Baran's Breakdown: Asylum Fight League - Fights Under The Lights Preview

Friday, 17 June 2011 08:36

by Shawn Baran

Barans_Breakdown

You want to know where the best fighters in the world come from. The answer is simple. They have to start from the ground and work their way up. Organizations like the UFC , Strikeforce, and Bellator have some of the top fighters in the world. Those great fighters got their start in the amateur leagues. One such league is New Jersey’s Asylum Fight League. Owned and operated by Carl Mascarenhas, Asylum has quickly grown into one of the top amateur fight organizations in this area.

Saturday night, Carl will bring his brand of amateur MMA to a new venue. FirstEnergy Park in Lakewood, NJ will play host to a spectacular night of MMA action. The Lakewood BlueClaws will have the night off and home plate will be replaced with a cage. This will not be a batting cage either, folks. This is an MMA cage set for combat. If you are a baseball fan, you will still get to see some athletes swinging for the fences, but they will bring a whole new meaning to the term.

Lakewood and the surrounding areas are home to many MMA academies and several of those academies will be on hand Saturday night as several fighters are set to begin or continue their trek to greatness. UFC middleweight, Nick Catone has several fighters from his academy stepping up to the plate as does Eric Colon from Tong Dragon MMA. Bill Scott’s Shore Academy has a few fighters in the mix as well.

Asylum Fight League is the proving ground to see what these fighters are made of and if they really have what it takes to make it in this sport. Fighters like Bill Borawski, Mike Sanders, Mike Tible, Bob Meyer, and Greg Quarantello have all been here before and know their way around the cage. Several fighters make their debuts Saturday night. Fighters like Ricky Bandejas and Aharon Atwood from Catone’s MMA in Brick, NJ are stepping into the cage for the very first time. Sixteen fights are scheduled for this card and I can guarantee you, they will all be exciting.

Headlining the fights under the lights card will be a light heavyweight contest between Mike Tible (3-2) and Bob Meyer (4-2). If there was a roof on this venue it would probably get blown off by this main event. Tible’s fights are always exciting and in each if his three victories, he was able to finish the fight via a submission. His Jiu-Jitsu is slick and his transitioning on the ground is impressive. Meyer will need to bring his “A” game if he hopes to pick up the win in this fight.

Meyer also brings in a wealth of knowledge in the ground game area. Meyer can grapple with the best of them. Despite losing his last two fights, Meyer is as tough as they come and he has also finished all of his victorious fights via submission. This could play out in two ways. A chess match on the ground with both fighters working to out-position the other. Or the ground games will negate each other and they will stand in the pocket and exchange some good old fashioned punches. Regardless of how this fight plays out, it will be entertaining. Perhaps we will see a home run swing by the end of the night.

Carl Mascarenhas and Asylum Fight League will surely hit one out of the park with this event. The fighters are excited to be performing at an outdoor venue and the fans will be treated to a fantastic evening of food, fun, and fights under the lights. The doors open at 7pm and the first fight is scheduled to go on at 8pm. For ticket info head over to Asylum’s web site or the BlueClaws web site. We look forward to seeing you all there.

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Comments

#1 Guest 2011-06-18 22:54

Fights were stopped very early due to slippery mats caused by humidity, understandably this was necessary for the safety of the fighters, howevery no info was given to the fans as to how they would be compensated. Carl has an opportunity to make a lot of new fans here and draw them to AC or Philly, however if people are robbed of their money and left out to dry, Asylum will more likely lose some old fans.

#2 Guest 2011-06-19 12:43

I was ringside and I can see the canvas looking really shiny. The team really tried hard to keep it dry and even went out to get a cleaning solution to try and dry up stuff but the humidity was too much because a few moments after they dried it with alcohol and germicidal cleaning wipes it just reappeared again. Fighters losing their footing and slipping is a safety issue and I can't fault the commission or physicians for stopping the fights because safety is first. Someone blows out a knew or tries to slam an opponent to escape an arm triangle and losses his footing in the process can turn into something very ugly.

Hopefully Carl compensates those who were there because it was a very good turnout and the atmosphere was very exciting. It's hard for fans to take trips to AC all the time and Ocean County has a lot of places to use: ocean county college, lakewood high, Jackson liberty, ritacco center (expensive to rent tho) or even the Blueclaws stadium again, with some high powered fans or so lights around the cage to dry up the humidity. I really hope this isn't the last time. Canvas mats are a possible solution too despite its prices and cleaning concerns.

#3 Guest 2011-06-19 19:53

Thanks for the support fellas. I was also cageside, calling the fights and the mats were awful from a safety standpoint. The right call was DEF made. These guys are amateurs. We don't want their careers ended before they get started. Here s Carl's response to the situation...

"I would like to start by thanking the fighters and fans for the event on June 18. Due the humidity that night the Fight was stopped by the State and Doctors in the best interest of the safety of the fighters. As all promotional companies we work hard to make each event a positive experience for the Fan but I will not put a fighter in danger for anyone and totally agree for the States call . That being said we have a NO REFUND policy but i feel for the fighters and fans that came out last night , I am willing to credit any fan that attended this event with a 50% off the next event that there fighter will be competing in. Please send an email with your Name ,Address, and Fighter you came to see along with a scanned copy of your ticket . You will have a ticket Voucher code for the upcoming event or Next Blueclaws Event Scheduled June 2012. Our Cage and canvas is certified by the NJSACB. We are submitting new material for state approval for a matting that will not have the same issue that we encountered that night. Our company strives to be the best in the industry and appreciates the support of the Fighters and Fans.
promoter@asylum fightleague.com"

#4 Guest 2011-06-19 22:23

Glad Carl made a statement. Half is better than nothing to be honest. But, that ride to AC along with parking fees will weigh on some folks mind. But, they are willing to compensate those who felt jipped, which they have the right to think, but hopefully they realize that safety is paramount above anything else. Until the next go round...

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