Invicta FC is running a Harlem Shake Competition. I corralled some of my students to help me out. It is IMPORTANT the you VOTE for my video at WWW.INVICTAFC.COM! Please VOTE, share with friends and tell them to vote, too! Voting begins Sunday, march 24 and goes until April 5!

Thanks and make sure you have April 5 free as I'm fighting and you should watch!!

ZUMA will officially be closed for classes from Monday, December 24 thru Tuesday, January 1, 2013. But just because we are closed, doesn't mean you have to miss out on training! If you're interested in training over the holidays check out the calendar section for open mat times each day. Usually an open mat time will be posted a day (maybe 2) in advance. Open mat is exactly what it sounds like: the gym will be open for you to come in and do what you'd like!

I'll also try to update this post for the training times as that might be easier to find. Hope everyone has a great holiday!

December 24 open mat: noon-1:30 (ish)

December 26 open mat: 12:30-2(ish)

December 27 open mat: 1:30-3(ish)

december 28 open mat: 12:30-2(ish)

December 29 Open Mat: 12:30-2(ish)

December 31 Open Mat: 12:30-2(ish)

November 3 was a busy night for the ZUMA team as Alexi Argyriou, Miles Anstead, Ryan Janes and Diego Wilson all prepared to step into the AFC cage. It was great having so many fighters competing as the crowd was almost entirely pro-ZUMA and we got our own changeroom (plus Dan McGiver from Fight Pit whom we like!) We got everybody wrapped prior to the first fight and started getting Alexi and Miles warmed up.

"Sexi" Alexi was up first and he looked impressive. Rd 1 showcased a little bit of everything from him: striking, wrestling, a submission attempt. In between rounds Adam talked gameplan while I provided water - an extremely important job :) Alexi went out round 2 and locked up a guillotine. At first I thought his opponent might get out, but Alexi kept the pressure on and got the tap. Now he's 2-0 as an amateur.

Miles was the fight following Alexi and he was taking on Bill Fraser from up island. Miles controlled the pace the entire fight as Bill was unable to stop his takedowns. Miles dilligently worked from top position for all 3 rounds. The one hiccup came in Rd 2 when Miles landed in guard but threw a headbutt to Bill's face rather than a shoulder strike. Even though he lost a point, Miles took home the win with a 29-27 decision on all the scorecards. Impressive to be 2-0 with both fights only 21 days apart. I'm so happy that Miles is now a part of the ZUMA team.

Third up was Ryan Janes, and if you didn't know how tough he was before, you do after the fight. Ryan got hit with some massive overhands in rd 1, yet didn't flinch at all. He just kept pressing forward and landing strikes and controlling the fight when it was against the cage. In between rd 1 and 2 Adam told Ryan to start landing the right headkick and sure enough rd 2 and 3 saw it land on more than one occasion with some damaging results. It would send Ceto Allan reeling and Ryan would unleash punches and knees. Rd 3 had a couple of moments where I thought the ref might stop the fight, but Allan survived and Ryan earned a decision win.

The night was ramping up to be a clean sweep for the ZUMA team, but unfortunately Diego didn't have his best performance and lost in rd 1. Diego is an amazing teammate and person, and I was heartbroken for him. I know how it feels to lose a fight when you have the skillset necessary to win. Frustrating, but it won't stop Diego from being the beast that he always is!

Overall, the ZUMA team had a great showing. The support from our ZUMA community was felt throughout the arena. You all help make us awesome! Congratulations to Alexi, Ryan and Miles on their wins and thank you Adam for being such an amazing coach!

Congratulations to Miles on his 1^st professional win. Miles took on Brad Faust at CWC in Kingston, Washington. Faust was an extremely tough opponent. Rd 1 started with Miles landing some great strikes but Faust was able to pin Miles along the cage for the majority of the round. Rd 2 saw Miles landing some strikes and getting a big take down then working his ground and pound, leaving Faust with a swollen right eye. Rd 3 started and Miles again got the takedown. He worked his strikes on the ground and got to mount then crossbody where he landed a few short left hands before connecting with a right elbow that split Faust from his eye to below his cheekbone. The referee called the fight and Miles was victorious at 3:39 of rd 3.

I had a great time making this video with MMAFighting.com's Casey Leydon and Esther Lin. Also thank you to Adam Zugec, Julie Kedzie, Greg Jackson and the rest of the Jackson team for putting up with me :)

Listen today at 1:30 pst to CFAX 1070 or listen LIVE here: http://www.cfax1070.com/live/

BC just passed a new BILL creating a provincial athletic commision that will be overseeing MMA in the province. This is a huge step forward for MMA in BC and will no doubt bring in higher revenue for the province, as well as giving the local athletes safer (and hopefully more) opportunities to compete at a professional level.

Adam Zugec and I will be talking more about this new bill and how if affects the province today at 1:30 so make sure to listen in - online or on the radio.

www.sarahkaufman.ca