UGB announces Blaze FC as new platform in MMA development

From the grassroots to the professional stage, expect Under Ground Battle to take part in the name of progress and cultivation of mixed martial arts (MMA).

This is the oath that UGB Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Ferdinand Munsayac will not back down. At the same time, he said that the UGB will stay to protect the sports and the Pinoy fighters in both the local and international arena.

“From a simple practitioner, MMA has become my passion and in the past 11 years since we formed the company, we will not stop as long as there are fighters who love sports and aspire to be champions,” Munsayac told the Tabloids Organization in Philippine Sports, Inc. (TOPS) ‘Usapang Sports’ on Thursday at the VIP Room of the Rizal Memorial Coliseum.

“Almost 100 fighters, most of them now fighting in bigger MMA events abroad, came from UGB, I won’t say their names but we helped them change their lives and careers,” said Munsayac in the program sponsored by the Philippine Sports Commission (PSC), Behrouz Persian Cuisine and Pocari Sweat.

He was accompanied by UGB MMA Corporation Chief Operating Officer Perla Mae Tagacay and Nelito ‘Tito Nel’ Talavera, the CEO of UGB’s newest branch at the grassroots level – the Blaze Fighting Championship.

According to Munsayac, Blaze FC will serve as a talent pool that will source new talents that will compete in the UGB pro event Predator at Juego – a battle that uses the traditional arnis stick – in the future.

“We’re looking April to launch the Blaze FC, it’s unique because it’s centered on the disciplines that are used in MMA but already forgotten by the current generation. We are not only covering students and young people here, but also the group of security guards and local government units, let’s involve them here,’ said Talavera.

According to him, Blaze FC’s goal is to teach many Filipinos to be skilled in self-defense so that it can be used not only as a profession but in everyday life.

“That’s why we will conduct training and seminars before starting the tournaments at Blaze FC. We want to help our barangay watchmen and security guards. It will increase their chances of getting better in life, “he added.

Munsayanc insisted that all UGB tournaments are sanctioned by the Games and Amusement Board (GAB) making sure that everything is fair and that the fighters will receive the corresponding prizes.

‘What is in the GAB book, that is what we will follow,” he said.