Gunnar Nelson vs Danny Mitchell

Picture courtesy of Cage Contender

As he casually wanders through the Leisure Centre, Gunnar ‘Shotgun’ Nelson’s face is a picture of calmness. His pleasant demeanor wouldn’t look out of place in a Customer Service based role as he stops to greet people, many friends, some fans and a few team mates but still many people are oblivious as to who he is. His polite manner and huge respect for each and every one of his opponents is well received by the MMA community with UFC referee and Fighters Only Magazine contributor Marc Goddard saying Gunnar is “…everything that is good about this sport…“.

Danny ‘Turbo Time’ Mitchell, a well liked British MMA and boxing champion also fools a number of people with his friendly manner and sense of humour. Popular within the MMA community for his love of cheesecake and his ponytail hairstyle, Mitchell is a fierce fighter, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Brown Belt and a European MMA champion. Not exactly a walk over. Not one to shy away from a tough fight having fought the likes of Lee Doski, Jordan James and Andrew McQueen to name a few, Mitchell has unfortunately gone 0-2 in his last 2 bouts (albeit the most recent to Nelson). His loss before Nelson was to UK stand out and the talented Midlands fighter, Eugene Faidora, who Gunnar is set to fight next at BAMMA 4 on 25th September 2010 at The National Indoor Arena in Birmingham.

Both fighters step into the cage after being announced to cheers from the crowd at Altrincham Leisure Centre in Greater Manchester. Cage Contender certainly outdid themselves in hosting this much talked about fight. The preliminary bouts were certainly entertaining and the main event had everybody on the edge of their seats from the moment both fighters were announced.

The bell rings and both fighters effortlessly move around each other seeing who would make the first move. Both fighters move laterally so as not to stay in the same spot to avoid any ‘sitting duck’ situations. At the same time as Mitchell throws a jab, Nelson explodes and clips Mitchell with a hook before securing a bodylock and scoring a takedown. Nelson is immediately in side control and is securing position before looking to move. He looks to pass to mount and throws a few shots before a glancing elbow opens a cut above the left eye of Mitchell. ‘Turbo Time’ manages to retrieve guard and keep ‘Shotgun’ at range by extending his legs before Nelson passes once again to land more shots. Using strikes to bait Mitchell to turn to his side to expose his back, Nelson establishes the same back control in which he had on Jeff Monson and looks to sink in the choke. Mitchell throws a couple of punches to the head of Nelson to try and loosen the grip but is forced to tap at 2 minutes and 54 seconds of the first round.

A short fight but one which makes a bold statement – Gunnar is no joke.

His last 2 fights have been won by rear naked choke and both Sam Elsdon and Danny Mitchell have commented on Nelson’s superior Jiu Jitsu skills – namely his hip movement and strength with Mitchell stating, “…the cut was bad like but didnt affect what followed, his control was just awesome, i was suprised i managed to put him back in my guard when he mounted me, his hip movement is the best i have ever felt. His shot was lightening fast too, nothing i could do to stop it even after so much prep…” and Sam Elsdon, “..his guard is unbelievably rigid and his hips thrust forward. My main mount reversal plan was quite simple but pretty effective (most of the time)… What I found was that his groin strength and hip and back rigidity was too much to be able to push him with the amount I would have needed to sweep, so I then decided to turn a bit to create more space. He came down to close the space and for a second or so there was a small gap which I thought I might be able to escape from, but he put the choke in position but as it was on the side I wasnt massively concerned as he felt he was on his side as well, but with a slip of the hips he was on top and pulled up. I didnt tap because of the choke I tapped because neck crank pain I felt and you can see the pain on my face in the photos, he pulled upwards, once again I imagine using his immense hips and back strength….”.

With so much dedication and skill, one can always be forgiven for thinking Gunnar is in a rush to make it on the big stage. Many people are insistant that Gunnar is being watched by the likes of the bigger, world dominating promotions such as the UFC and Strikeforce but his father, Halli, insists he is in no rush, “We have been approached by some promotions, big and not so big, but Gunnar is in no hurry. If the right offer and a good contract comes along, then we will surly look at it. If not, he has plenty of things to work on. This is his life and he’s in no rush living it…”.

Gunnar’s next fight will be against Eugene Fadiora on BAMMA 4, headlined by Tom ‘Kong’ Watson vs Alex Reid. Tickets and event information can be found here.

The full event report can be found on the website of Fighters Only Magazine which can be found here.

Fedor Emelianenko vs Fabricio Werdum Summary

Inspired by JJ O'regan

I’m a huge fan of Fedor, don’t let the picture above fool you (I made it on Microsoft Paint after John Joe messaged it me when I asked whether he’d seen it or not).

I’ve been following Fedor from the early Pride days. Mighty Pride with their freak match ups and high calibre fighters. I was one of the people who was left stunned at how badly the superstars first performed in the UFC. Crocop, Shogun, Chonan, Gomi, Gono and to be honest… Rampage. Rampage Jackson WAS the UFC title holder but he is nowhere near as good as he was when he was back in Pride. And we all know it. His boxing may have sharpened up but he isn’t the same fighter.

Watching the fight between Werdum and Fedor, in my opinion, wasn’t as exciting as when I watched Monson take on Tim Sylvia or when Babalu faced Chuck for the second time. The match up wasn’t that appealing to me. Anybody who knows anything about MMA (the none-UFC nuthuggers) will know Werdum is a legit BJJ blackbelt WORLD champion. He trains with Crocop, he’s submitted people who have far more technical ability than Fedor possesses. Not only that Fedor seems to not have that mystique about him anymore (which also may have contributed in the downfall of Chute Boxe when their A class fighters went to the UFC).

We all hoped this time wouldn’t happen. That the Russian Emporer would stay on his throne forever but at the back of all our minds, we knew it was going to happen sooner or later.

Phenoms

After watching 2 short documentaries “The Future of MMA” and “Six Minutes“, I was suddenly made aware of 2 things, how far behind I am in athleticism and the upcoming phenoms we’re due to witness take part in the fastest growing sport in the world, MMA.

‘Six Minutes’ is a short documentary about high school wrestling in the US and the lessons that can be learnt about life off the mat, by being ON the mat. Now although wrestling isn’t MMA, it plays a huge role. Weightlifting regimes are taken from wrestling to improve functional strength, the work ethic is taken away to build explosive power and endurance, then there are the skills. The takedown ability, the drive, the controlling top game, the aggressive mentality – all can be derived from wrestling. In a country with the highest obesity rate, America certainly pushes it’s children in terms of physical exercise. We MMA/BJJ practitioners merely dream of the day that freestyle/Greco Roman wrestling is made part of the school curriculum. The growth of MMA, many have said, gives wrestlers – former NCAA champions, former collegiate wrestlers – a chance to have a career after the constant years on the mat during their teens.

Then there’s “The Future of MMA” by Bobby Razak. A documentary following the MMA lives of 2 genuinely gifted child-athletes. Both brothers, both training in MMA, competing in wrestling and jiu jitsu tournaments and kicking ass whilst doing it. Super talented kids who WANT to move on to fight in MMA and could go far.

Watching those 2 documentaries make you briefly forget about the past phenoms who paved the way for them. The BJ Penns, the Vitor Belforts, the Gunnar Nelsons and even Josh Barnetts. The guys who before they even started winning anything major – were seen as the up and comers of the sport. And rightly so.

BJ Penn burst onto MMA scene in early 2001 – only 10 years ago – in UFC 31. He then took numerous scalps in impressive fashion, beating nearly everyone put in front of him to hold belts in different weight classes in the UFC… but everybody knows that. The newbie UFC/MMA fan knows that. But do they know that he’s also so naturally gifted in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu that he became a blackbelt in 3 years. 3 YEARS. To go from white to blue on average takes 2 years, to go from blue to purple takes on average 3 years, purple to brown around the same and brown to black is a relatively short time of around a year or so. But even then, some people remain brown belts for as long as 10 years. So an average person will take 10 years or so. BJ Penn did this in around 36 months. He then became the first NON-Brazilian to win the BJJ World Championships IN BRAZIL.

Vitor Belfort is The Phenom. Literally, that’s his nickname. His nickname is defined as “a person or thing of outstanding abilities or qualities”. Vitor is no joke. People who have only just jumped on the UFC/MMA bandwagon will recognise his name from knocking out Rich Franklin in UFC 103 and being mentioned in the same breath as the ever brilliant Anderson Silva. Hardcore MMA fans remember him from the early UFCs and will have seen his devasting power and blinding hand speed. He is still the youngest person ever to win a fight in the UFC, when he was 19… when most of us were out drinking in the pub and having sex in 3 positions. He obliterated mentallist Wanderlei Silva with straight punches, chasing him to the other side of the cage and putting him out in his own corner. In his third UFC fight he became the heavyweight champion. But after facing some personal problems, the path in which everybody had mentally carved for Vitor, disappeared. Still holding a solid record of 27-8, Vitor is still a trigger pull away from redeeming himself and proving to everybody that at 33, he still has it.

Gunnar ‘Shotgun’ Nelson is widely regarded as ‘The Next Best Thing’. Tipped to be a title holder in the UFC within 10 years, the Icelandic prodigy is slowly working his way to the top. Like BJ Penn, Gunnar Nelson is a wizard with jiu jitsu becoming a blackbelt under Renzo Gracie recently after only a few years of training. Gunnar is a dedicated and dangerous BJJ player taking Gold in NAGA and the New York Open as well as beating former UFC title contender Jeff Monson and taking 4th in the (invite only) ADCC Championships. In his early teens, Gunnar was an Icelandic full contact karate champion and is now riding high in the UK MMA waves at only 21 years old. Currently splitting his time between training in Iceland, the UK and New York, it’s only a matter of time before Gunnar becomes a household name.

Josh Barnett is a name known, pretty much, only by the ‘in the know’ fans. People relatively clued up about MMA know he resides in Japan, is still fairly active and is one of the coaches of female MMA star Megumi Fujii. What alot of the new fans DON’T know is that Barnett is one of the pioneers of catch wrestling in MMA and became one of the youngest UFC champions at the age of 25, beating Randy Couture. With credentials nowhere near as bright as the aforementioned, Barnett is still regarded as one of the best in the business having started at a young age and relentlessly working his way up.

This handful of past, present and future MMA stars are who have paved and are paving the way for the up and comers of the sport, soon to be dominated by naturally gifted, undiscovered athletes. Only time will tell whether they’ll remain high on the wave like BJ Penn or have a short peak only to revive their careers later like Vitor.

I forget sometimes…

…that life can be pretty sweet. Life before Thailand was mediocre at best, Thailand was OK and initially, being at home really sucked but now… not too shabby at all.

SBG Iceland‘s Arni Isaksson fought Luis Dutre Jr back in November 2009 at the Liverpool Olympia. The best fight I have ever seen live and I will always remember.

Arni the day after

Arni is a great guy, very down to earth and is so funny at the weirdest times. A complete workhorse who will grind out anybody in the gym and can hit like a train. Beating UFC fighters Dennis Siver and Jeff Cox in a welterweight 8 man tournament back in 2006, Arni is definitely one to watch.

Training regularly with BJJ and MMA prodigy, Gunnar Nelson, Arni’s game can only improve. Having recently been awarded his purple belt, I can only see good things for Arni.

Highlights

Click here to read the event report.

FEDOR!!!

36 seconds via RnC after dropping Sylvia with a series of lefts and rights proves that not only is Fedor Emilianeko is one of the, if not the best Heavyweight in the world but also closes the mouths of all the UFC nuthugging TUF fans who think Fedor is a nobody.

Randy Couture is a more than capable opponent as well as a legend – took alot longer to put the 6 foot 8 inch Tim Sylvia away.

Randy vs Fedor… I wish it was as clean cut as “Fedor beat Sylvia quicker so he’ll win”.

UFC – be prepared to be dwarfed by Affliction in the future.