Minnesota MMA

CFX/Crowbar MMA Winter Brawl This Saturday

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 14:30:00 +0000

FIGHTCARD
-Leo Kunz (12-1-1) vs Tat Romero (18-4)
-Jeremy Stetz (10-3) vs Billy Jochum (11-5)
-Reese Hernandez (5-3) vs Matt Lafromboise (2-0)
-Zach Schroeder (8-9) vs Randy Kittleson (1-1)
-Sherman Pendergarst (11-18) vs Bruce Nelson (23-34-1)
-Miguel Cooley (18-20-2) vs BJ Lacy (11-17-1)
-Danny White (4-1) vs Charles Cheeks (1-1)
-Nathan Barker (1-1) vs Rod Montoya (13-11)
-Doug Jenkins (5-2) vs Tyler Larson (4-5)
-Shana Nelson (4-2) vs Lina Eklund (1-0)

Brutaal Genesis Returns To Treasure Island

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 07:30:00 +0000

http://www.treasureislandcasino.com/entertainment-mn/concerts-shows-mn/mixed-martial-arts/

Saturday, February 18 | 7pm

Tickets $15, $30 & $50

The fury continues when MMA fighters return to the cage Saturday, February 18 at Treasure Island Resort & Casino. See the area’s most talented and exciting mixed martial arts fighters battle it out for cage fighting glory.

Few have what it takes to make in the cage. It’s not enough just to be able to throw a punch. MMA cage fighters need to be cross trained in multiple disciples and ready for whatever his or her opponent might throw at them – from boxing, Jiu Jitsu, freestyle wrestling, Judo and more.

Don’t miss a single hit, kick or punch; get your tickets today and get closer to the action! Tickets are just $15 for the bleachers, $30 on the floor and $50 ringside.

Must be 12 years of age or older to attend. Guests under the age of 18 must be accompanied by a legal guardian.

Treasure Island Box Office: 1-877-849-1640 | Buy Now!

Olympic Medalist Sara McMann Interview

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Sat, 11 Feb 2012 01:00:00 +0000

Olympic Silver Medalist Sara McMann, currently 5-0 in her pro mma career, was gracious enough to talk about some of her wrestling roots and combat sports career.

Sara, thank you for taking some time to answer these questions about your career!

Your wrestling career began in high school competing against boys. How did the experience of being the only female wrestling males shape you as an athlete and as a person?

SM: I had a difficult time initially, but wrestling with boys helped speed up my learning curve. I now prefer the training environment that puts me at a physical disadvantage because it pushes my abilities to their maximum.

You also competed in the first ever USGWA National Tournament in 1998, winning the 129 lbs. championship with 4 victories (2 by pinfall). After competing against boys throughout your youth, how did the female competition compare?

The girls were very tough competitors because they also trained with boys. I was happy to compete against women because it showed me where I really stood as a wrestler.

How has the sport of womens wrestling grown since then?

SM: It has grown in numbers and in depth. There are also more collegiate and youth programs that have developed since the addition to the Olympics.

After high school, how did you ever end up in the small west central Minnesota town of Morris?

SM: Minnesota-Morris was the only program at that time that had an all-female wrestling team. So UMM was the only forward-thinking college that promoted women's wrestling at the time.

What was it like competing that year at UMM?

SM: I learned a lot of technique and gained a lot of experience during my year at UMM. It was a great learning environment also.

How did UMM Coach Doug Reese, who started the UMM womens program in 1994, influence your career?

SM: I learned how to balance a full collegiate course load while working out twice a day. I practiced with some of the best women in the country and met some of my closest friends there.

Today, 14 colleges in North America have programs sanctioned by the WCWA (32 others compete at the NCWWA level), and it is an Olympic sport. With the rise in womens mma, do you think wrestling will continue to grow or is growing in the U.S.?

SM: Yes. More exposure and opening minds will help the sport grow.

You have had five pro mma fights and three amateur fights (correct?) and have yet to taste defeat. Your most recent win was a dominant decision victory over veteran Hitomi Akano. Where do you see your mma career going from here?

SM: Gain some more experience in the cage and then focus on winning world titles.

You have fought twice for the ProElite promotion live on HDNet. Do you have a contract?

SM: Yes, currently a 3-fight contract.

Who is next? Who would you like to fight?

SM: Don't know yet and I don't think about who I will fight since things change so quickly in mma.

Former Pride and Vale Tudo fighter Walid Ismail, now Jungle Fight promoter, recently began an all-female promotion called Pink Fight MMA (today was their 1st event). There is also an all-female promotion, Jewels, in Japan. Do you see an promotion with all-female fighters happening in North America someday?

SM: Yes, Invictus is trying to do just that.

Is competing in Strikeforce the ultimate goal? Japan? Brazil?

SM: I want to compete against the best in the world. Wherever that is.

What do you think of Olympic judoka Rhonda Rousey? After just four fights she will be facing Strikeforce Bantamweight champion Meisha Tate on March 3.

SM: I think she is good at armbars, but it takes more than that to be a great fighter. I think that fight will be exciting.

You wrestled Kaori Icho of Japan in the 2004 Olympics Gold Medal Match (and several other times). She is still competing in wrestling, but could you see a rematch in mma?

SM: No, she doesn't do mma.
Thanks again for taking the time to share some of your history with us! Good luck to you!

Driller Promotions Returns To Burnsville

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Wed, 01 Feb 2012 23:00:00 +0000

Primetime Sports Bar and Grill, Burnsville

February 11, 2012

Coming Soon...

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Mon, 30 Jan 2012 00:45:00 +0000

Coming soon to Minnesota MMA: an exclusive interview with Olympic medalist and former University of Minnesota-Morris wrestler Sara McMann!

Stay tuned!

Lentz Stopped By Dunham In Chicago At UFC On Fox 2

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 01:30:00 +0000

One of several former University of Minnesota wrestlers competing in mixed martial arts, Nik Lentz has made a mark in the UFC. In his ninth fight competing in the octagon, Lentz took on Evan Dunham and lost by second round TKO. The matchup was the feature fight of the UFC on Fox 2 Prelims broadcast live on Fuel TV.

Lentz last UFC fight ended with a disappointing decision loss to Canadian Mark Bocek. Despite being the only fighter close to finishing the fight, Bocek took the decision in Toronto as he spent the majority of the fight on the top position.

A much more aggressive Lentz pushed the pace in the first round landing some solid strikes and battling in several grappling situations. That pace continued into the second round, but midway through the round the two fighters engaged in a back-and-forth battle of punches. One of the strikes by Dunham landed in the left eye of Lentz. It immediately displayed damage and the remaining minutes were taken by Dunham. At the end of the round, the ringside doctor determined that the eye was too damaged for Lentz to safely continue and the fight was stopped.

With the victory, Evan Dunham improves to 13-2 (6-2 in the UFC) while Lentz falls to 21-5-2 (5-2-1; 1 NC in the UFC).

CWFC Fight Night 3: Speer v Nilsson

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Thu, 26 Jan 2012 19:00:00 +0000

From: http://www.cagewarriors.com/news/article/cwfc_fight_night_3_speer_v_nilsson

THE ULTIMATE FIGHTER 6 finalist Tommy Speer will make his Cage Warriors debut next month when he tackles Mats Nilsson in a middleweight bout at Fight Night 3 in Lebanon, Beirut on February 11.

Speer (19-5-0), who fights out of Fiore MMA in Illinois, has fought twice in the UFC but was released by the organisation following his 2008 defeat to Anthony Johnson. The 27-year-old Minnesota native lost to Mac Danzig in the TUF 6 finale but is currently on a four-fight win streak stretching back to May 2010.

Hailing from Helsingborg in Sweden, Nilsson (7-1-1) is unbeaten in his last three outings and picked up impressive wins in 2011 against Nikos Sokolis and M-1 veteran Gregor Herb. The 28-year-old has also beaten fellow Swede Magnus Cedenblad, who signed with the UFC earlier this month.

“The Cage Warriors team spent a long time looking for a worthy opponent for Tommy Speer and I feel Mats Nilsson has the credentials to test him,” said CWFC matchmaker Ian Dean.

“He was in Thailand training when he accepted the fight and I’m really pleased to have secured another high-level European fighter for Fight Night 3. I think this bout is a superb addition to a card which already features several talented European fighters facing opposition from the US.”

Fight Calendar Updated; Combative Sports Commission Notes

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Tue, 24 Jan 2012 23:45:00 +0000

The Minnesota fight calendar was updated today. Check it out here: http://bit.ly/8HORgi

The Minnesota Combative Sports Commission met last night. Here are the notes:

Agenda

Approval and/or additions to Agenda

Approval of November 21, 2011 minutes

Head Trauma Study

All

 Drs. Rodolfo Savica, Bradley Boeve, and Mario Roberto will discuss head trauma

and what they, the Commission, and fighters can do to help prevent and treat these

injuries.

Boxing Promoter

All

 Potential Boxing promoter Bob Stein

Amateur MMA Weigh-ins

Brown

 Are amateur MMA fighters cutting weight and should amateur weigh-ins be held the night before an event?

Amateur MMA Championship/Title Bouts

Brown

 Should amateur MMA championship/title bouts be five (5), three (3) minute rounds?

New Business:

 Next meeting date – March 19, 2012 at Administration Building

 Next Grievance Committee meeting – February 27, 2012 (if needed)

 Other Business

Commissioners:

Gallop– Chair, Brintnall, Brunette, Dempsey, Dolan, Fallon, Henderson, Stein, Tulenchik, Brown – Executive Director

While audience participation is encouraged, the commission reserves the right to limit the audience participation. Please assist the commissioners as they conduct this meeting by limiting your responses to make it possible for the commissioners to transact business of the commission in a timely and efficient manner.

McMann Dominates Vet Akano To Remain Undefeated

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Mon, 23 Jan 2012 04:00:00 +0000

Photo by D. Mandel of Sherdog.com

The women's bantamweight division is probably the most deep in talent of all the women's mma divisions. While current Strikeforce champion Miesha Tate is the current top-ranked fighter at 135 pounds, Sara McMann is making an impact. McMann earned her fifth-straight victory as a pro on Saturday in Hawaii, dominating Japanese veteran Hitomi Akano.

The co-main event of ProElite 3, the show was broadcast live on HDNet.

A 2004 Olympic Silver Medalist in wrestling, McMann (5-0) faced the most formidable opponent to-date in Akano, who came into the fight with a record of 18-8 and ranked #5 in the world bantamweight rankings. After just four fights, McMann sat at #9 in the rankings, but expect that to change after a dominating decision victory over Akano.

Throughout the three rounds of fighting, McMann physically overpowered Akano. She easily won each round on all three judges scorecards to take the decision. Numerous slams followed by solid ground-and-pound work from McMann was too much for Akano despite the game submission attempts from her back.

Schilling Overmatched In UFC Debut

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Sat, 21 Jan 2012 01:00:00 +0000

Ambition MMA featherweight Pat Schilling made his UFC debut tonight and suffered his first career defeat, losing to Daniel Pineida by Round 1 submission (rear naked choke). The fight was broadcast on national television as part of UFC on FX 1 Prelims on Fuel TV.

A Brutaal MMA promotion veteran, Schilling was 5-0 in his pro mma career coming into the fight, but the experience of Pineida (16-7) was too much. An early takedown led to Pineida, who is the Legacy Fighting Championship Featherweight and Lightweight champion, gaining mount position then the back of Schilling. This quickly led to Pineida working for the rear naked choke, which ended the fight at 1:37 of the first round.

Fearless Fighting Championship Returns To Black Bear

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Mon, 02 Jan 2012 19:35:00 +0000

Minnesota Combat Sports Calendar

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Mon, 26 Dec 2011 00:15:00 +0000

It is nearly 2012, and the combat sports events calendar is taking shape!

01/06/12: Driller MMA @ Hyatt, Minneapolis
01/07/12: CFX MMA @ Civic Center, St. Cloud
01/07/12: Fearless Fighting Champ. @ Black Bear Casino, Cloquet
01/21/12: Brutaal Genesis MMA @ Community Center, Crystal
01/28/12: Savage Entertainment MMA @ Niesen's Sports Bar, Savage
02/04/12: Brutaal MMA @ Myth, Maplewood
02/11/12: Driller MMA @ Primetime Sports, Burnsville
02/18/12: CFX MMA @ Scheels Arena, Fargo (ND)
02/24/12: Brutaal Genesis MMA @ Holiday Inn, Austin
03/03/12: Driller MMA @ Hyatt, Minneapolis
03/17/12: Savage Entertainment MMA @ Niesen's Sports Bar, Savage
03/23/12: Brutaal MMA @ Verizon Center, Mankato
03/31/12: Brutaal MMA @ Graham Arena, Rochester

For a complete list of upcoming events, go to the Fight Calendar page.

Two Live Events To Kickoff 2012 MMA In Minnesota!

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 00:30:00 +0000

UFC 141: The Return Of Lesnar

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Sat, 24 Dec 2011 00:15:00 +0000

UFC 141 is just one week away! Minnesota heavyweight and former UFC Champion Brock Lesnar makes his return to the cage after a 14-month layoff due to a rare illness. His opponent is former Strikeforce and DREAM Heavyweight champ Alistair Overeem. Overeem (35-11) was also crowned the 2010 K-1 World Grand Prix Champion, a prestigious standup combat sport tournament that may have come to an end in its current form.

Also fighting on the undercard will be another former Minnesota Gophers wrestling standout, Jacob Volkmann. A chiropractor practicing in White Bear Lake, Volkmann (13-2) is looking for his fifth-straight UFC victory against Efrain Escudero (18-3).

MAIN CARD (PPV)

Brock Lesnar vs. Alistair Overeem
Donald Cerrone vs. Nate Diaz
Jon Fitch vs. Johny Hendricks
Alexander Gustafsson vs. Vladimir Matyushenko
Jim Hettes vs. Nam Phan

PRELIMINARY CARD(SpikeTV)

Junior Assuncao vs. Ross Pearson
Danny Castillo vs. Anthony Njokuani

(Facebook)

Dong Hyun Kim vs. Sean Pierson
Efrain Escudero vs. Jacob Volkmann
Luis Ramos vs. Matt Riddle
Manny Gamburyan vs. Diego Nunes

KOTC Returns To Walker

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Tue, 06 Dec 2011 17:00:00 +0000

King of the Cage will return to the Northern Lights Casino in Walker on Saturday, December 10. For more information go to http://www.kingofthecage.com/

Prindle-Santos Will Fight Again

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Sun, 27 Nov 2011 04:20:00 +0000

Eric Prindle came to Bellator Fighting Championships with dreams of winning a heavyweight tournament and the $100,000 prize that comes with it. Unfortunately, Prindle will have to wait for that opportunity.

A training partner of Brock Lesnar, Prindle was facing Thiago Santos in the tournament finale. Early in the first round, Santos was standing over Prindle and a kick errantly caught Prindle in the groin. After a 5 minute recovery time expired, the doctors ruled the fight a no-contest as Prindle was clearly not recovered.

A rematch of the tournament final will be rescheduled by Bellator at a later date.

Watch the post-fight press conference here: http://www.bellator.com/mediaPortal/player.dbml?catid=0

Upcoming Events

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Sun, 13 Nov 2011 04:00:00 +0000

Fearless FC 9 At Blackbear Casino Saturday

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Sat, 12 Nov 2011 03:35:00 +0000

Wiuff Upends Bellator Champion M’Pumbu

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Sun, 23 Oct 2011 17:30:00 +0000

D. Mandel

Wiuff survived a scare in round three.

From Sherdog.com
Takedowns, crushing top control and effective ground-and-pound carried the well-traveled Travis Wiuff to a unanimous decision over Bellator light heavyweight champion Christian M'Pumbu in a non-title affair. All three cageside judges scored it for Wiuff: 30-27, 29-28 and 29-28. M’Pumbu’s defeat was the first ever for a Bellator champion in a non-title bout.

Wiuff (65-14, 1 NC, 1-0 BFC) set the stage for the upset from the start, as he delivered his first takedown inside the first half minute of the fight.

He moved to half guard and popped the champion with hammerfists, elbows and short right hands, opening a small cut near M’Pumbu’s left eye. The Congolese champion had a brief opening early in the second round, as he wobbled Wiuff with a knee close to the cage. However, the husky Minnesotan willed himself to a takedown and again scored with his strikes, all while avoiding a triangle choke from the bottom.

Behind on the scorecards, M’Pumbu (18-4-1, 3-1 BFC) nearly turned the tables in round three, as he began to sting the winded challenger with a stiff left jab and straight rights, one of which staggered Wiuff and forced him to retreat to his back. M’Pumbu belted his foe with punches on the ground but failed to finish, leaving himself open for another takedown. Wiuff obliged and controlled the rest of the match from top position.

“I was hurt, but it’s a fight,” Wiuff said. “You’ve got to expect to get punched a little bit. I want a shot at the belt. That’s why I’m here. There are a lot of tough guys in Bellator at 205 [pounds].”

M'Pumbu-Wiuff Non-Title Bout Set for Bellator 55 in Yuma

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Sat, 08 Oct 2011 04:30:00 +0000

M'Pumbu-Wiuff Non-Title Bout Set for Bellator 55 in Yuma

Upcoming Live Events

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Wed, 28 Sep 2011 00:45:00 +0000

See the Upper Midwest Fight Calendar for complete schedule.

ROGERS VS. SANCHEZ SET TO HEADLINE "HDNET PRESENTS: TITAN FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIP 20"

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Fri, 23 Sep 2011 22:35:00 +0000

From: http://www.titanfighting.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=154:-rogers-vs-sanchez-set-to-headline-qhdnet-presents-titan-fighting-championship-20q&catid=1:latest-news

Kansas City, KS –A heavyweight showdown between EliteXC and Strikeforce veteran Brett “The Grim” Rogers (11-3 with 9 (T)KOs) and UFC and Bellator Fighting Championships veteran Eddie Sanchez (12-5 with 8 (T)KOs) has been announced as the main event for “HDNet Presents: Titan Fighting Championship 20” on Friday, September 23.

The news of Rogers’ addition to the Titan Fighting Championship (www.TitanFighting.comand @TitanFighting) roster was revealed during Friday’s edition of “Inside MMA” on HDNet (www.HD.net) in a one-on-one interview between Rogers and HDNet’s Ron Kruck.

“The goal of Titan since we became partners with HDNet was to put on exciting fights,” said Titan Fighting Championship CEO Joe Kelly (@TheJGK). “A double-header featuring Rogers vs. Sanchez and former WEC lightweight world champion Jamie Varner vs. Alonzo Martinez promises to be one of our best shows to date.”

Rogers began his career with a perfect 10-0 record in which his win streak was highlighted by a 22-second first round (T)KO victory over former UFC heavyweight championAndrei Arlovski in June of 2009.

The Chicago native was also featured on the first-ever network prime-time broadcast of an MMA bout back in May 31, 2008 during CBS’ first-ever “Saturday Night Fights” airing.

Additionally, Rogers received further notoriety when he was featured in MMA’s return to CBS against Fedor Emelianenko in November of 2009 at “Strikeforce/M-1 Global Present: Fedor vs. Rogers.”

However, on June 29 of this year, Rogers found himself in the headlines again. But this time for the wrong reasons after being arrested on charges of third degree assault against his wife, Tiuana.

Rogers and his wife appeared on camera with Kruk but declined to discuss details. However, Rogers’ attorney, Murad Mohammad, told HDNet that his client is looking forward to addressing the allegations in court. In the meantime, Rogers is now training full-time at the Minnesota MMA Academy with plans on recording yet another dramatic knockout victory on national television.

“Brett has made a lot of changes in recent months and it will be exciting to see how much of a difference they’ve made in Brett’s game,” said Kelly. “But Eddie Sanchez is not exactly the type of fight you want to walk into when you’re looking to make sure your comeback starts off the right way. This one has slugfest written all over it.”

Tickets for the event are currently on-sale at Ticketmaster.com(www.Ticketmaster.com) and the Memorial Hall box office and start as low as $35.

Additional matchups for “HDNet Presents: Titan Fighting Championship 20” will be released in the coming days. For the latest information pertaining to Titan Fighting, please visit www.TitanFighting.com, follow Titan Fighting on Twitter (@TitanFighting) or become a “fan” on Facebook (www.Facebook.com/TitanFighting).

Riot At The Hyatt This Friday!

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Mon, 19 Sep 2011 23:30:00 +0000

One FC Preview

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Tue, 30 Aug 2011 11:00:00 +0000

In what is being billed as "Asia's largest and most prestigious mixed martial arts event," One Fighting Championship is set to host their inaugural event on September 3. The event will be streamed live on www.sherdog.com.

One FC has gathered together some of the top martial arts fighters from across the globe for the event.

Fightcard:

Eduard Folayang (9-1) vs A Sol Kwon Do (17-6)
Yoshiyuki Yoshida (12-6) vs Phil Baroni (14-13)
Mitch Chilson (2-0) vs Eric Kelly (5-0)
Gregor Gracie (5-1) vs Seok Mo Kim (2-1)
Andy Wang (7-7-1) vs Zorobabel Moreira (4-1)
Radeem Rahman (debut) vs Susovan Ghosh (debut)
Soo Chul Kim (4-0) vs Leandro Issa (8-2)
Vuyisile Colossa (3-1) vs Ma Xing Yu (debut)
Daniel Mashamaite (1-1) vs Yodsanan Sityodtong (debut)
Eddie Ng (2-1) vs Yuan Chun Bo (0-1)

ProElite Results – A Night of Spectacular Finishes

noreply@blogger.com (Scott Ludwig) — Sun, 28 Aug 2011 14:30:00 +0000

ProElite Results – A Night of Spectacular Finishes:

Kendall Grove submits Joe Riggs

A night of spectacular finishes on ProElite’s inaugural show was topped off with a memorable main event as Kendall Grove submitted Joe Riggs with a guillotine choke 59 seconds into the first round.

Former UFC Heavyweight champion Andrei “The Pitbull” Arlovski dominated a game Ray Lopez to secure a third round TKO finish.

In a pair of impressive MMA debuts, Reagan Penn and Mark Ellis both submitted their opponents via rear-naked choke.

The undefeated Sarah McMann scored an armlock victory over local favorite Raquel Pa’aluhi following a three round war.

Main Card:

Kendall Grove def. Joe Riggs via submission (guillotine choke) – Round 1, 0:59

Andrei Arlovski def. Ray Lopez via TKO (punches) – Round 3, 2:43

Reagan Penn def. Paul Gardiner via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 1, 1:10

Mark Ellis def. Jake Heun via submission (rear-naked choke) – Round 2, 2:29

Sarah McMann def. Raquel Pa’aluhi via submission (armlock) – Round 3, 2:53

Drew McFedries def. Garrett Olson via TKO (punches) – Round 2, 4:04

Preliminary Card:

Kaleo Gambill defeated Sale Sproat via TKO (strikes) at 1:31 of round 1

Dustin Barca defeated Reno Remigio via TKO (doctor stoppage) at 5:00 of round 2

Brent Schermerhorn defeated Jesse Kaala-Akana Lundgren via TKO (punches) at 1:38 of round 1

Amateur Bout:

Joey Palamia defeated Chad Thomas via decision