A Piece of MMA History: Sportfighting’s "Bragging Rights"
Most know Brian Cimins as the man behind Grapplers Quest, the popular and long-running grappling tournament that has seen thousands upon thousands of would-be submission specialists hone their ground games on its mats throughout the years. But for those lucky enough to find themselves at the Marist High School gymnasium in Bayonne, New Jersey, on November 9th, 2002, Cimins was the promoter of Sportfighting’s “Bragging Rights” - an MMA event that saw the humble debuts of Dante Rivera and Deividas Taurosevicius, Muay Thai and jiu-jitsu ace Nakapan Phungephorn scrap with sambo specialist Vlad Koulikov, and Team Renzo rep Mark Colangelo armbar Jon Weidler in a quick and surprising upset. Back then these were our Northeast up-and-comers and stars, and with just two Reality Fighting events and one Ring of Combat in the books, and BAMA Fight Night’s schedule irregular at best, Sportfighting was the only other place one could see these fighters in action. Sadly, three years would pass before Cimins promoted another installment of his MMA brand, and he’s since focused exclusively on Grapplers Quest. Meanwhile, Rivera went on to TUF, Taurosevicius went on to the IFL, and many of the other names on the card have gone into either teaching or obscurity (and in September, 2005, event referee Joe Priole died of cancer). However, on that November night in 2002, Sportfighting was king.
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