RIVERINA Martial Arts will be out to solidify its reputation as one of the best Kyokushin Karate dojos in the country when it tackles the national titles in Sydney this weekend.
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A small, but elite, group will take to the mat in the non-contact and full-contact divisions, with Sensei Frank Cirillo excited about the lead-up form of some of his younger fighters.
Siblings, Emily and Chase Verri, will line up in the 12 years and under section, and if their previous form is anything to go by, the brother and sister combo could both bring home champion trophies.
“This is their first year on the circuit. Emily won the Victoria state championship and Chase finished second in really big fields, where they had to go through six fights just to get to the finals, so we’re expecting big things from them,” Cirillo said.
“And it’s funny, at the Victorian titles Thomas Zambon and Chase met in the final, which looks good for our dojo, but that’s happened twice now.
“There’s a friendly rivalry between the two boys, they train together all the time. The kids just want to be the best at a tournament, so they don’t hold back.”
Another junior warrior set to light up the nationals is black belt Alanah Jeffery, who is looking to end her non-contact career on a high.
“She’s looking really good at the moment, mainly because she’s transferring across to full-contact. She’ll do her first full-contact tournament at (the) Riverina (titles) in a few weeks,” Cirillo said.
“She’s been fighting non-contact since she was five or six-years-old, so she’s ready to move onto the next stage.
“However, she has been training in full-contact and because of that, her footwork and skills have really sharpened in her non-contact work.”
It is not just the juniors who could bring home medals, with Craig Bardney tipped for big things in the ultra competitive full-contact heavyweight division.
“He’s a strong boy and over six foot so he’s been showing strong form in class, so he might be a surprise packet for us going away,” Cirillo said.
However, all full-contact fights will be fought over three minutes, as opposed to the previous limit of two, which means tactics and fitness will play a bigger part rather than flat-out power.
“So it’s now back in-line with international rules but because of that there’s an extra level of training needed to do that,” Cirillo said.
“That last minute really sorts out the really serious fighters and the others because, the people who take it seriously train to fight for longer.”
