Rage in the Cage

By Megan Sutton

Professional mixed martial arts (MMA) came to Scooters in Enid on June 24th, but MMA style fighting has been alive and well in Northwest Oklahoma for years. The local boys of Northwest Oklahoma had a great showing at the Rage Cage MMA event that night, and I became an instant fan of MMA fighting.

Having never been to any type of professional fighting event (unless you count midget wrestling, which I recently had the pleasure of attending), I had no idea what to expect when I walked into the venue. I learned right away that there is no single group of people that enjoy MMA fights; there were people of every age from every walk of life. I suppose I had expected a bunch of tough guys and I found out that MMA is a lot more far reaching in its popularity than one might think. It’s true, there were hardcore MMA fans wearing either Affliction or Tapout brand clothing, but there were also people like me who were just interested in seeing what the whole MMA thing was about. Even though there was palpable tension in the venue, it was an excited tension and everyone was people watching and discussing the fights. I even saw some of those hardcore fans attempting to explain the proceedings to the less knowledgeable folks. I didn’t expect it, but overall there was a spirit of cooperation in the crowd. The fans almost always went for whoever would be considered part of the home team. The fighters of Hardknocks Gym in Enid and Powerhouse MMA were out in full force that night, and the widespread support they received from the crowd confirmed their status as hometown favorites throughout the night. There were also many other amateur and professional fighters from around the area including Oklahoma City, Tulsa, El Reno, Ringwood, and Wichita, Kansas.

From my initial conversations with fans, I learned that the “card” (the name given to the list of fights taking place at an event) would consist of seven amateur matches ending with a professional match. The amateur fights were to consist of three rounds at two minutes each, and the professional match would be three rounds at five minutes each.

Not knowing what I was getting into as the first fighters made their way out to the ring, I grabbed an adult beverage and my friends and I found a good spot at a table near the entrance to the cage. Enid resident and Hardknocks member Bobby Perryman was to fight William Burton of Oklahoma City. Perryman was the overwhelming crowd favorite, and before I knew it, the music had stopped and the fight had begun! My initial reaction was that six minutes of fighting seemed very short for the amount of money the magazine spent on getting me a press pass, but I was sorely mistaken. For the whole of the first round, it looked like Burton would win out over the local favorite. Then, in a split second, Perry rounded on Burton and had him in a chokehold, effectively ending the fight after Burton was forced to submit and tap out. “I turned my back and left myself named and he [Perryman] made an excellent move,” said Burton of the fight. How did he get into MMA fighting? “I saw my cousins in MMA fights and that’s how I got started.” In that respect William was like many others fighting here tonight, he is a freelance fighter that doesn’t make any money off of the fights, he practices MMA for fun. If someone had asked me how long that fight lasted I would have said at least five minutes, when in reality it lasted for only one minute and thirty-four seconds! Despite the short match, the fighters were completely exhausted and covered in sweat. It’s hard to imagine that amount physical demand placed on the body in such a short amount of time; each fighter ended the fight looking like he had just ran a marathon.
El Reno amateur fighter Eric Tucker also saw success as a crowd favorite, easily dispatching Nathanial Alvarez of Wichita, Kansas by TKO in the second round. The heavyweight amateur match saw Enid’s Johnie Burton up against Jonathan Chandler of Tulsa. Although the statistics from the fight put them at within five pounds of each other, it looked as though Chandler had much more weight to throw around during the match and he used that to his advantage in his win over Burton in the first round.

By the time the fourth fight of the night rolled around, I thought that I was well on my way to understanding how MMA matches are fought and won. I was, of course, sorely mistaken. The first split decision of the night came in the exciting local battle between Colby Vandiver of Enid’s Hardknocks Team and Enid resident Steve Inman of Powerhouse MMA Team. It seemed as though the crowd had high hopes for this match and the anticipation of a good fight became intoxicating, with everyone in my group taking verbal bets on which local fighter would win. I was personally rooting for Vandiver, if only because I am partial to gingers. The first round came and went with both fighters trading punches pretty evenly, although Inman managed to get in a well placed and powerful punch right before the bell rang. Many in the crowd felt that if the round had been allowed to go on a second longer, Vandiver may have lost. The second round saw a resurgence by Vandiver, and by the end of that round both fighters were very tired. The third round turned into a battle against exhaustion, and although Inman had the upper hand for part of the fight, Vandiver had a small comeback towards the end of the match. This was the first fight to go through all the way to the end of the three rounds, so the crowd was anxious to hear from the match judges as they tallied up their scores. The first and third rounds went to Inman and the second round went to Vandiver, making Inman the winner by a split decision. The judges determining the winner instead of the referee ending the fight was a new dynamic that I really enjoyed. It added a level of anticipation and mystery to the fights that made them that much more exciting, especially when ending in such a spectacular fashion such as this local battle.

At the intermission, I finally caught a glimpse of the night’s so called “dirty little secret”: a midget wrestling match during the halftime! Allow me to dish a little about the midget wrestling event I attended a few months before. It was unlike anything I expected, and I am so happy I got dragged there by my friends. It was less of a series of fights and more like an action filled performance, but no one seemed to mind that many of the fights seemed overly rehearsed. This intermission fight did not disappoint and we were treated to a bout of verbal and physical sparring between “Rampage”, who was playing a good guy, and “The Beast”, who relished insulting the crowd and inciting them against him. I caught up with “The Beast” aka Tim after his performance, and it turns out there is a softer side to this wrestler. Tim is a nice guy, new to the midget wrestling scene, and is working towards making midget wrestling his full time career. “It’s a great show and a great team,” says Tim, “I enjoy giving the fans a hard time just as much as I enjoy them cheering us on.” Look for The Beast at the next midget wrestling event near you, and don’t let on that you know about his tame side!

After the break Levi Smith of Enid’s Hardknocks Gym took on Jobey Sellers of Tulsa. This was an interesting fight for our group of friends to discuss. For the people in our group that were familiar with martial arts and especially jujitsu moves, this fight was full of action while each fighter worked to gain the advantage using different grips and maneuvers. For an untrained fan like myself, it seemed to me like this fight lacked the high intensity factor that was present in the other matches. Said Smith of the style of fighting displayed in his match, “You have to be smart, choose your spots. Once you see an opening you have to go for it.” Even though there was less kicking and punching in this fight, it was still interesting to watch and for the first two rounds it was an evenly matched battle. In the third round, local favorite Smith ended up connecting a well-aimed kick to the face of Sellers, and the match ended shortly after that. Smith ended up winning by a unanimous decision of the judges. Smith graduated in 2001 from Chisholm High School in Enid and got his start in boxing and after three years decided to try out MMA for fun. Amazingly, Smith had only been practicing MMA for eight months before winning his fight tonight. Smith credits his win to his strict training regimen, which includes many “up and down” exercises similar to those used by football players as well as running and strength training. His most interesting workout routine? Levi uses heavy old truck and tractor tires as well as a sledgehammer to create some homegrown exercises that build stamina and strength.

Another split decision came in the fight between Enid’s own Devin Harris of Powerhouse MMA Team and Jason Gunnars of Tulsa. Harris displayed better technique during the fight, but was slightly outmatched in the second round. He finished the third round strong and ended up with the win after the judges awarded him the first and third rounds. After his fight, Devin talked about his fighting style, “It’s about both stamina and technique. You have to stay calm if they get the upper hand.” Devin considers himself a freestyle fighter. He had been boxing and wrestling for thirteen years before starting to train in MMA styles one year ago. Since that time Devin has made himself a popular fighter; during our short interview he had many fans come up to him and congratulate him on the close victory. However, he hasn’t let his local favorite status go to his head, “It doesn’t matter to me if it’s a home crowd,” says Devin. He has this to say to anyone trying to get started in MMA, “It takes a lot of hard work and determination, and you can’t let yourself give up. You have to keep your mind clear of distractions.” At 21, Devin has a bright future in MMA fighting, and he hopes to make a career out of fighting.

The two professional fights rounding out the night provided a glimpse of what you could expect at a large scale MMA match. These fights consisted of three five-minute rounds instead of three two-minute rounds, so stamina was going to play a larger factor in these fights. The first fight was Mike Schatz of Enid’s Hardkocks Gym against Kyle Sjafiroeddin of Oklahoma. After two rounds of intense grappling and holds, Schatz won by TKO near the end of the second round. The final match of the night pit Grady Briley of Ringwood against Ruben Zamarron of Oklahoma City. Briley had the upper hand for the entirety of the first round, but in the second round Zamarron was able to pick up Briley and slam him to the ground twice in a row, resulting in a TKO three minutes into the second round.

The amount of technique and skill that MMA fighters have to possess in order to be successful is astonishing; this is much more than a plain wrestling or boxing match. MMA requires stamina and strength as well as the determination to work out every day in multiple areas of physical training. The guys of Northwest Oklahoma that have chosen this path are fascinating to talk to and serious about their trade. I was surprised at the depth of their knowledge and their commitment to their families, friends, and fans. I am forever a fan of mixed martial arts fighting, and I can’t wait until the next match comes to town!