This is a story we did on our friend Ruben Perez several months ago. Over the past eight months I have gotten to know Ruben Perez (6-0) and his family fairly well. I have had the chance to meet and talk to some great fighters over the past few years but I can’t say that I have ever meet a better person than Ruben. I continue to call him the ‘New Captain America’ in MMA. He is a man that makes me want to be a better husband, father, and person. Sergeant Ruben Perez train’s Army soldiers in hand to hand combat at Fort Campbell, and has had two deployments in his military career. That being said, he won’t be nervous when he makes the trip to Las Vegas to fight the Tuff-N-Uff Bantamweight Champion Carlos Garcia (4-1) at a catch weight of 130 pounds on October 17th. Ruben said, “Traveling to fight is nothing new to me. I have competed in Indiana, Ohio, Kentucky, Texas, and South Korea.” Ruben said, “In the Army we teach our young troops. We fight where we are told, and we win where we fight.” Ruben is the former Flyweight Hook-N-Shoot Champion, a championship he never lost but instead relinquished to move up in weight class because of lack of competition. When I asked Ruben why he chose to relinquish his belt and title, he answered by saying, “I just don’t want to cut all that weight for free anymore.” Ruben has packed on even more muscle than before and walks around at 150 pounds. Now, when Ruben goes to meet Carlos, it will be fight between the Flyweight Champion from one promotion facing off with the Bantamweight Champion of another promotion. In my opinion, this fight is a “super fight.” Tuff-N-Uff and Hook-N-Shoot are two of the top amateur promotions in the United States, if not the world. The Hook-N-Shoot in Evansville Indiana, is ran by Jeff Osborne and has had legendary fighters such as Frank Shamrock and Frank Mir fight there in the past. Jeff and The Hook-N-Shoot are proud to have been where women, such as Miesha Tate, and Kaitlyn Young came to make their name in mixed martial arts before the UFC or any other organization featured women at all on any show. Tuff-N-Uff has become the proving grounds for amateur fighters to see if they have what it takes to go pro. Cody Huggins, the Hook-N-Shoot matchmaker said “I am excited anytime Ruben is fighting. For him to be competing for another great organization known for sending guys up to the big show just makes it that much more exciting. I am proud to say that Ruben was an undisputed Hook-N-Shoot Champion and I believe he will do great. He is one of the hardest working amateurs that I know. I have no doubt in my mind that he will come out victorious. I mean when he was competing for Hook-N-Shoot, I could not find a guy to even make him break a sweat, and trust me I tried to find someone to beat him. He is just an all-around stud and a great kid that you just want to see succeed” when I asked him what he thought of Ruben fighting for Tuff-N-Uff. Carlos Garcia is a well-rounded fighter who trains at Xtreme Couture which is one of the top gyms in the country founded by the UFC Hall of Famer Randy Couture. When I asked Ruben what he thought may be his biggest problem in this fight, he said “I would say his durability and his range in his boxing. He has really good range and is tough to put away, he comes to fight.” Ruben has a 6-0 record and has won all six of his fights via first round submission. I have also seen Ruben box a guy that had at least a six inch height and reach advantage and wore head gear while Ruben did not wear any. Watching Ruben box reminded me a lot of watching Mike Tyson. He has a chin made of stone, great head movement, can close distance quickly, and can counter with both power and accuracy. This should be Ruben’s toughest test to date, so it will be interesting to see him take this step up in competition. I have taken the time to watch all of Carlos Garcia’s fights that I could find on the internet. I will say he is a very solid fighter, but I just haven’t seen anything that shows me he can beat Ruben. I say this as a journalist not as a friend of Ruben. It has been hard for me to write this story because I consider Ruben a role model but more importantly I consider him a friend. He has taught me a lot through the way he carries himself both inside and outside of the cage. I took several days to think about if I could write this and be impartial, after a long talk with my wife (who is much smarter then I), and I feel I have done that. I want to remind you that everything I know of Garcia is what I have watched and read on the Internet. I do not know the young man personally, but I have a great deal of respect for what he has accomplished in the sport, and I am sure he will continue to get better and grow in the sport. Make sure you watch or at least keep an eye out for the results of what is sure to be a great fight. You can follow me on Twitter at @Zheim82 and I will be tweeting throughout the fight. Make sure to also visit Ruben’s sponsors, Intimidation Clothing, D7 Nutrition, and Triumph United, to check out all of the great gear they have, and make sure you use the discount code TuffPerez at Triumph United. You can also follow Ruben’s career on his FaceBook page Ruben Perez MMA. (UPDATE) Ruben lost a three round decision to Carlos Garcia at the Tuff-N-Uff event. That being said he is still on of the top amateur in the country.
Posted on: Sat, 24 Jan 2015 18:44:13 +0000