Oh for Oh doesn’t mean squat. James “Duece” King Jr. knows that. With eight year as a submission wrestler, Duece’s track record is a lot longer than the 6-4 MMA career he carries into this event. So he’s not taking Sherif Ghaly, or his Muy Thai background, for granted in his professional MMA debut at King of Kombat this weekend.
Even that eight years of submission work doesn’t mean Duece didn’t always mean to get in the cage. When he started, he said, “MMA was a new thing, so I waited it out.” Having turned pro a year ago, he knows that he’s facing a tough challenge from his fellow Austinite. “I consider him world class at Muy Thai, and his ground is really good, so this will be one of the toughest fights I’ve ever had, oh for oh or not.”
On the card, both men hit 170. But this may be the first and last time the two meet as welterweights, with the bigger Ghaly cutting weight to make the class, and Duece down around 166, and heading even lower to make a lightweight commitment in Tyro on Nov. 18. This brief cross-over between the two will stretch the limits of the classes. “On the day of the fight, he’ll probably be ten pounds heavier than me,” said Duece. “He’ll be a heavy-heavy welterweight, I’ll be a light-light welterweight.”
This article appears in November 2 • 2007.
