MMA Journalist

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Strike Club/Renegade Grappling Postscript

2012-01-29T20:05:00.003-05:00

You know, it's not all vale tudo in New York City's underground fight scene. Take today, for instance, when the people behind the UCL put together an event that featured kickboxing bouts and a grappling mini-tournament, and dubbed it "Strike Club" (for the kickboxing) and the "Renegade Grappling League" (for the grappling portion). There were TKOs and there were subs, and at the end of the day, there was enough action to make my four-year-old daughter want to skip her nap. Highlights included:

-The strong showing by the Twin Towers Wrestling & Jiu-Jitsu Club. I checked out their digs back in the late 1990s and they epitomized the words "humble beginnings". Now they're killers.

-The standup battle between UCL vet Alajandro Richardson and Manup Standup champ Will Cavali. It was truly boxing versus kung fu, and though both men put up a heck of a fight, it was Richardson who came away with the decision.

-Peter Storm putting my daughter to work as the official bell ringer. I'm thankful anytime my daughter smiles, and that put a grin on her face that stretched from ear to ear.

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Dramatis Personae: Blacky Chan

2012-01-24T20:41:00.003-05:00

Stephen Plummer, a.k.a. "Blacky Chan". As the name might imply, he's a Chinese martial art exponent, but he's been calling the world of MMA his home for some time now, climbing into the ring and throwing down with whoever is willing.

Though a regular at the UCL these days, the first time I ever saw Blackie Chan compete was at another underground show, some half-baked attempt called Martial Arts Madness at a gym out in Brooklyn. There, the competitors had to wear pads - including headgear - and the competitors skewed towards the traditonal martial artists out to give "this whole MMA" thing a try. Which was fine, as there was action. Ill-prepared dudes got knocked out by dudes who were very much prepared, sharks got to eat guppies, and scrappy individuals got to mix it up with equally scrappy individuals. Black Chan was one such scrappy individual, and though he fell prey to a straight right that put his dazed on his butt, he threw down like he was meant to be in there.

Which, ultimately, is a good trait to have when you're a fighter, and it's a trait he carries with him to this day. At the last UCL, the tall, lanky and amiable Blackie Chan took on Peter Storm. And sure, he eventually succumbed to a kimura - coming from a kung fu background, Blackie Chan freely acknowledges that he's still got some learning to do on the ground. But the man can scrap. Sometimes, that's all that matters.

Why February Will Be Awesome

2012-01-18T16:40:00.003-05:00

After the usual holiday lull things really pick here in the Northeast MMA scene, and goodness gracious, 2012 will be no different. In February, the Cage Fury Fighting Championship returns to the Resorts Casino in Atlantic City (on the 4th), while Ring of Combat kicks off the new year with an installment at the Tropicana (on the 10th). Then there's a new show kicking off on the 18th, something called Rockout Knockout, which will take place at the Asbury Park Convention Center (remember that frigid hell?). The promoter is Justin Blair, who's been running sanctioned boxing and kickboxing shows (Friday Night Fights) in New York City since forever, and is apparently chomping at the bit waiting for New York to make doing MMA shows okay. So! What bouts in particular will make February awesome? Glad you asked!

-Joey Gambino vs. Kenny Foster, CFFC 13 on 2/4/12 - Gambino, it seems, is the next big featherweight thing coming out of the Northeast. And why not? The dude hits hard, comes prepared, and is exciting to watch. But uh oh, here comes a real test in Bellator vet Foster, who's so tough he eats raw lumber and craps patio furniture. This is spectacular matchmaking, with the winner likely garnering some "big show" attention.

-Brad Desir vs. Luciano Cristovam, CFFC 13 on 2/4/12 - Hey, is Desir the real deal? I don't know, but the dude needed only 36 seconds to submit AMA FC's Shane Mallory, who was a well-credentialed wrestler, so maybe he is. We'll know more, though, after he faces Cristovam, who's a jiu-jitsu black belt and instructor at the Team Renzo School for Gifted Youngsters.

-Mike Wade vs. Frank Lester, CFFC 13 on 2/4/12 - Wade comes across as a pretty scrappy individual in the cage, and we saw how scrappy Lester can be from watching him on TUF 9. My prediction for this fight: scrappadiddlydocious. Or something like that.

-Tom DeBlass vs. Carlos Brooks, ROC 39, 2/10/12 - DeBlass was last year's breakout star, so he should have a lot of momentum going into his title defense against TSMMA striker Brooks. Also, the stakes are getting higher and higher for the Ricardo Almeida black belt with each successive win, as each win brings him closer to the "big show". Can he steamroll over Brooks, or will Brooks play the role of spoiler? I don't know, but whatever happens, it should be fun.

-Uriah Hall vs. Daniel Akinyemi, ROC 39, 2/10/12 - Though he's only fought sporadically over the years (blame his job as a paramedic for that), Akinyemi has proven to be a very heavy-hitter when leather starts flying. Of course, we all know Hall is an ace striker with awesome kicks, so expect this one to be a thrilling battle on the feet while it lasts.

-James Jenkins vs. Dwayne Shelton, ROC 39, 2/10/12 - I've been monitoring Jenkins' career ever since he won that underground kumite in Myanmar, and I can say that since joining up with Team Serra/Longo, he's become quite the beast. Shelton is the saltiest of veterans, and therefore, should be a great test as to Jenkins' ability. Booyah.

-Ryan Vaccaro vs. Michael Parker, RoKo 1, 2/18/12 - Team Pellegrino's Vaccaro ran into a bit of hard luck in ROC when the competition became super-stiff (no shame in losing to Marcos Galvao, though, am I right?), but he was the king of getting dudes down and brutalizing them. Now he gets to spread his wings a bit and take on Parker, who's a West Coaster with experience in Bellator and King of the Cage. Will Vaccaro's wrestling mojo work against someone from the Land of Hippies and Pot Smokers?

Dramatis Personae: Laura D'Auguste

2012-01-16T23:08:00.002-05:00

Gina Carano, Cris Cyborg, Ronda Rousey, Miesha Tate, blah, blah, blah. Before those ladies ever appeared on the scene, there were girls out there pioneering a slice of the MMA world that was so small it was almost trivial. But fuck if it was trivial, 'cause to watch a female MMA bout that pitted two skilled competitors against each other somehow, someway made for ultra-exciting stuff. Back in the day - the "day" being around 2002 - there were ass-kickers who went by such names as Roxanne Modafferi, Amanda Buckner, Tara LaRosa... and of course, there was Laura D'Auguste.

Repping Team Tiger Schulmann, D'Auguste was a single mom and full-time cardiac nurse who simply could not be beat when it came to throwing down in the ring. From Renzo Gracie purple belt Shannon Logan to Del Greer to Buckner and Modafferi, all the way on up to a SmackGirl tournament in Japan and Megumi Yabushita, D'Auguste was hailed as the best in an era when the best didn't get to fight on a Showtime broadcast.

I was too much of a gentleman to ever ask D'Auguste her age, but I know age played a factor in her retirement, as did her marrying her jiu-jitsu instructor and settling into the role of wife. At the time, BodogFIGHT was angling to have LaRosa face D'Auguste for the organization's championship belt. But an injury in training put her on crutches, and after that, it was rare to see D'Auguste around. She retired on top, though. And I'm pretty sure she retired happy.

Dramatis Personae: Deividas Taurosevicius

2012-01-11T15:59:00.002-05:00

As "little guys" go, I can't think of anyone as tough as Deividas Taurosevicius (or "DT", as I prefer to call him). I was there for his first MMA bout, when he was just an ex-rugby player fresh off the boat from Lithuania, repping some karate school as he took on Yamasaki's Muay Thai instructor Mike Acosta at the very first Sportfighting event. The dude ate everything Acosta threw at him, including a hellacious spinning backfist, and though DT's effort was a losing one, he just would not quit. Some intense jiu-jitsu study after that and the man was suddenly a beast.

The only other loss DT had in the Northeast circuit was against Frankie Edgar, which put him as one of the top three lightweights in the area (Edgar and Jim Miller made up the rest of the trio). Then he was kicking ass in the IFL, and after that, the WEC. His losses came at the hands of Ryan Schultz, LC Davis and Wilson Reis (in Bellator), and it was always via decision - sometimes even just a razor-close one.

His English, while not always the best, has vastly improved over the years. But he's always been the nicest, friendliest of dudes, and he's lost none of that toughness. Case in point: his ROC 38 bout against Edson Barboza's training partner, Marlon Moraes.

Moraes came out and was outstriking DT on the feet something fierce (of course, what would you expect from the guy who has to spar with Barboza?). DT struggled to get things to the ground, but the Brazilian was instantly on his back, working for a choke. Then, the most amazing thing happened, as DT escaped, trapped Moraes' arm in a head/arm choke, squeezed, and tapped the fucker out. It was such a rapid and stunning turn of events that Dave Tirelli, who was judging, turned to me and we both exclaimed "Wow!" The bout was all of two and a half minutes.

DT runs a school out on Long Island, so when he's ready to hang up the gloves and retire his ROC featherweight championship belt, he's got something to keep him busy. But when he does finally call it quits, I doubt the scene will ever see any else tougher. If I had never seen the cuts and abrasions he's suffered in his fights up close with my own eyes, I'd swear the man was bullet-proof. Although I doubt even shooting him would stop him.

"Haywire" Review at MMAConvert

2012-01-10T23:51:00.001-05:00

I attended an advance screening of Gina Carano's new flick, "Haywire". The review is here: http://www.mmaconvert.com/2012/01/10/review-%e2%80%9chaywire%e2%80%9d-starring-gina-carano/.

Dramatis Personae: Lou Neglia

2012-01-04T17:21:00.002-05:00

If you view the Northeast as a microcosm of the MMA world, then Ring of Combat and promoter Lou Neglia are akin to the UFC and Dana White. You simply cannot be a homegrown aspiring pro fighter around these parts without harboring designs on making your mark in ROC (or the Cage Fury Fighting Championship, but that's for another post), and given that dozens and dozens of UFC veterans can credit ROC as the stepping stone that helped them reach the Octagon, well, that makes Neglia the man who laid those stones down to create that path.

It's not hard to find old pics of Neglia from his championship-kickboxer days, but most of us know him as a promoter. Ring of Combat, which began in 2002 and is now up to its thirty-eighth pro installment, is perhaps his greatest achievement in the realm of MMA; however, there are amateur MMA events in there, too, plus a long-running NYC-based kickboxing show called Combat at the Capitale and a seemingly endless number of one-off events (Battle on Broadway featured kickboxing and MMA bouts in a hotel ballroom in Times Square almost a decade ago, while there was a recent kickboxing extravaganza out in Brighton Beach). Before that, there were fourteen Vengeance at the Vanderbilt installments on Long Island, which saw the likes of Matt Serra and Pete Sell getting their MMA on... heck, the first sanctioned MMA bout in New Jersey took place on one of Neglia's show in Atlantic City. "Longevity" may be an abstract concept to some promoters, but to Neglia, that word is like a genetic sequence coded into his DNA.

It takes a very shrewd business men to survive for any length of time in this sport, but Neglia has managed to temper that necessary shrewdness with traits like kindness, compassion and a genuine friendliness. If you're a reporter, he'll accomodate you; if you're a promising young upstart, he'll make sure you're tested (remember: padded records don't get you into the UFC, hard fights do); and if you're a grizzled veteran, he'll find a spot for you on the next card.

There's a few reasons why ROC has thrived for so long. But without question, the biggest one is Neglia.

Dramatis Personae: Rage Rivas

2012-01-02T21:13:00.002-05:00

How do I know the Underground Combat League has evolved into a well-oiled machine? Because promoter Peter Storm has got someone working alongside him to help make sure things run smoothly, and dammit if the events do run smoothly. His name is Rage Rivas (real name: Jason), and you can often find him at UCL events weighing in the fighters, orchestrating who's on deck and who should be in the ring, announcing the match-ups and afterwards, informing the crowd which one is the winner, sometimes even refereeing - whatever needs to get done, gets done. Rage does it all. The UFC may have Burt Watson acting as the behind-the-scenes glue that keeps things together, but Mr. Watson ain't got nothing on Rage.

When not toiling behind the scenes at UCL's, he's still working. He's helped form two fight teams, one that trains at a boxing gym in Brooklyn and one that trains (or trained - I'm not sure if they still do) at Hunter College. I think he even manages some fighters. If there's such a thing as an "underground fight scene renaissance man", Rage is it.

Good Origins Article Over at BloodyElbow

2012-01-01T15:59:00.002-05:00

BloodyElbow has got a pretty good article up re: the origins of Luta Livre in Brazil. Check it out here - http://www.bloodyelbow.com/2012/1/1/2663021/mma-origins-vale-tudo-and-the-original-mma-rivalry. I have a theory that a modern form of Luta Livre will develop here in the States, especially given that MMA's popularity has been steadily increasing while training in it has remained relatively expensive (i.e., the sum of the cost of quality jiu-jitsu instruction, striking instruction, etc.). Of course, it's going to take a few years before we'll know if my theory ever became a reality...

MMA Journalist's "Best of 2011" List - Accept No Substitute

2011-12-30T12:23:00.002-05:00

Pete Lampasona over at TheFightNerd has put together a pretty decent list of grand and exciting things that went down in the Northeast scene in 2011 (read it here: http://www.thefightnerd.com/2011-north-eastern-regional-mma-awards/). But it ain't MMA Journalist's official "best of" list, which is recognized as law in four different states and gospel in various religions and cults throughout the world. So! Best of 2011!

-Best Transition to Pro by an Amateur: Jimbo Hoffman - Hoffman capped off 2010 (and a long and fruitful amateur career) with a win via guillotine over the always tough Kenny Rivera, and then two months later stepped into ROC's cage to make his pro debut. Whereas it took Hoffman and minute and five seconds to put Rivera to sleep, his ROC fight against Yaser Shaukat was all of 47 seconds. He followed that win up with another submission victory in June. If Hoffman keeps it up, he's going to be fighting for a featherweight belt soon.

-Best Meteoric Rise to the Top and Shoe-In for When the UFC Comes to Town: Tom DeBlass - While you and I were doing mundane things like working in offices and watching The Ultimate Fighter, Ricardo Almeida-trained black belt DeBlass was racking up wins via quick sub, knockout and hard-fought decision against UFC veterans, local trashtalkers, and ex-powerlifters. Now DeBlass is a ROC light-heavyweight champ, a huge ticket seller and draw, and a total shoe-in for some Octagon action if and when the UFC comes to town. I feel inadequate now - how about you?

-Best Meteoric Rise to the Top and Shoe-In for When the UFC Comes to Town, Part 2: Aljamain Sterling - Five pro fights in 2011, and all of them won in convincing fashion. Yup, that's Sterling, who rocketed up the ranks of the "little guys" to become the Supreme Ruler of Munchkin Land. If the UFC comes to town (like, in June, for instance), homeboy is their local bantamweight badass for sure.

-Best Knack for Inducing Convulsions in an Opponent: Lucas Pimenta - Gold Team Fighters rep Pimenta started off the year a bit "meh", but in his last two trips to into combat, once at Cage Fury Fighting Championship and once at a Bellator undercard, he hit his foes so hard they had seizures. That's, uh, some pretty damn hard hitting, no? Watch out for this guy. No, seriously, watch out. He will freakin' kill you if he punches you.

-Best Clear and Convincing Win in a Rematch: Al Iaquinta vs. Gabriel Miglioli II - At ROC 36 lightweight stud Iaquinta and Brazilian dynamo Miglioli went to war, and the close decision that went to Iaquinta left a bad taste in the mouths of some. Their immediate rematch, however, eradicated all doubts. At ROC 37, it took Iaquinta just 26 seconds to plant a kick to Miglioli's face with surgical precision and TKO the stunned fighter with punches. After that, the only bad taste in anyone's mouth was Iaquinta's foot, which left Miglioli begging his corner for some mouthwash.

-Best "Oh My God, He's Dead" Moment: Chris Liguori vs. John Salgado II - I'm not quite sure why Liguori and Salgado rematched at ROC 37, as Liguori had beaten him convincingly before, but instead of a decision win, this time around Liguori blasted Salgado in the chops so hard Salgado spun around and dropped to the canvas like a mannequin thrown from a third-story window. Of course I knew Salgado wasn't dead, but I was still left wondering if he had a last will and testament in place.

-Best Underground Fighter Ready to Transition to the Sanctioned Scene: Jonathan Rodriquez - Sometimes the UCL will give us fighters who are talented and ready, sometimes it will give us fighters who need a bit more seasoning before making the leap into sanctioned fighting (where the competition can sometimes be steeper). With his seemingly unstoppable triangle choke, Rodriquez is the former. If you're old school like me, you might remember when Jutaro Nakao was tapping EVERYBODY with triangles - Rodriguez reminds me of that.

-Best League Clinging to the Ideal that Kung Fu is All You Need: Manup Standup - Way out in Jamaica, Queens, there's an underground full-contact kung fu tournament where the competitors can summon lightning bolts and fireballs, and the injured are treated with judicious applications of chi. Or so they think. Regardless, it's awesome.

-Best Post-Fight Victory Celebration: James Funaro - Funaro made his pro debut at CFFC 7, and after smoothly guillotine-ing opponent Billy Dee Williams in a little over a minute, he jumped to his feet, pointed at his twin brother on the other side of the cage, and screamed "Fuck you, Joe!" No one is quite sure why, so let's just chalk that one off to sibling rivalry. Or something.

-Best Recovery from an Accidental Eye-Gouge: Igor Gracie - What happens when you poke a Gracie in the eye? Well, if it's Igor, he waves off the doctor, and promptly gets his CFFC 9 opponent Quinton McCottrell down and subs the crap out of him. Literally, there was no crap left in McCottrell after that.

-Best Future Champ: Artur Rofi - Romulo Bittencourt-trained Rofi has staked out CFFC as his territory, and thus far, everyone who's faced him has had been brutally subbed or brutally KO'd - or both. Until someone figures out how to douse the flames of his burning, aggressive jiu-jitsu, Rofi is going to keep racking up wins, and if he keeps it up, a championship belt around his waist is inevitable.

Dramatis Personae: Carlos Moreno

2011-12-29T20:49:00.002-05:00

I really wanted Carlos Moreno to be in RAW COMBAT but the timing wasn't right. You see, when I was doing interviews with local Northeast fighters, fighters who helped make the scene what it is today, "The Tyrant" was a guest of the state, and incommunicado (to me, at least). But damn, when it comes to raw talent, intensity and ferocity, few have been able to match Moreno in the cage - which makes his friendliness and likeability outside of the cage such a stark contrast.

If you take Moreno and his record at face value, you'll only get half the story. A glance at his stats and one can see he was a product of "Big" Dan Miragliotta's BAMA Fight Nights, and all of his wins have come from hitting his opponents so hard they either went to sleep or wished they were asleep, and that he was a Ring of Combat and Battle Cage Xtreme heavyweight champ. However, the tale not told by mere stats is a tale only told by the details, details seen when you're a fixture at shows. There was the time he duked it out with UFC vet Kevin Jordan, and when he got dropped by a knee, his mom was frantic as she rushed the cage. There was also the time teammate Tom Gallicchio showed up for a fight with the words "Free Carlos" written on his back, an open plea to the world about Moreno's legal plight. And there was the time when Moreno took a fight on an EliteXC undercard against Carlton Haselrig, which, due to the short notice (really, only a few days), meant the Latino version of "Tank Abbott" had enough gas for one round of fending off Haselrig's wrestling before he was forced to call it quits.

But those losses, and time spent away from the scene, don't mean much in the grand scheme of things, especially when you're a heavyweight with the ability to break someone's orbital bone with a jab, or when you can overwhelm nearly everyone with sledgehammer fists, and provide a fight card with one heck of an exclaimation point.

Moreno is out now and keen on getting back into the cage, and that's pretty freakin' cool to hear. He was, without question, the Northeast scene's first true heavyweight knockout artist. And it doesn't matter whether there's still TNT left in his fists or not, because ultimately, the scene is far more interesting with him around.

Dramatis Personae: K-Rod

2011-12-28T16:44:00.002-05:00

If ever I had the urge to pack a fat bong with herb and smoke up, without question the first person I'd pass it to after puffing large would be K-Rod. Known as "Kevin Roddy" to those who keep official records or write stuffy articles on Northeast MMA shows, K-Rod has been a fixture in the local circuit since about 2005 - and with his jiu-jitsu (courtesy of Kurt Pellegrino) and tight guard game, he was, for a spell, one the top five lightweights in the area (his contemporaries were Frankie Edgar, Jim Miller and Deividas Taurosevicius, which says a lot about his skills).

Covered in tattoos, skinny as fuck but game as hell, and one of the coolest dudes you will ever meet, K-Rod still gets into the cage every now and then. This year he was on a Strikeforce undercard, last year he lost a decision to Dennis Bermudez (yes, the TUF 15 runner-up) at an M-1 Global show, and a couple years back he fought on an Indian reservation in Upstate New York in a venue that was a cigarette factory by day (according to him, the joint reeked of tobacco so bad, he just wanted to get paid and get out). He was even the Battle Cage Xtreme champ back when BCX was cranking out shows.

Nowadays, because of his propensity for hunting for subs from the bottom, K-Rod is losing decisions more than he's catching opponents in armbars and triangles. But that's okay. He's there to fight, and if he's at an event and not there to fight, it means he's there to have a good time. And really, there's nothing wrong with that, either.

Dramatis Personae: Muslim Adam

2011-12-27T16:27:00.003-05:00

I've met a lot of people cover the sport over the years, so many of them cool and interesting and the kind of characters you'd likely be talking about twenty years after you last saw them. Hey, why not start profiling them here! (Note: that was me talking to myself.) Okay, I will! First up: Muslim Adam.

Muslim Adam is a denizen of the Underground Combat League. Sure, he's a fighter, a street scrapper with some decent standup skill that's enabled him to knock opponents out with precision high-kicks to the neck or just stand and bang. I'd say he's won about as many as he's lost, although two losses stick out... Once, he fought UCL promoter Peter Storm, and spent the entire first round within Storm's guard, trying to get some ground and pound going. But when the bell rang signaling the break in between rounds, Muslim Adam stood up and said that was it. He was very apologetic, turning to the crowd with his palms up, shaking his head while telling them that his knee was hurt, that a few days before the event he got into it with a police officer and the cop whacked him in the leg with a baton (hence the injury). Everyone was cool with Muslim Adam's explanation, and the audience applauded him for his effort.

That fight right there paints half a picture of Muslim Adam. The other half of the pic comes from his recent loss to Gracie Barra rep Chike Obi. Obi got him down and was unloading on him with punches, and while he was getting hit, Muslim Adam was yelping "Allah Akbar! Allah Akbar!"

Muslim Adam, with his shaved head, Taliban beard and kind, respectful demeanor outside of the ring, is white. Like, "if he grew his hair out and wore a suit, he could work on Wall Street" white.

Brazilian MMA Link

2011-12-27T15:21:00.003-05:00

Here's a link to a Brazilian MMA site - http://www.lutamma.com/. I don't read Portuguese, but hey, why not post a link, right?

Great Muay Thai Article

2011-12-27T15:19:00.003-05:00

There's a great Muay Thai article over at The Classical - link here: http://theclassical.org/articles/fighting-otherwise-part-1. The author (now, tragically deceased) went to Thailand and documented his experiences there. I loves me a good travelogue...

ESPN Recommends RAW COMBAT as a Holiday Gift

2011-12-23T10:03:00.001-05:00

Aw yeah... http://espn.go.com/blog/mma/post/_/id/7226/holiday-season-full-of-good-mma-reads

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New York MMA Expo Postscript

2011-12-20T21:48:00.002-05:00

This past weekend was the third annual MMA Expo at the Javits Center in Manhattan, and I ran panel discussions on the underground fight scene both days and sat on the panel discussion about the legalization of MMA in New York. Good times were had by all. On Saturday I had as guest panelists Big Dan Miragliotta (who used to run the old BAMA Fight Night events - New Jersey's original unsanctioned event), photog Anil Melwani, and underground fighters Israel Martinez, Jonathan Rodriguez and Kenny Rivera. On Sunday, the "underground" panel had fighters Harley Flanagan, Joe Funaro and Eric Blasich. (The "legalization" panel on Sunday was run by Justin Klein and had Nick Lembo, Dr. Sherry Wulkan and myself.)

I was big on audience interaction, so to encourage the asking of questions I gave out a copy of RAW COMBAT to anyone who raised their hand and asked something. Of course everyone loved Big Dan - as a UFC ref he's pretty much a celebrity - and lots of people seemed into the discussion. There were only a couple crazies (crazies are to be expected, especially when martial arts is involved), although on the second day some guy stood up and spoke incoherently for like two minutes. I gave him a book to shut him up.

So like a said, good times. Good times.

Turkey Showing Some Love

2011-12-20T21:47:00.001-05:00

Here's Hurriyet, the largest newspaper in Turkey, showing RAW COMBAT some love. I think. I don't read Turkish so they could be hatin'. http://www.hurriyet.com.tr/yazarlar/19489738.asp

UCL Postscript

2011-12-11T22:34:00.005-05:00

Another Sunday in New York City, another installment of the only unsanctioned, illicit and totally freakin' cool fight show around. From an undisclosed location in the Five Boroughs, the Underground Combat League provided us with a round-robin grappling tournament plus a six-fight MMA card. Veteran New Jersey pro fighter Josh Key was there to take part in the grappling portion, and there were a lot of new faces mixed in with the familiar ones. Some thoughts:

-Promoter Peter Storm dusted off the blue judo gi to take on kung fu exponent Blackie Chan. It took some work, as Blackie is no slouch when it comes to hitting and moving out of the way, but eventually Storm got him down and kimura'd him.

-Rene Driefuss-trained jiu-jitsu beast Chad H. put in another dominant performance, this time against the rookie Miguel Dozler. Dozler was game, but Chad controlled position from the outset, and eventually worked into the rear naked choke that left Dozler with no option other than tapping out.

-Doug "Lionheart" Ahammer and Tommy Diaz went to war in a back-and-forth battle that saw them scrapping on the feet and the ground. Diaz seemed to have more in his gas tank, however, and that enabled him to secure the decision when time ran out.

-Mike Brenkert of Fusion MMA looked smooth tapping out Antonio with an armbar. The bout was contested under New Jersey amateur rules, which meant no hitting the head on the ground and whatnot. Still, it was entertaining, and Brenkert's clearly got technique.

-Junior Lubin and "Smash" Evans went at it hard, with Lubin getting some licks in early but Smash punishing him later on. Lubin can take a punch and Smash can certainly deliver one. The end came when the New Generation Karate rep could no longer overcome Smash's sprawl, which resulted in the Advanced Fighting Systems fighter pounding out the win via TKO. Solid showing by both men, though. Very solid showing.

-It took some hard work, but the veteran UCLer Kirkland Campbell managed to grind out a much-needed win - this time against the Gracie Barra-trained Chike Obi. Just like in the "old days", Campbell repeatedly put his foe on his back and racked up points with fists and forearm smashes. He took the decision when time ran out.

As UCL's go, this one was pretty damn good - and made better by the grappling tournament, which attracted the new faces. Also, kudos to Captain Zorikh, who cast his hat into the ring for the grappling portion and gave everyone hell.

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The Definitive Greg Soto Post

2011-12-09T00:03:00.003-05:00

New Jersey-based superhero Greg Soto headlines CFFC 12 this weekend, challenging Chip Pollard for a belt that will undoubtedly be resting on the mantelpiece of the Soto household come Monday morning. Now, I could extoll the virtues of Soto and list the notable accomplishments that make him one of the better fighters to ever come out of the Northeast circuit - things like the fact that he fought (and won) at the first ever sanctioned amateur MMA event in New Jersey, that his only two career losses came in the Octagon (one of which was a disqualification for an inadvertent bout-ending foul), that he's a jiu-jitsu brown belt under Kurt Pellegrino, etc. But I won't. Instead, I will tell a story about how Soto headlined a small show in the arena of a community college in Lincroft, New Jersey, and how he totally set the place on fire.

Battle Cage Xtreme debuted on May 12, 2007, and like all newborn promotions, the first event was a struggle to find its legs. Ed Hsu put the card together, and after assembling a number of cards for his own Combat in the Cage shows, he knew that success hinged upon getting local guys to compete. So he did. Everybody's friend Eddy Rolon was there (in what would be his last MMA bout ever), as was Joe Andujar of the Rhino Fight Team, Carlos Moreno (a.k.a., the Latino Tank Abbott), the budding Tim Troxell, and the piece de resistance: Pellegrino MMA's Soto versus Ricardo Almeida-trained Sergio Vinagre.

The worst case-scenario for any promoter is when a card is short and the fights go quick, and BCX only had six bouts to offer fans. Worse still was the fact that none of them were going to decision, and most were ending in the first round. The audience was being fed quick, violent and sudden endings, but was it getting its money's worth?

Then Soto and Vinagre entered the cage, and the crowd came alive. There were hints of rivalry there, something about Pellegrino eschewing training with Almeida to go to the Armory in Florida and then venture out on his own, and if you've ever seen the two Garden State fight teams assemble for their fighters, you know they become passionate. So that was the stage that was set, and when Soto and Vinagre began mixing it up, things started to get crazy. Both men were undefeated as pros, both were great on the ground (the edge in subs probably went to Vinagre, the edge in wrestling to Soto), and both were content to duke it out on the feet. And that's what they did - Vinagre planting himself to wing punches, Soto leaping in to swing and jumping back out to avoid eating a counter. From outside the cage Pellegrino was shouting instructions, as was Almeida and even the revered Renzo Gracie (who was also there to corner Vinagre). Then, at about three and a half minutes into the first round, BAM! Soto hit the sweet spot, and down his opponent went.

The audience went wild.

BCX went on to do a couple more shows, with their last event taking place in Atlantic City and featuring dudes like Jim Miller and UFC vet Kevin Jordan. But on that night in May of 2007, Soto was the center of the universe to everyone who'd gathered around the cage in that arena in Lincroft. As usual, he delivered the goods as needed. If there's a moral to this story, it's that Soto - when he squares up against Pollard at CFFC on Saturday night - has been there before. He kicked ass then; there's no reason he won't kick ass now.

CFFC 12: Unbridled Awesome

2011-12-06T21:12:00.002-05:00

Installment number twelve of the Cage Fury Fighting Championship is this Saturday night in Atlantic City, and as usual, matchmaker Arias Garcia Jr. has assembled some of the Northeast's best regional talent and forced them to fight for their lives on a gyrating platform riddled with spike and surrounded by an endless void of a moat. Oops, sorry, Flash Gordon flashback. No, in CFFC they fight in a cage. Anyway, here are fives reasons why CFFC 12 unbridled awesome and worth checking out.

-Greg Soto -I guess, being that he started out doing amateur MMA back in 2006, you could call Soto an "old schooler". But really, that just means the wrestler-turned-MMAer is seasoned as all hell. Soto has only lost twice, with both of those losses coming during his stint in the UFC, and I've seen him knock dudes out, submit dudes, and win wars. He's facing Chip Pollard for the CFFC belt, and all I have to say about that is Pollard better bring that belt in immaculate condition. Otherwise, when Soto takes it from him, he's going to be pretty pissed it's not shiny and sparkling.

-Chris Liguori -I've written a lot about Liguori through the years, and that's because he's been fighting for a heck of a long time (since about the beginning of MMA in the United States) and he's really good at it. I'm not going to say "The Story" will have an easy fight against wrestler Don Carlo-Clauss, but, uh, no, I will say that. Carlo-Clauss's last convincing win was against Peter Kaljevic back in 2009, and 2009 is ancient history in MMA years.

-Artur Rofi -Romulo Bittencort-trained Rofi has a certain kind of viciousness in the cage that makes for exciting and violent (and, sadly, brief) fights. I've seen him break arms, transition smoothly to chokes, and punch the dickens out of people - all which means that Brian Kelleher (who is himself a very tough individual) is going to be in for a war.

-Ozzy Dugulubgov -With hard punching and an aggressive ground game, Dugulubgov is a pretty hot prospect in the Northeast - although he did hit a speed bump with his surprising loss via guillotine to Mike Wade at CFFC 10. Can he right himself? I think so. I mean, he was slaying cats before, and I doubt all that awesomeness he's shown us in the cage before was a fluke.

-Ariel Sepulveda - I can't help but like Sepulveda. After all, he is the only former karate/kickboxer guy I know who goes for things like Peruvian Neckties and inverted triangles, and very nearly gets them. That kind of gusto takes balls, which is something everyone can respect.

2011-12-05T19:47:00.002-05:00

MUSU Postscript

2011-12-05T19:35:00.002-05:00

As unsanctioned, underground and illicit full-contact multi-style kung fu events go, yesterday's Manup Standup was pretty balls (old person translation: cool). I tend to lose interest when competitors don headgear for their fights, but thankfully most of the bouts were sans headgear and provided plenty of action. Some thoughts:

-I dig what I'm seeing out of San Bao practitioner Willy Cavali, although thus far I've only seen him twice, and both times he was smashing Hun Gar dude Jesse Upton.

-It's amusing that MMA keeps coming up whenever you talk to these guys about their fighting. Some of them ardently believe that the key to defeating an MMA fighter lies deep within their particular kung fu style, and that it's just going to take a pure practitioner to bring that prowess out.

-What the heck are the rules? They make a show of counting to ten whenever the fighters clinch and go to the ground, but how was all the rolling around down there scored? And why was the lightweight champ warned for hitting with "malice"? And there were a lot of decision, so what was the judging criteria? Maybe that's just the "sanctioned-show reporter" in me talking, but I was at least curious.

-It was a good event, and just like attending a UCL is a one-time must for any fight fan, so too is checking out one of these MUSUs. I loves me some underground fighting, and this was that with extra duck sauce and soy sauce.

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MUSU Liveblog

2011-12-04T14:09:00.001-05:00

ManupStandup bare-knuckle kung fu tournament, why can't I quit you? Yes, folks, MMA Journalist is back at the secret location in Queens for the MUSU underground event - an event featuring a bunch of dudes who rep styles like Wing Chun, Urban Ba Gua, San Bao and Hun Gar, and then they throw those styles out the window and just start wailing on each other when it's time to fight. Lightweight champ Willy Cavali is here, sadly sans wicker hat, and middlweight champ Darryel Johnson is here, supposedly set to fight whoever wins a mini-tournament. There's so much chi flying around, I think I was just simultaneously afflicted with liver cancer and cured of it. So yeah, pray for me.
Sent from my BlackBerry® smartphone with SprintSpeed

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Bellator 59 Postscript

2011-11-28T16:13:00.008-05:00

I love it when Bellator rolls into Atlantic City, because it always means slots on the undercard – and often the main card – get filled with local talent. Case in point: Bellator 59 on Saturday night, which saw Kurt Pellegrino and Phillipe Nover on the MTV2 broadcast while cats like Doug Gordon, Jesus Martinez and Chris Wing fought on the prelims. Some thoughts:

-Kurt Pellegrino got screwed big time on the referee stoppage against Patricky Freire. Freire was a bad matchup for him, and when Pellegrino went down he was definitely going to be struggling to avoid damage. But! The ref never gave him a chance to work himself out of the situation. Screw that.

-Nover got screwed even worse than Pellegrino via a split decision that he should’ve gone his way. Marcin Held was creative and entertaining with his rolling kneebar attempts and heelhooks, but Nover escaped and countered and pounded on him, bouncing the Polish fighter’s head against the canvas again and again. There’s no question Nover should’ve won that.

-Karl Amoussou just out-gunned Jesus Martinez on the feet, plain and simple. I like Martinez, too. But he and the Frenchman stood in front of each other and fired away, and it was Martinez that went down.

-LeVon Maynard never let Chris Wing set himself and never let Wing uncork his dangerous hook. I was actually shocked at how much Maynard stifled him.

-Lucas Pimenta is an absolute beast. He crushed Doug Gordon just like he crushed Bryan Danner. He deserves to be tested with one of the area’s tougher welterweights now.

-Bryan Van Artsdalen is one of the most exciting fighters around these parts that can’t defend subs.

From the Department of Helping One of Our Own

2011-11-24T23:28:00.003-05:00

"Daniel James Miller, son of UFC middleweight fighter Dan Miller and wife Kristin, was born with autosomal recessive polycystic kidney disease. AMA Fight Club welcomes you to attend a Super Seminar to support Daniel in his treatments for autosomal recessive polycystic kidndey disease.

Join AMA Fight Club to aid Daniel in his fight for life.

Date: Saturday, December 3, 2011
Location: AMA Fight Club - 831 Route 10 East Whippany, NJ

Schedule of seminars and events:

9:45AM – 10:00AM Welcome and Introduction With AMA owner/trainer and UFC corner man Mike Constantino

10:00AM – 12:00PM No-Gi MMA/BJJ/Wrestling training with UFC Lightweight Jim Miller and other UFC fighters

2 hour No-Gi seminar cost $100.00

12:00PM – 1:00PM Professional MMA fighter meet and greet lunch included with seminar registration with lunch provided by the Miller Brothers family. Cameras and Videos encouraged

1:00PM – 3:00PM Muay Thai Kickboxing With Muay Thai Champion and AMA head Muay Thai instructor Kaensak Sor Ploenjit

2 hour Muay Thai seminar cost $100.00

Entire day pass combo including both seminars with meet and greet lunch: cost $175.00

Seminars are open to men, women and children ages 12 and up.

Raffles and prizes to benefit Daniel’s treatment including pro UFC fighter gear, UFC fighter Jim Miller actual debut fight shorts, shirts, gloves, gym memberships and so much more."

ROC 38 Postscript

2011-11-19T16:19:00.002-05:00

Another great installment. Despite Jimmie Rivera and Uriah Hall getting scratched from the card, there was still a lot of star power going into the event, and though the home team took some lumps, there was more than enough action to get your heart racing.

-Tom DeBlass once again proved why he’s the hottest prospect coming out of the Northeast circuit. Other than Hulk-like strength, Davit Tkeshelashvili had nothing for him – and that’s not a swipe at the Russian, that’s a compliment to DeBlass. The Ricardo Almeida-trained fighter out-boxed and out-grappled his foe, and it was never boring.

-Pete “Drago” Sell simply got out-struck by Nordine Taleb, and while the fight was unfolding, I couldn’t help but think that the Drago that fought Scott Smith would’ve totally kicked Taleb’s ass. I guess we could blame Father Time, because Drago certainly has more fight left in him. It just sucks seeing a Northeast legend go down like that.

-Performances like what Deividas Taurosevicius put forth are the reason I get out of bed in the morning. Marlon Moraes, who’s a training partner to Edson Barboza and who seemed every bit as deadly, was utterly kicking DT’s ass on the feet, and when it went to the ground, he was kicking our favorite Lithuanian’s ass down there as well. But! Somehow, DT’s escape from back-mount involved trapping Moraes’ arm, and he flawlessly slid into a head/arm choke that shocked everyone in the Tropicana – Moraes included. When DT got the tap, I was sitting next to judge Dave Tirelli, and Tirelli and I looked at each other and simultaneously exclaimed “Holy shit!” That’s what heroes are made of right there.

-Going into the Al Iaquinta/Pat Audinwood bout, I had Iaquinta with the edge in kickboxing and wrestling, a thought that, though Audinwood has a dangerous guard, the Team Serra/Longo standout would be too savvy to get caught with anything. Therefore, I wasn't surprised when Iaquinta tested the Bombsquad rep's chin, was somewhat surprised when Audinwood tested Iaquinta's chin right back, and was even more surprised when Audinwood started seriously threatening with sub from the bottom. And in the end, Iaquinta eventually got caught. Really, this should only be a speedbump in Iaquinta's career, because at the end of the day, no one else around these parts can beat him. It's just that, damn, I guess Audinwood is that good (and yes, I'd seen Audinwood fight many times).

-Drew Puzon vs. Aung La Nsang was a close, close fight, and I actually had Nsang taking the decision two rounds to one. He was far more dangerous on the feet, and his sweeps really put Puzon on the defensive. Oh well. No shame in losing to Puzon, who’s an old schooler that seems to have gotten better with age.

-Brett Linebarger never impressed me in the past, but last night, against Fikret Darzanoff, he looked like a well-rounded badass. Darzanoff was beaten everywhere the fight went.

-Props to Jarred Mercado for getting Jay Isip to the canvas and holding him there. But no way was Mercado ever going to hurt that perfectly-coiffed blond head of hair. No way.

-Ryan Vaccaro did his thing against Mike Prokop, which is wrestle and jiu-jitsu the New Yorker to the bitter end. Props also to Frankie Perez, who finished Allen Cozze with ease; Tom English, who controlled Anthony Facchini on the ground; and Pat DeFranco, who did the same to Rob Gittens, only with more violence. For someone who hails from a boxing school (Ardon’s Sweet Science), Alex Davydov certainly looked knowledgeable in the grappling department, even though he was eventually out-wrestled by Andre Harrison. And the highlight of the undercard was totally Chris Wade’s beatdown of Vinicius Agudo. Agudo looked like some kind of jiu-jitsu stud with the way he transitioned into sub attempts, but Long Island MMA rep Wade was ready for him, and with superior wrestling and ground and pound, he beat the bejeezus out of the Team Link rep.

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The ROC 28 Preview You Won’t See Anywhere Else

2011-11-17T12:48:00.001-05:00

(Hello there, friend. Long time no see. You look good. Yes, I agree, I haven’t done much in terms of posting on this MMA Journalist blog. Been busy, you know, what with RAW COMBAT and the MMAConvert.com site. But here I am, back to… you know… weave some more magic as it were. Anyway, tomorrow night is Ring of Combat 28, and as it’s the biggest regional promotion in the Northeast, it of course deserves some press. So here, have this preview. It’s painted with some of my favorite brushstrokes. I daresay it’s a masterpiece worthy of the MMA Journalist of old.)

Friday night brings us another installment of Lou Neglia’s Ring of Combat, and assembled together are all the usual madmen and horse thieves. Unsure of whether or not you should attend or purchase the event on GoFightLive? Well, hold onto your hat, ‘cause here’s a breakdown of what you’d be seeing if you committed to something – anything – in your life, you goddamn slacker. And no, “occupying Wall Street” does not count as a commitment. That’s just hipster laziness.
· Pete Sell vs. Nordine Taleb – After some rocky performances in the UFC, local hero Sell took some time off, and returned at ROC 26 to have another rocky performance that he ended up recovering from to win his bout. So. We know this: Drago can still take a punch, but even if you knock him out, he’ll keep fighting. This does not bode well for the Canadian Taleb, who will likely flee from the American’s “Walking Dead” impersonation.
· Deividas Taurosevicius vs. Marlon Moraes – DT’s pretty much been there and done that in terms of fighting, so unless Moraes has superpowers like telekinesis and heat-vision, the kid is getting jiu-jitsu-fucked to death.
· Al Iaquinta vs. Pat Audinwood – You can look at this as a contest between the best lightweight in the Northeast and a UFC veteran, or you can look at it as one of Team Serra/Longo’s top guys versus one of Team Bombsquad’s top guys. I, however, like to view it as a match-up between two damn whippersnappers. Get off my lawn, you little bastards!
· Tom DeBlass vs. Davit Tkeshelashvili – DeBlass is pretty much at the top of every journalists’ “promising up-and-comer” list, and with good reason: he’s slain all put before him. He should have little problem with this tough M-1 Global veteran. Unfortunately, announcer Peter Neglia is going to kill himself trying to pronounce “Tkeshelashvili”. Poor guy.
· Jimmie Rivera vs. Anthony Leone – This bout is off. Leone tested positive for leprosy.
· Uriah Hall vs. John Troyer – This bout is off as well. Turns out Troyer is pregnant. Congrats, man.
· Ryan Vaccaro vs. Mike Prokop – With a nickname like “Porkchop”, how could you not like Prokop? Seriously.
· Drew Puzon vs. Aung La Nsang – Puzon is an old schooler who returned recently, and he’s been keeping it pretty real in the cage. La Nsang, who’s a kickboxer with skills on the ground, is either going to get steamrolled into the canvas or he’s not. How’s that for a prediction? Yeah? Go screw yourself.
· Jay Isip vs. Jarred Mercado – Jay freakin’ Isip. That’s all I have to say on the matter.

And Now, The Money Shot

2011-11-17T00:33:00.001-05:00

The New York Times shows RAW COMBAT some love and affection! http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/17/books/mixed-martial-arts-books-by-matthew-polly-and-jim-genia.html?ref=arts

Zuffa Sues New York

2011-11-15T22:23:00.002-05:00

Today Zuffa filed suit against the State of New York, claiming that MMA is a form of speech and the ban on pro MMA in the state violates the protecting of that speech as per the First Amendment of the Constitution. Hey, that's one way to skin a cat. Here's my breakdown on the lawsuit, which is over a hundred pages long and uses words that don't mean nothin', like "lupid". http://www.mmaconvert.com/2011/11/15/deconstructing-zuffa%e2%80%99s-lawsuit-against-new-york/. Will it work? Maybe, maybe not. Maybe it forces the issue, maybe it ties the issue up in court and we have to go even longer without sanctioned MMA. Time will tell.