Competition in the cage

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Clifton Chakita raises a pretty decent argument for anybody that tries to tell him cage fighting is a barbaric and violent activity.

"What doesn't have violence, hockey?" said the 30-year-old Cree/Assiniboine Native. "Our national pastime is brutal. In hockey, if the ref is late breaking up a fight, a guy could get brain damage. They're hitting each other with bare knuckles to the head. At least (cage fighters) have gloves on."

Chakita is the chief instructor at Redman Combative Arts, a martial arts facility located in North Battleford, Sask., owned by his younger brother Kevin.

The elder Chakita is trying to drum up as much support as possible for the inaugural Redman Cage Fighting Championship he is organizing. The event will be held Sept. 16 at Saskatchewan's North Battleford Agriplex.

Cage fighting is exactly what it sounds like. Competitors are paired up against each other and they do battle in a cage. For the North Battleford tournament, entrants will be inside a squared cage about 18 feet long and six feet high.

Once the action begins, it's pretty much anything goes as both punches and kicks are allowed. Chakita said moves that are forbidden, however, include heel hooks and any small joint submissions, such as providing excruciating pain to ankles or wrists.

Participants wear six-ounce boxing gloves and must have a mouth guard and protective cup on. For Chakita's tournament, fighters will square off in a pair of five-minute rounds. They'll be trying to knock out their opponent or make him quit with a submission manoeuvre. The referee can also stop the bout if he believes a fighter is hurt or in danger.

"It's a sport like anything else," Chakita said. "This isn't violence. This is a sport because you have two people competing for a win."

If a bout does last the maximum 10 minutes, then the three ringside judges will determine the winner. Clifton Chakita said he will have a minimum of six bouts for the tournament. But he'd like to get double that.

"Twelve would be nice," he said. "I'm still e-mailing around trying to get fighters in."

Though his brother's facility has an emphasis on developing Native fighters, Chakita said his tournament is open to all. He expects a minimum of four Native competitors to be among those taking part.

Though the majority of fighters will be from Saskatchewan, Chakita said a handful of Alberta competitors are also expected.

Chakita's tournament is sanctioned by the Canadian Mixed Martial Arts Council.

Chakita himself has been involved in martial arts since he started in tae kwon do at age 14.

Over the years he's also been into judo, karate, boxing and Brazilian jiu jitsu. Since his last boxing match in November of 2004, Chakita has put on a considerable amount of weight onto his 6-foot-2 frame. He's gone from 235 pounds to his current lifetime high of 315 pounds. This in part explains why he himself has yet to have an official cage fight.

"It's tough to get a fight," he said. "Usually you try to match up guys that are within 15 pounds of one another." In Chakita's super heavyweight class, however, he said there aren't many fighters. Most don't weigh more than 240 pounds. If he finds a willing combatant, Chakita said he will compete in an exhibition event at his own tournament.