MUSU Postscript

There was another installment of Manup Standup on Saturday, and the event - which blends raw and unsanctioned combat with some heavy kung fu/Wu-Tang Clan flavor - had no shortage of up-close and personal violence.  New York's recent weather woes seemed to have thinned out the audience, but everyone who stepped up to fight was game, so it was definitely worthwhile.  Highlights of the event included:

• Jerry from Utah, who repped some form of kung fu but ultimately was all about wrestling and slams.  He took out Paul the ninja (seriously, a ninja) in his first fight, then went on to take the decision over Wendell the Humble Buddha later.
• The scrap between Yahuda and the White Taoist.  Sporting full robes while he fought, Yahuda seemed to meet every fistic challenge the White Taoist put before him with skill and determination, and after a significant amount of groundfighting, the White Taoist fell in the second round.
• MUSU champ DJ (real name: Darrell Johnson), who faced Mike from Harlem in a rematch and beat him more convincingly this time around thanks to a tap out via guillotine.  Thus far, every time I've seen DJ fight he's won, so I asked him afterwards when he plans on trying out MMA competition.  His answer: the next UCL.  Oh hells yeah.

From the Department of "Dang!"

This just in from the Department of "Dang!": The fourth annual MMA World Expo that was slated to take place at the Javits Center the first weekend of December has been rescheduled for February 16 and 17.  Blame the hurricane, blame the Fates, blame whoever you want - the sad truth is that this move postpones the amateur MMA tournaments that were supposed to go down.  And that bums me out.

Badass Kevin Roddy Article is Badass

Here's a fantastic piece on veteran Northeast fighter Kevin Roddy, who was supposed to fight at CFFC on November 3 but ended up grappling with some trollop named Sandy.

Boy, That Was Some Hurricane...

Yeah, so, hurricane, clobbered New York and especially New Jersey.  My Internet was down for a week, while many other lost their homes and worldly possessions and whatnot.  Not that my situation even compares, but it definitely sucked all around (and still does for most).  Anyway, here's some ripple-effect from the storm:

• The Cage Fury Fighting Championships event that was supposed to take place at the Borgata in Atlantic City on Saturday, November 3, was moved to November 24.  In theory.  We'll see how much Atlantic City recovers between now and then.
• The Ring of Combat scheduled for November 16 in Atlantic City has been moved to January.  The amateur MMA show Lou Neglia was going to do in Rahway on November 17 has been rescheduled for December 8.
• UFC middleweight contender Chris Weidman lost his home on Long Island.
• The Aggressive Combat Championships show that was slated for November 3 on Long Island was postponed to December 1.
• Veteran kickboxer Chris Romulo's Muay Thai gym in the Rockaways did not fare well in the storm.  It needs to be rebuilt.

Scenes from the Abu Dhabi Jiu-Jitsu Pro Trials in NYC

Yes, I went to a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu tournament in Queens yesterday.  Yes, I followed around HoneyBadger88.  Yes, it's for an article that will appear on VICE and you're going to have to wait to read about it.  But in the meantime, here are some pics.

What You Should Know About Jeff Blatnick

From the desk of NJSACB honcho Nick Lembo:

What You Should Know About Jeff Blatnick


On Wednesday, October 24, 2012, the MMA community lost one of the sport's founding fathers. He was 55. He is survived by his wife Lori, his daughter Niki, and his son Ian.

Jeff was a well regarded professional MMA judge and judge trainer with the New Jersey ACB as well as a licensed referee here.

He had judged UFC and other major events in Calgary, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Minnesota, Mohegan Sun, Nebraska, New Jersey, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Toronto and Virginia.

But there was so much more, whenever you say the words "mixed martial arts", think of Jeff Blatnick. He is the person who coined that term. He explained on a broadcast that the "athletes were mixing the martial arts.". He would urge people to stop calling the sport No Holds Barred, in order to help it grow and gain acceptance.

He served as a commentator for 29 UFC events (UFC 4- UFC 32). He was named Commissioner of the UFC at UFC 17.

Blatnick drafted the UFC's Mixed Martial Arts Council (MMAC) manual while serving as that body’s chair. He was a critical party involved with the drafting of the sport's unified rules.

He was a tireless advocate attempting to get MMA legalized in his home state of New York, quietly meeting with legislators and those with influence.

Born in Niskayuna, New York, Blatnick became a high school wrestling champion in 1975. He never wrestled prior to being convinced to start by his high school coach who needed a heavyweight in 1973.

He then earned a pair of NCAA Division II wrestling titles in 1978 and 1979 while attending Springfield College in Massachusetts. He was a three time All-American. At that time, Division II athletes could advance to Division I nationals, Blatnick placed third and sixth in two visits there.

Blatnick was the 1980 and 1981 AAU super heavyweight wrestling champion.

He was a three time national champion in Greco-Roman, won eight Greco-Roman All-American awards, two World Cup medals, and two Freestlye All-American honors.

Blatnick made the 1980 Olympic Wrestling team but didn't compete due to the United States’ boycott of those Games held in Moscow.


In 1982, Jeff was diagnosed with Hodgkin’s lymphoma. He said, "if you can win in adversity, you can win anywhere."

After fighting radiation treatments and having both his spleen and appendix removed, he battled through to make the 1984 Olympic wrestling team and win the gold medal. The first Gold medal for an American heavyweight in Greco-Roman history.

Video link:

http://m.youtube.com/watch?gl=US&hl=en&client=mv-google&v=tFyKv0QBkEI


Blatnick was chosen by his teammates as the representative to carry the American flag at the closing of the 1984 Olympic ceremonies.

Of that, Jeff stated, "If I didn't have cancer, nobody would know who I was, not a lot of wrestlers make the news."

Blatnick never set out to be an Olympian, it was simply about giving his best every time he stepped on the mat.

He stated "I learn to win by learning to lose, that means not afraid of losing."

Blatnick retired from wrestling in 1988 after a second bout with cancer.

He served on USA Wrestling's Board of Directors.

He continued on as a coach of the Burnt Hills High School wrestling team and the Journeyman wrestling club.

He worked as a wrestling analyst for NBC for the 1988, 1992, 1996 and 2000 Olympics. He also was a commentator for ESPN's coverage of the NCAA Division 1 wrestling tournament.

He was inducted into the National Wrestling Hall of Fame in 1999.

He was appointed by President Clinton to the President's Council on Fitness and Sport at a Rose Garden Ceremony.

He was also an honorary coach with the New York Special Olympics and very active with the American Cancer Society.


-Nick Lembo

Rest in Peace Jeff Blatnick

The sport of MMA lost one of its pioneers today, and I lost a friend.  Jeff Blatnick passed away due to complications from heart surgery - a sudden turn of events that has left those who knew him shocked and saddened.  Here's the piece I wrote on him for CagePotato.  Rest in peace, Jeff.  You will be missed.

November Bouts That Will Bring the Awesome

Howdy folks.  Yes, it's been a while.  But if absence makes the heart grow fonder, you must fucking love me now.  Anyway, October hasn't had much to offer by way of local fights, but November... November is going to be a doozy.  ("Doozy"?  Who talks like that?)  So what bouts should you care about?  Glad you asked.  The following list contains the ones I predict will bring the awesome.

• Chris Liguori vs. Luiz Azeredo, CFFC 19, November 3 in Atlantic City - "The Story" gets a crack at a Cage Fury Fighting Championship belt, and the UFC vet with a million fights will be clashing with a PRIDE vet with a million fights to earn that strap.  Liguori pretty much brings it all, and in Azeredo he'll be facing a guy who literally puts the "Brazilian" in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu.
• Artur Rofi vs. Lester Caslow, CFFC 19, November 3 in Atlantic City - You know you're getting old when Caslow has evolved from young buck to grizzled veteran and newer, younger bucks are in line to beat him for a championship title.  But I am old, and a title is on the line here and the newer, younger buck in question is Rofi, who's been employing incredibly sharp and incredibly frenetic jiu-jitsu to put opponents away quick.  This bout has got "awesome" written all over it in big, bold letters.
• DJ vs. Mike from Harlem, MUSU, November 10 in New York City - Manup Standup's brand of kung fu-flavored underground fighting has really grown on me, and this installment will be headlined by a clash between reigning champ DJ and challenger Mike from Harlem.  DJ is tall, lanky and reps Baguezhang (which makes him kind of a "stick and mover"), while Mike is a bull and a Jeet Kune Do stylist whose last few wins have all come by submission.  DJ took the decision the first time they met when Mike gassed (to be fair, Mike had fought two or three times in the two hours leading up to the bout), so this match-up's got storyline.
• Jay Matias vs. Cody Moberly, Muay Thai at the Mecca, November 10 in New York City - Despite the fact that Matias beat my boy Doug Ahammer (a.k.a. "Lionheart" of the UCL), he's still a likable and ultra-talented Muay Thai fighter.  At Take-On's second show at Madison Square Garden, he'll be facing some kid from Kansas, so expect some Wizard of Oz and Toto jokes from me on Twitter that night.
• Ryan LaFlare vs. James Brasco, ROC 43, November 16 in Atlantic City - I don't know nor do I care who Brasco is, but LaFlare is an elite badass mofo and former ROC champ who's been sidelined with an injury for the past couple years and is finally making his return, and fuck yeah!  LaFlare's got killer jiu-jitsu, knockout boxing, and an unblemished record that goes all the way back to a UCL fight in Queens.  Did I already say "fuck yeah"?  'Cause I'd like to stress that.
• Greg Soto vs. Elijah Harshbarger, ROC 43, November 16 in Atlantic City - Soto is a UFC vet and former CFFC champ, and he's been a dominant force in the Northeast scene since back when Ed Hsu was promoting shows (which is practically ancient history).  Harshbarger is a tough cat who very nearly put away Pete Sell, so this one should be pretty rough and tumble - up to the point where Soto tears out Harshbarger's spine and yells "Fatality!"
• Deividas Taurosevicius vs. Frank Caraballo, ROC 43, November 16 in Atlantic City - If I remind you that DT has fought in everything from the IFL to the WEC and is a ROC champ, I'd just be rehashing the same old same old, so let me just reiterated that the dude is awesome.  Caraballo is supposedly some killer from Ohio, but DT... DT is a stud.
• Peter Storm vs. Jonathan Rodriguez, UCL, Sorry I can't tell you where or when - The man behind the UCL will be pitting his judo top game against the top-notch jiu-jitsu stylings of Rodriguez, and if their back and forth on Facebook is of any indication, there's some serious beef going into this bout (like, a full Texas Longhorn, all mooing and shit).  Hey, as long as the heat is confined to the ring and no one in the audience is hit by stray gunfire, it should be great.  But isn't that true of any MMA show?

Attack of the Vid IV

Attack of the Vid III

Attack of the Vid II

Attack of the Vid

Israel Martinez: Have Fists Will Travel

This Saturday, Locked in the Cage will turn Philadelphia into madhouse with its usual blend of top-notch pro MMA mixed with bouts featuring up-and-coming amateurs.  And yes, while it's a big deal that former UCL champ Kenny Rivera will be debuting as a pro that night, tucked away further down the card is another UCL vet, and that bout has got me excited, too.  Resident heavyweight slugger and longtime badass Israel Martinez will be making the trek down to the City of Brotherly Love for a taste of sanctioned combat.  Want the 411 on this 28-year-old karate black belt?  A man who won his last fight via TKO in about seven seconds?  Hey, that's what I'm here for.

How did Israel get into MMA?  "At first I wanted to be a kickboxer," he says.  "At the time, I didn't like the brutality in MMA.  It was ridiculous.  Freakin' 300-pound guys against guys that are 150 pounds.  So I never thought about it.  Then, after a while, I started watching it, and I saw that it wasn't as brutal anymore.  You know, it was people trying to display their skills rather than trying to rip their heads off.  And I knew I could do it - I figured I could do it because I've been kicking ass my whole life.  And I was wrong.  Basically, I had to start from scratch.  The one thing I kept from everything that I learned before was my footwork from karate.  Other than that, I had to start from scratch."

Where does Israel train?  "Now I'm kind of in between gyms.  I started off at Jungle Gym in the Bronx.  Actually, I got kicked out of there for taking my first fight [in the UCL] without permission.  After that I opened up my own gym - a kickboxing gym - for about a year.  Then I closed that down, trained at Lions Roar Muay Thai... and now I train on my own at a boxing gym nearby."

Why travel to Philly to fight when sanctioned amateur bouts can be had in New Jersey?  Says Israel: "I haven't actually tried [to get a fight in New Jersey].  [LITC] just asked, they needed a fighter at my weight class, and I just jumped in."  He adds, "The major places in New Jersey, they kind of look for people from major gyms so they'll bring a crowd.  And I don't bring a crowd, so I've reached out and I don't get any answers."

Usually, Israel steps into the ring around 230 pounds.  Does he believe that's his best weight?  "My best weight I have yet to see.  All my fights have been at heavyweight and last-minute.  Given ample time... I could make 205."

In his last bout, he TKO'd his opponent in seconds with a front kick.  How did that bout come about?  "I was out drinking the night before my last fight in the UCL," he says.  "It was like one in the morning - well, technically, that's the day of - and I was on my second cup of liquor, and they hit me up out of nowhere, out of the complete blue, saying, 'Yeah, yeah, you're on for tomorrow.'  I was like, 'Man!'"  Thankfully, his fight was over quickly.  "That's why I went for the knockout blow.  Thank God it worked, because the guys was in good shape.  If I didn't knock his ass out, we would've been there all night."

For those who haven't seen Israel fight, how would he describe himself as a fighter?  "I'm actually trying to find myself as a fighter," he says.  "I think of myself as a kickboxer, because that's what I've been doing my whole life, but my jiu-jitsu is pretty good.  It's better than good."

And there you have it.  Israel Martinez.  Watch out, Philly.

Observations from My Couch: UFC on Fuel TV "Struve vs. Miocic"

• The Robbie Peralta KO was cool, but it's hard to tell if he's that good or if his opponents simply suck.
• Gunnar Nelson did his thing.  DaMarques Johnson did his thing too, which, unfortunately, is getting his ass kicked in convincing fashion.
• I watched three full rounds of Tom Watson fighting, and yet the next time I see him compete, I will have no recollection of who he is.  And my memory is solid.
• The UFC should have a separate league for scrubs like Akira Corassani and Andy Ogle.  Oh wait, they do.  It's called "UFC on Fuel TV".
• After a beating like that, you have to wonder if Kyle Kingsbury would be safer working as a crash test dummy or recipient of experimental vaccines.
• Duane Ludwig has gone from a spry and deadly young man to a decrepit and falling apart old dude before our very eyes.
• John Hathaway vs. John Maguire... no comment.
• Matt Wiman Ronda Rousey-ing the Brit "submission specialist" on his home turf was oddly satisfying.
• Say what you will about Brad Pickett, but his goofy hat rules.
• The UFC should have a separate league for scrubs like Dan Hardy and Amir Sadollah.  Oh wait, they do.  It's called the UFC.
• So Stefan Struve is now a top-five heavyweight because he TKO'd Stipe Miocic?  Da fuq is Dana White smoking?

Crappy Aggressive Combat Championships Pics

Aggressive Combat Championships Postscript

Do you have any idea how convenient it is to take a ten-minute bus ride to a fight show?  Considering it was a three-hour journey to catch Bellator in Atlantic City on Friday night, last night's Aggressive Combat Championship at the Elks Lodge in Queens was a goddamn luxury.  And although it wasn't quite full-fledged MMA, the Muay Thai, boxing, submission grappling and combat jiu-jitsu bouts provided action galore.  ACC has positioned itself nicely in the New York market, and if the packed venue last night is any indication, their February amateur MMA show in Queens is going to absolutely rock.  Some thoughts on the fights:

• The Edge Hoboken team kicked some serious ass, going undefeated in four bouts.  Tim Lutke crushed his opponent in Muay Thai, Issiah Castadon overwhelmed his dude with strikes, Gerald Javiar picked his foe apart, and Ed Andes had simply had too much wrestling for his guy to handle.
• Ray Carter of Rudy's Boxing had fleet footwork and the kind of fast, short counterpunching that kept dinging opponent Joe Stacks of Nexus up.  Regardless, Stacks was almost successful in drawing Carter into a brawl - which made for a very entertaining fight.  Carter won the decision in what was a fun ride.
• Tazo Jorjoliani of Team Renzo may have had superior technique, but AFS's George Petronella was all power, and he was able to wear Jorjoliani down to a nub.
• Richie Anderson of Black Belt Academy was able to sprawl and brawl his way to victory over Team Renzo' Aaron Galan, which was cool to watch.  Also cool was Mike Rosseli of Tigon Martial Arts Academy wrestling Tyler McGraw of Black Belt Academy into oblivion.  In both instances, it was wrestling that won the day.

Crappy Bellator 74 Pics

Bellator 74 Postscript

Bellator graced us with its presence again last night, touching down at Caesar's in Atlantic City and giving us the opening round of the latest welterweight tournament.  Some thoughts on the event:

• Holy start time confusion, Batman!  Maybe ten people knew that the first fight had been rescheduled from 6:30pm to 6:00, so about twelve people were in the audience to see the opening bout between Claudio Ledesma and Kenny Foster.  Allegedly, this screwed a few of the fighters as well, as they had their warm-ups cut short.
• Ledesma and Foster had a pretty decent scrap that Ledesma won handily.  It's funny, but sometimes we see Foster as sharp as a knife and sometimes we see him flat as fuck, and the same goes for his opponent.  Last night, it looked like Foster simply could not get anything going while Ledesma was on-freaking-fire.  I guess that's just how it goes in the fight game.
• It may have lasted only a minute, but the sudden back-and-forth between Brylan Van Artsdalen and Jay Haas had both men quickly putting each other in danger.  It was almost as if a four-minute fight was condensed down to 63 seconds.  Good showing for Van Artsdalen, who got the tap out via guillotine, but Haas definitely had his moments.
• The first round of the Phillipe Nover/Derrick Kennington fight was pretty even thanks to Nover's ground and pound and Kennington's close sub attempts, but man, Nover turned Kennington's face into applesauce with his g-n-p in the second.  Kennington was totally out of it by the time the TUF vet took his back and choked him out.  It was good to see that Nover's still got his power.
• Alexandre "Popo" Bezerra completely had his way with late-replacement Matt McCook.  McCook is very much not ready for prime time.
• Michelle Ould came in with a game plan - to avoid Munah Holland's dangerous boxing and grind her relentlessly on the ground - and she executed the plan perfectly.  I spoke with Ould's Team Quest teammate Tom Gallicchio afterwards, and he said Ould may have broken her hand in the second round.  Tough loss for Holland, but she'll be back.
• Will Martinez Jr. owned Casey Johnson in every range.  It was barely even competitive.
• Andrey Koreshkov and Jordan Smith had a very fun scrap.  I don't buy into the hype that Koreshkov is an elite, ultra-dangerous dude, but he's definitely skilled and willing to take damage to give some.
• Tim Welch was kicking Michail Tsarev's ass pretty hard until he inexplicably had a brain fart and let Tsarev take his back and choke him out.  It was almost as if Welch forgot he was in a fight and was instead concerned that he didn't pick up bread and milk at the grocery store.  Dude, stay focused!
• Nordine Taleb's crisp and accurate striking would've taken out a lesser man.  Unfortunately for him, Marius Zaromskis isn't a lesser man - and the Lithuanian don't care 'bout no strikes to the grill!  Zaromskis kept finding the knockdown blows, and took the deserved unanimous decision.
• Lyman Good was in no way, shape or form threatened by Jim Wallhead.  Regardless, Wallhead was in it to the end, proving himself to be durable and unbreakable in spirit.  As it stands now, Zaromskis seems to be the biggest threat to Good in the tournament; until that match-up happens, though, some Russians have to be dispensed with.

Aggressive Combat Championships to Give Us a Glimpse of the Future

The UFC may be providing us with an installment on Fuel TV Saturday afternoon, but those of us in New York City that evening will get a chance to glimpse the future courtesy of the Aggressive Combat Championships.  The venue is the Elks Lodge on Queens Boulevard (82-22 Queens Boulevard, to be exact), the start time is 7:00pm, and what's on tap are a slew of amateur Muay Thai, Combat Jiu-Jitsu and Submission Grappling matches.  ACC's raison d'etre has been to provide a platform for aspiring fighters to leap into competition, and with about dozen shows in Upstate New York and on Long Island under their belt, the promotion is obviously doing something right.  Still on the fence?  The consider this: fight fans who show up on Saturday will get to see in action a bunch of young bucks who could very well be rising stars in MMA this time next year (in fact, ACC is planning an amateur MMA event in NYC for February).  Camps to be repped include:

• Team Renzo Gracie
• Phil Dunlap's Advanced Fighting System
• Edge Hoboken
• Rudy's Boxing
• LA Boxing - Norwalk
• Animals MMA
• Carmine Zocchi BJJ

Update on the Next MUSU

From promoter Novell Bell: