Arnel Loses First MMA Fight, Ready for Rugby

Craig Arnel, fighting out of Gracie Barra Chatham in the 155 lbs division at TXC Title Survivor, at the historic Emerald Theater in Mt. Clemens, Michigan, lost his first ever MMA bout on the weekend by decision.

Arnel, a star for the Kent Havoc Men’s Rugby team, was taking his first shot at mixed martial arts in the rugby offseason after training for only 10 weeks.

Facing Nick Recchia, a Team Shoot fighter with a 1-1 MMA record and previous kickboxing experience, Arnel was up against stiff competition, however he was proud of how his first MMA fight went,

“I think I did well,” said Arnel, “Obviously I was hoping for a better outcome, however I’m happy that I was able to go the distance.”

The first round of the fight went back and forth in dominance, with Arnel controlling the second round after he landed a few take downs and claimed a mount position. Round three went back and forth as well but Recchia seemed to have the edge. The fight went the distance and the judges decision went to Recchia.

Although he lost his first MMA fight, Arnel sees the benefits in participating in the sport to prepare him for the upcoming rugby season, and says he plans to fight again,

“I am thinking that I may do more fights next offseason but that will come after my wedding at the end of the year and I will be training for the full year instead of just two months for this next fight which is how long most fighters train for before deciding to do there first fight.”

“I think training at Gracie Barra will help me in many ways with rugby,” Arnel said, “I have learned how to control another person better which is something that you either have or do not in rugby, because there are not many people in the area that can teach more than the basics successfully. Simply I’m a competitor and I was looking for something new.”

MMA training is becoming more popular in Chatham-Kent, and internationally amongst athletes looking to gain an edge in the offseason, and with the success of local fighters such as Chad Laprise, Jesse Gross, and most notably Chris Clements who was recently named to the UFC, there is no shortage of role models for local fighters such as Arnel to use as motivation.

“I’ve always been interested in martial arts and competitive fighting,” said Arnel about what inspired him to fight, “Then when I first saw the UFC shortly after it came out, I knew I wanted to try it and it felt like the right time.”