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Fight for Rockaway charity event set for December 15th in New York

Muay Thai Authority — Tue, 13 Nov 2012 21:27:00 +0000

After Hurricane Sandy ravaged Rockaway Beach and many other areas of the east coast Chris “Mr. Classic” Romulo’s gym and home were destroyed. A great part of The community of Rockaway Beach where the Romulos lived and their gym was located suffered severe flooding resulting in the complete loss of many homes and businesses, including the Romulo’s. Now many Muay Thai fans, and good Samaritans have stepped forward to help raise money for Chris Romulo and CROM Marital Training. Today, Justin Blair, President Justin Blair of Friday Night Fights and the Romulo’s have jointly announced that they will be hosting a charity Fight Night event on Saturday December 15th to help raise funds for Romulo and CROM MT. A fight card for the event has not been announced, but not only is there one more event in the year which is great, but it is being put on for the benefit of raising money for the Romulo family and CROM MT which is makes it event better.

Full press release below:

Friday Night Fights, President & Chris Romulo team up to benefit the CROM Martial Training Center.

Former WKA North American Super Middle Weight Champion, Chris Romulo announced earlier today
that he would be working with long-time friend and president of Friday Night
Fight, Justin Blair on a fight night
to benefit the CROM Martial Training
Center that was destroyed by Hurricane Sandy. The gym, which was started by
Chris Romulo and his wife, Sarah Romulo,
was located in Rockaway Beach, New York, one of the hardest hit areas in the
region devastated by the Hurricane.

CROM Martial Training, or, CROM MT as it is known by,
quickly earned its stripes as a legitimate fight gym with Sarah Romulo winning
a match at the Rumble on the River in 2010 and team member Melvin Vega winning
this year’s New York Golden Gloves title at 119lbs. Earlier this year, the
Romulo’s held their own fight event for charity on the Rockaway Beach Boardwalk
aptly titled “Battle on the Boards” further establishing the club’s legitimacy
within the fight community.

Chris Romulo had this to say about his gym and the upcoming
event:

Obviously it has been
a difficult time for many people in the area. Our gym was far more than our
livelihood, we were honored to have created a sense of community built from the
sport we love so much. Our members, teammates, friends and family were what
made our gym what it was and that’s not something that goes away so easily.

Sarah and I are
committed to remaining in Rockaway Beach and rebuilding what we started, making
our club even better than it was before. We are both looking forward to getting
started. The support that we’ve received to date has touched both Sarah and I
deeply however we are very much looking forward to getting back on track and
our event on December 15^thwill be a big step in that direction.

Justin Blair, President of Friday Night Fights followed up
with the following statement:

In addition to being a
fan of Chris Romulo, he and his wife Sarah are also close friends of ours. On a
personal level, Chris and I have a long history and have been through a fair
amount together. We essentially “grew up” together in our respective fields
(professionally) and I’m grateful for having him in my corner for so many
years.

We were very fortunate
to have Chris compete for us for so many year and I’d like to think that our
professional relationship reflected the mutual respect and appreciation we had
(and still have) for one another as friends . Chris Romulo will always remain
FNF’s premier “franchise player”. Chris personifies so many of the qualities
that fans of the sport of Muay Thai respect – dignity, class, honor,
sportsmanship and a sense of community. Chris was and remains a member of our
close knit team at FNF that identifies and values these attributes so we’re
honored for the opportunity to participate in organizing the December 15^th
event in his honor and benefit.

The December 15^th event will take place at the
Broad Street Ballroom on Saturday December 15^th and will feature a
full card of Muay Thai fights along with a silent auction and other fundraising
activities. The event will offer both table service as well as premium and
general admission ticketing. For more details, visit www.fridaynightfights.com on
Wednesday November 14^th.

*Photo by Lance Burns

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Alex Berrios vs. Eric Utsch and Chris Kwiatkowski vs. Jose Palacios set for December 7th FNFMT event

Muay Thai Authority — Mon, 05 Nov 2012 22:53:00 +0000

Friday Night Fights Muay Thai (@FridaysFights) was forced to move their November 2nd event back to December 7th due to the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. In addition to the bout between Chris Kwiatkowski and Jose Palacios (@JEPalacios) which was originally scheduled for November 2nd, Alex Berrios and Eric Utsch (@UtschEric) will square off.

Berrios will be looking for this third win of the year, his most recent victory coming over Warren Thompson back in June under the Bangkok Fight Night banner. Utsch is coming off a controversial loss to Sean Hinds back in June under the Friday Night Fights banner.

The event will take place at The Hall at St. Paul, and it has not been confirmed which fight will serve as the night’s main event.

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Friday Night Fights Muay Thai Nov. 2nd event re-scheduled to Dec. 7th due to Hurricane Sandy aftermath

Muay Thai Authority — Wed, 31 Oct 2012 22:25:00 +0000

Friday Night Fights Muay Thai (FNFMT) November 2nd card has been re-scheduled for Friday December 7th due to the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy. It is the first time in the promotion’s history that they have had to postpone and event. The highly anticipated bout between Chris Kwiatkowski and Jose Palacios will take place on the December 7th fight card. FNFMT President, Justin Blair issued the following statement:

Consistency has been a central theme for our organization since beginning over 15 years ago. All too often, the people and organizations in our field rightfully earn the stigma that comes with’ not delivering as promised’. This is something we at Friday Night Fights have successfully avoided through years of consistency and reliability. Through producing 200+ shows over a decade and a half……always living up to our commitment of doing what we say we’re going to do, when we say we’ll do it FNF has established a level of reliability that is unparalleled in our industry.

While the people of New York City are amongst the most resilient on earth, the timing and devastating impact of this storm, just 4 days prior to our event, have made producing an event to the standard that I and my team expect from ourselves is not possible. And, while the coaches, fighters and fans have been very, very supportive, I and every member of the FNF team guarantee the fight fans of New York, that our end of year show, will be the highest caliber event and highest level of professional Muay Thai competition that will be seen in New York in 2012, that is a promise. Several of the bouts scheduled for 11/2 will be seen on the 12/7 card including the main event: Jose Palacios vs Chris Kwiatkowski. Additionally, several additional, high caliber matches will be included on that card.

The FNF team will be putting everything we have into our year end show and can assure fans that this next event will be one to be remembered.

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Friday Night Fights Muay Thai launches YouTube Channel, regular updates with fight videos expected

Muay Thai Authority — Thu, 18 Oct 2012 20:40:00 +0000

Friday Night Fights Muay Thai (@FridaysFights) launched their YouTube Channel today. The page can be seen at www.youtube.com/fnfmt and will feature regular updates with some of Friday Night Fights best fights. The fights that are currently available for viewing are Joseph Valtellini vs. Alex Berrios, Troy Sheridan vs. Phil LeGrand, and Justin Greskiewicz vs. Turan Hasanov 3.

Everyone loves free fights so make sure to check the YouTube Channel out so you can check out these fights and the many to come. We have embedded the three fights that are currently available on their channel below.

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Jose Palacios talks upcoming bout with Chris Kwiatkowski at Friday Night Fights

Muay Thai Authority — Wed, 17 Oct 2012 18:56:00 +0000

Jose Palacios (@JEPalacios) will return to action after a lengthy layoff on November 2nd to take on Chris Kwiatkowski under the Friday Night Fights Muay Thai (@FridaysFights) banner. Palacios took some time from his busy schedule to answer a few questions about the upcoming fight with Kwiatkowski.

MTA: You have a fight against Chris Kwiatkowski November 2nd
in New York
for Friday Night Fights. You haven’t fought since February, how excited are you
to get back in the ring?

Jose: I’m very excited for the up and coming challenge. He is a recognized
fighter and I love the idea of facing tough opponents. Win or lose it doesn’t
matter. I want to look back and say yes, I fought this guy. So yes… I’m am
excited and ready!

MTA: What was the reason for the layoff?

Jose: Well, the lay off was not done on purpose. I’m not a newbie when it comes
to injuries. I’ve had many in my career. I’ve been doing this for a while now
and I have paid my dues. I’ve broken both hands more than once. Tore my tendons
on my left elbow from not tapping out. Cracked my sternum from a side kick to
the chest. Broken both feet in a fight,
almost tore a retina vs. a French Kickboxing
champion, that’s to name a few, but none have been as frustrating as the one I
got this year.

In my last camp after Shane, I over trained and I hurt my back. I had to pull
out of a fight in the Legends promotion in
San Francisco due to the MRI results. I had 2
bulging disks and it was painful to even walk. I had intense therapy and I mean
intense. That hurts right there, that’s real pain.

As soon as my back felt better my corner and I decided to take on the next
fight. I went to K-1 trials with my back not 100% healed and I was excited to
be there. I was happy to see how my Lion Fight Promotion brothers did in there.
Made me hungrier and eager to fight again.

I did get into other things like acting and music so I made the best out of it.

MTA: How familiar are you with Chris K?

Jose: I’ve never seen Chris fight before. I knew I was eventually going to face
off vs. him. We both were ranked by the WBC last year. I was 2 he was 3 or
something like that… but I again, I never saw him fight before. When I was
told I was facing off against him I took a look at a few of his fights and went
to work. It’s another day in the office. I don’t really like to look at video
too much, I like to work on what I do.

MTA: You dropped your last two fights by decision; do you
feel any pressure to make sure you don’t hit a three fight skid?

Jose: My last two fights were a great learning experience. I had a lot of
distraction in my personal life and I let it affect my performance. I’m not
thinking about a 3rd loss. I would love an opportunity to fight these fighters again.

MTA: During your time off you acted in an independent film
City at War. How was that experience?

Jose: City at War! I loved it. It’s something that I’ve always wanted to do. It’s
just as much as a rush as fighting is. I play a very strong minded Character
named Zeta. He is an individual that many people respect and fear. He takes it
upon himself to bring honor to his family and himself, he is the leader that
the younger generation need and he takes it to heart.

It’s a movie directed by a close friend of mine Eduardo Castrillo and his Uncle
David Cavallero. Eddie is young up and comer who I believe has a lot of
potential with big projects in mind and I’m glad I’m a part of it. Every one
has to start somewhere, this is it. It’s his 2nd film and what I love about it
is that we don’t have the big budgets. The fancy cameras, but the imagination
is there and that’s what matters. He has the support of his family and friends
and the stars are the limits. The movie is being release in Nov. 17th in a
theater in
14808 East 14th Street,
San Leandro, California.

I’m not gonna lie, I’m excited and nervous. First time seeing myself on screen.
This is the trailer.

MTA: Can we get a prediction for the fight?

Jose: Predictions for the fight..? haha… This question always makes me smile.
Yea.. someone is going to win and someone is going to lose. Both people are
gonna come out beat up.. one more than the other.. and I’m training hard so
this person is not me. I’m not big on talking smack. I respect every opponent I
face, but I am training to win.

MTA: You are located in Northern California,
being that you will be fighting on the east coast for the first time, how
important do you think it is for you to go make a statement in this fight?

Jose: It’s a big statement. I’m representing the caliber of fighters from the
West. I can easily say it’s a fight just for me and to a point it is, but I am
also aware of the fight community and how things like this can be looked at as
East vs. West. I can embrace that idea… hah. I can see it now, boos from
every corner.

It is what it is
at the end of the day, we are both fighters living on the other side of the
country. Fighting for honor at least that’s my case.

MTA: Any words for your supporters Jose?

Jose: Thank you! My biggest supporters are closest friends at the gym who are
with me day in and day out. The people that bring me food when I’m hungry and
beat up. My parents who feed me and nurture me back to life. My girlfriend, I
know it’s not easy, Thank you. My brothers who I want to punch in the gut
sometimes, but at the end of the day still make me smile when I think back at
the good times. My coach Rudi Ott who challenges me day in and out helping me
focus and become a better martial artist. My team mates, brothers por vida
homes.

The San Jose Medical Brigades folks who have big hearts and help other people
in need. They remind me how blessed we are to have running water.
http://www.empowered.org/Julie-Basuino

How can I forget the people who cheer me on during the battle. Thank you for
you energy. Oss!
www.edopeno.com, GFY GEAR, TLC Chiropractic
Center, Crossfit Unlimted, www.morningcrane.com,Students Empowering Communities – www.empowered.org.

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Results and Recap: Friday Night Fights Muay Thai “2012 8-man Tournament”

Muay Thai Authority — Sun, 30 Sep 2012 17:33:00 +0000

Friday Night Fights Muay Thai was
back at the Ball Street Ballroom in New York, NY this past Friday. The night
was set to feature the annual eight man tournament and a main event fight
between Mohammed Lemjerdine and Tony Manoharan.

In the main event Lemjerdine out
pointed Manoharan to a five round unanimous decision win. Lemjerdine pushed the
pace forcing Manoharan against the ropes, although Manoharan had no problem
delivering shots of his own while being backed up. In the end though,
Lemjerdine’s hands were in rhythm the entire night as he took home the victory.
He pushes his pro record to 4-1 with the win.

The eight man tournament featured
fighters from all over North America, but when it was all said and done it was
Joe Cox of St. Louis, MO who stood as the winner.

In the opening round of the fights
which was chosen with a random draw at the start of the event Cox defeated Cody
Moberly by (T)KO, Benson Virtucio defeated Anton Potocki by decision, Daniel
McDonald defeated Josh Wyles by (T)KO and Eric Luna defeated Geoffrey Then by
decision.

In the semi-finals Cox defeated
McDonald by (T)KO and Virtucio defeated Luna by decision to set up the finals. It
was a back and fourth fight and you could tell both fighters really wanted the
win. Virtucio worked well in the clinch, while Cox was able to connect with
punches and kicks outside the clinch. The first round seemed to go to Virtucio
because of his work in the clinch, but in the second and third rounds Cox was
able to avoid the clinch and connect with hard shots. In the end the judges saw
the fight by unanimous decision for Cox with 29-28 scores.

Results:

Pro Fight
Mohammed Lemjerdine def. Tony Manoharan via Unanimous
Decision

8-man Tournament

Finals

Joe Cox def. Benson Virtucio via
Unanimous Decision

8-man Tournament Semi-finals

Joe Cox def. Daniel McDonald via
(T)KO in Rd. 2

Benson Virtucio def. Eric Luna via
Split Decision

8-man Tournament Opening Round

Joe Cox def. Cody Moberly via (T)KO
in Rd. 2

Benson Virtucio def. Anton Potocki
via Unanimous Decision

Daniel McDonald def. Josh Wyles via
(T)KO in Rd. 2

Eric Luna def. Geoffrey Then via Unanimous
Decision

Under Card
Fights
Phabion Wilson def. Ryan Price via (T)KO in Rd. 3
Jafar Toshev def. Giuseppe Lacolla via (T)KO in Rd. 3
Mike Koufalis def. John Gibson via Unanimous Decision
Naomi Sangkavasi def. Watt Sriboonruang via Unanimous Decision

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Jose Palacios vs. Chris Kwiatkowski expected for November 2nd Friday Night Fights Muay Thai event in New York

Muay Thai Authority — Fri, 28 Sep 2012 23:22:00 +0000

In what can be called a battle of East vs. West, Jose Palacios and Chris Kwiatkowski are expected to meet at Friday Night Fights November 2nd event. With both fighters having proven they can finish fights in a split second it should be an exciting match up.

Palacios has not competed since a loss to Shane Oblonsky back in March of this year. In the meantime Palacios took up acting and is featured in an independent film City at War. He will be looking to snap a two fight losing streak when he steps back into the ring.

Kwiatkowski returned to action in July following shoulder surgery that had him out most of the first part of the year. He defeated Daniel Rodriguez via (T)KO. He will be looking to win his third consecutive fight when he steps in to fight Palacios.

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Tony Manoharan talks upcoming fight with Mohammed Lemjerdine

Muay Thai Authority — Wed, 26 Sep 2012 19:05:00 +0000

Tony Manoharan will be returning to action this Friday
against Mohammed Lemjerdine at Friday Night Fights Muay Thai. The M-1 fighter
from Toronto will be looking fight in North America for the first time this year and was kind
enough to take some time out of his training to talk to Muay Thai Authority.

MTA: You are fighting Mohammed Lemjerdine this Friday, how familiar
are you with him?

Tony: We were actually matched up as amateurs back in 2009,
but the fight never materialized. I’ve seen him fight a couple times and he is
a good technical fighter.

MTA: You haven’t fought in a few months are you worried
about ring rust?

Tony: No not really, I’ve been in the gym working my technique and strength at
an adequate pace. I was pretty active the past 2 years, so it was good to be
able to give my body a little rest, compared to jumping into one training camp
after another at full speed.

MTA: Is there any particular area you feel you will have an advantage?

Tony: My speed I feel is one of my strong points and I’m hoping to be on point
come Friday.

MTA: How has your training been going any thing different than other training
camps?

Tony: It’s been a really good camp. I had the opportunity to do a little
sparring with Matt Embree, Benson Virtucio and Saji Bolo. Got some good solid
work in that really benefited my training. Other than that, lots of pad work as
usual with my coach Thomas Jensen.

MTA: Not looking past this fight, but do you have anything else lined up?

Tony: I don’t have any fights booked at the moment after this one, but I’m
always ready to take on what’s offered to me. I will be back in the gym helping
my teammate, Preston Baptiste get ready for the 2nd leg of the Journey Fight
Series tourney, which he has coming up in a few weeks.

MTA: Can we get a prediction from you for this fight?

Tony: I don’t like making predictions, but I can guarantee an exciting main
event fight for the NY audience come Friday night. That’s 100% for sure!

MTA: Any words for your supporters?

Tony: For the past 6 years or so, I’ve been traveling around fighting on shows
all over
North America. Unfortunately with no
sanctioning body that promotes Muay Thai here in Toronto, it’s sometimes hard for my friends,
family and teammates to make the trip out. But I always have their love and
support behind me when I step over those ropes into the ring. I’m ever so
thankful and that’s what will take me to higher levels in my Muay Thai career.
So I thank every single one of them for pushing me further in the sport.

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Tony Manoharan vs. Mohammed Lemjerdine set at Friday Night Fights Muay Thai September 28th main event

Muay Thai Authority — Sat, 22 Sep 2012 18:09:00 +0000

Tony Manoharan and Mohammed Lemjerdine have been pegged as the main event fighters for Friday Night Fights Muay Thai on September 28th. The nights event will also feature their annual one night amateur tournament. All of the action will be taking place at the Broad Street Ballroom in Manhattan, New York.

Manoharan last competed in late January at Loi Kroh Stadium in Thailand, a bout which he won by third round (T)KO. Lemjerdine last competed in July when he defeated Mike Erosa under the FNFMT banner. Both fighters are very technically skilled and it should be a high quality fight, with each fighter looking for an opening they can try and take advantage of to earn an edge in the fight.

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Friday Night Fights Muay Thai annual 8-man tournament set for September 28th

Muay Thai Authority — Fri, 21 Sep 2012 17:25:00 +0000

Friday
Night Fights Muay Thai’s annual 8-man tournament returns September 28^th.
8 of the top 132lb A-Class amateur fighters from across North America will
compete against one another with the last man standing crowned as best
lightweight in North America.

In
2008, FNFMT started their single evening tournament format and with the
exception of 2010, it has been an annual affair since its start. Many of
today’s well known professionals have competed on FNF’s 8 man tournament including:
Ognjen Topic, Liam Tarrant, Troy Sheridan, Marcus Fisher, and Turan Hasanov to name a few.
“There’s something about the tournament that certain kinds of fighters really
get up for” Said Eddie Marini, Event Director for FNFMT, “This is a completely
different animal than a regular fight. An undefeated fighter has never won the
tournament which really underlines just how challenging winning this thing is”
Marini continued.

As
with last year’s tournament, the competitors for this year’s event represent
several different areas throughout North America including the west coast and Canada. Also,
as with last year’s tournament, the line-up of competitors is not released
publicly all at once but rather a different fighter is announced every couple
of days. While the competitors are announced well ahead of the event date, the
drawing for the tournament takes place the night of the event. “The drawing
itself has become an eagerly anticipated tradition with our tournament” says
FNFMT President, Justin Blair “from the start, we wanted to make sure that this
process was completely fair and transparent for both the fans as well as the
competitors. There’s something that just doesn’t seem ‘right’ when I see a
tournament taking place without an open seeding process”. The random drawing
has on several occasions put two top seeds against one another early on in the
tournament: in 2011 Phil LeGrand fought Troy Sheridan in the opening round of
the tournament and in 2009, Tim Amorim & Ognjen Topic also drew one another
for their first bout of the evening. On both occasions, each match included
fighters with undefeated records. Sheridan
won his match with LeGrand but was stopped in the final match by Josh
Fitzsimmons. Topic also had an undefeated record and loss a close decision to
Amorim who went on to fight in a memorable fight against Gabriel Carasco losing
in the finals.

While
most events depend on a heavy contingent of regional fighters to draw a crowd,
fight fans both casual and die-hard have historically supported the annual
tournament. With 3 successful tournaments under their belt, there’s no reason
to expect anything other than a great 2012 tournament.

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