The Sweet Taste of Victory

The hours passed by really 's-l-o-w' yesterday in an event that was not organized at all. For some reason, all the fighters had to come in at 3pm to register and do some physical exams followed by a fighter's meeting at 4:30pm. After finishing my physicals and registering, I noticed a guy starring at me aggressively. Realizing that there are only 2 fighters wearing the Team Hybrid t shirt and that I am the smaller one, it didn't take a me a lot to realize that he's the one i'm fighting. But why angry?

Later on, since we were part of the only Thai fight happening at that night, we had to meet separately so the coaches can agree on the rules. Eventually, we agreed that elbows to the head are not allowed but knees to the head are. We shook hands and the guy seemed polite but determined. He was shorter than me but more muscular. That made me feel so comfortable because I hate not having enough reach to hit someone.

Hours passed slowly, and I tried spending my time between reading (couldn't read more than 5 pages) or listening to music. At 8pm, the event started (and that would be one hour late). All my friends were here which made me feel great. Coach Harvey asked me to stay away from the fights. He told me that it will break me down to see people getting knocked out so I was better off in the back room listening to music; and that's what I did. The fights were going so fast. It's like the fighters realized the event was running late and were trying to finish early. All I was hearing is Tiesto music distorted by the noises of people screaming, cage slams, and the MC announcing a quick finish for a fight. The fights were (according to my friends) really quick and vicious. KO after KO my fight was getting closer and closer. I was scheduled to fight at #7. At fight #4, I started warming up. Shadow boxing lightly to break a sweat followed by some stretching exercises. Then, I started hitting the pads with Coach Pete and Coach Harvey, and listening to Coach Buck who was telling me how there is nothing worse than the hell I took in the academy in the last weeks - now it's payback time. Little by little I was getting in the zone. I was relaxed, confident, and for me, it felt like losing was not an option. My plan was simple: Use my height advantage and throw some of my favorite body kicks and finish the fight early...

After gearing up and warming up, I heard my name being called. It's showtime... I step in the cage after checking in with the referee to put oil on my face and double check my gloves, shin guards, mouth guard, and groin protector. I got calmer when I stepped in although I can hear the people cheering in the background screaming for a Knockout! The referee told me some things (and honestly had no clue what he said). In a matter of seconds, I was standing in front of my opponent. "Are you ready?" (hell no, I had no clue what to do at that point). "Fight!!!", I lift my hand to salute the guy, he salutes and charges in hammering me with his punches. It was a good wake up call, the fight started.

The videos of all 3 rounds are attached below. You can see how I dominated the first 2 rounds, but realized that I definitely need to work on my power. Clean shots but not enough power to knock him out. Starting the 3rd round, I was gassed. I hit that wall I was warned about. I even ended up taking a hit that rocked me for a few seconds but I quickly clinched with my opponent. Again, kicks count more in Muay Thai (and especially knees) and I threw many of these. The 3rd round ended, and you can see I was getting slower and slower. When the bell rang, that was the best sound I ever heard all week. It was a unanimous decision, I won...

Round I



Round II



Round III



Mission completed, I was passing out (literally). Told my coaches that they need to get me out of the cage asap since I wasn't feeling good at all. I saluted the crowd and walked back to my corner. After that, I collapsed... I blacked out for 30 min just sitting on a chair having the worst migraine ever. At first, I thought it was just the adrenaline dump but later on, I started puking and it looked more like a minor concussion. After all, he hit me the same place on the head where I got hit in my training less than 2 weeks ago, when I got rocked.


Celebration Time



These are times when I realize how blessed I am to have great friends surrounding me. Friends like Salim, Youssef, Mert, Igor, Joey, and I could keep going forever (especially those who came to see me). They definitely added a sweeter taste to my victory.



It's funny how I didn't realize how many times I got kneed on my thighs till after the fight. After going back home (and that's after the party that lasted until 5:30am), I couldn't sleep from the pain and had to take some pain killers (many pills). My thighs were burning (and still are).

When is my next fight?

I'm not sure... I want to take easy till after December. I need to focus back on school. However, I am definitely moving up in weight class. Definitely working on getting more strength and improving my techniques. I want my next fight to be a KO. I hate leaving it to decision. I know that I have a longggggg way to go. But definitely, there will be a next fight in the near future.

Finally, I just want to thank my second family, Hybrid Training Center for their support. I wouldn't have made it without them. Starting from Coach Buck, Coach Chase, Coach Harvey, Coach Pete, Coach Jose, all the way to the pro fighters and amateur fighters. Also, special thanks to John Scamordella and Akiemo Robert Rollins who always pointed me to the right direction and fixed my technique flaws. And, to the pro fighter Jeff Peterson, sparring with you is still way harder than the actual fight...