FH: Give us a quick brief why you got into this martial art?

T BOB: I have been competing in Taekwondo from the age of 8, when I moved to Ireland I start kickboxing then for last two years I train in Muay Thai

FH: What kind of training do you do on a regular basis

T BOB: Muay Thai, Boxing , running, the usual stuff

FH: What kind of training have you done for this fight, were did you hear this is for a title, do you train different for a title fight?

T BOB: Just the usual stuff same as always

FH: How excited are you to be fighting on Primal Fighting Championships, to be held in Dublin in the D4 Hotel, one of Ireland’s biggest Pro K1 and kickboxing promotions?

T BOB: I am grateful for the opportunity thank you

FH: Do you know much about your opponent for this fight?

T BOB: Not a lot but I know they will be good

FH: How do you see the fight going? Any predictions?

T BOB: No predictions anything can happen in this type of tournament

FH: When you fight do you go in with a strategy in mind or is a case of just see what happens?

T BOB: I always have a strategy but can change if need to

FH: What’s the most important piece of advice your coaches have given you? Is there any advice you would give to newcomers?

T BOB: Train hard keep working try always to improve

FH: Is there anyone on the Irish kickboxing / K1 / Thai scene you particularly look up to? Is there a particular fight you would really like to be involved in?

T BOB: I would like to see the k1 scene in Ireland grow and fight the best in the country and abroad.

FH: Do you have long term goals in kickboxing /K1 / Thai or is it a case of taking each as it comes?

T BOB: Same answer as above

FH: What would you like to say to your opponent?

T BOB: I hope we have a good fight looking forward to it

EVENT INFO

Click HERE for full event info.

TICKET INFO

Tickets: €25, you will need to be quick. Pre Order now by sending an email to: primalfightingchampionships@hotmail.com or chrisboyne@eircom.net

Q: First off we would like to thank you for taking the time out and talking with us today and how good does “The Man Of War Featherweight Champion” sound?

A: It feels great,best feeling in the world hearing the mc shout that out saturday night.

Q: How and why did you get started in MMA?

A: I had been watching mma for years and always wanted to try it,its the toughest sport in the world and i wanted to see if i could do it,and get to a level were i could fight.

Q: How long have you been training MMA?

A: I’ve been training about a year and a half now so im still a baby in this sport. I came into it with no backround so I started from scratch.

Q: You train at the Boxing Clinic in Cork (Ireland) why did you choose this gym?

A: When I decided to train I didnt really no of many gyms around then I heard on the radio that Chuck Liddell had just been to the boxing clinic so I decided to check the place out. I’m really grateful I was listening to the radio that day because for example i dont think id be a man of war champion after such short space of time if i had gone to another gym.

Q: You took part in the first ever Cage Warriors Irish show back in November, how did that come about?

A: Taking part in the first cage warriors was awesome, I had only been training four months and I got the call on the tuesday of fight week to fill in for an injured fighter.

Q: You lost a very controversial majority decision that night to Warren Mitchell, what was yor thoughts on the event, your fight and did you take anything away from the loss?

A: Yes the judges decision on that fight was a hard pill to swallow, most people there thought I did enough to win. In fairness to Warren he gave me a few words of encouragement after the fight and he was surprised by the decision himself. I look at the positives from the fight, it was my first fight after just four months against a good opponent making his fifth fight and I did ok. Warren has since gone on to show he is one of the top featherweights out there.

Q: You also took part in the Cork Institute of Technology MMA club open competition which took palace in The Boxing Clinic Cork this year and you took the goold in your weight class, again what what was yor thoughts on the event and how did if feel to to get 3 wins in a row?

A: The CIT open was a good day last year, winning the three fights and the gold medal was cool. I think the event is a great way for guys to get some cage experience and judge if there ready for c-class.

Q: You then went on and won your next 4 fights and the Man Of War Featherweight title, what does winning the title mean to you & when will we see you fighing as a Pro?

A: Winning the last four fights has been great and to cap it off with winning the title saturday was class, lifting the belt means alot to me and I look at it as a symbol that I’ve trained really hard and I try my best. Ian cleary was a tough opponent and a big favourite on the internet poll to beat me so to get the first round stoppage was a good feeling. I’m still only 18 months in so im not looking at the pro game just yet, there is so much to learn in this sport so im not going to rush things. There is still some big semi pro fights out there for me.

Q: Is there anyone you would like to thank?

A: Yes of course,id like to thank all my coaches and team mates at the MMA Clinic for all there help, believing in me and of course beating me up every day and to all my family and friends for all there support and following me around the country for my fights it’s a great feeling having them behind me.

Q: What can you tell us about your next fight?

A: My next fight is in March against Tony Keane, it will be the first time I’ll be fighting a guy I consider a friend and Tony is one of the top featherweights out there with a bit more experience than me so it should be interesting. I look forward to the challenge in March in what I think will prove to be my toughest fight to date.

Sean’s next fight will take place at The MMA Clinic Amateur Fight Night 2 which will be held in the Rochestown Park Hotel (Cork) on March 24th (2012) his opponent on the night is Tony Keane. We wish Sean the best of luck in his upcoming fight.

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February 4th 2012 will see UCMMA deliver their first show of the New Year and it features a roll call of impressive domestic talent.

The card is topped off by a K1 bout between the sniper-like welterweight champion Luke Sines and the always dangerous Peter Irving.

Irving jumped at the chance to compete for the welterweight gold after former UFC star Paul Daley was forced to withdraw following other contractual commitments with Strikeforce.

“Peter Irving has come into the picture and we’ve had more coverage about this match up than before. Everyone wants to know about this bout more and there’s been a huge amount of interest. It’s a great fight and it’s one for the fans to enjoy.” – Dave O’Donnell

The card also features a vacant light heavyweight championship match between potential breakout star Linton Vassell and the durable Aurelius Kerpe, who will no doubt be looking to stop the hype train dead in its tracks. Kerpe stepped in to take on Vassell after Przemyslaw Mysiala was forced out through injury.

There is no shortage of promising young prospects at UCMMA 26 in February as Corey Tait, one of the most explosive fighters on the planet, faces off against Spencer Hewitt.

Amazing footage of Cory Tait’s crescent kick KO back at UCMMA 16

Click here to view the embedded video.

Also highly touted middleweights Luke Barnett and Ben Callum lock horns in an intriguing contest which has seen both fighters exchange harsh words through the media in the build up.

“Ben Callum and Luke Barnett are hungry for the middleweight title and both know that a win puts them up the ladder. This one will have the crowd on the edge of their seats!” – Dave O’Donnell

With all events broadcast on Sky Sports and to a massive online following there can be little doubt that 2012 is set to be a colossal year for UCMMA. The organization has a packed twelve months ahead with a variety of shows across different platforms with the central focus on making huge steps. Dave O’Donnell is also keen to move on from the Cage Rage brand with a focus on his promotions corporate standing.

“One of the big things about planning in 2012 is that we’ve looked at the show from a corporate point of view and assessed where we want to go. What we’re going to push forward is UCMMA; that’s the brand moving forward” – Dave O’Donnell

Event Info

UCMMA 26 – The Real Deal

February 4th 2012

The Troxy, London

Full Fight Card

WW K1 Title: Luke Sines vs. Peter Irving

LHW Title: Aurelius Kerpe vs. Linton Vassell

Spencer Hewitt vs. Cory Tait

Stav Economou vs. Tomasz Czerwinski

Ray Edgar vs. Ashleigh Grimshaw

Iain Martell vs. Mohamed Ali

Paul Taylor vs. Marian Rusu

Chi Lewis Perry vs. Ollie Beard

Ben Callum vs. Luke Barnatt

Andy Cona vs. Walter Gahadza

Miguel Bernad vs. Jason Radcliffe

Sam Gilbert vs. Dean Bray

Sam Boo vs. Michael Page

Ricci Woodward vs. Mark Carling

Florian Calin vs. Stephen Stanley

UCMMA 26 is sponsored by Bad Breed, Officialwatches.co.uk and GBR Nutrition

Credit: Fortuna PR

FH: Give us a quick brief why you got into this martial art?

DC: Well I’ve always had a love for the sport and that, I’m doing it and can’t get enough of it.

FH: What kind of training do you do on a regular basis?

DC: I train 3 days a week with the kickboxing and the same with the gym

FH: What kind of training have you done for this fight, were did you hear this is for a title, do you train different for a title fight?

DC: I train three times a week, keeping fit and going the gym

FH: How excited are you to be fighting on Primal Fighting Championships for a title fight, to be held in Dublin in the D4 Hotel, one of Irelands biggest Pro k1 and kickboxing promotions?

DC: When i found out that, i was fighting for a title i was over the moon with the news the smile still hasn’t left my face ,and to be fighting in a Primal Fighting Championships is just mind blowingW

FH: Do you know much about your opponent for this fight?

DC: No to be honest no , i think its kind of better that way if you don’t know anything about your opponent.

FH: How do you see the fight going? Any predictions?

DC: Well its going to be a good fight, but im hoping for another K.O 

FH: When you fight do you go in with a strategy in mind or is a case of just see what happens?

DC: YES, we have a strategy, but we may have to alternate it during the fight.

FH: What’s the most important piece of advice your coaches have given you? Is there any advice you would give to newcomers?

DC: Well as my coach Chris Boyne always says to me don’t go in brawling stick to the combo you were thought and you should come out on top. For any newcomers that are coming in to the sport listen to your coaches and you should do alright ,that’s the main key is to listen.

FH: Is there anyone on the Irish kickboxing / K1 / Thai scene you particularly look up to? Is there a particular fight you would really like to be involved in?

DC: Well the kickboxing side of things, I would have to say me two coaches Chris Boyne and Damien Crowther, Ive learn’t alot from the two of them , and the k1 side of things, I would have to say Uvals ’Aslan’ Bisayev.

FH: Do you have long term goals in kickboxing /K1 / Thai or is it a case of taking each as it comes?

DC: Short term to be Irish Kickboxing Champion, long term for the future is go on a be a pro k1 fighter.

FH: What would you like to say to your opponent?

DC: Looking forward to a good fight on the night, best of luck bud.

EVENT INFO

Click HERE for full event info.

TICKET INFO

Tickets: €25, you will need to be quick. Pre Order now by sending an email to: primalfightingchampionships@hotmail.com or chrisboyne@eircom.net

50kg-Junior Fight: Alex Vieru (Legends) defeated Jack Clear (RFA) via split decision – This fight was a great battle with both fighters making their debut. The first started with Clear securing a takedown after working in the clinch but Vieru sweeps and landed some shots to the body. Clear regained top position and fought off Vieru’s armbar attempts. The second round started with Clear showing good takedown defence early on to sprawl and wind up on top to initiate a back and forth ground battle with both fighters threatening with submissions. The third round featured some good stand up exchanges with Clear landing some crisp leg kicks and
Vieru using the clinch effectively. Vieru took the split decision in a very close and entertaining fight.

52kg- Junior Fight: Dylan Tuke (Kokoro) defeated Denis Krasnoruskis (RFA) via submission in Round 1.– This fight started with a brief exchange on the feet before a scramble on the ground in which Krasnoruskis ended up on top. He began landing some ground and pound but Tuke works for the triangle. Krasnoruskis attempted a spectacular slam to escape the position but to Tukes credit he showed great composure and wasn’t phased as he held onto the position, tightened the hold and earned the submission win.

Featherweight-C-Class Fight: Tommy Martin (SBGi) defeated Carl Kavanagh (Team Ryano) via TKO in Round 1. – Both fighters came out and looked very comfortable on the feet as Martin landed a nice left hook and Kavanagh responded with a solid straight right. Martin was then relentless in securing the takedown, from which he transitioned to mount. It appeared Martin had a deep cross face on Kavanagh as he positioned and he may have been out when Martin started landing his shots from the top; great stoppage from referee Dave Jones.

Featherweight-C-Class Fight: Dean Knight (Legends) defeated Dermot Byrne (RFA) via submission in Round 1. – This was the third time these two have faced each other, the first being on the Man of War card in October, both previous fights we’re closely contested. Both fighters showed good grappling skills in their third encounter, with Knight attempting a guillotine after being pressed against the cage. Byrne managed to escape with a powerful reversal and took top position. Knight worked a triangle from his guard and Byrne tapped after a tough battle.

Middleweight-C-Class Fight: Johnny Bowden (Kokoro) defeated Konrad Iwanoski (Ryano) via submission in Round 1. – Bowden came out and threw a kick which Iwanoski caught and then took him down. Iwanoski started unloading some punches from inside guard but Bowden slickly applied a deep triangle to become the third fighter on the card to win via triangle choke.

Featherweight Title Fight-C-Class: Sean Tobin (Boxing clinic) defeated Ian Cleary (Primal MMA) via TKO in Round 1 – The fight started with Tobin landing a big takedown but Cleary got back to his feet straight away and landed a good knee. Tobin managed to take Cleary down again and secured his back where he began to tee off landing punches. Cleary tried to escape but Tobin managed to position himself in mount where he landed heavy ground and pound until the fight was stopped 2.44 into the round. A good performance from Tobin but he will have no shortage of challengers for his title.

Lightweight Title Fight-C-Class: James “Sexual” Heelan (SBGi) defeated Dean Mitchell (RFA) via TKO in Round 1. – The fight started at an excellent pace as the fighters traded kicks with Mitchell landing the heavier. Unfortunately for Mitchell he slipped attempting a kick and Heelan capitalised taking his back, looking for the rear naked choke. Mitchell showed great ability on the ground as he fought off Heelan and looked to come close with a Kimura attempt of his own. Heelan battled to escape the submission and end up in top mounted position. From here he unleashed some big shots and was relentless until Dave Jones stopped the fight. This was a good fight with two young fighters who I believe have excellent futures ahead of them.

Welterweight Title Fight-C-Class: Stephen Owens (IFS) defeated Rob Wyne (Primal MMA) via Submission in Round 1. – Both fighters looked intensely focussed in this the last C-Class fight of the night. Owens came out and secured an early takedown but Wyne used his impressive strength to power his way back to his feet and took Owens down straight away. He starting throwing some heavy ground and pound and Owens was able to swiftly catch an armbar and showed great technique to force the tap from Wyne. Both fighters showed great respect and Owens thanked Wyne for taking the fight on short notice in his post-fight interview.

Co-Main Event: Pro Welterweight Title Fight: Ousmane Sidibi (Team Pythagore) defeated Vlad Malko (Boxing Clinic) via KO in Round 1 – Great atmosphere as the first of the pro fight begins as both fighters come out looking to trade. Sidibi looked to be enjoying his reach advantage early on but Vlad found the range with a crisp right hook and the crowd reacted with a huge cheer. Vlad tries another but Sidibi counters with a straight right and connects sweetly on the chin to earn a spectacular knockout victory as he extends his professional record to 5-2. His celebrations demonstrated just how much he enjoyed that and he said in his post-fight interview he looks forward to defending his belt.

Main Event: Pro Lightweight Title Fight: Yuri Malko (Boxing clinic) defeated Karim Kondua (Team Pythagore) via Submission in Round 1. This fight began with Kondua throwing some heavy leg kicks before Yuri caught one and took him to the ground. Malko immediately tried for an armbar while landing heavy hammer fists to try soften his opponent. In the end it was the long legs of Kondua that saved him as he escaped the initial attempt. However he was unable to return to his feet and Yuri Malko was relentless landing blow after blow to the head on Kondua until he gave up his back and allowed Malko to apply a rear naked choke. Kondua tapped meaning the Man of War Lightweight Title will go back to Cork with Yuri Malko.

Man of War III was a great event for the promotion in which they showcased some incredible domestic and international talent. They are healthily building a stable of champions and I am already anticipating Man of War IV as I’m sure they will produce another great card with more titles on the line. The production quality of the show was excellent, with an exceptional MC. I’d strongly encourage any MMA fan to attend the next Man of War card. Congratulations to all the fighters, coaches and everyone else involved.

Credit: Fergus O’Farrell

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UFC and Pride legend Chris “The Westside Strangler” Brennan has been forced to withdraw from his planned February 25th bout in Dublin, Ireland due to an arm injury.

“I would like to apologize to the Cage Contender fans that I will not be fighting as planned in Dublin on 25th February, I was really looking forward to fighting Arni Isaksson but have damaged the tendons in my arm making it impossible for me to fight. I will make it up to the fans when I fight Cathal Pendred for the Cage Contender Welterweight Title in July” – Chris Brennan

Brennan was originally due fight Welterweight Champion Pendred but when Pendred got injured CC veteran and Pro FC Welterweight Champion Arni “The Ice Viking” Isaksson stepped in to face Brennan in a non title fight as chief support bout to fellow countryman Gunnar Nelson v Alenander Butenko.

“We, like the fans are dissapointed that Chris is injured but these things happen in the sport and we wish him a speedy recovery and now we have to concentrate on finding an opponent for The Ice Viking” – John Ferguson

Cage Contender hope to reveal a match up for Arni in the coming day.

The pair were scheduled to meet at Cage Warriors 45 in London on February 18 but Parke has sustained a hand injury which has ruled him out of the fight.

Parke (15-2-0), from Antrim in Northern Ireland, was on course to make his CWFC debut but Brad Wheeler (7-5-0) remains on the card and a new opponent for the MMA Clinic fighter will be announced in due course.

Cage Warriors wish Norman a speedy recovery and we look forward to having him on a CWFC card in the near future.

Credit: Cage Warriors.com

In tonight’s/tomorrow morning’s main event, Phil Davis takes on Rashad Evans. In the weeks building up this fight, Rahsad Evans has been doing his level best to goad Phil Davis in an effort to create some ‘bad blood.’ The motive behind this is clear, to provoke Davis into forgoing his wrestling skills in favour of a brawl with a better striker. However ‘Mr. Wonderful’ (named after his cat if you didn’t know) has been less than receptive to Rashad’s prodding. In truth, as was pointed earlier this week by MMA coach John Kavanagh, is the whole bad blood thing really necessary? When two men get in the cage they are going to do their utmost to damage each other in various ways. Is the name calling strictly necessary? Or even relevant? When Rashad accused Davis of not being a ‘real fighter’ and only competing for a pay cheque, Davis shrugged and agreed saying if he wasn’t fighting he’d be pushing a pen. Whatever his motivation for fighting, Rashad needs to remember that up to this point, Davis has done it exceedingly well. I’m sure Evans has some view of himself as an all-conquering wild man who loves to brawl, but if you need proof of the opposite, take a look at his fight with Rampage Jackson.

That aside, in the past weeks both men have commented on the other’s wrestling skills and the edge does go to Davis who as 4 time NCAA Division 1 All American was the more successful amateur competitor. Should it go to the ground, Davis’s weird flexibility and long limbs could well see Rashad in trouble. Again, Evans has the edge in the striking department but Davis does have a reach advantage. Evans will use his speed to try and get inside land a big right hand believing he has the power to put Davis out. I think Davis will want this on the mat as soon as possible, unless of course all the bravado and trash talk has gotten to him. I would dearly love to see Davis use the same move he used to submit Tim Boetsch. In case you missed it, Davis trapped Boetsch’s arm behind his back while on the ground and cranked it up and afterward Joe Rogan christened it the Philmura. It was a wonderful (see what I did there) piece of innovation and demonstrated Davis’s confidence. I like him to win tonight and in a fairly convincing fashion.

Tonight/tomorrow morning Chael Sonnen and Michael Bisping meet to decide who will be the next man to face Anderson Silva. Ticket sales reportedly more than doubled when Mark Munoz pulled out and was replaced by Bisping (Chael Sonnen said this so take it with a pinch of salt). Whether that’s an indication of Bisping’s greater popularity or more people wanting to see him get beaten up by Chael Sonnen, it’s hard to say. Either way, it makes for a very interesting fight.

The glaringly obvious key factor in this fight is wrestling. Everyone knows that Chael Sonnen is one of – if not the best – wrestler in MMA. He was an NCAA Division 1 All American and is also a highly decorated Greco-roman wrestler as well as being a backup for the US Olympic team. In short, if he wants to take you down, you go down. Does Michael Bisping have the skills to stuff a takedown of that quality? I think it’s unlikely. Bisping though has one eye on Sonnen’s perceived weakness in submission defence and has said if Sonnen does take him down he will be looking to finish the fight by tap-out. Sonnen has been tapped out several times in the past and in fact 8 of his career losses have been by submission. However these have mostly come against high level grapplers like Demain Maia, Paulo Filho and of course Anderson Silva. Does Bisping have the ground skills to get it done against Sonnen? Consider that Bisping has had not submitted an opponent in six years, largely focusing on his skills as a striker and the obvious conclusion is no. With a high level wrestler like Sonnen on top, it is unlikely- though not inconceivable – that Bisping will find an opening for a submission.

Bisping’s greatest strength, his boxing – will be nullified if Sonnen takes the fight to the mat. Sonnen may well choose to implement the same strategy he used against the heavy-handed Brian Stann and Anderson Silva. While both those fights had different outcomes, Sonnen was dominant on the ground for the overall majority of both. With that in mind, barring a surprise Bisping KO, I’m going for a Sonnen win via submission after a dominating performance.

The other very interesting fight on this card is the precocious Chris Weidman (7-0) taking on Demian Maia with Weidman stepping in to replace Micahel Bisping. Weidman is another decorated wrestler while as we all know Maia is something of a jiu-jitsu wizard. Weidman has already beaten the likes of Tom Lawlor and Alessio Sakara in his short career making it clear that big stage holds no fear for the young man. Maia has showed drastically improved striking in recent fights and gone are the days when he simply waited to pull guard. While Weidman’s last two wins have come by D’arce choke and a standing guillotine he is obviously nowhere near Maia in terms of pure jiu-jitsu,  He is a powerful puncher though and with Maia’s ground skills in mind I think he will try to keep this standing to take a decision. If I had to stick my neck out I’d go for Weidman just because he’s on a roll.

That’s it from me and as always I’m always open to contradiction and/or good-natured abuse. Enjoy the action!

Alan Keane

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FIGHT CARD

BANTAMWEIGHT TITLE FIGHT  

BARRY MCGUIGAN (RED DRAGON) V PETER DOYLE (TEAM RYANO)

WELTERWEIGHT TITLE FIGHT 

VLAID MALKO (BOXING/MMA CLINIC) V PHILIP MULPETER (SBGI)

LIGHTWEIGHT TITLE FIGHT 

PAT MC ALISTER (FAI) V PAUL REDMOND (TEAM RYANO)

FEATHERWEIGHT TITLE FIGHT

SOK KHAMPASATH (PYTHAGORE FRANCE) V ARTEM LOBOV (SBGI)

FLYWEIGHT 125LBS LADIES 

TATIANA VON POLANEN (NETHERLANDS) V AIS DAILY (SBGI)

LIGHTWEIGHT 

STEPHEN COIL (RILION GRAICE) V ALAN DUFFY (SBGI)

FEATHERWEIGHT

ALEX KRAVTSON (LUCAN MMA) V NIALL MOLLOY (TEAM RYANO)

FLYWEIGHT 

JOHNNY MC CAULEY (EVOLVE ) V RAY SMITH (PRIMAL )

WELTERWEIGHT

JOHN REGAN (TEAM BALANCE) V CHRIS BOUJARD (TEAM RYANO)

WELTERWEIGHT

ANDRIUS SAKALAISKIS (XTREME MMA) V ROB WYNNE (PRIMAL)

LIGHTWEIGHT 

MARTIN DOWNEY (TEAM BALANCE) V LIAM KELLY (COOLMINE BJJ)

MIDDLEWEIGHT 

DENNIS PERRY (STRABANE MMA) V KEV DOYLE (COOLMINE BJJ)

MIDDLEWEIGHT 

SHANE BRIMSTONE (STRABANE) V KENNETH LARKIN (COOLMINE BJJ )

More Fights to be Confirmed

(Fight Card subject to change)

For more info log onto the BattleZone Facebook Page

Chelmsford native Mason (17-9-0) is one of the UK’s top middleweights and will be keen to return to winning ways following his defeat to UFC veteran Brian Foster at Cage Warriors 44 last October.

Fields (8-3-0), from Dublin, made his Cage Warriors debut in May of last year and picked up the victory against Mario Stapel after the German had to retire in the third round because of a leg injury.

Mason and Fields had been scheduled to lock horns at Cage Warriors 44 but Fields picked up an injury and was forced to withdraw.

Another tournament fight will also take place at Cage Warriors 45, following the first two quarter-final bouts at Fight Night 3 in Beirut, Lebanon on February 11.

A number of enforced changes have had to be made to the line-up that was initially revealed in November, with Danny Roberts and Valentino Petrescu both withdrawing due to injury.

However, Cage Warriors officials have now had all four bouts confirmed and they’ll be announced in the coming days, so stay up to date with them on Facebook and Twitter for all the details.