Sproat is No Ka Oi

Molokai Boys represent Island well in MMA fights

By Dan Murphy

Molokai has a new champion.

Sale Sproat claimed the Amateur Middleweight MMA Belt after defeating Oahu’s John Ferrel on Aug. 22 on Maui. It took less than a minute and a half to end the fight with a vicious uppercut to Ferrel’s jaw. Sproat’s big punch sent his opponent to the canvas and the referee stopped the fight.

“He came in, tried to take me down and I just caught him with the uppercut,” Sproat said. The Molokai native, who weighed in at 185 pounds, is now 6-0 in his MMA career.

The new champion was one of three Molokai fighters who stepped into the ring in front of a packed house at Maui’s War Memorial Gymnasium. Keoni Farm and Jake Noble also represented the Friendly Island well.

Sproat prides himself on being a balanced fighter. This win was his second technical knockout to add to his two wins by submission and two by decision.

“I try to stay standing just because it makes for a more interesting fight,” he said.

Sproat said his strategy against Ferrel was to try to stay on his feet as long as possible and counterpunch, which is exactly what he did.

Sproat, whose first fight was about a year ago, said he is going to keep training with his partners on Molokai and wait for the call for his next fight. He hopes to be back in the ring to defend his title sometime in October.

It was a good weekend for the Sproat family. Less that 24 hours after the fight, Sale’s father, Buzzy, was named the Highest Point Winner at Kapualei Ranch’s Stampede Rodeo.

Keoni Farm def. Pedro Garcia
Immediately after Sproat finished his fight, it was Keoni Farm’s turn to represent Molokai. Farm said he couldn’t wait to get started after nearly six months without a fight.

“I was really hungry,” he explained. “I was prepared mentally, physically, spiritually. There was no way he could beat me.”

The preparation paid off. Farm took down Oahu’s Pedro Garcia in a unanimous decision to bring his amateur record to 2-2. Farm said he wanted to make an example of Garcia because so many opponents had pulled out of fights in the past six months. Farm was in control from bell to bell, but was disappointed that he failed to stop the fight early with a knockout or submission.

“I had him going a little bit but he withstood it. I just kept trying to switch submissions on him,” Farm said.

After taking a week off, the 145-pounder will head back to Maui to train. He is hoping to get a title shot for the amateur belt sometime in October. If he doesn’t, Farm may also make his pro debut around the same time.

Dustin Kimura def. Jake Noble
In the last Molokai fight of the night, Oahu’s Dustin Kimura got the better of Jake Noble, submitting him with a rear naked chokehold midway through the second round.

“I didn’t train right really for the fight this time and my cardio wasn’t that good,” Noble said. “I used too much energy. I just didn’t feel like I had enough gas.”

The six-foot, 145-pounder is one of the tallest fighters in his class and is used to battling on the ground. Kimura is also known for his work on the ground. Noble was able to stay on top for most of the first round, but in second, Kimura slipped to his back twice.

“The first time I was able to get out of it, but after that I couldn’t really deal with how squirmy he was,” Noble said. The loss drops his career record to 2-2. Noble said that he will keep training on Maui and is looking forward for a chance to get back on the winning side.

The fight, which was named No Ka Oi by its sponsors, was expected to be one of the most exciting cards of the year for Hawaiian MMA. By all reports, all 16 fights lived up to the hype. Kailua’s Kaleo Kwan also won a belt over Eddie Rincon in the night’s main event.