Big Night for Springfield fighters in UFC tonight!

Two Springfield natives with the first name Matt are looking to earn some respect the old fashioned way to tonight – they have to beat somebody up for it.

Matt Mitrione is scheduled to fight the collosal Marcus “the Darkness” Jones.  The fight received excellent hype the other night when Jones flew off the handle and got into Mitrione’s face for giving an accidental eye poke to Scott Junk in his first fight which Junk had been told by a Dr. was career ending.  Mitrione stood his ground but resisted the urge to fight fire with fire – and even seemed understanding of Marcus outburst when he heard the news about Junk (who he defeated via decision).  Later in the show, we would learn that Junk’s fighting career is in fact not over.  Luckily, the incident worked to Matt’s advantage as it guaranteed him an opportunity to fight on the big stage tonight.  

Jones vs. Mitrione is the classic stylist match up – ground game of Jones vs. strking of Mitrione.  If Matt can use his footwork to keep “Big Baby’s” hands off of him, and strike while moving backward as he did in his previous two fights – it could be a short night’s work.  Jones has been shown to be susceptible to the knockout, and Mitrione punches like he’s wearing brass knuckles under his gloves.  

However, Jones is a huge dude with a very respectable ground game.  When Marcus gets his arms around somebody, he is well positioned to use his size to take them to the ground where he can put his weight on a guy, do some G-N-P (ground and pound) and look for a submission.  Should be an excellent fight!

Veach has a huge task at hand tonight as well.  He’s fighting the very nimble Frankie Edgar to fill in for Marcus Arellio who was hurt.  Frankie is near the top of the 155lb division and needs a win to keep his title shot dreams alive.  But, as discussed in a previous post, Veach has the perfect style to take out Edgar with his wrestling background.

Both of our fighters are underdogs tonight (Mitrione about +$255 and Veach is as high as +$500). But, personally, I really like both of their chances.  And, as always, it’s not just about winning – it’s about being exciting to watch.  If the fans really want to see you fight, the UFC will probably have you back (just look at Houston Alexander – who I must say is the nicest guy too – I met him at the Chicago Golden Gloves a few years ago and he was incredibly humble and gracious).

Great night of fights tonight – and they’re free!  What more could you ask for from a Saturday night.  

We have a great card shaping up for our next show on Saturday, Jan. 30th.  I’ll have some more stories coming up soon, but so far we have Dustin Nelson defending his recently acquired Welterweight belt against Darren Jacoby.  The return of 6′4″ Dustin Jacoby and much, much more.  Tickets will be on sale in time for Christmas.  It’ll be a great stocking stuffer.  More info to come !

Brian Foster Dominates Brock Larson for upset win at UFC 106

Well, Brian Foster said he that was, “Going to hurt him…like bad.” And, although Vegas had Foster as a 5 to 1 underdog, that’s exactly what he did.

Foster showed impressive ground and pound, veteran patience and overcame two illegal strikes for the biggest win of his career this past weekend.

Foster was up at the end of a dominate first round where he beat Larson up all over the octagon and sustained two illegal blows.  Fortunately, good officiating was on display as a point was deducted from Larson for each infraction – first a kick to a downed a opponent and just a bit later a knee to the head of a downed opponent – putting Brian ahead 10-7 on the judges score cards at the end of round 1.

So, the HIT Squad protege could have rested on his laurels and made Larson try to take the fight from him.  But, waiting around to win a decision is not exactly Brian Foster’s style. He would go back out with a similar controlled aggression and finish Brock Larson via strikes at 3:25 in round number two.  Check out the links below for more detailed accounts of the action.

What a big win for Foster!  Brock Larson had never lost two fights in a row, and 2 or his 3 losses (prior to this fight – his 4th loss) were to WEC Champion Carlos Condit and #1 contender Jon Fitch.

It’s hard to guess who Brian will be given next – possibly another veteran to test his mettle such as:   Martin Kampmann, Chris Lytle, Marcus Davis or Phil Baroni???  Regardless, an impressive performance against a veteran fighter like this makes Foster’s future in the octagon look very promising!

You can watch a replay of this fight at UFC.com for $2.  A detailed written account of this fight can be found here at MMA Junkie.

Next Event Tentatively scheduled for January 30th – Looking for Fight Fan Feedback

Good news fight fans!  We have tentatively scheduled our next CCCW Event for Saturday, January 30th.  That is one week before the Superbowl.

Additionally, we’d like to hear from YOU.  We’re looking for your suggestions and feedback on our events.  What did you like?  What did you not like?  What do you want to see more of?  Basically, how can we make our shows better and more enjoyable for you? 

Feel free to post your remarks in the comments section below, or email us at capitalcitycagewars@yahoo.com

FYI….We plan to have fighter pages and a photo gallery coming up on our main site in December.  On this blog, plenty more fighter interviews, local MMA news and stories from our last event to come!

Vote Jayson Werth for “Unsung Star” Award

Jayson Werth has just come off of the best season of his career.  Of course the Phillies were disappointed that they fell a  couple of games short to the team everyone loves to hate.  But, without a doubt, it was a great season for Jayson and the fighting Phils.

Looking forward, it appears there are more good times to come for Philadelphia fans as they have resigned their ace, Cliff Lee, and have the core of their roster returning next season (including Jay who just finished the first season on his 2 year contract).

I was checking out the Phillies site the other morning and noticed that it’s time for MLB to hand out some year-end  awards.  They have numerous categories, but the one that stood out to me was that of “Unsung Star”.  When I clicked on that link to view the nominees, it was no surprise to see local All Star Jayson Werth on the list.

Jay is playing on a Phillies team which put over half of their starting squad in the All Star game, has two golden glove winners, a silver slugger winner and the NL leader in RBIs.  So, it’s pretty obvious how Werth can sometimes get lost in the mix a bit despite being an All Star who put up big numbers this season with 36 HRs, 99 RBIs, 98 Runs, 91 BB, 20 SBs and a glove and arm which certainly made him a golden glove contender as well.

I thought the announcers gave Jay a lot of well-deserved recognition during the World Series.  They were praising his game at every at bat – even describing him as the “most athletic player on the Phillies”.

But, it wasn’t until the post season that he was really receiving such recognition.  And, his talents were pretty hard to ignore this October with 7 post season home runs (the MLB post season record is eight) and multiple game winning performances.

Anyway, if you can spare two minutes, please go vote for our local All Star for the “Unsung Star” award.  Voting ends Dec. 11th.

Brian Foster to take on Brock Larson at UFC 106

The H.I.T. Squad’s Brian Foster (12-4) will take on former WEC welterweight contender, Brock Larson (26-3), at UFC 106 on Nov. 21st in Las Vegas.  Both fighters are coming off of a recent loss, and I’m sure they are similarly anxious to get back to their winning ways.

Larson was recently upset by UFC newcomer Mike Pierce who was just tapped to fight Jon Fitch at UFC 107 after Thiago Alves had to withdrawl due to injury.  Brock’s loss to Pierce ended a five-fight win streak for Larson who had previously only lost to top 10 ranked fighters in Jon Fitch and Carlos Condit.

Foster (12-4) lost his UFC debut against Rick Story at UFC 103 by arm-triangle submission but came away with a performance impressive enough to earn him the Fight of the Night honor with Story.

They will do battle on the undercard of a stacked lineup that is being highlighted by Tito Ortiz vs. Forrest Griffin now that Brock Lesnar vs. Shane Carwin has been pushed back to UFC 108 (due to Lesnar having to postpone after being sidelined from training with illness for several weeks).

When I saw Foster at our October 17th event and asked him about the pending bout, all he had to say was, “I’m going to hurt him.  Like bad.”  And, he said it with an ominous smile that reeked of confidence – a must for any man stepping into the octagon.

Given Foster’s pension for ending fights early and Larson’s reputation as a hard nosed fighter with a good chin, this fight has war written all over it.

Matt Veach to Fight Frankie Edgar at TUF 10 Finale Dec. 5th

H.I.T. Squad protege and undefeated lightweight, Matt Veach, has been upgraded to the main card on December 5th.  He’ll now be stepping in for an injured Kurt Pellegrino to face UFC lightweight contender, Frankie Edgar, at the Palms Casino in Las Vegas.

Matt Veach is currently 1-0 in the UFC (11-0 total) coming off of a very exciting knock out win over Matt Grice at the end of round number 1.   Veach had been given a very limited amount of time to prepare for that fight and was challenged with making a significant weight cut very quickly.  But, he was obviously able to prevail in a barn burner that had the crowd on their feet with the back and forth action.

Following that fight, Matt experienced a back injury which has kept him out of action for several months.  But, he will be well prepared for this contest – having already been scheduled to face Mark Bocek at the TUF Finale.  Veach was the obvious replacement for Pellegrino in this fight as Bocek has already fought and lost to Frankie a few years back. 

Edgar (11-1) will have an edge in experience as he’s stepped into the octagon with a who’s who of UFC lightweight contenders:  Sean Sherk, Grey Maynard, Tyson Griffin and Spencer Fisher.  However, Edgar’s one loss in the UFC may have provided the blueprint to beat him.

Although Frankie’s core fighting base is in wrestling, he was actually out-wrestled in a unanimous decision loss to Grey Maynard.  You could point to Edgar’s win over Sean Sherk to defy his potential weakness against wrestlers, but anyone who watched the fight will tell you that Sherk hardly ever went for the shot in that bout – instead attempting to stand with Edgar.  This proved to be a bad idea. 

Frankie has good footwork and is excellent at finding striking angles.  He kept his feet moving and put on a boxing clinic against the “Muscle Shark” last May for an upset that earned them the fight of the night.

So, the fact that Veach is not only an accomplished wrestler, but trains out of the H.I.T. Squad, is definitely in his favor.  There, he spars with Matt Hughes and is coached by Marc Fiore.  Fiore is a world authority on wrestling for MMA, and is establishing himself amongst the top trainers in the world like Greg Jackson and Mark DeleGrotti. 

If Matt can out-muscle Frankie, using his wrestling and slight size advantage to get the win, it would be a catapult for Veach’s status in the UFC’s lightweight division.  Expect a well conditioned and in shape Matt Veach to bring a high tempo ground and pound strategy that could make Frankie Edgar the perfect stepping stone.  But, make no mistake, Edgar is the real deal.  I’m looking forward to this one!

Werthy of a Repeat – Phils are NL Champs and heading to the World Series

The Philadelphia Phillies have done it again!  Jayson Werth hit 2 home runs with 4 RBIs and 3 runs to lead the Phils to a victory over the L.A. Dodgers, 10-4, in Game 5 of the NLCS.  Now, they play in the World Series next week against LA or New York.

The Phillies were down 1-0 going into the latter part of the introductory inning on a solo shot.  But, they wouldn’t be down for long.  With two men out, All Star Chase Utley drew a walk to put a man on for the Phillies consistent run producer, Ryan Howard. 

Although not officially an intentional walk, it seemed as if they were pitching around Howard - throwing him 4 straight balls (all of which were inside with a few nearly hitting him).

Next up and batting 5th was Springfield native, Jayson Werth.  Jay worked the count full without having to swing.  The first 3 pitches were balls – and the pitcher had just walked two batters in a row.  Then he made him pitch two strikes.  With the count full, Jay roped a drive down the 3rd base line foul.  But, the next pitch, he took deep into right center field and sent the fans into a frenzy.  

After that 3 run bomb, the Phillies never looked back.  Last year’s World Champions would log 3 more home runs in the game, and Jay would end up scoring 2 more runs (from first base off a double by Ibanez, and on his second HR – a solo shot in the 7th which is pictured below).

I can’t do the game justice with my summary.  For a more detailed account of the entire game, click here.  But, long story short, it’s a good time to be a champaign, cigar or beer salesman in the city of Philadelphia.

If the Phillies are successful in winning this World Series, they will be the 4th team in the history of the National League to ever win back to back World Champtionships.  The three who have done it:  1975-76 Reds, 1921-22 Giants, and the 1907-08 Cubs .

I liked this particular sound bite from Werth after the game:

“I was in a unique situation coming here to really see a transformation on both ends — not only the organization, but the fans and the city.  I feel like I was here for the old Philly and the old Phillies, and I’m here for the new Philly and the new Phillies.”

Jayson is pictured below with his wife, Julia.  Jayson Werth is a member of 28 Productions which produces Capital City Cage Wars.

Matt Mitrione speaks out at CCCW Event Oct. 17th

UFC TUF 10 contestant, Matt Mitrione, was a special guest at Capital City Cage Wars (CCCW) “The 3rd Coming” this past Saturday, Oct. 17th.  At the event, he asked if he could come into the cage and say a few words to the fans.

I haven’t seen the video recording yet to give you an exact quote, but essentially Mitrione said that he feels he was poorly represented in a couple of the TUF 10 shows so that they could create a villain and conflict (as is typically the case with reality tv). 

However, Matt is confident everything will smooth out once he is shown actually fighting and can prove he’s for real.

For those of you who watch the show, you know that Matt injured his left shoulder a few weeks ago.  And, some of the coaches and teammates questioned whether Matt’s should injury was all that real.  I’m not exactly certain what started the questioning, but this “fake injury” theory was exacerbated when they saw him throwing a football around and shooting baskets after he got home from a practice where his shoulder had been too sore to participate in all of the Team Rashad activities.

The funny thing is, Matt actually hurt and was treating his left shoulder.  But, he was shooting baskets and throwing a football with his right shoulder (which you can clearly see from the video).

I can understand how people missed that detail and were confused about his actions.  But, as confrontational as most of those guys are, I was surprised no one asked Mitrione about it directly which could have cleared everything up.    Instead, it became a topic of gossip.  And, the gossip even got so bad at one point that the coaches hypothesized Matt may be building up drama about his shoulder injury to later use as an excuse and potentially quit a fight as soon as he gets hit.

I don’t know Matt very well, but I can promise you that he has put his heart and soul into training for MMA.  And, I’m very confident he would never fake an injury or look for an excuse to get out of a fight.  So, needless to say, this situation was incredibly frustrating for Matt as they are in some ways questioning his character. 

Anyway, the ads for next week’s show have declared the next fight to be the “fight of the season”.  And, it is my understanding that Matt will be fighting on this episode.  You can hear more from Matt himself on his blog at fight! magazine.com

I’m just anxious to see who Mitrione fights and what exactly happens.  But, win or lose, a big-hearted performance would answer questions for a lot of people and show that Matt is there for the right reasons.

Pictured below at the 3rd Degree after party on the 17th from left to right:  myself (Mike Williamson), Brian Foster, Jeff Cox and Matt Mitrione.

Brief Recap for 3rd Degree – Saturday, Oct. 17th

On Saturday, I’d say we had the best night of fights we’ve ever had.  Huge thanks goes out to all of the competitors and fans who made the show a success.  Below is a brief listing of unofficial results. 

FOR THE AMATEUR BOUTS:

Ryan Gream def Dustin Lash

Brandon Wood def Troy Pence

Jason Smith def Santiago Vance

Darren Jacoby def TJ Bottom

Tony Christodoulou def Noy Ross (Tony took this fight on 2 hours notice after Noy’s original opponent backed out)

 Dustin Nelson def Keith McLaughlin for the 170lb amateur welterweight title.

FROM THE PROFESSIONAL CARD:

Wyatt Green def Rashid Abdullah via submission (amazing come back performance in Wyatt’s professional debut)

Justin Robbins def Nate Williams via unanimous decision

John Salter def Jeremiah Riggs via submission

Bobby Brents def Boban Simic via split decision (most considered this fight the best in our promotions history)

Thanks again to everyone who came out to our show to support MMA in Springfield, IL.  We’ll have official results, interviews, pictures and all kinds of stories in the near future.  So, check back later this week.

Werth with game wining hit as Phillies advance to the NLCS in dramatic fashion

The Phillies showed amazing composure this past Monday night under the most extreme of conditions, reminding us why everyone loves October baseball!  Up 2 to 1 in a best of 5 series, the Phillies were down 4-2 in the top of the 9th inning with two outs.

With a man on first and the count worked full, the baseball’s best 2nd baseman, Chase Utley, was able to draw the walk to put two men on for the big guy, Ryan Howard.

Howard, the NL RBI leader (141), hit a rocket into the outfield which would score both runners and leave him in scoring position with a double.  Next to take his place at the plate was local All Star, Jayson Werth. 

Werth would battle several pitches before landing one in an open spot in the outfield for what  would prove to be the game winning hit (pictured above).  It was a big night for Werth who had already belted a solo HR in the 6th, his second of the series where he batted .357 with 5R and 4RBI. 

Once again, celebration was in order (pictured below) for the defending World Champions who had a few days off before heading to LA tonight.  Game time is 7:07 CST on TBS. 

Jayson Werth is a member of 28 Productions which promotes Capital City Cage Wars (CCCW).