PXC back with a bang

Pacific X-treme Combat (PXC) promoter and general manager E. J. Calvo of Guam guarantees a night of fireworks when he unravels an eight-fight mixed martial arts card at the Ynares Sports Center in Pasig tomorrow with no less than Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) lightheavyweight contender Brandon (The Truth) Vera watching the action at ringside.

It’s not the first PXC show to rock Manila. The inaugural event was held at the Resorts World last June and the second two months later. Now, PXC returns to end the year with a resounding bang. 

Matchmaker Eli Monge, a Bostonian of Puerto Rican descent, says the main event will be a war between lightweights Tristan Arenal and Jon Tuck, a pair of knockout artists. Tuck’s reputation hit the roof when he knocked out Filipino Eduard Folayang in eight seconds in a Saipan match two years ago. Folayang is considered the country’s No. 1 pound-for-pound martial arts fighter and recently captured a gold medal in the 70-kilogram class of sanshou in wushu at the Southeast Asian Games in Indonesia. Arenal was just as devastating in wiping out South Korea’s Hwang Gyo Pyung in 1:42 at the second PXC event here last August.

While Tuck is feared for his ground approach, Arenal is a lethal striker. Monge, however, says they’re both versatile and capable of mixing up their tactics. They’ll do whatever it takes to win, he adds, as a victory could mean a step closer to a call-up in the UFC. 

Calvo says PXC is now the strongest mixed martial arts organization in the Asia-Pacific region and hopes to use it as a springboard for top Filipino fighters to move to first-tier competition. Vera’s endorsement of the Guam-based PXC is a huge boost to its credibility as a top-level act.

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PXC’s growth has been phenomenal and with AKTV as its media partner, the sky’s the limit in terms of generating a nationwide audience. It’s often claimed that mixed martial arts is the world’s fastest-growing sport today and if that’s true, PXC could be riding on the same momentum. AKTV sports manager Vitto Lazatin says the addition of PXC to the network’s menu is in line with its commitment to showcase only the best in sports.

Originally, PXC was established as a vehicle for the Calvo family to promote its liquor brands in Guam. But slowly, PXC exceeded all expectations and began to live a life of its own. So far, PXC has staged 27 shows and Calvo couldn’t be happier with the fans’ reception. His dream is to discover the first homegrown Filipino mixed martial arts fighter to go all the way to the UFC.

PXC was established in 2003 and has links with gyms all over the world, including sweat facilities in Florida, California, Nevada, Hawaii and Japan. Among the notable fighters who have seen action in PXC events are Dan Severn, Jeremy Horn, Kultar Gill and Rafael Dias.

“PXC has established itself as a leading martial arts company and we are poised for continued expansion and growth in the Philippines,” says Calvo. “We want PXC to be the driving force behind raising the bar for mixed martial arts in the Philippines and Asia. PXC is the only event in the Philippines that has actually had fighters come through our ranks to the UFC. It is extremely important that PXC not only recruits mixed martial arts talent, we need to develop the sport as well in the Philippines. This is what makes the level of competition higher than other shows in the region.”

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Both Arenal and Tuck will fight at a weight limit of 155 pounds.  Monge says the winner will likely move on to face former world champion Harris Sarmiento who flew in from Honolulu to witness the proceedings here. “They’ve knocked out opponents with the same punch, the overhand right – imagine two overhand rights coming together like two trains in a head-on collision,” he says. “This is going to be a heckuva fight.”

Vera brought along his Filipino father Ernesto for the visit to Manila. “He’s really excited to be back home after not coming over for about eight years,” says Vera. “Since we got in (early Wednesday), all he’s been doing is reconnecting with family and friends. My wife (Kerry) stayed home in San Diego this time.”

Vera’s father migrated to the US when he was 21. Vera’s biological mother Paula is an American-Italian. His stepmother Amelia is Filipina. Vera was raised in a typical Filipino home in Norfolk, Virginia, where he was born. He made his UFC debut in 2002 and won his first eight matches. Last October, Vera beat Eliot Marshall by a unanimous decision but broke his arm in the process. One of Vera’s most memorable bouts was against UFC legend Randy Couture in 2009. Couture won via a highly disputed decision.