MMA Flashback: Shinya Aoki Tops JZ Calvan
October 11, 2009 by Ross Everett · Leave a Comment
After a controversial no contest in their first matchup, there was no doubt as to the winner of the DREAM 2 rematch between Shina Aoki and JZ Calvan. Aoki controlled the fight from the opening bell and used a wide repertoire of submission attempts to keep his opponent off balance. Most impressive was Aokis dominance of the ground game, which many observers considered to be JZs edge in the contest.
Aoki scored early with a takedown and controlled Calvan on the ground, working a heel lock attempt before taking his opponents back and attempting a rear naked choke. He was never able to complete the hold, but maintained a bodylock on JZC for the rest of the round. In the second, Aoki put on a submission clinic and demonstrated his ungodly flexibility as he spun from an armbar to a triangle choke and back again. Calvan was able to counter or escape, but looked completely out of sync as he generated almost no offense whatsoever over the 15 minutes.
Aoki was very emotional in his postfight speech to the crowd, while JZC just looked disgusted with himself for losing such a one sided contest.
With the victory Aoki advances to the semifinals of the lightweight GP tournament. Thats the plan at least, as Aoki made some statements in the Japanese press leading up to the fight that win or lose there would be no way hed be ready for the next round with only half the preparation time as the rest of the field.
The rest of the card was devoted to the opening round of the middleweight GP tournament. Taiei Kin defeated Minowa-man Ikuhisa Minowa in a very closely contested and entertaining fight. Minowa was clearly tired in the 2nd, and that likely sealed the deal for Kin.
Korean judoka Yoon Dong-Sik also advanced with a unanimous decision victory over Shungo Oyama. Two one sided contests followed, with Zeleg Galesic submitting Magomed Sultanakhmadov via arm bar in a minute and a half of the first round. That was followed by the MMA debut of former Pac 10 wrestling standout Ian Murphy, was dominated by BJJ specialist Ronaldo Jacare
Mirko Cro Cop To Fight Hong Man Choi At Fields Dynamite
September 22, 2009 by Ross Everett · Leave a Comment
The bizarre career path taken by Croatian striking machine Mirko Cro Cop will continue on New Years Eve in Tokyo as he faces 72 Korean kickboxer Hong-Man Choi in what should be the final addition to the K-1/DREAM combined show called Fields Dynamite!. The matchup adds even more striking firepower to a lineup that already includes K-1 mainstays Peter Aerts, Mighty Mo, and Semmy Schlit along with top DREAM fighters including Shinya Aoki, Joachim Hansen, Eddie Alverez and Gesias JZ Calvan Calvacante.
For Cro Cop, its another stop on what has seemed like a meandering professional course full of much talk and little action since his departure from the UFC. In September 10, 2007, Cro Cop had just won PRIDE’s Open Weight Grand Prix in dominant fashion. Some were suggesting that he, and not Fedor Emelianenko, was the best heavyweight fighter in the world.
Cro Cops upset loss to Gabriel Gonzaga changed that and his career his never really recovered. In what was supposed to be a “tune up” bout, Gonzaga smothered Cro Cop and roughed him up on the ground before unleashing his own version of Cro Cop’s signature kick. Mirko never saw it coming, and he crashed to the mat like he’d been shot with his leg folded awkwardly beneath him.
Since the loss to Gonzaga it has been almost impossible to keep up with the various twists and turns in Cro Cops career. After another UFC loss, this by unanimous decision to Cheick Kongo where Cro Cop looked listless and gun shy, his management announced that he had suffered a broken rib in the first round and was having trouble breathing. Furthermore, Cro Cop suffered from a deviated septum that made breathing difficult.
Its been an eventful year for Hong Man Choi as well. 2008 began with a loss to Fedor Emelianeko on the Yarrenoka New Years Eve event, in which the Russian fighting god briefly struggled with Chois 72 330 pound frame before submitting him. In April, he joined the Korean army for his compulsory military service only to be relived from his duties after medical tests discovered a brain tumor. The tumor was removed in June, and Choi was back in the ring in late September. He lost to then K-1 heavyweight champ Badr Hari in his comeback fight, and lost again to Ray Sefo in a reserve match at the recently completed World Cup GP. The losses prompted K-1 president Sadaharu Tanikawa to curiously announce that Choi had been laid off from the kickboxing promotion due to perceived erosion in his skills. Instead, Tanikawa suggested that he compete in MMA and the fight with Cro Cop is his first appearance since the layoff.
Tanikawas comments notwithstanding (and with the realization that they may be as much storyline as anything else) Choi is really the same as hes always been. Hes a physical mismatch for any opponent and while his striking style is awkward at best, it has proven to be reasonably effective. His reach is insane, and his size allows him to get a ridiculous among of leverage from his knee strikes. Not sure why Tanikawa is just now realizing that Choi isnt Ernesto Hoost, but hes a surprisingly skilled fighter who uses his unique physical attributes to their best advantage.
This fight isnt about competition as much as it is about commerce. Cro Cop remains one of the most popular foreign fighters in Japan, and with the proven success of freak show matchups this may have been the most attractive opponent for him from the promotions standpoint. Its a fight that Cro Cop should win, and in Japan at least a victory over Choi would have at least some significance. At the same time, Chois size combined with Cro Cops recent reticence to throw punches and kicks makes it a potentially dangerous matchup for the Croatian striking machine.
MMA Flashback: Shinya Aoki Tops JZ Calvan
September 10, 2009 by Ross Everett · Leave a Comment
After a controversial no contest in their first matchup, there was no doubt as to the winner of the DREAM 2 rematch between Shina Aoki and JZ Calvan. Aoki controlled the fight from the opening bell and used a wide repertoire of submission attempts to keep his opponent off balance. Most impressive was Aokis dominance of the ground game, which many observers considered to be JZs edge in the contest.
Aoki scored early with a takedown and controlled Calvan on the ground, working a heel lock attempt before taking his opponents back and attempting a rear naked choke. He was never able to complete the hold, but maintained a bodylock on JZC for the rest of the round. In the second, Aoki put on a submission clinic and demonstrated his ungodly flexibility as he spun from an armbar to a triangle choke and back again. Calvan was able to counter or escape, but looked completely out of sync as he generated almost no offense whatsoever over the 15 minutes.
Aoki was very emotional in his postfight speech to the crowd, while JZC just looked disgusted with himself for losing such a one sided contest.
With the victory Aoki advances to the semifinals of the lightweight GP tournament. Aoki has made some statements in the Japanese press leading up to the fight that win or lose there would be no way hed be ready for the next round with only half the preparation time as the rest of the field. Hopefully the impressive victory and the enthusiastic response from the holiday week Tokyo crowd will change his mind.
The rest of the card was devoted to the opening round of the middleweight GP tournament. Taiei Kin defeated Minowa-man Ikuhisa Minowa in a very closely contested and entertaining fight. Despite Kin taking a 3-0 unanimous decision (DREAM judges, like their PRIDE predecessors, judge the fight in its entirety) the first round could have gone either way. Minowa was clearly tired in the 2nd, and that likely sealed the deal for Kin.
Korean judoka Yoon Dong-Sik also advanced with a unanimous decision victory over Shungo Oyama. Most of the damage in this fight came from Yoons ground and pound from full mount, and he controlled the tempo from the outset. Two one sided contests followed, with Zeleg Galesic submitting Magomed Sultanakhmadov via arm bar in a minute and a half of the first round. That was followed by the MMA debut of former Pac 10 wrestling standout Ian Murphy, who had a worst case scenario draw against BJJ specialist Ronaldo Jacare.
Ross Everett is a freelance writer specializing in soccer, boxing and NFL betting. He consults with a variety of offshore sportsbooks setting theNFL spread and on lines for major boxing events. He has been published in a variety of online and print outlets covering topics as diverse as soccer, football, MMA and music.