Saturday, May 10, 2008
Wednesday, April 16, 2008
CQCintheCage 6/14 ftbragg nc
Those appearing on the card so far:
Ro Brower 170
Jason Palacios 155
Matt Taira 155
Willie Smalls 205
Ro Brower 170
Jason Palacios 155
Matt Taira 155
Willie Smalls 205
Monday, April 14, 2008
Sunday, April 13, 2008
More Fayetteville Observer on CQC
MMA: Palacios remains unbeaten
http://www.fayobserver.com/article?id=291267
By Brad Crawford
Correspondent
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Story Photo
Staff photo by Andrew Craft
Justin Goff, right, connects with a punch and knocks down Tim Miller in the second fight of the Close Quarters Combat in the Cage at the Crown Arena. Goff defeated Miller.
In Fayetteville’s first mixed martial arts event in the city’s history, an estimated 2,700 fans witnessed a night of kicks, punches and pins Saturday at the Crown Arena.
Close Quarters Combat featured nine total matches with the first six bouts fought by amateurs in a cage. The final three fights, labeled as the main event, consisted of professional fighters, including Fayetteville’s Jason Palacios.
Palacios, the hometown favorite who is now 4-0 in professional MMA contests, won the lightweight professional match in the night’s final event with a decision over Patrick Lopez.
After gaining control in the first round by pinning Lopez against the cage, Palacios finished off his opponent in the third with a choke-submission move.
Before Palacios’s bout with Lopez, the 24-year-old former National Guardsman oozed with confidence about the chances of taking down his opponent.
“It doesn’t matter how or when he tries to fight, I know it’s going to be a battle,” Palacios said. “I’m a well-rounded fighter and I’ll be able to handle anything he throws at me.
“I knew he was going to be a banger and it’s always important for me to use my hands.”
One of the most competitive fights featured amateurs Scott Stagner and Will Estes in the 185-pound weight class as both competitors fought to the wire in the third round.
After Estes landed a right jab to his opponent’s nose in the opening seconds of round one, Stagner fought back with a flurry of kickboxing moves to pull even on the scorecard at the end of round two.
Estes was awarded the unanimous decision from three judges (30-27, 29-28, 29-28) in the third round after forcing Stagner’s nose to trickle with blood, blotting the mat.
The match between Justin Goff and Tim Miller for the title in the 155-pound lightweight class was a battle between two opponents with similar jiu jitsu fighting styles.
Goff combined speed and athleticism in the second round to corner Miller into a submission. On a move named the “rear naked choke,” a popular finishing hold by MMA fighters, Goff earned the win.
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Fayetteville Observer - Close Qtrs Show
Published on Friday, April 11, 2008
Close Quarters Combat in the Cage and at the Crown Arena
By Brian Dukes
Staff writer
ADVERTISEMENT
When the first match begins Saturday night at Close Quarters Combat in the Cage, it will mark the return of mixed martial arts competition to North Carolina for the first time since 1994.
So you’ll forgive William Clark, managing partner for Spartan Entertainment Group — the group behind the event — if he’s a bit on edge.
Clark, like his boxing alter-ego, has been patiently waiting to produce a knockout event — one that he and his colleagues hope will become a quarterly production. They hope Saturday’s event at the Crown Arena will establish Fayetteville as a mixed martial arts mecca.
“We want CQC In The Cage to offer something new and exciting for fans of MMA (mixed martial arts), as well as the soldiers on Fort Bragg,” Clark said. “We also want the event to enjoy the same growth and success as the UFC, and attract new fans.”
The success he speaks of is pretty self-evident.
When Dana White bought the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) in 1994, it cost him a mere $2 million. The UFC, in production value alone, is now worth more than $300 million and has more than distanced itself from its wild and bloody roots.
“As president of the UFC, Dana White helped establish rules and weight classes,” Clark said. “And he thought of the fighters’ safety first, which you didn’t have in the bad old days.”
Safety is a priority for Clark and his fellow promoters with Spartan Entertainment Group. After all, most of them are soldiers as their day jobs and professional fighters as well.
“We know this industry, and we know that MMA is the fastest growing sport worldwide,” Clark said. “We also know that UFC pay-per-view events have eclipsed all of professional boxing’s pay-per-view events — with the exception of (Oscar) De La Hoya-(Floyd) Mayweather.”
Statewide ban
Clark said the sport has come a long way from its last appearance in North Carolina — an unsanctioned 1994 event in Charlotte that was eventually shut down.
That event led to the mixed martial arts being banned in the state
That changed last year. On Aug. 2, the General Assembly passed a law that defines mixed martial arts matches and allows for their regulation. It allows the Alcohol Law Enforcement division of the Department of Crime Control and Public Safety to establish and raise fees.
MMA was back in business, and Spartan Entertainment was first in line.
“We applied for and received the first MMA event permit under the new law,” Clark said. “Hopefully this will be the first of many.”
Clark said CQC in the Cage will feature both professional fighters from all over the world, as well as amateurs just getting their start.
“It’s going to be an action-packed show,” Clark said. “MMA is a physical chess match. You’ve got so many fighting styles and disciplines of self-defense to watch out for.”
Clark said the event — CQC In The Cage — was named after the combat principles taught to soldiers.
“Anyone who has had to clear a house has performed CQC,” Clark said.
The CQC term, he said, helps soldiers — a big part of the MMA audience — identify with the event.
Some of the proceeds will benefit the Special Operations Warrior Foundation, which helps to pay for the college education of children of Special Operations soldiers who are killed in the line of duty. Donations will be accepted at the event.
But would a soldier well-practiced in the principles of CQC and trained in MMA have an edge over his civilian counterpart?
“That’s a good question,” Clark said. “CQC builds a certain aggressiveness. It’s all about guys going towards the fight, not away. And that’s the kind of guy I want next to me in fight.”
The evening’s highlighted matches are Rho Brower vs. Ralph Green and Jason Palacious vs. Patrick Lopez.
“Rho is from Fayetteville, and Jason lives here now,” Clark said. “So it’s great that these two will get to showcase their skills in front of their hometown.”
Fayetteville, Clark said, is home to a lot of talented fighters, more than the town gets credit for.
“We’ve got all these incredible fighters and athletes here,” Clark said. “But nobody knows about them.”
That’s about to change.
CLOSE QUARTERS COMBAT IN THE CAGE
* When: Saturday, April 12, 8 p.m.
* Where: Crown Arena
* Tickets: $25 to $43 at the Crown Center box office, all Ticketmaster outlets, Ticketmaster.com or by calling 223-2900.
* Information: Go to www.cqcinthecage.com or call 438-4100.
Staff writer Brian Dukes can be reached at dukesb@fayobserver.com or 323-4848, ext. 411.
Close Quarters Combat in the Cage and at the Crown Arena
By Brian Dukes
Staff writer
ADVERTISEMENT
When the first match begins Saturday night at Close Quarters Combat in the Cage, it will mark the return of mixed martial arts competition to North Carolina for the first time since 1994.
So you’ll forgive William Clark, managing partner for Spartan Entertainment Group — the group behind the event — if he’s a bit on edge.
Clark, like his boxing alter-ego, has been patiently waiting to produce a knockout event — one that he and his colleagues hope will become a quarterly production. They hope Saturday’s event at the Crown Arena will establish Fayetteville as a mixed martial arts mecca.
“We want CQC In The Cage to offer something new and exciting for fans of MMA (mixed martial arts), as well as the soldiers on Fort Bragg,” Clark said. “We also want the event to enjoy the same growth and success as the UFC, and attract new fans.”
The success he speaks of is pretty self-evident.
When Dana White bought the UFC (Ultimate Fighting Championship) in 1994, it cost him a mere $2 million. The UFC, in production value alone, is now worth more than $300 million and has more than distanced itself from its wild and bloody roots.
“As president of the UFC, Dana White helped establish rules and weight classes,” Clark said. “And he thought of the fighters’ safety first, which you didn’t have in the bad old days.”
Safety is a priority for Clark and his fellow promoters with Spartan Entertainment Group. After all, most of them are soldiers as their day jobs and professional fighters as well.
“We know this industry, and we know that MMA is the fastest growing sport worldwide,” Clark said. “We also know that UFC pay-per-view events have eclipsed all of professional boxing’s pay-per-view events — with the exception of (Oscar) De La Hoya-(Floyd) Mayweather.”
Statewide ban
Clark said the sport has come a long way from its last appearance in North Carolina — an unsanctioned 1994 event in Charlotte that was eventually shut down.
That event led to the mixed martial arts being banned in the state
That changed last year. On Aug. 2, the General Assembly passed a law that defines mixed martial arts matches and allows for their regulation. It allows the Alcohol Law Enforcement division of the Department of Crime Control and Public Safety to establish and raise fees.
MMA was back in business, and Spartan Entertainment was first in line.
“We applied for and received the first MMA event permit under the new law,” Clark said. “Hopefully this will be the first of many.”
Clark said CQC in the Cage will feature both professional fighters from all over the world, as well as amateurs just getting their start.
“It’s going to be an action-packed show,” Clark said. “MMA is a physical chess match. You’ve got so many fighting styles and disciplines of self-defense to watch out for.”
Clark said the event — CQC In The Cage — was named after the combat principles taught to soldiers.
“Anyone who has had to clear a house has performed CQC,” Clark said.
The CQC term, he said, helps soldiers — a big part of the MMA audience — identify with the event.
Some of the proceeds will benefit the Special Operations Warrior Foundation, which helps to pay for the college education of children of Special Operations soldiers who are killed in the line of duty. Donations will be accepted at the event.
But would a soldier well-practiced in the principles of CQC and trained in MMA have an edge over his civilian counterpart?
“That’s a good question,” Clark said. “CQC builds a certain aggressiveness. It’s all about guys going towards the fight, not away. And that’s the kind of guy I want next to me in fight.”
The evening’s highlighted matches are Rho Brower vs. Ralph Green and Jason Palacious vs. Patrick Lopez.
“Rho is from Fayetteville, and Jason lives here now,” Clark said. “So it’s great that these two will get to showcase their skills in front of their hometown.”
Fayetteville, Clark said, is home to a lot of talented fighters, more than the town gets credit for.
“We’ve got all these incredible fighters and athletes here,” Clark said. “But nobody knows about them.”
That’s about to change.
CLOSE QUARTERS COMBAT IN THE CAGE
* When: Saturday, April 12, 8 p.m.
* Where: Crown Arena
* Tickets: $25 to $43 at the Crown Center box office, all Ticketmaster outlets, Ticketmaster.com or by calling 223-2900.
* Information: Go to www.cqcinthecage.com or call 438-4100.
Staff writer Brian Dukes can be reached at dukesb@fayobserver.com or 323-4848, ext. 411.
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