EFC 78 - HERE COMES THE BOOM!
The stage was set for a showdown of epic proportions on a night where a pantheon of competitors would clash in the octagon at Grand West arena for the 78th instalment of EFC Worldwide.
To say that Africa’s largest MMA event didn’t disappoint is a massive understatement. The arena was packed to the rafters and the atmosphere was electric. With the palpable expectation of the imminent battles about to transpire.
The octagon was lit up in various hues of red, blue and green which oscillated and bathed the caged fighting floor in varying colours, echoing the sentiments and excitement that pre-empted the expectant crowd's predictions.
The first to enter the Hexagon was Adrian 'Rayo' Sanchez, who whilst relatively unknown had a sensational debut and defeated Christian Bobo via TKO strikes at 0:40 into round 2. I managed to catch up with the scintillating debutant afterwards. Please see the featured interview later in the article.
The featured co-main event title fight featured a clash of intercontinental cultures when Jake "White Kong" Hadley (4-0) from Birmingham England took on our very own Nkazimulo "Zulu Boy" Zulu (11-3) from Alberton JHB for the flyweight title.
The fight started off with a bang when Zulu dropped the brit within 10 seconds of round 1, but this early advantage rapidly changed hands when Zulu succumbed to a takedown and back take, which forced him to defend a rear-naked choke attempt for more than 4 minutes of an agonisingly precarious first round.
Hadley displayed more of the same in the second round and his plethora of ground combinations had the defending champion staving off a barrage of rear-naked choke attempts as he had to defend his back being taken once more. Near the end of the 2nd round, Zulu had regained his composure and threw some slick strikes of his own.
The third and the fourth round swung back and forth like a pendulum with Hadley being the protagonist on the ground and Zulu having to reverse a multitude of submission attempts. Entering the fifth and final round Zulu knew he had to put it all on the line in order to retain his prized title. Strikes were exchanged in a phenomenal final round where both displayed their heart and desire to either retain or be crowned the new flyweight king.
In the end, it was Hadley who emerged victorious in what is to be the beginning of a very exciting chapter in the 22-year-old's fledgeling fighting career.
Next up was the main event which featured JP "Young Savage" Buys (7-2) versus Luthando "Shorty" Biko (5-2) for the bantamweight title.
In the first round, Biko dominated the standup exchanges with clean and precise strikes that had Buys’ head rocking backwards on a few occasions. However Buys regained composure in the latter half of the first round with a clean takedown, ending the round on a precarious cliffhanger.
The second round was far more technical with both fighters displaying their respective wrestling abilities with Buys dominating the ground game with elusive and fluid transitions and ground control.
This continued into the third and fourth with Biko eventually capitulating to a barrage of ground and pound in the fourth, handing JP Buys the moniker of undisputed Bantamweight champion. A fearless and skilled champion who has cemented his reputation in this division.
The other fight worthy of mention was between the tall and imposing frame of Shaun de Lange and the solid and compactly built Marcel Teniers in the Welterweight division.
Teniers attempted to be the aggressor early on by swinging blows to try and impose himself on the taller opponent. Whilst De Lange kept the distance by utilizing his reach advantage and maintaining crisp, clean strikes, comprising of knees at opportune moments. The high paced action soon came to an abrupt end when De Lange ground and pounded Teniers due to a skillfully executed trip.
The fight ended at 4:40 in the first round via Tapout due to ground strikes.
The rest of the results were as follows:
- Zaakir Badat defeated Willem Smith via TKO 2:01 into round 1.
- Mutuale Basambambo defeated HP van Staden via KO 0:46 into round 1.
- Wade Kerspuy defeated Josemar Octavio via Tapout (armbar) 2:36 into round 1.
- Imke Kuikstra defeated Paulwetu Namba via Tapout (triangle) 3:47 into round 2.
- Sindile Manengela defeated Sizwe Mnikathi via tapout (arm triangle) 2:46 into round 2.
- Saxon Delafield defeated Rodrique Kena via tapout (guillotine) 0:35 into the round 1.
I managed to catch up with debutant Adrian ‘Rayo’ Sanchez after his magnificent first-round TKO victory and this is what the 27-year-old local favourite from Goodwood had to say:
1. When did you first start training in Martial Arts?
“I first started training in Martial Arts in June 2016”
2. Was there anyone that influenced you on this journey?
“Ever since watching the Rocky movie I drew inspiration from the concept of a fighting people’s champion.”
3. How long after you started training did you enter your first fight?
“I entered my first fight after 6 months of training and scored a knockdown rear-naked choke combination victory 58 seconds into the first round.
4. What Prep did you have to go through in preparation for your EFC debut?
“I had to follow a strict weight cut prerogative such as water cutting, reducing my salt intake and essential carbo loading at timed intervals.
5. Where do you do your local training?
“At Pro-Fitness Kickboxing Fitness Academy in Goodwood under the guidance of Neville and Angelo Addinall.
6. Have you got any BJJ grading currently?
“I have no grading in BJJ currently, however, I’m going to be focusing strongly on my ground game and Jiu-Jitsu going forward. Combining that with my already well-established standup techniques.
7. Who would you like your next potential opponent to be?
“Perhaps Hermie Drotschie”
8. What does the nickname ‘RAYO’ in your in-ring persona imply?
“The word RAYO is of Spanish origin and actually means lightning bolt and refers to a football team called Rayo Vallecano where my dad comes from in a place called Vallekas in Madrid. It’s also biblical in origin in reference to James and John as the sons of thunder in the Bible. The moniker of ‘RAYO’ also encapsulates the way I like to fight as well with thunderous precision."
9. Lastly, what do you see as the next step in your MMA career?
“I would like to make a name for myself and be an inspiration to others”
I’m sure there’s plenty more to come from this exciting and aggressive young fighter who is set to cement his legacy going forward in his burgeoning MMA career.
And finally, after the dust of the octagon has settled, the crowd has regained their composure and the lights reveal the empty arena of what has to be one of the most memorable EFC events thus far we have plenty to look forward to with EFC 79 on the horizon at carnival city in JHB.
Written By: Wouter De Goede
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| Image: EFC Worldwide |
To say that Africa’s largest MMA event didn’t disappoint is a massive understatement. The arena was packed to the rafters and the atmosphere was electric. With the palpable expectation of the imminent battles about to transpire.
The octagon was lit up in various hues of red, blue and green which oscillated and bathed the caged fighting floor in varying colours, echoing the sentiments and excitement that pre-empted the expectant crowd's predictions.
The first to enter the Hexagon was Adrian 'Rayo' Sanchez, who whilst relatively unknown had a sensational debut and defeated Christian Bobo via TKO strikes at 0:40 into round 2. I managed to catch up with the scintillating debutant afterwards. Please see the featured interview later in the article.
The featured co-main event title fight featured a clash of intercontinental cultures when Jake "White Kong" Hadley (4-0) from Birmingham England took on our very own Nkazimulo "Zulu Boy" Zulu (11-3) from Alberton JHB for the flyweight title.
The fight started off with a bang when Zulu dropped the brit within 10 seconds of round 1, but this early advantage rapidly changed hands when Zulu succumbed to a takedown and back take, which forced him to defend a rear-naked choke attempt for more than 4 minutes of an agonisingly precarious first round.
Hadley displayed more of the same in the second round and his plethora of ground combinations had the defending champion staving off a barrage of rear-naked choke attempts as he had to defend his back being taken once more. Near the end of the 2nd round, Zulu had regained his composure and threw some slick strikes of his own.
The third and the fourth round swung back and forth like a pendulum with Hadley being the protagonist on the ground and Zulu having to reverse a multitude of submission attempts. Entering the fifth and final round Zulu knew he had to put it all on the line in order to retain his prized title. Strikes were exchanged in a phenomenal final round where both displayed their heart and desire to either retain or be crowned the new flyweight king.
In the end, it was Hadley who emerged victorious in what is to be the beginning of a very exciting chapter in the 22-year-old's fledgeling fighting career.
Next up was the main event which featured JP "Young Savage" Buys (7-2) versus Luthando "Shorty" Biko (5-2) for the bantamweight title.
In the first round, Biko dominated the standup exchanges with clean and precise strikes that had Buys’ head rocking backwards on a few occasions. However Buys regained composure in the latter half of the first round with a clean takedown, ending the round on a precarious cliffhanger.
The second round was far more technical with both fighters displaying their respective wrestling abilities with Buys dominating the ground game with elusive and fluid transitions and ground control.
This continued into the third and fourth with Biko eventually capitulating to a barrage of ground and pound in the fourth, handing JP Buys the moniker of undisputed Bantamweight champion. A fearless and skilled champion who has cemented his reputation in this division.
The other fight worthy of mention was between the tall and imposing frame of Shaun de Lange and the solid and compactly built Marcel Teniers in the Welterweight division.
Teniers attempted to be the aggressor early on by swinging blows to try and impose himself on the taller opponent. Whilst De Lange kept the distance by utilizing his reach advantage and maintaining crisp, clean strikes, comprising of knees at opportune moments. The high paced action soon came to an abrupt end when De Lange ground and pounded Teniers due to a skillfully executed trip.
The fight ended at 4:40 in the first round via Tapout due to ground strikes.
The rest of the results were as follows:
- Zaakir Badat defeated Willem Smith via TKO 2:01 into round 1.
- Mutuale Basambambo defeated HP van Staden via KO 0:46 into round 1.
- Wade Kerspuy defeated Josemar Octavio via Tapout (armbar) 2:36 into round 1.
- Imke Kuikstra defeated Paulwetu Namba via Tapout (triangle) 3:47 into round 2.
- Sindile Manengela defeated Sizwe Mnikathi via tapout (arm triangle) 2:46 into round 2.
- Saxon Delafield defeated Rodrique Kena via tapout (guillotine) 0:35 into the round 1.
I managed to catch up with debutant Adrian ‘Rayo’ Sanchez after his magnificent first-round TKO victory and this is what the 27-year-old local favourite from Goodwood had to say:
1. When did you first start training in Martial Arts?
“I first started training in Martial Arts in June 2016”
2. Was there anyone that influenced you on this journey?
“Ever since watching the Rocky movie I drew inspiration from the concept of a fighting people’s champion.”
3. How long after you started training did you enter your first fight?
“I entered my first fight after 6 months of training and scored a knockdown rear-naked choke combination victory 58 seconds into the first round.
4. What Prep did you have to go through in preparation for your EFC debut?
“I had to follow a strict weight cut prerogative such as water cutting, reducing my salt intake and essential carbo loading at timed intervals.
5. Where do you do your local training?
“At Pro-Fitness Kickboxing Fitness Academy in Goodwood under the guidance of Neville and Angelo Addinall.
6. Have you got any BJJ grading currently?
“I have no grading in BJJ currently, however, I’m going to be focusing strongly on my ground game and Jiu-Jitsu going forward. Combining that with my already well-established standup techniques.
7. Who would you like your next potential opponent to be?
“Perhaps Hermie Drotschie”
8. What does the nickname ‘RAYO’ in your in-ring persona imply?
“The word RAYO is of Spanish origin and actually means lightning bolt and refers to a football team called Rayo Vallecano where my dad comes from in a place called Vallekas in Madrid. It’s also biblical in origin in reference to James and John as the sons of thunder in the Bible. The moniker of ‘RAYO’ also encapsulates the way I like to fight as well with thunderous precision."
9. Lastly, what do you see as the next step in your MMA career?
“I would like to make a name for myself and be an inspiration to others”
I’m sure there’s plenty more to come from this exciting and aggressive young fighter who is set to cement his legacy going forward in his burgeoning MMA career.
And finally, after the dust of the octagon has settled, the crowd has regained their composure and the lights reveal the empty arena of what has to be one of the most memorable EFC events thus far we have plenty to look forward to with EFC 79 on the horizon at carnival city in JHB.
Written By: Wouter De Goede
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