Friday, December 06, 2013
No Holds Barred: Joel Resnick on RUFF and MMA in China in 2014 and Beyond
On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman spoke with Joel Resnick, the CEO of RUFF (Ranik Ultimate Fighting Federation).
The only MMA organization sanctioned to hold events in mainland China, RUFF just held their 11th show on November 30, at the Hongkou Indoor Stadium in Shanghai. The much-talked about main event pitted two undefeated fighters against one another, Bekbulat Magomedov of Russia and Wang Guan of China. After three rounds, Magomedov won by unanimous decision, but this was only the second time in his 12 victories that Magomedov went the distance and didn't win by submission or knockout.
We spoke with Joel Resnick about RUFF 11 and the plans of RUFF by Skype Thursday (Wednesday New York time).
Asked where RUFF stands in comparison to other MMA organizations around the world, he replied, "RUFF stands on their own. That's where we stand. We don't pay attention to too many other organizations. Really, we're the only ones in China that are government-sanctioned that are actually holding MMA events as sporting events. Not as a promotional event, not as a cultural event, but as a sporting event."
He added, "We have no plans to go outside of China. We have 1.4 billion people to educate here about MMA."
He believes that since RUFF first started in 2011, the top Chinese fighters have risen to "a global level." He also said that with their system of crowning champions and now by bringing in fighters from outside China, like Magomedov, they do not have "paper champions."
As for next year, he said, "For 2014, we're going to keep doing what we're doing. We're going to bring in more foreigners to challenge our champions." He said to expect RUFF's fighters to get more exposure through increased sponsorships and appearances on television shows.
"We always said from day one, how we're going to grow the company is by growing the fighters. And that's what we're going to continue to do."
He also did not exactly sound worried by the attempted entrance into China by non-Chinese MMA companies, including UFC. "We have all the good fighters under contract with us, and everybody knows that," he said. Regarding the UFC's upcoming reality TV show in China, "We haven't heard too much about it here."
We also discussed RUFF's growing number of viewers, plans to add English-language commentary to their upcoming shows, how fighting is readily accepted in China since martial arts are such an important part of Chinese culture, the coverage of RUFF in the Chinese media, 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:
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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.
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Labels: Bekbulat Magomedov, China, Eddie Goldman, Joel Resnick, MMA, No Holds Barred, RUFF, Wang Guan
Tuesday, January 29, 2013
No Holds Barred: Joel Resnick on Feb. 2 RUFF Super Fights to Crown China's First National MMA Champions
Based in China, RUFF will be holding its most important show on Saturday, February 2, where five super fights will be held in five different weight classes to crown, for the first time, Chinese national MMA champions. Each of the winners will earn RMB 1,000,000 (approximately US$160,000).
This card will take place at the Inner Mongolia Indoor Stadium in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia, China, and be televised live throughout China on Inner Mongolia Satellite Channel as well as regionally on the Shandong Sports Channel and the Xinjiang Sports Channel.
There will be several online and mobile streams available in China, as well as a free, live stream available to the world on PPTV, scheduled to start at 2:30 PM China Standard Time (CST - UTC/GMT +8 hours). RUFF will be providing more information on the telecasts and webcasts, at http://www.ruffchina.com.
We spoke with Joel Resnick by Skype Tuesday (Monday in New York) to preview this important card and discuss the progress of RUFF as an organization.
"Really we've done everything we said we were going to do from the very beginning," he said in this interview.
"We work on facts over here. Fact one: We're the only ones that have a permit for professional MMA in China. That's just the way it is. And our permit just got extended through 2014.
"Fact two: We're giving out the first China national MMA belts sanctioned by the government.
"Fact three: We're giving out 1,000,000 RMB to each of the five winners.
"Fact four: We're on satellite TV live. No combat sport has ever been on satellite TV live in China."
He also listed some of the very impressive statistics for total TV viewership of RUFF events in China. RUFF 5 got just over seven million viewers, RUFF 6 got around six million viewers, with the numbers for RUFF 7 due shortly. He added, the "Super Fight, really, we're hoping for ten million viewers. It's the first time ever it will be aired live nationally."
RUFF has also had a reality show with millions of viewers to familiarize people with the mostly young group of fighters who compete in this organization.
We also discussed the fights on this championship card, why there was a late replacement this week for one of the fighters, how the fighters chosen to compete on this card were selected both for their fight records as well as how they will represent their country, the future of RUFF, 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:
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.
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Labels: China, Eddie Goldman, Joel Resnick, MMA, national champions, No Holds Barred, Ranik Ultimate Fighting Federation, RUFF, super fights
Sunday, April 01, 2012
No Holds Barred: Joel Resnick of RUFF, Martial Arts and MMA in China, World Martial Arts Show Rocks the Bronx
On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman discusses the successful World Martial Arts Show in the Bronx on Saturday, the connection between traditional martial arts and mixed martial arts, and the link of all of these with China, and interviews Joel Resnick, president and co-founder of the MMA company RUFF, based in Shanghai, China.
The World Martial Arts Show and Battle of the Dojos Extravaganza took place Saturday, March 31, at the famed Paradise Theater in the Bronx, New York. After martial arts tournaments during the daytime, the activities in the evening featured a martial arts, music, dance, and fashion show, as well as the presentation of the Life Arts Award to martial artist and actor Michael Jai White. Among the topics commented upon are how the mainstream media ignored this well-attended event, how it was enthusiastically received by its largely African-American and Latino audience, the fashion show which included a wearing of hoodies in tribute to slain African-American teenager Trayvon Martin, the different styles of striking and grappling on this show, the remarks by Michael Jai White, the relationship this event showed between the traditional martial arts and MMA and boxing, and, first and foremost, its importance to the youth.
Many of the organizers of this event are also involved with the practice of Chinese Shotokan Karate. Thus examined briefly is some of the history of how karate originated in China, the relation between traditional martial arts and MMA in China, including the practice of shoubo, a form of no-holds-barred weaponless fighting some 23 centuries ago, and more recent developments in the People's Republic of China.
This leads us into our interview with Joel Resnick, the president and co-founder of RUFF (Ranik Ultimate Fighting Federation). We recorded it by Skype last Tuesday Shanghai time (Monday New York time).
"In a couple of years, the best fighters are going to be coming out of China," said Joel Resnick in this interview. "Like every other sport, when they get behind it and they really want it, they're going go get it."
We discussed how he got to China from Canada, why they just want to focus on running events in China, how RUFF is the only professional MMA organization sanctioned by the Chinese government through the Wushu Administrative Center which is the governing body of Chinese combat sports, why they adopted the North American unified rules, prefight medicals and fighter safety issues, their plans for a series of fights leading to title fights to crown China's first MMA national champions, their plans for TV and video, and much, much more.
You can play or download No Holds Barred here. You can also download No Holds Barred here. If one link does not work, please try another. The show is in MP3 format, so may take some time to download.
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", by Ian Carpenter.
No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:
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.
DARE Championship. Based in Thailand, DARE is a mixed martial arts event where fighters from all over the world compete to become the DARE Champion. DARE is one of the first MMA promotions in Thailand, and has been televised in many countries and online. For more information, go to their web site, at DareFightSports.com.
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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/.
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", by Ian Carpenter.
No Holds Barred is free to listen to and is sponsored by:
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.
DARE Championship. Based in Thailand, DARE is a mixed martial arts event where fighters from all over the world compete to become the DARE Champion. DARE is one of the first MMA promotions in Thailand, and has been televised in many countries and online. For more information, go to their web site, at DareFightSports.com.
Beezid.com - Penny Auctions. Your #1 source for exciting auction shopping and outstanding deals on just about anything! Top rated, most trusted auction site online. Where do you shop? Beezid.com - Penny Auctions.
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: Bronx, China, Eddie Goldman, Joel Resnick, martial arts, MMA, No Holds Barred, RUFF, World Martial Arts Show
