Asian MMA Update: Jadamba vs. Pang on Legend FC, Folayang Recovering, Plus ONE FC & DARE News
by Anton Tabuena on Sep 12, 2011 8:50 AM EDT
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Once again here's a round up of the recent news, bits, and details coming out of the Asian MMA circuit.
- Eduard Folayang tells BloodyElbow.com that he had his broken nose repaired in Baguio immediately after returning from Singapore. He's in high spirits after his victory and told us, "I'm fine. I'm just recovering from the injuries. I should be okay in one month, but I'll just make sure not to compete until it heals completely."
- Folayang plans to compete in the 2011 South East Asian Games in Wushu though. He has won gold multiple times in the past, and despite having other offers in MMA, his camp tells us that he prefers a shot at bagging another medal for the Philippines this November.
- Legend FC's recent signee, Jadamba Narantungalag will be getting an immediate title shot when he makes his debut on October 30th. The Mongolian, who is known for his upset victory over Akihiro Gono last year, will be facing the promotion's lightweight champ, Adrian Pang as the headlining bout of Legend FC 6 in Macau.
- Legend FC guys didn't seem to be too pleased about the rumors that one of their top prospects, Fransino Tirta, is about to get signed by ONE FC. They told me that he's indeed still signed to the Hong Kong-based promotion.
- Despite losing to Yoshiyuki Yoshida, ONE FC has announced that Phil Baroni will be getting another shot with the promotion.
- URCC 20 is on November 5, and with it being a milestone of sorts, the promotion is planning something big to go with it. They say it will be the biggest card they've ever set up and they're planning a few surprises to make it really special. Stay tuned to Bloody Elbow for more details on this.
- I attended the URCC University Challenge this past weekend, which had 16 amateur bouts with fighters competing from the different colleges in the Philippines. My brother took a bunch of videos and photos, and as soon as we finish trying our best Ekc and Esther impersonation, I'll post the video highlight here.
- Apparently, DEEP is hosting a show on the same day as UFC Japan. This was posted on DEEP's blog (HT: Fight Jerk). They won't be going at the same time though, as the UFC is planning to start their show at 10 a.m.
- Thailand's new MMA promotion, DARE, will be hosting their second show on September 24, and is having tournaments at eight weight divisions. The winners will be splitting $1,000,000 in cash, and considering the exchange rate, and the cost of living in Thailand and in other South East Asian countries, that would be a good payday for the up-and-coming fighters who are joining. They will be streaming the event online, and will be charging it at $4.95. Check out their excellent looking promo:
- DREAM 17 is on September 24th as well. They've released a few amazing looking promos to hype up a few key matches such as Shinya Aoki vs. Rob McCullough, Tatsuya Kawajiri vs. Joachim Hansen, Hideo Tokoro vs. Antonio Banuelos, and Takeshi Inoue vs. Caol Uno. Here's to hoping that other promotions would catch up when it comes to these types of videos. Check them out after the jump.
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I like that there is more coverage of Asian MMA now here. It’s a bit hard to find news for this area in English a lot of times.
Any plans for URCC to branch out of the Philippines ? I’d really like to see some more MMA here in Macau, or even Hong Kong would be nice.
by drawp on Sep 12, 2011 3:55 AM EDT reply actions 1 recs
It’s a bit hard to find news for this area in English a lot of times.
Which is why I’m trying my best to give them good coverage here. There are tons of people still lost and wandering around the interweb, and I would like it if they all made BE their home for that. :)
The URCC announced plans to move out of the Philippines before, but I’m not sure if that will push through…
As for shows in Macau, there’s Legend and I hear ONE FC will eventually go there as well… Plus DEEP wanted to go there but just got cancelled right? I guess you will have tons of shows either way.
by Anton Tabuena on Sep 12, 2011 4:20 AM EDT up reply actions
I’m still waiting for a decent gym here. The Macau BJJ is very small, the only real choice I have is to go to Hong Kong, but thats a mess with immigration and whatnot.
The OneFC brass have said that they’d like a show here in Macau, but who knows how far that is out. I’m not really sure how well the Legend FC show went as I was out of town then, but I know the Art of War show here a year or two ago didn’t really do that well. It was mostly visiting foreigners (rather than expats, or locals) and a lot of them said they had comp’d tickets, but again that was pretty much one of the last shows for AoW so there’s only so much we can read into there.
Do you live in the states and just have good connects for all the info? Cause you really seem to know your eastern mma
by Elstriko on Sep 12, 2011 4:57 AM EDT via mobile up reply actions
My sixth or seventh cop sense, told me you had some ties to organised Asian mma
by Elstriko on Sep 12, 2011 6:17 AM EDT via mobile up reply actions
More of a super troopers reference.
by Elstriko on Sep 12, 2011 6:33 AM EDT via mobile up reply actions
URCC did schedule an event for Macau
about 2 years ago, but like the DEEP event, it was cancelled last minute. Unlike DEEP, I heard nothing as to why.
I would go to Legend in Macau, but $650 + the ferry trip = unaffordable. Apparently, they’re getting “comped” by a certain casino there, so they have no incentive to actually sell tickets to anybody but the high rollers (read: anyone but me!). They only have to worry about selling about half the seats since the rest are going to the house to do with as they see fit. ONE FC’s second show is scheduled for Macau, but I haven’t seen a date yet.
Yeah the tickets were quite high for the CoD event. They had some ferry packages, but they offered those way too late imo and they were only for the VIP seating. I think it was something like HKD 3500 a person (which again is outrageous), which included two drinks at Cubic, a night stay at the Venetian, but not even Super Class seats on Turbojet.
the entire concept behind DARE MMA
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nAESo2uv-po
It's just a world, it's just a life.
I'm gonna be in Bangkok when DARE is on
defo gonna try and make it down
thought I might catch some Muay Thai at Lumphini stadium but this will be awesome too
let me know how the fighters are.
I’ve always been interested in seeing more and more Thai Fighters get into MMA… Hopefully if the promotion gets more traction, the top Muay Thai guys would start cross training. (doubt it though cause it’s a cultural thing)
by Anton Tabuena on Sep 12, 2011 6:55 AM EDT up reply actions
The top Muay Thai guys would probably not cross train
I am currently in Phuket training at Tiger, and I can tell you that Muaythai is beyond huge here in Thailand. It is tied to the history of the country, and supported by the royal family. It is on every weekend on TV, and there are small stadiums all around the place that have fights several times a week.
If there were going to be any top Thais cross training, there would certainly be one or two doing it here at Tiger or up the road at Phuket Top Team, where there is great MMA instruction. The MMA class here is full of foreigners. Not one Thai citizen to be seen.
'No I don't need a fucking coaster' - Luke Thomas
by Well Read Idiot on Sep 12, 2011 9:23 AM EDT up reply actions
Yeah, I know.
it’s more wishful thinking on my end. haha. Same with the Chinese and their Sanda… (but it’s not as big as Muay Thai in Thailand so maybe there’s a chance)
by Anton Tabuena on Sep 12, 2011 10:27 AM EDT up reply actions
Muay Thai is nowhere near as popular as it used to be and the only reason people go to the stadiums is to gamble, Muay Thai stadiums and horse racing tracks are the only places gambling is legal in Thailand.
This might be a bit of a sweeping generalization but Muay Thai is of pretty much no interest to the middle and upper classes. You might get the ocassional show which has some sort of formal royal support but I can’t imagine the royal family sitting round the tv watching the channel 7 fights on a sunday lunchtime.
Muay Thai is a route out of poverty so in the villages and in rural areas it is huge but in Bangkok it’s not such a big deal, if you asked every single Thai person in the crowd at Lumpinee ot Raja where they were from I doubt whether many would say bangkok.
That’s why MMA has got potential in Thailand because it could appeal to university students and the middle classes in a way which Muay Thai doesn’t at present.
This is pretty much correct. My wife is Thai and from pretty much the same area, Surin, where buakaw is from. While she is from a somewhat middle class background, most of the surrounding families are not. A lot of the men from these areas (e.g the northeastern province of Isaan) pretty much pick up Muay Thai or end up in a life of drugs and crime. Its like the innercity of the states, without the innercity, just rice farms and wooden houses.
That $1 mil is a huge prize. The main event winners on the televised fights on channel 3 or 7 only get 4000 baht which is about 135 usd, that’s about half a months worth of work for a recent college grad in Thailand.
by drawp on Sep 12, 2011 9:53 PM EDT via iPhone app up reply actions
Interesting take
Thanks for the info.
Overall it is quite a poor country, so I dare say that the supporter base is still huge. But I am not from Thailand, and could be well off the mark.
Soccer is definitely the number one sport here though.
'No I don't need a fucking coaster' - Luke Thomas
by Well Read Idiot on Sep 13, 2011 3:54 AM EDT up reply actions
I don’t even fight, but for a million dollars, I’d enter the tournament.
by discoandherpes on Sep 12, 2011 9:51 AM EDT up reply actions
I’m flying into Bangkok on the 30th so I’ll miss DARE by a week, but i’m going to be checking out some Lumpini fights for the second time. I’ve been to fights all over Thailand and Lumpini and rajadamnern are still obviously the best venues. The atmosphere is great there.
If you wanted something a bit more laid back and a bit more amateurish, go checkout the Fairtex fights in Pattaya. It’s every sat. night as well.
I am shattered I don't get to go to Lumpinee
I am on a training holiday here in Phuket, and stupidly forgot to book any time in Bangkok before I leave Thailand.
I’ll have to make it a must for my next trip here.
'No I don't need a fucking coaster' - Luke Thomas
by Well Read Idiot on Sep 12, 2011 9:24 AM EDT up reply actions
Phil Baroni's getting another shot?
Man, you’ve got to give it to the guy — he knows how to keep himself employed.
It’s cool that a DEEP event will be airing the same day as UFC Japan. All the MMA going on that day can only help both promotions in the long run, right? People will want to see which product is the better one, after all.
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by McKinley B. Noble on Sep 12, 2011 9:44 AM EDT reply actions
You must be happy/proud to see where Folayang’s career is at now, eh Anton? I had no idea who he was until you turned me on to him.
haha.
I imagine it’s a bit like how you guys feel now that majority of the dudes in your scouting report have been doing well and are signed to top promotions… that, but add a lot more bias on my end with them being from my country. haha :)
by Anton Tabuena on Sep 13, 2011 1:18 AM EDT up reply actions
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