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MMA history made in Fort Smith

James McCarthy
Northern News Services
Published Saturday, June 20, 2009

THEBACHA/FORT SMITH - Fort Smith will live forever in mixed-martial arts history in the NWT.

The town held the first-ever sanctioned mixed-martial arts event in the territory on June 12 at the Centennial Arena.

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Yellowknife's Chavez Marin, left, has his hand raised in victory against Hay River's Steven Lafleur in the ring after their match at the mixed martial arts event in Fort Smith on June 12. - photo courtesy of Dean Cox

Cageside Jiujitsu was the host club for the event, which featured mostly fighters 18-years of age and under. The head instructor for Cageside, Dean Cox, said the rules were modified a bit in order to keep it safe.

"We operated under amateur rules, which meant no elbows," he said. "The youth also had the option of wearing helmets and shin guards for protection."

The event had a turnout of over 350 people, but 420 tickets were sold. Cox said he had an idea as to why some people stayed away.

"I think the hockey game (game seven of the Stanley Cup Final) had something to do with it," he said. "Even still, those people bought tickets and supported us."

The event was a fundraiser for the club. Cox said the idea for the event came after bouncing around ideas on how to raise money.

"A couple of kids here at the club suggested it and they asked me to take care of it," he said. "We were only going to have kids from Fort Smith, but it snowballed into a bigger event. We ended up having kids from Hay River and we had Team Valhalla from Yellowknife come down as well."

The fight of the evening, according to Cox, involved a pair of visitors. Yellowknife's Chavez Marin and Hay River's Steven Lafleur fought in the 135-lb class. Lafleur said it was a great fight, even if things didn't go his way.

"It felt good," he said. "I couldn't defend his takedowns and I just couldn't beat him. I just wanted to see how I could do."

Around $1,800 dollars was raised from the evening. Cox said about half of the money will go to a community cause.

"We decided to give $900 to the Fort Smith Animal Shelter," he said. "They were really good in helping us out by selling tickets and we wanted to give back to them as a way of saying thanks for their help."

The plan is to have another card in September at the arena. Cox said it's proof the sport is becoming mainstream in the territory.

"It's a lot safer than other sports," he said. "We have rules to protect the fighter, the referee does a great job in protecting the fighters and all we need is more support from everyone. We have less injuries than sports like hockey, football and even golf."

If the September event goes ahead, Lafleur said he'll be there.

"I just love to fight," he said. "I would definitely go back."