Three WKA Titles Cap Off a Packed MMA and Muay Thai Fight Card at CSC 31!

November 29, 2010

Combat Sports Challenge presented its thirty-first edition in Richmond, VA with the fullest card it's seen yet--18 matches, with three of them being title fights, made quite a night for fight fans. This card featured amateur Muay Thai and MMA as well as three Juniors' matches, both Original WKA (International) Rules and MMA. Top teams from many states, including New York, Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina, Kentucky, and Georgia battled it out for numerous rounds of heart-pounding action.

The evening began with an exhibition match between two very brave young ladies, Imani Holmes (13) of Kai Thai Academy, NC and Casemira Smith (12) of Team Combat, VA. These girls battled it out for three rounds, showing heart equal to to any fighter on the card and blooming talent that will one day win them titles.

The rest of the undercard, which featured five MMA matches (one of which was a Juniors' match), eight Muay Thai matches, and one International Rules Juniors' match, yielded one submission by Roy Smith (Team Combat, VA), six fights that went the distance, and seven TKOs, five of which were consecutive.

In a WKA Maryland State Thai Boxing Light Heavyweight Title, Diamond Watson of Team Combat, MD, won the decision over Scott Drummond of Yamasaki Academy, VA. Both fighters performed admirably on the last CSC in September, and both battled out the full three rounds of this card's match.

For the Eastern Regional WKA Cruiserweight Thai Boxing Title, Real Fighters' (KY) MMA and Muay Thai rising star Marcus Mayes took the title, also by unanimous decision over Boston Muay Thai's Mike Pennini.

The last match of the night was a title defense by former World champion and current North American and US champion Brandon Mickens of Team Combat, VA. His opponent traveled from Georgia to take this match and gave the title-holder a run for his money. In the first and second rounds, the more experience Mickens demonstrated his gift for strategy as well as his power by setting up power shots to the head by off balancing or throwing heavy body shots at his opponent, rocking him several times. In the last three rounds, challenger Jeremy Barrett of Megalodon Gym attempted to use his height and reach advantage to land big shots on Mickens and then neutralized some of Mickens' strategy by clinching and holding on. Mickens maintained a slight edge in these rounds by working enough in the clinch or dumping his opponent on the canvas. In the end, after five grueling rounds, Mickens maintained his title by taking the unanimous decision.

All in all, despite the number of matches on the card, the quality of the fights left the crowd hungry for more. Combat Sports Challenge is projecting another card in March of next year after the WKA North American Championships, which have been moved to February 18-20, 2011.

Click here for full results. Photography credits to Terri Degenaars