SEPTEMBER 1998
Mario Roberto has returned from the United States after taking part in the Hook n' Shoot "QUEST" show in Evansville, Indiana. Mario has fought UFC veteran Jeremy Horn in a 30 minute grappling match. Mario dominated the action, passing the guard 2 times, mounting, getting a back mount and sweeping Horn — a score of 16x0 in BJJ rules. Since there were no judges or points, the match was declared a draw. Here are some of Mario's thoughts on that match:
"Jeremy is a great fighter, it was a honor to be able to fight him. As for the fight itself, I think I lacked aggressiveness altogether. I was too worried about my fight with Mr. Fulton the day after, and didn't want to get too tired. It was a mistake to fight in two consecutive days, I shouldn't have done that. Anyway, I hope we can fight again so that I can do better."
The day after, Mario faced Travis Fulton, the world's most active NHB fighter, in a vale-tudo match. Mario attacked the whole fight, also knocking Fulton down with a thai kick to the head in the beginning of the match. After 30 minutes of a great fight, Mario was declared the winner and still has no losses in his MMA record.
"All I can say is that Travis Fulton is TOUGH. I don't know if I could take the kind of punishment he took. It was a very good fight, I think we both were trying our best to win. I was happy to be able to show some of my Muay Thai, scoring a good kick. But I know when I do not fight well, and I didn't that night. Well, everyone has its bad day, that was mine."
Mario has taken some time off hard training to catch up with Med School, but he said by the end of the year he's going to be in top shape.
"Although I liked the results I got in the US, I didn't like the way I fought those matches. It was a good experience though, I respect both Horn and Fulton a lot, and it was a pleasure to be able to test my skills against them. But I want to get better in all aspects, and I think I can. I'll train harder then ever, there's always lots of room for improvement."
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