ONRA:January28,2010

Hafa Adai,

Congratulations to members of CarlsonGracie and TheGuahan Top Team for a unified force as Team Guam to secure a SilverMedal for the Gi and GoldMedal for the Team Competitions in the2010 Philippine International BJJ and NoGi Open at the Mall of Asia on January 16^th and 17^th.

Though Professional MMA might be at a delay for Guam, amateur combat sports moves forward as we have Preba Hao coming up this weekend.

Herman Torrado is on deck as a last-minute replacement this weekend in WestCoast MMA.

After a few amateur kickboxing matches in Norhtern California, Joey Lopez of the Spike22Academywill get a chance at his MMA debut set for February 7^th in Taiwans PacificRim Organized Fighting.

.On February12th,RightsOfPassage8:Fearless will be pitting CNMI Fighter athletes against Fighters out of the Korean TopTeam at the SaipanWorldResort

The Marianas Open has been rescheduled from February 13^th to May 8^th. Ian Lujan is preparing to compete in the Amateur WMF WorldChampionships for Muy Thai in Thailand this March.

With the recent restrictions the Guam Unarmed Combat Commision has put on professional MMA, it will be interesting to see what will be produced in amateur local combat sports and our residents’ competitions abroad.

The development of Guam’s fighter athletes have worked long and hard to compete and perform at its level today. A large reason for this was the frequent opportunity of paying events that would not only give talent their opportunity of competition, but also the financial compensation as an additional incentive to come with the sacrifice and hard work.

Of course, we can recognize the efforts disguised as new restrictions of our Guam Unarmed Combat Commision are a natural part of the evolution that comes with further legitimizing our sport among the masses. And there is definitely a respect for the goals of improving our MMA identitiy.

It seems that the general digestion of MMA as a dangerous sport is credible reason for creating such restrictions . However its healthy that certain things be brought to light when discussing how dangerous Mixed Martial Arts has compared locally to other contact sports.

Many of us have sat around the cage, mat,ring, or television set at some point to watch localMMA competitiors unleash their arsenals for victory. Weve seen bone-breaking submission holds, crippling punches and kicks, deadly chokes and mass entertaining finishing moves.Weve oohed, weve aahed, weve roared and clashed glasses in standing ovations but the reality is—how many of those bones have truly been broken, how many fighters have actually been crippled, how many fighjters-in-competitionhave died, and how many competitors have really, truly, been finished?

Truth—the techniques weve seen executed by some of these highly trained athletes can be lethal, can be deadly, and can be dangerous. But then again—so can walking on thestreet.

In an ideal situation, the competitiors that step into that event are supposed to be training like professionals. So as dangerous as the offensemight be, effective must be the defense. As unstoppable as the force, should be immovable as the object.This makes for good competition and as an added effect, good entertainment.

Every contact sport has its hazards, though injury isn’t the goal—how many broken bones and bloody noseshave we seen in local basketball, football, baseball, soccer? Even at the pre-high school levels. Accidents happen. But at the same time, so should preventive maintenance–that’s always a good thing to work on in every aspect of life. And maybe this is something we can observe as a consideration of a commission that this column never aims to disrespect.

So we should deal with what is real now and the fact is that the added difficulties to create a professional event will result in less events.

Lets face it, weve all seen people compete who have no business in professional competition. The scarcity of quality game players in the past, combined with last-minute replacements have disappointingly blazed a trail for this reality. Maybe these holds on professional competition can be healthy so that we can bring some of these “slower cars” out of the fast lane of competiton and back into the garage for some finetuning.

With today’s level of competiton, There is so much to be factored into being a successful competitive Martial Artist. In the absence or tardiness of frequent professional events–If there really is the urge to compete among our local expanding list of talent and ambition, good advice would be to take advantage of what is currently available in amateur and national ventures.

As we have seen in the past, Guam Judo goes places, Guam wrestling could use more training partners, Local Brazilian Jiujitsu, TaeKwon Do, and Boxing events as well as Saipan Submission Grappling need participants. These are some incredible ventures that could use the fire that comes with the game fighters that we see in MMA competition. Because in competitive martial arts, its not just a question of game. It’s a conversation of skill. And in this fast evolving game, a skill that always needs fine tuning.

For a silver lining in what might seem to some as a  dark cloud, hopefully we can take these holds on professional MMAand possibly even reroute some of this ambition into the nooks and crannys of other comabt sports that could use and cultivate our resources of talent for added success in more fields of combative and non-combative competition-— to reset our skill levels back into incubation, – for the greater good of our fighter-athletic world identity  and as anexpanded  illustration of the versatility of our fine and proud athletes.

Thanks for dropping by.

ONRA:January14th,2010

Hafa Adai,

Happy NewYear! May we all find and recognize Gods imminent graces in 2010.

TheFatherDuenas Memorial School Class of 2000 kicked off the new year on January 1^st with its fightnight fundraiser at the Royal Orchid hotel. Here we saw the last minute MixedMartialArts debuts of 2 of our young Jiujitsu notables Miguel Ayuyu and Mike Carbullido. Its going to be the Martial Arts Expo this upcoming Saturday Morning from 10:30 to 1:30 at the Anderson AirForce Base Youth Center. Props to the event’s organizers for giving us the opportunity to have a closer look at make our own comparisons of Brazilian JiuJitsu, Capoeira, Karate, and Aikido in their respective lights and under one roof for a true mix of Martial Arts .

It looks like the new GuamUnarmedCombat Commision (GUCC)has taken action to implement new guidelines for professional combat sports . The increased fees, prerequisite catscans, and dollar-per-head take of the door have edged the promoters of Premiere XTreme Combat to reschedule their next event from January 22^nd to a date still yet-to-be announced.

Though these new taxes might initially seem leave fighters and promoters on a limb, its only an open-minded approach that fans and supporters( looking for professional MMAs longevity) will be able to extract positive results from regulations that we might deem irrational. We must move forward with confidence that our government has activated the commision not as a power-trip but in the betterinterests of our people and industry. but this is not time for cross-examining, nor are we here to pass judgement.

The possible down turn for local MMA events here on island as well as its huge popularity that had sustained over the years has brought to mind some reflection for MMA and its position here in the islands.

Honestly, it is easy to understand why MMA might not sit so well with people. At face value, it can be hard to accept fighting as asport. For so many years, weve been taught to avoid fist fights. Society generally deems it as wrong. And the reality of lood and bruises easily associates the sport to barbarianism and brutality.

For those however, who have picked interest and have taken a closer examination– Many of us might have found MMA to be the at or near the pinnacle of athletics because, in observation, we have recognized the difficulties to endure such hard tactics. W e can testify to the intricacy of technique and we can appreciate the drive and tenacity of the human spirit.

Of course these can be found in most other forms of athletics but never before has it accumulated so well into a venture that can be enjoyed by and participated among most people. Look at its popularity around the world today. With our early connection to MMA, We haven’t discovered some ancient secret, nor are we exclusive to the entertainment and blessings that can come from such action. Its this worldwide appreciation however that has given us the benefit of driving and riding in a vehicle that the world gives notice to.

MMAs sustained popularity has indirectly or directly provided us with international notoriety and has helped showcase Guam as an island not just as a source of talent but as asource of cultivators of talent Besides giving us great fighter-athletes.This has led to many visits from current top athletes from all four corners of the globe. It has planted a healthy seed in open minded physical training, and has been a significant factor to fitness awareness thoughout all the Marianas.

The evolution of our fighter athletes, the growing scope of their horizons, the increased attention for Guam overseas is a definite testimony that in a number of ways—Mixed Martial Arts has “sharpened our blades” as participating and productive members of a world community.

So its all this momentum behind us yet we are at a massive speedbump for the future of liveprofessionalMMA here in Guam. But you know what, speedbumps are made for a purpose, just as are detours. Hopefully our local MMA’s industry’s roots in martial arts will offer the wisdom and method(s)that will turn what could be the demise of MMA into the redirection towards better things in a venture we have worked too long and hard for.

Difficult days might be ahead for professional combat sports here in the islands. But hopefully the years of rising in adversity, the sincerity of ambition in island pride, the intelligence of an evolving industry will find a way to continue provide our fighter athletes with platforms to showcase their skills, with vehicles to move us forward, and with landmarks to guide those that will surely follow.

Thanks for dropping by.

ONRA:2009YearInReview

Hafa Adai, Thank you first of all to fans and supporters of our island’s fighter-athlete ventures. The investments that we, in one way or another, have all made towards Mariana Island combatives have given us another productive 365days in MarianaIsland Martial Arts and its about that time for our year in review.In no particular order: Spike22 continues Marianas ventures in Japan with MelcorManibusan’s return to MMA with Guam’s debut into “Dream”. And Rota’s Patrick Ayuyu switches gears from Kickboxing to make his return to MMA with his debut in DeepImpact. TheSpike22Academy continues to sling our MMA stone into the international arena Jesse Taitano comes close to an MMA Word Title shot but was stopped at the hands of Professional Shooto legend MamoruYamaguchi. DeepImpact from Japan enters a fighter exchange program with TheSpike22Academy andPremiereXTremeCombat. In other MMA news:Guahan TopTeam’s John Tuck and Spike 22’s Justin Cruz rock Philippine MMA with same night victories against formerly undefeated Philippine top dogs Ed Folayang and Mark Sangiao. RichardChou, a man of many hats in the MMA World Industry, becomes the first Official Matchmaker for the UFC’s biggest competitor and worldMMA super power Strikeforce. Rick Blas Jr. brings home a Silver Medal in the USOpen of Judo, Guam continues to make waves in military combatives. Herman Torrado continues to win in Stateside MMA, our off-island Jiujitsu players gather medals in tournamernts across the United states,High SchoolWrestling has a promising year and Saipan introduces Russia to Mariana Island MMA. This year, , finally replacing the late chairman Jimmy Ferrante –theGuam Boxing Commision redefines itself as the GuamUnarmedCombatCommision with attempts at taking a more active role in a sport that they are at the very least, trying to better understand. Guam MMA shows its industry awareness to legislators when promoters remind them that Guam MMA has been regulated since its first event and like true professionals, respectfully holds its ground in intellectual dialogue and show that they understand exactly what they’re talking about. Guam law officials get more involved as BILL313makes attempts to trying to further regulate Guam competitive martial arts while Saipan MMA sets a good example and combines internal forces to convinces their legislature to reevaluate Bill16-26from the over regulation of competitive martial arts in the CNMI with Mantieni I Dire’chota. Saipan’s Frank ‘TheCrank” Camacho pulls off an outstanding MMA victory in the Ultimate Warriors Challenge for an absolute career highlight in an online broadcast featured on Sherdog.com but mysteriously fades away from the MMA limelight and goes back to basics with ventures into BJJ. Guerilla Warfare introduces Saipan’s first event championship title belt and TrenchWarz impressed us all holding to, for the most part, their year in schedule as announced in 2008. Guam Kyokushin Kai hosts introduces the First Guam Kyokushin Kai friendship tournament, ThePoundJiujitsu opens up in Hagatna, and were still standing by on the status of Guam Full-Length Martial-arts based movie hopeful, I Fuetsan I TaoTao. Mike Fowler moves back to The US. but Purebred/LloydIrvin Jiujitsu Guam continues to excel internationally as Eric Sian becomes Guam’s second BJJ World Champion and months later Purebred Guam gets a visit and week-long seminar from current BJJ multiple world champions Rafael and Guilherme Mendes. Team Purebred/LloydIrvin sends 33 competitiors to Japan to execute the Mariana Islands most successful BJJ international performance to date. Dominating the prestigious TokyoBudokhanInternationalBJJOpen inTokyo Japan, they delivers to Guam not only the respect of Japan BJJ, but also our next BJJ Black Belt in Terrence Aflague. Promoters from the Marianas Open and CopaDeMarianas continue to provide a quality BJJ and submission grappling competitive atmosphere but make room for Guam’s other BJJ event organization as a Guam-based-company-gaining international-BJJ recognition makes its event comeback with the ShoyorollAll Island Jiujitsu Championships. , It is obvious that through the hard work of individual ventures blessed with the pride of our flag, the intelligence of our people, and the Spirit of our land, Our islands’ journeys into competitive Martial arts has set its collective horizons overseas. Its healthy that , in this spirit, we continue to take measures in piecing our accomplishments together and sure we have a lot to be proud of but this evolving machine of competitive martial arts still needs a lot of work a ; work to throttle us athletically forward but also work to insure that we are don’t fall into reverse socially backward. With all our highlights, with our advancing international recognition, our fighter invitations to a growing list in off-island ventures, and all our improving fighter athletes—perhaps our biggest concern of the year should be at the impact this is all having on our youth. With these local high school fight promotions making headlines this year–. As admirable and/or disgusting as some might digest it, the fact is, without qualified supervision and faciliatation, they are playing with fire. How many more videos that we haven’t seen, how many more are in the waiting? And how many more, if we do our part, can we stop? More than ever, it is important that we realize the voice and capabilities this industry has given us, is not only a priveledge but a call-of-duty for the days ahead to make sure that we try our best to guide or persuade our youth (our future fighter athletes, our future citizens of Guam) to good things and good intention– so that in 2011, and progressively years after, while in speaking hopefully of an even more productive year in athletics, we can do so proudly and without shame not just to the MMA audience, but also to those who might-not-care-for but can hold respect for an ultimately collective venture not just for the pursuit of strength but a sincere and multi-faced effort for all of our people—past, present, and future ThankYou and Congratulations for 2009. GoodLuck and God bless us all in 2010..

Thanks for dropping by.

Flashback:ONRA.January2008/AngelSantos

Generations will come and Generations will pass, but if no generation has the conscience, courage, and moral convictions to right the wrongdoings of the  past, then the next generation will have to live with the  same injustices in the future.

We cannot be passive or silent when human beings endure suffering or humiliation. We must step forward and take sides, we must assist immediately.

At times we may fail, at times we may make mistakes.  But we must never make the mistake of failing to try. People deserve nothing less.

Fanohge Chamoru.
-Angel Santos

These are the great words of a good man who stood and fought passionately for the sake of our people and the perseverance of Chamoru culture. I cant say that I ever really got to know him. That’s my loss. But its never too late to learn. As weve been recently discussing
Marianas combatives as a tool for Island Unification and for the added purpose of paying tribute to the ancestors of this land, these words have been a great model for the focus of the fighting spirit cultivated in combat sports. I dont think its necessarily just about  taking sides or about  correcting old mistakes, but its also about positive initiatives  not just for the sake of victory in sport, but lso for the sake of fortitude in Life.

For the record, This column is not just about keeping us updated on locally connected combatives, its also about celebrating the sacrifice and accomplishments of our fighters and fighter-athletes. .

And really, there are loads of different battles, defeats, and victories. Unfortunately we cant cover them all but we will do what we can.Conflict and confrontation exist everywhere; the cage, the ring, the office, at home…Overwhelming stuff. MMA is celebrated here as a tool to invigorate the spirit and prepare us to face these challenges and to walk away in strong spirit, whether in victory or defeat.

So today really, Onra wouldlike to pay tribute to a man who incessantly fought a great fight, event to the point where he was criticized by the people he fought so hard for. And he continued to fight event o the day that he died. So lets continue his fight. Not necessarily in his method,a s we all expres ourselves differently. But in this day and age of westernization. We should learn to embrace technology and our expanding families even to our brothers from different places, inthe spirit of these lands,  and respect to those that came before us and those that will come and go after us. Forever watering these roots, so the fruits of our ancestors will continue to feed and nurture our people.

Fanohge Chamoru. AngelSantos.

ONRA:December17th,2009

Hafa Adai,

Congratulations to IAN Lujan who, at only 16years old, had become the MuyThainternational Association amateur 140lb. champion witha first round TKO voictory  in Las Vegas on December 4th. Hats are off and glasses are raised for the Guam chapter of the Carlson Gracie Jiujitsu Academy for taking the team trophy in successful The 4thAnnual Shoyoroll All Island Jiujitsu Tournament this past weekend.

TrenchWarz11 Redemption will be this Friday. Spike 22’s Justin’The Shocker”Cruz and  Undisputed PXC Heavyweight Champion Roque Martinez have returned  to Tokyo to compete in Deep Cage Impactat the DifferAriake Hall in Japan whileGuams youth will be on deck for our support this weekend in the All Island High School Wrestling Championships8am starting .at the George Washington High School this Saturday

Its interesting how significant the role that high school wrestling has played int he roles of Guam’s current fluorishing comeptitive martial arts environment. Melchor Manibusan, ,ZacRapadas,Maria Dunn, Eric Sian—how many other names in high school wrestling have we seen in the headlines of some of the biggest achievements of Guam combat sports in days past? How many more of these names will we see in the days to come?Even though wrestling doesn not publicly claim itself as martial art, it commonly offers and cultivates alot of the core skills and ethics required in the ever evolving talent that come with modernized Martial Arts competition and the true ultimate proving ground that we know as life..

Like any martial art,;collegiate, freestyle, or greco-roman wrestling offers a wide array of techniquesin dealing with different positions and combative situations. Competitive Wrestling, in general seems to also offer arguably the most physically demanding condtioning programs among other combat sports.Hardly ever in a wreslting practice, do we see efforts towards the conservation of energy or of steady pacing. really, even at its lower levels, the ill conditioned are left behind or forced to conform to the masses that  fall into the category of some of the finest tuned sportsmen and women in all of athletics.

But despite what wrestling or martial arts might have tons to offer in field-tested technique and science-defying feats of strength and stamina,  maybe the greatest gift that combat sport and martial art brings to the table is mental toughness.

When the going gets tough the tough should get going and that is a theme that hopefully our wrestlers will take not only into competition this weekend but out of the mat and into  their lives.

even in days prior to the UFC or BJJ, Martial arts seems to have always been a hit on Guam. Now however, with the newly revised technique in combat sports, with its strong emphasis on athleticism and proper nutrition— we are seeing in our islands the most formidable hand -to-hand fighters in our history of great fighters.

Proud for the moment , but not so necessarily, because there is so much more to our people than our chances of being recognized as the toughest, most unrelenting people int he world. Just as important should be the ability and the pursuit of the ability to weave this authority responsibly.

And just as valuable, should be the understanding that the abuse of such an authority is only a road to darker days .

Valuable is the gift of mental toughness but half-empty is this gift if we forget that the ability to be the hardest of the hard is made exponentially more valuable of knowing that opportunity also arises in also trying to understand the how and the when it is right to be soft. And then again  these things dont just happen overnight. I would assume thats what trainings for.

Thanks for dropping by.

ONRA:Joke

Courtesy of Sinaganata and ThePeopleOfGuam

Flashback:Underdog

ExhaustTheBody.ProceedTheMind.CultivateTheSpirit.

We sweat. We Bleed. Sometimes we even cry. The pursuit of performance is taking athletes and enthusiasts around the world to new levels of sacrifice.

 

In this day and age, with new discoveries in modern science with nutrition, sports, and health and fitness, serious athletes are educating themselves and working smarter and harder at every edge for an upper hand over the opposition.

 

Some people do it for the thrill of competition, the glory of victory; Some do it for physical fitness. But what about the people involved in sport that dont ever seem to win, people who never compete, or people who cant seem to achieve personal goals because of bad scheduling, bad genetics, or a lack of access to available resources. These are the people that never had their hand raised in victory, never stood on a pedestal, never received a medal, or even a pat on the back for a job well done. What keeps us going?

 

The competition is only getting better as we are getting older. The guys who were schooling us yesterday are getting schooled today and that winning pedestal we’ve been dying to stand on seems to be getting further and further. Do we shrink from the challenge or rise to the occasion?

 

 The hard-fought path to victory or even unvictory brings value and merit far beyond medals or trophies .  Diligent training, perseverance, and  the conscious will to improve take us to new and previously unimaginable levels in not only body but more importantly in mind and in effect, spirit. Realizing this teaches us that the victory over ourselves can be as important as, if not more so, than victory over others.

 

So for those of us who aren’t the best at what we do, Lets bring to the spotlight,

the discipline to be discovered in sacrifice, the commitment to find in goal-setting, and the humility to be blessed with in defeat.

 

Some of us may never be the best , but hard training, diligence, and sacrifice brings harvest for both winners and losers. It is important that we see, appreciate, and celebrate the spirit, in victory or defeat, we cultivate through self-perseverance.

 

 

Everything seems to be so competitive today.  Remarkable super athletes seem to be growing on trees. They are genetically gifted, naturally talented, well-trained, focused, and financially funded. They have managers, fitness and nutrition consultants, they diet, take supplements and get proper rest and recovery. And for some, this is just high school.

 

 

Realize that the number of Champions far outnumbers the number of participants. The odds truly stand against us. True, there is great value to become part of this elite, and there are also great lessons found in victory over others but ultimately it’s the path to and  the commitment and sacrifice to get to that destination, that eventually can reveal to be, in itself, the greatest destination.

 

The majority of us might never become champions. The majority of us might never get famous for all the hours and days and years of sacrifice and commitment. Some of us might never even win a match, a game, a contest, etc…But don’t let this deny you fruits of hard labor.

 

The opposition is working really hard today to deny you of the win. But remember Ultimately, only you can deny yourself self-victory. Work hard. Train like a Madman. Reap the fruits that you sew.

 

Exhaust the Body. Proceed the Mind. Cultivate the Spirit.

 

 

ONRA:December3rd,2009

Hafa Adai,

For Guam grapplers,The Shoyoroll AllIsland Jiu-Jitsu Championships on December 12^th at the St.Paul’s Gym in Harmon

 

and for Mariana Island MixedMartialArts Its going to be Guam vs. Saipan again in TrenchWarz11:Redemption at the World resort in Saipan on December 18^th

while on the same weekend Justin “The Shocker”Cruz and PXC’s Undisputed Heavyweight Champion Roque Martinez of the Spike22Academy will be heading to Japan to compete in DeepImpact on December 19^th at the Korakuen Hall in Tokyo.

 Impact! Its been a  tremendous time of accomplishment and a standing ovation for the MarianaIsland combat sports. Guam is making big noise in Philippine MMA as a big congratulations go to Justin Cruz for defending his title properly to give te Philippine National Wushu and URCC Champion Mark Sangiao his firstMMA career loss with a guillotine choke 3minutes into the first round of their main event match in URCC 18Redemption last weekend. While a few hours away inSaipan Guahan Top Team’s John Tuck made short work of the also formerly undefeated URCC 70kg. Champion Eduard  Folayang with a right cross knockout only 15seconds into the first round to secure the CNMI’s first lightweight championship title in the successful event of GuerillaWarfare3:Confrontation in Saipan.

Don’t stop the cheering just yet because its massive news for the islands in overseas Brazilian Jiujitsu with Purebred/Lloyd Irvins true landmark performance in The TokyoOpen International BJJ tournament. The collevtive performances of Guam and Saipan, of Men and Women,of Mixed Martial Artists and former high school wrestlers, one Olympian, of veterans and up and comers, from white belt to black belt, Team Purebred Lloyd Irvin Jiujitsu is returning with a bundle of bronze, silver, and gold medals to secure the highest regard from Japans BJJFJ organization in last weekends event.

Hats off to Guams newest addition to our growing supply of BJJ Black belts. After multiple gold medal performances overseas, after a winnng record in a short but fruitful MMA career, and as an imminent good example of a respectful and respectable martial artist in martial arts compeition–Terrence Aflague has joined the ranks of our very limited but growing supply of BJJ blackbelts

These are definitely good times for Mariana Islands combat sports and its inspiring to see that despite defeats, our efforts have multiplied to fuel ambitions that have grown over thousands of miles in ventures of athletics, honor, glory, and spirit.

Despite comeptitive martial arts imperfections, we can be sure that many would agree that our advances to excel abroad has serviced the islands not only in showcasing to a broader audience our fighting Spirit; but as a by-product has effectively advertised our islands to a growing world audience as a training and competition paradise destination that is leaving people with opinions of Guam as a type of Martial arts Utopia.

 In the process of sending our athletes to compete oversease and of soliciting and properly hosting off island competition and media, we are finding that we have been receiving increasingly good opinions of Guam  that has reflected a light that is helping our athletes and fans to the deeper realization that we come from a great place and that we have much to be proud of.

And proudly we can say that despite an imperfect record and the ever-obvious room for improvement, through our recent ventures in international comeptition Guam is setting a massive footprint in our ventures forward and abroad.

Footprints set deep for those after us to follow and ventures sincere for our islands and its people(s)–for our honor, for our glory.

Thanks for dropping by.

FisForFlashBack

PatrickAyuyu’s victory at his K-1 World debut

photo by Hody Jae Huh

FightingIslanders:JonTuckVs.EdFolayang

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