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Monday, Feb 17, 2003

Sakuraba Likely To Face Ninoat Pride 25!


By Eduardo Alonso

Sakuraba Likely to Face Nino
at PRIDE 25!


      As PRIDE 25 quickly approaches, more matches are been set by DSE, and one may be announced very soon that could shake the PRIDE ring in their March event… Japanese hero and PRIDE superstar Kazushi Sakuraba will make his return to the ring and his old ways, facing off against a Jiu-Jitsu stylist. He will, in all likelyhood be fighting PRIDE veteran and BJJ sensation Nino "Elvis" Schembri! Nino won his PRIDE debut finishing a seasoned Johil de Oliveira with an armbar at PRIDE 14, and later won a judges’ decision at PRIDE’s THE BEST 2, now he is going back to PRIDE facing his toughest and most important challenge of his life against the man who defeated several Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belts, before falling to the hands and feet of "The Axe Murderer" Wanderlei Silva. For Sakuraba, this fight can mean the chance to regain his winning streak and feel confidence in his game once again, like in the days where he reigned supreme in the PRIDE ring. As always, things can change at any minute with PRIDE, but this fight seems to be ready to be announced and is very likely to take place on PRIDE 25’s card.

From Josh Hedges/Zuffa:



UFC Logo
TUNE-IN ADVISORY
UFC HEAVYWEIGHT TANK ABBOTT TAKES ON TOM ARNOLD OF FOX SPORTS NET’S BEST DAMN SPORTS SHOW PERIOD! 8 P.M., FRIDAY, FEB. 21

Legendary Ultimate Fighting Championship Heavyweight Returns to the Octagon Finally at UFC 41: Onslaught LIVE On Pay-Per-View, Friday, Feb. 28, From Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City


      LAS VEGAS, February 18, 2003… Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) legendary heavyweight Tank Abbott of Huntington Beach, Calif., will mark his long awaited mixed martial arts comeback at 8 p.m., this Friday, Feb. 21, when he visits Fox Sports Net’s Best Damn Sports Show Period! (check local cable listings) Abbott will mark his return to the UFC Octagon at UFC 41: Onslaught, live on pay-per-view one week to the day later on Friday, Feb. 28, from Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City, N.J. He will fight one of the UFC’s most promising young heavyweights, Frank Mir of Las Vegas, Nev. Never at a loss for words, Tank says he is coming back to the UFC to do what he does best, which is "knock people out." Abbott will be prepared to answer questions about whether his fighting style, which has been likened to "street brawling," will be successful versus his classically trained and controlled opponent. Tune in this Friday for Tank’s final tune-up on BDSSP. The two-hour telecast of Best Damn Sports Show Period!, hosted by Tom Arnold, airs nightly at 8 p.m. and/or 11 p.m., and Midnight on FSN Bay Area, Chicago, Florida, New England, New York and Ohio.


Warriors Of The Ring II
Maui War Memorial Gymnasium, Wailuku, Maui
February 16, 2003
By Chris Onzuka – Chris@Onzuka.com
Ring Girls

Warriors of the Ring returned for their second event. The first event brought in the largest crowd of MMA fans that Maui has ever seen and for this show it looks like the promoters wanted to appease Maui fight fans by filling the card with Maui fighters. Sometimes the tendency is for established fighters to fight conservatively in order to preserve their records and the first timers have nothing to lose and come out to brawl. These fighters, most of them making their debut, left nothing on the table after their fights and went after each other. The crowd erupted after every exchange. There were a couple of controversial calls, but they were due to unusual circumstances. One instance was the Nerveza-Cabalero fight, Cabalero was winning the fight until it went to the ground and the adrenaline got to him and he fired off some knees to Nerveza’s head, which are illegal. Before the referee could step in to give Cabalero a warning, Nerveza scrambled up to take down Cabalero.

Charles Hendrickson punching Scott Tam
Hendrickson punching Tam

During the scramble, Cabalero locked in a tight guillotine for the tap out. So it looked to be a win by submission, but because the knees affected the outcome of the fight, the referee, after consulting the judges, disqualified Cabalero due to the knees. The matches were even with either fighter having equal opportunity to win, which made for tight, but exciting fights. Unfortunately the evening ended on a sour note. Two super lightweights, who put on an very exciting first round, brought the crowd’s excitement to a screeching halt by their lack of action in the second round. Both fighters turned into counter fighters and waited the whole round for their opponent to make the first move. This was the only boring round in the event, too bad it was the last one of the evening. The promoters promise a stacked card and an even better show for the next event. They brought in some up and coming fighters into the ring to build anticipation for some great matches down the road during the intermission. Even Cabbage Correira was brought in to let the Maui fans know that he was thinking of moving to Maui and to let everyone know his future with the UFC.

Preliminary Bouts:
Paul Laga (Bulls Pen, Honolulu, HI) def. Patrick Clark (Koali Fighting Systems, Hana, HI)
Submission due to cut over eye at 3:25 into round 2.

Charles Hendrickson (Freelance, 6’0", 220lbs) drew Scott Tam (Maui Full Contact Fighting, 6’0", 225lbs)
Majority Draw [(19-19), (19-20), (19-19)] after 2 rounds.

Ednor Lat (Maui Full Contact Fighting, 5’10", 165lbs) def. Robert Billianor (Lockdown Unlimited, 5’10", 170lbs.)
Submission due to strikes from the mount at 3:48 into round 2.

John Nerveza Jr. (Bulls Pen, 5’6", 145lbs, Honolulu, HI) def. Keola Cabalero (Wailuku Kickboxing, 5’7", 140lbs, Wailuku, HI)
Cabalero disqualified for illegal knee strikes on the ground at 4:05 into round 1.

Paulo Lupi (Brazilian Freestyle J.J., 173lbs) def. Lucky Keefner (Maui Full Contact Fighting, 175lbs)
Submission via triangle choke at 1:59 into round 2.

Co-Main Event:
Anthony Billianor (Lockdown Unlimited, 260lbs) vs. Palmer Fuga (Kona Boxing Club, 220lbs, Kona, HI)
Submission via neck crank (reverse rear naked choke) at 3:53 into round 1.

Main Event:
J.R. Baraoiden (Maui Full Contact Fighting, 120lbs, Kahului, HI) vs. Tien Nguyen (Wailuku Kickboxing, 130lbs, Wailuku, HI)
Draw [(19-19), (19-19), (19-19)] after 2 rounds.

posted by Full Contact Fighter @ 8:00 pm
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