Raul "The Magical" Amaya
Pro Record: 5 Wins, 0 Losses
Weight Class: Welterweight (170 lbs. limit)
Next Fight: September 4, Art of Fighting 9 against Charles Blanchard
Trains out of: Champions MMA in Bradenton, FL
Raul "The Magical" Amaya is perhaps victim to a cruel joke. After his first round KO victory in his pro debut, he was dubbed "Magical" for what appeared to be the source of his power in his right hand. Since then he has done nothing short of live up to the name but in perhaps a more different form. In his last four fights inside the Art of Fighting cage, Raul Amaya has been nothing short of "Magical". His style is a wrestling, grinding, ground n pound relentless onslaught but it has been his ability to escape that has made him successful. He has faced all tough opponents that have pressured him and forced him to pull a rabbit out of his hat of tricks.
In Raul's second fight he faced a tough striker with maybe the most perfect MMA look on the planet, Francois Ambang. Known for his exciting striking style, Francois stunned Raul with a sharp elbow that dazed him and put him immediately into what all wrestlers call "Wrestling Mode". It didn't look good for Raul but he stayed alive, escaping and clawing his way back to equilibrium. When all the tweety birds flew away Raul found himself a vicious double leg take down that eventually permitted a rear naked choke victory.
His third scrap was at Art of Fighting 5 at Robarts Arena, the scene of his previous two fights. He faced a taller more flexible Rory Shallcross. Immediately the fight went to the floor as Raul seemed to be pressuring Rory with everything he had. It looked like Raul might "gas out" as it seemed he was spending a ton of energy trying to finish the fight early. Rory had an incredible rubber guard that neutralized Amaya's advantage. It looked like he was going to spend too much energy and be left for slaughter, but it never happened. Through three rounds of up kicks, Raul pulled it off. Scoring a third round TKO.
The Art of Fighting 7 card was considerably one of the best cards ever assembled in Florida MMA history. A title fight between Marcio "Pe de Pano" Cruz and Dave "Pay Me" Yost was the headliner, but Raul stole the show. In again what appeared to be the end of Raul in a very "Gumby-esk" gaurd in which Dan Lovett was able to put Raul in a full on Omaplata, Raul escaped again eventually finishing the fight with a rear naked choke in the third round.
Joe Robinson was undefeated before faceing Raul. It seemed like Joe would be undefeated for a long time with a crushing guillotine in his arsenal and world class wrestling skills. Raul and Joe both went into the fight with a perfect 4-0 record. Again it was Raul's ability to escape that edged him out in this fight. Dodgeing more than Bart Simpson from Homer, Raul survived again and again finished the fight with a choke of his own in the third.
Raul was born and raised in Bradenton, Florida where he currently trains at Champions MMA under trainers Andy Glenn, Paul Ellis and John Kenny. A Southeast High School graduate, Raul did four years of wrestling to cement his mma foundation. He answered a few questions for us below.
Q: How did you start MMA?
Raul: I wrestled at Southeast under coach Thomas and coach Wilkes all 4 years which gave me my base, plus i would always get into street fights. My buddy Eric Reynolds (AOF 4,8) started kick boxing and told me about it, which eventully led to me training.
Q:Where do you train at and with who?
Raul: I train at Champions MMA in Bradenton under Andy Glenn, Paul ellis, (Who is a 5 time world champion kickboxer and is still fast as lightning at the age of 54), and John "SUPERMAN" Kenny is my BJJ instructor.
Q:What has been the biggest challenge of being a pro fighter?
Raul: The biggest challenge would have to be treating fighting like its a full time job and to keep training, even when you don't have a fight scheduled. That way you can improve on the areas you are weak! If you only train when you have a fight comming, it will take you 3 times longer to get better and as a fighter, time is your enemy! You are only able to fight for so long and you only have so many fights that your body can take!
Q:What has been your best moment in MMA thus far?
Raul: Mine would have to be my first fight. I knocked out my opponet in 34seconds in front of my home crowd.
Q:What is your favorite food?
Raul: Im not a picky eater, I like all food, I really like sushi but nothing compares to a good steak!
Q:What do you do in your spare time?
Raul: In my spare time i try to do everything that i can't do when I'm training for a fight. I like going out with my friends, going to the beaches and to theme parks!
