Nacua, French foe promise war, both raring to put on a show in Cebu’s first amateur MMA card

CEBU, Philippines - Cebuano fighter Lando 'Alamid' Nacua, Jr. and Paul Carrere of France both promised an all-out war when they clash head-on in the main event of Cebu's first ever amateur MMA (mixed martial arts) fightcard dubbed as the "Cebu Extreme Fight League: The Beginning" this Saturday night at the Cebu Coliseum.

Nacua, fighting under the banner of Yaw-Yan ArDigma Cebu, hopes to make an impression in his maiden venture in the amateur ranks.

"I know he (Carrere) is a striker and I am ready for him. I trained hard for this fight and also I have a strong God that will help me," said Nacua.  "I know that there will be a knockout in this fight. I've been training long in silence and I'll just let my success make the noise," added the marketing graduate from the University of San Carlos.

But the 24-year-old Nacua must brace for an action-packed battle as Carrere, a French national who had been living in Cebu for two years now,  expressed confidence of wrestling down Nacua in a swift, decisive manner.

"All I can say is that I am prepared for him (Nacua). I trained six days a week not only in Muay Thai but also in Jiu-jitsu that’s why I can say that I can fight him standing up or in the ground," said Carrere, who will make his MMA debut after nailing back-to-back wins in kickboxing.

In the supporting bout of the slambang card co-presented by HASI Fight Wear, Nissan, and IPI, it will be a showdown of styles as Nacua's teammate, Brazilian Jiu-jitsu expert Roy 'Agilon' Bajar, will go up against Nino Rio 'Tatus' Saoy of Tatus Muay-Thai and MMA of Mandaue City.

"Yes, there is pressure because this is my debut, but I want to show what Yaw-Yan fighters are all about. I will do my best to get the win," said Bajar, who hails from Dumaguete City.

"After learning that he is good in Jiu-jitsu, I trained a little bit about that style but I will still depend on my striking skills," said Saoy, who holds an impressive 4-0 record in kickboxing.

For his part, Yaw-Yan ArDigma Martial Arts Federation, Inc. CEO and Founder Master Benigno 'Ekin' R. Caniga, Jr. expects fireworks inside the ring come the big night.

"This is my first venture in amateur MMA and hopefully it will turn out well. I also hope that we can produce promising fighters out of this tournament that can represent Cebu in bigger events in Manila or even make a jump to the pro," Caniga said.

In a pair of special attraction, Angel 'Lawin' Sanchez of  Yaw-Yan ArDigma will try to transform her gorgeous looks into a deadly fighting machine as she battles Bridgette 'Rising Warrior' Torbiso of Durex Kickboxing Club in the women's category, while 10-year-old Ken 'Cimaron' Caniga seeks to jumpstart his MMA career on the right footing when he takes on Benedict 'Little' Torbiso in the kids division.

 The rest of the card features Erving 'Immortal' Mosico of My Gym Dumaguete versus Jhonjier 'Excalibor' Torbiso of Durex KBC; John 'Little' Dulap of Project X versus Ronilee 'Black Bull' Castro of Tatus MMA; Earl 'Texas' Surigao of Yaw-Yan ArDigma versus Bryan 'Heat' Otida of Arcomjukai KBC; David 'Venum' Po of SOMA KBC versus Roel 'Tigbas' Arcipe of Warriors MMA; Junrey 'Botong' Soquite of Durex KBC versus Rodel 'Pitbull' Valisado of Unified MMA; and Bryan 'Spiker' Nunez of Yaw-Yan Mustang versus Rodil 'Ghost' Lamoste of Arcomjukai KBC.

Tickets are priced at P300 for VIP, P200 for ringside, P150 for lowerbox, P100 for upperbox. For inquiries and tickets reservations, one may contact 0932-4524999 or visit the facebook page of Yaw-Yan ArDigma Cebu. (FREEMAN)