MMA - UFC - TUF LIVE

I have attended I few Rage in the Cage events, since about 2002 or so, and it always has been a good local venue to watch guys scrap it out. Last night Rage in the Cage rolled back their prices and delivered a miraculous card full of amateur and professional fighters who kept my eyes glued for over four hours of martial arts excellence. Twenty dollars for four hours of high grade fighting is hard to find especially in such a personal arena like the Celebrity Theater in Arizona. Originally booked for 23 fights, I believe some fighters pulled out with last second injuries or weight cutting issues and the count was closer to sixteen fights. I don’t know how many of our readers have seen local shows, but there always seems to be a large difference in talent between amateur and pro fights, and obvious mismatches. Last night I saw no true mismatches and the level of talent of the amateur fighters were down right unreal. Let me paint a picture; there were incredible suplexes, flying armbar attempts, nasty ground and pound and submissions, and Rampage type slams. There were striker vs. BJJ matches and heavyweight slugfests. I saw everything from great technical boxing, perfect muay Thai leg kicks, and even the occasional superman punch or spinning back fist. I felt like I was feet away from a UFC cage, just with some fighters I did not know of. I even came across one of the Lally brothers from Arizona Combat Sports (who corners in the UFC) and Benson Henderson (WEC lightweight champion). There was even a title fight on the card, between two very professional fighters, and upcoming event and prize giveaways. I have heard people around Arizona have mixed reviews about RITC events, but it seems like Roland Sarria has listened to the fans and greatly improved his promotion over the years. What he brought to the stage last night was an action packed thrill ride that delivered what we fans all love at its best, Great MMA fights.