Ries Returns to Rumble Ten

Amateur veteran comes full circle 

Bruce "The Moose" Ries

Pueblo, Colorado May 1,2013- Moose sightings are not uncommon in Colorado as recent efforts to protect the species have made headlines as of late in Southern Colorado.  For Bruce “The Moose” Ries however, it means returning to his roots at the show he started on five years earlier; Steel City Rumble.  The burgeoning pro will face fellow Coloradoan Santana “Sol” Martinez as the co-main event for Steel City Rumble 10 at the State Fair Events Center in Pueblo.

Ries now 24 years old is coming off wins over veteran Jose”Luis” Murillo at Mayhem 3 in Lamar and Pueblo's Kevin Carter previously and will be looking to garner a repeat performance at Rumble.  “It was a big fight for me because Murillo has fought wars in the ring.” stated Ries.  I have a ton of respect for Jose, knew that he would come forward and would not quit so we put together a dirty boxing strategy to beat him in the clinch and not on the ground where he thought we would want to go and it worked.”   Work it did, as the Moose battered and bruised the aging warrior for 3 rounds with a combination of knees elbows and dirty boxing tactics. 

Enter Santana Martinez who enters the cage with almost as many fights as Murillo and is known for the same tenacity and drag out brawls as the former and you have a recipe for an amazing co-main event.  Martinez will no doubt seek to add another plus to his current record which reads like a who’s who in both columns of Colorado mma with wins over Grudge fighter Vinnie "The Assault" Lopez and Bellator veteran Aaron Romero and losses to Ramico Blackmon and Josh Cavan.

“I expect Santana to come in every bit as tough and prepared as Murillo states Ries.  The last couple of years have really been a struggle to dial myself in, get my diet in check and conditioning right.  

Santana Sol Martinez

We took some fights at different weights that proved I need to be back at 155 and possibly even lower. I guess we will see but for right now I feel better than I ever have!”

One thing is certain we will see at Steel City Rumble 10 and that is fireworks when Bruce Ries and Santana “Sol” Martinez collide.

For more information log on to steelcityrumble.com Tickets available at Colorado State Fair Box Office.

Press release courtesy of:

M&L Landscaping, Print Pros, Anderson and Lopez attorneys at law and Wicked Paint in Pueblo.

The Importance of Drilling and “Proper Sparring” in MMA

I have said it before and often that one of the biggest downfalls of the popularity in the sport of mma is that it grew too big too fast. What ensued after the popularity boom of the late 90’s (and still continues today) was a mass race to cash in on popularity, perceived cash flow, and social status. The end result was a mix of good and bad with the bad being largely unregulated less than credible instructors, trendy wanna-be tough guys, non-standardized curriculum and sometimes greedy promoters looking to make a buck.  To this end, the fact that anyone can rent a storefront, hang a sign and say they are an mma school can make finding a place to train a sometimes daunting endeavor. 

GO HARD OR GO HOME?

I have seen gyms that base their entire syllabus only on sparring and rolling hard every class. These are the knuckleheads I often hear coaching cage side who's idea of corner instruction is relegated to: “BE STRONGER” or “TAP HIM OUT!”  Now, let me follow the aforementioned statement with my affirmation that yes, sparring is important but of even more importance is where it lies within your overall training regimen and how it’s structured.  If you take one thing from this article take this “Sparring without proper drilling is useless.”  Let me expand by taking for a second Manny Pacquiao or any other high level boxer during a pre-fight camp where making a living is on the line.  Sparring is purposeful and pre-planned with each session focusing on individual attributes, defense, or offense that is being emphasized for the upcoming opponent. It is based upon controlled drilling, specific pad work to reinforce the behavior and solidified by starting slow and building the response in a free flow environment i.e. sparring.  If the fighter is worried about getting his head taken off every session, he will revert to what is natural for him to do and never absorb the new behavioral patterns. This becomes even more apparent in the world of mma where trainers are often faced with the task of transforming wrestlers into strikers and vice versa.  If the fighter in question enters every sparring session with a “balls to the wall” mindset he will always resort to his base and will largely remain the same fighter over the course of his career, one dimensional and predictable. When you couple this with the injuries that tend to result as part of this teaching method it becomes painfully apparent that neither participant is learning, merely only testing their manhood to the enjoyment of fan boys turned coaches who believe sparring is the fight and not a tool.

Drill the Skill

Technique sessions should beget drilling sessions which should in turn be broken up into various scenario options with variables on ways to lead into the desired behavior.  

Example:

As part of my program I often teach the left hook sets up the double leg with the penetration step to the left side of the body. Now, upon breaking down the individual technique of left hook, change levels, step through and turn the corner I will begin the drilling process.  This often looks like:

1. Jab, Cross, Hook Go.

2. Then, Hook Cross Hook Go.
3. Then adding defense I may add in the context of pad work jab, slip his cross, hook and shoot etc. breaking the technique into different lead ins to get there.

4. The fighter should reinforce the pattern with a live partner loose and lightly adding the normal prefixes like exchanging jabs or kicks before hitting the new technique set.  You can round robin this approach with different partners to get different feels with the end result being that by using platforms and building intensity slowly the fighter will gain newfound confidence and comfort using the sequence in real time.  Also, a good segue into hitting the combination is to ascribe a codename for it that only he knows cueing him in sparring to hit the go button when as a coach you see opportunities arise while in the 3^rd party perspective  of the corner.

The resounding lesson here is that sparring is not a fight, it is a tool that should be used to reinforce desired behaviors, work functional cardio, gain experience, dissect shortfalls and prepare you for success.  Pissing contests belong in barroom brawls, not in the sport of mma. Train smart, fight hard and succeed!

Jose “El Fuego” Caro headed to Team Quest

Pueblo, Colorado February 1st 2013-Top amateur 185 lbs. prospect Jose Caro will head to Matt Lindland’s Team Quest in preparation for his 2013 professional debut stated coach and mentor Gabe Charboneau on Tuesday.   “Matt has expressed an interest in Jose’s talent and physicality feeling that he’d be a valuable asset to Yushin Okami and some of the middleweight prospects from Russia  scheduled to come out to Quest in March.” stated Charboneau. “This is obviously a huge opportunity for him to work with high caliber opponents and get away from the norm so I’m very happy for him.”   While Caro maintains a keen eye on a pro debut this year he states that his ultimate dream would be an accepted slot on the tentative and widely rumored “Ultimate Fighter” Mexico. 

 As an amateur “El Fuego” racked up an impressive resume battling all comers gaining the additional moniker “Giant Killer” from his countrymen due to his twice competing and dominating opponents over 6 foot 6.  His tenacity earned him top honors and nominations as the best middleweight amateur in Colorado and fight of the year for his knock down drag out victory over “One- FC” veteran Kaleo Gambill of Hawaii.  His most recent string of wins included a quick stoppage over previously undefeated Pete Quezada on the Jacksons MMA series followed by a title win via Fight Brigade championships in late 2012.  Charboneau adds, “To say this kid is talented doesn’t do him justice.”  “He comes to fight the best.  His few losses have only been to decision with one exception and that includes his debut against current TUF fighter Gilbert Smith.  He is handsome, well spoken, volunteers as spokesman for Bully Management and other community orgs and reaches that crossover Spanish speaking audience that every major brand/ promotion wants these days.”   Jose Caro seeks to join the ranks of other Mexican greats like Cain Velasquez in the coming years and experience gained at Team Quest will be a major step in the right direction for a man known as “The Fire.”

For more information on Jose Caro email Gabe@nuworldmedia.com

Tori Adams The All American Girl

In the world of women's combat sports, few athletes play on the same field as Tori Adams.  The first woman in the state of Texas ever to wrestle she learned to grapple hand in hand with learning her abc's.  For Adams a career following her Olympic pursuits would be highlighted by dispatching standout favorite Tsui Jen Cunanen then getting to the finals of the Tuff-n-uff championships in Las Vegas where she would repeat the feat by subbing out Ashley Evans Smith in short order. Adams was scheduled to fight fellow elite grappling prospect Rhonda Rousey who decided to abandon her post at Tuff-N-uff to accept a pro offer.  Soon after Tori became pregnant and many wondered if the competitive setback would derail her career. Not one to be swayed and only 10 months later she was back in training and most recently defeated Invitca fighter Raquel Pennnington. The future is looking bright for The All American and the top awaits.  Following is a brief  overview of her career:

Tori Adams

135 lbs

1-0 pro 4-0 am.

Ranked as high as #2 in the nation for women's wrestling

The Mat.com Wrestler of the week 

Adams won a gold medal at 63 kg/138.75 lbs. and was named Outstanding Wrestler in the women's division at the Sunkist Kids/ASU International Open in Tempe, Ariz., October 29-30. The tournament was conducted under the new rules of international wrestling. In the gold-medal finals, Adams defeated 2004 U.S. Olympic Team Trials runner-up Alaina Berube(Escanaba, Mich./New York AC), in two straight periods, 2-1 and 3-1. Adams won four matches to claim the title, sweeping three matches in just two periods and winning the other bout by pin. She opened the tournament with a 1:10 pin of Brenna Larkin (Forest Grove, Ore./Pacific Univ) In the quarterfinals, she defeated 2004 Olympian Tela O'Donnell (Colorado Springs, Colo./Dave Schultz WC), 1-1 and 3-2. Her semifinal victory was over veteran Canadian wrestler Helen Hennick, 1-1 and 1-1. Adams was sixth in the 2004 U.S. Olympic Team Trials. She is a former Junior World medalist, and has been a member of Women's Team USA in the past. 

• 2-time University National Champion 
• World Fila Grappling champion
• Fight To Win multiple time absolute champion
• Ranked as high as #2 in the nation, 
• World Pancrase Absolute champion,
• Grapplers Quest Advanced women’s gold medal 

 www.TiffinMats.com