Fighters Only

Issue 082

December 2011

Indian MMA shows continued signs of growth with a successful Cage Wars XII event in August, before shipping a rising prospect off to promising Asian promotion One FC. Described as “ground zero for the top MMA fighters in India” by the country’s MMA patriarch Daniel Isaac, the card went down at Evolution MMA, Mumbai, in front of a small handful of die-hard spectators. Cage Wars bouts use the gym’s matted area for competition instead of a ring or cage, although the victorious combatants are presented with appealing, oversized glass plaques for their achievements. Although basic, the system recently produced another of India’s small batch of pro fighters. Susovan Ghosh made his professional MMA debut at the big-budget One FC event in Singapore, losing by TKO at 3:18 of the first round.

lan Bator, Mongolia: US VP tries Mongolian wrestling

With the UFC and MMA expanding into China and Asia it might not be long before we see one of the continent’s native arts, Mongolian wrestling, debuting in the Octagon. Clearly US vice president Joe Biden wanted a head start on the game when he visited the Orient and sat down to watch some real-life Mongolian wrestlers go at it. The most important of Mongolia’s “three manly skills” – leading archery and horsemanship – wrestling has no time limits or weight classes and victory comes when a competitor forces the upper body, knee or elbow of an opponent to touch the ground due to a throw, lift or trip. While it might be some time before a Mongolian wrestler takes a UFC title, especially as they don’t employ strikes, he would be able to give the UFC’s first and only Chinese fighter, ‘The Mongolian Wolf’ Tie Quan Zhang, some company.

'Big Poppa’ Schnake, 1974–2011

Pioneering MMA radio presenter Christopher ‘Big Poppa’ Schnake passed away on August 29th. Schnake, who also worked as a ring announcer and commentator, was an avid supporter of grassroots mixed martial arts and previously worked for MMA Weekly Radio and Sherdog Radio.

Veteran voice of the Octagon, Bruce Buffer, a close friend, led the tributes, telling Fighters Only: “I was stunned to hear about Poppa Schnake’s passing. This is a tragic loss for both his family and the MMA community. In the years I knew Poppa he was always fun to hang with plus had a smile and positive attitude to share with all around him. He loved announcing and had a unique style and worked hard to maintain his status as a respected and quality announcer in our great sport of MMA. Thank you Poppa for all your support and friendship... Cheers to you my friend.”

Jack Shields dies, aged 67

UFC welterweight Jake Shields’ father and manager, Jack, died in his sleep on August 29th. Jack helped steer Jake’s career since becoming his manager in 2002 and was instrumental in all of his dealings, from contracts to press. Jack Shields was 67.