No Rest for the Wicked- MMA Team stays busy this winter
After suffering a loss on the bigger stage at RFA:5 in Kansas city,MI. Nick Compton will be returning to action locally to take on Bellator Veteran Matt “kid lightning Veal (10-8) for the Driller/SEG Featherweight title march 23rd. This will mark Comptons 1st move down to 145 lbs for this feature fight on a show already close to selling out.
This Thursday Nick ” the big hurt” Kirk will return to Bellator fighting championships to take on Tony Zelinski of Michigan in an under card bout that will be live streamed on Bellator.com as well as SpikeTV.com.
Saturday February 2nd, Jacob Volkmann will look to finish a second straight opponent when he Takes on Strikeforce import Bobby Greene at 155 lbs as part of the Aldo vs Edgar pay per view card.
Thursday February 7th Mike “the marine” Richman will enter his second 145 lb tournement for Bellator. Mike will be taking on 20-3 Savage,MN product Mitch Jackson. Mike is 2-1 in bellator with both victories by way of Knockout. In this fight Mike is telling everybody to “get the lawnchairs out, somebody is getting laid out”. Many critics echo this same sentiment.
February 9th, just two days later, Dan Moret and Jordan Parsons will be boxing locally at the St paul crowne plaza. Both men’s opponents are yet to be named. Parsons will also be making his return to the cage March 2nd in Miami,FL for CFA. Moret is awaiting a hopeful slot on the next RFA card after having to relinquish his spot due to injury January 18th.
other fighters with scheduled bouts include
February 16th King of the cage Morton,MN: Carl Deaton, Jason Huntley, Mikey Zimmer
March 2nd CFA Miami,FL : Zach Juusola
March 23rd Driller/SEG Minneapolis, MN: Donald Williams vs Josh Wiseman.
The Academy Stays dominant at the Hyatt
Wordwide the reputation of the Academy is that of Winning fights. Locally in Minnesota on smaller shows the Academy MMA team is usually expected to put out great talent and winning fighters. This past saturday this held true as the The Academy went 3 of 4 on the night.
The first fight of the night pitted wisconsin’s Ryan Johnson versus Academy part time member Randall Rasmussen. It happened to be mainly a ground battle throughout the 3 rounds of this amateur affair. In the End Ryan Johnson took home a unanimous decision victory.
Next up for the Academy was Jason Huntley in his mma debut versus Jack Shreffler a jiu jistu fighter out of Midwest center for movement in Hudson,WI. this was also a back and fourth battle for three rounds taking place on the feet, against the cage, and on the mat. After 9 minutes of back and fourth action Jason Huntley won a Split decision victory.
Living up to the pre-fight hype created by Ryan Sweezer out of Getsum compound in St.Cloud,MN, Ryan Sweezer versus Academy Product Andre “the Diva” Tieva was an action packed affair. For Weeks leading up to this fight Sweezer proclaimed that he would Knock Tieva out in 3 minutes or less. Tieva took that challenge and stood with Sweezer for much of the fight. Almost everytime Sweezer came in with a flurry, “The Diva” was quick to counter with big right hands and quick hooks. After a contestive first round many people had it 10-9 Sweezer.
The story remained the same in round 2, Sweezers flurries versus Tievas smooth counter attacks. eventually Tieva would time a Double leg take down and get the fight to the floor where he would lock in a Rear Naked choke at 4:19 of round 2 to move his record to 3-0 as a proffesional.
Another under story to this fight was the fact that Ryan Sweezer came in at 141 pounds, Tieva made the weight but took the fight reguardless.
Shortly after Tieva/Sweezer came New Academy Team member Ben Smith taking on grizzled veteran Rico Washington at 170 lbs (washington would miss weight also). After a long feeling out process by both fighters in the 1st round, Smith, who moved here from Las Vegas months ago, used his superior wrestling,technique, and intelligence grinded out a unanimous decision. 30-27 on all cards.
Meet: Jason Huntley
This Saturday Academy Student Jason Huntley, at 34 years of age will take part in his first mixed martial arts bout in downtown minneaplolis.
Recently Jason took a few minutes of his time away from his kids,wife, and his training to answer a few questions for me.
1. Why did you join the academy (specifically mma program)?
Jason:” It was the best gym based on reviews and the academy had the ability to teach me what I wanted quickly, efficiently, and with the possibility of a great results.”
2. You are taking an amatuer fight at age 34, why?
Jason: ” It’s the soonest I’ve been able to take a fight. I had a couple of medical issues to fix before I could train at the level I knew I wanted too. I actually first contacted the academy almost 5 years ago”
3. What are your goals as a competitor?
Jason: “I would like to be in A position to be able to at least try out for the next season of the ultimate fighter at 135lbs”
4 . What/who has helped you the most with your development?
Jason: “The most help has come from the coaches obviously. Coaches Ryan, Erik and of course Greg have all been extremely helpful. The team members have also been great at pointing out things here and there as well which in my opinion is just as important as the coaching”
5 What do you feel are your strengths and weaknesses?
Jason: “I walked In thinking that’s wrestling was going to be a strength. Turned out that my striking is my strength and my BJJ is clearly my weakest aspect , when i started here I never even had so much as 1 hour of BJJ class”
6. What is something you see from your teammates/coaches that makes them successful in this sport?
Jason: “Both my teammates and coaches have a drive and an honest passion for martial arts. Not just MMA. Martial arts as a whole. Most everyone I see, is good at more than just 1 of The arts.”
Everybody here at the Academy, fight team and student body combined wish jason all the luck in the world in his fight.
Team Academy fighter Nick Comtpon gets shot with RFA
Nick compton def. Randy Kittelson, Aug 18th 2012
At 31 years old, Nick Compton is no where near done with his fighting career.
After A very busy 2012 where he fought 4 mma bouts, 2 boxing matches, and 1 kickboxing bout, Nick is getting his shot at a Big time televised Event. Nick will lock horns with Bobby “super duper” Cooper(5-3) at 155 pounds for Ressurection Fighting Alliance on AXSTV Jan. 18th at 9pm cst.
All of his Teammates and coaches will tell you Nick is mentally and physically ready for this fight. Nick will also tell you that he is excited for the opportunity that fell onto his lap after Teammate Dan moret, who was originally slated to fight Cooper, had to pull out due to injury just two weeks before the fight. “It’s a great opportunity to showcase my growth as skill as a fighter and it means I’m closer to accomplishing my goals in the sport.”
Although he has a sports background of the normal Football,Baseball, Basketball type, Compton fights like hes been training since childhood. After starting his career with minimal training, Nick started developing his game with Former UFC middleweight champion Dave Menne and other training partners before joining the Academy in Late 2011. Since then Nick has been growing and improving daily “I got started when Dave Menne brought me and a handful of fighters in to train during our training
camps for upcoming fights.I really liked the team and the structure the Academy provided so I didn’t want to train anywhere else after that”
When asked what style of fighter he is ” I would say I’m a Kickeboxer/BJJ fighter, but mainly I fight to finish the fight” And finish the fight is what Nick will be looking to do against Cooper who is a taller kickboxer by nature and who will also be moving down to 155 pounds for the first time in his Career. Compton was scheduled to fight one week later in a local show at 145 pounds, but gladly accepted this fight in which he is confident is his for the taking.
Student Spotlight: Jim Vang & Ben Lor
Jim Vang & Ben Lor Earn Blue Belts
Congratulations to Jim Vang (left) and Ben Lor (right) on receiving their Blue Belts.
Jim and Ben are two of The Academy’s most dedicated students. They are always the ones that stay past the end of class to keep training and are never shy to ask questions to make sure they’re executing techniques correctly. They both have a deep passion for mastering jiu jitsu and we are so proud to have them training at The Academy. We look forward to watching them march forward on their journey to Black Belt!
Tips Of The Month
Muay Thai
VISUALIZATION
The use of visualization is a critical training tool that will give you a strong competitive edge over your opponents. When you visualize the strikes, evasions, and blocks of an opponent while shadow-boxing, you are conditioning your mind and body to react appropriately to future real life situations. Whether you’re sparring someone in class, or defending yourself outside The Academy – this tool is essential for becoming a strong, disciplined, and talented martial artist.
Jiu Jitsu
RELAXATION
One commonly made mistake in jiu jitsu is forgetting to breathe and relax. While you’re drilling or rolling with a teammate, pay attention to the parts of your body that feel tense and think about relaxing those muscles. Remember, jiu jitsu is not about how strong you are (although it helps), it is about using proper technique and leverage to pit your opponent’s own strength against themselves. Don’t make a habit of trying to muscle your way through or out of a move. Instead, focus on being able to execute smooth but powerful moves, which only come with persistent practice.
MMA
TECHNIQUE
Whether your goal is to lose weight or to become a professional fighter, you cannot achieve either goal without focusing first on your technique. Proper technique is essential for executing moves effectively and correctly. It doesn’t matter how strong you are, without good technique you will find yourself getting beat by smaller, weaker opponents if you have poor technique. Develop your skills by dedicating yourself to your training (coming to class regularly), by setting goals and achieving them (see June’s issue), and asking your coaches for advice (we are here to help you).
Coaches Corner: Age Is Nothing But A Number
Hey Team!
As mentioned in the previous issue, this month’s focus will be on the importance of fitness and martial arts in your life regardless of age. As coaches, we often hear, “I’m too old to do that.” Or, “I’m too out of shape to do that.” You are never too old to start taking care of your mind and body. Not matter what season of life you’re in, you can reap unthinkable benefits from working out, eating healthy, and achieving your goals.
Children:
Here at The Academy, we have students as young as 4 years old training in our Tiny Ninjas program. Children who get involved in martial arts at a young age learn important skills in discipline, respect, and team work that carry on into their adolescent and adult lives, while simultaneously burning off some of that energy that never seems to end. (Parents, you know what we’re talking about.)
Teens and Young Adults: While we don’t have a teen specific program, most of the teenagers and young adults that train here attend adult classes. Just like the Tiny Ninjas and Little Dragons programs, our adult program also emphasizes discipline, respect, and team work. By allowing this age group to train with adults, we expose them a variety of mature and hard working training partners that they can look up to and learn from. This is also a great age to start learning self defense skills that can be used to protect themselves in the event they find themselves in a situation where it is necessary to do so.
Adults:
If you’re between the ages of 25 and 50 then martial arts is a fantastic way to lose weight, become stronger and leaner, and to build mental fortitude. Training in the martial arts as an adult will give you a renewed sense of confidence that maybe you’ve never experienced before, or once experienced but lost it because of stress, work, family issues, etc. While its true that maybe at 50 you don’t feel as energetic or as flexible as a 25 year old, but training at your own pace and with good partners that are patient, will help you succeed in your training. The key to training safely is learning the balance between pushing yourself and knowing when to back off and take breaks. Don’t be discouraged if you have to start slow, or if you have to take breaks. This is normal if you haven’t worked out in a while. As you train more, the workouts will become easier as your body gets more used to training.
50 and over:
As people get into their fifties and into their sixties they write off exercise completely using the common excuse of, “I’m just too old,” or, “My joints hurt too much.” We’re here to tell you that this excuse is unacceptable. We are fortunate to have Coach Dick Kotasek, our Monday and Wednesday night Foundations BJJ coach, who is in his early seventies and a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu under Professor Pedro Sauer. He is living proof that no matter how old you are, training in martial arts is not just for the young and spry. Choosing to be active at this stage in life is key to potentially prolonging your life. We have a number of students in our programs that are in their late forties and early fifties and they’ve all said that their training has been extremely beneficial to not only their physical health, but their mental and emotional health as well. It’s never too late to start, better late than never, right? Just remember, start slow and take your time!
Coach Dick Kotasek 70 Years Old Still Competing in BJJ!
