PXC 19: Kelvin Fitial vs. Roke Martinez
by Dave Delgado
Guam - A press conference for PXC was held today at MidPac Distributors to get the ball rolling for the May 1 event. PXC heavyweight champion Roke Martinez and Saipan challenger Kelvin Fitial were on-hand to sign the necessary paperwork for licensing.
PXC president Joey Calvo said about the new procedure implemented by the newly-formed Guam Unarmed Combat Commission, "We are just happy we got approved for the May 1 date. It's going to be seven months since we have thrown a fight, once May 1 comes around. It's been a long bureaucratic process, but we got it done. We were confident we were always going to get it done; we actually cancelled events in January because the Commission didn't know what we needed to get done. So when they finally got their rules and regulations together it took us a week to fill all the requirements and we're just happy. PXC is going to be back throwing big shows like we have in the past."
Fitial added, "I'm going to do all the things to get my license, they say their going to give out the license, so I'm pretty sure I will be getting my license and I can't wait to get into the ring and fight."
Martinez said, "I think with the new commission, it's going to benefit the fighters. They are going to clear us health wise and we will be able to compete and be safe. It's not much different from competing in Japan, you have to get a lot of these tests too so just doing it here now is going to be good for us."
"I think all the new rules and regulations that were approved by the Commission will benefit the sport," Calvo continued. "Fighters are going to be cleared health-wise to fight and it's almost like an insurance policy for the fighters. There's no pre-existing conditions that will cause a permanent injury when you fight. I think a perfect example is what happened in the UFC last week with Thiago Alves, failing his CAT-scan they found an aneurism in his brain.
"So this is one of those things that will prevent a serious thing from happening."