Victoria, B.C.'s Sarah Kaufman Gets It Done In Five; Sweeps Every Round

Coming directly after a questionable doctor's stoppage prematurely ended the Trevor Prangley vs. Karl Amousou fight, the main event at Strikeforce Challengers 6 had an uphill battle to get the disgruntled fans in San Jose excited. The world's two finest female fighters at welterweight (135lbs.) certainly did all they could to win the crowd over during a grueling 25-minute war of attrition.

Picture Props: Sherdog.com

After watching Victoria, B.C.'s Sara Kaufman (11-0) rock and drop her opponent several times in the opening frame, many in the arena probably thought a finish was inevitable, but it was not to be. Nonetheless, the resulting fight was highly technical and very entertaining throughout, if not quite heart-stoppingly thrilling.

Most fans probably took two things away from the fight.

One is that Japan's Takayo Hashi (12-2) is one tough cookie. She absorbed a surgically methodical onslaught from Kaufman over the entire course of the fight and kept coming back for more. In a rare display of resilience and determination, Hashi somehow managed to have her best round in the fifth stanza after taking a relatively one-sided beating for the preceding four. Her many takedown attempts, which, as the fight wore on began to resemble pulling guard more than anything else, were almost universally stuffed by Kaufman's clear superior strength and her textbook sprawl-n-brawl. When a grappler isn't afforded a chance to go for any submissions you know she's in for a long night, but many lesser fighters would have cracked, psychologically at the very least, under Sarah's relentless pressure.

The other thing most fans probably took from the fight is that, after three consecutive unanimous decisions, Sarah can't seem to catch a break as far as landing her first finish under the Strikeforce banner. That's not to say she wasn't trying. At no point in the fight did Kaufman hold back, except possibly following a fifth-round eyepoke when she seemed to allow her opponent a few seconds of much-deserved respite. Of course, that didn't prevent her from sweeping the judges' scorecards to lay claim to Strikeforce's first ever women's welterweight title at 135lbs. Play-by-play announcer Mauro Ranallo used the word "coast" to describe Kaufman's performance, but all I saw was a very intelligent gameplan being stuck to unflinchingly.

It looks like the first challenger to Sarah's new belt may be the well-rounded Roxanne Modafferi (14-5) and there's still that eight-woman tournament in the works to find more contenders, but the champ is probably too busy celebrating her historic win tonight to be very concerned about that. In any case, it will be tough for anyone in the welterweight division to match Sarah's technical excellence and will to win.

Congratulations Sarah, you've done well by your chosen sport and given all Canadian MMA fans something to stand up and cheer about.

Sarah Kaufman Video Interview From Strikeforce HQ

With just over twenty-four hours left until the opening bell rings at Strikeforce Challengers VI: Kaufman vs. Hashi, Strikeforce themselves caught up with Victoria, B.C.'s Sarah Kaufman (10-0) to produce this wide-ranging pre-fight interview.

B.C. Bio: Sarah Kaufman-- "Wherever The Fight Goes, I Plan On Striking"

B.C. MMA Fan's Josh Oliveira caught up with Victoria, B.C.'s own Sarah Kaufman ahead of her upcoming Strikeforce title fight. Sarah discussed fighting on Vancouver Island, training under Adam Zugek, preparing for Takayo Hashi, and, of course, her love of puzzles! It was recently announced that Sarah's upcoming title fight at Strikeforce: Challengers VI on Friday, February 26th, will now serve as the night's main event.

J.O.: Okay so, Sarah, for your fans around the world, can you talk a little bit about why you continue to train in Victoria, B.C. and maybe what it is you like about the city.

Sarah Kaufman: Well, I grew up here so I've been here my whole life and it's a pretty great place to live. It's pretty temperate and I don't like a lot of sun or snow so it's pretty perfect for me. Also, I mean, it's just beautiful and it's nice because it's on the Island. Well...sometimes that's nice because it's not quite as busy...

J.O.: Right, but one of the drawbacks of being based on Vancouver Island is the ferries and the difficulty of getting to the mainland. Has that ever been a problem at all for you, especially early in your career?

Sarah Kaufman: It hasn't affected my training, but it does make it harder to get to tournaments. If people want to compete locally, for the most part you have to go to Vancouver, which means either getting on the 7:00am ferry and probably waiting all day, or else going over the night before and paying for a hotel. So it's not as easy to get to tournaments, but it's still a great place to train.

J.O.: Have you drawn any extra inspiration during this training camp from Canada's Olympic athletes?

Sarah Kaufman: I don't have cable.

J.O.: Oh, so you're not too into it then?

Sarah Kaufman:Well, I do love the Olympics-- I just don't have cable and I am never home.

J.O.: Yeah, you must be busy. Okay, so after your most recent fight, when you faced Shayna Baszler last June, there was a lot of downtime. How did that layoff feel and was it frustrating that your fans and the media maybe lost contact with you for a bit.

Sarah Kaufman: Well, it's great if the fans want to know what's going on, but I'm kinda in the same boat. So, I think it can just be frustrating for both sides. It's always going to be one of those things, though-- you have to wait for the right fights. You can't just get over-anxious and jump at anything.

J.O.: Since the announcement of your upcoming fight, you have made numerous recent appearances on radio shows and have given many other interviews. Do you see it as part of your job to help promote the sport in that way?

Sarah Kaufman: I think it's a big part of the job. I also think it's important to have the fans know who you are and have an invested interest in you so that they want to watch you fight. If nobody wants to see you fight then you have no draw, which means why would a promoter have you even if you're the best fighter in the world. If no one wants to watch you, there's no reason for you to get a a spot, especially on a televised card. So, I do think that promotion is a big part of the job and I also think it's important for everyone to realize that we're just average people trying to do our best in MMA, in such a crazy sport.

J.O.: In the past you have described yourself as shy, but has this current media blitz helped you to become more comfortable at all?

Sarah Kaufman: Um..I'm comfortable talking to people, but I think I am really just more shy in terms of being around people in my off-time. So, if I were to go into a big group of people, I don't need all of the attention to be on me.

J.O.: I have to say, though, that you have done a great job and have been very articulate in every interview that I have seen recently. Is there a chance that there's a future behind the mike or in front of the camera for Sarah Kaufman?

Sarah Kaufman: It's funny. I really don't mind talking on a microphone or in front of a crowd. It's really just being in a crowd that I don't know and they don't know me that can be a bit awkward. So, who knows. I haven't had any offers or heard anything specific, though.

J.O.: Fair enough, can you talk a bit about your head-trainer, Adam Zugec and how he has helped you over the years to reach your potential?

Sarah Kaufman: He is the perfect coach for me. He is awesome, not only in his technical ability, but also in game planning for each separate person. He really takes the time to put everything together for a particular fighter, sees their strengths and weaknesses, and, instead of making a generic fight-plan, he comes up with unique strategies.

J.O.: Right, for instance, you are known primarily as a striker, whereas he is known, at least in certain circles, as more of a jiu-jitsu guy. So he didn't try to mold you into a ground fighter or anything like that.

Sarah Kaufman: Yeah, but he's also an instructor in Thai Boxing and an instructor of C.S.W. under Erik Paulson. So, Adam has many different accolades to help him bring together the games that are appropriate for people. I am just really lucky to have found him as my first coach and I really don't feel like I ever need to go anywhere else.

J.O.: So is it safe to assume that most of your higher-level sparring partners around her are the guys?

Sarah Kaufman: For sure.

J.O.: Be honest, do you ever take it easy on them?

Sarah Kaufman: No.

J.O.: No? So you just let'em have it?

Sarah Kaufman: I train like I would with anyone and they do, too. Everyone always has good days and bad days, so it's always just a give and take.

J.O.: Have you implemented any new training techniques for your upcoming title bout given that this fight will be a five-rounder?

Sarah Kaufman: With my last couple of fights I have actually started using an Airdyne bike, which I really like a lot, but I've prepared for five, five-minute rounds before for HCF. So it's really just making sure you have the proper conditioning and I really don't feel like I'm ever worried about where my conditioning is at once I'm in the ring.

J.O.: Here we are at the end of your training camp and I heard that you use something called the "water loading" technique to cut weight. Can you explain a bit about that?

Sarah Kaufman: For me, I am a big water drinker. I don't drink coffee, tea, juice, pop, or anything like that. I really only drink water. So coming up to a fight I slowly start increasing the amount of water I drink in a day. Just before I am ready to begin cutting weight, I will be up to 10-12 liters of water each day. Your body becomes used to having lots of water put in, so, when you stop drinking, it's theoretically supposed to get rid of water-weight faster.

J.O.: Fascinating-- it's like reverse-psychology for your body. A lot has been made about the fact that you and your upcoming opponent, Takayo Hashi, are ranked number one and number two in the world respectively at 135lbs. Do you consider her to be your toughest opponent to date?

Sarah Kaufman: I think every opponent is my toughest opponent to date because there's always that unknown factor. You don't know what they're going to bring or how they're going to come out. So that's really how I look at every fight.

J.O.: Also, in this case, we haven't seen Hashi fight in almost two years, right? So, there's really no telling what she has added to her game in that time. That said, given your either career (T)KO's, can we assume the plan is to force Hashi into a stand-up war?

Sarah Kaufman: Wherever the fight goes, I plan on striking. So whether it's a finish from standing or a finish on the ground, I'm up for whatever. I am really just eager to see how this fight goes and I hope that I can finish it.

J.O.: There has been some Internet chatter about Roxanne Modafferi being next in line for the title shot with Strikeforce, have you given any thought to her as an opponent?

Sarah Kaufman: I think it would be a great fight, but, really, whatever Strikeforce wants is what I'll do and who I'll fight.

J.O.: And, as far as you're aware, they're still planning an eight-woman tournament at 135lbs.?

Sarah Kaufman: I haven't talked to Strikeforce directly about it, I've just heard whatever is on the Internet.

J.O.: So you know what we all do, I suppose. You have said in a couple of interviews that you are a geek at heart. For all of your four-eyed friends out there, what is the geekiest thing you're into that you're willing to talk about?

Sarah Kaufman: Ahhh...the geekiest thing? Well, I really am just a big fan of
puzzles. I will sit down and do jigsaw puzzles for hours on end, no problem. I also love crosswords. I will do them when I am walking and pretty much everywhere. I will even do crosswords in the bath with some Epsom salts, you know? Wherever I am, there's my crossword.

J.O.: Sweet, do you like the really difficult ones? Like "The New York Times" crosswords?

Sarah Kaufman: I'm not great at those ones, but I will try really hard. Even right before a fight I am usually sitting down doing puzzles of some sort.

J.O.: Nice! Puzzles definitely rock. Alright, well, those are all of the questions that I have for you today. Thanks so much for taking time to speak with us and best of luck in your fight on Friday.

Sarah Kaufman: Alright, thanks. Awesome.

Sarah trains and also instructs classes at ZUMA (Zugec Ultimate Martial Arts) just over the bridge from downtown Victoria, B.C.
Website: http://zuma.tv

B.C.'s Sarah Kaufman Has Title Fight Elevated To Main Event Status At Strikeforce Challengers (Feb. 26th)

Strikeforce's first-ever women's bantamweight (135lbs) title fight, featuring Victoria B.C.'s Sarah Kaufman (10-0) and Takayo Hashi (12-1) of Japan, has been elevated from co-main event status and will now serve as the featured attraction at Strikeforce: Challengers VI.

Originally, a fight between experienced veteran Trevor Prangly (22-5) and up-and-coming M-1 prospect Karl Amoussou (11-2-1) was set to conclude the night, but I suspect that the overwhelming fan and media interest in Kaufman's potential as a future women's MMA superstar caused the Strikeforce brass to re-think their approach.

Strikeforce: Challengers VI takes place this Friday (Feb. 26th) live from San Jose. In Canada, the show is available on SuperChannel 2, but other viewing opportunities may become available at the fights approach.

Full Card:

Main Event:

Sarah Kaufman (10-0) vs. Takayo Hashi (12-1)

Main Card

Trevor Prangley (22-5) vs. Karl Amoussou (11-2-1)
Luke Rockhold (6-1) vs. Paul Bradley (12-1)
James Terry (7-1) vs. Tarec Saffiedine (7-2)
Raul Castillo (6-0) vs. Yancy Medeiros (4-0)

Undercard

Eric Lawson (9-2) vs. Wayne Phillips (3-3)
Chris Stewart (Amateur Debut) vs. Samuel Bracamnonte (Amatuer Debut)
Tristan Arenal (Amateur; 3-1) vs. George Miller (Amateur; 3-1)
Jesse Tobar (Amateur; 2-0) vs. Phil Balducci (Amateur; 1-1)
Renee Robinson (Amateur Debut) vs. Lilia Salas (Amateur Debut)
Steve Dickie (Amateur; 3-0) vs. Alan Lummel (Amateur; 1-0)
Ronald Carillo (Amateur; 1-0) vs. Anthony De Los Santos (Amateur Debut)

B.C. MMA Fan's exclusive interview with Sarah will be posted shortly.

Press Release-- Canada's First Lady: Sarah Kaufman

By Strikeforce Staff

Though gaining in respect and popularity, the sport of women’s MMA is still in its infancy. There are many firsts ahead for the athletes competing in the formative years of women’s combat sports. Nevertheless, some women have already made serious strides. One who has worked hard and attained numerous firsts is Victoria, British Columbia, Canada’s Sarah Kaufman (10-0, 2-0 in STRIKEFORCE).

At 17 years of age, Kaufman stumbled upon MMA when a school opened in the building where she was studying dance. She was supposed to meet a friend to check out ZUMA Martial Arts but the friend never showed and Kaufman went in anyway. Initially she enrolled in an aerobic kickboxing class but before long she was taking every class head instructor and BJJ black belt Adam Zugec offered.

Kaufman competed in tournaments to hone her skills and began fighting MMA professionally in 2006. Beginning her “road of women’s MMA firsts” was competing in the first women’s MMA bout held in Winnipeg, Manitoba when she beat Alexis Davis by TKO at the Ultimate Cage Wars show in April of ’07. Her bout at TKO 29 in June of 2007, where she beat Valerie Letourneau with strikes in the second round, was the first women’s bout in the promotion’s history.

Her follow-up fight that year, yet another first, was competing for and winning the first Hardcore Championship Fighting women’s bantamweight (135 pound) title. There she pounded experienced fighter Ginele Marquez, stopping her with strikes in the second round. Kaufman defended the title five months later, beating down Molly Helsel and scoring her seventh consecutive career victory by KO or TKO.

Kaufman made her STRIKEFORCE debut last May as a late replacement for Kim Couture (1-2, 1-1 in STRIKEFORCE) in a bout with Miesha “Takedown” Tate (8-2, 0-1 in STRIKEFORCE). In the opening round, Kaufman moved forward, landing lefts and rights and stuffing the takedown attempts of Tate to control the opening phase. In turn, Tate dominated the second period getting an early takedown and controlling Kaufman on the mat for the majority of the round. In the third, Kaufman continued to stuff takedowns and landed a hard right hook midway through round. Kaufman dominated the remainder of the contest, landing strikes standing and on the ground, and took the unanimous decision victory.

Her second STRIKEFORCE bout last June was also her most recent “first”. It was the first women’s bout contested under five-minute rounds. In round 1 Baszler got an early takedown and applied a unique Josh Barnett-inspired choke but Kaufman worked hard, released the pressure and gained top position. Shayna was able to tie her up against the cage and avoid strikes in the clinch to close out the round. In the second, Baszler again worked to control in the clinch but Kaufman found the range with her strikes and began to strike effectively. Using leg kicks and superior in-and-out movement, Kaufman had her way in round 2 and closed the round with a flurry of strikes. The final round opened with Baszler’s frantic attempt to bring Kaufman to the mat. She successfully pulled guard but a follow-up sweep and subsequent kneebar attempt only led to Kaufman getting behind her and back to her feet. Kaufman’s confidence grew as she used distance effectively and flustered Baszler, tagging her at will. In the final 30 seconds, Baszler rolled for a kneebar but Kaufman stayed closed, avoided the submission and took a unanimous decision win to stay unbeaten in the sport.

At just 24 years old, Kaufman is already 10-0 in a sport where many competitors don’t even have 10 fights under their belt. Now Kaufman prepares for the biggest first of her career; the STRIKEFORCE Women’s 135lb title. She must take on skilled Japanese grappler Takayo Hashi (12-1, 0-0 in STRIKEFORCE). And if successful, the victory will serve as not only yet another in a long line of “firsts” but also as a historic achievement.

New Sarah Kaufman Video On Her Upcoming Title Fight

The announcement that Sarah Kaufman (10-0) will face Takayo Hashi (12-1) for the vacant Strikeforce Women's Bantamweight Title (135lbs.) continues to make waves. The fight takes place at a Strikeforce Challengers event on February, 26th.

The latest to add their voice to the mob of excited fight fans was Canada's own TheFightNetwork.com. They posted the above preview video, which features an audio clip from Sarah herself.

Sarah Kaufman Speaks About The Public's Need For Education On Women's MMA

Victoria, B.C. native Sarah Kaufman (10-0) has been making the media rounds since it was announced that she would be facing Takayo Hashi (12-1) for the vacant Strikeforce women's world 135lb. title. The two professional fighters are ranked #1 and #2 in the world respectively and will clash at Strikeforce Challengers VI on February 26th.

In an exclusive interview with MMAWeekly.com, Sarah identified herself as a trailblazer of sorts. She explained that she hopes he upcoming fight will help to dispel some common misconceptions people have about women's MMA, such as the notion that there aren't any weight classes, which, of course, there are.

"I think it's going to help fans understand it's not just females fighting, there are divisions...Probably my most common question that I get, ‘When are you fighting, first it was Gina (Carano), and now it's when are you fighting Cyborg?’ Cause they don't really understand that there are different divisions, and we need to promote them as different, just as you would for the guys."

Tickets For Strikeforce Challengers VI feat. Sarah Kaufman On Sale Today

Statistically, very few readers of a Canadian, B.C.-centric MMA blog are likely to find themselves in Southern California on any given Friday in February, but, just in case you plan to be there, make absolutely sure you snap up some tickets to Strikeforce Challengers VI set for San Jose's Civic Auditorium on February 26th. Of course, that's because Sarah Kaufman (10-0), the fighting pride of Victoria, B.C., will fight in the co-main event against Japan's Takayo Hashi (12-1) for the vacant 135lb. women's world title.

The tickets go on sale today and are available through Ticketmaster (800-745-3000)/ Strikeforce.com. They start at just $30 USD; don't worry, that's just $31.65 CAD at today's exchange rate.

So, if you're a Sarah Kaufman groupie who is a bit hard-up for cash, here's my advice: find some like-minded hard-cores, rent/borrow/buy a hippie van (preferably one that runs on natural gas) unless you already have one, make very certain that you all have passports, and head on down there to catch the show! Come to think of it, that's a great idea! All I want to know is, who's coming with me?

Alright, I'm not totally serious, but I would certainly consider any propositions that might find their way to bcmmafan@gmail.com. After all, who really has, Strikeforce's Canadian broadcast partner, Superchannel in their homes these days? Nobody I know, that's for sure. Then again, if this whole Kaufman-groupie-van idea doesn't pan out, I might have to look into getting it because I can't, in good conscience, miss seeing this fight live. Does anyone know of a sports bar that gets Superchannel? Probably not, I guess.

The rest of the Strikeforce Challengers VI card looks pretty darn good, too:

• Trevor Prangley (22-5) vs. Karl Amoussou (11-2-1)
• Sarah Kaufman (10-0) vs. Takayo Hashi (12-1)
• Luke Rockhold (6-1) vs. Paul Bradley (12-1)
• Jame Terry (7-1) vs. Tarec Saffiedine (7-2)
• Raul Castillo (6-0) vs. Yancy Medeiros (4-0)

Update: Showtime Confirms Kaufman vs. Hashi for Feb. 26th

It was reported here earlier today that Strikeforce was considering arranging a spring title fight between Victoria, B.C. based Sarah Kaufman (10-0) and Tokyo, Japan's Takaya Hashi for the women's 135lb. title. Now a firm date has been announced on the official site of Strikeforce's longtime broadcast partner, Showtime Sports.

According to Showtime, Kaufman vs. Hashi will serve as the co-main event on Strikeforce Challengers: Prangley vs. Amoussou on February, 26th. The show will air at 11PM ET/PT. See the full announced fight card below:

• Trevor Prangley (22-5) vs. Karl Amoussou (11-2-1)
• Sarah Kaufman (10-0) vs. Takayo Hashi (12-1)
• Luke Rockhold (6-1) vs. Paul Bradley (12-1)
• Jame Terry (7-1) vs. Tarec Saffiedine (7-2)
• Raul Castillo (6-0) vs. Yancy Medeiros (4-0)
  

Unfortunately, almost no Canadians receive the Showtime network. In Canada, the fights will be broadcast on Superchannel, but the majority of Canadians do not get that premium cable station either.

More on this story as it develops.

B.C. Fighter Sarah Kaufman Likely For Strikeforce 135lb. Title Fight This Spring

Sherdog.com's Loretta Hunt recently spoke with Strikeforce president Scott Coker about promoting women's MMA in 2010. One bit of new information he offered was that, in addition to the women's 145lb title fight scheduled for January 30th between Cristiane "Cyborg" Santos (8-1) and Marloes Coenen (17-3), Strikeforce is planning a 135 lb. women's title fight "sooner rather than later," "February or March" was mentioned as the likely time frame. Coker went on to say that Victoria, B.C. based knock-out artist Sarah Kaufman (10-0) is considered the front runner for that title fight along with Japanese fighter Takayo Hashi (12-1), who is 8-0 since 2005.

Kaufman, who trains at Zugec Ultimate Martial Arts (ZUMA) in B.C.'s provincial capital, began her professional MMA career with eight consecutive (T)KO victories in less than three years between June, 2006 and April, 2009. In May of 2009, Sarah moved up to Strikeforce's women's division, one of the toughest and deepest in the world, to fight the well-rounded Miesha Tate (8-2). They met at Strikeforce Challengers - Series 1, and the bout ended with Sarah Kaufman scoring a unanimous decision to hand Miesha Tate only her second career defeat. Sarah quickly followed that victory up with another convincing decision win over Shayna Bazler (9-6) at Strikeforce Challengers - Series 2 in June of 2009. Since that time Sara has been patiently awaiting her next fight and it now sounds as if that match will be a world title bout with Strikeforce.

Congratulations, Sarah Kaufman.

Scott Coker also announced that Strikeforce plans to hold two eight-woman tournaments at 135lbs. and 145lbs. that will determine the next title challengers. The winners of those tournaments will face the winners of the confirmed Santos vs. Coenen (Jan. 30th, 145lbs.) and the likely bout of Kaufman vs. Hashi (135lbs.).

Follow this and other B.C. MMA stories at the Facebook group, "B.C. MMA Fans"

Check out this highlight package of Sarah Kaufman available on Youtube.com and her official site: