with every fight getting stopped short of a decision, with the exception of one. This time the results were almost the opposite, with just about every fight going to a decision. However the crowd did not seem to mind because the fighters got to show off their skills and go to battle for three full rounds. Every fight was a war and it is difficult to pick out a few fights that stood out. One of the single bouts featured a rematch from the first event, when John James returned to Hawaii for redemption against Dez Miner. James suffered to make the weight class that he just learned about after arriving in Hawaii for their first match and said that this affected his performance. Miner came in to prove the first time was no fluke and went after James, pounding him for half of the first round. James survived the storm and started his kicking assault and destroyed Miner's legs, causing him to call the match after the second round. Another great fight had Brandon Wolf making his anticipated return to the ring, taking on a fighter that has been quickly making a name for himself, Jay Carter. Wolf's technical kickboxing was met with Carter's strength and body seemingly made of iron. This made for a great fight. Enough good things about the 155lbs tournament cannot be said. Every fight was a great one, even the semi's and finals. It did not seem like these fighter had just gone through one or two three-round wars. One of the fighters, Jack Thames, received a bye in the first round, which has to be factored in, but it easily could have been to any of the fighter's advantage. The tournament featured great contrasts between punchers taking on kickers. Do not get me wrong, every fighter could punch and kick, but some were better punches and others were better kickers. In the finals, it pitted the best puncher, Kaleo Kwon taking on the best kicker, James Thames. Both fighters took damage from each other, but it was Kwon's punching winning out in the end. The crowd was brought to their feet as they cheered on the fighters through out every round. There could not be a better final match. The next event is slated for the end of February and interest is already building.

Single Bouts:
Jumar Dumaoal (808 Fight Factory) def. Keone Kipapa (Team Yokozuna)
Decision after 3 rounds.

8 man tournament 155lbs and under
Jack Thames (One Kick Gym, Las Vegas, NV) - 1st Round Bye

Harris "The Hitman" Sarmiento (808 Fight Factory) def. Tristan Wit (Maurice Smith, Seattle, WA)
Decision after 3 rounds.

David "China man" Yeung (HMC) def. Ryan Roy (Fairtex, Sacramento, CA)
Decision after 3 rounds.

Kaleo Kwon (Eastsidaz) def. Jerry Sarabay (Bulls Pen)
Decision after 3 rounds.

Single Bouts:
Brandon Wolf (Ricans Boxing) def. Jay Carter (BJ Penn's MMAA)
Decision after 3 rounds.

8-Man Tournament Semi-Finals:
Jack Thames (One Kick Gym, Las Vegas, NV) def. Harris "The Hitman" Sarmiento (808 Fight Factory)
TKO, verbal submission due to injury (broken hand) at 1:28 minutes in Round 3

Kaleo Kwon (Eastsidaz) def. David "China man" Yeung (HMC)
KO at 1:02 minutes in Round 2.

Single Bouts:
John James (One Kick Gym, Las Vegas, NV) NV, #6 ranking in the ISKA) def. Dez Miner (Waipahu, HI)
TKO, Miner did not continue after the end of the Round 2.

8-Man Tournament Finals:
Kaleo Kwon (Eastsidaz) def. Jack Thames (One Kick Gym, Las Vegas, NV)
Decision after 3 rounds.

Sylvia v Simms Grudge Match is on!

On December 11th, in the Super Brawl ring, Tim Sylvia and Wes Simms will settle a grudge that has lasted over two years. The never short on words Sims does not appear to be changing his game plan. "I just checked my voice mail this morning" said Super Brawl producer T.Jay Thompson, "and the first message was from Wes...he just said 'Just calling to let you know i'm going to kick Tim Sylvias ass!'" Sylvia who is scheduled to fight for the UFC Heavyweight belt in February said "Wes has been flappin his gums for far to long....I am just plain sick of his crybaby antics....and since I need a tune-up fight I will oblige his request to fight and knock his oversized, undertalented, pro-wrestler wannabe ass out."

Source: Super Brawl

Ring of Honor in Kauai Moves to December 4th!

Ring of Honor's first event in Kauai has been moved back one week to be held on December 4th. The event will take place at
Waimea High School Gym.

For more information or if you are interested in competing, please call promoter Kai Kamaka at (808) 330-9484.

Source: Event Promoter

Rumble On The Rock Update:

Word is that due to overwhelming interest in the blockbuster fight between B.J.Penn & Rodrigo Gracie, there is a strong possibility of having the entire event on pay-per-view in the U.S. The event is already showing on pay-per-view in Japan but there are serious negotiations going on at this time to have the ROTR 6 Card on PPV in the mainland US one week following the event!

This would be huge news, the possibility of watching 'The Prodigy' facing Rodrigo in a Cage in Hawaii would certainly draw a large number of hits! More on this as it develops.

Source: ADCC

Black Belt features Middleweight GP

Once the middleweight category has been featuring great names of national Jiu-Jitsu, Black Belt GP will release on December 16 a middleweight grand prix at Shopping Frei Caneca convention room, in São Paulo. Ronaldo Jacaré, Saulo Ribeiro and Fernando Paradeda already confirmed they are in. ADCC 2003 champ Marcelo Garcia is also awaited.

Featuring 16 fighters on the bracket, the competition will count with Eduardo Santoro, Ricardo Bastos, Demian Maia, Givanildo Santana, Fábio Negão, Roger Coelho and Bráulio Estima. The organization does not confirm Délson Pé-de-Chumbo and Thales Leites, but they are in touch. Other four names are missing to close the bracket. The great new this time is the place where they will celebrate the event. The whole celebration will be held at Bahamas Clube, a night club in São Paulo.

- By this time we decided to restrict the number of seats. It will be 200 people, who must join the party as well - said Fernando Lopes Fepa. The ticket will cost R$100 (table).

As heavyweight GP, all fights will have a seven minutes time limit. "Our intention is oblige fighters to reach submission, make the matches more dynamic," believes Fepa, who will pay R$10,000 to the champion, R$3,000 to the second place and R$1,000 to the third place. The most beautiful fight, better move and fastest submission will also receive R$1,000.

Source: Tatame

Pequeno faces Japanese at Shooto

Alexandre Pequeno is ready to face Hideki Kadowaki at Shooto, on December, at Yoyogi National Stadium gym, in Tokyo. The opponent is not a surprise for Shooto Lightweight champion, who has been tuned with Kadowaki's work, since the Japanese has been pointed him as a new category sensation.

- I begin to watch some of Kadowaki's game. He likes lots of submissions. But he is also good on the feet. He trains Muay Thai with some Thai guys in Japan - said Pequeno, who will not put his belt on dispute.

- I got a year away from the rings and I've choose not to put the belt on it. But it seems it's all set up for me to face the winner of Jens Pulver Vs Hiroyki Takaya next Match. This bout will also happen in December - confirms Pequeno, who departs to Japan on December 9.

Hideki Kadowaki fought 13 times. He won eight, lost four and drew one. His last time in Shooto was last July 27, when was submitted by Japanese Naoya Uematsu via Alexandre Pequeno's letal weapon: the guillotine.

Source: Tatame

MARQUARDT BACK ON TOP
By: Mick Hammond

It’s rare when someone becomes a six-time champion, but for Nathan Marquardt it’s almost second nature. Over the last four years Marquardt has reigned more often than not as the Middleweight King of Pancrase Champion. Most recently Marquardt recaptured the vacated title in a win over Kazuo Misaki at the 10th edition of the Pancrase Brave Tour. MMAweekly spoke with Marquardt about the win, his recapturing of the title, and what he has in store for the future.

To regain his Middleweight KOP title, Marquardt had to defeat a very determined Misaki. Nathan said about the fight, “It went really well. It was a really tough fight. I trained really hard for it and was ready for him. My trainers and I created a strategy for him, he’s a counter fighter, we drew up a plan to draw him in and take him out of his game plan.”

Marquardt continued, “The first round was pretty slow, he was waiting for me and I was trying drawing him in. I managed to catch him with some things and frustrated him and he attacked me near the end of the round. By the second round he did it more, I caught him and dropped him and almost finished him off. The same thing happened in the third round. I had him in the position to choke him out with a rear naked in the third round, my arm was under his throat but I didn’t have the hooks in. So I decided to keep my weight off to the side and not risk it, I kind of took it easy and waited for the decision.”

Nathan seemed happier with how his effort was rewarded with a good fight than with his accomplishment of taking home the KOP title for the sixth time, “It’s cool, but the main thing is I trained really hard for this fight. I knew he was good and was ready and would give me everything he had. The exciting part was that I trained really hard for it and came out and dominated him. I’m happy that I’ve got the title again, I just hope it brings me bigger and better fights.”

When asked about his future prospects Marquardt replied, “I want to continue fighting. I want to fight only fights that are really going to push me. I don’t want to take easy fights. I only want high profile fights. That way I know I’m going to be able to put in 100% into things. I want to fight in bigger venues and on bigger stages like Pride, the UFC, or K-1. Only time will tell when that will happen.”

Marquardt seemed enthusiastic about those possibilities when he said, “My contract with Pancrase is a non-exclusive contract. Right now I only have one more fight left on my contract. If the UFC ends up putting the middleweight belt on the line, I’d like to be involved in that. I’d like to fight in Bushido, too. I’ll fight anyone in either organization. I would be honored to fight for them against the top competition they offer.”

In 2003 Marquardt took a chance and stepped up in weight in a losing effort against Keiichiro Yamamiya. When asked if he’d like to try moving up in weight again in the future Nathan said, “I’ve gradually been putting on weight and it’s hard to do that and stay in good shape. Right now I’m excellent at 185 because I’m able to put on a little weight and cut it down when I train for a fight. Over the next few years I’d like to step up to 205lbs as I grow.”

Earlier this year Marquardt made the trip to Gresham, Oregon to train with the famed Team Quest. Nathan said about the experience, “It went great. I was able to train with Matt Lindland, Chael Sonnen, and the others and they are really accommodating. They’re all competitors and we trained hard together. I would like to train again with them in the future.”

Marquardt then talked about the importance of a good system of supporters when asked about how his recent marriage and gym have been going for him, “It’s great, I love being married. For me as far as being a fighter she really supports me. She allows me to do what I do and pushes me to train and improve. I’m training all the time and any other woman would probably nix that, she helps keep me focused. The gym (High Altitude Martial Arts) has been going very well, the students are great. Business is going great. The students are really supportive of me fighting. I can be gone for weeks at a time training in different places. They keep coming even when I’m gone, so it’s nice to know that they support me by doing that.”

As things closed out Marquardt wanted to make sure to thank his sponsors and fans for their support as well, “My sponsors have been really great to me, Kickskin, Real Fight Gear, www.ProExotics.com, Max Muscle, and Nick Johnson. I want to also thank Jackson’s Submission Academy and Team Quest for helping me get ready for this fight. My BJJ coach Ricardo Murgel and of course all the people here on Colorado and my fans around the world, thank you for everything.”

Source: MMA Weekly

Menne shows again why he is 'The Warrior'
by: Eddie Goldman/ADCC Wrestling Editor

Former UFC champ refuses to quit in dramatic Extreme Challenge win

MEDINA, Minn. -- In his celebrated career, fans can always count on Dave Menne for at least two things: 1. He will get hit a lot. 2. He will never quit.

At Extreme Challenge 60, the former UFC middleweight champion ran into trouble quickly against newcomer Trevor Garrett. By the time the first round ended, the doctor was in the cage and was prepared to stop the fight. Menne was already bleeding badly from a cut under his left eye, his nose and a cut on his upper lip.

'The doctor said he was going to stop it, but Menne talked him out of it,' said promoter Monte Cox. 'The doctor wanted to stop it again after the second round, but Menne said 'no, I still have a round left in me.' The doctor said if it was anybody but Menne he probably wouldn't have changed his decision.'

Having lost the first round, Menne went quickly for a takedown to open round two. Garrett, a chiseled 185er from Dayton, Ohio, used his super strength to make up for what he lacked in technique... but after a brief struggle, Garrett was on his back and Menne was attacking, eventually getting to full mount. Although he dominated position, Menne still had trouble landing solid blows. However, he won the second round by controlling the action and position for four minutes of the round.

Although the fight was even a round a piece, you never would have guessed it from the two combatants... Menne was bleeding badly and both eyes were closing, while Garrett looked a little tired, but was all but unmarked.

Menne again opened the third round with a takedown and maneuvered his way into the mount. Garrett again defended well from the bottom, but said he knew he had to get out from the bottom if he was going to win the fight. A standup for a stalemate was followed quickly by another takedown and Menne managed to control the action in Garrett's guard until the bell sounded.

Judges awarded a split-decision victory to Menne by scores of 29-28, 29-28 and 29-30.

'Menne proved again that nobody in this sport has his heart... his warrior spirit,' Cox said. 'I don't know too many fighters who would have kept going with the damage he suffered, let alone keep going and pull out the win. And, Garrett became a star tonight. This guy may lose some fights, but he's going to leave a lot of bodies behind him as he continues to improve.'

In a night of great fights, the Menne-Garrett war was only slightly better than battles between newcomer Roger Huerta and Jake Short, and UFC veteran Tyrone Roberts and Daryl Guthmiller.

Huerta improved to 13-1-1 with a submission win over Short at 37 seconds of the third round, following an intense battle between top 155ers. And, Guthmiller earned a unanimous decision over the determined Roberts in another crowd favorite.

Also, Sean Sherk continued to roll, showing his improved subs with a arm-triangle win over Lee King. Ron Fields pulled an upset, beating Canadian Chris Fontaine by triangle in the first round, while Joe Jordan delivered a G&P clinic in a win over Vern Jefferson.

Clay Guida arrived an hour before his fight after agreeing to drive 5 hours from Chicago and face Randy Hauer. The trip didn't seem to affect him as he scored the victory due to referee stoppage. Reed Wismer lost the first round, but rallied to beat Mike Belker in the second, while Ryan Antle did the same against Cliff Saunders, who took the fight literally on 20 minutes notice when Antle's opponent failed to arrive.

Complete results:

- Reed Wismer def. Mike Belker, ref stoppage due to elbows, 1:30 Rd. 2 (4:30).

- Ryan Antle def. Cliff Saunders, ref stoppage due to strikes, 1:20 Rd. 2 (4:20).

- Ron Fields def. Chris Fontaine, triangle choke, 2:30 Rd. 1.

- Joe Jordan def. Vern Jefferson, Ref stoppage due to elbows, 2:40 Rd. 1.

- Clay Guida def. Randy Hauer, ref stoppage due to strikes, 2:25 Rd. 1.

- Daryl Guthmiller def. Tyrone Roberts, unanimous dec., 15:00.

- Sean Sherk def. Lee King, arm-triangle, 2:20 Rd. 1.

- Roger Huerta def. Jake Short, rear choke, :37 Rd. 3 (10:37).

- Dave Menne def. Trevor Garrett, split decision, 15:00.

Source: ADCC

Pulver signed to fight #1 Ranked Shooto Lightweight in December

Shooto announced that the fight between #1 ranked LW Hiroyuki Takaya and #3 ranked LW and former UFC champion Jens Pulver has been signed for the 14th of December in Shooto. He still is waiting to fight Shooto's Lightweight Champion, but if he wins this Champ should be next.
The card features some big names including Rumina Sato, Alexandre Nogueira, Jake Shields and Shaolin Ribeiro.

Makoto Ishikawa vs. Ian J. Shaffa
Katsuya Toida vs. Rumina Sato
Alexandre F. Nogueira vs. Hideki Kadowaki
Hiroyuki Takaya vs. Jens Pulver
Jake Shields vs. Akira Kikuchi
Vitor 'Shaolin' Ribeiro vs. Tatsuya Kawajiri

Source: MMA Weekly

 11/13/04

Quote of the Day

"I shall adopt new views as fast as they shall appear to be true views."

Abraham Lincoln, 1809-1865, Sixteenth President of the USA

Stand Up Martial Arts (SUMA) 2: Battle at the Hyatt
Tonight!

Hyatt Regency Waikiki Ballroom, Honolulu, Hawaii
November 13, 2004
7:30PM

8 man tournament 155lbs and under
David "China man" Yeung (HMC)
Harris "The Hitman" Sarmiento (808 Fight Factory)
Jerry Sarabay (Bulls Pen)
Kaleo Kwon (Team MADD)
Jack Thames (One Kick, Las Vegas, NV)
Ryan Roy (Fairtex, Sacramento, CA)
Shawn Taylor
Tristan Wit (Maurice Smith, Seattle, WA)

Single Bouts:
Dez Miner vs. John James (Las Vegas, NV, #6 ranking in the ISKA)

Single Bouts:
Brandon Wolf (Team MADD) vs. Jay Carter (BJ Penn's MMAA)

Aloha Martial Arts Festival 2004



8:30am The weigh-ins will start

9:30am the continuous sparring will start first!

11:00am Pankration and Sport JJ simultaneously

We are planning to end the tournament by 2:00pm!

A little Brazilian help to BJ Penn
by: Luca Atalla & Rafael Werneck

BJ Penn is more than ready to beat Rodrigo Gracie at the main fight of Rumble of the Rock, event scheduled do take place on November 20th, at Honolulu, Hawaii. To improve his submissions skills, the former UFC welterweight champion imported some talent right from Brazil. One of the Nova Uniao's most promising athletes, Thales Leites is in Hawaii helping Penn along another Brazilian star, Renato Verissimo.

‘BJ called Andre Pederneiras requesting a fighter who was physically similar to Rodrigo Gracie. Dede chose me and when the people from Hawaii saw pictures of me fighting at the Cyclone Submission Cup they accepted my name at that very moment. I’m very happy and I’ll do my best to help BJ´, stated Leites.

Thales has a 3-0-0 MMA career record and defeated Flavio Moura and Lucio Linhares at Vitoria Extreme Fight second edition. He also is the current Cyclone Submission Cup champion among fighters up to 95kg.

Thales Leites expects to stay in Hawaii for more few days and will be back to Rio by the end of the month to another important challenge: The ADCC Brazilian Trials. First organized to 32 athletes per weight category, the first phase of Brazilian ADCC 2005 trials will count with 64 athletes and will be realized on November 27th and 28th. ‘The reason for that change was the great number of subscriptions per category. Our intention is to make the ADCC trials a popular event,’ explained the promoter Paulo Zorello.

Source: ADCC

TRIGG WANTS SHOT AT BJ PENN

Frank Trigg is coming off an impressive win against Charuto Verissimo at UFC 50. So what's next for Trigg? "I want to take on Matt Hughes. He has my belt and I'm ready to take it from him" Trigg said from Chicago.

But there is one fight out there Trigg would love, even before taking on Matt Hughes. That would be with BJ Penn.

Penn was on MMAWeekly Radio talking about his future. After next week's Rumble on the Rock event, BJ plans on fighting on the K-1 New Year's Eve card in Japan. He doesn't know who he will be facing but radio show co-host and UFC welterweight contender Frank Trigg offered to fight him on that card. BJ said, "Of course I'd like to fight Frank Trigg."

Trigg right now doesn't have a contract. He would love to fight for the title against Hughes in the UFC. "I hope it all works out with the UFC. I love the organization and I would like to fight there. Right now I'm just trying to stay busy and I want to fight the best.....whether it's Hughes or Penn."

Source: MMA Weekly

PENN RECAP ON MMAWEEKLY RADIO

fight next week in Rumble on the Rock is filled with side stories. Penn will be fighting a Gracie is how it is being billed but the most interesting thing about the match up is that BJ will be going up yet another weight class to fight Rodrigo Gracie at 185 pounds. Penn was the featured guest on MMAWeekly SoundOff Radio Thursday and spoke about the fight and some other matches he'd like in the future.

For the fight, BJ plans on weighing in somewhere in the neighborhood of 175-177lbs. To BJ, the weight difference and new weight class means nothing. "It doesn't really matter to me," said Penn. He further commented, "I don't want anything to ever be a factor for me fighting somebody. You know what I mean? I mean, any way, any fighting, I don't know, some heavyweights in the future or whatever, this and that. I really want to be the kind of fighter who just goes out and fights everybody." If he had his way, he'd fight under the old UFC rules with no time limits.

BJ said he isn't fighting Rodrigo just to get a Gracie name on his record. About Rodrigo, Penn commented, "I've seen a couple of his fights. He brings, you know what he brings is some athleticism and some size....He's athletic and of course he's a black belt. He's got skills and stuff. He's strong, he's not a weakling. He's strong. He's quick. He will throw if he has to standing up. He's explosive, you know. He's a Jiu-Jitsu Black Belt....He's definitely well rounded."

Looking at the fight itself, BJ said, "I'm going to take it as it comes. I'm going to be fighting him standing, fighting him on the ground. Whatever happens, happens." Penn feels comfortable no matter where the fight goes. He was asked if he felt like he could submit a Gracie and BJ responded, "I feel like I can submit anyone. I feel I can go out there and at anytime, anybody, if you make a mistake, I've got you." Penn's prediction for the fight was that he'd win by either a knockout standing or on the ground by submission. He made no mention of this fight going the distance.

Trigg isn't the only guy BJ wants to fight. When Matt Hughes was on the radio show recently, he alluded to Penn wanting to fight Jeremy Horn. When BJ was asked about it, he replied, "I don't know if Horn's going to be the next guy that I'm going to be fighting, but I'm sure before my career's done I end up fighting Jeremy Horn."

Source: MMA Weekly

WILL THE GRUDGE MATCH FINALLY HAPPEN?

Some fights are just meant to happen. There comes a time where two guys just don't get along, are in the same weight class, and just want to beat the hell out of each other.

That pretty much sums up Wes Sims and Tim Sylvia's relationship. They've been taking verbal shots at one another for years, and now they may get to take real shots at each other. Wes Sims was contacted by MMAWeekly SoundOff Radio yesterday and asked Wes if the rumors are true.

When asked if he will indeed be fighting Tim Sylvia at SuperBrawl, Sims said, "I don't know nothing." When most fighters say that, it usually means yes. When further questioned, Wes said, "The invitation is there. I heard the giant broke his hand so I, you know, I like last minute fights." Sims continued, "There is nothing signed. I just said the invitation is open. TJ Thompson's the promoter. It's up to him."

Wes will arrive in Hawaii on Wednesday to fight in next week's Rumble on the Rock and said, "It's only two weeks later. I'll be in Hawaii. It just extends my vacation. I plan on ruining Timmy's vacation."

As if on cue, Tim Sylvia calls in, at the end of the radio show, to respond to Sims. When Tim heard from radio host Ryan Bennett that Wes had offered to take the fight, Tim simply responded, "Really?" Tim has been wanting to fight Wes for some time and said, "You have no idea," how much I want this fight.

Tim's arm is, "doing real good." He stated, "I gave it a real good test last Monday and I put a hurting on a couple of the boys in the room so I know it's strong now. Strong enough to knock his [Wes'] ass out." Sylvia said, "If he signs the dotted line, it will happen," and when it does, it will be a "very satisfying moment in my career."

Source: MMA Weekly

Minotouro following his brother´s steps
by: Luca Atalla & Rafael Werneck

A lot of people were surprised by Rodrigo Nogueira's boxing during 2004 Pride Heavyweight Grand Prix. For several months Minotauro was very focused in improving his strikes skills so he spent some time training with the Brazilian National Team, in Sao Paulo. His coach was a Cuban expert called Joan Francisco “Paco” Garcia. Now, Paco has another pupil: Rogerio Nogueira, Minotauro´s twin brother.

‘Minotouro is not at the same level of Rodrigo yet. But he is on the right track and his great will to learn makes me feel confident that he will be a better fighter by the time we are done. Rodrigo is now the best boxer of MMA and I´m sure he would make a lot of money boxing professionally´, stated Paco.

According to the Cuban coach, if someone wants to win at the MMA world, must know how to exchange punches. Ground skills are not enough. ‘Boxing is 50% of the MMA fight. And we have a lot to show to the MMA fighters,’ says Paco.

A huge success around the world, MMA is ready to be discovered by yet another country. ´After Minotauro´s trip to Cuba, the people were fascinated by MMA. I´m coming back to my motherland next month and I´ll take several tapes with me. The first time I saw a MMA bout in 1999, I thought it was too violent, but nowadays everything is much more professional and the rules makes it fascinanting´, ends Paco.

Source: ADCC

Path Towards California MMA Regulation Continues
by Josh Gross

IRVINE, Calif., Nov. 9 -- California Tuesday continued its drive towards sanctioning professional mixed martial arts bouts with a hearing of the California State Athletic Commission, the regulatory body chartered with controlling combat sports in the state.

Serving largely as a public comment period regarding previously-outlined CSAC MMA rules, six of the commission's seven members listened to and asked questions of representatives from the MMA community, including major-league promoters Zuffa and Dream Stage Entertainment.

While little news was made on the rules front, the commission set January 27 as the day it hoped to finish the regulation process so that the body could send new rules to Sacramento for approval and funding. That is step number one for the CSAC if it hopes to procure money from the state and begin regulating MMA sometime during the first half of 2005.

Acting Executive Director Dean Lohuis, whose position as the body's interim executive officer was made official Tuesday afternoon, opened the discussion by informing the commission that a recently requested budget change proposal, earmarked for MMA to the tune of $46,000, was denied by the state's budget office.

"On the surface that looks bad," Lohuis said while addressing the commissioners. "But what they really told me is that they wanted to make sure that we have the mixed martial arts regulation in place and approved, and then they would give it to us. So that puts more priority on getting these regulations approved. ..."

Assuming in January the CSAC can piecemeal acceptable regulations with promoters and the sport's other stakeholders, the earliest MMA might be regulated by the state would be April. But that leaves little time for the bureaucracy in Sacramento to procrastinate.

In anticipation of the sport's sanction, multiple promoters with different rule guidelines have already expressed interest in promoting shows in a state believed to own MMA's largest fighter talent pool and fan base.

Playing a prominent role at Tuesday's hearing was PRIDE Fighting Championship promoter, DSE. PRIDE representative Turi Altavilla expressed the company's desire to hold events in the United States, particularly California or Nevada, where DSE was granted a promoter's license June 2002.

"We've been cultivating the U.S. market and we believe the time is now to have an event in California. ... However, there are some rules of ours that differ from the Unified Rules," Altavilla told the commissioners.

DSE provided a handout to the commission listing PRIDE's injury statistics between March 2001 through August 2004, separating injuries specific to PRIDE rules from those incurred by maneuvers allowed in the Unified Rules. Of the 114 injuries outlined on the one-page spread sheet, only 12 were directly attributed to PRIDE rules (spiking/pile driving, kicks to the head of a grounded fighter, knees to the head of a grounded fighter, and usage of the ring).

"Our rules have evolved from our experience as promoters," Altavilla noted. "And also, I would hope to uphold the integrity of the sport and protect the fighters as well. We feel over the course of 40 events that we are ensuring the safety of the fighters by these rules while also promoting exciting matches. We'd definitely like the rules to be considered. Modifying these rules would be a big factor for us in our decision making process and finding a location to have our first event. Having an event in California would benefit our company, would benefit the sport, but would also benefit the state."

Altavilla went on to point out the differences between PRIDE and other events, including making a special point of why a ring, not a fenced-in fighting arena like the UFC's Octagon, was so important to their events. "We've never used a cage," he said. "We've used a ring since the beginning. Since 1997 we've had more than 340 matches; we've never had a problem with the ring. Very fan-friendly. We feel the ring is very important for us, not only functionally but as a symbol of our brand of mixed martial arts, like some other promoters have theirs."

Expressing his desire to see the commission adopt a less prohibitive rule structure, longtime California fight advocate Nelson "Doc" Hamilton recommended that the CSAC avoid jumping onto the Unified Rules bandwagon, and instead find a way to make the pending MMA regulations unique to the state.

"I hope that this commission will not paint itself into a corner simply because [there's] an eagerness to get certain things done because money's involved," Hamilton said. "If you're going to pass rules -- and we had a good set of rules before; they were good enough for New Jersey and Nevada to adopt with some tinkering -- however, you might want to look at some other alternatives in addition to those rules. Because, if we're in competition as a state body, then what you want to do is you want to be able to invite in anybody that wants to promote in this state that is willing to meet your requirements. And in so doing, send a message that California is open for business, we are friendly and come promote here.

"You have to protect the public, you have to protect the competitor. Once you've done that, I don't know that you should be micromanaging insofar as the rules go. If they work for certain organizations and they can prove to you that they work and they can show you data that, 'hey, this is what we've got,' then you should be open to hearing what they have to say. At least in my estimation. Otherwise, all you're doing is rubber-stamping what we've already done, and now we're walking in lock-step with everybody else."

When pressed by commissioner Mike Carona what he'd do differently to make California competitive in the market place of MMA promotion, Hamilton hesitated to get into specifics, though he suggested taking a second look at specific rules outlawed by the Unified Rules.

Perhaps mixed martial arts' biggest proponent of the Unified Rules is Zuffa, owner and operator of the Ultimate Fighting Championship. Taking his turn at the dais was Zuffa COO Kirk Hendrick, who, following the advice of the commission, kept his comments to a minimum. Hendrick impressed upon the commission Zuffa's pledge to take the UFC only to those states where "health and safety is the paramount concern."

Echoing that sentiment was Dr. Paul Wallace, the chairman of the commission's medical advisory board. "I think everything that has been proposed [today] falls well within the safety margins that we have in California and should have, with one caveat: that we pay as much attention to the mixed martial arts as we do to boxing. ... Mixed martial arts cannot be just considered a part of boxing; it is separate. We need to have officials who are experts in that as we have officials who are experts in boxing. ..."

"I want you ... to know that the decision for mixed martial arts is completely supported by the medical advisory committee," Wallace continued. "Hopefully that will give you some insight or comfort when you're trying to make a decision."

Hitman promoter Paul Herrera and MMA personality Stephen Quadros offered their assistance to the commission as well. Also in attendance, but purely as an observer, was K-1 representative Geoff Moss.

January's hearing in Los Angeles is shaping up to be extremely important for DSE and Zuffa (who appear to be butting heads on several important rule propositions) as well as anyone with a vested interest in seeing mixed martial arts succeed in California.

Source: Shedog

Hirotaka Yokoi Interview
by Masa Fukui

On the way home after the last Pancrase show at Tokyo's NK Bay Hall, we found PRIDE Veteran Hirotaka Yokoi a.k.a. “Kaibutsu-Kun”(Kaibutsu means “Monster”). There was a cartoon in Japan called Kaibutsu-Kun during the early 1980s, and his nickname is taken over from this cartoon, I think, because the main character of this cartoon has big ears and has smiley face.

I, as a shy person, wasn’t really in the mode to interview anybody. But my buddy Stephen Martinez pushed me to get an interview with him. We started the speaking with this Monster-Boy just outside Tokyo Disney Land. (*NK Hall is located right next to Tokyo Disney land.)

MASA FUKUI: Mr. Yokoi, you impressed a lot of people when you fought Rodrigo Nogueira. It was an awesome fight. But not too many people know about you outside of Japan. So tell us something about yourself. First, what is your background?

HIROTAKA YOKOI: I was training Judo. But, I was always watching UWF (Pro-Wrestling founded by Akira Maeda) a lot. Then I was always playing with that UWF technique at Judo training.

FUKUI: So you imitated UWF things in the break time of your Judo training?

YOKOI: Yes. In the break time -- also, while everybody’s training. (laughs)

FUKUI: You UWF'd while other people are seriously training?

YOKOI: Yeah, so my coach was always very angry at me.

FUKUI: (laughs) No doubt. In serious Judo team, you just playing around with pro-wrestling moves. Interesting. Where are you from?

YOKOI: I am from Hokkaido (Northern part of Japan -- very cold like Minnesota).

FUKUI: Do you know a lot of MMA fans are talking about you on the American Internet Forums?

YOKOI: Absolutely no idea what is going on overseas.

FUKUI: Well, some people consider you as the No. 1 heavyweight fighter in Japan.

YOKOI: No! That’s wrong. Maybe I’m fifth. (laughs)

FUKUI: A lot of people on the forums thought you would defeat Heath Herring. What do you think?

YOKOI: I thought I can win too (laughs). Seriously, I thought I can win. But in that fight, he hit me with a lucky punch. The result says I lost, and I don't have a problem with it. That was my fault. I got the punch. Loss is loss. But I still think he and I are at the same stage/same level. Not that different.

FUKUI: Were the knees which Herring was throwing before the first stoppage very effective? The referee stopped the fight, and told Herring not to hit the back of your head.

YOKOI: I don’t think it was illegal kick though.

FUKUI: So you think the first stoppage should be stoppage for the whole fight?

YOKOI: I don’t really remember after I got that hook. That hook kinda blew my memories. When I got back, I was surrounded my corner.

FUKUI: I see. So include that Herring fight, what do you think about your performance in PRIDE so far?

YOKOI: Bad.

FUKUI: But you did very good against Nogueira. OK, is there anyone in particular you want to fight in PRIDE?

YOKOI: I don’t have anybody I really want to fight. But I just want to fight against strong guys. It’s important to earn a "W" in my record. But if I can enjoy fighting, I’ll fight anybody. But my opponent must be very strong guy.

FUKUI: After the Herring fight, did you feel like “I need this technique, I should go this gym to train with this guy to learn some specific skill”or anything?

YOKOI: After the Herring fight? No. But after the Nogueira fight I changed my training routine. After the Herring fight I didn’t feel that I need to change my training routine. I felt more like I trained good. So I didn’t change it.

FUKUI: So who do you train with?

YOKOI: I usually train at TK’s (Tsuyoshi Kohsaka) Gym. And training with Chonan Ryo, Daiju Takase, Kazuhiro Nakamura.

FUKUI: How much do you train?

YOKOI: If it’s before the fight, I train five to six hours a day, six days a week.

FUKUI: Wow, that’s a lot. As a heavyweight fighter, you’re not tall. Isn’t that a big disadvantage for you?

YOKOI: I don’t really care about the size of the body.

FUKUI: How about reach?

YOKOI: Oh, yes, I don’t like long legs and arms.

FUKUI: So do you want to go down to the middleweight?

YOKOI: I don’t really mind. My weight is between those two divisions. So when I get an opponent, then I’ll just adjust my weight either way.

FUKUI: So you told me your pro-wrestling career is starting soon. When will you be joining the pro-wrestling tour?

YOKOI: It’s starting the 11th of this month.

FUKUI: OK, good luck with it. Thank you very much for this opportunity.

YOKOI: Thank you, too.

Source: Sherdog

Lister Strikes Out On His Own
By Mick Hammond

Dean “Boogeyman” Lister is one of southern California’s premier Mixed Martial Artists. An expert in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Lister recently split from his longtime training home of City Boxing and has branched out on his own. MMAweekly spoke to Lister about his new temporary home before he closes in on a permanent facility next year.

According to Lister, “We’re opening a location that’s already in a martial arts studio. We’ll probably have everything going by mid-next week. The schedule for now looks like we’ll have a nightly class from 6-8pm Monday through Thursday and also have weekend classes.” Lister elaborated, “Everyone will be working together until we get things more set up and then we’ll separate them into beginner and advanced courses. We’ll eventually add morning classes, women’s classes and children’s classes.”

Lister concluded, “The original building we were going to move into will have to hold off for a few months. But I want to stress we will have a central San Diego location soon when things come together. The current facility is located at 1020 Tierra Del Ray, Suite D, in Chula Vista, California, 91910 zip code. You can contact Brent at 619-920-6719 with any questions about classes, scheduling, and directions. We plan to treat people right and give them their money’s worth.”

Source: MMA Weekly

Analyzing UFC 50 Salaries
By Jeremy Wall

Although UFC 50 was held in Atlantic City and the state of New Jersey doesn't release purses for fighters competing in Jersey, by going back and looking at the purses for matches that took place in Las Vegas (as the Nevada State Athletic Commission does release this information) earlier this year with fighters who competed at UFC 50.

None of the numbers printed in this article have been officially released by Zuffa or New Jersey; they've simply been collected by going back and looking at Vegas events in order to put together an educated guess as to what the size of the talent payroll for UFC 50 was.

Below is a chart with all of the fighters who competed at UFC 50, and their guarantee for their last fight in Las Vegas in UFC (if they've competed in Vegas at all) listed from highest to lowest:

Tito Ortiz ($125,000)
Matt Hughes ($55,000)
Evan Tanner ($15,000)
Frank Trigg ($10,000)
Marvin Eastman ($10,000)
Renato Verissimo ($10,000)
Rich Franklin ($10,000)
Robbie Lawler ($8,000)
Georges St-Pierre ($4,000)
Jorge Rivera ($3,000)
Travis Lutter (N/A)
Ivan Salaverry (N/A)
Tony Fryklund (N/A)
Patrick Cote (N/A)

Lutter, Salaverry, Fryklund and Cote have never fought in Vegas before so are listed as (N/A). The lowest guarantee UFC generally pays is $2,000. Salaverry may have been paid higher because he competed for Zuffa a couple of years ago, and Cote may have also gotten more because he was in the headline (although that seems unlikely with how much Vernon White was paid to fight Chuck Liddell in August).

Here's another chart, listing the win bonus for the above fighters for their last fight in Vegas (their win bonus is listed here despite whether or not they actually won their last Vegas fight):

Matt Hughes ($55,000)
Tito Ortiz ($50,000)
Evan Tanner ($15,000)
Frank Trigg ($10,000)
Marvin Eastman ($10,000)
Renato Verissimo ($10,000)
Rich Franklin ($10,000)
Robbie Lawler ($8,000)
Georges St-Pierre ($4,000)
Jorge Rivera ($3,000)
Travis Lutter (N/A)
Ivan Salaverry (N/A)
Tony Fryklund (N/A)
Patrick Cote (N/A)

The win bonus' are pretty much the same in every case with the exception of Tito Ortiz having a much larger guarantee than bonus.

Now here's a chart combining the guarantees and win bonuses for fighters who won their respective fights at UFC 50:

Tito Ortiz ($125,000+$50,000=$175,000)
Matt Hughes ($55,000+$55,000=$110,000)
Evan Tanner ($15,000+$15,000=$30,000)
Frank Trigg ($10,000+$10,000=$20,000)
Rich Franklin ($10,000+$10,000=$20,000)
Marvin Eastman ($10,000)
Renato Verissimo ($10,000)
Robbie Lawler ($8,000)
Travis Lutter ($2,500+$2,500=$5,000)
Ivan Salaverry ($2,500+$2,500=$5,000)
Georges St-Pierre ($4,000)
Jorge Rivera ($3,000)
Tony Fryklund ($2,500)
Patrick Cote ($2,500)

I've also assumed that the salaries of Lutter, Salaverry, Fryklund and Cote are based on $2,500 +$2,500, which seems to be the most common numbers for debuting (or returning after a long absence, as in the case of Salaverry) fighters, although these numbers combined are probably lower than what they are in reality. The fact that fighters may have also gotten raises since their last match in Vegas would indicate that this chart will skew the total payroll lower than reality.

If you add up the numbers in the above chart, they equal to a total payroll of $405,000. If Salaverry and Cote were both paid very liberally, then the total payroll could be up around $420,000, but that doesn't seem likely. It would be even higher if someone like Evan Tanner or Georges St-Pierre received a guarantee a few thousand dollars higher than the last time they fought.

Here's a chart of the total payroll for every UFC event in 2004:

UFC 50 $405,000*
UFC 49 $534,000
UFC 48 $586,000
UFC 47 $333,000
UFC 46 $540,500

* = estimate

Based on my estimation, UFC 50 falls far short of the payrolls for the last two events, and ranks as the second-lowest total payroll of the year, ahead of UFC 47. This is partially due to Guy Mezger pulling out of the main event of UFC 50 due to injury, as Mezger most likely would have made far more than Patrick Cote for fighting Tito.

Source: Maxfighting

UFC Fighters on Blind Date
Submitted by UFC

Look for former UFC Heavyweight Champion Tim Sylvia and four other UFC fighters as they appear as special guests on the popular television show Blind Date during sweeps week of Nov.15-19.

Sylvia, and UFC fighters Tiki Ghosn, Pete Spratt, Wes Sims and Josh Thomson each will be featured on a blind date with a woman they have never met.

Monday, Nov. 15, Pete Spratt and Andreina

Pete’s an Ultimate Fighter who has put his bad boy days behind him. Andreina’s an independent girl who doesn’t fall for cheesy lines. Will these two strong personalities knock each other out, or will they be an equal match for one another?

Tuesday, Nov. 16, Josh Thomson and Denise

Denise wants a guy who is as masculine as she is petite. Josh is an Ultimate Fighter with more experience in the ring than with the opposite sex. Will Josh’s old-fashioned attitudes appeal to Denise, or is his game of hard-to-get going to make him hard to want?

Wednesday, Nov. 17, Tiki Ghosn and Rebecca

Tiki’s an Ultimate Fighter who likes a girl to carry herself like a lady. Rebecca’s a part-time model who works at a Hooters Restaurant. Is she hiding a deep reserve of feminine mystique, or do her short skirts and belly shirts reveal all there is to know?

Thursday, Nov. 18, Tim Sylvia and Jennifer

Tim’s the Ultimate Fighting Champion who wants a girl who can hold her own with the guys. Jennifer’s got a weakness for bad boys, and claims she can drink anyone under the table. Will Tim’s affinity for girlie drinks be a turn-off for the Irish girl or is his strength of character enough to carry her interest?

Friday, Nov. 19, Wes Sims and Erika

Erika works in a sex shop, and likes spending time with guys who enjoy strip clubs. Is Wes an Ultimate Fighter with more brawn than brain? Will he be able to keep his foot out of his mouth when he finds out that Erika’s a former stripper, or will the girl from the wrong side of tracks have to teach her date some manners?

Blind Date host Roger Lodge will make several television appearances this week to promote the shows featuring the UFC fighters. Lodge’s schedule includes:

ESPN2’s Cold Pizza: Thursday, Nov. 11, at 8:30 a.m. EST

Fox & Friends: Friday, Nov. 12, at 6:45 a.m. EST

CNBC’s The John McEnroe Show: tba, the week of Nov. 15

Source: MMA Fighting

ONE ON ONE WITH HEATH HERRING
by Mick Hammond

Heath Herring is one of the top heavyweights in the world. For almost 8 years, the 26-year-old Herring has been competing against some of the toughest competition in MMA. Before joining Pride in 2000, Herring had already fought almost 20 bouts against the likes of Evan Tanner, Travis Fulton, and Bobby Hoffman.

Since then he’s competed 17 times for Pride, facing the toughest they have to offer, becoming the only man to ever defeat Tom Erickson and taking current Pride Interim Heavyweight Champion Antonio Rodrigo Nogueria to the limit of athleticism twice. Herring spoke with MMA Weekly’s Mick Hammond about his recent win against Hirotaka Yokoi at Pride 28, his move back to the US, and what he sees for his future.

MMA Weekly: First off, let’s talk about your fight against Yokoi at High Octane. Going into the fight did you have the mindset of trying to strike with him considering how good he is on the ground?

Heath Herring: Yes, we figured he would try to take the fight to the ground, so we planned to stand up and keep it standing. We did that and then come to find out afterwards in his post-fight interview that he was training on catching my kick and taking me down. We had decided to not throw any kicks going into the fight, so that was kind of funny that he was planning to do that. Realistically the strategy couldn’t have gone any better.

MMA Weekly: During the fight you had Yokoi down and were blasting him with knees and the referee took you off of him and gave you a warning, was it for kneeing to the back of the head?

Heath Herring: The warning I received was for punching to the back of the head. I heard some people there saying that they thought the knees were illegal. There was no comment to me about that. I think the timing on the stop was a little bit suspicious, they waited until he was in trouble. It gave him some time to recover.

MMA Weekly: It was obvious on the PPV that you were unhappy when you were in the corner while the referees were discussing what had happened. What was going on from your point of view at that moment?

Heath Herring: First I was asking what was illegal. The referee was saying that it was punches and I only did that once and I stopped. He started to talk to head referee Shimada and in the background Yokoi obviously fell to the ground and to me looked knocked out and I’m like, “he can’t even stand up” and they didn’t even look over once. I knew that what was going to happen.

MMA Weekly: Then what happened?

Heath Herring: My corner was yelling to at me to settle down, I was worried I was going to miss an opportunity. I calmed myself and then the fight started up again. That’s when he locked me up and I hit him with body shots and he didn’t respond so I backed off. That’s when he shot and I got him on the ground finished it with my knees.

MMA Weekly: Did you feel any sense of urgency when they restarted the fight to take him out as quick as possible and not give him a chance to pull something out of nowhere to beat you?

Heath Herring: Of course, I thought that it was really important with all the hype behind him to finish it off. I still think he’s a good fighter, he’s very dangerous, I don’t mean to downplay his abilities. It was important to me when I came off my loss (to Antonio Rodrigo Nogueira at Critical Countdown 2004) to be dominant, even after the fact that Pride made me lose 20lbs in 2 weeks, they put me through the wringer on this.

MMA Weekly: You mention that you had to drop 20lbs in two weeks, how did that effect you at all in the ring?

Heath Herring: In the ring I felt quick and felt good. I will say weighing around 235lbs is a little too light. I was fine at 255lbs but to get the fight I had to lose the weight so I cut out lifting and was watching what I was eating. Considering that I was cutting down 20lbs in just 2 weeks, I felt pretty strong. But it was not where I’d like to fight at, I feel comfortable at 245-255lbs. I think maybe just a little bit of power, but for Yokoi that wasn’t going to be a factor. We weighed in about the same and I’m happy with the end result of the fight, so that’s all that matters.

MMA Weekly: After the fight you did an interesting thing to celebrate, you sprayed Pride Color Commentator Mauro Ranallo with your water bottle as you walked by, what was up with that?

Heath Herring: He dared me to in the interview before the fight. He said I wouldn’t spray him with water and I told him I would so I did it. If you dare me to do something odds are I’ll do it. I really like Mauro, he’s a good guy and has a great sense of humor. It was all in good fun.

MMA Weekly: Recently you made the move from Holland back to the States and joined the Las Vegas Combat Club. Tell us how the move came about.

Heath Herring: I moved out to Vegas in July and have been training with guys there. I needed to get out of Holland and get back into the States. When you’re feeling good and training good it works in your favor, and that’s how I feel in Vegas. I felt confident, strong, and good. I would have love to gone back to Texas, first and foremost, but there is no one there I could have trained with. There is no one there equipped to handle a fighter of my size. That’s one of the reasons I went to Vegas. The transition was really easy for me. Within two weeks I had a regimen and sparring partners set up.

MMA Weekly: How did Vegas come into the equation as a choice?

Heath Herring: Vegas came up with guys coming out to Holland to train with us. They were like, “come out and try it out sometime.” I talked with Ricardo Pires and Sergio Penha (at the LVCC), they are really excited about me being there, they didn’t push me or pressure me at all which made it really nice. Everything clicked so well and it’s been going really good. There’s a lot of stuff going on in Europe right now, so I was ready to get back home. I wanted to be closer to my family, closer to my daughter who is in California. It’s a 4 hour drive from Vegas so if something happens I can be there. It’s been a long time, years, since I’ve been feeling good. I’m still keeping my apartment over there; Netherlands will still be in my life. I love the country and people I hope to maintain those friendships throughout my life.

MMA Weekly: I noticed on the PPV that Bas Rutten ribbed you a little about living in Vegas and it’s reputation. How do you handle that?

Heath Herring: People ask me if I went to Vegas to party, I’ve lived in the party country for four years, I can take it out of my life trust me. People who know me are really understanding of what I do, it’s never been an issue with me, if I’ve got a fight coming up I don’t go out, plain and simple. People know better than to push me into something like that and for the most part everyone understands and lets me do my own thing. I go have my fun, like I just got back home from New Orleans, but there is a time and place for everything.

MMA Weekly: So with your move to Vegas and the LVCC, does that mean you’re no longer a part of Team Golden Glory?

Heath Herring: To be honest I was never really Golden Glory, I was under separate management. So I was never officially Golden Glory. The way it was set up in Holland, Golden Glory represents a management group rather than a fighting team. Most of the guys never trained together. They might come down once in a while, but realistically I didn’t see the guys more than I saw them. Right now I’m still keeping my contacts with Cor Hemmers (stand-up coach) and they may even come out to train there with him. Bas Boon still handles management issues. Not much has changed as far as those relationships go.

MMA Weekly: Well you’ve looked very sharp this year, back to the Herring that once fought for the Pride Heavyweight Title in the eyes of many. So it appears the move to Vegas and the LVCC was just the right thing.

Heath Herring: That’s one of the reasons I made the move. I just was not happy there; I wasn’t liking the fighter I was becoming. I was like “I’ve got to get out of here.” I had some wild fights, and when you’re not happy with everything it can take a toll on your fights. You should not go into a fight against yourself. That was one of the main reasons I moved, I feel everything got kicked up into high gear, I feel really good and confident now. Before Pride was jerking me around they were canceling fights and moving them around, it was creating havoc on my training schedule and it plays a lot on your mind a lot. It’s actually what happened with the Cro Cop (Mirko Filipovic) fight, for two weeks before it I had no idea I was fighting him. So when it happened I wasn’t ready mentally for the fight. The same thing when I fought (Giant) Silva on the New Year’s Eve show, the fighter changed 5-6 guys before they settled on him. They gave me his dimensions in meters and kilos, and it sounds a lot different in metric than it does in standard. So when I was in Germany visiting family I started to figure out how big he really was because I sat down and made the conversions and was like “no way this guy is this big.” So when I talked to Pride they tried to settle things more by saying he wasn’t in the kind of condition that I would be in so not to worry, let me tell you I wasn’t quite ready for some one like that at all. I’ve never had anyone take leg shots like he did and keep going. I’m happy I got a win in that one because it was just crazy how it got set up.

MMA Weekly: Speaking of heavyweight fighters, the LVCC has a pretty good heavyweight on their roster along with you.

Heath Herring: Yeah, (UFC Heavyweight Champion) Frank Mir is on the team, but to tell you the truth I’ve not even met Mir yet. I got out here he was taking time off, getting married, and then the motorcycle wreck happened, so I’ve never met the guy. I see it as being a great addition for the both of us having us on the same team. We can help each other with our games and I don’t see any competition there, I only see it as a positive thing for our careers. We are obviously both heavyweights, but we fight in different organizations. He’s UFC, I’m Pride, and there are no plans on us switching so I see it as only a positive influence. The big advantage is you have somebody who can be there whenever. I don’t have to wait around for another heavyweight with good skills to come down to train with me; I have one in the same place. I’m really excited that Sergio and Ricardo are used to cornering a heavyweight in a big fight. Fighters move differently, they know how to handle someone my size because of their experience with Mir, so it’s good all the way around.

MMA Weekly: Let’s talk about what you’ve got lined up for the future. Are you going to take the rest of the year off or do you plan to fight at Shock Wave 2004? After that what do you have in store for us?

Heath Herring: I will say most likely I would want to fight on New Year’s, but it could be against anyone. Right now I’m planning on getting back into a top position. I just want to get back in there and shake things up and see what happens. There’s not anyone in particular that I’m gunning for. I want people to say if about me “he’s fighting then I’m going to watch.” If they want to see the crazy style of the hair, or see me knee someone to death, it doesn’t matter, as long as they want to see me fight. I’m at the level if you make one mistake and things happen, it’s all a matter of not making that first mistake. That’s what I’m going to keep working on, getting sharper and not making any more mistakes and getting back to the top.

MMA Weekly: Before we head out, this year you became immortalized further with your own action figure, what does that feel like?

Heath Herring: I love it, I got one for everybody. Never in a million years did I think I’d become something like that. The video game is great too; my daughter plays it all the time. What I say is it’s another story for the grandkids, telling them about the old days when grandpa was a fighter, it’s something else for them to know who and what I was back in the day.

MMA Weekly: Is there anything you’d like to say to your fans or sponsors you’d like to thank as we close this out?

Heath Herring: Well my sponsors are all in Japan so let’s not worry about them this time. To the fans I say thanks for making my career so long and incredible. I love the responses from the fans, good and bad, their support and criticism helps me get better. I want to thank everybody for the great life I have, that’s due to the fans out there, if it weren’t for them I wouldn’t be living this life. Every year the sport gets bigger and better and it’s thanks to the fans, so I want them to know I appreciate everything they do for the sport and me.

Source: MMA Weekly

 11/12/04

Quote of the Day

"Discipline is the foundation upon which all success is built.
Lack of discipline inevitably leads to failure."

Jim Rohn, American Businessman, Author, Speaker, Philosopher

BJ PENN TALKS GRACIE, K-1 AND MMA FUTURE

BJ Penn has plenty things on his mind, but first and foremost is next week's main event against Rodrigo Gracie. Penn once again looks to overcome big odds, as this time he moves up to the 185 pound weight class to face Gracie on the Rumble on the Rock card from Hawaii.

BJ Penn will be today's featured guest on MMAWeekly Radio. Penn will not only talk about this fight, but what his future holds and what organizations he plans to fight for in the near future.

The show is free to everyone LIVE at 9am Pacific/ 12 Noon Eastern at www.mmaweeklyradio.com . If you want to call into the show you can do so as well at 877-888-5520. It's your only daily MMA radio show with MMA Broadcaster Ryan Bennett and UFC Fighter Frank Trigg. Listen everyday Monday through Friday and if you can't catch the show live, then check out the radio archive on MMAWeekly.com

Source: MMA Weekly

SYLVIA VS. SIMS

Sims if fighting in a couple of weeks on Rumble On The Rock, so hopefully he doesn't get hurt before Super Brawl.

Sources out of Hawaii are saying that the matchup of Tim Sylvia vs. Wes Sims has supposedly been signed for the
SuperBrawl card on December 11th.

Source: Fight Sport

K-1 NEW YEAR SHOW UPDATE

Akebono and Sapp in last year's ratings blockbuster.

The Japanese media is reporting that the following news for the K-1 show on December 31st:

Possible MMA rules matchups:
Bob Sapp vs.
Akebono
Royce Gracie vs. TBA
B.J. Penn vs. Kaoru Uno

Officially announced K-1 rules matchups:
Masato vs. Norifumi 'Kid' Yamamoto

Other fighters to possibly be on the card:
Bob Sapp
Kazuyuki Fujita
Don Frye
Gary Goodridge
Tom Erikson
Tsuyoshi Kohsaka
Yoshihiro Akiyama
Wakanohana

Source: Fight Sport

HEAVYWEIGHTS WEIGH-IN FOR SATURDAY'S MSG CARD; RAHMAN A SVELTE 232
by: Eddie Goldman/ADCC Wrestling Editor

NEW YORK, Nov. 11 -- The weigh-ins for the five heavyweight fights which will be held on Saturday's Madison Square Garden card were held Thursday, Nov. 11, in the lobby of the Garden's Theater.

Most of the fighters, who stepped on the scale wearing either just shorts or warm-up pants, weighed within their normal range. But there were some interesting exceptions.

Former world heavyweight champion Hasim Rahman, who fights Kali Meehan, weighed in at, for him, a svelte 232. This is the lightest for Rahman since his June 2002 fight against Evander Holyfield, when he weighed 224. Rahman lost that fight by a technical decision after suffering an enormous hematoma on his forehead after an accidental clash of heads. Since then, in his six most recent fights, Rahman has weighed between 246 and 259 1/2 pounds.

Larry Donald, who fights Evander Holyfield, came in at just 226 1/2 pounds. This is the lightest for him since his fifth pro fight, back in 1993.

Oliver McCall, who fights DaVarryl Williamson, also seemed in good shape, coming in at 233. In his infamous loss to Lennox Lewis in 1997, when he broke down in the ring, McCall weighed 237. Since then his weight has fluctuated, reaching a high of 252 on Sept. 25 of this year in a fight against a relatively unknown fighter named Vernon Woodward, whom McCall defeated by a third-round TKO.

We will find out Saturday night just what significance, if any, to attach to these surprisingly light weights for these heavyweight fighters.

Here is the press release from Don King Productions about today's weigh-in:

WILD WEIGH-IN AT GARDEN

It was a wild scene today in the lobby of the Theater at Madison Square Garden with nearly a ton (over a ton with promoter Don King!) of heavyweights weighing-in for the New York State Athletic Commission in anticipation of four epic heavyweight clashes -- two featuring current world heavyweight title-holders and the two other bouts featuring former world heavyweight champions -- at Madison Square Garden and on HBO Pay-Per-View on Saturday.

The eight heavyweights: John 'The Quietman' Ruiz, Andrew 'Powerful Pole' Golota, Chris Byrd, Jameel 'Big Time' McCline, Hasim 'The Rock' Rahman, Kali 'Checkmate' Meehan, Evander 'The Real Deal' Holyfield, and Larry 'The Legend' Donald all weighed in for the commission before jumping onto a massive truck scale brought in by the Garden for a cumulative weight total.

The eight heavyweights featured on the pay-per-view portion of the card 'tipped the Toledos' at an astonishing 1,860 pounds before Don King, who weighed in himself at 278 1/2 pounds, jumped onto the big scale with the boxers to push the total weight to well over a ton: 2,130 1/2 pounds!

See official weights, attached.

Alan Hopper
Don King Productions

11/11/04

DON KING PRODUCTIONS IN ASSOCIATION WITH MADISON SQUARE GARDEN & FIGHT NIGHT PRESENT: RENDEZVOUS WITH DESTINY: BATTLE FOR SUPREMACY

Saturday, Nov. 13, 2004 - HBO Pay-Per-View
MADISON SQUARE GARDEN

WBA HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
12 ROUNDS
JOHN 'The Quiet Man' RUIZ
Two-Time WBA Champion
Methuen, Mass.
40-5-1 (28 KOs)
239
vs.
ANDREW GOLOTA
Rugged No.5 Contender
Warsaw, Poland (Chicago)
38-4-1 (31 KOs)
238

IBF HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP (Mandatory)
12 ROUNDS
CHRIS BYRD
IBF Champion-Former WBO Champion
Flint, Mich.
37-2-1 (20 KOs)
214
vs.
JAMEEL 'Big Time' McCLINE
Leading Available Contender
Port Jefferson, N..Y.
31-3-3 (19 KOs)
270

WBC/IBF HEAVYWEIGHT ELIMINATION
12 ROUNDS
HASIM 'The Rock' RAHMAN
Former WBC/WBA Champion-No.2 WBC Cont.
Baltimore, Md.
39-5-1 (32 KOs)
232
vs.
KALI 'Checkmate' MEEHAN
Asia Pacific Champion-No.5 WBC Cont.
Wyongah, Australia
29-2 (23 KOs)
237

NABC HEAVYWEIGHT CHAMPIONSHIP
12 ROUNDS
EVANDER 'The Real Deal' HOLYFIELD
Four-Time Heavyweight Champion
Atlanta, Ga.
38-7-2 (25 KOs)
215 1/2
vs.
LARRY 'The Legend' DONALD
Former NABO & WBC Am. Champion
Cincinnati, Oh.
41-3-2 (24 KOs)
226 1/2

HEAVYWEIGHT ATTRACTION
10 ROUNDS
OLIVER McCALL
Former WBC Champion
Martinsville, Va.
41-7 (30 KOs)
233
vs.
DAVARRYL WILLIAMSON
NABF & WBO Latino Champion
Denver, Colo.
20-3 (17 KOs)
220

Source: ADCC

Rodrigo "Minotauro" Nogueira Interview

Tatame: How do you see Vitor Belfort's return to BTT? Rumors are that Jefferson "Tank" might come along with him as well...

Minotauro: That would be great. It's very good for our team. To tell you the truth, I didn't even know he was returning to BTT, but this is very good news indeed. It means more training for us, and Vitor is just great. We always help each other before fights. He helped me a lot when I faced Cro Cop, and he is a great friend. Unfortunately I didn;t get to assist him in his fight against Couture in the UFC because of my fight against Fedor, but I'm certain that he'll return to be the champion again.

Tatame: Your fight in PRIDE has been confirmed against Fedor... Does it mean that you are no longer fighting in K-1?

Minotauro: In all honesty, I've was never in K-1. Even when I hadn't signed my contract with PRIDE, I still wouldn't have been able to fight in K-1 until two months after PRIDE. We are very excited for this next fight in PRIDE. It'll be the biggest show of the year!

Tatame: You just returned from your vacation. Have you started your training for December 31st yet?

Minotauro: I am training, but not at full steam yet. After PRIDE I stayed one and a half months outside of Brazil. I was with Luiz Doria, and I even though I was on vacation I was still training. Then I went to Miami. I stayed with the people at American Top team, with Jason, Raymond, and I stayed almost a month there. I also ended up getting restless and trained with Amaury Bitetti... But as of today I will begin to train hard. During my vacation I relaxed and took advantage of having some time off. I spent time traveling and just relaxing.

Tatame: But as you said, you also did some training...

Minotauro: Yes. And it went very well. For example, with Amaury I trained many diverse positions, and he knows a lot about jiu-jitsu. He helped me a lot, and corrected some things too... We worked a lot on the guard and ground'n'pound. Without getting too much into it, I really enjoyed training with him. In fact, Amaury was taking some time off at the time, but he is now back in full force. He is now giving a lot of help to Hermes Franca.

Tatame: You were in the audience at PRIDE 28. What did you think of the event?

Minotauro: I think it was a good event. I thought it was funny that Cro Cop said Barnett talked too much... But then the fight itself was not so heated. Another fight which looked promosing was between Dan Henderson and Nakamura, but it did not turn out so great. But Vanderlei's fight was the fight of the night. Vanderlei was giving him a beating and I saw that Quinton Jackson is not competent. Vanderlei showed more gas. He was more concentrated and he dominated. He showed that his ground game is better then before, and he is more complete with each fight he has. It was a beautiful knockout! Arona surprised as well. He did a good fight, and a nice one too. He took a tough guy to the ground and applied some excellent jiu-jitsu. He fought like I have never seen him fight. He only used half of the jiu-jitsu that he knows. When he shows all of his technique, he'll take PRIDE by storm.

Tatame: Getting back to your vaction, why weren't you able to show up at the seminar for the SHOOTO card in Switzerland?

Minotauro: What happened is that Frota did not give me a flight ticket. I was going to give the seminar for free, but I was not going to pay for the flight out of my own pocket. Just to give you an idea, I participated in a seminar for an academy in England and I recieved $5,000. Unfortunately, the seminar in Switzerland was not going to cover my purse.

Source: Tatame

ATT OPENS UP WEST COAST BRANCH

American Top Team announced the opening of their west coast branch in Olympia, Washington.

The academy will be run by UFC and ADCC veteran Jeff Monson, with help from Dennis Hallman, Travis Doerge, and Fabiano Scherner.

For more info, call (360) 754-8501.

Source: Fight Sport

JASON MILLER Interview

European MMA journalist Andreas Marco Bryant recently did an exclusive interview with Jason 'Mayhem' Miller. Here's what Miller had to say:

AMB: Naturally I would first off like to thank you for your time and ask how you are doing this fine day Mr. Mayhem?

Miller: First off, I would like to say that I don't think you are a real person, but a construct that only exists in the matrix. But to answer your question, I'm doing good as hell. I'm fat and happy and hungry to train hard, and get another fight ASAP.

AMB: For those who do not know much about you, allow us some insight to Jason "Mayhem" Miller and his current MMA situation.

Miller: I just beat Ronald Jhun in the third round by a head and arm choke for the SuperBrawl title, and I've go my eyes set to improving my game and beating the top competition. I had some legal problems before, but I'm staying out of trouble and can't wait for the world to see my honkey ass do some damage on Pay-Per-View.

AMB: I understand that you have been a dominating force in SuperBrawl and were even given a nickname by some spiteful islanders. Could you explain this a bit?

Miller: Uh, I think you're talking about "haole"... it's not really a nickname, it's more like calling someone a cracker, which I think is pretty damn hilarious, so I put it on my shirts.

AMB: I was informed you have some of the American "Bling". Do people fear your Platinum chompers? Is this some sort of a hip hop thing that a bloke from London may not understand?

Miller: Ha ha, BLOKE! Don't worry, no one in America understands either. I'm just a wierd dude. I used to try and not to be, but I just started embracing it. I don't know if they fear them, but I'm sure they're at least confused. It's hip hop to the fullest.

AMB: I gather that SuperBrawl has been great to you, but obviously every fighter's goal is either PRIDE or the UFC. If given the option, which would you prefer and why?

Miller: Eh.. I don't know if I have a preference. I love the UFC, and it's always been my dream, but PRIDE may be a very good option for me. Right now, I'm just focusing on improving, and we'll see what opens up for me. The best thing I can do is keep focused on fighting, and let the management do their thang.

AMB: What fighters do you admire most (past or present)?

Miller: Rampage, Vanderlei, Hughes, Penn, too many to name, so many guys do so many good things that I could go on all day.

AMB: What fighters do you least admire (past and present)?

Miller: I usually respect any fighter that can get into an event that I actually hear about, besides that guy Manny Reyes, even though I don't think he counts as a fighter. I actually feel kinda bad for the guy, I think he has worse mental problems than I do.

AMB: Who was your toughest MMA challenge to date?

Miller: You know, I've fought some tough guys, but the Extreme Challenge I fought in was pretty extreme, and not extreme in the deodorant way, extreme in the get kneed in the head-piece one hundred times. I lost a decision in the semis to the guy who won the whole tournament, but I had two good matches, and learned alot about myself as a fighter.

AMB: If you could magically be granted any fight of your choice, allow your "Mayhem Maniacs" to know whom it would be?

Miller: Calling people who like me "Mayhem Maniacs" is kinda gay. I'd rather them be called heathens, space monkeys or squirrel necks, but whatever..... Of course everyone at 170 wants a piece of B.J. Penn... but if I rubbed a bottle and Kimbo popped out looking like a genie and asked "Who you wanna get your bread from?" I would say, "Lets do it for the belt, Hughes." But I know I gotta work my way up that long, hard road.

AMB: I saw a nifty T-shirt of yours. Where can your merchandise be purchased?

Miller: Hit my email, MayhemMiller@yahoo.com and I'll personally send you a T-Shirt. For an extra 5 bucks I'll teabag it for you...

AMB: Thanks for your time Mr. Mayhem, your are a shining star in the MMA universe, and I hope to talk to you again soon. Thanks again for your time and feel free to allow your Platinum Teeth to give any necessary shout outs before you go! Cheers. - Andreas "Marco" Bryant

Miller: Hell Yea Velocity Kickboxing, MMA Gold.com TAPOUT TYCRecords, and Marc Laimon's Cobra Kai that's makin sure the ground game is TIGHT!

Source: Fight Sport

TRAVIS LUTTER SPEAKS

Jiu-jitsu website Austinbjj.com recently interviewed Travis Lutter. Here's what Lutter had to say (interview by Xena):

Xena: Welcome Travis. Real quick, can you give a brief bio of your career in BJJ and when you opened your academy?

Lutter: I started training BJJ when I am moved here in August of 1997. I went to the world's in 1998 as a blue belt, and took 2nd. In 2000, I went to the worlds again as a purple belt and placed 3rd. I also won the American qualifier to go to ADCC where I lost my first match Comprido. I won the American qualifier again in 2001 and lost another first round match to Saulo Riberio. Since then I have been focusing more on NHB. I won the USS that Rorian Gracie put on. I also won my first fight in the UFC against Marvin Eastman.

Xena: Let me get right to a certain subject first. You dominated the Ultimate Submission Showdown. Rorion had contacted you to set up a super fight/rematch with his son Ryron Gracie. The match fell through, and you were not well. There are many threads on the internet that are still wondering what happened. Can you state your illness, and knowing you as a fighter Travis, I know you didn't want to drop out. When did you finally decide?

Lutter: I dropped out about 11:00 AM after talking to Carlos (Machado) . He advised me that I shouldn't compete because I was very sick with an upper repertory infection. I wanted to (fight) but there was just no way I would have competed anywhere close to the top of my game.

Xena: At the first USS, there were some good grapplers. Munson and Avellan are two good grapplers. You defeated Lance Campbell by submission, Avellan 15 x1, and Ryron Gracie 13 x 0. It seemed easy, but you and I know it never is. Was there any specific training you did, or just the usual training with more mat time?

Lutter: We didn't have that much time to prepare for that tournament because of the late notice. To get ready, I trained with Kenny, Paul, Buddy and the rest of the guys at my school. I also have Carlos tweaking my game constantly.

Xena: You are known for your no gi game. I know you have talents both ways, but do you train more gi or no gi?

Lutter: I definitely train more with the gi . The only time I train more no gi is when I have an NHB fight or a Submission Grappling match coming up.

Xena: Back to knocking out Marvin Eastman in the UFC 50. Eastman is known for striking skills as opposed to grappling, yet you were able to strike and beat him at his own game. Does this show the MMA community a glimpse of Travis" fighting skills? Well rounded?

Lutter: I have been working on my striking for the last couple of years so I was very happy with the result of the fight.

Xena: I was talking to some people last weekend and the subject of your striking came up. Who do you practice your striking skills under or with?

Lutter: The first person that I boxed with was Phil Sawyer and as of lately I have been training with Brock Groom.

Xena: I think the UFC may have plans for you. Did you come in at your best weight and prep? It was kind of a last minute notice.

Lutter: I think I will be fighting in the 185 lb. division so I guess that no it wasn't the best weight for me.

Xena: Back to your career. You surprised the grappling community when you and Comprido fought in Abu Dhabi. You went for more attacks than he did, and in the end he was given an advantage. I believe you were just a purple belt back then. Does Travis plan to go back to the Abu Dhabi sometime in the future?

Lutter: Only if they invite me. I don't plan on doing any of the qualifiers because of a disagreement we had in the past.

Xena: What was the disagreement?

Lutter: I don't want to talk about that one.

Xena: The Jiu-Jitsu game has evolved. A decade ago, people were doing locked guards a majority of the time, then the open guard transcended. Now we have more half guard assaults in BJJ. Is there a particular type of guard you prefer?

Lutter: I think I am pretty well rounded but I probably do more open half guard now than closed.

Xena: Travis, your primary instructor in BJJ is Carlos Machado. You train with Carlos, but you also teach out of your own academy. What sort of training regiment do you have involving your grappling, and do you have a few of your top students you use as training partners?

Lutter: I train with Brad, Kenny, Buddy, Paul and all of the other top guys at my school. We do a lot of timed training and they are all really good at breaking everything down when we have a problem. I train 5 to 7 days a week and the process is always changing trying to find the right balance.

Xena: At your academy, you also have a competition team that does well in the Dallas state championships. Do you have any up and coming students who you feel may be someone to look out for in the future? (Names, brief description)

Lutter: You never know how people are going to do, sometimes you have somebody you think is going to be great and he quits after only training for a year or so. Then you will have somebody who just out works everybody else and ends up becoming really good.

Xena: Travis, in our BJJ community, it seems to be who is the best on that particular day. Some of our top people like PeDePano, Jacare, Margarita and Roger Gracie are four names I ask opinions about in interviews. Can you give me a brief opinion on each one, and who do you think will be on top for the future? PeDePano has dominated after Margarita was injured, but Roger and Jacare are there too.

Lutter: No comment, I don't worry as much about what other people are doing but more about how I am doing and how I will match up against everybody.

Xena: Travis, you sponsor a few tournaments in your area to promote BJJ and get more people involved. This also improves our BJJ community relations, and expose more kids. You happen to know about being a Dad yourself. Do you involve your own children in BJJ or wait to see if there is an interest on their own?

Lutter: We have a kids class that my son has asked to go to. But I am not doing anything special with him, as he gets older if he expresses interest in it I will start to push him more.

Xena: Do you feel BJJ should be done slowly with kids? How do we expose kids to this unique martial art which can be very intimidating when watched?

Lutter: I have not made certain exactly how I think kids should be taught. I think every kid is different and has to be dealt with differently.

Xena: Going back to the USS, the point system is different than in BJJ. When you score a certain amount of points, the match is stopped due to the dominant point margin. Did you like this system? Or do you prefer Abu Dhabi rules in a no gi tournament?

Lutter: I think that both systems have advantages and disadvantages. I think the USS rules probably are better for my particular game.

Xena: Your no gi record stands for itself. You have won two ADCC qualifiers at the Hook 'n' shoot, competed very close matches against Comprido and Saulo Ribeirio, and have won the 2003 USS tournament promoted by Rorion Gracie. In the USS, it showed that Rorion had organized a legitimate grappling tournament, and it showed that his rules were not meant to help his sons win. Both sons lost to you and Avellan, and then of course Avellan lost to you. What is next for Travis Lutter in no gi tournaments? NHB? BJJ?

Lutter: The problem with NHB is that you wait so long to in order to fight in the different organizations. Unless I get a good offer from somebody in the near future I am planning on competing in this years Pan Americans.

Xena: I discussed the UFC earlier. Do you have an interest in Pride? Although you respect all fighters, is there someone in Pride you would enjoy testing your skills against?

Lutter: I am at the point in my career that if they called and said will you fight Vanderlai or Tito or anybody else I would say no problem. My main concern is getting a decent fight in a respectable organization.

Xena: While on on the subject, anyone in your weight division you would look at in the UFC?

Lutter: Anybody, I really am not picky I would just like to fight.

Xena: Speaking of Pride, Vanderlai seems to be on top of the scene. Recently Randy Couture defeated Vitor Belfort. Randy suggested to Vanderlai at that UFC to unify the UFC and Pride belts. Tough match, I would like to see it happen. It's a tough pick, but if you had to pick one, who would you lean towards and why?

Lutter: Randy because I don't think anybody can deal with him in that weight class right now because of his dominate positioning.

Xena: Travis, you have been teaching for a while. What do you enjoy most about teaching?

Lutter: Seeing people improve over the years and figuring out how to help and deal with all the different games.

Xena: Travis, for contact information, how can people get a hold of you for class times, privates and seminars?

Lutter: Team Lutter BJJ, 1732 E Square, Fort Worth TX 76120. 817-781-4243 nextgenbjj.com

Xena: Thanks for the interview Travis. Hope to see you soon. Any advice to newcomers in BJJ on their training?

Lutter: In order to get better, you have to show up to train. Thank you.

Source: Fight Sport

 11/11/04

Quote of the Day

"The virtue of man ought to be measured, not by his extraordinary exertions, but by his everyday conduct."

Blaise Pascal, 1623-1662, French Scientist, Religious Philosopher

Mike's Acura Integra is for sale!

If you didn't know it yet, Mike is trying to sell his Acura Integra. If anyone is interested, please checkout details on his car. He just reduced the price to $13,000.

Check it out by clicking here.

PENN READY FOR GRACIE

***For Immediate Release***

With less than two weeks remaining before his long-awaited showdown with fellow mixed martial arts superstar Rodrigo Gracie (5-0), former Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) welterweight champion, BJ Penn (8-1-1), lacks no self-confidence about a task requiring him to tack on additional pounds for his debut in a 185 pound weight limit division.

“I feel great. I’m already in shape to fight. I’m just waiting now,” stated Penn, while taking a rare breather from what has become one of the most intense training camps of his career. The 25-year-old Jiu-Jitsu specialist, otherwise known as “The Prodigy,” will lock up with Gracie during the main event of “Rumble on the Rock 6,” which will be presented at Honolulu, Hawaii’s Blaisdell Arena by the newly-formed K-1 Fighting Network on Saturday, November 20th. “This is another step forward for me in another weight class. I’m ready and I’m gonna be doing everything during the fight. People are gonna see somebody fighting their heart out.”

For six weeks, Penn has been toiling in his native Hilo, Hawaii with training partners who hover around the 190-pound mark. UFC veteran Renato “Charuto” Verissimo and Jiu-Jitsu brown belt Mike Pyle are amongst those helping him prepare for the upcoming matchup.

Penn’s appearance will mark his second in an event promoted by a K-1 affiliate entity. On May 22nd, he faced world Muay Thai champion and fellow American Duane “Bang” Ludwig in Saitama, Japan during the promotion’s premiere mixed martial arts fight card. At the 2:45 mark of the matchup’s opening round, Penn slapped a chokehold on Ludwig that prompted the latter fighter to submit.

Before crossing over to the world’s most dignified martial arts fighting circuit, Penn pulled off a feat of epic proportions on January 31st when he made a jump from the UFC’s 154-pound limit division to its 168-pound class and easily defeated the heavier weight category’s reigning champion, Matt Hughes, by way of rear naked choke.

In other Rumble on The Rock 6 action, 2003 K-1 USA champion, Carter Williams (36-9), will make his fourth career start under mixed martial arts rules when he takes on Tom “Green Beret” Howard (0-2) while another esteemed member of the famed Gracie clan, Royler (3-2-1), will face Kazuyuki Miyata (7-1-4). The event will also see a return to action by UFC heavyweight veterans Wesley “Cabbage” Correira (13-6) and 6 foot 9 inch Wes “The Project” Sims (5-5).

Tickets for Saturday, November 20th’s Rumble on the Rock 6 event are priced at $30, $60, $65, $100, $150, and $200, respectively, and can be purchased online at www.ticketmaster.com as well as at all Ticketmaster locations.

Rumble on the Rock is a Hawaii-based mixed martial arts fight promotion that was launched by Prodigy Productions two years ago. Recently, Prodigy Productions partnered with K-1 Fighting Network, a division of the Japan-based K-1 Corporation, to bring mixed martial arts sporting events to a growing fanbase.

Source: MMA Weekly

Did You Know Ken Shamrock Fights in UFC?
By Jeremy Wall (November 10, 2004)

There's this guy in the UFC that everyone knows. He's a big star. In 1995, he headlined the most watched UFC pay per view in history. In 2002, he headlined the most watched UFC pay per view since Zuffa bought the company a couple of years earlier. In 2004, this guy headlined the second most watched UFC pay per view since Zuffa took control of the company. In 2005, Zuffa doesn't have any plans for him.

I know you're already aware that this guy is Ken Shamrock, who would compete with Royce Gracie for the position of being arguably the biggest star in UFC history. And he has no fights on the table, despite the fact that he still has one fight left on his current deal with Zuffa and during this year has expressed interest in re-signing with UFC when his current contract expires.

Sure, Shamrock is old. Yes, he's not a top ranked guy in either the light-heavyweight nor heavyweight divisions, and his skill level pales in comparison to the top guys in each of those weight classes currently in UFC. His body is probably broken down from years and years of pro wrestling and mixed martial arts. Yes he is easily outdrawn in ticket sales for shows in Las Vegas by better fighters such as Tito Ortiz and Randy Couture. But he's the most profitable star on pay per view specifically in the company.

So does Zuffa know that Shamrock is still a mega-draw, or maybe the mega-draw, in the UFC? Of course they do. So why aren't they doing anything about it? Well, you'd have to ask them that question.

Dana White is very intent on booking Vitor Belfort vs. Tito Ortiz at the next show in Las Vegas, which is most likely to take place on February 5th possibly at Mandalay Bay. White feels that since that fight has been booked in the past but circumstances have led to it never happening, it's the fight that people want to see, at least moreso than a rematch of Tito vs. Shamrock since that fight has already been done.

Well, I disagree. I think the fact that Tito vs. Shamrock from UFC 40 did a Zuffa-high 150,000 buys on pay per view shows that in November 2002, that was the fight people wanted to see. People really wanted to watch Shamrock, the star of the old-guard, go to war with Tito, the star of the new-guard. And the show delivered and was massively successful.

But of course this isn't November 2002. So do people still want to watch Ken Shamrock? Well, I think the rumored 110,000 buys that UFC 48 did for Shamrock's return fight against Kimo, a guy who hasn't had a lot of success in the UFC in many years, shows that yes, a lot of people still want to watch Ken Shamrock. UFC 48 only did 40,000 buys less than UFC 40. And Tito is a much bigger name right now than Kimo, so logically, it certainly seems that a rematch between Tito and Ken could approach 150,000 buys again.

Tito vs. Vitor is a very solid main event. I'm not disputing that. I just feel that Tito vs. Ken is an even better main event based on the numbers. After seeing Shamrock get destroyed by Ortiz at UFC 40, I had figured that his drawing power would plunge because fans would realize that Shamrock is past his prime. But a year or so later, he does that mega buyrate against Kimo, which proved my theory incorrect.

I think Tito vs. Vitor could easily do 80,000 buys, which is an above average number for UFC. Tito vs. Randy Couture from last year when Couture was just getting the ball rolling on his success in the 205-pound division after defeating Chuck Liddell did about 94,000 buys. Tito vs. Chuck from UFC 47 did about 104,000 buys. Tito vs. Vladimir Matyushenko (which was originally booked to be Tito vs. Vitor, but Vitor pulled out due to injury) at UFC 33 in late 2001 did about 75,000 buys, albeit with more advertising than normal. Vitor did roughly 77,000 buys against Randy Couture at UFC 46, and probably did the same for their encounter at UFC 49. Tito vs. Vitor should do at least 80,000 buys unless both of their drawing power has been damaged by recent losses, and it's even possible for that main event to be strong enough to draw another buyrate over 100,000 buys.

But that leaves Shamrock sitting on the sidelines with nothing to do. If you don't book Shamrock against Tito, who do you book him against? Ken is more of a natural 205-pound division fighter than he is a heavyweight. The only other top fighters at light-heavyweight from a name standpoint are Randy Couture and Chuck Liddell, who will be fighting each other in 2005, so they' re already booked. At heavyweight, the natural progression seems to be Tim Sylvia vs. Andrei Arlovski, with the winner facing Frank Mir when Mir comes back from his motorcycle accident injuries.

There's a lot of rumors about Ken fighting Tank Abbott in a match that has been building for nearly a decade now, but those rumors are simply false. Everyone knows Tank was terrible in his three fights for UFC in 2003, and he never drew a decent buyrate on any of the cards he competed on. In fact, the buyrates for all three shows he fought on can easily be described as crappy. He hasn't won a fight since 1998. And the biggest kicker is that his guarantee from Zuffa for those last three fights was $150,000 per match. Don 't tell me Tank is worth that much money. And don't tell me he'll be willing to take less.

Tank vs. Ken isn't a bad idea, because you can get both of them on shows like Best Damn Sports Show Period and they can do great interviews to hype their fight because they're both good talkers. They both have name value from the UFC's business peak on pay per view years ago (especially Ken). And Ken was able to draw a great buyrate against Kimo, who, although he defeated Tank at UFC 43, is a less than stellar in-ring talent. Plus, Ken should beat Tank, and it's certainly not a bad idea for the biggest draw in your company to win a fight, especially one that has been simmering for so many years. Tank vs. Ken should do a very good buyrate.

Despite that, it's hard to justify paying Tank $150,000 for one match. If he came much cheaper, I think Zuffa should do it. But there's also the question of whether Tank would be even willing to fight Ken Shamrock at this point. It would seem to be far less complex to simply book a rematch between Ken and Tito. Depending on how long Ken is willing to wait to fight next, if Tito were to defeat Vitor, they could still do that fight later in 2005. But there are many ifs in that equation, and there's no guarantees in MMA matchmaking. If Ken and Tito were to fight as soon as Ken is able to, it would be a great fight for the show's buyrate on pay per view, they should be able to sell it as a live event in Las Vegas, and Tito would be favoured to win, and Tito could use a very dominating win right now to give himself a boost considering his two losses to Couture and Liddell and his lackluster performance against Patrick Cote. Logic says that Tito vs. Ken would be the right fight to book in 2005, but Dana White says different. We'll just have to wait and see who is right.

UFC NOTEBOOK

-- Patrick Cote has decided to drop down to the middleweight level, as he
found problems dealing with Tito's size and strength advantage in their
fight at UFC 50. Travis Lutter, despite knocking out Marvin Eastman at UFC
50 on short notice in the 205-pound weight class, plans to continue to fight
in the UFC at middleweight as well, which is the weight class which he most
frequently competes in on the independent level. UFC really has an over
abundance of middleweights at this point, but a real lack of depth at
light-heavyweight which could become a problem next year.

-- The agreement to air live fights on Fox Sportsnet that Dana White
mentioned on the pay per view broadcast of UFC 50 is not a signed deal.
Spike TV has also expressed interest in doing live UFC fights.

-- Frank Mir is suffering from complications in regards to his injuries
suffered in a motorcycle accident awhile ago and isn't planning on being
booked by UFC anytime in the near future. It's possible that Sylvia vs.
Arlovski could be booked with Mir meeting the winner down the line.

-- As mentioned in the above article, there's no truth to the rumors of Tank
Abbott vs. Ken Shamrock taking place anytime soon in UFC.

-- Recently on WWE Smackdown, Tough Enough contestant Daniel Puder made news by locking the 1996 Olympic freestyle wrestling gold medalist Kurt Angle in
a kimura in an unscripted match. The match ended when Puder partially had
his shoulders on the mat and the referee counted to three, giving Angle the
win. Puder trains with American Kickboxing Academy and is said to be good,
and should he become available for Zuffa to sign and his asking price not be
too high, Zuffa would indeed be interested in signing him to compete in UFC.


Source: Maxfighting

UFC 50 Gate Update
By Jeremy Wall (November 10, 2004)

At the post-fight press conference for UFC 50 on October 22nd in Atlantic City, UFC President Dana White announced attendance as being what he described as a disappointing figure of over 9,000 fans at Boardwalk Hall.

Dana’s disappointment with the attendance figure he announced for Boardwalk Hall is justified, as UFC’s only other show at the venue, UFC 41 featuring Tank Abbott’s return to UFC, drew a company record of 13,707 fans to Atlantic City to see Tank get handled by Frank Mir in a very quick fight. The record paid attendance for UFC remains with UFC 40 (Ken Shamrock vs. Tito Ortiz), which did 13,055 paid and a UFC-record gate of $1,540,940. UFC 41 was figured to have done about 12,000 paid.

New Jersey does not release business figures to the public in the same manner that the Nevada State Athletic Commission does, which it makes it more difficult for the media to analyze the success of a show without knowing exact figures. Looking at past UFC shows that have taken place since Zuffa took over the promotion in January 2001 which did around 9,000 total fans in the building, UFC 33 at Mandalay Bay drew a total attendance figure of 8,691 (which includes comp tickets) for a gate of $816,660. UFC 33 also features a similar characteristic to UFC 50 in that Tito Ortiz headlined both shows against opponents (Vladimir Matyushenko and Patrick Cote) who were late replacements for Tito’s original opponents (Vitor Belfort and Guy Mezger) who were injured in training and had more marquee value than their replacements, meaning business for both shows, more so on pay per view, would have been hurt by the late replacements. Any late change of a main event hurts business because it makes it hard to build a main event with only a small window in which to promote it. UFC 35 with Randy Couture vs. Josh Barnett at MGM Grand in early 2002 did 8,115 total in the building for a gate of $898,850. UFC 43 with Couture vs. Liddell did 9,464 total at the Thomas & Mack Center in Las Vegas, but only did 5,517 paid (a total of 3,947 comps were given out for that event) for a weak gate of $645,140. UFC 45 at Mohegan Sun was figured to have about 9,200 fans in the building for roughly a $1 million gate.

So in looking at these figures from past Zuffa events with similar attendance figures, a good educated guess could put the gate for UFC 50 in the high six-figures range. A very liberal estimation would have the gate at around $1 million. This isn’t an official figure from New Jersey or from Zuffa, it’s just simply based on analysis of the gates for past shows that Zuffa has promoted which also drew around 9,000 fans.

It’s interesting to look at reasons for why the attendance figures for UFC 50 would be disappointing, especially considering the high numbers for UFC 41 at Boardwalk Hall. Tito Ortiz’s box office drawing power may have been damaged by his back-to-back losses to Randy Couture and Chuck Liddell, and this damage to his image may have reflected in the attendance figures for UFC 50. I think a more telling indicator of where Tito stands as a live attendance draw right now will be when he headlines a major show in Las Vegas rather than Atlantic City, since Tito has such a strong track record of success as a live draw in Vegas. The disappointing live figures for the Ken Shamrock vs. Kimo fight in Vegas from earlier this year would seem to indicate that fans will skip attending a live show if they feel the main event is subpar when it comes to fighting talent (whereas Shamrock vs. Kimo was a huge hit on pay per view because of Shamrock’s name value on a national basis), and the combination of Mezger being out of UFC for a number of years and that fight being viewed as a setup match for Tito by many fans, plus Mezger getting hurt anyway and being replaced by unknown Patrick Cote at the last minute did a number on the attendance figures. Realistically, for a show with a massive amount of last minute changes and a complete unknown who had never competed in the UFC prior to that in Cote in the headline fight, 9,000+ fans in the building isn’t bad. It’s just a question of how many of those fans actually paid for tickets, which could cause the gate to flux by hundreds of thousands of dollars depending on how many comps were handed out.

Source: MMA Weekly

RODRIGO GRACIE ON MMAWEEKLY RADIO

Rodrigo Gracie has been training hard getting ready for his showdown next week with
BJ Penn at Rumble on the Rock. Today he talks with hosts Ryan Bennett and Frank Trigg about his upcoming fight on MMAWeekly Radio.

Gracie, who weighs 185 will have the weight advantage going against Penn, but how does he feel about BJ Penn facing him at 185? Hear him today on MMAWeekly Radio.

Also Sean O'Haire, the former professional wrestler who will also be on the card has re-scheduled today as well, so it should be a great show today.

Source: MMA Weekly

BARNETT TALKS ABOUT LOSS TO CRO COP

Josh Barnett talked publically for the first time about his fight with Mirko Cro Cop. Here is Josh's official response to his fight with Mirko and his shoulder injury from his website.

"Well, I think it's about time to let everyone know what happened in the fight and what's next for me. First off, I'd really like to say thank you to all the people and organizations who helped me for this fight: New Japan for putting this together and supporting me, Pancrase for standing by their champion, PRIDE for the shot at one of the top heavyweights in the world, Erik Paulson, Rico, Trigg, Vladdy, Loucious Smith, Matt Hume, Lucia Rijker and Billy Robinson for all the training, "Stitch" for that extra bit of confidence and your secret herbs and spices, Dr. Andrea and her sister, and Dr. Thompson for keeping me in one piece. Abeani, Fujimegu, Harada, TK, Yokoi, Namekawa, Miyato, Iizuka, Naruse, Kakihara, AMC, AACC, G-square, RAW Team, UWF, Snakepit, all the press for their time and promotion, and most especially all the fans for supporting me in the ring and out.

This was the fight that not only I, but the whole world, wanted to see. Can Mirko beat a top heavyweight fighter to put him in the mix for the belt? Is Barnett good enough to hang with the top heavies in PRIDE? Well, I showed that I was more than capable, but truth be told, that fight to me was nothing but a disappointment. The fans didn't get what they came for, and the fight didn't determine a true winner. For that, I have to apologize.

The shoulder dislocation was described to me by three different doctors as a "freak" occurrence, and, after surgery, the likelihood of it happening again is very small. It's hard to pin-point exactly when the dislocation happened, but one thing I'm sure of is that Mirko did not submit me consciously or otherwise. By the time I was on the mat, my shoulder was already out.

I tried a neck crank but didn't have the strength in my left arm to finish it. I knew things were bad at that point. I stopped for a second to think, and that's when he got the double over-hooks. My last chance was to try and free my right arm somehow. I tried to posture and use my left arm as a post, but it was no good. Mirko hung on, unaware of the injury -- he never pulled on it or attacked my shoulder directly. In the end, I knew I had a bad wing and that I wasn't going to wreck it for good by trying to use it anymore.

I knew I lost the fight when I tapped but I also knew that I would repair my shoulder and come back to set things right. I wasn't going to let this moment be the end of my career. I lost the fight, but Mirko didn't beat me.

It was very big of him to immediately offer me a rematch, and even to check on me and give his apologies in the ring. I know he and I are two different kinds of cats. He isn't interested in the whole promotional, showbiz side of the game, and I play it up to the fullest. I have to say thank you to Mirko for his concern though -- and for the rematch -- because it'll be the first thing on my mind when I return.

The doctors say that with or without surgery, the dislocation will require a 6 month rehab. I tore ligaments (e.g., my glenoid labrum) and have a Hill-Sacks fracture (bone avulsion) but have all my tendons and rotator cuff muscles intact. I'm glad I made them put the shoulder back in while I was still in the ring as it could have caused more damage to have it out.

I can say that having your shoulder out while some guy twists it around to figure out which way it goes back in is not the sorta thing you'd like to repeat.

It'll be a long road back, and I really appreciate all the emails
I've gotten from everyone. It's hard to type with one hand but I'll try to keep this up to date during my recovery, except maybe the day after surgery a few Demerol and who knows what I might type -- if I can type at all.

Abayo

Josh"

Source: MMA Weekly

SHERK AND MENNE HEADLINE FIGHTS THIS WEEKEND

Here is the lineup for Extreme Challenge 60, scheduled for Friday, Nov. 12, at the Medina Entertainment Center in Medina, Minn.

Doors open at 7:30 p.m. with the first bout at 8:30 p.m. Tickets are available by calling the Medina Box Office at (763) 478-6661 or Minnesota Combat Arts at (651) 336-2777.

Below are the confirmed fights...

Trevor Garrett vs. Dave Menne

Lee King vs. Sean Sherk

Jake Short vs. Roger Huerta

Tyrone Roberts vs. Daryl Guthmiller

Reed Wismer vs. Mike Belker

Chris Fontaine vs. Ron Fields

Vern Jefferson vs. Joe Jordan

TBA vs. Randy Hauer

Jamison Maddox vs. Ryan Antle

Darren Breudigan vs. James Warfield

Source: MMA Weekly

SUMA 2: The Battle at the Hyatt
Hyatt Regency Ballroom, Waikiki, Hawaii
November 13, 2004 This Saturday!

Get your tickets fast because there are only 800 tickets available! If you missed the last SUMA event, you need to come to this one. K-1 type kickboxing rules with leg kicks make these fights exciting and action packed!

SUMA (Stand Up Martial Arts) made its debut at the Hyatt Regency Ballroom in Waikiki and featured an 8 Man Heavyweight Tournament for $10,000.00 as well as 2 Super Bouts, which were sanctioned by the ISKA. The venue had a Vegas type atmosphere and was all knock - outs with one bout going to the scorecards.

The smaller venue at the Hyatt makes it impossible to have a bad seat and allowed the crowd to get close to all the action where the could practically feel the punches. Hawaii fans now have a new form of entertainment and allows local stand up fighters to showcase their skills.

Battle @ The Hyatt
8 Man Tournament
(155 lbs.)
$6,000.00 purse
11-13-04
7:30 p.m.

Featured Bouts:
Andre Washington (Team Island Thunder)
vs.
Mike Malone (Eastsidaz)

Jay Carter (BJ Penn MMA, 17-2) vs. Brandon Wolf (Team MADD, 8-1)

Tournament Competitors:

David "Chinaman" Yueng
HMC Kickboxing

Ben Merrit
Wahiawa Boxing

"Iron" Mike Aina
BJ Penn MMA Academy
Hilo, Hawaii

Kaleo Kwan
Kaneohe, Hawaii
Record 7-0

Ryan Roy
Fairtex Gym
San Francisco, California
Record 8-4

Harris Sarmiento
808 Fight Factory

Jack Phames
One Kick Gym
Las Vegas, Nevada
Record 17-2

Jerry Sarabese
Hawaii Youth
Record 3-2

Fighters are subject to change.

Tickets for the show range from $35.00 - $75.00
Purchase tickets in advance, there are only 800 seats at the Hyatt!!!

Source: Event Promoter


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