ROAD Fighting Championship Announces Full Fight Card for ROAD FC 013 in Gumi, South Korea and Live Streaming via UStream

(Press Release)

October 8, 2013 – ROAD Fighting Championship announces the full thrilling line up of twelve fights for another action-packed MMA event. ROAD FC 013 and Young Guns 9 will take place this coming Saturday, October 12th, 2013 in the J.H. Park Stadium in Gumi, South Korea.  The Main Event will be Lightweight Champion Nam Yui-Chul’s first title defense against Kume Takasuke.  Both fighters were the Finalists in the ROAD FC Lightweight Tournament.  At ROAD FC 011, Nam won the title after going into a fourth overtime round in a very close and hard-fought battle with Kume.  The future of the ROAD FC Lightweight Champion will be determined in this highly anticipated rematch between two of the best and most exciting lightweight fighters.

The first of four Superfights will be a lightweight challenge between Korea’s icon Kwon A-Sol, who is returning to MMA after two years of military service, against Japan’s KO artist Koji Nakamura.  The second Superfight will be a bantamweight contest between Issei Tamura, a recent UFC veteran, and Song Min-Jong, the recent Championship Contender.  An exciting and historic middleweight Superfight features Japanese super star Ikuhisa Minowa in the 100th fight of his career against the very tough Kim Hoon.  The final Superfight of the Main Card will be a welterweight clash between heavy hitting Karate Champion Andrews Nakahara and grappling ace Cha Jung-Hwan.

The Young Guns 9 Undercard will be the Semifinal matches for the Featherweight tournament, Kwon Bae-Yong versus Kosuke Umeda and Kil Yong-Bok versus Choi Moo-Gyum.  All four fighters have the capability of winning the entire tournament, so the Semifinals will be hotly contested bouts with a lot riding on the outcome.  Future featherweight contenders meet in two more matches: Yoon Heo versus Jo Byoung-Oak and Yoon Jae-Oon versus Jeon Uh-Jin.  A Bantamweight Superfight sees the ongoing rivalry between ROAD FC and DEEP FC continue as “Little Korean Zombie” Lee Yun-Jun returns to take on the “Korean Killer”, Makoto Kamaya from DEEP.  Rounding out the Young Guns 9 Card is 2-time “Crying Fist” competitor Han Ee-Moon taking on wild horse Kim Hyoo-Ryong, and bantamweight kickboxing pro Kim Seong-Jae dropping to flyweight to face ROAD FC Into League top four finalist Kim Gyu-Hwa.

On October 12th, the Young Guns 9 Undercard will begin at 4:30 KST and the ROAD FC 013 Main Card will begin at 7:30.  ROAD FC 013 will be broadcast on SuperAction Live in South Korea, and live on Ustream at http://www.ustream.tv/roadfc.  Tickets for the event can still be purchased at Interpark online at http://ticket.interpark.com/search/ticket.asp?kind=othersite&search=%B7%CE%B5%E5FC&sc.shopNo=0000100000&sch=t_catebox&sbn=ticket.

For updates please visit the ROAD FC website at www.ROADFC.com and the Official Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/roadfightingchampionship.
ROAD Fighting Championship 013 in Gumi, South Korea
12th October, 2013 – J.H. Park Stadium

MAIN FIGHT CARD

5 – Lightweight Championship Challenge
Nam Yui-Chul vs Kume Takasuke

4 – Welterweight Superfight
Andrews Nakahara vs Cha Jung-Hwan

3 – Middleweight Superfight
Ikuhisa Minowa vs Kim Hoon

2 – Bantamweight Superfight
Song Min-Jong vs Issei Tamura

1 – Lightweight Superfight
Kwon A-Sol vs Koji Nakamura

Young Guns 9 Card

7 – Featherweight Tournament Semifinal Match #2
Kwon Bae-Yong vs Kosuke Umeda

6 – Featherweight Tournament Semifinal Match #1

Kil Young-Bok vs Choi Moo-Gyum

5 – Bantamweight Superfight
Makoto Kamaya vs Lee Yun-Jun

4 – Featherweight
Yoon Heo vs Jo Byoung-Oak

3 – Featherweight
Yoon Jae-Oon vs Jeon Uh-Jin

2 – Middleweight
Kim Hyoo-Ryong vs Han Ee-Moon

1 – Flyweight
Kim Seong-Jae vs Kim Gyu-Hwa

Ale Cali versus Louis Smolka Headlines PXC 41

On November 9th, 2013, Philippines’ premiere MMA promotion will stage their final fight card of the year at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City for PXC 41.

The said event will be headlined by PXC world flyweight champ Ale Cali, and the undefeated Hawaiian, Louis Smolka. This is going to be Cali’s second title defense and will be his comeback fight after being sidelined by a shoulder injury.

The news was confirmed by PXC CEO/Promoter, EJ Calvo on Saturday.

Smolka earned his ticket to face the champ last February when he defeated the much experienced fighter, Alvin Cacdac, via RNC in the third round. It was a very impressive come-from-behind win by Smolka as he managed to survive two brutal rounds of assault by Cacdac, who pounded him with vicious haymakers before submitting the veteran fighter in the third round.

“Da Last Samurai” was pumped to face Cali after his PXC 35 win, but the champion sustained a shoulder injury delaying Smolka for his title shot.

As Cali recuperates, Smolka is itching to get back inside the cage to keep away from ring rust. That is why when he was given the offer to fight the former URCC bantamweight champion Jessie Rafols at PXC 39, even though it was a bantamweight contest, he agreed to fight him without any single doubts in his mind.

Smolka overcame an adversity before his fight against Rafols as he was badly sick the day before PXC 39 which gave him a little doubt if he can win over his Filipino foe. But his team mate, the PXC lightweight champion Harris “The Hitman” Sarmiento was there and gave Smolka some serious boost and convinced him that he should win the fight no matter what.

Sarmiento’s encouragement of Smolka paid off as Smolka did a quick work of Rafols, making the Filipino tap by way of rear-naked-choke in the very first round.

On November 9th, Smolka looks to stay unbeaten in his career and aims to dethrone the champ and bring the belt home in Hawaii.

In the other hand, no fighter in the PXC has the eagerness and hunger to get back in the cage than the current flyweight world champion, Ale “The Young” Gun Cali.

It has been a year since Cali made his first title defense against the crafty veteran, Erwin Tagle at PXC 34. That is why the Davao native Cali started his camp early to shrug off little cobwebs in his game.

At PXC 39, during Smolka’s post fight interview, Cali went inside the cage and shook hands with his next challenger and congratulates him with a smile for winning that night. Smolka, then told Cali to stay healthy and train hard for their fight.

Cali is known for his slick boxing skills, footwork, and speed. When he faced the seasoned fighter, Jessie Taitano at PXC 29, he didn’t only show his striking prowess; he impressed a lot of fight fans that night when he showcased his much-improved wrestling and BJJ skills by avoiding takedowns and submission attempts by Taitano. Cali dismantled Taitano in the third round and claimed the title and made as the first-ever homegrown PXC flyweight champion.

Cali vs. Smolka is probably one of the most anticipated fights in the region as two of the most talented and toughest fighters collides inside the Philippines’ largest MMA promotion.

It is a very intriguing match-up as the submission specialist Smolka is hungry to verify that he is the baddest man in his division. But no mistake about the champ, he is the flyweight king for a reason. Though he has been sidelined for quite some time; let us not forget how dangerous this fighter is. Cali can end the fight whenever he wants, but the big question for the champion right now is can he take Smolka’s world-class grappling expertise?

PXC 41 will also feature an explosive bantamweight scrap between the former PXC bantamweight champion, Crisanto “The Slugger” Pitpitunge and the always dangerous Hawaiian warrior, Russel Doane.

Mark Striegl will also be back in action after a devastating 3^rd round submission loss against Jang Yong Kim at PXC 39. Though his opponent is yet to be determined, Mugen’s back in the gym in training and is very fired up to get back into the mix.

Also, a lightweight fight is set between two UFC vets as Keita “K Taro” Nakamura lock horns with Shane “Suga” Nelson.

Here’s the incomplete fight card for PXC 41:

Ale Cali – Louis Smolka (Flyweight World Title)

Crisanto Pitpitunge – Russel Doane (Bantamweights)

Mark Striegl – TBD

Keita Nakamura – Shane Nelson (Lightweights)

Troy Bantiag – TBD

Jinel Lausa – TBD

Female Bout TBD

ONE FIGHTING CHAMPIONSHIP™ AND CATALYST MEDIA GROUP TEAM UP TO REACH THE LARGEST TV AUDIENCE IN MIXED MARTIAL ARTS HISTORY

(Press Release)

07 October 2013 – Singapore: ONE Fighting Championship™ (ONE FC), the world’s most exciting Mixed Martial Arts (MMA) promotion, is proud to announce that Catalyst Media Group, one of the world’s top sports program distribution companies, will be the exclusive content distribution partner for ONE FC starting in January 2014. The partnership entitles Catalyst Media Group to be the exclusive distributor for ONE FC’s live shows and archives around the world.

Catalyst Media Group Ltd. is a Hong Kong based company that acquires, creates and develops Asian-based sports and entertainment properties.

The company distributes premium quality sports programs to media outlets around the world. Catalyst Media Group has a team of seasoned media executives that have significant experience in areas of consulting, brand development, media content sales and sponsorship delivery focused on Asia. The company is jointly owned by RSE Ventures and Patrick Murphy.

A sports media veteran, Murphy was previously with TEAM Marketing in Switzerland where he helped fuel the explosive media rights growth of UEFA Champions League and the UEFA Europa League. He was previously at News Corp. and ESPN STAR Sports in Asia creating, acquiring and developing sports events. He has a proven track record in creating new business and monetizing sports content gained through over 20 years experience working in the industry.

“ONE Fighting Championship™ has reached an incredible level of production and fighter recruitment that is unprecedented in MMA,” Murphy said. “Catalyst Media Group felt that it was a critical juncture for us to offer our experience and worldwide distribution expertise to ONE FC. Having assisted in the development of top sporting properties globally in my 20 years of experience, the potential of ONE FC is an opportunity that I couldn’t pass up.”

CEO of ONE Fighting Championship™ Victor Cui stated, “Catalyst Media Group is the best there is in media distribution globally. The company has the best talent available in the business. ONE FC only partners with the best and I’m proud to welcome Patrick Murphy and Catalyst Media Group on board as our official partner.”

ONE FC has been driving the explosive growth of MMA in Asia since its inception in 2011 and has cornered the market with sold-out events across Asia and featuring the top fighters from around the world. Currently holding 90%+ market share in Asia, ONE FC is Asia’s largest MMA organization, and the leading brand for MMA in Asia.

For more updates on ONE Fighting Championship™, please visitwww.onefc.com and follow on Twitter @ONEFCMMA and Facebook atwww.facebook.com/ONEFCMMA.

PXC 40: “He has never fought someone like me before, my style will give him a lot of problems.” – Will Chope to Nakayama

Pacific Xtreme Combat (PXC) has been signing several top fighters in Asian MMA recently. These fighters are Keita “K-Taro” Nakamura (26-5-2), Mei “V.V” Yamaguchi (11-5-1), Patricia “Little” Vidonic (8-6), BJ Penn MMA’s Shane “Suga” Nelson (15-7), and the former URCC Featherweight Champion Will “The Kill” Chope (18-5).

The Guam-based MMA promotion has been the hottest promotion in the Philippines as they have been very successful in their past events in Manila, drawing thousands of fight fans to watch their shows. The fans can expect a lot more exciting and explosive fighters coming in as PXC will keep on signing the most exciting fighters in the region today.

One of the most popular names in Asian MMA has joined PXC as the world’s tallest featherweight fighter, Will “The Kill” Chope brings his talent inside the “Terror Dome”.

“My goal is to get into the UFC. The URCC is not the road that can take me there at this point. The Pacific Xtreme Combat is a proven route that other fighters have used to get there and it will get me there as well. So this is what I am doing, I will fight for the PXC win and wait for that call.”

Chope connects a razor sharp elbow against Jerson Estoro at URCC 20 – Photo by Hochi Abaya

Standing at 6 feet 4 inches, Chope is no doubt, the tallest guy in the PXC 145 lbs. division. His size has always been his biggest advantage over his past opponents, whether be it on the feet or ground. He can easily set up his offense by throwing jab to get rid of his opponents’ aggressive styles. When it comes to the ground, Chope is a very dangerous guy as he has been on a tear by winning 10 of his last 13 fights via submission (guillotine choke).  He has a good guard and he always look to submit his opponents – that makes him one of the most exciting fighters in Asia today.

Chope started his MMA career at the age of 20. Though he struggled in the first stages of his fighting career, he never gave up; instead, those losses made him more fired up to train in the gym to elevate his game into a whole new level.

“The PXC has the best FW division out of any organization in Asia. That is a fact. People have accused me of taking easy fights and not fighting high level competition. No one can say that now and I will show everyone in the world I am one of the best fighters, not just one of the best in Asia but one of the best in the world.”

Chope has been considered as the busiest fighter in Asia because in the past couple of years, his schedule has been a tight one that every two months he has an upcoming MMA, kickboxing or muay thai fight. In 2011, he fought six times and in 2012, seven. This kid is a monster and a true lover of the sport.

Chope has a notable wins over some of the toughest guys in the region, including his submission wins over Rex De lara, Angelito Manguray and Andrew Benibe. He is also the former URCC Featherweight Champion.

“The Kill” is currently riding an amazing 13-fight win skid and most of those wins are coming by way of either TKO or submission. Chope is definitely on a roll right now and he has intentions on slowing down even just a bit.

In the last PXC event in Pasig City, Philippines, Chope cornered one of his closest friends in the fight business, Mark “Mugen” Striegl. It was a tough night for Striegl and feeling was identical for Chope as he has seen his long-time training partner getting submitted by the South Korean fighter, which gave him the drive to do well in the PXC and looks to challenge Kim for his title in the future.

Photo by Zike Sugawara for MMA Orient

“I was there cage side in Mark’s corner. Mark is one of my best friends, hell he’s my brother and also my idol. So to watch that fight was hard. But at the same time after that fight ended it sparked a fire inside me I haven’t felt in a long time. I want to work my way up the PXC ladder and one day challenge Kim for his title.”

Chope was immediately given a tough task by the PXC officials as they matched him against the Pancrase champion and one of the toughest Japanese fighters in the PXC today, Takumi “Da Japanese Ironman” Nakayama (18-13-6-1).

Chope versus Nakayama is scheduled on the 25^th of October in Guam as one of the main card fights of PXC 40. The said event will feature the first-ever title defense of the newly-crowned PXC bantamweight champion, Michinori Tanaka, against one of Guam’s toughest bantamweights, Kyle Aguon.

“Nakayama first thought comes to my mind is he is definitely a seasoned veteran. A lot of fights and been in the MMA Game for over a decade. But out of all the men he has ever faced I can say on thing with confidence. He has never fought someone like me before, and I believe my fight style will give him a lot of problems in the cage.”

“I will be headed to Phuket Top Team next week to finish the last 4 weeks of my fight camp. PTT is one of the best gyms in the world so I want to be training with the best to prepare for Nakayama.” Chope added.

Chope is no doubt, one of the most promising fighters in Asia today. He looks to stay impressive and exciting as he is ready to make his PXC debut on October 25th versus Nakayama. His family and fans are two of the most important factors of his success today and he wants to thank all of them for their undying support.

“Just want to thank the fans for all their love and support. And also want to thanks my sponsors Phuket Pro Nutrition, Vicious Cirlce, and Kombat Mouthguards for their ongoing support of my career.”

Visit www.pxc.com.ph for more info.

World Muay Thai and Kickboxing Championships At Resorts World Manila On Oct. 23rd!

24 top exponents of combative arts are expected to fight for peace on October 23 as ClubS presents FIGHT FOR PEACE, a night of mixed martial-arts action at the Resorts World Manila Newport Performing Arts Theater this October 23.

Promoted by World Team USA in partnership with WulinFeng of China and with TV5 as broadcast partner, the show will aired in China Henan TV to reach at least 200 million viewers!

Fight for Peace is supported by Philippine Airlines, Resorts World Manila, Miravana Resort Spa, Vitality Clinic, DTC Promos and Above Beauty.

Explaining why they billed it “Fight for Peace”, event promoter Tony Reyes said “we want to do our bit to help promote peace between China and the Philippines.  So instead of our fighters fighting their fighters, Chinese and Filipino warriors will battle fighters from other countries like Japan, Malaysia, New Zealand, Australia, Canada and the USA.” Event Director Ed Dames added: “This is just the first of a series of world-class events we plan to organize in the country to provide a platform for brands to promote their products and for our fighters to compete against the best in the world and to be discovered by bigger promotions group in the future.”

 “We are excited about our first involvement in Mixed Martial-Arts and our partnership with World Team USA and we hope people would come and enjoy our show”, says Jet  Chan, Managing Director of Club S, the premier on-line gaming company which regularly sponsors the Macau Grand Prix.

The event is sanctioned by the WBC Muaythai and the Games and Amusement Board.

Tickets are available at Resorts World, Ticketnet and Ticketworld outlets.

Fight For Peace Fight Card

Kickboxing Rules:

1. Li Ning (China) vs. Saiful “The Vampire” Merican (Malaysia) – (60 kg.)

2. Li Xiangming (China) vs. TJ Arcangel (Philippines/WTUSA) – (65 kg.)

3. Zhaoyu Zen (China) vs. Iman Omrani (Iran/WTUSA) – (70 kg.)

4. Liu Dacheng (China) vs. Matthew Richardson (Canada) – (75 kg.)

5. Li Quiankun (China) vs. Stephane Lentz (WTSUA) – (75 kg.)

Female Kickboxing

1. Gong Yan Li (China) vs. J. Hayes (USA) – (56 kg.)

Muay Thai

1. Zhang Dezheng (China) vs. Jian Kai Chee (Malaysia) – (70 kg.)

2. Bryan To Hang Lam (China/HK) vs. Von Badato (Australia) – (63 kg.)

3. Jin Wenhao (China) vs. Agustin Delarmino Jr. (Philippines/WTUSA) – (57 kg.)

4. Adamson Torbiso (Philippines/ Team Insider) vs. Nobukai Okuizumi (Japan) – (60 kg.)

MMA

1. Eugene Toquero (Philippines/Submission Sport Philippines) vs. Dennis Salazar (Philippines/WTUSA) – (58 kg.)

2. Wi Tieyin (China) vs. Kaiwhare France (New Zealand) – (60 kg.)

 For additional info, contact: Ed Dames, Event Director. edames.fci@gmail.com or mobile: 0920-9543599.

MICHINORI TANAKA TO FACE KYLE AGUON FOR BANTAMWEIGHT WORLD TITLE

(Press Release)

Pacific X-treme Combat (PXC), the Asia-Pacific’s top MMA organization, returns to Guam for another huge MMA showcase of talent from the US Territory, featuring fighters from Guam, Hawaii, California, Korea, and Japan in a night of professional MMA competition.

Recently crowned PXC Bantamweight Champ, Michinori Tanaka of Japan, will defend his Title for the first time in hostile territory against rising MMA star from Guam, Kyle Aguon, on October 25th at the University of Guam Field House in Mangilao, Guam.

Aguon earned the right to challenge Tanaka for the belt by defeating Hawaii’s Russel Doane at PXC-38 in August in a tight decision, bringing Aguon’s current winning streak to 4 straight. At 24 years old, Aguon has used his sizable frame, reach and strong grappling to establish himself as the top contender at 135 pounds.

Michinori Tanaka, on the other hand, does not intend on giving up his belt t yet. At 23 years old, Tanaka is one of Japan’s top young fighters with an undefeated record of 8 – 0, including impressive performances against Russel Doane, Caleb Vallaton, and former Champ, Crisanto Pitpitunge.

Tanaka (5’5”, 135 lbs) captured the Titel at PXC-36 with a unanimous decision win over former Filipino champion Crisanto Pitpitunge in Manila. This will be his second fight on Guam in his pro career, his first five victories coming in Japan’s Shooto fighting organization.

Tanaka versus Aguon is expected to showcase world-class grappling and submissions attempts, although both fighters throw heavy punches and possess knock-out abilities. This main-event will also be the first PXC title fight in Guam in over a year.

PXC-40 will take place on Friday, October 25th, and will feature a stacked fight card, with professional MMA matchups showcasing some of the best fighters from Guam, Hawaii, California and Japan.

Tickets are on sale now for $30 General Admission at 76 Circle K locations throughout Guam or online via http://www.tpiguam.com. VIP tickets are $50 and available at Cars Plus in Maite.

PXC-40 is presented by Miller Lite, Docomo Pacific, and the stations of KUAM.  PXC-40 is also brought to you by Guam Air Guard, Jeep, Monster Energy, Pacific Islands Club, 76/Circle K, Budget Car and Truck Rental, Pacific Trucking Guam, Gladiator Crew, and Uno Guam Magazine.

For more information on PXC-40, check out www.pxc.com.ph or visit us on Facebook.

Team Work and Hard Work Really Pay Off – By Mark “The Machine” Sangiao

It all paid off! After all the hard work in training; the sacrifices of time and effort; the pain, injury, sweat and tears; and even the hunger during the weight cutting…was all worth it.

This time of the year is the hardest part of the year to train since it is the rainy season here in the Philippines. Training outside the gym is limited. We can not have our high-altitude training, we do it then at the gym. This is one of the challenges of training for a fight.

Two of our Team Lakay fighters, Roldan “The Executioner” Sangcha-an and Harold Banario won their respective fights at PXC 39 which was on September 14^th at the Ynares Sports Arena in Pasig City.

Harold Banario, a BS in Architecture student at the University of the Cordilleras (UC), was a young fellow who were once just one of the fans of Team Lakay particularly of his older brother Honorio Banario, the current URCC Lightweight Champion and the former ONE FC Featherweight Champion. He once dreamt of joining Team Lakay and fight in the ring or cage.

Harold Banario caught Adamson Torbiso with a deep armbar (Photo by PXC)

PXC 39 was the moment for Harold especially that it was his first time to set foot at international stage. He had fought in the ring in his previous MMA and Wushu Sanshou fights, but this one was different. I can see it in his eyes. The mixed emotions of eagerness for him to realize his dream, the nervousness and excitement, and the pressure to win since he was the first one to step in the cage after a series of defeats suffered by his team mates – he has to win this fight.

Harold is a young student who always follow what his teacher tells him. By this, he followed every instruction given to him.

He won his bout against his opponent Adamson Torbiso in a very impressive manner. He submitted his opponent via an armbar in the first round. He was so delighted. The plan was executed very well; It was a success.

The second Team Lakay fighter is Roldan Sanghca-an. He is a graduating student of BS in Hotel and Restaurant Management at the University of the Cordilleras in Baguio City. He is not a newbie in this stage. His memorable bout with Adam Cacay in URCC Baguio V is still in the minds of those who have watched it. He has proven the real warrior in him. Like what his seniors always do, he showed the heart and might of an Igorot warrior; the heart of being a Champion, the heart of being a Team Lakay fighter.

(Photo by PXC)

Another moment in Roldan’s MMA career which is remarkable, is his fight with the undefeated champion of Kazakhstan, Assulan Toktarbaev. Roldan defeated him and gave him the first loss after his 40 wins in his pro MMA career.

As Roldan stepped inside the PXC cage, the excitement to rumble with his opponent was burning in his eyes. As what I’ve seen in his previous fights, the true heart of a fighter never faded.

Roldan amazed a lot of fight fans that night. It was a good exchange of kicks and punches. At some point of the first round, he was at the defensive side, carefully measuring what his opponent can give. Measuring the strength and capability of his opponent, a great fighter from Laguna, Ernesto Montilla, Jr.

Then came the second round, he gave Montilla a double-leg takedown then he got his back and executed a very deep rear naked choke. It was the moment where Montilla can not do anything but to tap.

Immediately after the tap, Roldan did the Igorot dance, a sign of celebration,  gesture of being so proud to be an Igorot…in an international stage.

This is the beginning of another chapter of Team Lakay’s book. After all the great fight history, the rise and fall, we are proud of what we have achieved. And we plan to keep it going.

At this point, we would like to thank those who have helped us in training such as our teammates, training partners and trainers.

 

 

 

 

 

Likewise, thank you to those who have assisted us in Manila, Cacay Baltazar, Perci Diego and Jethro Chungalao.

We want to thank those who have sponsored these two Team Lakay fighters in this particular endeavor: Dante Bagsan Law Office, Vicious Circle, Head Hunting Heritage, Potato Grill, Tiong San Department Store and Supermart, 50’s Diner, Tatak Maharlikano, Dr. John Harold Hiyadan and Dr. Dave Taclobao.

Indeed, with everyone helping and supporting us, we made it.

PRO Fighting MMA 8 Is Set On August 4th In Taipei

On August 4th, at the LUXY Nightclub, Taipei, Taiwan, some of the best up and coming fighters and well-known fighters in Asia will face each other inside Taiwan’s biggest MMA promotion.

PRO Fighting MMA 8 is loaded with a lot of exciting match-ups that will surely entertain a lot of fight fans.

Here’s PRO MMA Fighting 8 fight card:

1) 63kg catchweight: Daniel Gray (USA) (Tough MMA) vs. Tom Ni (Taiwan) (Garcia Fight Team)

2) 84kg–Zheng Ming Kui (Taiwan- Tough MMA) vs. Markus Lewis (USA)

3) 77kg—Turabi Camkiran (Turkey) (Taiwan BJJ Academy) vs. TBA?

4) 70kg–Eliot Corley (USA) (tough MMA) vs. Jong Hun Kim (Korea–MMA Story)

5) 61kg–Ho Jun Kim (Team Posse -Korea) vs. Kaiwhare Kara France (New Zealand– Tiger Muay Thai)

6) 66kg– Yi Sak Kim (Korea) vs Will Chope (- Team Buffet/MuayFit)

7) 77kg– Kristoffer Persson (Sweden–Legacy Gym) vs Jeff Huang (Taiwan–Tiger MMA / Taiwan BJJ)

8) 70kg–Seok Mo Kim (Korea–Team Force) vs Gokhan Turkyilmaz (Australia–Tiger Muay Thai)

9) Dae Sung Park (Team Posse Korea) vs Matt Te Paa (Tiger Muay Thai)

10) 66kg–Kim Sang Kuk (korea) vs Rocky Lee (Taiwan BJJ/ Garcia Fight Team)

Wushu Insights by Mark Sangiao

After having the POC-PSC National Wushu Championship 2013 held last May 28-31, 2013 at the San Andres Sports Complex in Malate, Manila; the Wushu Federation Philippines is going to be busy again these coming months in preparation for the next big event in Asian Wushu.

The Philippines is going to host the 7^th Asian Junior Wushu Championship to be held at the Makati Coliseum, Makati, Philippines on August 8-11, 2013. This event is going to be attended by Wushu participants from 21 different countries all over Asia.  The Asian Junior Wushu Championship is a competition held every two years and there will be two events in the competition: Taolu and Sanda.

Wushu is both an exhibition and a full-contact sport derived from traditional Chinese martial arts. It was developed in China. The term wushu is Chinese for “martial arts”. “Wu” means military or martial and “Shu” means art. Taolu and Sanda are the two disciplines of competitive wushu.

Taolu are the forms and involve martial arts pattern and manoeuvres for which competitors are judged and given points according to specific rules. The forms comprise basic movements such as stances, kicks, punches, balances, jumps, sweeps and throws based on aggregate categories of traditional Chinese martial arts styles and can be changed for competitions to highlight one’s strengths.

One famous celebrity that most people know who practiced Taolu is Jet Li. At the age of 8, he began learning wushu. At the age of 11, Jet Li won his first national championship and as a result, he travelled to more than 45 countries as part of Beijing Wushu Team. In 1974, he became the All-Around National Wushu Champion, a title he held for the five consecutive years.

He retired from wushu at the age of 19 and went through acting martial arts films which include some of the greatest martial arts films of all times such as the Shaolin Temple, Kiss of a Dragon, Romeo and Juliet, ONE, Hero, Fearless and others. But one can never forget him playing Wong Fei-hung in the two sequels of Once Upon a time in China, where he played the legendary hero who fights against foreigners in this 19^th century tale.

Sanda on the other hand, which is also called Sanshou, is a modern fighting method and sport influenced by traditional Chinese boxing,  Chinese wrestling methods and other Chinese grappling techniques. It has all the combat aspects of wushu. Sanda appears much like kickboxing or muay thai, but includes some wrestling techniques.

This is what we practice. This is what we master. Not everyone knows that Sanda is an all-around combative sport, because it involves striking and wrestling techniques. So all we have to do is add more knowledge from other disciplines to enhance the combinations. We have to add up western wrestling techniques, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, Japanese judo and other specialties from different martial arts which originated from other countries. But basically, wushu almost has it all except the grappling aspect.

In connection with Sanda or Sanshou competitions, I am again proud to announce the success of Benjie Rivera, one of a members of the Philippine National Team who is from Baguio and Benguet. He won the Chinese Fighting Championship against his Turkish opponent which was held in Shaanxi, Xian, China last June 14 to 16, 2013. Two out of our five members from the Wushu Philippine National Team won over their opponents. Another win was by Francis Solis from Ilo-ilo defeating his Chinese foe. Jessie Aligaga, Dembert Arcita and Jean Claude Saclag unfortunately all lost to their Chinese opponents.

Photos of Filipino Wushu Fighters who won in the recent Chinese Fighting Championship

This win adds to the Wushu-Sanshou record of wins given by our fellow Cordillerans such Mark Eddiva, Eduard Folayang, Rexel Nganhayna, Rolly Chulhang, Jerome Calica, Jerome Lumabas, Roger Chulhang, Jason Domingo, Ronald Bingwaoel, Benito Amado, Michael Humiding, Joel Nganhayna, Joseph Pasiwat, Dare Malecdan, George Lusadan, Erik Kelly,  Mario Bey-agan, Ricky Luken, Mariane Mariano, Rhea May Rifani, Jennifer Lagilag, Dolly Andres and yours truly, among others, who are World, Asian and SEA games medalists.

With all these information, I hope to have shared some of the important insights for our readers to understand more about wushu. We wish to continue letting everybody know about this sport and one of our commitments as Wushu International Judge and Coach and as members of the Wushu Federation Philippines, is to produce quality athletes who can compete among all the best in the sport not only in the country but in Asia and the world. This is what we are training for, aside of course for MMA. This is why we have scholars. To put wushu on the map of competitive sports. This is one reason why we have our Team Lakay Wushu-Xanda and MMA Eliminations and Championships. We hope to produce competitive and quality athletes before we let them step-up to higher competitions.

Our next Team Lakay Wushu Xanda and MMA Championship is going to be on November. So we prepare our athletes for this. Athletes from other gyms from all around the Philippines are welcome to submit their participants if they want to take part in this event. We welcome them to come have a healthy competition with us. As I always say, this is for the benefit of the athletes and for the promotion of the sport and we join everyone who has the same advocacy and dream as ours.