Absolute MMA Fighter, Koffi Adzitso, to Tryout for The Ultimate Fighter!

Absolute MMA teammate, Koffi Adztso, is trying out for The Ultimate Fighter show this Sunday! Koffi has been training consistently and intensely for quite some time. It looks like this may be his opportunity to show the world his skills and take his game to the next level. Koffi, nicknamed "The Lion King", has an impressive record of 17-8-0. Koffi is an exciting fighter, well respected for his lightning fast hands and knockout power. Nine of his 17 wins have come by knockout or TKO.

Koffi has been a member of Absolute MMA for a few years now, adding his experience and work ethic to the MMA team training and Jiu Jitsu classes. He always is respectful of his partners and works at a level that both can benefit from. Koffi has one of the best work ethics around. Not one to take days off or relax during training, he always puts forth his best effort and is an excellent example of "work first, talk later."

All of us at Absolute MMA wish Koffi success at The Ultimate Fighter tryouts. We would wish him luck but we know his skill set makes that unnecessary. We look forward to seeing Koffi get his shot at the big show. Knock 'em out, Koffi! Do what you do best.

Absolute MMA Doiminates MMA Fights with Jiu Jitsu!

Absolute MMA victory! Showdown Fights: Evolution proved to be a showcase for Absolute MMA fighters. Two of three fighters came home with a victory and all put on a good show.

William DaBell was the second fight of the evening. This was his debut fight in mixed martial arts. William was a bit nervous in the locker room but warmed up well and had a look of determination in his eye as he walked out to meet his opponent. The fight started out with each fighter looking for openings with jabs and crosses. William's opponent took a shot and got a big double leg takedown but William popped right back to his feet, defended a guillotine choke and the fighters exchanges punches. The two circled a bit with jabs and body blows being exchanged. William was put up against the cage and after some good takedown defense, got lifted and driven to his back. The round ended with William covering against the last 10 seconds of punches form his opponent.

Round two opened with punches, William taking some to the head and a few uppercuts until he clinched and the two ended up on the ground with William in his opponent's guard. William stood to pass the guard and got tripped up as his opponent grabbed both ankles to take him down. The position reversed, William defended punches and then applied Behring Jiu Jitsu self defense to finish the fight! As his opponent drove forward, forearm in his throat, William passed the arm to one side and applied an arm triangle. His opponent, busy defending the choke, could do nothing as William moved his hips out to the side until he had enough leverage to reverse the position and secure his victory in the mount, forcing his opponent to tap. Round two win via arm triangle! Congratulations, William!

Eduardo Rivera was fight number three on this card. Edurado fought a much taller opponent. Eduardo came out swinging and landed some early shots, pushing his opponent up against the cage. The two separated and clashed a few more times, each time Eduardo would land a few head shots. His opponent turned the tide quickly, however. Keeping Eduardo at distance he started to fire off punches which Eduardo was unable to respond to. Adding leg kicks to the barrage seemed to disorient Eduardo and he clinched with a body lock and went to the back to avoid damage. His opponent locked in a Kimura and took Eduardo to the ground. As Eduardo avoided the shoulder lock he fell into a straight arm lock which his opponent finished belly down, preventing Eduardo form anything but a tap to end the fight.

Denver Merrifield-Nirva came into this fight with a 3-1 record. His last fight was a loss and he was looking to get back on the winning side of things. Denver's opponent had a 5-6 record and was looking to do the same. First round the two touched gloves and circled. Denver's opponent threw a few punches with bad intention but didn't land. The two clashed while standing a few times with both landing some hard crosses and hooks. Denver ended up eating a hook which knocked him off balance and forced him to put a hand on the ground to keep his feet. He was rushed but sprawled beautifully and forced the clinch as he put the other fighter into the fence. A few strikes and some knees later, Denver controlled his opponent's legs and took him down, right up against the fence. His opponent scrambles and Denver takes his back, pulling him backwards. There is another scramble and the two get back to their feet, throwing punches as they separate. Denver catches a hard left on his forearm as he blocks and circles away. The next time the two go for punches, Denver drops his level and executes a beautiful double leg takedown. Denver's opponent looks to roll and escape but ends up on knees and elbows eating punches under his arm to the face and to the side of the head. He takes a couple big shots as Denver passes his guard, rolls again and catches Denver in his half guard and eventually full guard. Denver wants none of it and stands up to throw punches with ill intent. Forced to defend against the barrage of strikes, the other fighter rolls again. This time Denver maintains top position as he continues to deliver devastating punches which force more movement from his adversary. Denver flows through side mount, knee on back, knee on stomach, half mount, back and mount again as his opponent desperately tries to get away from the constant hammering of elbow and fists. Denver sticks him in side mount, bouncing elbows off his head and sets up an arm bar. His opponent defends by grabbing two hands together and gets rewarded for his efforts with a crushing hammer fist to the face. Denver places the leg back over his opponents head and finished the arm bar with little trouble to secure a second round victory! Congratulations Denver!

We are proud of all our fighters! Congratulations on a great night!

Jiu Jitsu was the finishing factor in all Team Absolute fights that night but Muay Thai played an important role as did Wrestling.! Come train at Absolute MMA for all your MMA needs.

http://absolutemma.com/

Absolute MMA Fighters Scheduled to Fight on Showdown: Evolution Card

Here are William, Denver and Eduardo on the Showdown Evolution fight card. These boys look good and are still training hard. They just got done with a killer MMA workout at Absolute MMA. We are looking forward to seeing them in action!

absolutemma.com
https://www.facebook.com/pages/ABSOLUTE-MMA/194641106317?ref=ts
http://www.showdownfights.com/tag/evolution/

Utah MMA Gym Sparks Weight Loss.

Ruben Cervantes is one of our student successes. Ruben has been a student here since March of 2011. In that time, he has lost 20 pounds and drastically improved his fitness. Ruben came to us with the goal of losing 30 pounds, going from 185 to 155. As you can see he is well on his way. One of our regulars for the morning class, Ruben trains four days a week, both Muay Thai and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. He trains hard, pushing himself when his body wants to give up and breaking the physical limits he used to have.

Ruben is one of many stories at Absolute MMA that have achieved their goal of weight loss. There are many more on our team that could tell a similar story. The positive attitude and teamwork that is present every day helps us all to better ourselves and each other.

We are proud of Ruben and all our teammates who have made progress with weight loss and improved fitness. We look forward to sharing more success stories with you. See you on the mat!

Showdown Fights: Evolution to Highlight Absolute MMA Fighters

Showdown Fights: Evolution is coming up on November 18, 2011. Absolute MMA has three team members fighting in this event! Denver Merrifield-Nirva, Eduardo Rivera and William DaBell. Denver and Eduardo will be on the professional card and William will be making his amateur debut. The fights will be held at the UCCU Event Center, located at Utah Valley University in Orem, Utah. The doors open at 5:30 pm and the first fight is at 7:00pm.

We are all training hard to support our team in this show. Come train and show your support. You can also buy tickets from each of the fighters so get in touch with them to get your seat at a great event!


absolutemma.com
facebook.com/pages/ABSOLUTE-MMA/194641106317
showdownfights.com

Absolute MMA Fighter, Jeff Nielson, wins with dominance.

Friday night was an exciting night for fight fans, especially teammates of Jeff Nielson from Absolute MMA. Jeff has been training regularly and with intensity for this fight and it showed on fight night. Jeff faced an opponent with a similar record and experience in Cy Nelson that night. Both Jeff and Cy made weight, looking to test each other on Friday night.

The fight started out with a few seconds of circling and a jab from both Cy and Jeff. Jeff clinched and pushed Cy against the fence and got the front takedown to mount right away. From there it was a dominant performance by The Absolute MMA fighter. Jeff controlled position, threw strikes and remained calm throughout the struggle. Cy tried to move and escape which only got him more strikes or more controlled for his efforts. Cy did end up bridging hard which gave Jeff back mount to be held until the end of the fight, striking at will and finishing with a rear naked choke in under three minutes of the first round!

Congratulations to Jeff Nielson on his win and on a dominant performance!

www.absolutemma.com
www.facebook.com/pages/ABSOLUTE-MMA/194641106317?ref=ts

Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Student Spotlight

Our student spotlight this month is Hassan Campos. Hassan is seventeen and a student at Copper Hills High School. Hassan is quiet, respectful and serious about learning Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, which he has been doing since March of 2011. He comes to class ready to learn and has been doing so quietly and well. The first hurdle any person has to face when learning BJJ is how to survive. Hassan has met this challenge and is starting to overcome it. More and more people are mentioning how difficult it is to submit him and how increasingly difficult it is to maintain control and position on him. Hassan also comes regularly to the take down class on Wednesday evenings at 6:00 pm. There also he has steadily improved both his offense and defense in this very demanding and difficult discipline.

In a time when many try to draw attention by talking loud or often about themselves, Hassan stands out by being quiet, working hard and respectfully seeking out instruction. Hassan asks intelligent questions, puts time and effort into practicing the repetitions that improve his skill and doesn't complain. While this is refreshing in any individual, it is especially so in one his age.

At Absolute MMA, those of us who have more experience share what we have with those who are less experienced. That means helping new people understand movement and techniques, gym etiquette and giving them just the right amount of resistance when working as a non-cooperative partner. Hassan does this well and without ego. He is an excellent example of a martial artS student. We are proud to have Hassan as a part of our Absolute MMA team.

Hassan just competed in his first Jiu Jitsu tournament Saturday,The 2nd Annual Wasatch Brazilian Jiu Jitsu Youth Tournament. He took 2nd place! Congratulations, Hassan! Well done.

New Historic Gardner Trax station allows easy access to Kickboxing, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Mixed Martial Arts.

Attention all Absolute MMA friends and family in Sandy, West Valley, Downtown Salt Lake and the University Campus. Trax has just opened a new station at Gardner village, just a half block away from our gym! A train will stop every 15 minutes on weekdays and is a five minute walk away from the benefits of training at Absolute. For those of us that want to save money on gas and not get caught in traffic, this is a great option.

Here is the overall Trax and FrontRunner map.

http://www.rideuta.com/content/happenings.aspx

Here is the link for the weekday southbound Redline route.

http://legacy.rideuta.com/ridingUTA/viewSchedule.aspx?abbreviation=703&dir=0&service=4&signup=113&pdaView=False

This is the link for the weekday northbound Redline route.

http://legacy.rideuta.com/ridingUTA/viewSchedule.aspx?abbreviation=703&dir=1&service=4&signup=113&pdaView=False

absolutemma.com

Absolute MMA Teammate Leaves for Middle East.

"See you guys on the flip side."
Ivan didn't say goodbye, he said he'll see us again. As you can see, Ivan is in the military. He stopped by the gym the other morning to let us know he was leaving for the Middle East. He was all smiles and handshakes, cracking jokes and talking about how he will be looking for a place to continue his training wherever he is stationed.

Ivan has been a source of inspiration to more people than he realizes. He doesn't do Facebook or check out videos on Youtube. He is not at all interested in how cool he is or how many videos he can post of himself. And yet I have had many people come to me and say how he has inspired them to work harder and eat better. I have had people come to Absolute MMA and say, "I saw that guy Ivan on Facebook and thought that was really cool. How can I do what he does?" People who are doing mediocre workouts start pushing themselves harder. When I ask them what happened they have said, "I felt guilty after seeing how hard Ivan works."

Whenever Ivan hears that people are inspired by his work, he says, "Positive choices bring positive changes!" He remains modest and maintains everything he is doing can be done by anyone. Anyone willing to make positive changes that is. He doesn't feel sorry himself or where he is in life. He accepts the responsibility for how he got here and for how he's going to get better.

We will look for Ivan's return and all the stories he'll be sure to bring back. I'm sure we'll hear from him while he's over there and we'll pass the word along.

Good luck, Ivan! "See you on the flip side!"

Grand Master Flavio Behring Seminar in August!

Grand Master Flavio Behring is coming to Utah! Absolute MMA will be hosting a seminar by Grand Master (GM) Flavio on August 6th. This will be a gathering of all Flavio Behring Jiu Jitsu schools in the United States bringing students and instructors from Arizona, California, Montana and Utah.

There will, of course, be instruction from GM Flavio, one of the leading experts on the planet in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu. GM Flavio always provides details and specifics about all of the techniques he shares as anyone can attest to that has participated in one of his seminars. GM Flavio is an open and giving teacher and will share his wealth of knowledge with a first week beginner the same as he would a twenty year veteran practitioner of the art.

Promotions are always a part of the excitement at GM Flavio's seminars. We all get to share in the pride and accomplishment of our teammates. It's a great feeling to be a part of each other's success, knowing that we all rely on each other to improve. Their improvement is a direct result of working with each and every one of us. It is also prestigious to be promoted by one of the few Red Belt Grand Masters in the world. Bragging rights and authenticity insured.

Absolute MMA invites all who want to gain skill and be a part of a great experience to sign up for this fantastic event. Call (801) 255-1166 for details or stop by the gym at 7800 South 1338 West in West Jordan, Utah. Don't miss meeting and working with a Jiu Jitsu Legend.

Utah MMA, Absolute MMA Fighter Steven Sharp Wins Tournament!

‎Steven Sharp, a mixed martial arts fighter out of Absolute MMA, made the WCFC show an event to remember. Steve took home the belt in spectacular fashion. Out of 16 fighters in this MMA tournament, only he finished every fight, never leaving it to the judges. Steve truly had a stellar performance. So much so that he never even got hit while standing with his opponents. Each round was 5 minutes and Steve fought for a total of less than seven!

The first fight was punctuated by a crushing left hook leaving an opening for Steve to take the back and finish with a rear naked choke. The second fight had some drama as Steve defended a takedown and the fence gave way enough for his foot to pass through the cage and lock the fighter's ankle. The fighters separated and the ring repaired, Steve seemed a man possessed as he controlled his opponent with a Muay Thai clinch and landed a knee to the chest and then one to the chin, dropping the opponent to the floor where he was finished by a huge right to the jaw.

The third fight was one with a lot of intensity against James Birdsley. The two came out with murderous intent, looking to claim not only the belt for the evening but the bragging rights to a much disputed claim about whose skills were superior. Steve crushed Birdsley, landing punches and kicks and defending takedowns. The fight ended by tapout as Steve stood over James landing huge punches to the ribs, shoulders and kidneys. James left holding a separated shoulder and Steve the bragging rights.

The last fight of the evening was greatly anticipated. Lucas Montoya looked great in all his fights, controlling his opponents with good Jiu Jitsu and ground and pound. He was in great shape and looked to have potential to be the champion as he submitted or TKO'd his opponents. Classic grappler versus striker match up. To Lucas' credit, he did manage to get Steve to the ground and land a few strikes early in the round. When the fight was stood up for lack of positional improvement and damage, the tempo changed. Steve landed some hard shots to Lucas via leg kicks and crisp punches. Lucas closed the distance and took Steve down only to fall victim to a guillotine variation from Steve's guard that had Lucas tapping almost as soon as it was on. Steve was victorious and crowned Champion! Congratulations, Absolute MMA and Steven Sharp!

Excellent weight loss at MMA gym in Utah!

Pedro, "Hey Ivan! How are you today?"
Ivan, "I'm doing so damn good it would kill a mortal man!"

Hey gang! Remember Ivan? He was our student spotlight a little while ago. This is an update on his progress. As of June 1, 2011 Ivan has lost 30 pounds in his three months with us! He has also been directed by his physician to cut his high blood pressure medication in HALF! Ivan continues to be positive in every interaction he has with the staff and every other member here. Ivan is famous for his quotes as you can tell from the above statement. What a remarkable story. Ivan is one of many of our students who have been able to achieve and far exceed their goals as a result of their dedication, hard work, consistency and the training they receive at Absolute MMA. We are proud to have Ivan with us as one of many who have used us as a means to make positive change in their life. I know of many more Absolute Team Members who can give similar accounts of their achievements. We are proud of you all.

Many of our children are not as active as we were at their age. Video games, Netflix, iPods seem to be where a good portion of their time is spent. At Absolute MMA, we include vigorous activity as a part of our Brazilian Jiu Jitsu and Muay Thai/kickboxing programs. Anti-bully, verbal conflict resolution, self-defense, self-control and respect are some of the concepts and principles we teach our students. Come try a week of kids classes to see if you want to be a part of our team.

http://www.absolutemma.com

So you think girls can't fight?

Here's Rebecca and Rickey working on their Jiu Jitsu. Absolute MMA teaches Jiu Jitsu to men, women and children. Young and old, no experience needed. You don't have to want to be a fighter to learn everything the fighters do. Statistics show that women and girls who play sports have higher self-esteem, which leads to more confidence, fewer teen pregnancies, and a host of other positive side effects. Choosing Jiu Jitsu as your sport also increases your ability to defend yourself should the need arise. What are you waiting for?

Heel hook to knee bar.

Here's a video of Chris Kennedy applying a pretty slick heel hook to knee bar submission. Nice work, Chris.

Far East Fit Tournament Results!

Far East Fit Tournament Results

Adult Divisions!
Light Weight Adv
Denver Merrifield-Nirva 1st
Lance Gorman 2nd
Welter Weight Beg
Dan DeCort 1st
Colton Kynaston 2nd
Aaron Upwall 3rd
Welter Weight Inter
Gavin Allyn 1st
Welter Weight Adv
Chris Kennedy 1st
Steven Sharp 2nd
Middle Weight Inter
Pedro Escalante 1st
Michael Sjodin 2nd
Thanks to everyone who made it out!

Youth
Gannon 1st Place
Tommy 2nd Place
Under 18 Beginning Bantam Weight
Jake White 1st Place
Dakota Zucker 2nd Place
Under 18 Welterweight
Aaron Thomson 1st Place
Austen Symes 2nd Place
Under 18 Intermediate Light Heavyweight
Samuel West Thomson

Tournament Footage of Pedro Escalante.

This is a clip of Pedro Escalante competing at a tournament we participated in on April 30th. We had a great time, won more than we lost and met some great people. The competitors from the other schools showed great sportsmanship and technique.

New Kettlebell class!!!

We are proud to announce that we will be teaching kettlebell class at 9:00 am Saturday mornings, starting May 7th. These classes will be directed towards educating team members on proper technique and form for kettlebell sport lifting. This is a great opportunity to improve your overall fitness, stamina and strength endurance. We will teach basic movements, safety and proper form for all lifts included in the World Kettlebell Club ranking system. Come join us for an opportunity for a great workout and a great learning experience.

http://absolutemma.com/

Open Guard.

William and Feki working open guard. These two work hard as we all know at Absolute MMA. William is progressing his open guard technique and Feki is improving his survival skills. It's never easy but the results are worth the effort.

Student Spotlight - Ivan

I would like you all to meet Ivan, a newer student at Absolute MMA. Ivan is 50 years old and has been with us for 6 weeks now. He has made some significant life changes in the last little bit and decided to add physical fitness to the list of positives in his life.

Ivan came to us drinking two liters of Dr. Pepper a day! He has since completely removed carbonated drinks from his diet and has started to clean up his diet. Ivan was not in good physical condition when he began his training with us. He could not finish the rounds of Jiu Jitsu without stopping for breaks or sitting out a round. Just yesterday he worked through all four, 5 minute rounds with 15 push ups and 15 sit ups during the break! He has also lost 13 pounds in the 6 weeks since becoming a member!

Ivan always has a positive attitude and an incredible work ethic. He trains four days a week, no matter what. We all know how hard it is to keep working when the soreness and pain of training tells us to quit. We are proud to have Ivan with us at Absolute MMA. He inspires us and motivates the students and staff to give everything we have to improving ourselves and each other.

Starting out right!

This is Deen. Deen is two and has been watching his brother Armano do Muay Thai and Jiu Jitsu in the kids class. Samir, the boys father, is waiting for Deen to be old enough to join the kids class but it looks like Deen doesn't want to wait. Our Head Coach and Owner at Absolute MMA, Rob Handley, takes a few minutes to work with an enthusiastic and hard working student. Looks like we've got a new champion in the making!

Saturday morning Jiu Jitsu class 3/5/2011.

Some good work by Nic Johnson and Justin Mitterling. If you are looking for great Jiu Jitsu and/or Muay Thai training, stop by our website, http://www.absolutemma.com or give us a call at 801.255.1166. You can also like our Facebook page at https://www.facebook.com/pages/ABSOLUTE-MMA/194641106317?ref=ts.

Workin' hard at Absoute MMA Muay Thai.

http://www.absolutemma.com

Absolute MMA rated on top ten list.

Check out our current ratings on http://www.the-top-tens.com/lists/best-martial-arts-studios-utah.asp. We love the positive feedback we're getting from our students! Thank you for rating us so high. We'll keep the high standards and progressive teaching methods coming your way. GO TEAM ABSOLUTE!

http://www.absolutemma.com

FIGHT KING "CONFRONTATION"

David Komaroff and Koffi Adzitso will be fighting Saturday, February 12 at The Complex in downtown Salt Lake city. Tickets are available at the door. Come support Aboslute MMA's fighters! Both fights should be great entertainment.

absolutemma.com

Absolute MMA interviews.

Check out this interview that Rob Handley did a little while ago. Camrann Pacheco and Pedro Sierra were the demonstrators for it and did a great job. The videos are about thirty seconds each and took a total of three hours to film and interview. Enjoy!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ih7m3KgCN3Q&feature=related

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9kgNH3EU2p4&feature=related.

Master Flavio interview on Fox 13 News

http://www.fox13now.com/videobeta/?watchId=22045c43-1440-4cd5-aaf9-b491e5c4fbe9

We were privileged to have Master Flavio with us this weekend for a Jiu Jitsu seminar. Here is a clip of the spot he had on Fox 13 News, Saturday morning. Thank you to all who came out and supported us. Sixty seven participants came to the seminar at Absolute MMA! It was fantastic to have all of us in one room.

Denver Merrifield-Nirva ready to fight!

Denver Merrifield-Nirva looking ripped for the weigh in today! Denver is fighting in the Showdown New Blood show tomorrow night. Get some, Denver. We know you will perform well.

Absolutemma.com

Showdown.com

Workouts at Absolute MMA

Friday night class!!

This is a shot of our 6:00 pm class...on Friday night! Twenty five people in the gym for Muay Thai. The workout was fantastic, this was only the warm up. It's great to see the participation and how much fun everyone was having. Keep up the good work!

absolutemma.com

Master Flavio Seminar.

Absolute MMA is proud to announce an opportunity of a lifetime. Train with Grand Master Flavio Behring! Grand Master Flavio will be teaching a seminar at Absolute MMA on January 29th from 10:00 am until 2:00 pm. Grand Master Flavio is known worldwide for his teaching methodology and his incredibly deep knowledge of Jiu-jitsu. He is the only living 9th degree Red Belt still actively travelling and teaching. Don't miss this experience. Register at Absolute MMA to secure your spot. Call 801.255.1166 with any questions you may have.

absolutemma.com

Showdown fights!!

Just another reminder of our fight team's activities this month. Showdown, New Blood is hosting fights on January 28th. Absolute MMA fighters Denver Merrifield-Nirva and Steve Sharp will be facing tough opponents on this card. Both should be great fights. Come support our team to victory!

Showdown.com

Absolutemma.com

Denver Merrifield-Nirva Fights in Showdown!

Denver Merrifield-Nirva is fighting in the Showdown New Blood fights on Janurary 28th! Denver is fighting Czar Sklavos in a 135 pound bout at the UCCUA center, at the campus of the Utah Valley University in Orem. This will be a three round, mixed martial arts match. Denver submitted his last opponent via rear naked choke in under three minutes of the first round. He is a representative of Absolute MMA and trains under Rob Handley. Denver has been training hard and we look forward to great things from him. Good luck, Denver!

absolutemma.com

showdownfights.com

FIGHT KING PRESENTS

Fight King is featuring Absolute MMA's own Koffi Adzitso in a 170 pound title bout in February. Koffi and Brandon Melendez will fight on February 12th at The Complex in downtown Salt Lake City. Koffi has been a terror in this division and we expect him to dominate as he has for the last while. Good luck, Koffi! We look forward to you bringing home the belt.