Author Archives: Ryan Plessl

Jordan Stutt Gets The Win In Thirty Seconds!

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Local grappling star Jordan Stutt had a amazing performance in his first ever combat jiu-jitsu match!

Jordan Stutt is a jiu-jitsu grappler from Vancouver, British Columbia (B.C). He is a Tenth Planet brown belt under high level coach Nabil Salameh and fights out of Tenth Planet Coquitlam.

Jordan has huge potential on the grappling scene and has been competing in the bigger grappling competitions around the world for the past year now. He’s competed at events like the ADCC Open, ADCC North American Trials, Eddie Bravo Invitational, AVA Pro Division and more! However, Jordan’s journey has been riddled with injuries lately and he’s competed very unhealthy for the past year. Jordan decided to take some time off at the end of 2022 into 2023 to recover.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CjQRcW0LxI2/?igshid=NDk5N2NlZjQ=

Now Jordan has recovered from his injuries and made his comeback last night at Battle Pankration in Jordan’s first ever combat jiu-jitsu match.

Jordan was able to secure the win in just thirty seconds after his opponent took him down and he was able to lock up a tight choke for the tap. Jordan climbed the cage directly after his win and beat his chest.

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You could tell this return to competition meant a lot to Jordan and it was nice to see him get the win after such a long time away from the sport. The future is very bright for Jordan if he’s able to continue staying healthy!

Lance Stroll Proves The Doubters Wrong!

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Canadian racing driver Lance Stroll has had a difficult lead up to the first race of the new Formula One (F1) season in Bahrain. Lance got injured on his bike, went into surgery, had metal rods inserted into his wrists, and told the team that he couldn’t race his best because he couldn’t turn with the state of his hands during practice. However, after qualifying eighth yesterday and finishing the race sixth today fans are finally starting to see how great of a driver Lance really is!

https://www.instagram.com/p/Cpa-RG9PREl/?igshid=NDk5N2NlZjQ=

If you haven’t already, read more about Lances accident here:

Lance Stroll Will Race!

Lance had a solid qualifying session, flying around the track in his new, fast, Aston Martin. Lance was unable to secure a higher position then eighth for the race on Sunday though as you could tell he was struggling to turn the wheel and hit the apex in some corners

due to the state of his hands. However, eighth place on the grid is almost higher then Lances best qualifying all year last year so a win is a win for Lance!

When it came time for the race it seemed as though the Aston Martin had played their hand a little too early as Lances teammate Fernando Alonso dropped back two places and the pair of teammates crashed into each other.

However, the team didn’t let it discourage them and both men started to overtake the cars in front. Alonso ended up with a podium finish and Lance Stroll scored sixth place for the team!

Lance has proved this weekend time and time again that he deserves to be on the F1 grid even while battling through a severe injury. Let’s hope the Canadian driver can keep the momentum rolling all season long!

Toronto Raptors Battle Back!

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The Toronto Raptors get the win against the Washington Wizards Saturday night.

In a rematch from both teams most previous game the Raptors would look to bounce back after their lopsided defeat to the Wizards on Thursday night.

The first period saw the Wizards get out to a steady lead and maintain that lead throughout the period.

In the second period the Raptors battle back though as they decreased the gap and even took the lead before the half ended.

In the third period it was more of the same for the Raptors and it looked like they were going to coast to an easy win over the Wizards.

The Wizards didn’t give up though and fought back in the fourth period, even taking the lead at some points! Regulation ended in a tie and the game was forced to go to overtime.

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Fred VanVleet’s efforts on both sides of the court are what made the difference throughout this game, and he brought that energy into overtime. He finished the game with twenty-five points and led the Raptors to victory.

The Raptors won with a final score of 116-109.

This game was really important for the Raptors to win as the Eastern Conference is very closely contested right now. With this win the Raptors will secure their spot in ninth for the moment.

The team returns Monday night when they face the Nuggets on the road.

Quinn Hughes Breaks Assists Record!

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Quinn Hughes just broke the record for the fastest defenceman in National Hockey League (NHL) history to reach two hundred career assists.

https://www.instagram.com/reel/Cpapsg7vBWT/?igshid=NDk5N2NlZjQ=

Quinn Hughes is a hockey player on the Vancouver Canucks that has quite a promising career ahead of him. Hughes has been with the Canucks for nearly five years now and has been considered for rookie of the year, defenceman of the year and player of the year. Hughes has massive star potential and is going to go down in the history books as one of the greats some day.

Last night Hughes made history though by becoming the fastest defenceman in NHL history to reach two hundred career assists! This achievement was reached after Hughes amazing slap shot that Kuzmenko was able to tip in on Saturday night.

Quinn Hughes reached this accomplishment in just two hundred and sixty-three games. The best part about this record breaking performance is that Hughes beat the previous record that was held by Brian Leetch by just one single game.

While the Canucks won’t be making history as a team anytime soon it’s nice to see Quinn Hughes cement his name in the record books!

WWE Returns To Canada Tonight!

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World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE) returned to Toronto tonight and they brought out the big guns to compete, including undisputed champion Roman Reigns who hasn’t competed in a house show since September.

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The WWE has been showing an increased interest in their Canadian audience as of late as they are trying to really sell the Sami Zayn storyline and build up his character. That’s why the WWE brought such a stellar card to a Toronto house show.

The card saw Charolette Flair defend her title, Kevin Ownes win a Toronto street fight, Ricochet defeat Gunther, and Roman Reigns defend his title against Sami Zayn.

Roman and Sami have a well documented feud that culminated at the Elimination Chamber event where the two faced off. Sami lost that match and hasn’t been given a official rematch since.

However, WWE house shows aren’t official and Sami took advantage of his rematch tonight. The match was a exciting one but undisputed champion Roman Reigns defended his title by defeating Sami Zayn.

It’s nice to see Roman back at house shows especially Canadian ones as it’s important that the champion supports local shows sometimes.

It’s also nice to see that the WWE really do care about Sami Zayn by pushing Canadian cards so hard over the past two months!

The Canucks Destroy The Maple Leafs!

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The Vancouver Canucks defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs tonight in a dominant victory!

The first period started out with some back and forth action and a huge fight between new Maple Leafs signee Jake McCabe and Tyler Myers. Both men hit the ice after dropping the gloves but Myers definitely got the better of the exchange! The rest of the period saw little to no action besides a breakaway shot for the Maple Leafs that was stopped by Thatcher Demko!

Both goalies were on fire to start the second period saving every goal that came their way. Quinn Hughes and Andrey Kuzmenko broke the scoring drought though with a beautifully timed slap shot and tip in to give the Canucks the Lead heading into the third period.

The third period is where most of the action in this game happened. Maple Leafs captain John Tavares scored early to tie the game but the Canucks fired back with two goals as Elias Pettersson and J.T Miller both scored short handed! Nils Åman was able to score one more for the Canucks before the end of the game to secure the victory.

Final score 4-1 for the Vancouver Canucks.

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For a team that’s supposed to be tanking right now this sure is confusing to see as a Canucks fan. However, it’s nice to see the team gain some momentum and confidence for the first time in a long time!

The Canucks return against the Predators Monday night at home!

What’s Going On With Aston Martin?

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Canadian owned Formula One (F1) team Aston Martin looks to be on track for a phenomenal season this year. How has the team made such sudden improvements though, and are they going to be able to fight for a Drivers and Constructors Championship?

Aston Martin was formally known as Racing Point in the 2020 season and the team was pretty solid. The car was fast scoring pole position and even secured a race win throughout the 2020 season. The team ended up finishing fourth place for the season. However, when the team changed over to Aston Martin they’re speed significantly decreased and the team dropped to seventh place for the past two years in the Constructors Championship.

The team was smart though and used those two years to invest money and develop their 2023 car. With the changes they’ve made to the car they’re already set to be challenging for a win in just the first race of the season. Aston Martins newest driver Fernando Alonso even scored first in practice today!

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However, while things are looking up for the team it’s going to be tough for them to beat the juggernaut that is Red Bull. Not only does Red Bull have a fast car, but Max Verstappen and Checo Perez are a unstoppable duo. While Fernando Alonso may be world championship material, Lance Stroll isn’t quite at that level yet.

My prediction is a few solid wins for Aston Martin throughout the year and a final standing in the Constructors Championship of third place. While this is not what they’ll be hoping for it’s still a significant improvement from the past years, and a great sign of what’s to come for the team!

Rugby Sevens Comes To Vancouver!

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The 2023 HSBC Canada Sevens will return to Vancouver for the 8th time on March 3rd to March 5th!

https://instagram.com/worldrugby7s?igshid=NDk5N2NlZjQ=

The Rugby Sevens Series is a huge event in the Rugby world that fans from all over the world tune in to watch. People coming to spectate the event dress up in crazy outlandish costumes and everyone gets in spirit for the games over the course of the weekend.

While this may be the 8th time Rugby Sevens visits Vancouver it’s the first time ever that men and women series will be run at the event!

Rugby Canada’s Managing Director of Revenue and Fan Engagement, Jamie Levchuk is ecstatic for this years games and believes that this event could be the biggest one yet:

“We truly believe the 2023 HSBC Canada Sevens will be the biggest and best yet.

We were the only host to hold events in each of the past three years, and now with a full-field of 28 teams incoming this March, including all the top squads in the world and two Canadian home teams, you can see why we’re saying we’re ‘all-in’ for 2023!”

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While it may be too late for fans to buy tickets to the event, you’ll be able to catch all the games online! Don’t miss out on watching this epic event!

Ariel Helwani Shares His Thoughts On UFC 285!

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Ariel Helwani shared his opinion today on UFC 285 taking place tomorrow night!

Ariel Helwani is a Canadian born combat sports journalist. In his two decades of experience he’s covered promotions like UFC, Bellator, Pride, and many more. His large popularity in the sport is due to his hard hitting questions, and professionalism he brings to every interview. He is without a doubt the face of combat sports journalism.

Ariel will be covering UFC 285 this weekend in Las Vegas and he says it’s one of the best PPV cards the UFC has put on in a very long time and one of his personal favourite cards.

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Ariel is a experienced journalist and has seen a lot of great cards in his time. So what makes this one so special?

Every fight on the card has meaning. That’s not usually the case when it comes to the UFC but this weekend the top ten fights on the card all have significant implications for the future of the UFC.

The card has huge names all throughout. Valentina Shevchenko, Bo Nickal, Ian Garry, Alexa Grasso, and Geoff Neal are all huge names competing on the card and that’s not even including the main event!

Which brings me to our main event. A title fight to determine who the baddest man on the planet is between the returning Jon Jones and Ciryl Gane. This fight will be insane and the winner will leave the new UFC Heavyweight Champion!

Don’t miss UFC 285 this weekend as it is almost guaranteed to be one of the best UFC cards in a long time!

Who Will Win The AVA Women’s Pro Division?

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All VS All (AVA) grappling competition returns this weekend on March 4th and 5th. The question on everyone’s mind though is who will walk away with the $1000 cash prize for the men and women no-gi pro divisions!

AVA is a submission only grappling tournament that has taken British Columbia by storm these past few years. The event is popular due to its ruleset and submission only structure. Competitors are also put into a round robin bracket which means maximizing matches for competitors.

The most popular bracket’s though are the men and women no-gi pro divisions.

The no-gi pro divisions bring out some of the best grapplers in Canada to try and win the cash prize of $1000. Now AVA has upped the stakes though and will be giving out title belts as well as the $1000 cash prize. This has incentivized even more of Canadas best to come out and compete.

I covered who will win the mens division in this article here:

Who Will Win The All VS All Pro Division?

Who will win the women’s division though? The division has great female competitors like Battle Grappling champion Cholena Horne, high level brown belt Darcie Omori, and tough competitor Talia Anderson.

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My money is on Cholena Horne! Cholena is fresh off of three amazing wins on a big grappling card. She’s also won the division before so she knows what it takes to get the job done.

However, part of the intrigue around the pro division is that anyone could win at anytime. Come watch the AVA event Saturday to see who will take home the title belt and $1000 prize!