We're Back With Another LineStar Weekly Knockout!

Written by LineStar contributor, combat sports enthusiast, and practitioner, Chris Guy.

Instagram: @therealsethgeko & Twitter: @DadHallOfFamer

UFC 266 howled at the moon; it was wild.  The main event featured plot twists straight out of House of Cards, the co-main event was a reimagining of the goat bait T-Rex feeding scene in Jurassic Park, and the honorary main event had me harvesting remember berries by the barrel load, as I watched two long-time legends run back a fight that had trailed off over the horizon in my rearview over a decade ago.

Round three…

The featherweight title match between Brian Ortega and Alexander Volkanovski featured the single greatest round in title fight history.  Round three.  Hyperbole in my back pocket; it may have been the greatest round ever. Ever-ever?  Ever-ever.  Volkanovski put on a technical clinic, out landing Ortega with extended combinations until about halfway through the third round.  Ortega knocked down Volkanovski and quickly snatched up his neck in a tight guillotine.  When Volkanovski started flutter kicking, trying to free his legs to escape the choke, I thought it was a wrap.  Wrap it up, B.  I tapped in my living room and dropped Mary Jane on the carpet.  

So much was riding on just a little extra squeeze, a slightly better angle this way or that, or a little less sweat and blood reducing the friction.  Volkanovski escaped the guillotine only to get caught in a D’arce.  When Volkanovski escaped the D’arce, he quickly found himself lost at sea in a triangle.  Ortega had the death angle locked in on the triangle choke, which usually spells t-a-p, but somehow, someway, Volkanovski once again escaped and finished the round with heavy ground and pound that left Ortega unable to immediately get up and back to the stool in between rounds.

In the end, it was like when I was sixteen and got the Spice channel to come in clearly for three minutes, an absolute beating.  Volkanovski dominated long stretches on the feet.  His hand speed and superior technical prowess were just a notch above, and Ortega took a lifetime's worth of damage within the twenty-five minutes.

The biggest surprise of the evening was that Lauren Murphy managed to drag herself like Lieutenant Dan into the fourth round.  Ultimately, her demise was as grizzly as any others who have stood across the Octagon from Valentina, but I’m a Cowboys fan who fully embraces moral victories. 

By the end of the night, I was left with one question.  Where the hell has that Robbie Lawler been for the last four years?  He was like my two-year-old playing Tekken with a broken joystick, mashing buttons nonstop and only moving forward.  It was immediately evident why the Diaz camp changed the fight to middleweight; Nick wasn’t in shape, and for the first time ever, you saw a Diaz’s cardio fail them. 

Fatigue makes cowards of us all- Vince Lombardi

Finally, long time foe-turned-homie of the Weekly Knockout, Chris Daukaus, put himself on the map as a true heavyweight contender.  I’ve detailed it before; Daukaus throws the nastiest hooks in the game.  He throws hooks thumbs down like an inverted hammerfist, angling the strike to land with his first two knuckles, causing heavy damage.  Don’t try it at home.  I have, and I almost broke my wrists.  Daukaus is now in line for a big-name fight, and I can’t help but feel like my dry hate on this here newsletter before his debut has helped fuel Daukaus to four straight dubs to start his UFC career.  Your welcome, Mr. Daukaus.  Can a homie get some tix when you fight for the title next year?

As always, before you can look ahead, you have to take a look over your shoulder and check on your demons.  I can’t see them, but I can hear them.  They’re never too far away.  But for the time being, the coast is clear.  Next up, Thiago Santos vs. Johnny Walker, no chaser, and a third straight main event dub.

Johnny "On The Rocks" Walker (+130 ) vs Thiago Santos (-155)

Walker: DK: $7.4k | Santos: DK:$8.8k

This is a matchup of two unorthodox power strikers that will likely end with one fighter hitting the snooze button three times and missing the complimentary continental breakfast.  Johnny Walker is an unpredictable home run hitter who has only seen the second round twice in his last eight fights.  Thiago Santos is a former title challenger who slangs heavy bricks with both hands like Craig when he cracked Debo’s ass.

I’ve documented the armed robbery Thiago Santos was the victim of in a desolate stretch of Nevada desert when he fought Jon Jones for the belt in 2019.  Everyone mentions Dominick Reyes’s robbery against Bones Jones but few mention Santos went into the fifth round of his fight against Jones with a clear two rounds in the bag.  He went on to outwork Jones for the entirety of the fifth and deciding round and was rewarded with two destroyed knees and a big L.  Although in defeat, Santos proved his heart is as big as the hammer tatted on his chest.  

Santos blew out both of his knees early in the Jones fight and still fought to the final bell, more often than not pressuring and taking the fight to Jones.  In his two bouts since recovering from reconstructive surgery, Santos has looked far different than the nuclear aggressive fighter who TKO’d current Champ Jan Blachowicz in 2019.  The pre-Jon Jones version of Thiago Santos fought carefree and often reckless.  He would wade forward, throwing alternating wide hooks and heavy round kicks until the person in front of him ceased to exist. 

In his most recent bout against Aleksandar Rakic, Santos rolled into the cage on shaky legs, looking more like Jimmy Valmer than the man who all but upset Bones Jones.  He fought tentatively and gave up too much ground to Rakic, retreating and fighting with his back against the cage for most of the fifteen minutes.  The trademark bum-rushes across the Octagon while swinging Thor hammers was nowhere to be found. 

When he steps into the Octagon across from Johnny Walker, Santos will need to find the correct mix of aggression and tactical decision-making.  Santos will be the overall better striker and can slow-play Walker into the later rounds where Walker isn’t experienced fighting.  Walker is more than capable of taking Santos to the mat, so Santos will have to be careful not to over pursue and run into Walker’s clinch.  Most importantly, Santos needs to stay in Walker’s chest and not give Walker space to throw his long, wild flying/spinning ish.

Johnny Walker is a rare breed of fighter; he needs chaos to thrive.  He’s at his best when he fights without boundaries, without the limitations of traditional preconceived rhythms or flows.  Walker is a bigger Michel Pereira, the Cirque Du Soleil trapeze artist who does Simone Biles floor routines in the cage.  Walker is a Harlem Globetrotter striker who hits you with every spinning and flying technique ever invented.  When he starts throwing limbs around willy-nilly, the Globetrotters' whistling theme song starts playing in the background.

Walker is allergic to second rounds. For better or worse, seventeen of his twenty-three career fights have ended in the first round, including five of his last six.  His only fight to go the distance in six UFC bouts was against Nikita Krylov, who consistently took Walker down and dominated most of the fight with top control.  In his most recent bout, Walker KO’d Ryan Spann halfway into the first round after almost being KO’d himself in the opening minute.   

Similar to Tony Ferguson, Walker lacks fundamental techniques to fall back on when the wild, flashy, unorthodox tactics don’t work.  If Ferguson can’t beat you with Gregory Hines tap dancing and electric slide awkward strikes, he has no base to return to.  Walker’s style is limited by the same lack of fundamentals.  He can’t settle into a traditional back and forth kickboxing match with a more technical opponent.  An opponent who isn’t susceptible to getting caught with flying knees, spinning back kicks, and Superman punches off the cage.  When none of those things work, and the fight progresses past the first round, that's when Walker gets into trouble.

But you have to stick to what got you to the dance, the Bod Man cologne spray, LA Looks hair gel, and the Ford Escort with the manual windows.  The key for Johnny Walker is to be Johnny Walker.  Create Chaos and let the chips fall where they may.  If I were in his corner, I’d advise Walker to initiate the clinch and work trips.  Glover Teixeira claimed Santos on his taxes as a dependent last year when he took the fight to the mat.  He broke Santos from the top position, and Santos looked like a slip and fall victim from his back.

Have one of these guys on your roster; I can’t imagine this going anywhere close to the allotted five rounds.  Santos is coming in as the (-175) favorite, and that’s a reflection on Walker’s limited window of opportunity to win the fight.  If you bet on Walker, you have about five to seven minutes to score a finish.  Santos can fall into a traditional kickboxing match and attack with more technical combinations.  Grab the Yankee candles and a blindfold and put it on wax, Thiago Santos via TKO, round three.

Winner: Thiago Santos | Method: TKO Rd.3

Kyle Daukaus (+130) vs. Kevin Holland (-155)

Daukaus: DK: $7.7k | Holland: DK: $8.5k

In 2020, I was the Grand Marshal of the Kevin Holland bandwagon procession, daintily waving to the crowd and tossing batons with flowing streamers into the air while doing pirouettes before catching them.  There may even be video evidence of me consuming handfuls of horse manure in the streets like an Eagles fan.  Times were good, and any thoughts of my joy ever coming to an end were far from anything I could comprehend in that moment.  But here we are.

In early 2021, I was exposed as a Kevin Holland propagandist, caught red-handed running interference in an attempt to redirect attention away from the large holes in his game after my fawning description of his highly successful 2020 campaign.  Against Derek Brunson, Holland hung me out to dry like your mammy did your skid-marked chonies in fourth grade just to embarrass you in front of the neighbors. 

Against Brunson and Marvin Vettori, Holland was sloppy and reckless on the feet and literally ran into takedowns.  From his back, he held on to body triangles for long stretches.  A body triangle from the bottom is a stall tactic or a position used to control the opponent if you need time to recover.  Or in Kevin Holland’s practice, the body triangle is the perfect opportunity to hold a networking social mixer. 

There’s no doubt that Kevin Holland can push a blistering verbal pace that only Hall of Fame auctioneers can match.  His stand-up is dangerous enough to back it up, but his takedown defense and overall wrestling ability are atrocious on its best day.  His inability to control his aggression on the feet becomes a liability against any opponent with a solid wrestling base.  Kevin has long whipping strikes and the KO power to sleep anybody in the division, but he lacks footwork.  He tends to leap into the pocket to cover distance instead of sliding in behind tactical strikes.  

There were rumors of Holland moving down to welterweight, where he would be an immediate problem for anyone in the division but is making another return to middleweight against Kyle Daukaus.  Unfortunately for Holland, this is another terrible matchup. Daukaus has excellent wrestling/grappling, and the key for Holland will be controlling the pocket from the outside, avoiding the clinch, and staying on his feet at all costs.

Kyle Daukaus is the brother of my new favorite fighter Chris Daukaus.  As good as Chris Daukaus is, Kyle may be the better all-around fighter.  He mixes effortless, smooth striking from the southpaw stance with high-level Jiu-Jitsu and ground and pound.  Chris has the more dangerous striking, but Kyle can mix it up on the mat with the best grapplers in the division and Chris's ground game has yet to be seen.

On the feet, Kyle’s left hand is dangerous, and he’s creative when it comes to setting it up; he often likes to use it as a same-side combination behind a left kick.  It’s a sneaky way to land the power cross by bringing the opponent’s hands down to defend the kick.  Daukaus has an excellent feel for the pocket and remaining just outside his opponent’s reach.  Kyle is the most dangerous when he throws 3-4 strike combinations, and he throws his hooks palm down like his brother, landing them around the opponent’s guard.

The clinch is the great equalizer in MMA.  Kyle Daukaus is crafty in the clinch and likes to initiate it against the cage early and often.  He has subtle tricks up his sleeves but only wears tank tops.  Using constant wrist control, Daukaus will use short arm drags to get his opponent off balance and land elbows off the momentary opening.  Randy Couture and Daniel Cormier are two of the GOATS when it comes to dirty boxing in the clinch, and Daukaus is a throwback to the lost art.

Kyle can stand and bang with Holland for fifteen minutes, but that would be very risky.  I’d give Holland the edge when it comes to being able to finish the fight on the feet.  The path of least resistance for Kyle will be in the clinch and from the top position on the mat.  I don’t think Holland has had enough time to make serious strides in his wrestling/grappling game and Kyle will have a decided advantage.  The biggest advantage in MMA is who can determine where the fight takes place and that will be Kyle Daukaus.

At the moment, Kyle Daukaus is the slight (+110), and I love his value as the dog.  Holland’s value will be in creating a fight-ending sequence on the feet early in the fight.  If Daukaus struggles to get the fight to the mat, Holland will beat Daukaus up on the feet.  For the first time in his last seven scraps, I’m picking against Kevin Holland.  Kyle Daukaus via decision.  If it ain’t on wax, it ain’t shh…

Winner: Kyle Daukaus | Method: Decision

Alex Oliveira (+145) vs. Niko Price (-175)

Oliveira: DK: $7.8k | Price: DK: $8.4k

Like the main event, this is a matchup of two unorthodox fighters.  Alex Oliveira and Niko Price run in packs and howl at the moon.  Price has two of the most unlikely KO’s you’ll see.  He KO’d Randy Brown with hammerfists from his guard and James Vick with an upkick from his back.  Niko is literally dangerous everywhere.  Oliveira has an extremely long frame and dominating physical strength.  The man they call Cowboy has Stretch Armstrong long punches and can hit you from the parking lot.  Both fighters are UFC vets riding losing streaks, and this should be a high pace back and forth fight.

Niko Price is an unorthodox, herky-jerky type of striker with deceptive power.  He’s very aggressive and never stops moving forward with peppering punches and kicks.  Price is coming in off a close decision loss to Michel Pereira, a fight that Niko threatened to finish in the closing minutes.  Niko was at a severe speed and power disadvantage early in the fight but hung around and took over late with superior cardio and unrelenting forward pressure.  Price is like a firefighter who sets fires to put them out, an arsonist firefighter.  He needs a firefight to be effective and incites them by constantly moving forward and pressuring his opponents.         

Cowboy Oliveira is making his twenty-first UFC appearance since 2015 and has compiled a 12-8 record.  He’s a long, one-punch power striker with excellent wrestling/grappling and a very tough out for anyone in the welterweight division.  Oliveira works the graveyard shift checking credentials at the entrance of the bridge of death.  He’s a gatekeeper, and I’ve said it before, the gatekeepers are the fighters with the most UFC longevity; the term shouldn’t be considered derogatory.  Cowboy has been finished in the first round of each of his last two bouts, and he’ll need to be far more aggressive in this one, or Niko will break him with pressure.

Oliveira hasn’t scored a finish in seven straight fights, and Price has finished all six of his UFC dubs.  Cowboy may be the more dangerous fighter early, but he doesn’t have the dog in him that Niko Price has.  Price wins by breaking people’s wills, and I think his pressure will eventually do just that to Oliveira late.  Niko Price via TKO, round three.

Winner: Niko Price | Method: TKO Rd.3

Misha Cirkunov (+125 ) Kryzsztof Jotko (-150 )

Cirkunov: DK: $7.6k | Jotko: DK: $8.6k

The classic grappler versus striker matchup.  For better or worse, all seven of Misha Cirkunov’s most recent fights have ended in the first round, and during that stretch, he has gone 3-4.  Cirkunov is a one-round warrior and grappling dynamo, like the guy wrapped up in Christmas lights in The Running Man.  He times power double legs that look more like the Goldberg Spear, waiting for his opponent to engage so he can change levels and shoot.  If/when Misha gets you to the mat, you’re gonna have a bad time.  

To all my young readers: Back in the day before GPS, there were these things called maps.  A company called Thomas Brothers made them, and everyone had one folded away in their glove compartment.  If you didn’t have one, you’d have to stop and ask for directions and would likely end up in a Texas Chainsaw remake.  Misha Cirkunov has a roadmap to the mount he follows after securing top position and rarely deviates from it.  He’ll pass to half-guard with distracting strikes, then go to side mount, where he’ll look to pin one arm with his legs in a half crucifix position.  If he can’t secure the far side arm with his head, Cirkunov will go straight to the mount and use the opponent’s desperation to escape to hunt for chokes.  He caught the highly touted Jimmy Crute in a Peruvian Necktie (Google that).

Krzysztof Jotko is a fairly average kickboxer and objectophile.  Like the lady who married the Eiffel Tower, Jotko is highly attracted to the cage.  He can’t stay away from it, and I think it goes deeper than just being a bad habit.  Jotko is a southpaw with a broken joystick who only circles towards his lead hand, and he often boxes himself in against the cage where he can’t use his best weapon, range.  Jotko has a wide stance and wide, long punches and needs room to operate.  He does not do well exchanging in the pocket, and overall, there’s no flare, no “Wooooo!” to Jotko’s striking; he’s very vanilla and tends to use basic repetitive attacks.

In his last bout against Sean Strickland, Jotko fought frantic, almost terrified the whole fight.  He never stopped circling long enough to set his feet to sit down on any power shots to resist Strickland’s pressure.  I don’t know, I can’t quite put my green thumb on it, but he looked like someone who would talk about Operation Mongoose or Bohemian Grove at a job interview.  He looked like an MK Ultra patient, paranoid.  But I guess Sean Strickland will do that to you.

Jotko has to stay off of the mat, and Cirkunov has to get it there.  Cirkunov is coming in as the (+140) dog, and his value is in a first-round submission.  Beyond the first round, he won’t have much more Fantasy value than me.  Misha has notable submission wins over Jimmy Crute, Nikita Krylov, Ion Cutelaba, and Patrick Cummins.  Jotko just doesn’t impress me.  Misha Cirkunov via arm-triangle, round one.

Winner: Misha Cirkunov | Method: Arm-Triangle Rd.1

Aspen Ladd (-265 ) vs Macy Chiasson (+210)

Ladd: DK: $8.9k | Chiasson: DK:$7.3k

Aspen Ladd is the first woman to be bestowed with the Weekly Knockout’s highest praise: She’s wild, she howls at the moon.  This may sound facetious, but it’s not; one of Aspen Ladd’s best skills is the Maria Sharapova grunt she uses to punctuate all of her strikes.  Their purpose is multifaceted; they sell every strike to the judges as if each was a devastating blow, and they make her sound legit crazy and probably scare the hell out of her opponents.  They turn into 80’s slasher movie screams as she gets more violent and borders on a superpower like the X-Men Banshee.  

Ladd uses relentless forward pressure and second and third level wide hooks to bully her opponents backward.  She uses the heavy pressure to level change and is very handy with the double leg to inside trip.  When she gets the top position, the fight turns into The Exorcism Of Aspen Ladd, a B-rated horror movie with never-ending hammer fists and elbows.  Herb Dean can’t stop the fight; they have to bring in the expertise of Father Callahan.  

Aspen is 9-1 as a professional, including 4-1 in the UFC.  Her only loss was to elite kickboxer Germaine de Randamie.  Ladd will be facing a woman who made her debut after only two professional fights, Macy Chiasson.  Macy is 5-1 in the UFC and has impressive wins over Pannie Kianzad, Sarah Moras, and Marion Reneau.  Her only loss was to Lina Lansberg, who is a high-level striker.  But the Aspen Ladd matchup should prove to be her stiffest test.

Chiasson is a NOLA representative, the same city as the greatest lightweight of all time not named Khabib, Dustin Poirier.  There’s something different about fighters from NOLA; they’re unbreakable and lack any kind of trepidation in the cage.  She’s a long combination striker who thrives in the clinch, scoring a large portion of her total strikes from the position.  Chiasson has topped out over two hundred strikes in recent fights and allows for little dead air between exchanges.  Her best defense is her offense, and her biggest weakness is a lack of power; most of her strikes are peppering shots in high volume.

The key for Chiasson will be controlling distance, managing the pocket from the outside.  She has to keep Ladd moving backward and attack with second and third-level strikes and maintain control of the center of the Octagon.  Chiasson’s takedown defense will be the deciding factor.  Her takedown defense is suspect, but she is very strong from the top position and uses her long frame to land Tito Ortiz ground and pound from the guard.

At the opening, Chiasson is the (+160) dog, and Ladd the (-200) favorite.  I think this fight is closer to a pick ‘em, a complete toss-up.  Both fighters have the potential to land a high volume of significant strikes, but with six TKO/KO’s on her record, Ladd provides the better shot at a finish.  Aspen Ladd via decision.

Winner: Aspen Ladd | Method: Decision

Mike Breeden (+380 ) vs Alexander Hernandez (-550)

Breeden: DK: $6.8k | Hernandez: DK:$9.4k

Mike Breeden is going to get knocked out in his UFC debut.  He’s coming in on short notice against the seven-fight UFC veteran Alexander Hernandez.  Breeden’s most recent fight was against a Chiefs fan in the bleachers of Arrowhead Stadium.  The guy looked like a carnival ride mechanic and would have beaten Breeden via first-round armbar had the round not ended.  

Anywho, Hernandez is a killer… at times.  He made his debut in 2018 against the top five contender Beneil Dariush, and KO’d Dariush in just forty-two seconds.  Hernandez also has a win over the very tough Francisco Trinaldo.  The only thing keeping Hernandez from being a legitimate contender is his mental game.  If he can’t front-run and overwhelm his opponent with uber aggression, he tends to fade mentally.  If you can withstand his early pressure, you can snatch his still-beating heart and show it to the crowd like Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom.  But Hernandez throws heavy bombs, mostly short hooks, and he can mix in wrestling and a heavy top game.

When it comes to Fantasy rosters, Mike Breeden will likely be one dollar.  Like when a contestant on The Price Is Right suspects the other players on Contestants’ Row of overbidding.  This fight is as close to starting the night at 1-0 as you can get, a lot like a couple of months ago when Kris Moutinho fought Sean O’Malley on short notice.  Alexander Hernadez via TKO, round one.

Winner: Alexander Hernandez | Method: TKO Rd.1

Prelims

Highlighted Matchup

Joe Solecki (-125) vs. Jared Gordon (+105)

Solecki: DK: $8.3k | Gordon: DK: $7.9k 

The Olympics went off without a hitch two months ago.  There weren't any stories of athletes being robbed in gas station restrooms, and I watched more wrestling than I have in my entire life.  This fight right here features two excellent wrestlers and could turn into an Olympic Grecco type of fight.  Of course, when two excellent wrestlers/grapplers face off, we often see an unspoken grappling stalemate acknowledged, and a lackluster kickboxing match ensues.  Both scenarios are in play here.

Jared Gordon is the better striker, even though I wouldn’t consider his striking to be anything above average wrestler striking.  Joe Solecki has raw striking and can’t put together even basic combinations.  He stands at attention like Gomer Pyle with his chin up in the air when he engages and defends, and he will be the one who needs to gain top control at all costs.

If they were wearing singlets, Solecki might be the better wrestler, but Gordon’s MMA wrestling and top game are superior.  Solecki is coming off a yawner against Jim Miller.  It was a fight that Solecki edged out with top control and very little ground and pound or submission attempts.  Gordon is coming off an impressive win against the very dangerous Danny Chavez and has won three of his last four.  His only loss in that span was to the Champ Charles Oliveira.

Hopefully, these guys strap on the Princess Leia earmuffs and wrestling singlets and deliver on a high pace grappling match.  I don’t see either fighter scoring a finish.  Gordon will be a higher output fighter and will have the edge in the stand-up.  And every round begins standing up.  Jared Gordon via decision.

Winner: Jared Gordon | Method: Decision

Twenty-Twen-Twen Sleepers

Twenty-Ten-Twen Sleeper

I stuck to the game plan last week and dropped twin Hamiltons, one on Jairzinho Rozenstruik and the other on Marlon Moraes. If you missed the Moraes vs. Dvalishvili fight, shame on you. It looked like I had the upset in the bag in the opening minute, but Marlon Moraes managed to steal the L like De Niro in Heat. He straight Steve Irwin wrestled the L from the jaws of victory. 

This week, I like Kyle Daukaus at (+130). Kevin Holland's takedown defense is terrible, and Daukaus has a strong clinch game and underrated grappling. Daukaus has the blueprint like Jay-Z and the tools to execute it. Macy Chiasson at (+210) has the output and length to cause Aspen Ladd problems from the outside on the feet. Chiasson will have to overcome a big power disadvantage in the stand-up, but she's tough and will hang around within striking distance until the end.

Honorable Mention: Forty-one-year-old Johnny Eduardo at (+190) against Alejandro Perez on the card's opener. Perez isn't a world-beater by any stretch of the imagination. Johnny Eduardo has tight, technical boxing on the feet and quick hands and will initiate 50/50 exchanges all night long. This is closer to a toss-up than the odds would lead you to believe. 

Pick 'Em

Antonina Shevchenko (+175 ) vs. Casey O'Neill (-220 )

            Winner: Casey O'Neill

 Method: Decision 

Bethe Correia (+365 ) vs. Karol Rosa (-525 )

            Winner: Karol Rosa

 Method: Decision

Devonte Smith (-155 ) vs. Jamie Mullarkey (+130)

Winner: Devonte Smith

 Method: Decision

Douglas De Andrade (-250 ) vs. Gaetano Pirrello (+200 )

    Winner: Douglas De Andrade

 Method: Decision

Stephanie Egger (-115 ) vs. Shanna Young (-105 )

    Winner: Stephanie Egger

 Method: Decision

Alejandro Perez (-240 ) vs. Johnny Eduardo (+190 )

    Winner: Alejandro Perez

 Method: Decision

Thanks for reading LineStar Weekly Knockout! We'll be back next Thursday with another one. Until then, good luck and support your local MMA Gym.

About Me

My name is Chris Guy, and I’m an avid combat sports enthusiast and practitioner. I’ve been a fan of MMA since the early 2000s when Limewire was still around, and I downloaded Bas Rutten’s Big Book of Combat. In 2004, I started training Muay Thai at City Boxing in San Diego, CA. I competed as an amateur for many years, and I've also dabbled in Jiu-Jitsu. I follow many different disciplines, such as Combat Ji-Jitsu, Muay Thai, Glory Kickboxing, Boxing, and MMA.

I’m equally as enthusiastic about the craft of writing, and in addition to writing about combat sports, I also write short fiction and music. I hope to bring unique prose to sports writing, and along the way, encourage people to not only become Martial Arts fans but to also become Martial Artists themselves. 

In the future, you may see me refer to the Thunderdome; it's an ode to the old Mad Max movie and refers to the world-class training facility I built in my one-car garage. It's complete with throw dummies, wrestling mats, heavy bags, and six months' worth of Chef Boyardee cans from when I thought the world was going to end back in March. I hope you enjoy my work, and if you don’t, the Thunderdome has an open door policy. 

Check out my Podcast The Whiskey (S)ick Podcast on Apple and Spotify. Parental Advisory Warning