Smith out, Jinnies in for PFC title tilt vs. Martinez
Posted on | October 18, 2007 | No Comments
Smith out, Jinnies in for PFC title tilt vs. Martinez
LEMOORE, Ca. — When Palace Fighting Championship World Lightweight champion Shad Smith was knocked out in early October, there were some very upset people.
And they weren’t just Smith fans.
“Obviously I was pissed when Shad Smith took the fight with Nam Phan knowing he was in violation of our agreement. At the end of the day a man’s word is all he has and now we know Shad Smith’s word and signature isn’t worth the paper it’s written on. I fault his inept management team for allowing this to happen. If I were Shad Smith I would seriously rethink my choice of management,” Tachi Palace Hotel and Casino Entertainment Director Christian Printup said.
San Bernardino’s Smith (9-8-2) was scheduled to defend his PFC title on Thursday at PFC 4’s “Project Complete” against Lemoore’s Poppies Martinez (11-3-1), but Smith was knocked out in an Extreme Fighters World Championships match against Westminster lightweight Nam Phan (13-4) in Anaheim on Oct. 6. The defeat came with a suspension from the California State Athletic Commission.
“This sucks. I trained hard for Shad, not that the training was a waste of time, but I wanted my revenge,” Martinez said.
“This is like a slap in the face. I guess he is trying to say that he can beat me again. His actions weren’t only disrespectful to me, but to the promoter and the fans. This is part of the sport, though. I really don’t know why he thought that Nam Phan would be a good fight for him. Nam is a great fighter. I’ve rolled with him before and he is tough.”
Martinez fell to Smith in March at PFC to submission in the PFC’s first title match.
Since Smith has lost a pair of fights and fought to a draw in another.
Stepping in on short notice is Stockton’s Brandon Jinnies (2-6), who is looking to break out of a 5-fight losing streak.
“When you’re looking at short notice situations a lot of factors come into play. We had a few options as replacements for Smith and we felt based on his overall amateur/pro record of 19-7 and the fact that he has proven to give a lot of tough fighters problems coupled with the fact that he and Poppies have shared unpleasantries in the past, that Brandon Jinnies would be a great replacement and provide the fans and Poppies with the type of fight that people pay to see,” Printup said.
Jinnies fought at PFC 3 in June, falling to Fresno standout Casey Olson (5-1) by decision.
“I really don’t know too much about Jinnies,” Martinez said. “I know he recently lost to Casey Olson and Shawn Bias. We are both coming off of losses and we are both hungry for a win. I’m coming to fight and I really don’t care who the hell it is.”
“Poppies is a good fighter that likes to put on a good show like me,” Jinnies added. “If I win then the PFC will have a real champ that will not back down from a fight.”
Martinez and Jinnies have built a bit of a rivalry through some internet message boards and disputes on myspace.com.
“He went on some forums and told some people that he wanted to fight me,” Martinez said. “I guess he, like some other guys in my career, is trying to make a name off of me. He called me out and now in a few days he has to walk the walk.”
Jinnies doesn’t think much of the war of words.
“It was just some myspace B.S. that was taken wrong,” Jinnies said. “He was talking just like I was.”
And now the pair can settle in the ring in a five, 3-minute round interim title fight.
“I think that Poppies and Jinnies match up well. Poppies was always known as a striker, now his wrestling is at the collegiate level, he’s a blue belt in jiu jitsu and he has hands of stone,” Printup said. “Brandon Jinnies is a resilient dude. He has no fear; he is dangerous, fearless and has a chip on his shoulder. He has fought all tough guys and given them problems. Plus he really dislikes Poppies and vice versa so I expect the fans to see a war.”
The winner will take on Smith in Jan.
“The fight between Martinez and Jinnies will be for the Interim Lightweight Title. Shad Smith will have to face the winner on January 17 or the Interim champion will be elevated to the full champion status,” Printup said.
There will be two other PFC Championship bouts contested on the 13-bout card. In one of the more highly anticipate fights ever at the Palace, Newport Beach’s Justin Levens (9-7) will take on Hanford’s Kenny Ento (8-2) for the vacant middleweight title and North Hollywood’s Lodune Sincaid (10-4) will take on Sacramento’s Jeromy Frietag (5-5) for the vacant light heavyweight crown.
Also on the card;
– Santa Rosa middleweight Nate Loughran (5-0) vs. San Bernardino’s Brian Warren (9-8).
-Ensenada, Mexico welterweight Olaf Alfonso (5-7) vs. Hesperia’s Thomas Denny (22-15).
-Hanford lightweight Jeremy Luchau (0-0) vs. Lemoore’s Michael Satumbaga (0-0).
-Fresno featherweight Jorge Evangelista (4-2-1) vs. Bakersfield’s Sergio Salcido (3-1).
-Hanford flyweight Luis Gonzalez (0-0) vs. Merced’s Josh Besneatte (0-1).
-Las Veagas light heavyweight Dewey Cooper (2-0) vs. Fresno’s Jimmy Dexter (1-3).
-Merced middleweight Phil Collins (4-3) vs. Visalia’s Marc De La Cruz (2-1).
-Parlier middleweight Mike Moreno (2-1) vs. Fresno’s William Harmon (0-0).
-Sacramento light heavyweight Mark Munoz (1-0) vs. Anthony Rubacalva (1-0).
-Lemoore middleweight Mike Martinez (1-1) vs. Visalia’s Rocky Molina (0-1).
Weighins are slated for Wednesday, Oct. 17th at 4 p.m. at The Den Sports bar located on the third floor of the Tachi Palace Hotel and Casino. Fight fans are encouraged to come see their favorite fighters.
Doors open for the fights on Thursday, Oct. 18th at 5:30 p.m. with the first fight slated for 6:30 p.m.
For more breaking PFC news log on to www.palacefightingchampionship.com.