Third Stripe Earned - One Step Closer to Purple Belt!

So it's been quite a while since my last rank advancement. I was beginning to think my coach had forgotten about me. ;-) J/K It's been a challenging but fun season thus far with the Pan Ams and World's in the bag. Our team is excited as ever to continue competing in tournaments across CA and beyond.

Last night I got to roll with King of The Cage Super Heavy Weight World Champion Neil "Chaos" Cooke once again. It's always a pleasure to be tossed around by Neil. He's a tough competitor but he's always helpful to everyone on Team C-Quence, even us geezers. Thanks for the roll Neil!

After class, our instructor John Kvenbo Munoz reviewed the team's performance at Worlds and handed out a few rank advancements, well more than a few. One of the lucky students to get a fresh new stripe was yours truly. Yippeee... I'm a Three Stripe Blue Belt!

I've been pretty excited to take this next step closer to my purple belt. As most competitors know Blue Belt can be a sketchy time in your advancement. It's a time where bad habits stand out like "North Star Zits" in your game and it's a time to refine and solidify trusted go to techniques in your winning strategy, all the while trying to learn as much new technique as you can.

As in every martial art BJJ students must face long up-hill climbs in the learning process, long flat plateaus where nothing feels right and enormous leaps forward in sudden explosive advances in skill. I think my Blue Belt experience has been all of this and more for me. It's been a great time for me to focus my game, learn where my bad habits are and reinforce new knowledge and old to become a better more skilled competitor. But man do I have sooooooo long to go. :-)

So it's back to the mat in preparation for the many tournaments that still lay ahead. I'm excited for the rest of the season and am looking forward to some good learning experiences along the way.

Thanks to everyone who has been helping me to become a better Brazilian Jiu Jitsu practitioner and competitor.

Happy Training,

Kenneth Knapp
Blue Belt, III Stripes
C-Quence Jiu Jitsu
Chief Instructor John Kvenbo Munoz
Norco, CA

Repost from BJJTraining.com - Neil “Chaos” Cooke wins the King of the Cage super heavyweight title

I know this is a late post but I wanted to include it in my blog. Neil is a personal friend and great guy, my wife also does his hair from time to time in preparation for his fights. Everyone who trains with Neil or knows him is thrilled with his accomplishments in MMA and the fact he is truly a great ambassador to the sport. (Watch for his upcoming interview in MMA Magazine July 2009).

Pinnacle fighter Neil “Chaos” Cooke wins the King of the Cage super heavyweight title

On February 26, 2009, at the San Manual Bingo and Casino in San Bernardino, California, King of the Cage held its Immortal Mixed Martial Arts event. Our very own Pinnacle fighter Neil Cooke was getting his first opportunity to capture a title championship. His opponent was a tough MMA veteran named the “King of the Streets” Chance Williams.

The actual fight did not last long, but provided much excitement to the sold-out crowd. When the bell rang, both fighters Neil and Chance met in the middle of the cage and exchanged a quick 1-2 punch before clinching up. Chance weighing in at over 315 lbs by fight time had little trouble picking up the 268-lb Neil Cooke and driving him to the ground.

Neil quickly scrambled to his feet and both fighters gamely went through several combinations before Chance was able to achieve the clinch and take Neil to the ground for a second time. However, Neil showed no signs of quitting and again got up to his feet. Once on his fee,t a battle ensued with both fighters trying to get dominate clinch position.

Neil fended off several takedown attempts and after a scramble, Neil got a dominate top position on Chance. Neil wasted no time in delivering some devastating ground-n-pound punches which forced Chance to assume a turtle position to protect himself. Neil seized the opportunity to rotate to the side maintaining good hip control and pinning Chance to the ground along the cage. Neil began to deliver some heavy punches to the side of Chance’s face and after a barrage of un-answered punches it appeared that Chance was no longer able to protect himself and the referee stepped in and called a stop to the fight 3 minutes into the match.

Neil “Chaos” Cooke is now the King Of the Cage Super Heavyweight Champion—a well-deserved victory for a well-trained MMA fighter. Neil Cooke appears to have a bright future in MMA and we all look forward to his continued rise into the elite class of heavyweights.