Anybody see MVPs Toe Hold victory in Bellator? It was an interesting position to land the hold. Not sure if the technique was anything unusual though, didn't get a good look at it.
Just got on board the thread.
It sparked my interest, because I'll be competing in a catch wrestling super fight in Mexico City on September 23rd, part of a series of the "Billy Robinson Cup" they started here a few months ago.
Dan Severn will be having a shoot the same day, which will be cool.
First time i'll take part in an event like this, but what i have to say about catch wrestlers, is that in general they all have a very positive, open attitude and seem to love their trade.
"Billy Robinson Cup"? I can't find anything on it through Google. What is this? Where is it happening and who is promoting it?
In your first post you sure created a lot of questions to be honest. Who are you and how did you get involved in this? Why Mexico as that seems really strange.
This whole thing seems strange and to be using Billy's name at that , but if it's something we as a community should be supporting then it really pays to let people know.
Josh
"Billy Robinson Cup"? I can't find anything on it through Google. What is this? Where is it happening and who is promoting it?
In your first post you sure created a lot of questions to be honest. Who are you and how did you get involved in this? Why Mexico as that seems really strange.
This whole thing seems strange and to be using Billy's name at that , but if it's something we as a community should be supporting then it really pays to let people know.
Josh
Hey Josh!
The events so far have all been in Mexico City, this is the third or second event of the series, the "Billy Robinson Cup". It's a cup format, with team vs team and superfights, under catch wrestling rules (20 mins, only submissions and pins, winner is 2 out of 3, any other result, is a draw). Winners rack up points for their team and move up to the cup finals.
The next event is exactly the one MilkManUk posted about. Can't find much in google, other than Facebook, where they do most of the promotion.
The promoter is LCS (Liga de Combate Supremo). Robert Hernandez, aka "Soleil", is one of the main promoters, he is a pro-wrestler and has fought MMA/catch/shoot, including Japan, i think.
I chatted with him briefly, and he tells me he met you at Antonio Inoki's IGF in Japan, and that you left him waiting (lol?). He'll elaborate on friday when i meet him.
Why they chose "Billy Robinson" for the cup name, i wouldn't know. I'll ask. I figure it's because they big fans of him and it's as some form of tribute.
And as for why Mexico, i'd say it's not that surprising. Pro-wrestling culture is quite big here and many of the pro-wrestlers in Mexico come from a freestyle or greco background. I know for a fact there's more than a few pro-wrestling gyms where they also love "some" form of catch wrestling, shooto, pancrase and/or submission grappling.
I have personally visited two "luchadores" gyms in the past, to have grappling matches, and not only where they willing to have legit submission matches, but they knew their stuff. Some were very old school (as, in, their coaches were some retired, old guys) who had their walls full with photos of themselves with japanese wrestlers, like Antonio Inoki, both from events in Japan and Mexico. Since i'm not very familiar with either mexican luchadores or japanese wrestlers, i cannot elaborate, but in both gyms the coaches said they learned their submissions during the time they spent with some of those guys.
And i'm Gabriel Mercader and i run a sambo gym and team: "Dinamo 38", in Mexico City, where i'm the combat sambo head coach. I've participated in SAMBO for some years, Panams, world/international cups, etc.
My team was invited to participate in this cup, because, well, we may train sambo, but we compete in judo, BJJ, mma, grappling, etc, and this looks like a new challenge with a very interesting ruleset. I got a superfight against the wrestling/grappling coach of Bonebreakers Team (couple of their fighters just fought this past weekend in the UFC In Texas).
Thanks for the response Gabriel!
Ok, it makes sense and I am glad that they want to honor Billy's name with the event. The 5 v. 5 format tea challenge is pretty cool too. Gives the crowd something extra to cheer for beyond justthe individual wrestlers.
I left him waiting? Damn. Not sure what happened there but hopefully we'll cross paths again. I'm glad to hear of people putting together competitive catch wrestling rules events as without a competition space it's hard to really get it out there.
Good luck in your matches and to your team!
Josh
Thanks to you on the follow up!
The event was a mixed bag. The organization was not the best and there were too many matches scheduled for just one night. There were K-1, MMA, and catch wrestling matches.
The team did very well, even though there were some inconclusive results.
The ruleset:
Unlimited time, submissions and pins (3 seconds) to win a fall, unlimited rope grabbing to escape, best of 2/3 falls wins.
The matches were very evenly matched, and with this ruleset (combined with not a huge ring), made it VERY hard to win.
Going back on your posts, i think it's would be good to have some alternative rulesets, with a combination of time limits, points awarded for takedowns, points for pins under 3 seconds, and a rope grab limit.
Coming from SAMBO/Judo, where passivity is heavily penalized, i have to say i felt frustrated at times with my opponent being overly passive. I can't blame him because it was a good strategy based on styles, he was sticking to his gameplan to try and capitalize on a throw attempt.
All of the superfights had to be stopped before they were finished or the promoter changed the rules on the fly, because the audience was getting bored and they had to finish the card, somehow.
The best match was a 2vs2 catch match, which had to be stopped after 40-45 minutes, and postponed for the next event.
What do you think would be a good alternative ruleset for catch? In particular, to make it more spectator friendly and to lure in competitors of other grappling styles?