The combative sports calendar here in North Texas has been pretty thin as of late. While next week will play host to a promising amateur MMA card and the always entertaining Spring Break Boxing Tournament hosted by Premier Boxing Club, for our professional fighters here in the DFW traveling is a must.
This weekend three notable, young up-an-coming, fighters will travel to various locations within the state of Texas to fight for money, fame, and respect. While none of these fighters have an easy task, you have to pull for any fighter awesome enough to rep North Texas
Jonathan Wise (Garland, TX, 0-1) – Though he dropped his professional MMA debut, Garland’s Jonathan Wise is the epitome of positive energy. The Wing Chun Qeun fighter who fights out of the Kirksey Kung Fu fight team is a natural athlete with solid combinations of both speed and power. Though having a base in traditional eastern martial arts, Wise has been honing his skills on the ground as well as in the striking department. Saturday night, Wise will look to get his first career win when he takes on Dusty Mason on the Fightfeast 2 promotion taking place in Laredo. Backed by our friends at Knockout Syndrome Clothing, Wise has the tools and attitude to wreak havoc in the sport.
Ryan Benoit (McKinney, TX, 2-1) – You may remember Benoit from the profile we did of him on this site. With Benoit’s fight at Steele Cage 3 falling through, this weekend will mark nearly a year since the Saekson Janjira trained Muay Thai fighter has seen action. Fight’s falling through and nagging injuries have caused this delay but 2011 looks like it will be a far more active one for Benoit. Tonight, Benoit will take on Matt Espinoza at Shark Fight 14 taking place in Lubbock. Though his career is still in its infancy, the fact remains that Benoit’s mix of wrestling and Muay Thai presents a formidable challenge to most fighters. Incidentally, Benoit has the distinct honor of teaching me the proper technique in throwing an overhand right, so take that for what it’s worth.
Quaint Kempf (Dallas, 2-1) – A stalwart of the Arlington-based XKO promotion, Quiant Kempf has proven himself time and time again to be a beast inside the cage. The Octagon MMA trained fighter has an uncanny ability to make nay fight he’s in reach fevered levels of action and excitement. Since turning pro last year, Kempf has quickly established himself to be one of the Metroplex’s brightest talents. None of which addresses the fact that Kempf is a legitimate draw bringing with him a large vocal throng of friends and supporters whenever he fights. Tonight, Kempf will tackle the challenges of opponent Don Frye. No, not that Don Frye, but a game fighter nonetheless.
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