Sunday, December 11, 2011
Friday, December 9, 2011
The Definitive Greg Soto Post
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.
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.
Tuesday, December 6, 2011
CFFC 12: Unbridled Awesome
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.
-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.
Monday, December 5, 2011
MUSU Postscript
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.
-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.
Sunday, December 4, 2011
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