Fight Night

Even a blind man would know what goes on here. With strikes flying and a dozen men rotating at the end of three-minute rounds, the only thing left on the mat after a 90-minute training session at Sierra College on Monday night are pools of sweat, accompanied by the silent decompression of fighters unwrapping their hands, or laying on their backs asking for some help in getting off their shin pads. Welcome to the world of mixed martial arts, where kickboxing, wrestling, and submission holds blend together and make a guy you haven't tangled with your new best friend if he can show you something different.This week former Ultimate Fighting Championship light heavyweight champ Randy Couture teamed up with fellow UFC veteran Frank Trigg and Roseville's James Irvin to hit the mats - and each other - in preparation for bouts all three will have on Aug. 20.Joining them were Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, a star in Japan, where MMA fills up baseball stadiums and fans mob fighters on the street. Morning sessions will be at Marinoble's Kickboxing and Martial Arts Center in Roseville, where trainer Dave Marinoble will work on the fighters' striking techniques. There's a silent contract between training partners, and it's a simple premise: You offer up your body in return to another fighter to hone his skills, but injuries, while inevitable, are to be avoided. Before Monday evening's grappling session in Rocklin, Couture emerges in the center of the mat to remind fighters to get good training without injuries."We're all here to push each other, but be safe," Couture said.Marinoble said that Irvin, whom he has only trained for one fight, is still working on tightening up his punches and delivering them like a boxer instead of a fighter. Terry Martin, Irvin's opponent in the Aug. bout, is a 10-0 brawler. He's also about 5-foot-9, compared to Irvin's rangy 6-3 frame."(Martin) doesn't have a lot of speed, but he's got good punches," Marinoble said. "We'll use angles. I'm just trying to get James to drop his center and translate his power, and we're working on his defense."Irvin hasn't needed much defense in previous fights. He was 7-0 before his debut at UFC 51 in February, stopping or submitting all of his opponents in one round or less. But he came out too relaxed against heavyweight Mike Kyle and was knocked out in the first round.Irvin said it was a case of not letting the prefight butterflies do their job. Usually he's amped up."It was the only fight I've been in where I was wasn't nervous," Irvin said. "I need that fight or flight to kick in." Jackson, meanwhile, offers comic relief when he's not battling in front of 60,000 fans in Tokyo. His nickname of "Rampage" comes from an intense blend of wrestling, heavy hands, and no-nonsense aggression. During the morning workout at Marinoble's, he feigns being floored by a punch, then busts out some pushups."Everybody here wants to beat up on the black man," he quips.At the evening session at Sierra College, there are 10 three-minute rounds of standup striking, and with a dozen or so guys on the mat, everyone rotates each round to match up against a different person, a varying body type and skill level. Then three minutes are up and it's a half-minute break, and then another body to bang on.After the kickboxing, the fighters pair off for grappling. In rotating turns, one man starts on his back, the other on top. In mixed martial arts, there are plenty of submission holds available from both positions, but with boxing gloves on and hard love taps available, being in top condition with a good pedigree is only the beginning. Cranking a submission hold on various limbs is pretty tough when you have a guy like Trigg or Couture on top of you, both of whom wrestled at Oklahoma State.The group will do morning and evening sessions this week before splitting off and going their separate ways to train in other camps. Couture faces Mike Van Arsdale in a light heavyweight bout; Trigg faces Georges St. Pierre, and Irvin's opponent is another guy who's hungry and looking for the breakout win.Jackson said that Irvin hits harder than any light heavyweight he's ever faced - and Irvin is dropping down from heavyweight to compete at 205 lbs."I know my technique is just coming around," said Irvin. "I definitely know what to expect this time."Jason Probst can be reached at jasonp@goldcountrymedia.com