MIXED MARTIAL ARTS
DENNIS ODA / DODA@STARBULLETIN.COM
Frank "twinkle toes" Trigg is trying to bounce back from what he calls "the worst possible year" with a win tomorrow.
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'twinkle toes' Trigg anticipates tough home crowd
Frank Trigg sees fighting in Hawaii as a tremendous honor, but also knows he's walking directly into enemy territory.
That's because he drew Hawaii's own Ronald Jhun in the first round of the Rumble on the Rock welterweight tournament that begins tomorrow night as part of the ROTR 8 mixed martial-arts show at Blaisdell Arena. Hilo's Wesley "Cabbage" Correira will fight Eric "Butterbean" Esch in the card's main event, but it's the tournament that has everyone talking.
RUMBLE ON THE ROCK 8
When: Tomorrow, 7:30 p.m. Doors open 6:30 p.m.
Where: Blaisdell Arena
Tickets: $35-$300 www.ticketmaster.com
FIGHT CARD
Opening fights
» Kengro Ura (3-3) vs. Mike Malone (1-4)
» Josh Donahue (5-2) vs. Ross "Da Boss" Ebanez (9-3)
» Vilatonu Vonokalaifia (4-0) vs. Scott Junk (0-2)
Tournament fights
» Yushin Okami (13-2) vs. Anderson Silva (13-3)
» Jake Shields (9-4) vs. Dave Menne (38-12)
» Carlos Condit (13-2) vs. "Charuto" Renato Verissimo (5-2)
» Frank "twinkle toes" Trigg (12-4) vs. Ronald "Machine Gun" Jhun (23-15-2)
Super fight
» Wesley "Cabbage" Correira (16-8) vs. Eric "Butterbean" Esch (71-7)
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"To get a tournament of this quality caliber fighters put together in a place like Hawaii is logistically insane," Trigg said. "But it's definitely a top-10 tournament."
Tomorrow night's four opening-round matches include three of the top six welterweight fighters in the world. Brazil's Anderson Silva, ranked fourth, will fight Japan's Yushin Okami, while "Charuto" Renato Verissimo, ranked sixth, will fight Carlos Condit. Jake Shields and Dave Menne round out the field of eight. The winners will advance to the semifinals and finals on the same night in May that will crown the ROTR welterweight champion.
"I've never been excited like this in a long time," Jhun said. "I really needed something to motivate me to fight and this is it. The competition is great."
Both Jhun and Trigg are coming off down years. Trigg lost both of his fights in 2005, albeit to the top two fighters at 175 pounds, while Jhun won just one of three fights.
"Not only career, but financially and personal-relationship-wise, I had the worst possible year in '05," Trigg said. "You either gotta deal with it and get over it or hang on to it and have it destroy the rest of your life, and I just made the choice to get over it."
While Trigg is considered the heavy favorite against Jhun, the man they call "twinkle toes" knows fighting in Hawaii against a local fighter is going to make for a tough environment.
"I'm literally the Christian being thrown into the lion's den -- that's really what's going on," Trigg said. "To fight this guy in his hometown, in his cage, in his ring, with 90 percent of fans cheering against you, you can't put any more pressure on a guy."
Not only is Jhun one of just two locals in the event, he's also one of the more experienced, holding a 23-15-2 record, and has competed at the highest level. He's also had to balance life as a full-time construction worker and father to five kids, but has used his training time both to prepare for the tournament and to spend time with his family.
"It's a family affair when I train," Jhun said. "My wife comes with me and my kids come with me and it lets me know I'm well-supported."
Jhun said he has gone back to the basics while training for the fight, and knows he's going to have fight a nearly flawless fight if he is to defeat Trigg.
"He's world-class wrestler that has all the skills," Jhun said. "I have a lot of respect for him and its an honor to fight him."
The respect between the two is mutual.
"This isn't some tomato can that you can beat the crap out of," Trigg said. "He's a true Hawaiian brawler that if I let dictate how the fight goes, is going to hurt me bad."