NO HOLDS BARRED

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman spoke with karate instructor and fighter Elhadji Gaye Ndour.

He will be fighting in the main event on April 26 of the debut show of the new professional full contact karate league, Karate Combat.

We spoke with him by phone Saturday.

Originally from Senegal and now living in Long Island, New York, he has been nicknamed "Black Magic" and has fought in numerous amateur sport karate events around the world. But he noted that in some of his fights, he had actually been disqualified because, he said, he hit or kicked his opponents "too hard" or even scored knockouts.

"That doesn't make sense," he said. Now with the formation of this full contact karate league, he believes that he will be able to display all of his skills.

"They created this league to give the athletes the opportunity to hit hard and kick hard. That's why it's very interesting," he said.

"I don't have a second mind to know that this league is going to go far. It's going to be very, very interesting to watch," he said.

"This league is going to be greater than UFC. This is going to be greater than boxing. And it's going to be greater than any other league ever created for karate combat.

"Karate Combat will be the best league on this planet.

"One day is going to come and you're going to say, 'Oh, I interviewed this 'Black Magic' and he told me that.'

"And this, I see it. It is not maybe. It is not maybe. I know that's going to happen. It's going to be the greatest league in this planet."

Obviously having great confidence both in his skills and the potential of this new organization, we also discussed his background. He is still working a day job five days a week while instructing and training in karate on nights and weekends. "We do it for passion," he said. Now he will also have the opportunity to earn income from his fights.

We also discussed the Karate Combat rules, which allow throws and five seconds to punch on the ground; how he now has improved his training and eating for fighting professionally; how he still hopes to compete in karate in the 2020 Tokyo Olympics; how he was introduced to the Karate Combat people; and much, much more.

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

No Holds Barred is sponsored by:

The Catch Wrestling Alliance, resurrecting and promoting the sport of authentic catch-as-catch-can wrestling. The Catch Wrestling Alliance provides tournaments, seminars, and training as well as education about catch wrestling. Join the movement and keep real wrestling alive. For more information, go to CatchWrestlingAlliance.com.

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Thanks, Eddie Goldman
EddieGoldman.com

Labels: Eddie Goldman, Elhadji Gaye Ndour, Karate Combat, No Holds Barred, Senegal

On this edition of No Holds Barred, host Eddie Goldman once again spoke with Mike Martelle, the owner and head instructor of the Grizzly Gym.

A martial artist who has mastered numerous disciplines and styles of both grappling and striking, he will be traveling from Kingston, Ontario, Canada, this coming week to Dakar, Senegal, in Africa, to train and compete in the traditional style of wrestling known as Laamb. There he will train with Kairé Deux at the Soumbédioune Training Center (l'écurie Soumbédioune), as well as conduct seminars in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and MMA.

He is working on this project with the Lion Heart Initiative.

We spoke with Mike Martelle by phone Thursday.

"Ever since I was a little kid when I started martial arts decades ago, it was always my lifelong dream to compete on every continent," he said. "This trip to Africa will complete that goal. This will be the last of the six viable continents that I will be traveling to and competing upon."

He continued, "We'll be competing in a traditional form of wrestling, the national sport of Senegal, called Laamb."

There are two versions of Laamb: amateur and professional.

"Essentially you're looking to win via taking your opponent down, or putting him out-of-bounds. And in the professional version, you can also use closed-fist punches to, shall we say, encourage the takedown," he said.

"So I'm very excited about it. It's going to be fantastic."

We discussed more about the Lion Heart Initiative, the potential for Laamb (also called Senegalese Wrestling) to become a popular sport worldwide, why this is "sport at its purest, at its most primal", upcoming plans for catch wrestling and combat wrestling events this year, 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:

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 AmericanTopTeam.com.

Defense Soap, an effective, deep penetrating body soap with natural antifungal, antiviral, and antibacterial soap ingredients. Defense Soap is the best cleansing body soap for men and women athletes who are involved in contact sports such as MMA, wrestling, grappling, jiu-jitsu, and judo, to help their antifungal, anti-ringworm, anti-jock itch strategy. Check out their web site, at DefenseSoap.com.

Payleg.com, which gives you the tools to develop a full-time income by building a home-based business. Teaching success in the home-based business industry since 1988, Payleg.com is available in 190 countries. For more information, go to Payleg.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 TakedownRadio.com.

Labels: Africa, catch, combat, Eddie Goldman, Grizzly Gym, Grizzly's Quest, Laamb, Lion Heart Initiative, Mike Martelle, No Holds Barred, Senegal, wrestling