VAN DO IS READY TO BRING THE PAIN
Thursday, May 29, 2008 - by Mick Hammond - MMAWeekly.com
As a sport, mixed martial arts continues to grow younger. No longer are athletes solely imported into the sport, but there are now individuals who specifically train for a career in MMA.
With the age of veteran fighters seemingly dropping well below the 30-year-old mark, there still remain some enigmas who come into the endeavor at an age perceived as being advanced for the sport and do well against their younger counterparts.
Case in point is Cung Le product Van Do.
After years as a competitive traditional martial artist and San Shou fighter, Do, in her late 30’s decided to give MMA a shot, and hasn’t looked back.
Just 43 seconds into her first MMA fight earlier this year, she managed to defeat her younger upstart opponent, surprisingly enough via submission, and now she’s back for more.
As part of the Lana Stefanac-lead Ladies of Pain team, Do and others will be representing America as they travel to Auckland, New Zealand to take on another all-female team lead by Tony Green at the Princesses of Pain show on Saturday, May 31.
“I absolutely love it,” exclaimed Do of her upcoming international trip. “It’s the third time I’ve traveled to a different country and represented the flag, and to actually go (to New Zealand) and represent the USA will be no exception.
“I know it’s going to be a great feeling to have the camaraderie with your fellow Americans and carrying the flag for women as well. Women still have a ways to go to prove themselves as legitimate fighters in MMA, so carrying that into this event and showing that we can do this in this sport, I think it says a lot too and I’m proud of it.”
Another source of pride for Do regarding the upcoming card is the fact that the event is centered around each woman’s talent, rather than other attributes.
“It’s not about T&A, every woman was chosen for their fights on this card by their own merits, their own capabilities,” stated Do. “Every bout is well matched and no one person is going to dominate.
“That’s what I like about it – it’s going to be a fight – so that’s good.”
Having spent years representing Cung Le, Do will be stepping into this fight under the leadership of Lana Stefanac, the reigning queen of the women’s heavyweight division, and female MMA advocate.
“She’s a very good role model for women fighters,” commented Do of Stefanac. “She totally believes in getting more women into the sport and promoting them for their merits as a fighter as opposed to anything else.
“She’s a wonderful technical instructor. I’ve have been privileged to have trained with her before and she is so technically capable on the ground that I’m amazed. I have great respect for her.”
At the coming event, Do will be taking on Mandy Stewart, a fighter that she’s familiarized herself with in great detail and feels more than ready to face off against.
“She’s known for being a very good ground fighter, and an aggressive grappler, so I’ve been doing a lot of ground training myself,” she admitted. “I train with pretty good people that have tapped me out 10,000 ways, so I don’t think there’s anything that she can do to me that I wouldn’t already expect and have something ready for her.
“I’m much more confident on the ground than I’ve ever been, and I’m always confident of my stand-up, so I feel very good going into this fight.”
Having spent many years in the striking side of combat sports, Do feels that should her adversary feel the need to test her on the feet; it would be at her own peril.
“What I tend to do is if the opponent wants to trade, I will trade, I will keep it standing until the opponent wants to take it down,” explained Do. “I am very comfortable (standing), and I will outscore my opponent.
“I will have to admit I haven’t knocked out anyone, but I have been training power a lot more. I know I’m fast and quick, but power is still the one thing I have left to prove. It’s not wrong to stand and trade with me, but just know you’re going to be out-scored.”
After her fight in New Zealand, Do already appears to have bright horizons ahead of her in yet another foreign country.
“I’ve got a couple years at least left of doing MMA,” stated Do. “I can see going to Japan much quicker than here, because of the competition out there.
“Here there is a lot of talent as well, but being my size in the 110-115 (pound) range, I will probably have to travel to get decent fights. I’ve heard from to the promoter of Smackgirl, he knows who I am.”
Smackgirl is a Japanese MMA promotion focused entirely on female fighters.
At 37 years of age, Van Do may have entered women’s MMA at a later stage in her life, but she’s making up for it fast and could very well be one to watch in the coming years, starting with the Princesses of Pain event Saturday, May 31 at the ABA Stadium in Auckland, New Zealand.
“I’d like to thank Toe2Toe, GFY Gear, KNOXX, and of course Cung Le’s gym Universal Strength Headquarters,” closed out Do. “Come out to the show, it’s a very good venue for the event and it’s going to be filmed and made into a TV show.
“You won’t be disappointed in seeing me fight, because I’m going to bring it all out for this one.”
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