Warriors descend on Paradise

Fighters from hosting the Bay of Islands Lee Gar organisation at the Warriors in Paradise 2 martial arts fest pose with the Stylebender, Israel Adesanya and Henri 'Tahitian Blood Fighter' Burns.

It's hard to know where to start when covering an event of the nature of Warriors in Paradise 2, the one-day fight fest in Waitangi on Saturday which featured martial artists from all over the show.

Obviously one couldn't go past the day's card which ran a gamut of styles enough to sate the appetite of any full-blooded fight fan.

Then there was the presence of a veritable martial arts superstar, Israel Adesanya, aka Stylebender, fresh from claiming two major boxing and mixed martial arts titles in back-to-back fashion last week, and the two good causes promoted on the day including the campaign to raise awareness of suicide prevention, not to mention the guy who collapsed ...

As the spokesperson from the hosting Bay of Islands Lee Gar, Nik Jessop perhaps best summed up what Warriors in Paradise 2 was all about in two words. He simply called it a "raving success" and this from a guy who's not known to talk things up.

"It was just another great day," Jessop said, noting all 14 fights on the card including the two junior divisions and a women's bout went the distance. No one was knocked out.

The event was wrapped up in fitting fashion with a right doozy which saw Tahitian international Henry Burns (now City Kickboxing, Auckland) force the defensive walls of the appropriately-named Jericho (City Lee Gar) to crumble; while the penultimate bout was won by BOILG fighter, Petrus 'Cyborg' Strydom who took down a chap called James (Strikeforce) in a Muay Thai match up.

Other highlights included Max Bates (H-Clan, Whangarei) winning his Muay Thai bout against Duanne Flowers (City Lee Gar), and and Quinita Hati (Toa Gym) winning her bout against Phet Issan (Pathai Thai Boxing, Whangarei).

Jessop also singled out his Far North Mixed Martial Arts counterparts, the One Team One Dream crew for travelling from Kaitaia to support the event.

"They did really awesome," he said, adding one FNMMA fighter in particular, Rob Anderson, showed real promise in his exhibition match and will be "one to watch". Going into the match as a clear underdog against a vastly experienced rival, the Kaitaia 17-year-old certainly made some noise. Anderson is now preparing to make his debut at the Future Champions event in Orewa this Saturday, while his FNMMA trainer Tahuri Tibble is also preparing to step into the ring by fighting at the Nak Su Thai Show in Whangarei on December 5.

Last Saturday's event at Waitangi also enjoyed an appearance from a very special guest: Israel Adesanya, the winner of the boxing Super 8 championship in Auckland last week, where he fought two fighters in one night, and only a mere three days after claiming the King in the Ring mixed martial arts title, where he beat three opponents in one night.

Also the current WKBF cruiserweight and IKBF light heavy-weight champion, the gigantic Adesanya - Jessop noted - was hugely respected in the martial arts scene, and had acquired the moniker Stylebender, taken from the popular film Airbender, for his chameleon-like mastery of different fighting styles.

There was also an incident during the day which saw a corner-man fall from the ring and knock himself out in the process. Jessop noted the St John crew were on hand to attend the scene, "Did what they were supposed to do," and said the injured party had since enjoyed a full recovery.

Jessop concluded by emphasising the event had been primarily designed as a fundraiser and to raise awareness around suicide prevention. With the final tally still to be confirmed, Warriors in Paradise 2 raised an estimated $1000 for the St John Cadets Kawakawa, and promoted the Choose Life campaign.