|
RAFAL MOKS
Moks vs. Enomoto
© Marc Wickert June 2, 2011 Special thanks to Eric Nicholl
On Saturday June 4, former M-1 Middleweight Champion, Rafal Moks, will be facing Yasubey Enomoto in a special-attraction bout at the M-1 Ukraine European Battle being held in the National Circus Arena in Kiev.
This is expected to be a very tough showdown with both fighters sporting 6-3 MMA records and knowledge that the winner of their bout will be in the running for a title shot at Shamil Zavurov’s welterweight belt.
MMA fans will recall Rafal’s 17-second victory by heel hook over Magomed Sultanakhmedov for the M-1 Middleweight Title in December last year at M-1 Challenge 22. Now Moks wants M-1’s welterweight belt, and he sees Yasubey Enomoto as an obstacle to his title quest.
Poland’s Rafal Moks kindly gave his time to Knucklepit just days prior to the M-1 Ukraine European Battle. Rafal, how much notice did you get for your bout with Yasubey Enomoto? Although I had lots of time, it really doesn’t matter. I’m always ready for a fight – no matter when or who I fight, I try to stay prepared at all times. Do you intend remaining at welterweight, or will you keep your options open for returning to middleweight? I’ve been fighting at 170lbs for a while now and would like to stay there. It’s better suited for me.
Before signing with M-1 Global you were fighting once a year. Now you’re fighting every three to four months. What effect has that had on your game? Indeed. It’s great to stay active and M-1 has been keeping me busy now fighting three or four times a year. This has certainly raised the level of my skills and has motivated me to more training, becoming stronger and more powerful too.
You are known to have great cardio. Could that be a determining factor
against Yasubey? Do you still train with Berserkers fight team? I have trained, am currently training, and will always stay with Berserkers Team! Who are you training with for this fight? For boxing I trained with Karol Chabros from club SKORPION; wrestling with Adam Nowak; and MMA, BJJ and SF workouts under the guidance of my main coach, Piotr Baginski. My sparring partners include Michal Materla, Michal Fijalka, Maciej Jewtuszko and other guys from the Berserkers Team and TOP TEAM SZCZECIN. I would like to give them my special thanks for their help in my preparations. What other fighters have inspired you? I’m inspired by all renowned fighters, but I don’t want to change myself into somebody else. I like who I am and how I fight; I just want to continuously improve. What did you think of Yasubey’s title challenge against Zavurov? That was a really good fight! Great job by both guys! Before Shamil fought Yasubey, there seemed to be little known about the Swiss fighter’s skills. Now, a lot more has been revealed. Are you confident you can come up with anti-venom for his game plan? I think I have. All I have to do is put it into action in the ring. And everyone will see come fight night! A big part of Yasubey’s game was to fight Shamil from his back using a rubber guard. Do you have a counter plan for if Yasubey attempts the same strategy against you? I’m always ready to give 100% in every fight. So, yes, I’ve prepared a plan and you’ll see it during the fight. You both possess outstanding BJJ skills. Do you believe your BJJ submissions are more diverse? This is not really for me to decide; if the fight goes to the ground, it will show which of us turns out to have more all-round skills. You are obviously known to possess brutal heel-hook skills, but can an opponent’s guarding against them be a distraction from other submissions you may apply? This is a tricky question where I can’t give away too much of my game plan, but it does have to do with tactics of the setting up of submission attempts. I’m well versed and have a plan I need to execute. What are Yasubey’s strengths? From what I’ve seen, he has strong stand-up and good ground skills. He’s a very versatile fighter, dangerous from any position in the ring. What are your strengths? I feel great on the ground and I’m not afraid to fight standing up either. So that makes this a great fight! Your sponsors? I would like to thank my sponsors who assisted me in preparing for the fight: PIT BULL, OPTICUM and MILDEN. Rafal, is there anything you would like to add? I’ve had a tough time with getting sick before the last couple fights and doing everything I can to stay healthy; this way I can give a full 100% and put on a really good fight. Thanks to all my fans and to the fans of MMA! I hope you enjoy our fight on Saturday!
For more on Rafal Moks: www.m-1global.com.
|
