I'm fighting in an amateur MMA cage match!

Boogahz · Post by **Boogahz** » June 30, 2011, 4:24 pm

Funkmasterr wrote:You guys suck.

just because nobody suggested face-spitting as a style?

Funkmasterr · Post by **Funkmasterr** » June 30, 2011, 4:35 pm

Boogahz wrote:
Funkmasterr wrote:You guys suck.
just because nobody suggested face-spitting as a style?

Hey, if that'll give him the upper hand, I'm all for fighting dirty! Plus it's better than man-hugging masked as fighting! He might want to be careful with that one though, it's on like Donkey Kong when guns are drawn!

Canelek · Post by **Canelek** » June 30, 2011, 4:56 pm

Wrasslin' is boring!

Toe to toe, bitches!

Xyun · Post by **Xyun** » June 30, 2011, 5:10 pm

pretty sure my opponent will go for grappling as he did his first 2 fights.

Funkmasterr · Post by **Funkmasterr** » June 30, 2011, 5:20 pm

Xyun wrote:pretty sure my opponent will go for grappling as he did his first 2 fights.

Just try to read him the best you can, and when he comes in to grab at you light his jaw up. If he's good at grappling/wrestling that's the last thing you want him to do (duh).

Boogahz · Post by **Boogahz** » June 30, 2011, 5:49 pm

Xyun wrote:pretty sure my opponent will go for grappling as he did his first 2 fights.

Squirming out of holds like Brenneman against Story in the last UFC event on Versus seened pretty effective

Then again, he pretty much comes from a wrestling background. I really like grappling when both people are working on either getting or getting out of holds. While I loved to watch Royce Gracie in the first UFC events, spending 45 minutes with him doing nothing but kidney punches while he's on his back gets....a bit old. It could never happen now though.

Fairweather Pure · Post by **Fairweather Pure** » June 30, 2011, 6:21 pm

Hey, I can contribute now! I wrestled in High School. I was really good too! I greatly prefer it to trading punches. Getting someone on the ground was always really easy for me. It just came natural. I actually won a take down tournament in high school my very time wrestling. I took down 21 opponents that day and was never taken down once. Once on the ground, it's almost scientific from there. It can be a real chess match when you have two good wrestlers. One is trying to get out, the other is trying to maintain the power position and hopefully pin. Knowing both sides of the confrontation, you can trick the other person by doing any number of things. People are thinking "If he does this, then I'll counter with that". So you can fake one move, knowing (more like hoping) the opponent will go for the proper counter. Then, you can counter his counter. It's pretty awesome! The other thing I remember is that you could feel and learn the way the human body reacts. Ever hear of how people that milked cows in the olden days would lean their head into the cow's thigh? If the cow was going to kick, they had a very noticeable mucle contraction at the thigh first, so the farmer could grab his bucket, save the milk, and scootch back to avoid the kick all in one move. While wrestling, depending on how you are holding someone, you often will not be able to see their extremities directly. You can tell what he's going to do, or setting himself up to do just by feeling which muscles are moving where.

There's a reason grapplers do very well in MMA! Go ahead and punch me when I'm going in for the takedown. If you don't connect just right, I will wrap you up. Like a Christmas present! You're much better off learning the tools of the ground game. Escape is just as important as maintaining the power position.

Canelek · Post by **Canelek** » June 30, 2011, 7:07 pm

While not at all entertaining (too me), grappling is certainly a necessity when it comes to MMA/sport fighting. BJJ is pretty much the way to go (at least it was when I watched years ago). As far as UFC, I liked the early years with no weight classes and very few rules. Tank Abbot was my favorite fighter--never really cared for the Gracies or the Greco-wrestling-dudes.

As for Krav Maga, there is not a whole lot of ground fighting since the idea is you do not want to be on the ground (re: street) in an actual fight. Again, many KM-type of attacks and defenses would cause disqualification in sport-fights.

Boogahz · Post by **Boogahz** » June 30, 2011, 7:24 pm

Early UFC with multiple fights per night, no rounds, no weightclasses, very few rules, no gloves, few fighters that were good at multiple styles, pairing different fighting styles against each other, etc... Those were fun fights to watch, but many of the changes had to be made to keep the sport growing. I miss the old fights

Canelek · Post by **Canelek** » June 30, 2011, 7:34 pm

Agreed!

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » June 30, 2011, 7:40 pm

Motivational Speech!

Vision Quest

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TZeaZ3rZumg&NR=1

Fairweather Pure · Post by **Fairweather Pure** » June 30, 2011, 8:00 pm

Tank Abbot? Really? I don't remember him actually winning anything, but I guess he was fun to watch. For that matter, so was Ken Shamrock. This guys were weak sauce compared to the big guns at the time.

Dan Severn would like a word with you...

I liked him because he won by wrestling in the early days. He learned and became quite competent at striking, but on the ground he dominated. He was one of the very first people to actually mix his chosen mastery with techniques that were new to him. Everyone that competes in MMA owes a debt to Dan for helping transform the sport. He's also from Michigan. He worked out at the same gym as a friend of mine's aunt!

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » June 30, 2011, 8:15 pm

I enjoyed watching Severn.

Mark Coleman is who I rooted for back in the early days. He was a beast in his prime. Didn't always win but was fun to watch.

Funkmasterr · Post by **Funkmasterr** » July 1, 2011, 12:28 pm

Don't ruin a thread about xyun potentially getting his ass kicked with talk about gay ass fucking wrestling, please!

Chidoro · Post by **Chidoro** » July 6, 2011, 3:01 pm

Winnow wrote:Boxing is exhausting. Grappling is even more exhausting. What the fuck does that have to do with me suggesting grappling if he sucks at boxing? Really. Are you people that stupid? Xyun mentioned he was getting punched repeatedly in the face by a girl. He said he wasn't quick enough, not that he was too tired.

Have to agree with this. If your shoulders aren't really that tired and you're still not able to keep up, boxing isn't going to be your strength.

Fairweather Pure wrote:I may not be able to predict the VV ultimate champion, but I'd bet the farm that Winnow would be the first to drop, haha!

Ohh I seriously doubt that.

Keep those progress reports coming Xyun

Xyun · Post by **Xyun** » July 8, 2011, 4:20 am

Wootski

Body fat down to 12% flat. My conditioning is going well. My diet is now 90% eggs, meat, fruit, and veggies. For snacks I eat nuts or ice cream, and a protein shake about every other day. Bread, cheese, fast food, and junk food are nearly extinct from my diet, although not completely. I consume 3-4k calories a day but I'm maintaining my weight at 169. I have to eat so much just to keep my weight up, it's astonishing.

My physical training in the ring is not going so well. I got winded at my last session of training. We were doing 4 rounds of 3 minutes of me hitting my trainer with his pads on, and I collapsed in round 2. Granted, I was going on very little sleep and my body wasn't ready for it. After a few minutes break I finished all the rounds. Still, I'm doing serious cardio to make up for it this week and next. Also starting a jiu jitsu grappling class early next week. I've been looking at training videos on youtube as well, but I have no one to help me practice them at this point. The fight is 9 weeks away.

If you guys can direct me to some videos of fairly easy submission techniques I would be much obliged. I'm looking for quick as hell arm bars or maybe choke holds for my ground game. I'm planning on video taping one of my upcoming training sessions, so you guys can see my progress.

It's 3 a.m. and I'm headed to the gym for my 2nd workout of the day. I'm gonna fuck this guy up.

masteen · Post by **masteen** » July 8, 2011, 11:51 am

Nuts and protein shakes, eh? I knew it!

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » July 8, 2011, 12:32 pm

Xyun wrote: My physical training in the ring is not going so well. I got winded at my last session of training. We were doing 4 rounds of 3 minutes of me hitting my trainer with his pads on, and I collapsed in round 2.

It can only get better from here. So far, your opponent just has to cover up and not throw a punch for 2 rounds and they'll win by TKO!

You've got 2 more months but if your endurance doesn't improve too much, I'd concentrate on trying a few all-or-nothing gambits in the first round. You need to find the cage fighting equivalent of a checkmate in three moves.

Kwonryu DragonFist · Post by **Kwonryu DragonFist** » July 12, 2011, 12:42 am

Hopefully Xyun can finish that guy with a flying Homoplata

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » July 12, 2011, 2:24 am

Kwonryu DragonFist wrote:Hopefully Xyun can finish that guy with a flying Homoplata

I can picture Xyun executing a perfect Homoplata while a haboob rages outside the event.

stuff of legend!

Canelek · Post by **Canelek** » July 12, 2011, 2:36 am

http://youtu.be/xnZ0sfOiuIM

Bits of other disciplines, of course. The ugly brutal stuff is all Krav Maga though. If you have a trainer nearby, I highly suggest giving it a whirl. Usually, there is a free intro class (full hour class). At the very least, you can brush up on basic fighting!

masteen · Post by **masteen** » July 12, 2011, 11:30 am

Most of the moves of Krav Maga are illegal in MMA. No throat punching, eye gouging, or testicle ripping allowed in the octagon.

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » July 12, 2011, 4:31 pm

If you're looking for a stage name, I'm thinking "The Great Haboob" would be perfect for you. Haboob has Arabic origins and refers to an instense sandstorm. How perfect is that!

Boogahz · Post by **Boogahz** » July 12, 2011, 4:48 pm

Hashishan!

Kilmoll the Sexy · Post by **Kilmoll the Sexy** » July 12, 2011, 4:53 pm

masteen wrote:Most of the moves of Krav Maga are illegal in MMA. No throat punching, eye gouging, or testicle ripping allowed in the octagon.

Although highly recommended by Rich for bedroom activities....

Ogbar · Post by **Ogbar** » July 14, 2011, 9:23 am

Congratulations on the improved fitness and conditioning, and best of luck with the upcoming event: I'm sure all of your hard work will pay off with a positive result.

Canelek · Post by **Canelek** » July 14, 2011, 1:11 pm

Kilmoll the Sexy wrote:
masteen wrote:Most of the moves of Krav Maga are illegal in MMA. No throat punching, eye gouging, or testicle ripping allowed in the octagon.

Although highly recommended by Rich for bedroom activities....

Nossir!

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » July 14, 2011, 2:49 pm

Have you given any thought to your outfit for the arena? I hope you're not planning on going out there in a banana hammock!

Canelek · Post by **Canelek** » July 14, 2011, 4:15 pm

One of those pro wrasslin unitards would be rad, along with leather chaps.

AND A MASK

Xyun · Post by **Xyun** » July 15, 2011, 4:22 am

My outfit???

Kwonryu DragonFist · Post by **Kwonryu DragonFist** » July 15, 2011, 7:25 am

Xyun wrote:My outfit???

Nice Xyun!

Xyun · Post by **Xyun** » August 1, 2011, 11:27 am

OK so I have a video of my training up. I know I still need a lot of work. I've actually cut 4 lbs. since this video was taken last week, but that doesn't mean much. My youtube channel is http://www.youtube.com/user/sandfarnia if you want to see my other videos. I put up my survivor audition from last year as well. Anyway, here it is -

http://youtu.be/a4OjB4zhUx8

I will probably do at least one more training video. There are other clips from this session but I didn't upload them. This is the best one and you get the basic idea of where I'm at. Let me know what you think.

masteen · Post by **masteen** » August 1, 2011, 12:47 pm

Are you at the end of a session? Because you're telegraphing your kicks big time, and I'm wondering if it's just fatigue.

Xyun · Post by **Xyun** » August 1, 2011, 1:22 pm

no that was the beginning of the session. I didn't realize I was doing that but I watched it again and it looks obvious. I'm going to work on that. Not even going to use my left kick in the fight it is so slow and weak. I'm going to work on getting my right kick quicker and less foreseeable. any other advice would be much appreciated.

Canelek · Post by **Canelek** » August 1, 2011, 3:23 pm

Get those hands up!!

Even on the kicks. Looks like you have some good power in your right leg.

I think having your hands up (and not as close to your face) will also help your balance and jab/cross delivery.

Fairweather Pure · Post by **Fairweather Pure** » August 1, 2011, 10:08 pm

Nice video! I get winded just watching you, lol. That stuff requires crazy endurance. Based on what I see there, I would take you to the ground ASAP and it would be easy. If you focus too much on striking, you'll flounder when you hit the ground! Make sure you really mix it up, and work on that endurance!

Do you have a video of you grappling?

Canelek · Post by **Canelek** » August 1, 2011, 10:57 pm

Also, it may just be my amateur observation, but it looks like your shoulders get pretty tense. Nice and loose if you want to not be winded after 1.5 minutes!

On the bright side, you are shifting your weight and using your hips, albeit slightly off balance.

Xyun · Post by **Xyun** » August 2, 2011, 12:57 am

Like i said, i need a lot of work. I've only had a couple of sessions of training on my ground game. Mainly because I cannot find a consistent personal trainer that will not charge me. The trainer I have for striking is doing it for free, I just have to pay the gym membership for 2 months and I throw him a $20 here and there. 5 weeks left of training is still a lot of time. I'm going to see if one of the other guys at that gym will help me a bit on my ground game. Even still, it's not going to be easy to beat me. In the end, it's not always how good you are, but how bad you want it. I don't plan on losing a test of willpower.

Canelek · Post by **Canelek** » August 2, 2011, 1:09 am

An interesting test you are submitting to. I salute that!

Just keep your fucking hands up.

Winnow · Post by **Winnow** » August 2, 2011, 8:13 am

What's the tale of the tape for the guy you're fighting? Weight, build, height, age etc?

As has been mentioned, not telegraphing your punches and kicks is key. Don't forget to throw in some fakes to throw off your opponent.

Kilmoll the Sexy · Post by **Kilmoll the Sexy** » August 2, 2011, 11:30 am

Looks like good power in the kicks, but you are seriously slow, lazy, and long with your hands. You need to get that left hand higher and use a solid straight jab. The right needs to come up and stop dropping it to throw it. Every punch with the right you dropped it down and looped it low. You need the power hand to come right back to your ear and rotate your shoulders and core to bring the power behind it. Straight line with the hands!

I really expected better with all the work you have put in.

Boogahz · Post by **Boogahz** » August 2, 2011, 11:38 am

Don't completely ignore the left leg. Going into a southpaw stance and moving counter-clockwise would almost erase any extra speed/power in the right leg.

Fairweather Pure · Post by **Fairweather Pure** » August 2, 2011, 11:58 am

Kilmoll the Sexy wrote:I really expected better with all the work you have put in.

I really don't think that's a fair criticism since we don't have a baseline at where he started. I would think he has come a long way since he began his training. He mentioned the weight loss and such previously in this thread.

Btw, I'm also curious about the questions Winnow asked. I wrestled at 103 lbs in High School, but could go 112 lbs if I had to. Once you started getting into the 135-145 lb. crowd, it was fucking crazy. These guys would be 120lb guys with 15-20 lbs of pure muscle packed on top. Once you get into a certain weight category, if your fight is defined by weight class, you could be up against a real powerhouse.

Kilmoll the Sexy · Post by **Kilmoll the Sexy** » August 2, 2011, 12:04 pm

I didn't really mean that to be a big ciriticsm. He has worked so hard that I expect some truly crisp striking and some fire. A lot of it looked like he was bored and not really into it.

masteen · Post by **masteen** » August 2, 2011, 1:00 pm

Since you have over a month left, have you considered taking some karate to help quicken your strikes? Even Tae-Kwon-Do can teach how to really snap those kicks. Never underestimate the power those fast, low kicks to the sides of the leg. Forrest Griffin used them to great advantage against Rampage.

Kilmoll the Sexy · Post by **Kilmoll the Sexy** » August 2, 2011, 3:04 pm

Tae Kwon Do would be faster strikes, but kind of dissimilar striking style than it appears he is using with the feet, don't you think? Those sweeping strikes he is using would be very effective if they were just faster and without warning. The two most effective and practical kicks from TKD (at least that would not require a hell of a lot of training) are the front kick and side kick. Both are pretty simple and quick strikes. I can even still perform both fairly well after not being involved in TKD for 20+ years.

masteen · Post by **masteen** » August 2, 2011, 7:00 pm

Kilmoll the Sexy wrote:Tae Kwon Do would be faster strikes, but kind of dissimilar striking style than it appears he is using with the feet, don't you think? Those sweeping strikes he is using would be very effective if they were just faster and without warning. The two most effective and practical kicks from TKD (at least that would not require a hell of a lot of training) are the front kick and side kick. Both are pretty simple and quick strikes. I can even still perform both fairly well after not being involved in TKD for 20+ years.

Since he lacks a structured training environment, I figured that going to a TKD class would be more beneficial than more self-training.

Xyun · Post by **Xyun** » August 2, 2011, 11:45 pm

my opponent and I agreed to weigh in at 170 the day before the fight. I have been putting on 5 lbs. taking off 5lbs. over and over and fluctuating between 168 and 175. The video is me at 175 but today I weighed in at 171. My opponent is 1 inch shorter and has had 2 amateur fights and won both. He's in his late 20s or early 30s and he is of asian descent. I have the video of his first fight on fb but I cannot share it or download it because it is in flash mode. If anyone can show me how to download it that's fine. Let me know and I'll give you my fb password so you can grab it and change the format for the world to see.

My trainer is a muay thai trainer and that style has more power but is slower. He told me at the beginning not to snap my feet or hands and to punch and kick through the opponent not at the opponent. Either way I'm 99% sure my opponent will try to take me to the ground since he's been training in jiu jitsu for 2 years and that style is pretty much glorified wrestling. He spent the first half of his first fight trying to take his opponent down, then spent the rest of the time trying to climb on top of him and punch him in the head.

I agree I should be further along but like I said I can only train in the ring once a week. I'm gonna start going 2-3 times a week once I move to my new place next weekend, which will be half hour closer to my trainer's gym. Currently the drive one-way is 75 minutes. I think more than anything I need a lot more wrestling training and I'm getting none of that, and don't want to spend the money on professional training. I'm confident I can win this fight though.

t-minus 5 weeks til the fight.

Canelek · Post by **Canelek** » August 3, 2011, 12:50 am

Relax your shoulders, keep your balance on the balls of your feet and never drop your guard. So, when you punch through your target, which is good, don't over do it. If you are in control, this should not be a problem.

If you are taken down.... Well, you don't need BJJ to learn guard, and how to get out of it. Draw up tight and lock your ankles--your thighs should be squeezing the bejeezus out of his midsection. Now, you control him. If you time things right, you can quickly buck your hips to send him off balance, bring your foot up and kick him off by shoving your foot into his hip or thigh.

Oh and if he has you on the ground and is punching at your face, make sure to have your hands up and out enough to "funnel" his attacks between your hands and alternately redirect so he doesn't get you square. And chin down! Hits to forehead ain't no biggie.

Quite a lot to digest, I know!

Canelek · Post by **Canelek** » August 3, 2011, 12:58 am

Boogahz wrote:Don't completely ignore the left leg. Going into a southpaw stance and moving counter-clockwise would almost erase any extra speed/power in the right leg.

I wouldn't recommend this unless it was to a fighter who could fight southpaw. Otherwise, the footwork will be all fucked up and the backwards striking will be ineffective.