NO HOLDS BARRED

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman spoke with catch wrestler and MMA fighter Colleen Schneider.

She is currently training with combat sports veterans Josh Barnett and Erik Paulson at Combat Submission Wrestling (CSW) in Fullerton, California. She also has been competing in MMA since 2010, including stints in Strikeforce, the Super Fight League, and on The Ultimate Fighter TV show.

Now she will be competing in catch wrestling, as this sport is being revived. She will be wrestling on the Catch Wrestling Alliance International Invitational: The Rebirth.

This event will be held Saturday, June 7. The location is the Collins Court in the John Wooden Center on the campus of UCLA, at 221 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles, California 90095-1612.

In this event, you can only win by pin or submission. There are no points or judges.

Her opponent will be Jennifer Thomas.

We spoke with Colleen Schneider by phone Thursday.

Asked how she got involved with this event, she replied, "I actually went to them. I saw through Twitter that there was going to be a catch wrestling event, and I just jumped on it. I hit up Raul [Ramirez of Catch Wrestling Alliance].

"'Let me fight, let me fight, let me fight! I want to do this! This is awesome!' And I think he was stoked about my enthusiasm, so he put me on the card."

We discussed her training simultaneously in both catch wrestling and MMA, why she would like to continue competing in both sports, the potential for catch wrestling to be revived as a popular spectator sport, her MMA career including how she has developed since her loss in 2013 to Shayna Baszler, her preparations to face Jennifer Thomas, and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

MMA World Expo. The mixed martial arts community comes to New York City July 26 and 27, 2014, for the fifth annual MMA World Expo, featuring the Fighters Source U.S. Nationals amateur MMA tournament, two days of ADCC no-gi and gi grappling tournaments, MMA fighters, seminars with world-class trainers, vendors, panel discussions, catch wrestling competition, and much more. The MMA World Expo takes place Saturday, July 26, and Sunday, July 27, 2014, at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City.

Catch Wrestling Alliance International Invitational: The Rebirth. This invitational event will be held under catch wrestling rules, where you can only win by pin or submission. It will take place Saturday, June 7, in Collins Court in the John Wooden Center on the campus of UCLA in Los Angeles, California. For more information, go to catchwrestlingalliance.com.

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.

Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to http://takedownradio.com.

Labels: alliance, catch wrestling, Colleen Schneider, Eddie Goldman, Jennifer Thomas, Los Angeles, No Holds Barred, Raul Ramirez, UCLA

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with Raul Ramirez of the Catch Wrestling Alliance.

Their first event, the Catch Wrestling Alliance International Invitational: The Rebirth, will be held Saturday, June 7. The location is the Collins Court in the John Wooden Center on the campus of UCLA, at 221 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles, California 90095-1612.

Eight catch wrestling matches are scheduled, where you can only win by pin or submission. There are no points or judges.

We spoke with Raul Ramirez by phone Monday.

The most recent addition to the lineup is Colleen Schneider, a catch wrestler and MMA fighter who trains with Josh Barnett. She will face Jennifer Thomas in one of two women's matches. She replaces Qin Yunquan of Singapore, who had to withdraw because of a knee injury.

"I think everyone's really locked in now," Raul Ramirez said, as we discussed the entire card.

Essential to reviving catch wrestling today is learning the historical lessons from the 1800s and early 1900s, when professional catch wrestling completely degenerated into a staged spectacle.

"We can't be making the mistakes of the past. But luckily," he said, "we got a lot of history books that document all of the details of what not to do."

The general methods of good and proper sports governance have improved and developed tremendously since the early days of catch wrestling, and we agreed that this incarnation of catch wrestling must strive for excellence, both on and off the mat.

"We got to keep this more democratic. We got to allow for different voices to be heard," he said.

The Catch Wrestling Alliance is already working with many schools around the world to accomplish these goals, including the home of catch wrestling, the Snake Pit Wigan.

"It is truly an alliance where we're trying to work together to create good governance and keeping the wrestlers happy, but also healthy as well," he noted.

We also discussed the importance of former college wrestlers like former Michigan State captain Curran Jacobs entering the ranks of catch wrestling and how that will likely affect the sport, the many awards which will be presented at this event honoring catch wrestling and grappling greats, the catch wrestling memorabilia exhibition at this event organized and hosted by wrestling author and historian Mike Chapman including artifacts from the days of Frank Gotch, and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

MMA World Expo. The mixed martial arts community comes to New York City July 26 and 27, 2014, for the fifth annual MMA World Expo, featuring the Fighters Source U.S. Nationals amateur MMA tournament, two days of ADCC no-gi and gi grappling tournaments, MMA fighters, seminars with world-class trainers, vendors, panel discussions, catch wrestling competition, and much more. The MMA World Expo takes place Saturday, July 26, and Sunday, July 27, 2014, at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City.

Catch Wrestling Alliance International Invitational: The Rebirth. This invitational event will be held under catch wrestling rules, where you can only win by pin or submission. It will take place Saturday, June 7, in Collins Court in the John Wooden Center on the campus of UCLA in Los Angeles, California. For more information, go to catchwrestlingalliance.com.

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.

Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to http://takedownradio.com.

Labels: alliance, catch wrestling, Colleen Schneider, Curran Jacobs, Eddie Goldman, governance, Los Angeles, Mike Chapman, No Holds Barred, Raul Ramirez, Snake Pit Wigan, UCLA

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman spoke with bull riding champions J.B. Mauney and J.W. Harris, and retired bull rider and current TV personality J.W. Hart, who is putting on the J.W. Hart PBR Challenge.

In this event, Mauney, the defending PBR champion, will go head to head with Harris, the defending PRCA champion.

The J.W. Hart PBR Challenge will take place Saturday, May 31, at the Wise County Fairgrounds in Decatur, Texas. It will be webcast live on PBR Live.

Mauney, from Mooresville, North Carolina, will be riding Asteroid, the number two ranked bull in the PBR world standings. Harris, from Brownwood, Texas, will be riding Shepherd Hills Tested, the number three ranked bull in the PBR world standings. The winner will earn $25,000.

Because this event involves the reigning champions from rival organizations, although this event is just sanctioned by PBR, it is being billed as "'Bout Time - PRCA vs. PBR - J.W. Harris vs. J.B. Mauney".

We spoke with J.B. Mauney, J.W. Harris, and J.W. Hart as part of a PBR media teleconference Friday. The media conference call is presented here in its entirety, along with an introduction.

"J.W. [Hart] called me, and he's offered $25,000 for the winner," said J.B. Mauney. "So one bull, $25,000, I'm in."

"It's not me going against J.B.," said J.W. Harris. "I can't control anything that he does. He's got to go out there and control his own destiny, and I control mine. And hopefully we ride both of them."

"It's really not between them. It's between them and their animal," said J.W. Hart. The fans "just want to see those two guys go at it."

He added, they will "see two champs go against two champion bulls, and let the cards fall where they want to. If that's historical, then we'll ride that wave a little bit. But at the end of the day, it's just guys getting on bulls. And I just want to see the best guy and the best bull win, and let the fans have fun and see what they want to see."

Much more was discussed on the teleconference about the historical importance of this matchup, since the originators of the PBR broke off from the PRCA over 20 years ago. Also discussed was how each rider views this matchup and each other, how it was put together, how they are preparing for their bulls, comparisons between the PBR and PRCA, and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

MMA World Expo. The mixed martial arts community comes to New York City July 26 and 27, 2014, for the fifth annual MMA World Expo, featuring the Fighters Source U.S. Nationals amateur MMA tournament, two days of ADCC no-gi and gi grappling tournaments, MMA fighters, seminars with world-class trainers, vendors, panel discussions, catch wrestling competition, and much more. The MMA World Expo takes place Saturday, July 26, and Sunday, July 27, 2014, at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City.

Catch Wrestling Alliance International Invitational: The Rebirth. This invitational event will be held under catch wrestling rules, where you can only win by pin or submission. It will take place Saturday, June 7, in Collins Court in the John Wooden Center on the campus of UCLA in Los Angeles, California. For more information, go to catchwrestlingalliance.com.

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.

Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to http://takedownradio.com.

Labels: Bout Time, bull riding, Eddie Goldman, J. B. Mauney, J. W. Hart Challenge, J.W. Harris, No Holds Barred, PBR, PRCA

(Photo credit: WSOF/Lucas Noonan)

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with the world's top-ranked MMA fighter in the women's 115-pound division, and the WSOF women's strawweight champion, American Top Team fighter Jessica Aguilar.

Her first title defense will at WSOF 10 on Saturday, June 21, at the Hard Rock Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. Her opponent will be Japanese veteran MMA fighter and kickboxer Emi "The Kamikaze Angel" Fujino, who has never lost in MMA by submission or knockout/TKO.

This fight will be part of the live telecast of WSOF 10 in the U.S. on NBC Sports Network.

We spoke with Jessica Aguilar by phone Wednesday.

Speaking of her opponent, she said, "I know that she's very experienced and she's a vet. She's fought tough competition and I know that she loves to fight, she comes to fight."

She added, "That's normal with Japanese fighters. They always come to fight. They're warriors and they're very tough."

And she noted, "She's never lost by submission. She's lost by decision. She's tough to tap. She has a wrestling background as well and she looks strong. So it's going to be a really, really good fight for me."

We also discussed her connections with Japan. "I love Japan," she said, adding that she hopes to fight there again soon.

In addition, she spoke about the many activities in which she is involved outside combat sports in her community in south Florida and elsewhere. Those included hosting an event as part of this year's Aqua Girl events in south Florida, whose aim "is to provide a safe and positive environment for LBT [lesbian, bisexual, and transgender] women to socialize and network"; attending and being honored on stage along with other openly LGBT athletes at the 2014 GLAAD Media Awards in New York; and doing volunteer work at the Miami Children's Hospital, among other things.

Plus, she also recently had a successful return to the mat, winning a gold medal in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu at the IBJJF Boca Raton International Open 2014. We discussed her grappling background, where her MMA career is at right now, her future plans, the growing acceptance of LGBT athletes, and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

MMA World Expo. The mixed martial arts community comes to New York City July 26 and 27, 2014, for the fifth annual MMA World Expo, featuring the Fighters Source U.S. Nationals amateur MMA tournament, two days of ADCC no-gi and gi grappling tournaments, MMA fighters, seminars with world-class trainers, vendors, panel discussions, catch wrestling competition, and much more. The MMA World Expo takes place Saturday, July 26, and Sunday, July 27, 2014, at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City.

Catch Wrestling Alliance International Invitational: The Rebirth. This invitational event will be held under catch wrestling rules, where you can only win by pin or submission. It will take place Saturday, June 7, in Collins Court in the John Wooden Center on the campus of UCLA in Los Angeles, California. For more information, go to catchwrestlingalliance.com.

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.

Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to http://takedownradio.com.

Labels: American Top Team, BJJ, Eddie Goldman, Emi Fujino, grappling, Japan, Jessica Aguilar, jiu-jitsu, LGBT, MMA, No Holds Barred, World Series Fighting, WSOF

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with Steve Greenfield, who runs the Llanelli Catch Wrestling and Traditional Japanese Martial Arts Club.

Located in Llanelli, Wales, in the U.K., it is the only club in Wales, and only one of two in the U.K., which are affiliate clubs of the home of catch-as-catch-can wrestling, the Snake Pit Wigan.

Steve Greenfield not only trains people in catch wrestling, but also competes himself. A veteran of the Snake Pit Wigan's international tournaments, he will be wrestling at the Catch Wrestling Alliance International Invitational: The Rebirth.

This event will be held Saturday, June 7, in Collins Court in the John Wooden Center on the campus of UCLA, at 221 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles, California 90095-1612.

His opponent will be Ned Morales of Catch Wrestling Los Angeles.

We spoke with Steve Greenfield by Skype Sunday.

He explained that besides training and coaching, he is working on three books about the history of catch wrestling, focusing on the legendary Riley's Gym in Wigan, catch wrestling in Lancashire, and the many varied styles of wrestling.

A hot topic in contemporary catch wrestling is the issue of the absence of any central governing body. While the ranks of this reviving sport are presently relatively small, he agreed that a goal must be the eventual formation of precisely just such a body. This is especially true given the facts that, last century, the entire sport of professional catch-as-catch-can wrestling devolved into a staged spectacle, and that corruption is still evident today in international wrestling.

"All the problems you've sort of focused at have obviously shown their face in the history of professional wrestling," he said.

"The last thing we want to do is to see all this happening once more. So I agree, I think you have to have a central organization that everyone's sort of tied into and part of, but again is accountable to."

The current state of catch wrestling, with numerous small "disparate groups," even though they communicate with each other, will not advance the sport very much, he argued. Thus, a central governing body must eventually be formed.

"Unless that happens ... whilst we're all doing our own little thing here and there, it's going to remain what it is, a niche sort of market basically," he said.

We also discussed another controversy in catch wrestling: the use of strangulations or chokes. In the the old Riley's Gym and in current Snake Pit Wigan events, they are prohibited. Historically, they were also usually banned in catch wrestling in earlier times. We thus talked about the reasons for this, which included both the fact that strangulations and chokes "kill" or "change" the wrestling, and that there is some evidence that they can be dangerous.

In addition, we discussed what should be done today to create a foundation for the eventual establishment of a governing body for catch wrestling, how steps can be taken to fight corruption in wrestling, and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

MMA World Expo. The mixed martial arts community comes to New York City July 26 and 27, 2014, for the fifth annual MMA World Expo, featuring the Fighters Source U.S. Nationals amateur MMA tournament, two days of ADCC no-gi and gi grappling tournaments, MMA fighters, seminars with world-class trainers, vendors, panel discussions, catch wrestling competition, and much more. The MMA World Expo takes place Saturday, July 26, and Sunday, July 27, 2014, at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City.

Catch Wrestling Alliance International Invitational: The Rebirth. This invitational event will be held under catch wrestling rules, where you can only win by pin or submission. It will take place Saturday, June 7, in Collins Court in the John Wooden Center on the campus of UCLA in Los Angeles, California. For more information, go to catchwrestlingalliance.com.

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.

Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to http://takedownradio.com.

Labels: alliance, catch wrestling, corruption, Eddie Goldman, governing body, Llanelli, No Holds Barred, Snake Pit Wigan, Steven Greenfield, Traditional Japanese Martial Arts Club

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman reposts a commentary from May 2013 about the legacy of Malcolm X and its meaning for the martial arts and combat sports.

Plus, added is a new introduction which discusses Malcolm X's emphasis on continuing to learn, adapt, and change, and how this applies to the martial arts and combat sports, especially for the reviving sport of catch wrestling and for those sports which produce repetitive head trauma and brain injuries.

On March 29, 1964, at a speech at the Audubon Ballroom in New York, Malcolm X repeated what he had said many times about the importance of the martial arts: "If you're interested in freedom, you need some judo, you need some karate, you need all the things that will help you fight for freedom."

That building now houses the Malcolm X and Dr. Betty Shabazz Memorial and Educational Center, at 3940 Broadway, New York, NY 10032, where one of the many celebrations of the 89th anniversary of Malcolm's birth will take place this Monday, May 19.

Malcolm X also explained the importance of martial arts training in "The Autobiography of Malcolm X", and how the values they teach are part of the overall training in values which "are vital in a person, a home, a community, a nation, and a civilization," and not only the aspect of training in self-defense. The book also discussed his relations with Muhammad Ali, when he won the heavyweight boxing championship of the world from Sonny Liston in 1964.

But the type of positive values which Malcolm advocated are today often not being promoted, particularly in combat sports like MMA and wrestling, and this is discussed.

So the lessons taught by Malcolm X about the martial arts and combat sports are still valid. It is up to us to learn this legacy, and to apply it to what we do today.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

MMA World Expo. The mixed martial arts community comes to New York City July 26 and 27, 2014, for the fifth annual MMA World Expo, featuring the Fighters Source U.S. Nationals amateur MMA tournament, two days of ADCC no-gi and gi grappling tournaments, MMA fighters, seminars with world-class trainers, vendors, panel discussions, catch wrestling competition, and much more. The MMA World Expo takes place Saturday, July 26, and Sunday, July 27, 2014, at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City.

Catch Wrestling Alliance International Invitational: The Rebirth. This invitational event will be held under catch wrestling rules, where you can only win by pin or submission. It will take place Saturday, June 7, in Collins Court in the John Wooden Center on the campus of UCLA in Los Angeles, California. For more information, go to catchwrestlingalliance.com.

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.

Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to http://takedownradio.com.

Labels: autobiography, boxing, combat sports, Eddie Goldman, judo, karate, Malcolm X, martial arts, MMA, No Holds Barred, wrestling

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman was once again interviewed by Scott Casber, the host of Takedown Wrestling Radio.

This discussion took place on Takedown Wrestling Radio and was recorded Thursday.

The main topic of our discussion was the college wrestling "invasion" of catch wrestling and the Catch Wrestling Alliance International Invitational: The Rebirth. This event will be held Saturday, June 7, in Collins Court in the John Wooden Center on the campus of UCLA, at 221 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles, California 90095-1612.

We also discussed the origins of catch wrestling; how elite and college wrestlers may have a similar major impact on catch wrestling as they have had on MMA; the issue of head trauma in sports like MMA and the recent study from the University of Toronto Concussion Program, whose lead author was Dr. Michael Hutchison; concussions in wrestling; the Mayweather-Maidana and Stiverne-Arreola fights and boxing's woes; and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

MMA World Expo. The mixed martial arts community comes to New York City July 26 and 27, 2014, for the fifth annual MMA World Expo, featuring the Fighters Source U.S. Nationals amateur MMA tournament, two days of ADCC no-gi and gi grappling tournaments, MMA fighters, seminars with world-class trainers, vendors, panel discussions, catch wrestling competition, and much more. The MMA World Expo takes place Saturday, July 26, and Sunday, July 27, 2014, at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City.

Catch Wrestling Alliance International Invitational: The Rebirth. This invitational event will be held under catch wrestling rules, where you can only win by pin or submission. It will take place Saturday, June 7, in Collins Court in the John Wooden Center on the campus of UCLA in Los Angeles, California. For more information, go to catchwrestlingalliance.com.

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.

Takedown Wrestling Media, America's wrestling TV and radio shows, which are hosted by founder Scott Casber, and have been airing on radio and Internet for over 17 years. Takedown Media produces a weekly TV program seen in 54 million homes in the U.S. on DirecTV, Dish Network, and cable affiliates around the country, called Takedown TV. Takedown Media also produces the weekly USA Wrestling TV show for the governing body of the sport, USA Wrestling. For more information, go to http://takedownradio.com.

Labels: alliance, catch wrestling, catch-as-catch-can, college, concussions head trauma, Eddie Goldman, invasion, Los Angeles, MMA, No Holds Barred, Scott Casber, Takedown Radio, UCLA

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman spoke with Adam Laporte, the owner-operator and coach at the Crank Gym in Eckville, Alberta, Canada.

He will be competing on the card of the Catch Wrestling Alliance International Invitational: The Rebirth.

This event will take place Saturday, June 7, in Collins Court in the John Wooden Center on the campus of UCLA, at 221 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles, California 90095-1612. This invitational event will be held under catch wrestling rules, where you can only win by pin or submission. His opponent will be catch wrestler Jon Strickland.

We spoke with Adam Laporte by phone Tuesday.

Although he has 15 years of submission wrestling, jiu-jitsu, and MMA experience, he has only recently started training in catch wrestling.

Asked how he was selected to wrestle on this event, he replied, "My name was passed off. We had gone to train with Roy Wood in the U.K. last July [at the Snake Pit Wigan], myself and two of my younger wrestlers." Those wrestlers "outperformed all expectations," and one of them, Brooklyn Thomson, will also be wrestling in the teen division at this event.

"Roy and Andrea [Wood] were quite impressed, or so they told us, and passed along our information to Raul [Ramirez], who had been setting up this tournament."

We discussed how those with backgrounds in other styles of wrestling are making the transition to catch wrestling, and how it compares for them learning gi and no-gi grappling.

"It's a seamless transition," he said, "because the majority of the holds or the tilts or the pins that you're using, with just a little bit of tweaking, can turn it into a submission very simple. Whereas going to the jiu-jitsu side, you're almost having to relearn some of the fundamentals, because now you're allowed to be going onto your back or you're using the chokes and things like that, which typically in the wrestling side you don't see, it's prohibited."

And he sees many more wrestlers taking up catch wrestling.

"Once more wrestlers start to see that this is an option for them, I think the hold that BJJ has over combative grappling will start to come down a bit. It'll become more of a 50-50, because both are proven systems. Just one has a head start in the market, I guess."

We also discussed the need for more youth to start training in wrestling, the need for catch wrestling to have proper organization, his own preparation for his June 7 match, and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

MMA World Expo. The mixed martial arts community comes to New York City July 26 and 27, 2014, for the fifth annual MMA World Expo, featuring the Fighters Source U.S. Nationals amateur MMA tournament, two days of ADCC no-gi and gi grappling tournaments, MMA fighters, seminars with world-class trainers, vendors, panel discussions, catch wrestling competition, and much more. The MMA World Expo takes place Saturday, July 26, and Sunday, July 27, 2014, at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City.

Catch Wrestling Alliance International Invitational: The Rebirth. This invitational event will be held under catch wrestling rules, where you can only win by pin or submission. It will take place Saturday, June 7, in Collins Court in the John Wooden Center on the campus of UCLA in Los Angeles, California. For more information, go to catchwrestlingalliance.com.

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.

Labels: Adam Laporte, Alberta, alliance, Canada, catch wrestling, catch-as-catch-can, Crank Gym, Eddie Goldman, Los Angeles, No Holds Barred, submissions, UCLA

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with Jon Strickland of the Billy Wicks Foundation.

As the sport of catch wrestling is being revived, the issues of rules and organization are being discussed and debated. One of the key discussions involves whether or not to permit chokes. These holds, lumped into a general category of strangulations, were traditionally not allowed in the past in most catch wrestling matches. What to do today, with the growth of modern MMA, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, and no-gi grappling, all of which allow chokes, is being debated.

We spoke with Jon Strickland by phone Saturday about this and other issues.

Saying he had "mixed thoughts on chokes in general," he noted how when the legendary Billy Wicks wrestled in "AT shows", i.e., athletic shows, which included both shoots and works, "they didn't use chokeholds." He added that while he had learned chokes in other styles such as jiu-jitsu, in his catch wrestling training, "I was never taught a chokehold."

Besides what was traditionally done in catch wrestling to keep the wrestling going, since many believe that chokes "kill wrestling," we discussed the issues of safety.

"With a choke, I think even a few seconds of having oxygen deprived of the brain could be dangerous. You just never what underlying conditions are there with somebody," he said.

"I spoke to a neurologist who I'm close with about the sport in general, and he said that he thought the chokes were very dangerous, and he had actually treated several people in his career who were horse-playing and practiced some wrestling moves, and a guy put another kid in a chokehold and the kid has a stroke, and causes the kid a seizure."

While the scientific research into chokeholds in the various styles of wrestling and grappling is just beginning, there is already a lot of evidence that concussions are a major problem in high school and college wrestling in the U.S.

A recent study by the National Academies "found that wrestling has the second highest rate of concussions per athlete exposure of the top fourteen most common men's and women's college sports." Only college football had more.

Thus, if catch wrestling wants to develop as a safer alternative to many of the existing combat sports, it must institute proper safety and health measures right from the start of its rebirth, and address the issue of the prevention and treatment of concussions.

We also discussed the need for eventually establishing a democratic, central governing body for catch wrestling to give it proper regulation as well as promotion and marketing in the crowded sports landscape. And we agreed that the sport will "never be taken seriously" without such a governing body.

As for his own wrestling career, he is still planning to return to the mat to wrestle on the card of the Catch Wrestling Alliance International Invitational: The Rebirth.

This event will take place Saturday, June 7, in Collins Court in the John Wooden Center on the campus of UCLA, at 221 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles, California 90095-1612. This invitational event will be held under catch wrestling rules, where you can only win by pin or submission. His opponent will be Canadian MMA fighter and submission grappler Adam Laporte.

So while much remains to be done to revive this sport, we also discussed how interest in it is the greatest it has been in many years, how it is appealing to former college wrestlers as a vehicle in which to compete and possibly earn a living in wrestling, and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

MMA World Expo. The mixed martial arts community comes to New York City July 26 and 27, 2014, for the fifth annual MMA World Expo, featuring the Fighters Source U.S. Nationals amateur MMA tournament, two days of ADCC no-gi and gi grappling tournaments, MMA fighters, seminars with world-class trainers, vendors, panel discussions, catch wrestling competition, and much more. The MMA World Expo takes place Saturday, July 26, and Sunday, July 27, 2014, at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City.

Catch Wrestling Alliance International Invitational: The Rebirth. This invitational event will be held under catch wrestling rules, where you can only win by pin or submission. It will take place Saturday, June 7, in Collins Court in the John Wooden Center on the campus of UCLA in Los Angeles, California. For more information, go to catchwrestlingalliance.com.

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.

Labels: alliance, Billy Wicks Foundation, catch wrestling, catch-as-catch-can, chokeholds, chokes, concussions, Eddie Goldman, Jon Strickland, No Holds Barred, submissions

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with Coach George Hero, the legendary coach and founder of the Midwood High School wrestling team in Brooklyn, New York.

On Saturday, May 10, Midwood High School will be the scene of this year's edition of what has now become an annual tradition, MidwoodMania V: May Madness on the Mat.

The event runs from 11 AM to 3 PM, at the Campus Road Gymnasium of Midwood High School, 2839 Bedford Ave., Brooklyn, New York 11210, right across the street from Brooklyn College.

This year there will be ten matches involving Midwood alumni, wrestlers, and coaches, as well as alumni from other schools. Matches will be held under NCAA, freestyle, and Greco-Roman wrestling rules, as well as a folkstyle tag team match.

In the main event, the 56-year-old Coach Hero will be returning to the mat in a heavyweight tag team match. He will team with Jon Guarino of NYU and face the pair who were Coach Hero's opponents at last year's MidwoodMania, Brian Anderson and Anthony Chu, both of NYU.

The tag team match will be held under folkstyle rules, but with some important modifications. It is scheduled for three, four-minute periods. A wrestler can only tag out when there is a break or a lull in the action, and must indicate this to the referee. Each team is allowed only one tag per period. Also, a pin ends the period, but not the match.

We spoke with Coach George Hero by phone last Monday.

"Oh yeah, I'll be on again," said Coach Hero.

"I can't believe it's been five years already. It's MidwoodMania V. The event has really grown. We're getting more and more wrestlers now who are not Midwood alumni. And hopefully, as I said, this can be a model for something city-wide eventually, maybe even the creation of some kind of a league just for former high school and college wrestlers who may not necessarily want to go and get involved in international competition or national competition per se, but just wrestle for their own pleasure or just to be able to stay in shape."

Besides discussing the idea of establishing an organization for recreational wrestlers who are out of school to compete, we also talked about his continuing to wrestle at age 56, the need for other schools to hold similar events, some of the other matches planned for MidwoodMania V, and much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

MMA World Expo. The mixed martial arts community comes to New York City July 26 and 27, 2014, for the fifth annual MMA World Expo, featuring the Fighters Source U.S. Nationals amateur MMA tournament, two days of ADCC no-gi and gi grappling tournaments, MMA fighters, seminars with world-class trainers, vendors, panel discussions, catch wrestling competition, and much more. The MMA World Expo takes place Saturday, July 26, and Sunday, July 27, 2014, at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City.

ONE Fighting Championship. ONE FC is Asia's largest and most prestigious mixed martial arts event. ONE FC features the best Asian fighters and has initiated the ONE Asia Partnership Network, which includes most of the major MMA promotions and MMA gyms in Asia. For more information, go to their web site, at ONEFC.com.

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.

Labels: Brooklyn, Coach George Hero, Eddie Goldman, Midwood High School, MidwoodMania, No Holds Barred, tag teams, wrestling

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman spoke with Dr. Michael Hutchison of the University of Toronto Concussion Program.

A research associate at the University of Toronto Faculty of Kinesiology and Physical Education, Dr. Hutchison is also the lead author of a study, published in March 2014 in the American Journal of Sports Medicine, called "Head Trauma in Mixed Martial Arts".

The purpose of this study was "(1) To determine the incidence, risk factors, and characteristics of knockouts (KOs) and technical knockouts (TKOs) from repetitive strikes in professional MMA; and (2) to identify the mechanisms of head trauma and the situational factors that lead to KOs and TKOs secondary to repetitive strikes through video analysis."

While no fighters were actually examined in this study, it did look at all the competition data and video records for all knockouts and TKOs from numbered Ultimate Fighting Championship events between 2006 and 2012.

It found that the "combined incidence of match-ending head trauma of 15.9 per 100 AEs (31.9% of matches)."

When comparing these figures to other combat and contact sports like boxing, kickboxing, and American football, it concluded, "Rates of KOs and TKOs in MMA are higher than previously reported rates in other combative and contact sports."

It also noted that "we have likely underestimated the incidence of TBIs [traumatic brain injuries] in MMA as we have (1) reviewed only events immediately preceding the conclusion of a match and (2) recognized that a certain percentage of concussions have no observable signs evident on video footage."

We spoke with Dr. Michael Hutchison by phone Friday.

"What I see at this point for what we can do as researchers, is to at least document the frequency [of KOs and TKOs], to educate the public to allow people to make informed decisions, and with informed decisions and having this concerning frequency, is that you would potentially over time see a reduction in interest. And a reduction in interest will lead to obviously less people participating, and the trickle-down effect will likely occur, if people are informed well enough about the potential risks and associated consequences potentially with these outcomes," he said.

"And so, from my perspective, I would like to inform the public, and allow them as adults, and adults should be making decisions for their kids, is that, just be educated, understand, and then make informed decisions. I think that's the most that we can do. And if more people look at this, and find similar information, then as we grow this body of information, then we will have enough information to make sound conclusions."

We discussed many details of this study, what its methodology was, the strengths and limitations of this methodology, what can be known from it regarding the relative risks of head trauma in MMA and other sports, the increasing progression of strikes to the head in the 30 seconds prior to a knockout or TKO in MMA in many fights, the need for people to be active and participate in sports and exercise, the reactions to this report in both the scientific community and the media, how its findings validate the dangers of what John Perretti terms the "anvil effect" where fighters are repeatedly punched in the head while on the ground, and much, much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

MMA World Expo. The mixed martial arts community comes to New York City July 26 and 27, 2014, for the fifth annual MMA World Expo, featuring the Fighters Source U.S. Nationals amateur MMA tournament, two days of ADCC no-gi and gi grappling tournaments, MMA fighters, seminars with world-class trainers, vendors, panel discussions, catch wrestling competition, and much more. The MMA World Expo takes place Saturday, July 26, and Sunday, July 27, 2014, at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City.

ONE Fighting Championship. ONE FC is Asia's largest and most prestigious mixed martial arts event. ONE FC features the best Asian fighters and has initiated the ONE Asia Partnership Network, which includes most of the major MMA promotions and MMA gyms in Asia. For more information, go to their web site, at ONEFC.com.

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.

Labels: concussions, Eddie Goldman, head trauma, Michael Hutchison, mixed martial arts, MMA, No Holds Barred, University Toronto

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman spoke with catch wrestler Kyle Johnson.

Originally trained in the martial arts of Tae Kwon Do, Tang Soo Do, Aikido, Capoeira, and Sanda, he has now been training in catch wrestling both at Catch Wrestling Los Angeles and at the Snake Pit Japan.

He will be wrestling on the card of the Catch Wrestling Alliance International Invitational: The Rebirth.

This event will take place Saturday, June 7, in Collins Court in the John Wooden Center on the campus of UCLA, at 221 Westwood Plaza, Los Angeles, California 90095-1612.

This invitational event will be held under catch wrestling rules, where you can only win by pin or submission. His opponent will be announced shortly.

We spoke with Kyle Johnson by phone Wednesday.

Discussing the rapid growth in popularity of catch wrestling and his training at Catch Wrestling Los Angeles, he said, "We've been having a lot of students becoming more and more interested in this now, and classes are being pretty much filled to capacity. We're running out of space. And I'm just wondering, why is the timing right now? Why did I fall into this at this point in time?"

He continued, "I think the sentiments that I share with catch wrestling are shared by a lot of people who are looking for something.

"Catch wrestling is very substantial to me. It's the first time when I felt like, this is a really, a tough, a tough art. It's not for someone who wants to come in there looking flashy. It's a lot of pain. There's a lot of technique that you have to practice very, very thoroughly to pull off effectively, not hurt yourself, not hurt your partner, too."

We discussed how he has made the transition to catch wrestling from the other martial arts in which he trained, despite having no wrestling or grappling background beforehand. He noted that he "felt something was missing" in his previous training, especially some years ago while watching Pride FC MMA events from Japan.

One of the highlights of his training was being allowed in to the prestigious Snake Pit Japan. There he trained under Yukou Miyato, and often worked with professional fighters. He explained how he came to be accepted there, and that people "just can't walk in there" without a good background.

Catch wrestling, he said, has the potential "to be the next big thing." We also discussed how it is an art form, how his training in catch wrestling under Raul Ramirez has helped him, how catch wrestling needs to be organized and marketed properly, and much, much more.

You can play or download No Holds Barred here and here. If one link doesn't work, please try another.

No Holds Barred is also available on mobile phones and iPads through Stitcher.

Also, No Holds Barred is available through iTunes.

The No Holds Barred theme song is called "The Heist", which is also available on iTunes by composer Ian Snow.

No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:

MMA World Expo. The mixed martial arts community comes to New York City July 26 and 27, 2014, for the fifth annual MMA World Expo, featuring the Fighters Source U.S. Nationals amateur MMA tournament, two days of ADCC no-gi and gi grappling tournaments, MMA fighters, seminars with world-class trainers, vendors, panel discussions, catch wrestling competition, and much more. The MMA World Expo takes place Saturday, July 26, and Sunday, July 27, 2014, at the Jacob Javits Center in New York City.

ONE Fighting Championship. ONE FC is Asia's largest and most prestigious mixed martial arts event. ONE FC features the best Asian fighters and has initiated the ONE Asia Partnership Network, which includes most of the major MMA promotions and MMA gyms in Asia. For more information, go to their web site, at ONEFC.com.

American Top Team. Whether you're a beginner or a champion, train with the champions in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, boxing, wrestling, grappling, and mixed martial arts at American Top Team. Check out their web site at http://americantopteam.com/.

Labels: Catch Wrestling Los Angeles, Eddie Goldman, Kyle Johnson, No Holds Barred, Snake Pit Japan