Final thoughts on Total Combat 27
March 24th, 2008, 12:10 pm · Post a Comment · posted by bwilliams
BY BRIAN WILLIAMS, New Media Editor YumaSun.com
BLOG 12, YEAR 1
Total Combat has come and gone and I am already looking forward to the next one, probably sometime this fall.
Saturday night at Paradise Casinos was a perfect night for Alliance MMA out of San Diego. Its fighters were a perfect 5-0, including a technical masterpiece by Shannon Gugerty in the evening’s main event at 155 pounds.
Gugerty, a tall lanky fighter with no ink, took the fight with hulking Johnny Torres of IE Grapplers out of El Centro, Calif., to the ground. It didn’t take long for some in the crowd to voice their displeasure for what looked like a stalled bout.
But to those in the know, Gugerty was controlling all of the action, basically toying with Torres, waiting for an opening. Torres survived the first round and actually looked to be back in the match early in the second period.
Again, appearances were deceiving. Yes, Torres was on top, but the bout was again on the mat and Gugerty was in complete control, moving in for the kill - a Guillotine choke midway through the round.
Joe Ochoa, who lost a close decision, a heavyweight from the Arizona Athletic Club in Yuma had a good professional MMA debut. He held his own with the wily veteran Brett Albe of Alliance MMA. The brawler Ochoa stood toe-to-toe with Albe’s Muay Thai - probably a little too long.
Ochoa won the first round by taking Albe down to the mat but didn’t return there until late in the final round. Tactical mistake in my eyes.
Still, Ochoa has a good foundation. He just needs to get more experience, drop some weight and hone his submission skills.
Not sure what to make of Yuma product Edgar Garcia training out of Arizona Athletic Club (formerly known as Yuma MMA). Saturday’s bout with fellow Yuman Efrain Rodriguez of Undefeated was a joke.
Garcia, 24, came out swinging, quickly bloodied Rodriguez and the fight was over. Garcia probably extended more energy climbing the sides of the cage to thanks the hometown fans than he did in the fight.
Rodriguez tried to be cute, flashing a smile and gesturing at Garcia as if to say “is that all you got,” in the initial moments of the bout. It’s fine to do that but only if you can back it up, and Rodriguez, who is a trainer and co-founder at Undefeated in Yuma, was in no position to back it up. He looked silly.
Garcia improved to 4-0 in his professional MMA career. I imagine his first two fights were like Saturday’s. He’s been pushed only once - unanimous decision over Jeremy Larson of Tucson in the Cage Supremacy welterweight title fight.
He doesn’t have a nickmane yet, so I’m going to throw my vote out for Edgar “the Barbarian” Garcia.
The challenge for Garcia and his trainers/managers is going to be getting him quality fights. He’s going to be on the Desert Rage (local fight promotion company) card at Cocopah Casino April 26. Early indications are that it will be a title bout at 170 pounds, but that is all I know at this point.
I’ll let you know more about Desert Rage at Cocopah as they release the information.
On a side note, Cain Velasquez, a Kofa High graduate and two-time wrestling state champion, is on the undercard for UFC 83: Serra vs. St. Pierre 2 at the Bell Centre in Montreal, Quebec, on April 19.
The Arizona State wrestling All-American puts his 2-0 record on the line against Brad Morris (10-2). This bout may be televised.
Velasquez is training at the American Kickboxing Club in San Jose, Calif. I’m trying to track him down. For pictures and more information on Velasquez click here . Look for me to blog as soon as I touch bases with him. For more on UFC 83 click here .
