Hilite

[WCW Mark]

This is the first time I have played WMMA 2 although I clocked up plenty of time on the first game. I always enjoyed playing as my own company more on WMMA 1 rather than one of the big boys and thought I would do the same here so I changed HILITE in the editor to open at the start of the game and decided to see if I could take them from minnows to a company that can compete with and then pass GAMMA and ALPHA-1.

 

I thought I would keep a diary and share my experiences with everyone.

 

January 1999.

 

Lance Decker is revealed as the new owner of HILITE and appoints Scott Avatar (that me) to run the booking. The first order of the day is obviously to look to recruit some fighters and set up the HILITES first event, a tournament for the Heavyweight Title.

 

After scouting the database 8 fighters are signed, these are;

 

Stan Blackheath - 20-9 - An experienced fighter with mid regional popularity. Blackheath is one of the name fighters I'll be using to attract the fans to my first show. Signed for his good standup and green belt in the fight of the night stat.

 

Harvey Loeb - 6-3 - With a winning record and reasonable popularity Loeb has been signed to face Blackheath in the first round. Mainly signed as he should provide a decent fight without unduly threatening one of my big guns.

 

Damien Jones - 2-0 - Although a relative newcomer to the sport Jones has good punching power, a granite chin and he is exciting to watch. I have high hopes for him.

 

Gareth Grundy - 6-3 - Grundy has been signed to face Jones in the first round, he has a good chin but no stand up game at all. I expect him to lose to Jones but given his decent record I wouldn't be too disapointed if he progressed to the next round.

 

Wilson Franklyn - 2-0 - Another relative newcomer, exciting and with a good stand up game Franklyn is also a threat on the ground with his heavy punches. Again I have high hopes for him.

 

Brady Crawford - 6-5 - Signed to fight Franklyn in the first round. His relatively weak chin should allow Franklyn to beat him but he still provides a credible opponent. He has an ok wrestling game which could prove a threat as Franklyn has little in the way of takedown defence.

 

Vincent Chapin - 21-14 - My other big name signing Chapin is a mid regional in popularity and is an exciting fighter with a good chin. He has ok wrestling ability which may prove a threat against several members of my roster who have poor takedown defence. I hope he will progress past he first round at least.

 

Juozas Skerla - 3-0 - European import Skerla is another relative newcomer, he is exciting to watch but is a fairly poor fighter. He will face Chapin in the first round and I expect him to lose. The contrasts in styles wil hopefully make for an exciting fight.

 

The first event, HILITE 1 - Genesis is scheduled for the 4th Friday in January. Who will be crowned the HILITE Heavyweight Champion?

[WCW Mark]

HILITE 1: Genesis

 

This tournament wil decide the first ever HILITE Heavyweight Champion. The matches will be 3 rounds of 3 minutes each with the final being 5 3 minute rounds.

 

Round 1:

 

Harvey Loeb (6-3) v Stan Blackheath (20-9)

 

My prediction: Blackheath

 

The first two rounds consist of Loeb trying to take down Blackheath, however Blackheath uses his experience and boxing skills to keep Loeb at a distance. In the final round Loeb manages to get in close and get Blackheath up against the cage. However he can't take advantage and the fight goes to the judges score cards. Blackheath takes the fight 29-28 on all 3 cards in a comfortable victory.

 

Winner: Blackheath. Rating: Good

 

 

Damien Jones (2-0) v Gareth Grundy (6-3)

 

My prediction: Jones

 

Jones controls the first round with his boxing skills, he uses his jab to keep Grundy at a distance. The first half of the second round follows a similar pattern until Grundy gets Jones up againt the cage. He attempts several takedowns but eventually the round ends. The final round again starts with Jones landing several flurries of punches. Grundy takes him down but can't pass guard. This seemed a close fight but the judges score it 29-28, 30-27, 30-27 in favour of Jones.

 

Winner: Jones. Rating: Average

 

 

Wilson Franklyn (2-0) v Brady Crawford (6-5)

 

My prediction: Franklyn

 

Franklyn comes out swinging and lands several solid shots before taking Crawford down. He can't pass guard however and the round ends. 2nd round sees Franklyn land some more shots before knocking Crawford down with a hard jab. He quickly mounts and starts unloading forcing the ref to pull him away.

 

Winner: Franklyn. Rating: Great

 

 

Vincent Chapin (21-14) v Juozas Skerla (3-0)

 

My prediction: Chapin

 

The first two rounds pass quickly with Skerla out boxing Chapin. He doesn't do any real damage but he certainly controls the fight. In the 3rd round Chapin finally gets a takedown and smothers Skerla. Chapin controls the rest of the round from this position without ever really looking like he is putting Skerla in danger. The judges score the fight 29-28, 28-29, 29-28 to Chapin. I'm a little suprised at the result. The judges clearly seem reluctant to knock out one of the tournaments big names, perhaps some pressure was put on by HILITE management.

 

Winner: Chapin. Rating: Good

[WCW Mark]

Round 2:

 

Stan Blackheath (21-9) v Damien Jones (3-0)

 

My prediction: Blackheath

 

Round 1 starts with a couple of crisp exchanges between the fighters, suddenly Jones hits a hard shot knocking over Blackheath. Jones mounts Blackheath and starts swinging, however Blackheath covers up and the clock eventually expires. Round 2 follows the same pattern, Jones is definitely in control here and Blackheath can't afford to let this go to the score cards. Blackheath comes out aggressively in round 3 but gets knocked over for the 3rd time this fight. Again Jones gets the mount and starts throwing fists. This time they connect and the ref is forced to stop the fight.

 

Winner: Jones. Rating: Great

 

Chapin (22-14) v Franklyn (3-0)

 

My prediction: Franklyn

 

Chapin comes out looking for the takedown, he gets one almost straight away and passes guard with ease, Franklyn could be in trouble here. Chapin attempts the choke but Franklyn powers out and regains his feet. They circle each other and Chapin shoots for another takedown. He is succesful but the clock expires before he get take advantage. Round 2 starts with Franklyn throwing some jabs to try and keep Chapin away from him, however Chapin ducks under and takes him down. Chapin looks tired however and settles for smothering Franklyn until the round ends. Franklyn starts Round 3 very aggresively, he knows he is behind on the score cards. He lands a hard punch which knocks Chapin down. Franklyn mounts and starts unloading. All Chapin can do is cover up and try to ride this out. Several hard shots get through but the round ends before significant damage can be done. The judges have it 29-28 to Chapin. The wiley veteran is through to the final.

 

Winner Chapin. Rating: Good

[WCW Mark]

The Final

 

So the final match of the night and the one which decides the first HILITE Heavyweight Champion is Damien Jones (4-0) vs Vincent Chapin (23-14). A real contrast in both experience and styles. Jones has looked impressive comfortably beating Grundy on points before beating Blackheath with his ground and pound. Chapin meanwhile was lucky to beat Skerla on points before almost getting beaten in the final round against Franklyn.

 

My prediction: Damien Jones

 

Round 1: Jones controls the round with jabs, the couple of times Chapin tries to take him down he sprawls.

Round 2: Jones keeps Chapin away with his jab. He lands a couple of decent shots but Chapin shrugs them off.

Round 3: Jones again continues with his game plan. This time he knocks him down but allows him to stand up, he clearly has no interest in getting involved on the ground. He lands several more decent shots before the round ends.

Round 4: Chapin is more aggressive but gets tagged everytime he shoots for the takedown. Jones can't put him down though.

Round 5: Same as Round 4, the seconds tick away and Chapin just can't get past the jab.

 

Result: Jones by unanimous decision: 50-45, 50-45, 50-45

 

Rating: Decent

 

Damien Joes is crowned as the HILITE Heavyweight champion in a dissapointingly one sided final to an otherwise exciting tournament.

 

Attendance: 241. Event Rating: Excellent

[WCW Mark]

Aftermath & Round Up:

 

Damien Jones has jumped from a Low Level Regional to a High Level Regional which is a big improvement. Everyone else stayed at the same level although there were some good improvements % wise. The promotion itself is still a Low Level Regional at 18% and the company lost $38,467. Still I expect to lose money for a while.

 

In other MMA news........nothing. No one else held an event, hopefully next month will be a bit more exciting. HILITE will be holding a tournament to crown their Midweight Title as well as hopefully signing a couple of fighters to compete for the first shot at Damien Jones' title.