Newcastle M.M.A.

2009-12-23T11:24:00.002Z

Rob Mills ups his pro record to 4-0-0, taking out talented Swedish grappler Jonathon Weston in just 22 seconds. Now Rob will contest the Strike and Submit British title against Colin Fletcher on February 27th.

"The Body"

2009-12-23T11:11:00.004Z

"When I first started training in Newcastle I was a pastey white pre-pubescent boy, weighing in at about 140 pounds. After just 1 year training with Peter Irving I'm a 300 pound testosterone fuelled monster, bright orange and 1 can of red bull away from a heart attack -... and I feel great about it. Thanks Knuckledraggers!"

N.F.L champion Ryan Roddy.

Local hero defeats UFC vet

2009-10-07T16:01:00.000Z

Full event report from S+S 12 - Fighters Only

The good, the bad, and the ugly.

2009-10-06T14:35:00.005Z

You feel free to decide which one is which -
Irving vs. Rosmon (photo by Chris Mason)Xth Legion "Forged in Battle"
Quinn vs. Lomas (photo by Matt Dalton www.Mattdalton.net) King of the Ring 12
Mills vs. Egan (photo by Dave Kirkland) Strike and Submit 12

Champion

2009-09-14T23:43:00.008Z

Here in Newcastle the word "Champion" is commonly used as an adjective. For the rest of the world it's only a noun, with two possible contexts. Someone who has won, or someone has been chosen to represent a group of people. In terms of our sport, and specifically our gym, once you have won the medal or won the belt, you can call yourself a champion. Now it's put upon you to be the representative - to carry the reputation of the academy on your shoulders. You must fulfill the second part of the definition once you have achieved the first. You can, and should, interpret that to mean you must be athletically excellent. You have to be the fittest, strongest and bravest to bear that accolade. The athletic aspect is a given, but in my opinion a champion should be more than a sportsman, but an example of human quality in every respect. Champions who lack integrity are always remembered as disappointments. Who would you rather be, Pacqiou or Tyson?

The Killer

2009-09-14T23:26:00.004Z

Tommy brought home a unanimous decision after stepping up at the 11th hour to fill the headlining slot on "King of the ring" in Nottingham. Tommy combined the takedowns of Georges st. Pierre, the ground and pound of Fedor Emileanenko and the footwork of Micheal Flatley to give a dominant performance against the shockingly hard Shaun Lomas.
Shaun is well known to all in Newcastle, having fought Matt Inman, me(Peter Irving) twice and is due to take on Lee Donald at the next Newcastle Fight Night. He holds an ISKA Northern areas Super Middleweight title and is a British Super Middleweight Muay Thai champion with countless Muay Thai, Kickboxing and Boxing matches to his credit. In case you're not familiar with him, here's Shaun going the distance with Cambodian legend Eh Phutong-

Name change

2009-09-09T01:16:00.002Z

You may have noticed that I have replaced the title of the blog with "Newcastle MMA". It's been brought to my attention that a search for Newcastle MMA on Google doesn't bring up anything to do with us for several pages. Given that we've produced all of our cities top fighters and act as a hub for many of the regions top Pros, that struck me as unjust. Knowing nothing other than how to publish stuff on predetermined templates like this and Facebook, changing the name and creating a Facebook group of the same name ( http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/group.php?gid=128201419462&ref=nf )was my best guess. If anyone else has a better idea on how to get credit where credit is due please let me know.

Seminar

2009-07-15T00:53:00.003Z

3.30 till 6.30 Saturday 18th July, 3 hours of No-gi BJJ and wrestling, tech and strategy for MMA. At only £20 per person you simply can not afford to miss out. Be there or be chinned by all those who attended and now know something that you don't.
E-mail Peteirving@gmail.com to secure a place.

Kiai!

2009-07-15T00:48:00.000Z

The Mestre

2009-07-01T21:46:00.003Z

My efforts to keep this blog up to date have, as of late, gone by the wayside. Much has happened that is now too far in the past to be chronicled, I lost, I won again, Rob won, Craig won, lost a narrow decision and is now moving on to bigger and better challenges. The real news is - Crezio is about to arrive and will be here till the 20th to prepare us all for the next set of challenges.

For those of you who are new to the game, it didn't all start with the UFC. Crezio's father was one of the first Vale Tudo fighters, in fact he was Helio Gracie's first student to represent Jiu-Jitsu against other arts. Crezio himself fought numerous Vale Tudo fights, without gloves, weight classes, time limits or rules. Crezio also wrestled on the Brazilian national Frestyle and Greco-Roman teams and was, and due to his boxing and wrestling combination he could accurately be described as one of the first truly Mixed Martial artists.

Crezio wrote the book on Jiu-Jitsu for MMA and much of his technique has still never been seen outside of his network of schools. Crezio is from the "Old School" of Jiu-Jitsu, in the spiritual sense rather than the technical one. His technique isn't for sale to the highest bidder or available on DVD. It's meant only for those who are part of his family and share his love for his art. We're very priveleged that he has agreed to come and train us. make the most of it.

2009-03-23T00:24:00.001Z

Every ceiling, when reached, becomes a floor, upon which one walks as a matter of course and prescriptive right.
Aldous Huxley

Danny Ho - Kung-Fu fighter, Reality TV star, Stuntman, Pornstar and now - Director.

2009-03-19T11:23:00.002Z

Check out Danny's documentary about yours truly and Barry training for Jess.

N.F.L. Judgement - 3 for 3

2009-03-19T10:56:00.006Z

It's nice to have a clean sweep, but as a coach my objectives are really performance based, not results based.

Jim "the Sexual Intellectual" Burman fought like a veteran in his debut, followed the gameplan perfectly and proved his mettle under duress. We may see Jim's "writer to fighter" journey in print at some point in the future. Keep hassling him to put pen to paper.

"Dangerous" Dan Blenkharn is starting to exceed the original spirit of his nickname, and is actually now more dangerous to other people than he is to himself. Dan applied excellent, measured tactics, great footwork, angles and cage control to kayo his opponent in 36 seconds.

Simon Gould gave the best performance of his career against a superb opponent from the Rough House. Simon's strength, fitness and unorthodox striking style allowed him to impose his will on the fight and take the decision. A deserving winner for fight of the night.

More important than winning, all of our athletes fought to their potential, showing everyone why we are Newcastle's number 1 for Muay Thai and MMA.

Art of aggression

2009-02-26T15:23:00.003Z

If you recall some time last year when Barry's gym was constantly full of film crews, some talented guys from Sunderland University were putting together a piece on everyone's favourite "Net fighter" - Rob Mills.
Turns out it's actually rather good, so good in fact that it won a few awards recently. What can we do, everything we touch turns in to a winner. It's like magic.

Check it out here.

10th Legion fighting championships

2009-02-26T15:09:00.002Z

Tickets are available at the gym now. Get them now, because they're selling out.

Full fightcard and info at http://www.10thlegionchampionshipfighting.com/

Check out the full clothing and apparel range at http://www.10thlegionfightwear.com/

Cage Kombat - Cage Kombat - Cage Kombat....

2009-02-22T14:17:00.002Z

Simon did the business last Sunday against Chris Batty. Simon took it to him hard from the opening bell, defended the takedown worked from Half guard. Simon worked the front headlock and locked up a tight guillotine after defending a big high crotch from the surprisingly strong Batty. Simon switched off to a reverse Mata leao finish to force the tap at the 3 minute mark. 2 hours to drive up, 2 hours waiting around, 3 minute fight, 2 hours back. Well worth it. Probably Simon's best technical performance to date.

2009-02-11T13:27:00.000Z

Come quietly - or there wil be......trouble.

2009-02-11T13:15:00.004Z

You can see more of Chris Mason's photos on his facebook page. There's also a good selection of pics here from http://www.mmapics.com/

For any of you that didn't make it (what's your excuse) Rob put on a perfect performance against a very credible (and frankly massive) opponent in the shape of Scott Ward. Another representative of Scotland's dominant MMA team, a win over a ninja is something to be double proud of. This was not only Rob's professional debut, but was the first from our team to break in to the pro ranks. It's been a long time coming, and Rob has certainly done everyone proud, overcoming alot during his training camp and raising his physical and mental game from a part time amateur to a genuine professional. Enormously proud of you mate.

Christmas is over

2008-12-30T01:29:00.004Z

Xmas is dusted. Get your arses back to the gym. New years eve session is being held earlier, 1 o'clock, to accomodate those of you who, unlike me, have social lives.

Magpie Grappler

2008-12-29T01:25:00.003Z

Sherdog sports reporter Tim Leidecker seems to have taken a bit of a shine to me, having featured my bout against Weichel in his September article about 10 fights not to miss in October. Obviously he followed the result and has kindly predicted I may be the U.K.'s next big thing. I'll endeavour not to disappoint.

Taken from Sherdog.com - read full article here

Irving -- the Next UK Star?

The arrival of the UFC on British soil has invigorated the UK fight scene and motivated fighters across the country to train even harder, with UFC stars Michael Bisping and Dan Hardy leading the way. But also emerging are young talents like Terry Etim and Jim Wallhead.

Another fast-rising UK welterweight is Newcastle’s Peter Irving. Despite a mixed professional record, the magpie grappler is currently on a hot streak in his home promotion Strike & Submit, where he is the European champion. In his last two bouts, he won a decision over tough-as-nails Swedish wrestler Reza Madadi and Germany’s once most promising prospect Daniel Weichel.

The stream of tough challenges for the blonde-haired Brazilian jiu-jitsu player from northeastern England will not let up as he defends his title for the third time in just eight months taking on “Brazilian Bad Boy” Igor Araujo at Strike & Submit 9 on Feb. 8 in Newcastle, England.

Araujo, a Caveirinha black belt himself, recently bounced back from a short-notice loss in his UK debut against Jim Wallhead with an under-a-minute armbar victory over extremely experienced Russian fighter Vener Galiev in the Russian’s hometown. The Brazilian will certainly give Irving’s submission defense a stern test.

A stern test is precisely what I anticipate, take a look at Araujo's skills -

2008-12-23T20:44:00.005Z

This last year has been another strong one for the gym, many fights, many wins, few defeats. But in the age of hundreds of plastic titles held by plastic champions and agents obsessed with win/loss ratios without any qualification of those details; and a public in love with the idea of an undefeated fighter, confusing undefeated with undefeatable, enamoured with the fantasy of the invincible man, it's sometimes easy to forget that fighting is above all about fighting, not winning. Winning is the objective, and though inseperable from, still not necessarily the point. Everybody likes victory, everyone wants to win a fight, but how many "fighters" really, genuinely love fighting? Not the conclusion, the actual fight? A real fighter should be disappointed by an easy fight, the way a real fight fan is disappointed after observing a one sided encounter.

Paul Jenkins told me his favourite ever fight was his bout against Arni Isaakson, a bout which Jenkins lost, and was at points really up against it. But still, even though he'd won titles galore and fought in huge arenas, his favourite fight was from a minor untelevised event with a couple of hundred spectators - and he lost. What does that tell you?

Crezio wears a piece of custom jewelery sometimes on a chain around his neck, depicting him fighting Alan Carvalho, and there he is, immortalised in Silver, stuck on the bottom, getting smashed to bits. I've asked him a lot about his bouts, and the one he speaks most proudly of was the loss against Carvalho.

Tiarks is always keen to remind us that the Champion makes the title not the other way around. "It's about who you fought and when you fought them." Names mean much more than numbers.

Having said all that, I plan to pass 2009 in the same fashion as 2008, and never put my hands on a runner up trophy.

Northern fight league

2008-12-08T18:50:00.006Z

Chris Mason did it again. Great momemts documented in black and white, more on his facebook account, but here's a sample.

Saturday was a big night for us, with our squad practically making up the entire home corner.
Dangerous Dan,Franky and Simon totally overwhelmed their opponents, all finishing their fights in the first minute.
Yves had a good battle, but stuck to the gameplan and out positioned his opponent until he found the choke.
Rob was handed his first MMA loss by the Dinky Ninjas Alan Love, knocking him off a winning streak of 7 first round stoppages. Love came in looking enormous, and implemented an excellent strategy to take Rob away from his strengths. He took some hard shots, but never deviated from his gameplan, credit to him. We'll be working hard in the gym to make sure February is another clean slate for us. Christmas is cancelled. Prepare for hell.

www.freeufc.info

2008-12-08T18:48:00.002Z

Cool site

www.freeufc.info

2008-12-08T18:48:00.000Z

Cool site

Newcastle Olympic wrestling club

2008-11-18T00:37:00.003Z

Our wrestling coach Kev took gold in Manchester last week.
Well done coach!

Next year I'll take gold too.

52

2008-11-15T05:31:00.004Z

Fightmatrix.com seems to fucking love me for some reason, having assigned numeric values to all my past opposition and calculated that I am the 52nd best Welterweight in the world. Who'd have thought mathematics would one day be my friend, not my teachers.

4 in a row

2008-11-05T00:46:00.005Z

Chris Mason caught some great moments again, I love his Black and white pictures.

Back from Brazil

2008-10-21T21:37:00.004Z

I've been away for a while, and training and working has left me with no time to update my blog. I've given %100 every day to this fight with Weichel, I'm in superb shape and I'm on weight. I'm fully confident of a win, and given the proverbial face for radio that I took to the TUF auditions, it appears I may just have to make my way to the UFC based purely on the merits of my fighting ability.

Brazil was a great experience, but one of those you are able to enjoy only once the experience is over. Training was sickening, down time was devoid of distraction. I'm writing about my experience for Fighters Only so keep buying the mag in anticipation of a write up of my adventures.

Thanks to Tenth legion fightwear, Fighters Only and Blue Velvet for sponsoring my trip.

I'm not impressed

2008-08-21T16:27:00.001Z

boomp3.com

Back to Brazil!

2008-08-21T13:19:00.002Z

I'm going back to Rio to prepare for Daniel Weichel with Crezio, thanks to the generosity of my sponsors - Blue Velvet Gentlemen's club and GT Security. For those of you who don't know of Crezio, check out some of his old fights on Youtube from back in the days of headbutts and openweights -

Crezio X Johil De Oliveira

This fight is heavily edited, maybe the tape was damaged, I don't know, so you miss the speed of his takedowns, but just look at how he transitions, so fast and effortless.

Crezio X Indio Rachkal

Indio was the reigning Brazilian heavyweight MuayThai champion at the time - Crezio was about 77kg, making this suplex and mount all the more impressive. Look how he uses the grapevines.

Irving vs. Weichel at S+S 8, Oct 26th

2008-08-21T13:07:00.002Z

It's on! I'm taking on Germany's finest, Daniel Weichel, on October 26th. Although Weichel is coming off a loss, it was to Dan Hardy, and he boasts an 18-5-0 record so he's a top challenger for the European title.

Check him out here in a bout from German TUF style reality show MAX -

and another from some other show -

I reckon it'll be another stormer.

Notes from ringside

2008-08-10T17:04:00.003Z

Recommended reading if you have a minute or two to kill and you'd prefer something thought provoking/inspiring/interesting to browsing the gossip column of Heat magazine.
Hywel's blog is well worth checking up on.

Crazy 88

2008-08-04T17:48:00.002Z

http://www.fightmatrix.com/mma-ranks/welterweight/

Fightmatrix.com has me in at number 88 in their World rankings, a couple of slots above Phil Baroni. Up yours Cage Rage!

Downtime = down time?

2008-08-04T16:39:00.003Z

Shark or sheep?

You train, 8 weeks of pain, denial, sacrifice, anxiety, intensity, boredom, excitement, more boredom, more pain, repeat and repeat; nerves, fatigue and an unerring sense of purpose.
Then what happens? 17 minutes maximum and it's all over. The punch you threw a thousand times on the pads, a thousand times in the air, a thousand times in your mind; maybe it came out once, twice even, or maybe not at all. You win, you lose maybe, but regardless of the outcome it's in the books. Once it's gone, it's gone, and with it your raison d'etre.

Are you a shark or a sheep? Shark's have to keep their constant forward momentum, or drown in the lack of progress. Losing the impetus to move onwards, even for a short time is fatal.
So what next?

I need a name, I need to know someone is out there training to hurt me. Counting down the days, then hours, and finally the minutes till we face off. To have a perfect stranger picturing my face on the pads his coach is holding up and for me to do the same.

Chris Mason photos - S+S 7

2008-07-21T20:41:00.001Z

I really love the pictures Chris Mason has taken at the last couple of shows. He's captured some great little moments, after the action shots, or before in the corner, when the other sports photographers have stopped looking. I think in years to come when I look back at my career as a fighter and as coach, I'll be glad to have these shots most of all. The excitement of the fighting itself overshadows some of the other things that are going on; and it's great to have those little moments of celebration, quiet contemplation, pride and love and caring documented, because they so often slip by unnoticed in the fracas surrounding the violence.

Strike and Submit 7, Pete Irving - European Champion

2008-07-21T18:46:00.007Z

All photos by Ian Malone

Knackered

Knackered-er

Victory

defeat

Cornered by David Bielkheden

Back control

The "smell my feet" submission hold

The Schultz headlock

To the body

No closing the guard on me

Come on....

Get up!

Holding

Who wears short shorts?

Backing him up

When Abdul says sprawl, sprawl.

Nice shorts from Made4fighters.com

Madadi's jab was strong

Slip and kick

Always after the single

Strike and Submit 7, Matt Inman - still Champion

2008-07-21T00:51:00.007Z

Good sport, Martin Scrafton's leg was okay in the end, just badly bruised but not broken.

Crotch to face victory dance

No time to show off the guns

Always perfect on the kicks

Blue Steel

I've not updated the blog for a while, as the training for last weekend's fight consumed every waking minute up until the day, and the post-fight blowout has consumed every minute since.
I've just got a hold of some of Ian Malone's photos of mine and Matty's fights, unfortunately he didn't catch Yves's awesome display of Le Ninjitsu.

OODA loop

2008-06-25T00:26:00.002Z

Everyone's seen Top Gun right? The real life "Top Gun" was col. John Boyd, a fighter pilot with such great insights in to the physcological mechanisms of combat that he was practically unbeatable. Unlike the movie, I imagine there was much less homo-erotic tension in Boyd's locker room, but he was a genius combatant. Everyone involved in any kind of fighting gets the concept of faking, but Boyd nailed the mechanism, or rather sequence of mechanisms that give the edge to a winning pilot, and equally a winning fighter of any variety. Whilst the Boyd cycle has been adapted by some to suit the ideas of business, much like Sun Tzu or Miyamoto Musashi's strategic writings, it's actually about fighting. From Wikipedia -

Overview

The accompanying diagram shows a decision cycle known as the Boyd cycle, or the OODA loop. It has become an important concept in both business and military strategy. According to John Boyd, decision-making occurs in a cycle of observe-orient-decide-act. An entity (either an individual or an organization) that can process this cycle quickly, observing and reacting to unfolding events more rapidly than an opponent, can thereby "get inside" the opponent's decision cycle and gain a military or business advantage.

John Boyd developed the concept to explain how to direct one's energies to defeat an enemy and survive. Boyd emphasized that "the loop" is actually a set of interacting loops that are to be kept in continuous operation during combat. He also indicated that the phase of the battle has an important bearing on the ideal allocation of one's energies.

Boyd’s diagram shows that all decisions are based on observations of the evolving situation tempered with implicit filtering of the problem being addressed. These observations are the raw information on which decisions and actions are based.

The observed information needs to be processed to orient it for further making a decision. In notes from his talk “Organic Design for Command and Control”[1], Boyd said, “The second O, orientation – as the repository of our genetic heritage, cultural tradition, and previous experiences – is the most important part of the O-O-D-A loop since it shapes the way we observe, the way we decide, the way we act” (the underlining is Boyd’s). As stated by Boyd and shown in the “Orient” box, there is much filtering of the information through our culture, genetics, ability to analyze and synthesize, and previous experience. Since the OODA Loop was designed to describe a single decision maker, the situation is usually much worse than shown as most business and technical decisions have a team of people observing and orienting, each bringing their own cultural traditions, genetics, experience and other information. It is no wonder that it is here that decisions often get stuck and the OODA Loop is reduced to the stuttering sound of “OO-OO-OO” [2]. ^[1]

Getting stuck does not lead to winning as "In order to win, we should operate at a faster tempo or rhythm than our adversaries--or, better yet, get inside [the] adversary's Observation-Orientation-Decision-Action time cycle or loop. ... Such activity will make us appear ambiguous (unpredictable) thereby generate confusion and disorder among our adversaries--since our adversaries will be unable to generate mental images or pictures that agree with the menacing as well as faster transient rhythm or patterns they are competing against." [3] (John Boyd, "Patterns of Conflict" presentation)

The OODA loop that focuses on strategic military requirements, was adapted for business and public sector operational continuity planning. Compare it with the Plan Do Check Act (PDCA) cycle or Shewhart cycle, which focuses on the operational or tactical level of projects. ^[2]

As one of Boyd's colleagues, Harry Hillaker, put it in his article "John Boyd, USAF Retired, Father of the F16" [4]: The key is to obscure your intentions and make them unpredictable to your opponent while you simultaneously clarify his intentions. That is, operate at a faster tempo to generate rapidly changing conditions that inhibit your opponent from adapting or reacting to those changes and that suppress or destroy his awareness. Thus, a hodgepodge of confusion and disorder occur to cause him to over- or under-react to conditions or activities that appear to be uncertain, ambiguous, or incomprehensible.

Writer Robert Greene wrote in an article called OODA and You that "the proper mindset is to let go a little, to allow some of the chaos to become part of his mental system, and to use it to his advantage by simply creating more chaos and confusion for the opponent. He funnels the inevitable chaos of the battlefield in the direction of the enemy."

[edit] Example

Consider a fighter pilot being scrambled to shoot down an enemy aircraft.

Before the enemy airplane is even within visual contact range, the pilot will consider any available information about the likely identity of the enemy pilot: his nationality, level of training, and cultural traditions that may come into play.

When the enemy aircraft comes into radar contact, more direct information about the speed, size, and maneuverability, of the enemy plane becomes available; unfolding circumstances take priority over radio chatter. A first decision is made based on the available information so far: the pilot decides to "get into the sun" above his opponent, and acts by applying control inputs to climb. Back to observation: is the attacker reacting to the change of altitude? Then to orient: is the enemy reacting characteristically, or perhaps acting like a noncombatant? Is his plane exhibiting better-than-expected performance?

As the dogfight begins, little time is devoted to orienting unless some new information pertaining to the actual identity or intent of the attacker comes into play. Information cascades in real time, and the pilot does not have time to process it consciously; the pilot reacts as he is trained to, and conscious thought is directed to supervising the flow of action and reaction, continuously repeating the OODA cycle. Simultaneously, the opponent is going through the same cycle.

How does one interfere with an opponent's OODA cycle? One of John Boyd's primary insights in fighter combat was that it is vital to change speed and direction faster than the opponent. This is not necessarily a function of the plane's ability to maneuver, rather the pilot must think and act faster than the opponent can think and act. Getting "inside" the cycle — short-circuiting the opponent's thinking processes - produces opportunities for the opponent to react inappropriately.

Another tactical-level example can be found on the basketball court, where a player takes possession of the ball and must get past an opponent who is taller or faster. A straight dribble or pass is unlikely to succeed. Instead the player may engage in a rapid and elaborate series of body movements designed to befuddle the opponent and deny him the ability to take advantage of his superior size or speed. At a basic level of play, this may be merely a series of fakes, with the hope that the opponent will make a mistake or an opening will occur. But practice and mental focus may allow one to reduce the time scale, get inside the opponent's OODA loop, and take control of the situation - to cause the opponent to move in a particular way, and generate an advantage rather than merely reacting to an accident.

The same cycle operates over a longer timescale in a competitive business landscape, and the same logic applies. Decision makers gather information (observe), form hypotheses about customer activity and the intentions of competitors (orient), make decisions, and act on them. The cycle is repeated continuously. The aggressive and conscious application of the process gives a business advantage over a competitor who is merely reacting to conditions as they occur, or has poor awareness of the situation.

The approach favors agility over raw power in dealing with human opponents in any endeavor. John Boyd put this ethos into practice with his work for the USAF. He was an advocate of maneuverable fighter aircraft, in contrast to the heavy, powerful jet fighters that were prevalent in the 1960s, such as the F-4 Phantom II and General Dynamics F-111. Boyd inspired the Light Weight Fighter Project that produced the successful F-16 Fighting Falcon and F/A-18 Hornet, which were still in use by the United States and several other military powers into the twenty-first century.

Success! Very nice, I like!

2008-06-10T01:07:00.004Z

The Groundskeeper pulled off a round 1 sub after a dominant performance against Alba Dornadair's Aldo Waugh. Well deserved win, after taking the toughest match ups out of anyone on the team. Not much more to say, just well done Plattsy.

Padworking with the Gaffer

2008-06-06T01:10:00.001Z

Made 4 Fighters

2008-06-06T01:04:00.003Z

I've got a new sponsor, supplying me with Cage Fighter gear. The shorts are actually excellent, in spite of the highly twatful brand name. I know I'm a freebie whore, and I'll endorse anything I'm given for free, but they are really good. Check out the product reviews in the new Fighters Only to see me looking dashing in them, busting a Muay Thai pose that would make Zoolander proud.

http://made4fighters.co.uk/

Blood and sweat alone is not enough...

2008-06-06T00:45:00.003Z

If you wanted to be great it would bring you to tears. You'd be coming face to face with the inverse correlation between effort and performance, the slump you go through before you peak. The injustice of it, when you're trying twice as hard as everyone else and performing half as well. It's genuine desire for greatness that persecutes you, so that real desire has to see you through to the other side when you get the pay off.
You will need the team too, our brothers, sisters, father and mother, to shoulder some of our burden for us before we break. Our family just does it, without complaint, and that's why we are the best, that's why we will all win on the 15th.

Inside out

2008-05-29T16:59:00.000Z

Count how many times I say "Y'know?".

The Papagaio

2008-05-01T16:17:00.002Z

It's great how popular MMA has got recently isn't it? All those new fans buying all that merchandise, making the businessmen rich. I just love hearing the Bravo channel watchers analysis of the latest UFC, "He's mint, that B.J. Sherk." I love being told my own business, I love being told how I should have fought by an overweight biff in a tapout shirt; and I respect his right to tell me because he bought a ticket, although not off me, so I recieved exactly O benefit from his 'support of the sport'. I like it when beginners tell me how you're supposed to get out of a triangle choke, maybe because they went to a Marcelo Garcia seminar. Maybe they even got to get an autograph, or even touch their face on the mat where his arse crack sweated. Well done fuck nuts, keep forking out fortunes for the top of the range merchandise. Adults shouldn't need to be told that you won't kick harder in the brand new Tapout shorts than in last years range off the discount rail at TK Maxx, you won't tap out blackbelts because you've got an Andre Galvao signature gi. They've got a word in Brazil for the man who attaches his reputation to someone elses's name, because they can't make their own.

Papagaio means parrot, imitator, not the genuine article. If you're part of a satellite gym, ask yourself how your branches reputation stands alone. Not strong enough on it's own? Spending alot of time revelling in the reflected glory of people who don't actually train with you, don't even know your name? Well, at least your shorts look nice. Enjoy your seminar and autographs.
"fazer seu proprio nome" - make your own name. That's what Crezio told me.

Watching porn and watching fighting is the same thing, it's not necessarily wrong, but I'd rather be doing it myself.

You talk like a poet, but you punch like one too!

2008-04-22T18:14:00.003Z

Groundskeeper Willie put his dukes up again at Sportfight Scotland last Sunday. Although the decision went in favour of Dinky Ninja Scott McGowan, Mark displayed excellent Muay Thai, excellent submission defence and ground skills. Bad luck on the judges verdict, but congratulations on a superb, measured, skillful performance against a quality opponent. Very proud mate.

We are the champions!

2008-04-16T15:58:00.003Z

Photo courtesy of Fighters only

Strike and Submit 6 - The KD survival school rolled out the big guns, Matty took the welterweight semi-pro strap with a dominating performance against Snakepit ValeTudo fighter Ernesto Adeo
and Robocop destroyed Marius Simanaitis of Lithuanea by way of Ireland to defend his Middleweight title. The hard work has payed off.

Craig's coming home

2008-04-03T10:13:00.003Z

Jose is back in a fortnight. Say goodbye to walking without a limp. Brace yourselves for a world of pain.

Say 'Cheese'

2008-04-03T10:11:00.002Z

Impact II pics

2008-04-03T09:58:00.009Z

Red eye ref

Use 'the Crane' Plattsy-san

Check the neck - Deep Heat health warning

Platts Wai Kru

Heavy hips

Passing the guard

Franky slams out a deep armbar

Impact 2

2008-03-25T19:00:00.002Z

Well done young Franky on a successful debut. Frank did great escaping the mount and a tight armbar early on to come back with some decisive shots that earned him the decision.

A knockdown early in the first followed by two rounds in favour of Marc left Plattsy with a draw against one of the Heavy Hitters lads, next time we grease up the groundskeeper we'll avoid the deep heat. Heed the safety warnings, not for use on 'Ginnas'.

It wasn't to be for young John or simon who were stopped in their bouts. Simon battled the hold to the wire, but once they're in they're in. More sparring for the next one.

Pics coming soon.

Craig vs. Vorn Viva

2008-03-24T14:38:00.003Z

Craig in Cambodia, the video is a bit grainy, looks like a T.V. screener. If you can't tell who's who easily you can identify Craig by the tattoo on his back, and the opponent is the one dressed as Dick Turpin.

More Mills

2008-03-17T21:42:00.003Z

This time from Strike and Submit, versus Dan Kennedy, also from the lens of Ian Malone.

Mini Mills Gallery

2008-03-17T18:31:00.005Z

Mills vs. Mac McCaughey at Impact 1. It's a mini gallery, not mini Mills, in case the title confused you. Ever noticed that Rob's style looks great at full speed, but when caught on camera he seems to spend the whole fight on one leg, or both feet off the floor and hands flying everywhere. Weird.

More War pics

2008-03-16T22:11:00.009Z

Yves Ausset

2008-03-16T21:54:00.004Z

Yves won via anaconda in rd.1 of his semi-pro debut at Pride and Glory. Thanks for contributing to the culture of success at Sor Thanikul, you'll be missed. Good luck with your studies in Germany, and come back to fight for us again.

War in Workington pics

2008-03-13T19:54:00.007Z

The warm up mat

Yves Ausset

Bry and Matty

Tapout strap or Knockout strap sir? I've got my technique down and everything. I don't be ticklin' or nothin'.

Bryan Moore retires after a War at War in Workington.

2008-03-12T17:17:00.002Z

The North East's Randy Couture has called it a day after a phenomenal battle against Lithuanean Cage Rage veteran Mamarizaev Jahongir. Bry was en route to a unanimous decision when the Lithuanean, his leg caught and with Bry driving through a high single, leapt in the air and Ong Bak elbowed Bryan on the back of the head. Jahongir had already had numerous warnings for repeatedly fouling with illegal elbows and cage holding. Bryan used his typical cage control and G'n'P tactics to wear the Lithuanean out and his much improved boxing kept him well in the lead on the scorecards. Great performance and great result to cap a great career.

He's got 'The Look' - Cage Kombat, Feb 17th

2008-03-12T17:06:00.004Z

Matt picked up a unanimous decision over Dave Galbraith in a semi-pro match at Cage Kombat 6 with some sharp Muay Thai, strong clinch and slick guardwork. His hair looked nice too, all the way through the fight it never moved.

First fights of 2008 - Strike and Submit, Feb 3rd

2008-03-12T16:53:00.003Z

Rob Mills TKO'd Sunderland Combat Forum representative Chris Scott in under a minute to become the S'n'S Semi-Pro British Champ. Rob is possibly the only guy to abandon full mount in an MMA fight since Wanderlei Silva stomped Sakuraba.
Pete Irving KO'd former champ (vacated)Lee Doski to solidify ownership of the S'n'S Weterweight strap. Two British titles to kick off the year. Check Ian Freeman's report out below -

Long time, no blog

2008-03-12T16:30:00.002Z

Take it easy!

Many apologies to anyone who has been hoping for news of the Sor Thanikul team and KD school's exploits. Barry's website is cocked up a bit so nothing can go on the news page and I've been working two jobs so I've been remiss in my duties as the bringer of good tidings to Knuckledraggers at home and abroad. I'll try to play catch up today so you'll be back up to date.

2007-12-17T13:23:00.000Z

Once again, the home team cleaned up. Sor Thanikul's Thai Boxing squad went unbeaten with Mick Cortos scoring a 2nd round TKO, Mick Terrel a first round KO, and Gary Rowley winning via decision.
Unfortunately things didn't go right on the night for Big Sid, but we're all proud, well done for getting that first one out the way, next time you'll have it.
Mark Platts showed his technique and fitness again with a unanimous decision win over Shamsul 'Black Magic' Haque, with some excellent transitions, going for subs and sweeps right throughout the fight. Excellent technical match.
Rob Mills stormed to another 1st rd. KO, dropping Mac McCaughey of Shotai Kai with the first flurry, inviting him back to his feet only to knock him back to the canvas. The ref stepped in, to Rob's disappointment, once again giving his cornermen nothing to do. I might not even bother going next time.
Simon Gould took apart CCA's Martin Mckie with a combination of heavy handed boxing and aggressive Judo to land him an impressive knockout in the 2nd Round.
Well done guys, once again we showed the fact, we are the North-East's number 1 for Muay Thai and MMA.

Fight Superstore

2007-11-16T16:02:00.000Z

If any of you fight fashion victims are planning on getting stuff over t'internet, go to fightsuperstore.co.uk
Thanks for the excellent gear.

We are the champions

2007-11-16T15:59:00.000Z

Newcastle's no.1 for Muay Thai and MMA. Best team, best trainer. You can't argue with the results.

2007-10-31T18:05:00.001Z

Left to right : Abdul Mohammed, Bryan Moore, Peter Irving, Richie Knox, Hassan Muradi

Geordie Top Team

2007-10-31T13:34:00.000Z

Double whammy! I stopped Kevin Reed in the second with the Mata Leao, the only sub I know, making me S+S British Champ. Rob 'Robocop' Mills TKO'd the previously undefeated Dan Kennedy in the first to take fight of the night.
The support was massive from the Sor Thanikul/Knuckledraggers team, my colleagues, friends, family, everybody. Thanks very much to everybody who showed up to support, and called, texted or e-mailed to wish me luck and congratulate me. There was too many to answer, so please take this as a blanket thankyou, I appreciate every one. You don't get many times in your life like that, I'm thankful for it.
Thanks to everyone who kept the faith throughout the injury layoff and kept my spirits high with their own efforts in the gym and in the ring.
Well done Rob, now do you believe?

Grease me up woman!

2007-10-04T20:54:00.000Z

Mark Platts, AKA Groundskeeper Willie, and AKA British Kickboxing champion for that matter, made his MMA debut last Sunday at Cage Gladiators - Gladiator School feeder show. He took on the hometown kid Jay McGuinness, one of Jason Tan's next generation jiu-jitsu fighters. Mark took it all the way to the score cards, fending of stacks of attacks from McGuinness guard to come out with a majority decision for McGuinness. One of the judges and many others marked the bout a draw, and Craig, myself and Yves who were in attendance, considered the fight as resounding success in terms of Mark's transition from kickboxing to MMA, and proved once again that he's a true Sor Thanikul fighter - quit is not in his vocabulary. Awesome work Mark, you're Coca-Cola, the real thing.

Irving vs. Doski - 28th October

2007-09-21T15:45:00.001Z

I'm fighting Lee Doski for his S+S 77kg British Title at the Fed in Gateshead on Sunday 28th October. Don't miss it. Call me for a ticket.

Craig Jose is fighting the thai at POS 3 on the same day, so it'll be a massive weekend for the gym.

2007-08-26T11:13:00.000Z

Sorry guys, after long running negligence on the part of Orange, I've finally been reconnected to the modern world by our saviours, British Telecom. So, normal service will resume shortly. I just play catch up with a couple of fights you may have missed.

Strike or Submit 3

Richie Knox battled it out with Doncaster lad Aiden Pulver. After knocking him down with the first jab thrown , Richie chased him to the mat looking to guillotine against the fence. After a good takedown and good ground control Richie got over zealous with his bodyshots and started to throw to the head. After both fighters threw some telling punches and leg kicks, Richie took him down but once again went to the head and was DQ'd. Next time he'll be fighting pro.

War in Workington

Bryan Moore represented the Knuckledraggers against a very hard, very big Lithuanian international. Bryan executed the gameplan perfectly in the first, putting on a clinic of G'N'P and cage control, shutting his opponent out of the fight completely. Unfortunately the second didn't go quite the same and after the lithuanian escaped from the mat after Bryan's first takedown of rd.2, he was caught in the range of exchanges, unable to effectively trade with the bigger, rangier man, and was felled by some huge powerful punches. Bad result, but a masterful performance from the North-East's Randy Couture, Bryan Moore.

Viddy well my brothers, Ultraviolence!

2007-07-02T11:56:00.000Z

British Champion Craig Jose @ Power of Scotland Muay Thai 8-man tournament -

We are No.1! All others are No.2....or lower!

2007-06-17T12:33:00.000Z

#define KILL_HUMAN(h) (free(h); (h) = NULL;)
#define KILL_ALL_HUMANS(list_of_humans) \ { \ list *p, *next = NULL; \ \ for(p = list_of_all_humans; p; p = next) { \ next = p->next; \ KILL_HUMAN(p); \ }

Get this peoples, no losses so far in '07, from both the Knuckledraggers in Vale Tudo, or the Sor Thanikul Muay Thai team. 2 Draws and 3 wins in M.M.A. and 3 draws and 9 wins in Muay Thai.
Rock on.

2007-06-03T22:20:00.000Z

Double whammy!

2007-06-03T21:29:00.000Z

The Knuckledraggers went 2 for 2 today at Willie Scott's Cage Kombat.

Rob Mills took on a very strong Enzo Parente, and wasted no time taking the Italian/Scotsman to the mat, persisting with the double, passing, mounting and switching off for his trademark Robocana armlock.

Photos courtesy of Peter Falkous/Fighters only mag

Desperate Dan went to war with another Alba Dornadair representative, Liam Holborn. After a to and fro battle of takedowns, mounts, reversals, leglocks, slams and armbars, Dan locked up a guillotine and got the tap close to the end of the first. Dan had a real test from a very well matched opponent, and proved his mettle, showing the only quality that is demanded from the Byker lads - heart.

Photos courtesy of Peter Falkous/Fighters only mag

Two first round submissions, two entertaining and technical performances, we couldn't have asked for more from you. You done yourselves and the gym proud, well done lads. You're now both Bona Fide, purely rock cage fighters. Use these credentials to impress birds.

Pain and Glory

2007-05-21T10:28:00.000Z

For those of you that couldn't be arsed to go and see Craig in the biggest British event of the year, here's how it went down. Mahy 'Hardhand' Cruz lived up to his name, catching Craig cold with some big, big shots. Just when it looked like it might go completely South, Craig switched into Terminator mode and dished out a classic beating for the 2nd and 3rd rounds. Just when I thought it impossible for Craig to exceed his previous efforts, he goes and puts in this performance. 'Quit' is not in the mans vocabulary, I don't think he would even know how if he wanted to. Amazing, inspirational stuff.
Unfortunately the early digs from Cruz took their toll, and the Doctor refused to let Craig go through to the semi-final. Obviously disappointing, but hardly a disaster, as Craig remains on a long run of victories and can only have got more people excited about seeing him fight next time.
Being there, with the whole arena filled with chants of 'Jose!, Jose!, Jose!' for the duration of the fight, was another priceless experience that was such an honour to be part of. If your voice was not among them then hang your head in shame, because Craig is the one thats always there when anyone of us fights.

Fightzone

2007-05-19T04:46:00.000Z

Keon fought his heart out in his Semi-Pro debut, that wound up being an absolute war against a much improved Afsul Miah of Fighting Fit. Keon shot countless takedowns, and when the fight did make it to the floor his ground skills dominated, but thanks to slack ropes and unfavourable reffing he was never really able to use his jiu-jitsu. Several of his shots speared Afsul through the ropes, or were restarted on the feet as the sprawl sent them under the bottom rope. The fight went the distance and was declared a draw. Keon showed loads of skill, tenacity and heart; that one hard fought draw is a result to be proud of, worth way more than ten easy wins.
You really proved yourself, I'm really proud of you young man.

Big Weekend - Sunday

2007-05-16T10:22:00.000Z

In the Year of Darkness, 2007, the Sor Thanikul gym devised the ultimate plan. They would reshape the Future by busting some heads. The plan required something that felt no pity. No pain. No fear. Something unstoppable. They created 'THE JOSENATOR'

Sunday is the big one - the K1 8 man. Craigs first opponent is Spaniard Mahy Cruz - Hasta la vista, baby!

Big weekend - Friday

2007-05-16T09:59:00.000Z

First up on Friday we got Special K, the Iranian sensation, Mr. Loverman - it's Keon!
He's fighting against Fighting Fit gym's Afsul Miah on the inaugural edition of Fightzone in Jarrow. Gan on Shabanzadeh!

Take notes people

2007-05-04T08:40:00.000Z

Who'd you rather see? Shaolin or James Thompson? I fucking despair.

Don't fuck with 'the look'

2007-05-03T19:17:00.001Z

Photo by Norm

Barry, Matt, Craig

2007-05-03T19:02:00.000Z

Photo by Norm

Irving vs. Jose

2007-05-03T15:50:00.000Z

Photo by Peter Falkous

This is rumour control, here are the facts -

2007-04-29T21:50:00.000Z

Photo of Inman vs. Cahill courtesy of Hywel Teague

Sor Thanikul Muay Thai team went 4 for six today at Master Sken's show in Manchester. Amateur combatants Marlena, Mick and Dan all won in great style, the other two lost decisions on a coin toss after putting in really good performances.

The star of todays show was Matt Inmann though, and in honour of Matt's superb demonstration of skill in his professional bout, I have decided to refrain from flogging the dead horse that is the Zoolander joke any further. Matt dominated every second of each one of 5 rounds, stalking his opponent, picking him off with punches and kicks and dominating the clinch. Matt once again looked every bit of the polished Muay Thai pro that he always promised to be. Great stuff Matty, no doubt you'll be hanging some heavy duty jewellery round your waist before the year is out. Bring on a title fight for 'the look'.

Spartan workout

2007-04-24T18:51:00.000Z

Remind you of your own training? It ought to.

Cage Kombat, Cage Kombat, Cage Kombat.....3

2007-04-17T09:32:00.000Z

D-Day!

2007-04-15T19:19:00.000Z

Dan Blenkharn's M.M.A. debut went exactly according to plan, with a blistering 24 second submission victory.
Even though this was his debut, Dan looked like a veteran fighter, bringing intensity whilst keeping his composure all the way. He made it look easy, but it was all down to the hard work he'd done in preparation. We're really proud of you Danny, well done bonny lad.

He's got the look

2007-04-12T16:07:00.000Z

Hywel Teague photo from Mater A's show

Is this the most handsome Thai boxer you've ever seen in your life or what? Notice how he's struggling to turn left though, he has to wheel around in a wide arc, the boy just isn't an ambi-turner.

For a relaxing time, make it Satori time

2007-04-10T18:09:00.000Z

Satori Jutsu

Satori Jutsu is a martial art that is an Art Form, not a sport. The art of Satori Jutsu is totally non-competitive, providing an alternative and fresh approach to martial art practice. The art of Satori Jutsu both emphasises and nurtures the attainment of complete Artistic skill in technique and application, with absolutely no Competitive or Sport connotations. Training takes place in a safe, non-hostile, constructive environment. Satori Jutsu is particularly suited to those individuals who have no interest in Freestyle or Competitive sparring (which by nature, is found in the majority of the martial arts that are practiced today). It goes without saying that those who favour Kihon, Kata, and Kobudo practice are more suited to the Satori Jutsu training ideals that are found within the art.

All Satori Jutsu classes are both creative and educational, where the approach to training means that students train with each other not against each other. Aside from this, there are many other aspects within Satori Jutsu that make the art different from mainstream or more regularly accepted martial art systems. In Satori Jutsu there is also a mutual respect between all students ~ regardless of grade or experience ~ where everyone helps one another to achieve their very best potential.

Satori Jutsu was founded in July 1992 by Shihan Steve Bell (Black Belt 5th Dan). When it was originally conceived it was known as 'Satori Jutsu Karate-Do' but in July 2005 the direct connection with Karate was dropped, as Shihan thought it was time for Satori Jutsu to stand out on it's own and become known as an independent martial art rather than a 'style' of another.

This change was brought about by the natural evolution of Satori Jutsu. Due to the nature of the training over the years, the style had inevitably moved further and further away from what is generally perceived as 'Karate'. This, alongside the ever growing media popularity for 'Full Contact' and other aggressive Karate/Martial Art approaches (which is definitely not what Satori Jutsu is about), helped in the decision by Shihan, to take Satori Jutsu out on it’s own and away from those connections. As a consequence of this, a change in the Satori Jutsu Shirushi (Emblem) was also undertaken. Both the 'on-coming fist' and the 'animal representation' were removed, as these two points of reference are often used in mainstream 'Karate/Martial Art' Shirushi.

Classes are held on a regular weekly basis in Jesmond, Newcastle Upon Tyne, United Kingdom.

I'm getting sick of seeing this guys advertising, especially as it continues to get more and more cult like. Don't get me wrong, I've got nothing against people who don't like fighting, that's perfectly reasonable. Take up squash or something, that's fine. If you really dislike competitive sport, no problem, maybe Yoga is for you, fuck, even go and arrange some flowers. Fine by me.
What is not alright is these insecure pricks that get a superiority complex about their martial art being an art, not a sport. They spout this misleading bullshit as if sport somehow lowers the quality of any given art being practiced in a sporting context; as opposed to driving the arts practitioners to greater and greater heights of athletic excellence, and evolving and expanding the art far beyond the scope of it's founders abilities. That is the universal truth in all fighting arts, take a look at Boxing, BJJ, Judo, Olympic wrestling, Muay Thai, any fighting sport, and compare footage from today and the earliest examples you can find on film.
But the real problem isn't the lie they expound, but the reason for it. These dicks that go so far as to found their own schools, and socially manipulate other sorry, insecure individuals into buying their illusion of invincibility, and giving them the promise of some secret martial arts super powers, it's on their hands when their student gets his jumper pulled over his head then gets hockey punched into a pulp because he never got to spar.
Let me tell it how it is, fighting is about winning and losing. Generally speaking, %50 of people in fights lose, %50 win. Aside from the odd draw, and a very few crazy double kayo's, ,you win or you lose. This idea that'The only person to strive to be better than is yourself' is absolute bullshit. It might wash if you're doing Pilates once a week, but if you're doing anything involving fighting, you sure as fuck better strive to be better than the bastard opposite you that wants to smash your face in. Strive to be better than yourself? Easy, just start out as a total piece of shit, then just never try all that hard to get too much better.
If you don't like it then you don't like fighting and should fuck off out of it all together. All this art of fighting without fighting, merciful wisdom, nothing to prove attitude - that's for guys that got in there and did it when they were young, and feel no need in their hearts to show anyone how good they are anymore. You can't bypass the hard part and then sell that line to your students, that martial arts are good but fighting is bad. One is no good without the other, yin and yang baby. Don't go being to much of a pussy to fight, then tell people it makes you superior, and don't fucking disprespect people like us who have the courage to put our names and bodies on the line, and actually fight. I don't know who I feel sorry for more, the saps that pay out their hard earned to get taught bullshit and have their training retarded by these dickheads, or the arrogant dicks that know deep down in their heart of hearts that they'll never, ever have what it takes. Rant over, normal service will resume shortly.

Good Friday kettlebells

2007-04-05T15:31:00.000Z

What are you doing on Friday? Comrade! if you were a real man you'd be coming to Tynemouth to work out with the 'bells. Leon is gonna give us some tuition and put us through our paces. Meet at the gym at 12. Be there or be dishonoured.

Danimal debuts at Sportfight Scotland

2007-04-04T21:43:00.000Z

He's big, he's bad, he's the master of slammage with intent to damage. Dan Blenkharn is making his M.M.A. debut at Sportfight Scotland on Sunday 15th. Get behind him, get a ticket paid for before the Dinky Ninjas show sells out, or he might get angry....and you wouldn't like him when he's angry.

guerillafitness.blogspot.com

2007-03-22T14:17:00.000Z

No machines, no split routines, no focus on pecs and biceps!

Kettlebells, Barbells, Dumbbells,Medicine Balls, Rings, Parallettes, Sleds, Indian Clubs, Shot, Rocks, Rope, Sandbags, Sledgehammers.........

We're gonna be using all of the above!!

Pics, vids, articles, blood, sweat & tears!

Coming soon.....

Hey Petie, wanna get some vids of you on there with the ring HSPUs and some other ill sh*t

Kettlebell pressing part 2

2007-03-22T14:16:00.000Z

Ok, I must apologise! SORRY! it's been a while in coming but here's the second part of the Kettlebell Pressing article.

We have looked at how to improve your press by swinging "heavy bells", Deadlifting barbells, grinding and we touched on tension techniques. There will be a few more helpful tips and many more in the future, all we want now is 1 full repetition with the bell just out of your pressing ability.

As KBs go up in rather large increments we have to be as creative as possible when aiming for that big press. Take a bell that you can press comfortably, warm yourself up and press it, make a mental note of the press and then make any corrections.

(1. are feet pushed firmly into the ground?, 2.are the knees and hips locked out (if pressing with one arm is the hip kicked out to the side?, are the glutes and abs tight?, have you applied power breathing?, have you applied a crush grip? )

go through the list and mentally tick them off one by one. Applying these techniques will automatically give you a strong press, the next step is progression and perfection. Practice, practice, practice! Or grease that groove baby!

Using press variations is a good way to make the press more difficult. A really good one is the SOTS press (google if you don't know) or full squat press, if you can press a bell comfortably then use this press to smoke the shoulders and the benefits outweigh the pain. The seated press ( no no no ) not a seated press a la bodybuilding community, but a floor seated press (no actual seat) when sitting on the floor and pressing we have to ensure that the full body remains tight so that we don't injure the back or any other muscles for that matter, be creative and listen to your body.

Stay fresh, tight and press frequently so as to train the CNS and not burn out, practice is the key.

I was going to include a routine for getting to that next press but guess what? I'm going to leave that to you.

You want to press heavy, then press heavy and press a lot, use Turkish get ups a couple of times a week, this will strengthen your shoulders and ensure they are more durable for the pressing ahead. Apply the tips in this and the first article, make sure your technique is perfect and enjoy.

One last super tip - rack the bell, take a wider than shoulder stance, press feet into ground and try to spread the ground beneath you <-------------> deep breath into abdomen tighten up expand the lats and obliques and press away. ( you should be shaking with tension and have maximum irradiation.)

More than one look

2007-03-21T21:41:00.000Z

I believe this one is known as 'Le Tigre'

The Gaffa

2007-03-21T21:34:00.000Z

A great portrait of Barry from Hywel.

The only knees that's guaranteed to please

2007-03-21T11:18:00.000Z

Hywel teague captures a great moment from Inman vs. Cahill

Good shot from Leon- good shot by Hywel

2007-03-20T20:05:00.000Z

Leon sends some power to the body, captured by the lens of Hywel Teague of F.O. mag

Results from A's

2007-03-18T14:31:00.000Z

Matt put on a superb display of Muay Thai technique against a much improved James Cahill. Cahill used his long front kick very well, but Matt was very measured, thinking his way through the fight, staying aggressive, and by the third round had figured Cahill out completely. He worked his attacks relentlessly, forcing him on to the back foot and leaving no doubt in the Judges minds - Unanimous decision for Inman.

Leon was very unlucky, in my opinion, to have the decision go against him. I was convinced he had done enough to take the win, having pressed the action and delivered some bombs that even made me wince. After slipping a couple of big, big right hands that sent his opponent crashing to the canvas with his own momentum, I had Leon up on style points as well as damage done. Unfortunately the Judges saw something that I missed and the decision went the other way.
Leon, to his credit, never uttered a word of complaint and just took it in his stride. Well done mate, a performance to be proud of.

Howay the lads!

2007-03-16T16:37:00.000Z

It's Master A's show tomorrow, and as you already ought to know, Leon and Matty are fighting.
I thought 'The professional' was a decent nickname for Leon, assuming you are familiar with the Luc Besson movie. However, on Master A's site he's listed just as 'Leon'. Apparently he has risen to a level of superstardom where nicknames and even surnames are redundant, just like Madonna, or Cher.
Just when I got sick of making Zoolander references about Matty he went and showed up in a bin bag home-made sweatsuit. You know what that means, right? It's fabulous, it's 'Derelicte'!

Coming soon - New T-shirt design

2007-03-13T22:12:00.000Z

Whaddy'all reckon?

Crezio De Souza vs. Dan Henderson

2007-03-09T18:56:00.000Z

Here's a little clip from Crezio's fight with Pride Champion Dan Henderson. Historically interesting in that this was Hendersons first Vale Tudo fight, and Crezio's last, the fight ended controversially when the kickboxing referee waved the match off after Henderson threw down a flurry of punches at Crezio from inside the guard. Few of the punches actually connected, but in spite of much protest from Crezio and the jiu-jitsu supporters the fight was called. Crezio never got the rematch he so desperately wanted, as he was blinded in one eye during training and forced into retirement. Bear in mind that Crezio is a lightweight, so this double leg on U.S.A. Olympic wrestling team member Henderson is no mean feat.

Here come the pain!

2007-03-08T14:51:00.000Z

Josenator inspired workout. Dig deep, work hard

2007-03-08T14:17:00.000Z

The Josenator

3 fights for time.

50 Swings (24 or 25 kg) or for kb novice (16kg kb or 15kg db)
30 Pull-ups
100 Squats
60 Tuck jumps

rest 1 min

100 Press-ups
30 Dips
50 Sit-ups
1minute double time (knees high and fast)

rest 1 min

20kg on a bar

30 Push Press
30 Front Squat
30 Sumo Deadlift High Pull
30 Burpees

Record time and beat it next time round.

Enjoy!!!!