The mixed martial arts career of Henry Cejudo is off to a promising start, to say the least. Already holding the honor of being the youngest American wrestler to ever take gold in the Olympics, Cejudo made the switch to MMA last March and has already reeled off four first round finishes in the time since. And while his opponents haven’t exactly been the caliber of, say, Ronda Rousey’s first few, comparisons between the two are being made nonetheless.
And now, it appears the bantamweight prospect will be thrust back into the limelight once again (albeit a much dimmer one), as word broke yesterday that the Olympian has signed with well known Texas-based promotion Legacy FC. In addition, Cejudo is primed to make his debut on Oct. 11 against 4-1 Ryan “Riptide” Hollis at the Allen Event Center in Allen, Texas. The event will air live on AXS TV.
The four time high school state wrestling champion spoke elatedly with MMAJunkie:
It was very important to me to join a professional organization that will allow me the opportunity to continue to grow as an MMA athlete. It was equally important for me to partner with an organization that has an established track record of helping fighters grow into world-class athletes and champions. I want to fight for a credible organization and face high-caliber opponents. Legacy is that organization and has made that commitment to me.
After the jump: Cejudo’s aforementioned victory over Matsunaga in the Beijing games, a brief glimpse at Cejudo’s MMA skills via some Spanish news site and a video of Hollis’ most recent performance.
The mixed martial arts career of Henry Cejudo is off to a promising start, to say the least. Already holding the honor of being the youngest American wrestler to ever take gold in the Olympics, Cejudo made the switch to MMA last March and has already reeled off four first round finishes in the time since. And while his opponents haven’t exactly been the caliber of, say, Ronda Rousey’s first few, comparisons between the two are being made nonetheless.
And now, it appears the bantamweight prospect will be thrust back into the limelight once again (albeit a much dimmer one), as word broke yesterday that the Olympian has signed with well known Texas-based promotion Legacy FC. In addition, Cejudo is primed to make his debut on Oct. 11 against 4-1 Ryan “Riptide” Hollis at the Allen Event Center in Allen, Texas. The event will air live on AXS TV.
The four time high school state wrestling champion spoke elatedly with MMAJunkie:
It was very important to me to join a professional organization that will allow me the opportunity to continue to grow as an MMA athlete. It was equally important for me to partner with an organization that has an established track record of helping fighters grow into world-class athletes and champions. I want to fight for a credible organization and face high-caliber opponents. Legacy is that organization and has made that commitment to me.
After the jump: Cejudo’s aforementioned victory over Matsunaga in the Beijing games, a brief glimpse at Cejudo’s MMA skills via some Spanish news site and a video of Hollis’ most recent performance.
After defeating Japan’s Tomohiro Matsunaga to secure the gold in the Beijing 2008 games, Cejudo failed to make the cut in 2012. As a result, he ceremoniously took off his shoes, unceremoniously threw them into the crowd and retired from the sport. Because, let’s be honest, how embarrassing would it be if someone made the universal gesture for retirement only to accept a fight a few weeks later?
In any case, Cejudo announced that he was making the transition to MMA earlier this year. It would appear that he is a fast learner.
Being that his first four opponents hold a combined record of something between Kenneth Allen and Jason Reinhart in the UFC, it’s nice to see that Legacy will be giving Cejudo no easy test in Hollis for his promotional debut. Then again, Hollis is a natural flyweight whose 4 victories (2 TKO, 2 Sub) have come over similarly outmatched opponents. Opponents like the 8-12 Randy Villareal, who Hollis recently defeated via upkick KO at Big Dawg Promotions (*shudder*) in March. A video of said KO is below.
An impressive KO for sure, and one made all the more impressive by the fact that Villareal was apparently “being a butthead the whole time before the fight!” so sayeth the Youtube uploader. Surely Ruben, Chief of the Villareal tribe, will not stand for this act of disrespect.
Does anyone see Cejudo using his grappling background to notch another quick victory, or will Hollis prove too much for the Olympian in his (semi) mainstream debut? While you discuss that, make sure to also harass Sherdog — who mislabelled the above KO as the result of a “Punch” — via the social networking site of your choice until they give Hollis his due credit.
(I would totally wear that shirt. But if somebody asks me who it’s supposed to be, I’d tell them it’s Rob Tyner. / Photo via MMADiehards)
Former Olympic wrestler Ben Askren is undefeated in 12 fights since he began fighting MMA in 2009, has won his last two by TKO, and has beaten many of the best welterweights outside of the UFC. It’s little wonder why fans have been curious how the Bellator welterweight champion would do against the best in the world in the UFC and even champion Georges St. Pierre, if only because of Askren’s superb wrestling.
But last week, when White was asked whether the UFC would speak with Askren, whose contract is up with Bellator, White said that his promotion would indeed talk to the 2008 U.S. Olympic Freestlye wrestler.
That was trippy enough, but it’s a testament to the fact that the UFC usually seeks out the best fighters in the world, no matter how popular or “exciting” MMA fans or White himself think they are. Bellator, however, seems to be taking a different approach.
(I would totally wear that shirt. But if somebody asks me who it’s supposed to be, I’d tell them it’s Rob Tyner. / Photo via MMADiehards)
Former Olympic wrestler Ben Askren is undefeated in 12 fights since he began fighting MMA in 2009, has won his last two by TKO, and has beaten many of the best welterweights outside of the UFC. It’s little wonder why fans have been curious how the Bellator welterweight champion would do against the best in the world in the UFC and even champion Georges St. Pierre, if only because of Askren’s superb wrestling.
But last week, when White was asked whether the UFC would speak with Askren, whose contract is up with Bellator, White said that his promotion would indeed talk to the 2008 U.S. Olympic Freestlye wrestler.
That was trippy enough, but it’s a testament to the fact that the UFC usually seeks out the best fighters in the world, no matter how popular or “exciting” MMA fans or White himself think they are. Bellator, however, seems to be taking a different approach.
“If Ben’s going to go to the UFC, we should speed up that process so he can go fight. I’d love to see Ben versus GSP,” Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney recently told ESPN.
“I don’t think we’re going to make an offer at this point…So I don’t see any reason to make anybody sit out.”
When Bellator actually wants a fighter, they have no problem making them “sit out” during protracted legal battles. This guy know what we’re talking about.
“If the UFC does make an offer, we’ll take a look at it and move on from there,” Rebney said. “We haven’t been proactive yet. I have nothing but good things to say about Ben as a fighter, but we’re all very aware of how he fights and what he does. It’s not for everyone.”
Not for Bellator, we guess. It appears that Askren is not exciting enough to Bellator and the fact that he’s a dominant, elite fighter isn’t enough to interest them at whatever financial cost they imagine he’ll run them.
So, Bellator currently looks poised to let a champion walk away. Not that they’ve exactly been a bastion of title respect and consistency up to this point anyhow.
If Askren joins the UFC, who do you want to see him face first, nation? He’d become the most accomplished amateur wrestler in the welterweight division immediately. Do you those skills will be enough to challenge the likes of Georges St. Pierre and Johny Hendricks?
MMA fighters are typically quite good at talking about participating in the sport in philosophical terms. It is human chess, it is the ultimate competition, they feel peace in the cage or ring after the bell sounds, they get a thrill out of it, it is the most pure sport expression of martial arts, etc.
Most MMA fighters are pretty smart and since they participate in a constantly attacked and judged sport, many have come to see themselves as ambassadors for the sport on the whole.
It is important to remember, however, that professional fighters are prize fighters. That is, no matter what auxiliary benefits they get for fighting other trained athletes, they do it for money.
Fighters fight to put food on their plates and roofs over their heads. Joe Warren never forgets this.
The former Greco Roman wrestling world champion is in his car driving to his home state of Michigan on a recent afternoon. In tow, are the reasons he fights – his family. After winning a world championship, Warren was focused on making the U.S. Olympic team in 2008 and going to Beijing and winning gold.
A failed marijuana test and ensuing two-year suspension slammed that door shut for Warren. It was only then, at the relatively ancient age of thirty two, that he decided to follow in the footsteps of other world-class wrestlers turned fighters like Mark Coleman, Dan Henderson and Matt Lindland and fight MMA.
“I was training to win a world championship, I won a world championship and then didn’t get to wrestle in the Olympics,” Warren tells CagePotato on the ride to Michigan.
“While training for wrestling, some of the best fighters ever were in the room. Guys like Randy Couture, Matt Lindland and Dan Henderson. So, it was always in my mind. I started to do a little bit of color commentary but I didn’t have any credibility in fighting because I hadn’t fought. So, I decided to take some fights. I had some babies now and I needed to keep making cash.
So, I called Dan [Henderson] and they got me a fight instantly. In a month, I was in the Featherweight World Grand Prix. I flew out there starting fighting.”
Not only did Warren jump right into the fire against champions like Chase Beebe, “Kid” Yamamoto and Bibiano Fernandes in his very first three fights back in 2009, he did so with only a month of MMA training in his pocket. “I went in there strictly a wrestler,” Warren says.
“I flew out to Team Quest maybe a month before my first fight in Japan. I didn’t have a chance to learn the fighting aspect of it. It was just about safety – keep my hands up.”
Despite his lack of experience and, frankly, skills, Warren did well. He beat Beebe and Yamamoto before losing by submission to Fernandes. Then, he moved on to Bellator and won their featherweight title.
MMA fighters are typically quite good at talking about participating in the sport in philosophical terms. It is human chess, it is the ultimate competition, they feel peace in the cage or ring after the bell sounds, they get a thrill out of it, it is the most pure sport expression of martial arts, etc.
Most MMA fighters are pretty smart and since they participate in a constantly attacked and judged sport, many have come to see themselves as ambassadors for the sport on the whole.
It is important to remember, however, that professional fighters are prize fighters. That is, no matter what auxiliary benefits they get for fighting other trained athletes, they do it for money.
Fighters fight to put food on their plates and roofs over their heads. Joe Warren never forgets this.
The former Greco Roman wrestling world champion is in his car driving to his home state of Michigan on a recent afternoon. In tow, are the reasons he fights – his family. After winning a world championship, Warren was focused on making the U.S. Olympic team in 2008 and going to Beijing and winning gold.
A failed marijuana test and ensuing two-year suspension slammed that door shut for Warren. It was only then, at the relatively ancient age of thirty two, that he decided to follow in the footsteps of other world-class wrestlers turned fighters like Mark Coleman, Dan Henderson and Matt Lindland and fight MMA.
“I was training to win a world championship, I won a world championship and then didn’t get to wrestle in the Olympics,” Warren tells CagePotato on the ride to Michigan.
“While training for wrestling, some of the best fighters ever were in the room. Guys like Randy Couture, Matt Lindland and Dan Henderson. So, it was always in my mind. I started to do a little bit of color commentary but I didn’t have any credibility in fighting because I hadn’t fought. So, I decided to take some fights. I had some babies now and I needed to keep making cash.
So, I called Dan [Henderson] and they got me a fight instantly. In a month, I was in the Featherweight World Grand Prix. I flew out there starting fighting.”
Not only did Warren jump right into the fire against champions like Chase Beebe, “Kid” Yamamoto and Bibiano Fernandes in his very first three fights back in 2009, he did so with only a month of MMA training in his pocket. “I went in there strictly a wrestler,” Warren says.
“I flew out to Team Quest maybe a month before my first fight in Japan. I didn’t have a chance to learn the fighting aspect of it. It was just about safety – keep my hands up.”
Despite his lack of experience and, frankly, skills, Warren did well. He beat Beebe and Yamamoto before losing by submission to Fernandes. Then, he moved on to Bellator and won their featherweight title.
Warren underscores the fact that he is still essentially brand new to MMA – not having built up muscle memory in key areas like striking and submission grappling that his opponents have. On the strength of his wrestling and will, Warren has found success in MMA.
Still, in both victory and defeat, Warren has been in some brutal fights. Warren calls himself “The Baddest Man on the Planet,” but is still somehow humble in acknowledging his shortcomings and assessing his future.
“I got into MMA to provide for my family and strictly on being the baddest man on the planet in Greco Roman Wrestling at that weight,” he says.
“I felt I was the toughest in the world and so I took that attitude and went after it. It was dangerous but it worked out for me. I just showed up to win these tournaments. I jumped in the deep end with both feet and came out of it.”
That said, Warren would have taken more time to learn the craft, in a perfect world. “Definitely if I would have had more time to develop, I would have taken more time,” he says.
“Then again, maybe if I would have gone slowly, taken some fights as an amateur, I wouldn’t be at where I am. A lot of people are dying to make money fighting and I started making money fighting right away. I wish I had the technique I needed but instead of that, I’ve just used will power. I push with everything I have. And yes, because of that, I’ve taken some punishment. These guys [I fight] are as good at what I did in wrestling but in Jiu Jitsu or in Muay Thai.”
Perhaps it was that same confidence and refusal to respect obstacles led Warren to continue to pursue his Olympic dream. After serving his two year suspension from international wrestling, Warren continued to fight MMA but also vied for a spot on the 2012 U.S. team.
The fighter’s family didn’t need to eat any less than they had a few years earlier, so he couldn’t afford to stop competing in MMA while trying to make the U.S. Greco Roman Wrestling team.
Not only did Warren train in both MMA and wrestling simultaneously, he entered the U.S. qualifying tournament just a couple weeks after losing to Pat Curran in a Bellator title fight. If you’ve got a weak heart, don’t watch that fight.
Warren got caught by Curran and, by combination of his own incredible chin, conditioning and heart, and an irresponsible job done by the attending referee, went on to take some of the worst, most unnecessary punishment any top MMA fighter has in recent years, before a criminally late third round stoppage. This TKO was just months after getting knocked out by Alexis Vila.
Warren took whatever level of brain trauma that he had sustained in the past eight months or so with him to the Olympic qualifying tournament, cut weight and wrestled match after match. He started out very strong, earning a pin, before getting beat and eliminated.
(Warren’s 2006 Greco Roman Wrestling World Championship winning match)
Warren got back on the winning track in MMA last fall with a win at Bellator 80. He is also now one of four coaches on Bellator and Spike’s ‘Fight Master’ reality competition show.
Coaching and speaking television spots may take up more of Warren’s time in the future, he says, but he’s also still intent on fighting. Also, the wrestler isn’t ready to say he’s done with international wrestling competition, either.
“I still believe, right now, that I’m the best Greco roman wrestler in the world. I don’t believe that I’ve lost anything. I want to wrestle but I need to support my family,” he says.
“I’m using fighting as my job. Things happen. I fought about fifteen days before the Olympic team trials. They didn’t want to let me wrestle. But finally, they let me out of bed. I lost to a good wrestler that I’ve beat before. I believed that if I made the team I could have medaled. Still, I got a good opportunity to coach. Even after I began fighting, I always planned to go out and try for the Olympics again. Who knows? The World Championships are in Las Vegas in 2015. Maybe if I’m done fighting by then, I’ll walk over and show them that I’m still the best in the world.”
For now, Warren is excited about ‘Fight Master’, and prepping for his next fight. Watching fighters compete to get on ‘Fight Master’ on the debut episode last week was “like sitting on your couch watching fights with your buddies,” for Warren.
“I got so excited and animated watching because it just came naturally. You’re watching fights ringside – that’s always exciting. Especially when they are fighting for $100,000 and a contract. It was a lot of fun sitting up there with Randy Couture, Greg Jackson and Frank Shamrock. They are all good friends of mine and are so knowledgeable. I’m actually training with Jackson a bit now and it is great.”
Coaching wasn’t something new for Warren. He says he was able to bring a lot of teaching experience to his team on ‘Fight Master’.
“I coached for years and am still a coach. More importantly, I have been coached by top-tier coaches my whole life so it was beneficial to have me as a coach for these guys. Plus, I know how to fight in these Bellator tournaments,” he says.
Warren has certainly taken his MMA career seriously, and committed much blood and sweat to it these past four years. At the same time, he seems to do it soley to make a living.
Men of character use whatever talents they possess to provide for their families. Some collect trash, some work in mines, others ride a desk. Some few souls brave and capable enough, literally fight for their families.
Joe Warren loves his family and loves wrestling MMA is something he’s good at and can make money. One love has to be put aside while he earns for his other.
With that said, can his success in MMA ever make up for the Olympic void he has in his wrestling career. Randy Couture, perhaps the most accomplished MMA fighter in history, is still haunted by his failures to make the full Olympic team.
He tried four different times and four times he was relegated to being an alternate. Despite a hall of fame career behind him in MMA, with world titles won in multiple weight classes, Couture has said that wrestling Olympic void still stings.
Can a mere job like MMA ever fill the wrestling void for Warren? “I’ve never had anyone ask me that,” he says before pausing.
“We are wrestlers. We start wrestling as young kids. It is our first sport. Our whole life we want to be world champions and Olympic champions. I was able to do that – to win a world championship, which is tougher than the Olympics. I won Pan Ams, the World Cip. I understand what Randy is saying when he talks about those frustrations. But, I got to that pinnacle of wrestling. The one thing I didn’t get was the Olympics. That would have just been another cherry on top.
“I get what Randy talks about. It is so hard to work your whole life and never win that medal or make the team. When you wrestle for the Olympic team it is not for making money. It is for personal gratification. For you to have given all you have and not get what you want, is hard. But I got that opportunity to get a world championship. Then, I moved into a new sport and won another world championship. Whatever else I do, and I would like another belt, I am a realist.
“I can easily put my wrestling shoes and my MMA gloves in a closet when I’m done. I believe there’s a future in coaching and other things. I’m open minded to what the future will bring.”
Not to get your hopes up too much, Nation, but in a vote held yesterday in St. Petersburg, Russia, the IOC (International Olympic Committee) recommended three sports for inclusion in the 2020 Olympic Games: Baseball/Softball, Squash, and Wrestling, the latter of which was unjustly pulled from the games in February. While wrestling finds itself against some stiff competition (in baseball/softball at least, squash is right up there with handball in terms of asinine Olympic sports), this still represents a major hurdle being cleared in the race to save the foundational Olympic sport.
The international governing body (FILA) President, Nenad Lalovic, along with former Olympic wrestlers Jim Scherr (U.S.), Lise Legrand (France), Carol Huynh (Canada), and Daniel Igali (Nigeria) were chosen to plead wrestling’s case to the IOC yesterday. In a pre-written statement, Lalovic continued to push the idea that an MMA-style reformation would successfully draw in a wider audience for the struggling sport, and claimed that it was in fact already underway:
While our place in the Olympic Games is still not guaranteed, this decision recognizes the great lengths to which we are going to reform our sport and address the IOC’s concerns.
At FILA’s recent Extraordinary Congress we enacted a number of rule and governance changes and we hope that our continued efforts will ensure we are successful at the final vote in September. We recognize that there is still a long road ahead but we will continue to work to preserve our place in the Olympic Games.
The final vote to decide which sport will be included in the 2020 games will be held in Buenos Aries, Argentina in September. In the meantime, we have an obligation, nay, a DUTY to do everything within our power to discredit baseball as a sport. So…PETE ROSE MARK MCGWIRE BARRY BONDS 1919 WORLD SERIES JOSE FUCKING CANSECO.
Not to get your hopes up too much, Nation, but in a vote held yesterday in St. Petersburg, Russia, the IOC (International Olympic Committee) recommended three sports for inclusion in the 2020 Olympic Games: Baseball/Softball, Squash, and Wrestling, the latter of which was unjustly pulled from the games in February. While wrestling finds itself against some stiff competition (in baseball/softball at least, squash is right up there with handball in terms of asinine Olympic sports), this still represents a major hurdle being cleared in the race to save the foundational Olympic sport.
The international governing body (FILA) President, Nenad Lalovic, along with former Olympic wrestlers Jim Scherr (U.S.), Lise Legrand (France), Carol Huynh (Canada), and Daniel Igali (Nigeria) were chosen to plead wrestling’s case to the IOC yesterday. In a pre-written statement, Lalovic continued to push the idea that an MMA-style reformation would successfully draw in a wider audience for the struggling sport, and claimed that it was in fact already underway:
While our place in the Olympic Games is still not guaranteed, this decision recognizes the great lengths to which we are going to reform our sport and address the IOC’s concerns.
At FILA’s recent Extraordinary Congress we enacted a number of rule and governance changes and we hope that our continued efforts will ensure we are successful at the final vote in September. We recognize that there is still a long road ahead but we will continue to work to preserve our place in the Olympic Games.
The final vote to decide which sport will be included in the 2020 games will be held in Buenos Aries, Argentina in September. In the meantime, we have an obligation, nay, a DUTY to do everything within our power to discredit baseball as a sport. So…PETE ROSE MARK MCGWIRE BARRY BONDS 1919 WORLD SERIES JOSE FUCKING CANSECO.
(Unfortunately, scribed just below this sculpture were a series of hateful, anonymous comments telling these “pussies” to, among other things, “Quit lay-n-praying and knock a motherfucker out.”)
Following the sport’s shocking removal from the 2020 Olympic games, the wrestling community has called upon every conceivable resource in an attempt to restore the sport’s reputation amongst casual fans and potentially introduce it to even more. Sadly, us history buffs have thus far failed to sway the group of geniuses who declared handball and all that horse-related bullshit as sports more worthy of our viewership from reverting on their monumental mistake. But now, it appears that the International Federation for Wrestling has decided to follow our beloved sport into the fire in a last ditch attempt to save their own. USA Today has the scoop (via MMAJunkie):
“We have to think about how to make a show because without that today, it’s difficult,” FILA acting president Nenad Lalovic told USA TODAY Sports.
Former world champion Bill Scherr, chairman of the Committee for the Preservation of Olympic Wrestling, has met with UFC chief executive Dana White and Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney. MMA stars and officials have been very supportive of wrestling’s efforts. Scherr said his sport can learn about presentation from the MMA world.“We need to think about ways to change how the stage is presented,” Scherr said. “They compete in an octagon and we compete on a mat. We don’t have to compete on a mat. We can compete in sand, we can compete in grass and we can compete on a mat or an octagon. I don’t know. We can get survey groups together and see what looks best.”
There you have it, Potato Nation: Goodbye USA Wrestling. Hello SandFC!
(Unfortunately, scribed just below this sculpture were a series of hateful, anonymous comments telling these “pussies” to, among other things, “Quit lay-n-praying and knock a motherfucker out.”)
Following the sport’s shocking removal from the 2020 Olympic games, the wrestling community has called upon every conceivable resource in an attempt to restore the sport’s reputation amongst casual fans and potentially introduce it to even more. Sadly, us history buffs have thus far failed to sway the group of geniuses who declared handball and all that horse-related bullshit as sports more worthy of our viewership from reverting on their monumental mistake. But now, it appears that the International Federation for Wrestling has decided to follow our beloved sport into the fire in a last ditch attempt to save their own. USA Today has the scoop (via MMAJunkie):
“We have to think about how to make a show because without that today, it’s difficult,” FILA acting president Nenad Lalovic told USA TODAY Sports.
Former world champion Bill Scherr, chairman of the Committee for the Preservation of Olympic Wrestling, has met with UFC chief executive Dana White and Bellator CEO Bjorn Rebney. MMA stars and officials have been very supportive of wrestling’s efforts. Scherr said his sport can learn about presentation from the MMA world.“We need to think about ways to change how the stage is presented,” Scherr said. “They compete in an octagon and we compete on a mat. We don’t have to compete on a mat. We can compete in sand, we can compete in grass and we can compete on a mat or an octagon. I don’t know. We can get survey groups together and see what looks best.”
There you have it, Potato Nation: Goodbye USA Wrestling. Hello SandFC!
Olympic champion Jordan Burroughs has also rallied behind the cause, declaring that “face-offs” could also add to the “showmanship” aspect of the sport, and it is here that we run into the fundamental flaw with this cause. While showmanship has surely been at least partially responsible for the UFC’s rise to greatness, the sport itself is what has kept fans tuning in.
Let’s play the role of “casual fan” for a minute (*chugs three Red Bull & Vodkas, paints “Just Bleed” on chest*). Wrestling is without a doubt the most despised and ridiculed aspect in all of mixed martial arts, often reduced to such phrases as “lay-n-pray,” “wall-n-stall,” and “guys rolling around like homosexuals on the ground.” The bar for what constitutes violence worthy of our attention has simply been raised too high, dammit (*directs you to the Mexican cartel decapitation video*) and MMA is partially to blame. Does anyone think splitting wrestler’s singlets into three-pieces, holding staged weigh-ins, or changing the surface upon which they battle will do anything to alter the public’s perception of the sport in general? Believe us, there is nothing more disheartening than watching two guys put on a subpar grappling display in someone’s lawn.
To switch back to the role of us “learned fans,” it’s hard to deny that the sport is in need of some vamping up if it hopes to bring back the audience it once had, and turning to the UFC/Bellator for advice is better than simply doing nothing in this regard (although Bjorn’s advice that all future wrestling events be held on Indian reservations seemed a little outlandish). Like Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, if you are not familiar with the intricacies of wrestling, it can often make for a pretty tepid viewing experience. The UFC, however, has been able to both successfully enlighten fans to this discipline and educate them on said intricacies while simultaneously entertaining them. Hell, it was *the* reason the promotion was created in the first place, so who better to help the sport of wrestling rise from its own ashes?
The question now becomes: What else can wrestling do to stir up a similar interest level?
All of these issues will hopefully be addressed on May 29th in St. Petersburg, Russia, when the sport’s possible inclusion in the 2020 games is reviewed by the IOC. After wrestling (and seven other sports also recently cut from the Olympics) makes its case, the board is expected to recommend three sports for inclusion, with the final decision being handed down in September.
Additionally, FILA is planning to move forward with several proposed changes to the sport that go beyond the surface level:
“We have to make the sport more watchable and understandable for fans, otherwise we cannot acquire more fans,” Lalovic said.
Lalovic also said the sport will add two weight classes in women’s wrestling and eliminate one each in men’s freestyle and Greco-Roman. Each discipline will have six weight classes.
“And if that doesn’t work out,” Lalovic later added in a fake interview, “We’re booking Canseco vs. O’Neal in a levitation chamber, because society is f*cking disintegrating.”
Cejudo on Inside MMA talking about his upcoming MMA debut.
With the future of Olympic wrestling up in the air, it isn’t necessarily a surprise to learn that some Olympic hopefuls are giving MMA a shot. Earlier this week, it was announced that Henry Cejudo, the youngest American wrestler to win an Olympic gold medal, is preparing to make his MMA debut in March.
The twenty-six year old wrestler failed to make the Olympic team in 2012, but has had a very decorated amateur wrestling career, including an Olympic gold medal at 55 kg (121 lbs) in 2008. This doesn’t mean that Cejudo is completely one-dimensional, however. He also has over three years of amateur boxing experience, which includes winning a Copper Gloves tournament in 2010.
Cejudo on Inside MMA talking about his upcoming MMA debut.
With the future of Olympic wrestling up in the air, it isn’t necessarily a surprise to learn that some Olympic hopefuls are giving MMA a shot. Earlier this week, it was announced that Henry Cejudo, the youngest American wrestler to win an Olympic gold medal, is preparing to make his MMA debut in March.
The twenty-six year old wrestler failed to make the Olympic team in 2012, but has had a very decorated amateur wrestling career, including an Olympic gold medal at 55 kg (121 lbs) in 2008. This doesn’t mean that Cejudo is completely one-dimensional, however. He also has over three years of amateur boxing experience, which includes winning a Copper Gloves tournament in 2010.
Despite wrestling at 121 pounds, Cejudo will compete in MMA at bantamweight. His professional debut will take place on March 2 in Tucson, Arizona. Yes, that’s next Saturday, and no, his opponent isn’t exactly a legend killer. His opponent will be Michael Poe, an 0-4 fighter who has only made it out of the first round once. Unless Cejudo comes into this bout without any knowledge of submission defense, it’s hard to see him losing this one.
Regardless of the outcome of his debut, Cejudo has already agreed to a multifight deal with Gladiator Challenge. He is scheduled to make his promotional debut on March 24 against an opponent to be determined. Cejudo hopes to compete eight times this year. No, that “eight” is not a typo.
With that said, what are the odds that Cejudo actually manages to compete that many times this year? Would it be smarter for him to fight at flyweight? Let us know in the comments section.
