It’s hard to deny that REBEL Fighting Championship’s inaugural installment was one of the more delightful events of the 2013 calendar year. The show in Singapore was very well done, with fascinating match-ups that pleased the masses in attendance.
We now move on to the promotion’s second event, titled ‘Battle Royale’, which features an eight-man championship tournament stockpiled with exciting fighters. But wait. That’s only the main card.
The prelims, meanwhile, will showcase a mixture of local and international talent looking to carve a name for themselves.
Out of the UFC’s fray, Will Chope has been thrown back in the Asian MMA landscape as he locks horns with Brazil’s Mauricio Dos Santos Jr. in the main event. Chope has seen nothing short of dominant as a Mixed Martial Artist in the region thus far. And while his fight with Dos Santos Jr. seems lopsided on the paper, you can’t ever rule out the possibility of an upset.
Former WEC champ Miguel Torres embarks on a journey back to MMA stardom in the co-featured bout of the evening but standing in his way will be a Japanese starlet in Takahiro Ashida. There are plenty of subplots in this encounter and with Torres’ recent roller-coaster run, you can’t quite label him as the favorite to garner the tourney title this early.
Two other 145-lbs match-ups make up the rest of the tournament’s running order on the main card.
I’m joined by MMAKanvas’ Justin Faux for a dissection of this event.
1. Which bout on the prelims are you looking forward to most and why?
Faux: This preliminary card doesn’t do a whole lot for me honestly. There are a lot of largely untested fighters being showcased on a pretty big stage, but if I had to point to one fight it would be the lightweight scrap between Kris Barras and Gyo Pyung Hwang. Barras is a British prospect who has tore through every adversary he has faced to date, but has easily his most well-rounded test against Pyung Hwang, who pretty much seems poised to be a career journeyman out of South Korea. Will be interesting to see if Barras can deal with him with the same level of ferocity.
John: I have a couple of choices, but I’ll stick my neck out for Sam Kei vs. Doo Hwan Kim. Everybody loves a tussle between two bulky fighters and this one has knockout written all over it. Kei is a title-holder under the Nitro MMA banner in Australia while Kim hails from the highly respected Korean Top Team camp in South Korea. He is a lengthier fighter than Kei and I would expect him to have the grappling skills to trouble his Australian counterpart. Don’t be surprised if he doesn’t use it though, because he’s able to hold his own in the striking department as well. Kei, meanwhile, has always been a power puncher although now, he’s starting to add more volume to his strikes.
This seems to be a classic striker vs. grappler match-up between two hard hitters that will have fans on the edge of their seats to see who will land that devastating blow first.
2. Even if Reydon Romero beats Yojiro Uchimura or vice versa, can you honestly see the winner making it to the finals and possibly, claiming the tourney crown?
Faux: Short answer, no. Romero and Uchimura are two fighters that, if you’ve paid attention to the Asian MMA scene, you have a pretty good idea of what they bring to the table. Both will ruin the lives of a lower rung rookie, but falter when they step up in competition. I favor Uchimura to get his hand raised after a competitive contest, but I don’t see him advancing to the finals, regardless of if he faces Miguel Torres or Takaharo Ashida.
John: I’ll have to agree with Justin on this one. Romero and Uchimura are fighters that have plied their trade in the region for years now and would be a handful for most talents but in this tournament, I just feel they are nowhere near the standard(s) of their adversaries. I can’t see the winner going beyond the semi-finals.
On the contrary, however, I fancy Romero to pull off a victory here. The battle-tested URCC champ is on a fine run and with momentum on his side, it’s hard to foresee Uchimura halting him in his tracks.
3. Will Michael Tobin’s superior Judo credentials outshine Pat Promrangka’s wrestling base?
Faux: I wouldn’t say that Judo will beat wrestling, but I definitely think Tobin is the better, more diverse fighter. The Queenslander has improved fight in and fight out, and made some inferior opposition look even worse during his short career. In short, Tobin should get this fight to the floor within two rounds and submit Promrangka.
John: Michael Tobin enters this tilt as a heavy favorite and for good reason. The judoka brings a solid grappling pedigree to the match-up and even if he does end up on his back, the combination of his Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and Judo skills should give Promrangka fits.
Tobin defeated Pat Promrangka under Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu rules before so should the fight hit the canvas at any point of time, you’d expect the young Australian to have the edge and pull of a sub.
4. Miguel Torres is on a two-fight winning run. Can he finally be able to rack up a string of victories on his road to redemption, or will Japan’s rising star, Takaharo Ashida, continue his stellar run?
Faux: I guess a lot of what this question is asking really depends upon how much Miguel Torres has left in the tank here. I think it’s pretty clear that at 33 years of age with 48 career fights behind him, the former WEC bantamweight ruler is in the twilight of his career, and I think Ashida is savvy enough to get past him in this tournament. Ashida is a strange case. He was nothing special out of the gates, but has steadily improved his game and morphed into a solid featherweight prospect who should defeat the shopworn Torres.
John: I personally like a success story and the kid in me would obviously be rooting for the once feared and revered, WEC champ, Miguel Torres. But I have to look at this from a neutral, non-biased perspective. Torres has the skills. He has the experience. But as much as Torres is trying to rebuild himself in a new continent, you can’t take away the fact that he is at the tail end of his career. Since snapping his four fight winning run, Torres has won two straight. It’s well worth noting, however, that those wins came against fighters with diminishing records.
Ashida is a bright prospect out of the Japanese ranks who has only lost once in his last 14 contests. While this will clearly be a step up in competition and a fight in an entirely different territory, I still back the Japanese fighter to get his hands raised and perhaps, even go on all the way to claim the tourney’s crown.
5. With Chope working tirelessly on his Boxing skills, can the lanky Californian rely on his massive reach advantage to advance to the next round? Or will Dos Santos Jr. pull off an upset?
Faux: People were outraged when Chope got cut from the UFC after it was revealed that he got a dishonorable discharge from the army for abusing his ex-girlfriend, but truth be told, he probably would’ve been cut in short order anyway, because he really wasn’t a great fighter. That being said, he’s still better than dos Santos Jr. The Brazilian is tough as nails, and can take a real beating , but I expect Chope to box him up on the feet, and mix in a takedown here or there to cruise to a dominant decision win.
John: Before, ‘Lanky Madness’ Will Chope never used his reach and long limbs in the striking facet to get the better of his opponents. His style was simple: Get the guy in the clinch, look for a takedown, and finish the fight there. Now, after linking up with the squad at Juggernaut Fight Club in Singapore, Chope has tightened his striking skills, especially his Boxing, and looks in pole position to use his gifted length.
Chope’s Muay Thai has always been stellar and with the majority of his wins coming by way of submission, it’s no secret that the former URCC champ is savvy on the mats as well. He’ll just have to avoid getting into a brawl and constantly move to keep away from Dos Santos’ power combinations. I believe the Brazilian will put up a respectful performance but simply won’t be able to withstand his opponent’s all-round prowess. I’m picking Chope to plant his feet, go for a takedown and rally for a ground-and-pound stoppage.
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REBEL FC 2: Battle Royale takes place August 1 at the Suntec Exhibition and Convention Centre in Singapore. Keep it locked to MMASucka.com for more exclusives throughout fight week.
Click here to check out the event’s entire fight card.
Follow Thinesh and Justin on Twitter (@ThineshJohnMMA, @justinfauxmma), and keep up with the latest MMA news from MMASucka via Twitter (@MMASucka) and Facebook
