MUAY THAI: SATURDAY MUAY THAI PREVIEW “MECCA XI”
Along with muay thai, Locken is also a pro mixed martial artist and Brazilian jiu jitsu purple belt.
Locken is known for having a brutal low kick and heavy right hand. This will not be the first time Domozhyrov has competed in Minnesota and fans have seen the destructive power he possesses also.
“I know he is a traditional Muay Thai fighter” said Locken. “He has more experience in Muay Thai than I do. Fans can expect a good, well matched fight between the two of us. An entertaining Muay Thai fight. Kaitlin (Young) and Jeremy (Bjornberg) do a good job of setting up these Muay Thai fights.”
Thomas Jenkins (1-1) Academy vs. Jacob Rodriguez (0-0) Houston Muay Thai- 185 lbs.
Tom is a local and newer pro at 1-1. He has been training a long time and was nearly 330 pounds when he started. He’s now fighting at 185 pounds and won his last fight against a 6-0 guy at 205 with an epic body shot KO last year and Canterbury Park. His opponent, Jacob Rodriguez is fighting out of Houston, Texas and is on the US national team for Muay Thai. He won the IFMA Pan American Championships last October. This will technically be his first pro fight, but he is also headed to the world championships in Cancun, Mexico in May. He has some heavy KO power.
Kuchlong Kuchlong (1-0) Academy vs. BJ Van Beusekom (0-0) McCune’s- 165 lbs.
This fight has an interesting background. They fought years ago as amateurs with Kuchlong winning a decision. Kuchlong moved to the US as a refugee from Sudan when he was 13 years old, and BJ is an ultra marathoner. As in, he runs 80-100 mile races. They are both interesting guys!
GABI MAXWELL: “I don’t know much about my opponent. I do know she’s going to come forward with heavy punches. The fans can expect me to fight hard and I hope to use all eight of my weapons.”
Ryan and Dusty have been in the same division for a while, but have not bumped into each other in any brackets at the major tournaments yet. This year, Ryan won the TBA summer tournament, and Dusty won the October tournament (Ryan didn’t compete in that one) so technically Dusty is the current TBA-SA 147 Amateur North American Champion. Ryan will be challenging him for the belt in a bout that is truly between the top two 147 pound amateur guys in the US. It is 5 rounds and fans can look forward to seeing some high level stuff.
RYAN STERNBERG: “I know my opponent Dusty Sparks comes from a good, traditional Muay Thai style, and has good coaching. He’s got a deep gas tank, some strong weapons, and a lot of heart. He’s had a few 5 round fights. He was a good selection to fight for the Driller 147lb ammy title. My training has been specific for this fight, but my goal is to bring pressure, stay focused and defensive, and bring lots of creativity. I’m a blend of styles and I’ll look to call upon the best weapon for any given moment of the fight.”
DUSTY SPARKS: “I don’t know a lot about him but he looks tall in pictures , and has a lot of experience. Fans can expect an exciting fight.”
Liz won the B Class TBA tournament this summer and Josie was the runner up for the A class TBA tournament in October, losing only a split decision in a 5 round title fight. Liz is out of Easton Training Center in Colorado with US Team Coach Tony Cummins. Josie has racked up 10 fights in about 2 years of competition and spent some time training in Thailand over the summer. This will be an A class fight with no shin pads or headgear.
JOSIE LIDBERG:“My opponent is coming in from Colorado and is the B class TBA champion in our weight class. I’m sure she’s tough but I’m tougher and I’m coming to win. It’s definitely going to be an exciting fight and my best performance yet!”
LIZ GERRITY: “I don’t know too much about my opponent, but I am grateful to her for giving me the opportunity to showcase the art of Muay Thai and to compete, because it can be very difficult for me to find opponents in Colorado. I think the fans can except 6 minutes of action from the both of us, I expect she’ll be bringing her best and I plan to do the same!”
MECCA XI, DRILLER PROMOTIONS
Canterbury Park Shakopee, MN, January 20, 2018
Muay Thai – TBA rules- Ring
Professional
Ben Locken (4-1) Cellar vs Vlad Domozhyrov (0-1) Nak Muay Gym 156 LBS.
Thomas Jenkins (1-1) Academy vs Jacob Rodriguez (0-0) Houston Muay Thai 185 LBS.
Kuchlong Kuchlong (1-0) Academy vs BJ Van Beusekom (0-0) McCune’s 165 LBS.
Amateur – Elbow Pads Only
215 Class A Title
Tommy Matlon (16-3) (1-0 box) Academy vs Phil Latu (5-4) Warman MT 210 LBS.
147 Class A Title
Dusty Sparks (9-3) Three Kings MT vs Ryan Sternberg (15-13) Cellar 147 LBS.
Olivia Curry (6-4) Counterstrike vs Sarah Carter (10-2) Nak Muay LBS.
Dylan Murphy (11-3-2) Spartan vs Nate Gaston (6-0) Peoria MT 185 LBS.
Nora Schull (4-10) Academy vs Michelle Bishop (6-3) Redemption 127 LBS.
Caleb Merth (6-1) (5-1mma) Cellar vs Mike Hanches (5-0) Counterstrike LBS.
Jesse Poolaw (4-1) Academy vs Jamie Naasz (2-2-1) Fargo BJJ 16 LBS.
Josie Lidberg (4-6) Academy vs Liz Gerrity (7-2) Easton 135 LBS.
Shelby Pickard (4-5) Academy vs Alicia Guzzo (7-1) Redemption 147 LBS.
Amateur – with shin pads
Nick Kaaze (3-1) Spartan vs Alex Bondarenko (6-0-2) Nak Muay Gym 16 LBS.
Nate Kosberg (2-4) Academy vs Kevin Castro (7-0) Nak Muay Gym 13 LBS.
Sarah Bishop (4-3) Academy vs Casey Lynn (5-6) Muay Thai Iyarin 170 LBS.
Tremayne Williams (4-4) Academy vs Jon Micu (2-2) Nak Muay Gym Nak Muay 16 LBS.
Joe Wawrzyneicki (2-2) Academy vs Josh Yang (2-4) Warman MT 1 LBS.
Corey Friedrich (0-1) Academy vs Joe Whalen (1-4) Peoria Muay Thai 145 LBS.
Amateur – With Shin Pads, No Elbows
Chris Amundson (1-1) Spartan vs Sherwin Minion (1-2) Counterstrike 140 LBS.
Gabriel Meza (0-1) Pura Vida vs CJ Hayes (0-1) Cellar 190 LBS.
Shoun Xiong (0-0) Spartan vs Joey Nitura (3-0) Easton 125 LBS.
Sandy Xiong (0-0-1) Academy vs Alisha Hayes (0-2) Spartan 125 LBS.
Shafaq Choudhury (0-0) Fight Prime vs Shuchen Ge (0-0-3) Cellar 145 LBS.
Ben Richardson (0-0) Fight Prime vs Brody Martin (0-0) McCune’s 155 LBS.