Challeneged Emin Boztepe this Sat.

[Ray Pina]

It was definitely not a fight, the equivalent of two wrestlers grappling pretty much .... or like, half chi sau/half grappling.

What is bothering me a little bit is the competitive side of me. I've done this type of thing with other players and walked away happy not thinking twice about it because I knew, no matter how much the other might say one thing or the other, that I could have demolished them. If they didn't feel that way, it was because I edited myself to the lower common denominator to keep it fun and not be intrusive to someone who didn't want to fight and just have fun.


With Emin it was different. We wanted to keep it level headed, but at the same time he wanted to demonstrate to me why it would be foolish to fight him and I wanted to make it clear that I would have beaten his a$$ ..... I for one am not satisfied that is the case. There were moments when I certainly had him. He shot on me twice and twice my forearm sprang into action between us resting on his neck/collor bone ... to quote him, "Just checking, wanted to check your level."

But, at the same time, he did get me in a bear hug and I had his head in a lock but he had lifted me pretty much off the ground. I had one foot on the ground but no root. I looked at him and said, "At this point we'd go down."

I tell myself, well, if we went down I would regain full body leverage and have his head .... not bad. But the fact that he uprooted me in that exchange really bothers me. I was vulnerable, or at least lost control of the action. This is the first time this has happened to me in about 6 months of fighting.

For that reason, this little thing bothers me most of any martial thing that has happend to me, certainly more than my San Da loss because I'm much more rounded now than I was then.

I keep thinking he's put his wrestling training into his Wing Chun, because his structure was really good. No leaning back or vertical balance. The ba$tard was good.

[Reggie1]

With your attitude, Ray, I'm shocked you haven't gotten into some kind of combative sport by now. From your posts, I'm getting the feeling that:

*You're extremely competitive
*You truly love fighting
*You have that killer instinct
*You have the right frame of mind

I know from some of the other stuff you've said on here that you aren't into the sportfighting stuff, but what about MMA-type fights w/ limited rules?

I know you fight for the love of it, but you could have a chance to be successful. Why not take a chance at making a living doing what you love?

[rogue]

Ray,
Sounds like your competitve side/ego is dealing with too many cudv, wudv's. Have you given any thought to getting back into the ring and going against people of your own level with more intent than those you have been rolling with? There's a big difference between sparring with potatos like me and competing with the type of people Ross is putting out.

[Ray Pina]

I will fight in the cage sooner or later. I know that.

Right now there are things I need to focus on and improve. That's what's most important to me. Doing this kind of fighting is a nice, no pressure way for me to test without having to worry about wins and losses.

When I get more rounded, more complete with my master's style, I will certainly want to test it against other stylists at that level. But when I see what my master has and what I have, it would be a disservice to put myself out there as any kind of official representative. I'm guessing I need a few more years.

I'm 31 now and not really in a rush. If I can get what I want to get by 35, even 40, I think I will be hard to beat though I expect I'll be well into that sort of thing by then.

It's funny. I do love this stuff but at the same time I burnt myself out on it as a kid so I don't pressure myself. If I feel like I need to skip class after a rough day or just want to surf or hang with a friend, I'll miss. It is a big part of my life, the most important, but I try to keep it in perspective believe it or not. Just comes off differently here because this is a martial arts board. So when I'm here, that's my focus and intention.

[FuXnDajenariht]

......
I'm finding you have to build a certain level of inner rage, a fire, to really bash someone. It's not anger or hatred, it's just this darket feeling and I find possession of it has changed everything for me.

lol the cheesy star wars quote possiblities are endless.

[wiz cool c]

Ray what happend with you and Sifu Parrella?

[Ray Pina]

Ray,
Sounds like your competitve side/ego is dealing with too many cudv, wudv's. Have you given any thought to getting back into the ring and going against people of your own level with more intent than those you have been rolling with? There's a big difference between sparring with potatos like me and competing with the type of people Ross is putting out.

The truth of the matter is I really don't have any could'ves or would'ves.... I'm doing exactly what I want to be doing.

When I have more experience and more of my master's style I'll be jumping to represent it in the cage. I'm not really interested in San Da. I like smaller gloves .... I like forearming the face and continuing on the ground if some tall guy wants to latch onto me and take me down. I want the opportunity to make him pay for bringing me down. Not seperate and give the guy two points. I want to bump him off of me, get position, and give him two forearms across the bridge of his nose. That's just me. It eats me to have someone put me down and then stop the action.

As for the quality of the fighters I get, I can't control that. I put out an APB that we're getting together to fight and who shows up shows up. That's beyond my control but no one can say it's from a lack of trying. Also, its interesting to note, that the guys who are showing up are showing up to fight with just 4oz gloves (no other gear) and a single rule of "respect the tap."

There was one "potato" who showed up once and he hung out a jab that I jumped all over like a hanging curce ball. Afterwards I felt bad for the guy, because he really wasn't ready for that sort of thing. But he did talk a bit online and he did tell me he wanted to beat someone good so he could post video of it but no one else showed up He was about 265lbs and I wasn't going to be his high light real.

Other than that, all pretty good athletes with their own area of expertise, be it punching, kicking or grappling.

[PangQuan]

I for one hope Ray the best of results in his life's quest.

He has the right menatlity needed to enter the cage. I hope to one day see him fighting up there with the big names and doing well, all the while promoting CMA.

Regardless of anyones personal feelings towards him, we all know this would be a good thing, and that we need more people who share his goals within the CMA community.

[Ray Pina]

Thank you. I apreciate the kind sentiment.

With me, it's just that I always enjoyed martial arts and think I can learn most things pretty quickly though a few internal things have given me challenges and take some time.

My attitude is that I'm young and single and not a face-to-face professional (I'm a writer) and since I'm not scared to fight and have a really good teacher I should push myself to get good and demonstrate to those who don't believe in Chinese fighting principles that we can at least hold our own. Not saying we're better, just want recognition that we're different.

Also, you always hear MMA and BJJ players ask, "well, where's all the video .... where's the proof." I'm in the very humble beginning stages of my internal training and of my mission, but I am slowly compiling this video proof and gaining experience.

[g0pher]

The most skillful guy I've played with in a while would be a BJJ guy from Philly. He recently won advanced No Gi Grapplers Quest. We sparred lightly and rolled and he was abble to tap me a few times, but at the same time I had periods of dominant position when I would've been striking. It was a good match. We're planning on fighting soon, maybe this weekend. He just got back from training in Brazil. I have size and better stand up, he's much better locking on the ground.

Do you mean Brad Daddis? From the Philly MMA school?

[Vajramusti]

I am at times puzzled by aspects of your posts- but good luck in your general quest.