» Fighter: Travis Wiuff

“I am a wrestler by trade, but I’m now a fighter.”

Meet Team Quest’s “King Mo” Muhammad Lawal (1-0), Fighters.com’s Fighter of the Month.  Lawal made his much-anticipated MMA debut in Tokyo 28 September with a first-round TKO over heavyweight veteran “Diesel” Travis Wiuff (53-12).

Lawal first spoke to Fighters.com after joining Team Quest in April when, despite his success in amateur wrestling, I advised him to pursue a measured path through the sport.

He wisely ignored me.  Despite Wiuff’s ten-fight win streak and having knocked out “Ironhead” Kazuyuki Fujita (15-7) for the first time ever in his previous fight, Lawal jumped right in to MMA.

Lawal told Fighters.com last weekend, “The only hesitation and discussion [about fighting Wiuff] came from the haters, naysayers, and the people that picked me to lose.  I was confident and felt good.  It was a dream come true for me to fight and even better to make my debut in Japan.”

Read More About Fighter of the Month: Mo Lawal…

MMA rookie “King Mo” Muhammed Lawal (1-0) upset “Diesel” Travis Wiuff (53-12) by first-round TKO at 2:11 Sunday night in Tokyo.

Lawal staggered Wiuff with a right Superman punch, then rushed in with a double-leg takedown at the ropes.  Lawal leapt on Wiuff and finished him off with ground’n’pound.

Brazilian jiu-jitsu world champion “Xande” Alexandre Ribeiro (1-0) TKO’d Takashi Sugiura (1-3) in the last minute of his anticipated MMA debut.

Read More About Lawal Upsets Wiuff in MMA Debut, Ribeiro Also Victorious at Sengoku 5…

“Diesel” Travis Wiuff (53-11) confirmed to MMA Weekly that his new opponent at Sengoku 5 in Tokyo 28 September will be wrestler “Mo” Muhammed Lawal (0-0).

His original opponent, Roger Gracie (2-0), withdrew due to injury.

Lawal is a new Team Quest member who will make his MMA debut at the event.  He is a former NCAA Division II amateur wrestling champion, and also finished first at the 2006 US Open and 2007 Pan-American Games.

Wiuff KO’d Kazuyuki Fujita (15-7) in 1:24 at Sengoku 3 in June.

A rib injury has forced Roger Gracie (2-0) to withdraw from his heavyweight match versus “Diesel” Travis Wiuff (53-11) at Sengoku 5 in Tokyo 28 September, his management told Sherdog Wednesday.

Gracie tore an intercostal muscle after taking a kick to the ribs in training, and was advised by his physiotherapist not to train for at least four weeks.

World Victory Road has not yet officially pulled Gracie from the card, nor announced a new opponent for Wiuff.

World Victory Road announced Thursday that YAMMA Pit Fighting Champion “Diesel” Travis Wiuff (53-11) will be Roger Gracie’s (2-0) opponent at Sengoku 5, 28 September in Tokyo.

Also announced was a lightweight bout between Kiuma Kunioku (33-22-9) and South Korea’s A Sol Kwon (5-3).

Wiuff is riding a ten-fight win streak, most recently knocking out Kazuyuki Fujita (15-7) at 1:24 of his Sengoku debut in June.

Gracie, a Brazilian jiu-jitsu star, submitted Yuki Kondo (28-22-6) in May via rear naked choke in the first round.

Kunioku, a former Pancrase champion, submitted his last opponent, Jay Ellis (7-23), via toe hold in 1:47 in May.

Kwon last fought in June, winning a unanimous decision over Do Hyung Kim (4-2).

Fighters.com’s eighth-ranked middleweight “Grabaka Hitman” Kazuo Misaki (20-8-2) shot it out on his feet with “Pink Pounder” Logan Clark (11-2) for a unanimous decision at Sengoku Third Battle in Saitama, north of Tokyo, Sunday night.

Misaki successfully countered Clark’s aggressive stand-up for the “W”.

Ninth-ranked welterweight “The Goat” Nick Thompson (36-9-1) survived a “Maicon” Michael Costa (9-4) hook that detonated in the second round, leaving “The Goat” on the mat, to tap Costa at 4:13 of the round in a Kimura.

YAMMA Pit Fighting Heayweight Champion “Diesel” Travis Wiuff (53-11) cemented his return to being taken seriously with a first-round knockout of “Ironhead” Kazuyuki Fujita (15-7) at 1:24, a feet never previously achieved.

In the night’s main event, heavyweight Hidehiko Yoshida (8-6-1) ended a three-loss streak by tapping 46-year old kickboxer “Mo” Maurice Smith (12-13) in a neck crank at 2:23 of round one.

Sanae Kikuta (27-6-3) finished off Englishman Chris Rice (12-6), who entered the ring costumed as the Grim Reaper, in a first-round armbar at 3:54.

“Pe de Pano” Marcio Cruz (4-2) also tapped Korean heavyweight Mu Bae Choi (7-3) in a rear naked choke at 4:37 of round one.

Brazilian lightweight Rodrigo Damm (8-1) called out second-ranked lightweight “Fireball Kid” Takanori Gomi (28-3) after the referee ended “Gamebred” Jorge Masvidal’s (13-3) night, controversially calling the fight at 4:38 of round two while Masvidal was recovering from a punch that dropped the brawler.

Middleweight Fabio Silva (10-4) knocked out Yoshiki Takahashi (28-23-3) with a knee at :24 of round two.

YAMMA Pit Fighting Heavyweight Champion “Diesel” Travis Wiuff (52-11) will fight on the undercard of Affliction: Banned 19 July in Anaheim, outside of Los Angeles, according to the Rochester Post-Bulletin.

No opponent was named.

Though there is no official indication, Wiuff may be Plan B for heavyweight prospect Ben Rothwell (29-5), who is also opponent-less as fight day draws near.

Negotiations for Rothwell to fight Fighters.com’s fifth-ranked heavyweight “Pitbull” Andrei Arlovski (12-5) remain mysterious.

Fighters.com reported Arlovski has always been Rothwell’s intended opponent, despite Rothwell’s denials.

However, recently both Rothwell and his agent, Adrenaline MMA President Monte Cox, have admitted Arlovski is on the table.

“Of course [Affliction] talked about Andrei, but I don’t know what his contract status is,” Cox told Cage Potato on 12 May.  “[Arlovski] was supposed to be free from his UFC contract on May 1, but I honestly don’t know if it will be Ben and Andrei fighting in that show.”

Rothwell corrected his denial, “I was trying to clear up that I was not fighting [Arlovski] in September on another [organization] as the original rumor stated.  I tried to never say if I was/was not fighting [Arlvoski].”

Arlovski has remained mum on the issue.

Wiuff comes off his YAMMA tournament victory in which he won UDs over “Pato” Marcelo Donald Pereira (1-1), “Suave” Ricco Rodriguez (28-9), and Chris Tuchscherer (13-1) on the same night in April.

Wiuff is also scheduled for the biggest pay day of his career in Japan, fighting “Ironhead” Kazuyuki Fujita (15-6) at Sengoku III on 8 June.

“Diesel” Travis Wiuff (52-11) battled five rounds versus three heavyweights Friday night in Atlantic City to conquer YAMMA Pit Fighting’s first tournament.

In non-tournament action, forty-four-year old original Ultimate Fighter challenger Patrick Smith (15-13) submitted 417-pound “Butterbean” Eric Esch (10-6-1) with strikes.

And, “The Russian Bear” Oleg Taktarov (16-5-2) also won by submission over “The Titan” Mark Kerr (15-7).

The tournament featured one-round fight-offs into the semi-finals.

Wiuff drew Brazilian Marcel Pereira (0-1) and pummeled the jits player on the mat over five minutes for the unanimous decision.

The tourney had commenced with an Alexey Oleinik (7-4) front-choke submission of “The Tank” Sherman Pendergarst at 4:18.

Chris Tuscherer (13-1) had dominated Tony Sylvester (10-2) for a unanimous decision.

And, former UFC Heavyweight Champion “Suave” Ricco Rodriguez (28-9) had taken George Bush (5-1) down at will to score a UD.

The second round also featured one-round fight-offs pairing Oleinik versus Tuscherer and Wiuff versus Rodriguez.

Again, Tuscherer dominated his opponent in G’n'P fury for a unanimous decision; and, Wiuff similarly overwhelmed the veteran Rodriguez, also for a UD.

In the three-round tournament final, Tuscherer didn’t do more than frustrate the seemingly fresher Wiuff.  Wiuff closed out round one with a left-right combo that bloodied Tuscherer.  Rounds two and three were fought mostly on the mat, with Wiuff unloading ground’n'pound in spurts while Tuscherer was somewhat effective tying him up.

At the final bell, Wiuff took all three judges’ cards 30-27 twice and 29-28.

In the event’s “Masters Superfight” main event, Smith shredded Bean’s pillar-like legs with kicks that eventually fell the massive man.  Esch was helpless on his back as Smith beat him to verbal submission at 3:17 of round one.

After absorbing a massive right from Kerr in the other “Masters Superfight”, Taktarov swept into a side kneebar to tap “The Titan” at 1:50 of round one.

The night had popped-off at the end of a “Philly Badass” Lamont Lister (4-3) overhand right that dropped Russian Oleg Savitsky (1-2) in a tournament alternate bout.  “Badass” finished him on the mat for a 33-second TKO.

In the other tourney alternate bout, Bryan Vetell (4-3) won a one-round unanimous decision over Antwain Britt (3-1).

Today YAMMA Pit Fighting (YPF), a new mixed martial arts (MMA) organization created by Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) founder Bob Meyrowitz, announced that their first matchup will pit Russia vs. U.S.A, as “The Russian Bear” Oleg Taktarov and “The Predator” Don Frye will go toe-to-toe in the organization’s first live pay-per-view event.

The event will air live from the Trump Taj Mahal in Atlantic City on April 11, 2008.  Tickets for the event will go on sale March 8, and can be purchased through  Ticketmaster.

This first matchup will witness two MMA legends battle in a totally new and unique arena.  The veteran fighters will face off in one of the ‘Masters Superfights’, one-on-one matches that feature some of MMA’s most illustrious and legendary fighters. 

“Don Frye needs to do only two things: fly to Russia and stay there for ten years to study Sambo.  Then, maybe he’ll be ready,” said Oleg Taktarov about his upcoming face off with Frye.

In addition to the Superfights, the 11 April event will showcase the skill and endurance of eight fearsome competitors in a tournament match for the title of YAMMA Heavyweight Champion.  Tournament fighters include:

“Pato” Marcelo Pereira – a multiple world and Brazil BJJ champion known for his strong chin and very heavy hands with an MMA record of 5-0-0.

Sherman Pendergarst – a 6′1 230-pound former collegiate wrestler and state high school wrestling champion with a background in BJJ, boxing, and kickboxing with an MMA record of 10-8-0.

Rex Richards – a former lineman for the Indianapolis Colts and Machado BJJ brown belt.  Richards is a veteran of Strike Force and Art of War with a professional mixed martial arts record of 4-1-0.

Tony Sylvester – a boxing/wrestling expert who is considered to be one of the top up-and-coming heavyweights in the nation with a MMA record of 10-1-0.

“The Diesel” Travis Wiuff – a UFC, Pride and IFL veteran, and current IFO World Champion with an MMA record of 47-11-0.  He is known for his well-rounded fighting style with vicious elbows on the ground

The additional three tournament fighters will be announced in the coming weeks.