MM-Eh! News and Notes from Canada
Andy Cotterill May 29, 2007
The first MM-Eh! of an amazingly busy summer season, this week
we'll take a look at how the two Canadians fared at UFC 71, results
of the Colosseum V card from Winnipeg, preview a busy time for Team
Tompkins, talk with Jason Day
with a preview of his match against Patrick Côté at TKO 29, pass
along updates on the Crow and John Alessio (Pictures), as well as some notes of the
continuing ECC/KOTC saga.
UFC 71 Canadian aftermath
Even though he didn't appear to be too thrilled with his own
performance versus Chris
Leben (Pictures) at UFC 71, stating afterwards
that, "I would have given him the nod to win this fight myself,"
Vancouver's Kalib Starnes
(Pictures) still garnered "Fight of
the Night" honors for his gritty decision win.
While in the past many have questioned Starnes desire to fight, he should have squashed the doubters with his advance through what appeared to be a devastating liver kick by Leben.
Starnes attributed much of his success with his stand-up abilities in this fight to the two months he spent preparing with American Top Team in Florida. He credited having guys like Wilson Gouveia (Pictures) and Howard Davis Jr. for making a huge difference in training. Speaking of ATT, did anyone else notice current ATT member and Starnes' former Revolution Martial Arts teammate Denis Kang (Pictures) there with him? Hopefully the UFC will also be seeking this very formidable middleweight for their stable.
Starnes' compatriot Ivan Salaverry (Pictures) didn't fare as well in his bout against Terry Martin (Pictures). At just two minutes of the first round, Martin was able to pick up Salaverry and unceremoniously drop him on his face. Salaverry hasn't revealed if he was actually knocked out, but the referee leapt in and waved Martin off, giving him the TKO victory.
In an interview with the Canadian Press prior to this bout, Salaverry claimed that this could be his last fight as a mixed martial artist. With plans for a second child, and the daily running of his Seattle-based gym, he told the CP: "I had a very nice career. I've talked it over with my wife and family, and the priorities are really going into the school, teaching, maybe some promotions, creating a fight team. Things of that nature."
Colosseum V
The city of Winnipeg saw an exciting evening of true mixed martial arts last weekend, when boxers, kickboxers, and MMA fighters all got together on one stage for a night of fights at Colosseum V.
A true Winnipeg fight card wouldn't be complete without that city's native son Joe Doerksen (Pictures), and he made his fans happy with a TKO win over BJ Lacy in the second. Also victorious in MMA competition were former TKO middleweight champ Chris Fontaine, Rodrigo Munduruca, and Eric Perez.
TKO 29 "Repercussion"
This weekend we'll see the latest installment of Canada's longest running MMA promotion, TKO, when "Repercussion" comes to the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec.
This is a fight card very deep on talent, featuring several of Canada's top fighters. Prince Edward Island's Travis Axworthy (Pictures) makes a giant leap up in competition to face Jonathan Goulet (Pictures); Tyler Jackson (Pictures) meets Martin Grandmont (Pictures); Stéphane Dubé takes on David Medd (Pictures); and the first female match in TKO history will occur when Valérie Létourneau squares off against Sarah Kaufman.
Headlining this event will be Patrick Côté, who's coming off a victory over Scott Smith (Scott Smith' class='LinkSilver'>Pictures) at UFC 67, against Jason Day, fighting out of Lethbridge, Alberta.
Although this fight is happening in the TKO promotion, both fighters are looking forward with the UFC on their minds. Côté needs another good win to be invited back, while Day believes that a victory would possibly pave the way to his UFC goal.
Day took some time out of his fight preparation to chat with MM-Eh! and to talk about this fight and more.
Twenty-eight-years-old with a record of 11-4-0, Day trains out of the Canadian Martial Arts Centre in Lethbridge, Alberta. He recently bought out the partner of his trainer Lee Mein (Pictures), and is now co-promoter with Mein of the Rumble In The Cage promotion, also based in Lethbridge.
Day has fought at 205 pounds, but made the decision to drop to 185 a few months ago when he stepped on the scale one day and saw that he was 203 pounds -- much too slim to face potential light heavyweight opponents, some of whom like to cut 20 pounds or more for a fight.
His day job is a home builder with his father in Lethbridge, where the booming Alberta economy feeds them a constant stream of eight to 10 hour work days building home after home from the ground up. He told Sherdog.com that it's sometimes hard to go train for two hours in the evening after being in the sun all day.
When asked about his upcoming Côté fight, Day revealed that he was offered the contract two weeks ago after Crafton Wallace (Pictures) dropped out, and that he jumped on the opportunity.
"It's a tough match-up. He's such a well rounded fighter," said Day. "His striking is so deadly, but I think my edge is on the ground against him. It's going to be a war. I don't think it's going to be a quick fight. If anybody's taking me lightly, I'm going to surprise a few people I think."
About the two week preparation time, Day said that Mein trains the guys at the Canadian Martial Arts Centre to be in shape all of the time, so if they have to turn it up for a couple of weeks to take a fight, then so be it.
"In an ideal situation I'd like to have a few more weeks -- a six week training camp for somebody like Côté -- but fighters fight, so I said yeah."
I told Day that I had heard the "fighters fight" mantra before, from both his trainer Mein and his teammate Jared Kilkenny (Pictures). "There are so many people that try to pick their fights," he answered. "I mean they won't take a fight here or they won't take a fight on short notice. You're never going to get an ideal situation for a fight. You're never going to get an ideal opponent. Bill Mahood (Pictures) said it to me once, ‘fighters fight.'"
Day revealed a few more pieces of interesting info that Côté was told by the UFC to go out and win a convincing fight before they'll bring him back. The UFC is also a destination that Day has in mind, and he said that it was UFC matchmaker Joe Silva who suggested him as an opponent for Côté after Wallace withdrew.
"I definitely want to move up to the UFC, and I hope this fight is that stepping stone," he said. "They want to see me fight a recognizable name, a high caliber fighter, and Patrick Côté is that guy right there. You know the UFC will be watching this fight, so they know who I am, and they definitely know that I'm a contender. So I just want to go out and prove it. Have a good showing against Côté and show that I'm legit, and that I deserve to be in the UFC right now."
When asked for a prediction, Day stated boldly: "I predict that I will have a TKO victory in the third round."
IFL: Canadian constrictors
The Los Angeles Anacondas of the International Fight League remain a stronghold for Canadian talent in the U.S., with lightweight Chris Horodecki (Pictures), heavyweight Krzysztof Soszynski (Pictures), and team head coach Shawn Tompkins (Pictures) all doing extremely well.
The Anacondas go into team competition this weekend against Maurice Smith (Pictures)'s Seattle Tiger Sharks. Look out to Sherdog later this week for a very in-depth series of interviews with Horodecki, Soszynski, and Tompkins.
Hominick and Alessio at WEC 28
Speaking of Tompkins, arguably his most successful student, Mark Hominick (Pictures), goes to do battle with Rani Yahya (Pictures) this upcoming Sunday at WEC's "WrekCage" event in Las Vegas.
Should Hominick and WEC featherweight champion Urijah Faber (Pictures) both win on June 3, Tompkins revealed to MM-Eh! that it's likely Hominick will get a crack at Faber's belt later this summer.
Also on this card is Canadian John Alessio (Pictures), who returns for his first match since losing a very hard fought battle for the WEC welterweight championship against Carlos Condit (Pictures) on March 24. Alessio succumbed to a rear-naked choke with one second remaining in round two. Alessio will take on Russian Alex Serdyukov (Pictures), who fell to the Canadian last August.
Glory Fight "Nowhere to Run"
The Albertan city of Calgary hosts its first MMA card this year, as Glory Fight comes to the Deerfoot Inn and Casino. Not much is known about this event, as an e-mail request for information to promoter Chris Horton was unanswered.
The only known fighter is Tim Blanchard (Pictures), who fights out of Canuckles Gym in Calgary.
The Crow's injured wing
Canadian Web site ultimefanatic.com reports that perennial fan favorite David Loiseau (Pictures) injured his hand and is awaiting surgery. It's unknown if the injury occurred in his last fight, a submission victory over Freddie Espiricueta (Pictures) at the Art of War 2 on May 11, but even if surgery happens immediately, it's unlikely that Loiseau would be ready in time for his scheduled July 7 bout against Chilo Gonzalez (Pictures) in boxing referee Richard Steele's new promotion, the IFO.
ECC/KOTC drama continues
To further the claim made by the ECC President several columns ago, that any local fighter who fights for KOTC in Halifax on July 14 will no longer be welcome in the ECC organization, they have recently made the same statement on their official Web site, combatproductions.com
This ultimatum has already created a rift, dividing them from several local fighters and teams, who bristle at the perception that ECC is preventing them from fighting to earn a living.
Already several Halifax fighters have chosen to go to KOTC, including TJ Grant (Pictures), Tim Skidmore (Pictures), and Matt Hamilton. It's unknown if the ban will include the entire fight team from where these fighters come, but if FitPlus (Grant), Cumberland Freestyle Academy (Skidmore), and Abhaya (Hamilton) won't be able to send any more fighters ECC's way, then ECC will be facing a severely depleted talent pool to draw from for their future cards.
UFC 71 Canadian aftermath
Advertisement
While in the past many have questioned Starnes desire to fight, he should have squashed the doubters with his advance through what appeared to be a devastating liver kick by Leben.
Starnes said that he had the wind knocked out of him and that he
couldn't breathe for about 20 seconds, but he was able to pull
guard and give himself a chance to recover, and eventually win the
unanimous decision.
Starnes attributed much of his success with his stand-up abilities in this fight to the two months he spent preparing with American Top Team in Florida. He credited having guys like Wilson Gouveia (Pictures) and Howard Davis Jr. for making a huge difference in training. Speaking of ATT, did anyone else notice current ATT member and Starnes' former Revolution Martial Arts teammate Denis Kang (Pictures) there with him? Hopefully the UFC will also be seeking this very formidable middleweight for their stable.
Starnes' compatriot Ivan Salaverry (Pictures) didn't fare as well in his bout against Terry Martin (Pictures). At just two minutes of the first round, Martin was able to pick up Salaverry and unceremoniously drop him on his face. Salaverry hasn't revealed if he was actually knocked out, but the referee leapt in and waved Martin off, giving him the TKO victory.
In an interview with the Canadian Press prior to this bout, Salaverry claimed that this could be his last fight as a mixed martial artist. With plans for a second child, and the daily running of his Seattle-based gym, he told the CP: "I had a very nice career. I've talked it over with my wife and family, and the priorities are really going into the school, teaching, maybe some promotions, creating a fight team. Things of that nature."
Colosseum V
The city of Winnipeg saw an exciting evening of true mixed martial arts last weekend, when boxers, kickboxers, and MMA fighters all got together on one stage for a night of fights at Colosseum V.
A true Winnipeg fight card wouldn't be complete without that city's native son Joe Doerksen (Pictures), and he made his fans happy with a TKO win over BJ Lacy in the second. Also victorious in MMA competition were former TKO middleweight champ Chris Fontaine, Rodrigo Munduruca, and Eric Perez.
TKO 29 "Repercussion"
This weekend we'll see the latest installment of Canada's longest running MMA promotion, TKO, when "Repercussion" comes to the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec.
This is a fight card very deep on talent, featuring several of Canada's top fighters. Prince Edward Island's Travis Axworthy (Pictures) makes a giant leap up in competition to face Jonathan Goulet (Pictures); Tyler Jackson (Pictures) meets Martin Grandmont (Pictures); Stéphane Dubé takes on David Medd (Pictures); and the first female match in TKO history will occur when Valérie Létourneau squares off against Sarah Kaufman.
Headlining this event will be Patrick Côté, who's coming off a victory over Scott Smith (Scott Smith' class='LinkSilver'>Pictures) at UFC 67, against Jason Day, fighting out of Lethbridge, Alberta.
Although this fight is happening in the TKO promotion, both fighters are looking forward with the UFC on their minds. Côté needs another good win to be invited back, while Day believes that a victory would possibly pave the way to his UFC goal.
Day took some time out of his fight preparation to chat with MM-Eh! and to talk about this fight and more.
Twenty-eight-years-old with a record of 11-4-0, Day trains out of the Canadian Martial Arts Centre in Lethbridge, Alberta. He recently bought out the partner of his trainer Lee Mein (Pictures), and is now co-promoter with Mein of the Rumble In The Cage promotion, also based in Lethbridge.
Day has fought at 205 pounds, but made the decision to drop to 185 a few months ago when he stepped on the scale one day and saw that he was 203 pounds -- much too slim to face potential light heavyweight opponents, some of whom like to cut 20 pounds or more for a fight.
His day job is a home builder with his father in Lethbridge, where the booming Alberta economy feeds them a constant stream of eight to 10 hour work days building home after home from the ground up. He told Sherdog.com that it's sometimes hard to go train for two hours in the evening after being in the sun all day.
When asked about his upcoming Côté fight, Day revealed that he was offered the contract two weeks ago after Crafton Wallace (Pictures) dropped out, and that he jumped on the opportunity.
"It's a tough match-up. He's such a well rounded fighter," said Day. "His striking is so deadly, but I think my edge is on the ground against him. It's going to be a war. I don't think it's going to be a quick fight. If anybody's taking me lightly, I'm going to surprise a few people I think."
About the two week preparation time, Day said that Mein trains the guys at the Canadian Martial Arts Centre to be in shape all of the time, so if they have to turn it up for a couple of weeks to take a fight, then so be it.
"In an ideal situation I'd like to have a few more weeks -- a six week training camp for somebody like Côté -- but fighters fight, so I said yeah."
I told Day that I had heard the "fighters fight" mantra before, from both his trainer Mein and his teammate Jared Kilkenny (Pictures). "There are so many people that try to pick their fights," he answered. "I mean they won't take a fight here or they won't take a fight on short notice. You're never going to get an ideal situation for a fight. You're never going to get an ideal opponent. Bill Mahood (Pictures) said it to me once, ‘fighters fight.'"
Day revealed a few more pieces of interesting info that Côté was told by the UFC to go out and win a convincing fight before they'll bring him back. The UFC is also a destination that Day has in mind, and he said that it was UFC matchmaker Joe Silva who suggested him as an opponent for Côté after Wallace withdrew.
"I definitely want to move up to the UFC, and I hope this fight is that stepping stone," he said. "They want to see me fight a recognizable name, a high caliber fighter, and Patrick Côté is that guy right there. You know the UFC will be watching this fight, so they know who I am, and they definitely know that I'm a contender. So I just want to go out and prove it. Have a good showing against Côté and show that I'm legit, and that I deserve to be in the UFC right now."
When asked for a prediction, Day stated boldly: "I predict that I will have a TKO victory in the third round."
IFL: Canadian constrictors
The Los Angeles Anacondas of the International Fight League remain a stronghold for Canadian talent in the U.S., with lightweight Chris Horodecki (Pictures), heavyweight Krzysztof Soszynski (Pictures), and team head coach Shawn Tompkins (Pictures) all doing extremely well.
The Anacondas go into team competition this weekend against Maurice Smith (Pictures)'s Seattle Tiger Sharks. Look out to Sherdog later this week for a very in-depth series of interviews with Horodecki, Soszynski, and Tompkins.
Hominick and Alessio at WEC 28
Speaking of Tompkins, arguably his most successful student, Mark Hominick (Pictures), goes to do battle with Rani Yahya (Pictures) this upcoming Sunday at WEC's "WrekCage" event in Las Vegas.
Should Hominick and WEC featherweight champion Urijah Faber (Pictures) both win on June 3, Tompkins revealed to MM-Eh! that it's likely Hominick will get a crack at Faber's belt later this summer.
Also on this card is Canadian John Alessio (Pictures), who returns for his first match since losing a very hard fought battle for the WEC welterweight championship against Carlos Condit (Pictures) on March 24. Alessio succumbed to a rear-naked choke with one second remaining in round two. Alessio will take on Russian Alex Serdyukov (Pictures), who fell to the Canadian last August.
Glory Fight "Nowhere to Run"
The Albertan city of Calgary hosts its first MMA card this year, as Glory Fight comes to the Deerfoot Inn and Casino. Not much is known about this event, as an e-mail request for information to promoter Chris Horton was unanswered.
The only known fighter is Tim Blanchard (Pictures), who fights out of Canuckles Gym in Calgary.
The Crow's injured wing
Canadian Web site ultimefanatic.com reports that perennial fan favorite David Loiseau (Pictures) injured his hand and is awaiting surgery. It's unknown if the injury occurred in his last fight, a submission victory over Freddie Espiricueta (Pictures) at the Art of War 2 on May 11, but even if surgery happens immediately, it's unlikely that Loiseau would be ready in time for his scheduled July 7 bout against Chilo Gonzalez (Pictures) in boxing referee Richard Steele's new promotion, the IFO.
ECC/KOTC drama continues
To further the claim made by the ECC President several columns ago, that any local fighter who fights for KOTC in Halifax on July 14 will no longer be welcome in the ECC organization, they have recently made the same statement on their official Web site, combatproductions.com
This ultimatum has already created a rift, dividing them from several local fighters and teams, who bristle at the perception that ECC is preventing them from fighting to earn a living.
Already several Halifax fighters have chosen to go to KOTC, including TJ Grant (Pictures), Tim Skidmore (Pictures), and Matt Hamilton. It's unknown if the ban will include the entire fight team from where these fighters come, but if FitPlus (Grant), Cumberland Freestyle Academy (Skidmore), and Abhaya (Hamilton) won't be able to send any more fighters ECC's way, then ECC will be facing a severely depleted talent pool to draw from for their future cards.
