Total Combat fights its way to San Diego on July 15 at the iPayOne Center. These boys are so bad they have to duke it out in a cage. The rules are simple: no bazookas! Aside from that, just about anything else goes.
According to fight promoter Diana Ocamco, cage fighting using mixed martial arts is the contact sport of the millennium.
“This will be our 16th installment of mixed martial arts events in San Diego,” said Ocamco.
Total Combat is a local company that has been producing professional mixed martial arts events for more than three years.
The sport, which combines kickboxing, wrestling, judo, jujitsu and boxing, slammed onto the national scene nearly a decade ago when it debuted on Pay-Per-View, bringing in one of the biggest pay days ever for network.
Because of its “no rules” status, plenty of controversy was stirred, forcing the sport to be banned by some states. However, the almighty dollar eventually won out and some modifications were made to the rules allowing mixed martial arts to become what is now considered a mainstream sport, seen regularly on Spike TV.
Although the fighters competing at Sports Arena will be doing their thing inside a cage, there won’t be any Mike Tyson ear chomping allowed. In fact, one of the most vicious weapons in mixed martial arts fighting is not allowed at this venue. Elbows are out of the mix, but knee strikes are in, as are kicks to the leg, body and head. Chokes and joint-locking submission holds are allowed as well.
“You can win by knockout, or submission or you may choke your opponent out,” Ocamco said. “Fighters can grapple, use karate, or kickboxing and jujitsu to win a fight.”
Eric Delfierro is the man responsible for pairing the fighters. As matchmaker, he likes to select fighters based on their experience. He has put together what he believes in an all-star line of “B” fighters, many of whom will soon be in the sports “A” list.
“Styles make fights,” Delfierro said. “Most of the guys on this card have the potential to become A-level fighters. This is a great opportunity for local fans of mixed martial arts to see some of the future stars of the sport in action. There is no doubt in my mind that a few of the local fighters you’ll see at the Sports Arena have the ability to become mixed martial arts stars.”
According to Ocamco, about 70 percent of the card will feature fighters from San Diego. One of the local fighters in the main card is Wade Shipp, who trains out of City Boxing in San Diego and will be fighting against Allen Sullivan from Phoenix.
In addition to 11 matches taking place inside the cage, there will be action of another kind circling it. The Total Combat, Combat Dolls go-go team will be doing a whole lot of shakin’ for the audience providing an atmosphere of non-stop entertainment with a night club vibe.
“We will have 10, maybe 11, fights on our card,” Ocamco said. “In addition to lots of great fight action we also create a party atmosphere. We spend a lot of money on production, giving our event a nightclub kind of theme.”
The production also includes a laser light show. Tickets for the three-hour event start at $25 through Ticketmaster or iPayOne Center box office. Doors open at 6 p.m. with fights starting at 7 p.m.