Fighter scores big for Bay with knockout blow in Cape Town
TWENTY-three seconds.
That was all Bay fighter Cameron Pritchard needed to flatten his opponent when he fought at the Extreme Fighting Championship (EFC) in Cape Town.
Pritchard, 25, who fought at the EFC last Thursday, is now undefeated after two fights on Africa’s biggest mixed martial arts (MMA) stage.
“We wanted to show the EFC not to underestimate fighters who come out of Port Elizabeth, and I think we did just that.
“We are known for our grappling, but now people know we can throw some dangerous punches too,” Pritchard said .
The fighter from Port Elizabeth Submission Fighting Academy came up against Congolese Pupanga Tresor, 32, who is known for his stand-up fighting and kick-boxing.
Within the first few seconds of the fight, Pritchard and Tresor took swings at each other, but the fight came to an abrupt and spectacular end with only 23 seconds on the clock when the two fighters exchanged blows and Tresor was left out cold inside the ring.
“He also landed a blow, but my strike was a lot cleaner and hit him right on the chin.
“I saw him go down and immediately jumped on him, but he was unconscious before he hit the mat,” Pritchard said.
The first thought in Pritchard’s mind was what his trainer, MMA fighter Chris Bright, would say. But as soon as Tresor hit the mat, Bright was doing victory laps around the outside of the ring.
“I lost my mind for about 30 seconds after Cameron won.
“I was running around like a crazy person!” Bright said.
EFC talent director Graeme Cartmell said there was a lot of excitement surrounding Pritchard’s emphatic win and he could not wait to see him back in the ring as soon as possible.
Cartmell knew Cameron was a good grappler but was shocked at how sharp his hands were.
The win means Pritchard currently stands on two wins without a loss in his professional MMA career.
But there is no rest for the victorious fighter as he returns to training this week.
“Although the fight was only 23 seconds’ long, we were able to identify areas in Cameron’s performance that we need to polish before he goes back into the ring.
“We strive for perfection, and even though 23 seconds will be hard to beat, there is always something a fighter can improve on,” Bright said.