HALIFAX, Nova Scotia, March 14 -- Depending on whom you ask, "Bad Blood" is either the right or the wrong moniker for Extreme Cage Combat's seventh card, set to take place Saturday in the Halifax Forum.
Shaun Krysa (Pictures) will finally get the chance to avenge what he considers a tainted win by Jason MacKay (Pictures) after their first bout almost exactly a year ago. Krysa was on his knees in MacKay's guard when MacKay kicked him in the throat/jaw, dazing Krysa to where that he couldn't continue.
It was an illegal kick because Krysa was on his knees. If it had happened in another province, MacKay would have been disqualified. But since it was in Nova Scotia, the commission ruled that because the fight was past the first round, it would go to the judges for a decision.
MacKay won, earning the ECC lightweight championship while he was at it. Yet as nice as it is to win, the way it happened didn't leave anyone satisfied, especially Krysa, who told Sherdog.com that he believes MacKay's kick was intentional.
"It was disappointing the way the commission handled it," he said. "I'm over it now. But with Jason I felt that the kick was intentional. He put it on his highlight reel on the Internet, and I think it was a little bit distasteful."
Krysa doesn't believe that MacKay really won the fight, and he intends to prove who the better man is on Saturday.
"I'm not going in with any kind of pressure on myself," he said. "It's not about the championship belt; it's not about coming out here to fight. It's about me avenging my loss against Jason MacKay (Pictures). I beat him the first time and I'm going to beat him again."
As obvious as Krysa's animus toward MacKay is, the opposite impression is received from MacKay.
"Apparently he has a little bit of animosity, which is justified," MacKay told Sherdog.com. "And I think he has something to prove. There's a lot of talk about it being a bad blood situation, but for me it's not."
Either way one chooses to look at it, both MacKay and Krysa will soon know who the better fighter really is once and for all.
Tannaya Hantelman (Pictures) had to withdraw from her bout against Jenna King, as she spent several days in the hospital this week with a kidney infection. Stepping into her place with one day's notice is Moncton's Michelle Vienneau.
There were several fighters who did not initially make their designated weights, and they were given two hours to do so. Ryan Kenny was the only fighter who didn't eventually make his contracted weight, and he will forfeit 20 percent of his purse to Jason Rorison.
As always in Nova Scotia, there was much confusion as to what the rules regarding weigh-ins are. Many commissions around the world allow fighters to step on the scale one pound over their contracted weights, ostensibly to allow for the weight of their shorts and to allow for a margin of error in the scale calibration.
Nova Scotia doesn't allow this pound, which is often found out by teams from out of area only when their fighter weighs in. Nova Scotia Boxing Authority head referee Hubert Earle told Sherdog.com that they have no written rules regarding this and that it's basically decided at the time if a fighter has to continue to cut weight.
Lack of a clearly defined rule is confusing for all, and it isn't good for the fighters or the promoters.
For example, when Edwin Dewees (Pictures) weighed in at 170.6 pounds for his 170-pound bout against Cory MacDonald (Pictures) in January, he was forced to lose 0.6 pounds. Yet when Richard Arsenault weighed in at 170.2 Saturday, an official told Sherdog.com that it was OK, as he'll be able to urinate that fifth of a pound out right away.
The NSBA needs to put a rule down on paper, extra pound or no pound, and this rule needs to be followed for everyone. When you leave a decision up to the whim of whichever official is there that night or let an opposing team influence the decision, you do a disservice to all.
Results
Jason MacKay (Pictures) (155.0) vs. Shaun Krysa (Pictures) (154.4)
Matt MacGrath (Pictures) (169.4) vs. Travis Axworthy (Pictures) (169.4)
Ryan Jimmo (Pictures) (223.8) vs. Jeff Lundburg (262.8)
Kyle Sandford (187.2) vs. Chris Currie (190.0)
Peter McGrath (Pictures) (156.6) vs. Louis-Christophe Laurin (160.6)
Michelle Vienneau (137.6) vs. Jenna King (140.0)
Adam MacDonald (168.8) vs. Richard Arsenault (170.2)
Craig Skinner (Pictures) (184.8) vs. Tim Skidmore (Pictures) (186.2)
Jaret MacIntosh (168.8) vs. Rene Grenon (168.6)
Jason Rorison (168.4) vs. Ryan Kenny (171.4)
