Joe Ray scored a spectacular spinning back fist knockout of Francois Ambang at CSC 34 last weekend and was kind enough to answer a few questions for Muay Thai Authority about the victory. Joe fights out of American Top Team in Florida and has previously fought in Thailand a few times. The bout at CSC 34 was his first Kickboxing rules fight, as the rest of his pro fights have been full rules. MTA: Big finish of Francois Ambang at CSC 34 how you feeling after that win?
Joe: I’m feeling pretty good with the win. Francois is a good athlete, fast, has power and is no punk, we knew that going inn. We put together a game plan to beat him and it worked. I’m not completely happy with my performance, I felt a bit sloppy but all in all I'm happy to get a win in a fight like that.
MTA: Fourth round spinning back fist KO. Did you plan on throwing that because you had seen an opening or was it spur of the moment?
Joe: That’s just one of my little tricks I like to throw from time to time. I knew he would be open for a lot, being he was getting tired and so concerned about the leg kicks. His hands were down so I just let it go.
MTA: The fight was pretty close at that point, how did you feel your game plan was going before that round?
Joe: I felt he won the first round, the second was up in the air but would have gone to him being I’m in his hometown. The 3rd and 4th were all mine and the 5th would have been as well. I thought the game plan was going well, not exactly as planned but it rarely ever does. I knew I would be able to finish him it was only a matter of time. I feel like that with everyone. That’s one of the benefits of having power. I have changed up a lot of things with my training starting with my last 4 fights. My coach Rob Adjouhda has completely turned my game around, with an emphasis on physical and mental conditioning along with game planning, which I never used to do.
MTA: You've trained and fought in Thailand, now that you are back in the states are you looking to get more active in the North American Muay Thai scene?
Joe: My first passion is Muay Thai. That’s what I started out with and there’s just something about drawing a line in the middle and seeing who the better man is. I prefer to pursue MMA but I’m not opposed to a Kickboxing/Muay Thai fight if the right opportunity presents itself. I just like to fight. If I had my choice I would rather do Muay Thai over k-1 rules though. My clinch and elbows are some of my best assets as a fighter and I’m not able to use them in k-1. People are scared of elbows and I love to throw them.
My MMA game has come a long way. I’m not just a striker anymore, I’ve evolved as a fighter. You have to if you want to move up in the sport today. Everyone under estimates my ground and wrestling. I have a good skill set of jits and wrestling, I just choose not to use it most of the time cause I prefer to stand and strike. That’s what everyone wants to see.
MTA: Is there anyone you would like to fight in particular?
Joe: I have big plans for myself in the future for MMA. I have reinvented myself and now have the conditioning and the right mind set to make an impact at the next level. My goal is to have a successful career in the UFC and eventually become their champion.
I have one person in mind that I am very hungry to fight. His name is Jeremy “Pitbull" Smith. He was my first loss in MMA. I lost a controversial decision when I fought him in the XFC. It was a very close fight I felt the damage I caused him was enough to get me the win (broken orbital, broken nose, and dislocated jaw) He was a very tough opponent and I would really like to get another crack at him.
Great timing by Joe Ray, fighting in the gaps between Reiner's punches. His elbows were devastating. I think what did it for Reiner though was Ray's elbows to his triceps against the fence when he was trying to pull the Kimura. After all those takedown attempts, and all that lactic acid build up, Reiner's arms were out of commission for the stand up. To get more info please visit help-essay.com/buy-essay.
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