Saturday Night's Alright for Fighting

For sophomore and IU varsity heavyweight wrestler Justin Kuhn, going up against a professional mixed-martial-arts fighter was an exciting challenge, despite his lack of professional experience. On Dec. 8, 2007, Kuhn participated in MXC Fight Night, a mixed-martial-arts event hosted at Jake's Nightclub similar to the Ultimate Fighting Championship.\nMMA is a fighting style that is set to determine which style of martial arts is the most successful. Instead of judo fighters only fighting other judo fighters, for example, it is a way to see which style would be the most effective in a "real life" fight, pitting fighters of all different styles against each other. An MMA fighter can use any martial arts technique he knows, as long as it does not violate the very limited rules of most MMA matches. MXC Fight Night used standard UFC international rules. Over the years, fighters of some styles have had to adopt other styles to be able to compete. MMA has become a hybrid style in which combinations of judo and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu have proven the most successful, but style hybridizations vary for each fighter. \nJust a few days before the event, Kuhn's roommate, who also fought that night, convinced him to volunteer and take part in the headlining fight. He took the place of another fighter who backed out at the last minute. Of the seven matches, his was the only professional one, the rest amateur. Despite the possible danger of getting into a hexagonal cage with a super heavyweight professional fighter, Kuhn was not frightened. \nAccording to the Ultimate Fighting Championship Web site, a light heavyweight class fighter can weigh anywhere from 185 pounds to 205 pounds. The range for super heavyweight is 205 to 265 pounds. \nDespite the differences in experience and weight class, he felt prepared and confident to compete against his opponent Dave Herman. Kuhn said he hadn't trained specifically for this fight, but in addition to being a heavyweight wrestler for the IU wrestling team, Kuhn has trained in various martial arts including kickboxing, judo and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. \n"I know Herman's a wrestler, too, so I'm going to try to focus on my striking," Kuhn said. "I think I can hold my own."\nKuhn said he wanted to make it a good match, but outright victory might not have been his main goal. In addition to the $300 payout, the main thing Kuhn wanted to gain from this fight was experience. In the end, he lost to Herman by rear naked choke, a move where the fighter chokes his opponent from behind. He plans to participate in more competitive fights after the IU wrestling team's season ends, most likely in the light heavyweight class. \nThis type of dedication and thirst for experience was evident in other fighters as well. Neil "The Lone Wolf" Coker, a 25-year-old IU alumnus who is a coal miner in Terre Haute, stood out from the others. \nCoker chose to compete because he was curious to see how his skills stacked up to other fighters' styles. He found out about the match through Higi and the IU Judo Club. \nWhile others gulped down Red Bull, made last-minute runs to Wendy's or debated which was the most intimidating nickname to use, Coker sat quietly on a bench against the wall, focused on the fight ahead. He was accompanied by his ringside man and one other friend, but they honored his silence and talked quietly to each other. Like most of the fighters that night, Coker was a mixed-martial-arts rookie, but he had a lot of other martial arts experience to rely on. Coker started practicing in judo at age 19 and has won titles around the country in the sport. He trained in Jiu-Jitsu and different striking techniques to prepare himself for his fight. He was confident in his game plan but was still a little nervous.\n"I don't know what to expect. I'm just going to fight my fight," he said. \nNobody seemed more committed to the event than Bloomington native and mixed-martial-arts fighter Chris Higi, the man who put it all together. Higi wanted to give fighters in the area an opportunity to get some experience and get involved. He mentioned that there are fights where they get underpaid or otherwise abused. His main objective for the first event was to put on a good show that was fun for the audience while making sure the fighters were taken care of. He made sure to have doctor examinations before the fights, insurance forms, safety briefing, EMTs ringside and a professional referee.\n"I want to do this a few more times, and if I make enough money, I can start bringing in more talent, better talent and hopefully keep doing shows," he said.\nThe back room, where the cage and seating were, was sparsely populated at the time the championship was supposed to start. The first fight was delayed for about 30 minutes while the staff of Jake's waited for the area to fill up. Despite the early 8 p.m. start, the $15 entry and it being the weekend before finals week, the seating was about three-fourths full when the first fight began, although the main bar area was almost empty. \nCory Mahon, an undefeated 21-year-old professional mixed-martial-arts fighter, was one of the judges for the night because of his connection to Higi. He said that many of these competitive events are at bars such as Jake's or small arenas such as high school or college basketball gyms, especially those with so many amateur matches. As this was the first event organized by Higi, most of the fighters were amateurs. \n"Everyone starts here," Mahon said. \nMahon also said that most of the MXC fighters just want to get experience, not exposure, from these types of fights, so the audience is of little importance. Amateur MMA fighters need experience so they can gain exposure to other hybrid fighters, recognize the flaws in their technique and add new moves to their repertoire. When a fighter enters MMA, he probably is specialized in one type of martial arts training. Even though some, like Coker and Kuhn, had a somewhat wider range of prior experience, it is a totally different world when you have to go against someone who is combining many types of moves and using them interchangeably.\nStill, the ambition and passion shown by many of the fighters and those around them contrasted with the attitude of much of the audience. Many of the spectators seemed drawn by the promise of violence and maybe a little blood. While the spectators observed for entertainment purposes, it was more serious for the fighters. Even those who appeared rowdy at first became more serious as their fight came closer. For the fighters, matches can be a test of character or validation in talent. \nBrandon Bezy, a 24-year-old who likes watching UFC on TV, was excited to see a mixed-martial-arts fight live for the first time. \nHe believes Jake's is an ideal venue to host an event like this. \n"If they got the space, then this is the place," he said. \nBezy had brought a few friends, all of whom seemed eager to "see some dudes get knocked out."\nSupporters and friends of the participants made up much of the crowd. Quite a few IU Judo Club members, such as junior Emily Laughlin, attended to show their support for Coker and others who had ties with the group. \nJake's made an effort to transition from a nightclub to fighting arena. The club offered VIP ringside seating as well as rows of folding chairs for others. "Ring girls" helped with the transitions between matches and rounds, dancing in the ring during the breaks as well as interacting with the audience. Higi rented a six-sided, open-topped cage that took more than two-and-a-half hours to set up. These touches helped create a realistic atmosphere even though the Jake's disco ball hung just a few feet outside the ring.\nThe success of MXC Fight Night at Jake's is hard to measure, and its future is still unclear. The next date has yet to be announced, but that's for Higi and the Jake's team to figure out. \nFor the fighters, the future of Fight Night is much more personal. \n"This might sound kind of weird, but fighting is fun for me. I love the competition," Coker said. \nKuhn echoed the same sentiment. "I wouldn't do it if I didn't love it," he said.