UFC: Fight Night 57 is not the only event going on this weekend. If you have thirty bucks and a decent internet connection you can catch Metamoris 5 on Saturday before the fights. The submission only grappling tournament has some notable MMA competitors from the past and present, which can serve as a good warm up before the UFC event for fight fans.
The main event consists of a rematch between two old rivals from Pride Fighting Championships. Kazushi Sakuraba (26-16) will face Renzo Gracie (13-7) to give Gracie a chance to avenge the loss from their match at Pride 10: Return of the Warriors. He lost via submission by Kimura. It should be noted he did not tap but the match was stopped since his arm was bent the wrong way. It may be long overdue, but both MMA veterans are not known for enjoying the retired life if you have followed them over the years.
Also competing while not having any fights lined up in the UFC is Rory MacDonald (18-2) the welterweight will be facing Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Phenom Jonathan “JT” Torres who has won numerous grappling tournaments in both Gi and No-Gi tournaments. Both competitors hold black belts in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and are familiar to this competition format.
Other MMA competitors on the card include Vinny Magalhaes (12-7) the Titan Fighting Championships Light Heavyweight Champion was supposed to face Kevin Casey (8-3), but Casey had to withdraw due to a blood clot in his leg. Magalhaes will now face Matheus Diniz, who is a BJJ Brown Belt under Marcelo Garcia. Diniz is always competition ready and took the math at the last minute in hopes to win Metamoris founder Ralek Gracie’s 10,000 dollar prize offered to the alternate should they beat Magalhaes, this according to Sherdog.
This is the fifth event held by Metamoris and the presentation is better than your average grappling event. The last event had drums playing along with the pace of the matches, speeding up when the action would speed up. Matches start standing and are only one 20 minute round. Competitors cannot be saved by the bell, submissions have to be finished or the threatened competitor has to escape. There is a referee present to ensure there are no attacks outside of the realm of grappling and for the protection of the competitors.
If the legendary status of a rematch between Sakuraba vs Gracie is not enough to entice you to watch the event, the other matches should be a nice draw for MMA fans. Chael Sonnen competed in the last event after announcing his retirement and while he lost via submission he still came to win and made for an exciting match. Most MMA competitors train in submission arts as part of their ground game. While that aspect of the sport may seem like stalling and rolling around to the casual fan there are a lot of intricacies to submission grappling. Those competing at Metamoris are at the top of their game whether it be Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, wrestling, or any of the grappling arts and can help fans of MMA broaden their knowledge when fights go to the ground.
Event Info: Metamoris 5 | Metamoris.com
Brown Belt Matheus Diniz To Face Vinny Magalhaes For $10K At Metamoris 5 | Sherdog.com
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