Accompanied to the cage by the power chords of Metallica, Ramsey Nijem prepares to do battle with his opponent Erik Uresk from New York. Nijem, a student at UVU, is an artist whose objective is to be as precise as possible in spattering his foes’ blood onto his canvas. Whether it’s his wrestling background or his newly-acquired Muay Thai skills, Nijem is going to paint a masterpiece inside the cage.
The 22-year-old from the Seattle area has proven his toughness with a 3-0 record in MMA fights. In the April 9
“Showdown Fights” event held in the UVU Events Center, Nijem dismantled Uresk with the ref stopping the fight midway through the second round after too many unanswered blows rendered Uresk useless.
“I love to compete,” said Nijem before the fight. “I’m a competitor; I’m a modern day gladiator pretty much, and that’s how I’ve been. I’ve wrestled my whole life.”
Nijem wrestled for UVU for three years and has since taken his combat style to the sport of Mixed Martial Arts. And as an undefeated competitor, he looks to continue his progression as a fighter.
“There are so many different aspects of fighting,” Nijem said. “Every position has different styles and I’m just trying to get better.”
In the first round of Nijem’s latest fight he relied on his wrestling background to give him the advantage over the smaller Uresk. Pinning him against the side of the cage, metal wiring leaving an imprint on Uresk’s face, Nijem began pounding him with elbows and fists.
After being saved by the bell, Uresk entered round two with something to prove after being dominated early. Although he took Nijem to the ground early in the round, Nijem reversed himself into a secure position before unleashing his fury on the side of Uresk’s head. With his opponent in a defenseless position, the ref quickly broke up the fight and raised Nijem’s hand in victory.
“I’m going to go in, take him down and try to pound him out,” Nijem said of his game plan before the fight. “I’m going to make the ref stop it.”
And it all went according to plan for the former Wolverine wrestler.
