AINA COMMENTS ON CONTROVERSIAL STOPPAGE

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MMAWeekly.com caught up with Mike Aina on Thursday afternoon to get his thoughts on the controversial stoppage of his fight with Billy Evangelista at Strikeforce Challenger Series last Friday. Aina spoke from Hawaii, where he’s back at his job on the summit of Mauna Kea as a welder/fabricator for the W.M. Keck Observatory.

Aina says he went to the emergency room following the bout and was released at 2 a.m. the next day, after which he and his wife drove to San Francisco to fly back to Hawaii.

MMAWeekly: Can you explain your side of the story in terms of what happened with the fight and its aftermath?

Aina: I really don’t remember much of what happened. I kind of blacked out for a little bit. When I got up—I remember I was lying on the mat—I had a shooting pain going up into my ear through my jaw. It was really painful. I was lost in the moment, so I’m not really sure what went down. I didn’t even see the video on it yet. I just feel bad for him and for me. It’s not the way we wanted it to end. It’s just disappointing.

MMAWeekly: Has a doctor checked your jaw since the fight and if so what’s the prognosis?

Aina: I just went to the ER after the fight. The doctor said (my jaw) probably popped out. I did an MRI, so nothing’s cracked, nothing’s fractured, which is good news. But it’s just dealing with pain right now, taking painkillers and trying to get through. I should be okay though.

MMAWeekly: The picture of the fight’s end shows the knee going under your armpit. Do you remember anything about the fight’s ending?

Aina: I was getting up. I knew I was going to have to take some shots in order to get back to my feet, which I didn’t mind. And as soon as I get my hips out, then he backed off, and I was like, the smart thing to do right now is to leave my knee on the mat and my hand on the mat and wait till he punches again. As soon he punches, eat that shot, get back on the feet, and then we can get the game back to stand-up. I remember he was clinching my head and started to load up on the knee and obviously, in the pictures, I tried to duck my head. But I really got rocked; I really don’t remember much of what happened after that. The next thing I remember was I was lying on the mat, that weird shooting pain going up into my ear.

MMAWeekly: Have you talked to Strikeforce about the incident?

Aina: No one’s actually contacted me. It would be nice, but I’m not sure they have any issue or concern with how I’m doing. Obviously, we both want a rematch. It was a good fight going into that second round. I’d like to do it again. I’m sure he feels unfulfilled as well, and so do I, but I’m not sure where we stand right now.

MMAWeekly: Do you feel referee Herb Dean made the right call?

Aina: I’ve gotta watch the video. I haven’t even gotten a chance to watch the video. But there’s nothing we can do about it now. I’m just really, really disappointed about the whole thing.

MMAWeekly: When do you anticipate going back to the gym?

Aina: I want to go back soon. I can’t really do too much right now, but obviously I want to stay in shape, get some cardio in, and once I feel better, I’m hoping they’ll set up a rematch.

MMAweekly

Mike Aina vs Billy Evangelista to headline Strikeforce

Former Elite XC lightweight and Hawaii native Mike Aina (11-6-1) will take on undefeated five-fight Strikeforce veteran Billy Evangelista at SHO MMA: “Strikeforce Challenger Series I” from the Save Mart Center in Fresno, Calif., on May 15, according to the Star-Bulletin.

Strikeforce will debut its brand new “Challenger Series” on the premium cable network Showtime, which are designed to give up-and-coming, less heralded Strikeforce fighters an opportunity to do their thing in front of a large television audience. It’s essentially similar to what Elite XC used to do with its SHO XC Challenger Series.

Here’s a snip from company founder and CEO, Scott Coker, on SHO MMA:

“This is where the men — and women — will be separated from the boys, so to speak. The growth and future of our sport just got a turbo injection. For regional fighters and up-and-coming men and women looking to test themselves against other top prospects and get on the fast track to stardom, SHO MMA: Strikeforce Challengers is the place to do it. I can’t wait for this first event.”

Aina is probably best known for having taken Nick Diaz the distance and dropping a razor close split decision in his Elite XC debut at “Uprising” in September of 2007. He competed only one more time for the promotion since then before it went under last year, defeating Kaleo Kwan by unanimous decision at “Return of the King” in June.

The Hilo resident is an 11-fight veteran of the Hawaiian-based Rumble on the Rock promotion where he made a name for himself amongst the “Aloha State” faithful. The BJ Penn-trainee has fought some pretty tough guys to this point in his career, including Roger Huerta (loss), Ryan Schultz (loss), Albert Rios (win), Diaz (loss) and others.

His last fight was a first round submission win over Ismael Gonzalves at Rumble on the Rock: “Beatdown 8″ last August.

Evangelista is one of Strikeforce’s top young prospects in the lightweight division. He brings a solid wrestling and jiu-jitsu base to the cage with him, but the Team Buhawe product can also strike with his opponents.

In fact, he’s defeated four of his nine victims by (technical) knockout. His hit list includes “The Ultimate Fighter” alum Marlon Sims (knockout), UFC veteran Luke Caudillo (decision), Nam Phan (decision), Ryan Healey (technical knockout) and others.

His most recent action came in January at Palace Fighting Championships 12, where he out pointed Harris Sarmiento on the judge’s scorecards for a unanimous decision win.

Kim “Sugar Free” Couture, wife of former UFC heavyweight and light heavyweight champion Randy Couture, has also been rumored for this card. Tickets go on sale starting next Monday (April 13).

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