Former Sparrows Point Wrestler Makes Strides in Mixed Martial Arts Pro Debut

Former Sparrows Point wrestler watched in recent years as several of his fellow grapplers made the transition to mixed martial arts.

Young, a two-time 1A-2A state wrestling champion in the late 1990s, believed he could do the same. He had just a handful of amateur MMA fights before making his professional debut Saturday at the latest Shogun Fights card at the 1st Mariner Arena.

Young held his own against a more experienced and well-rounded opponent in Air Force Tech Sgt. David Perez. Young, who now heads the Dundalk Hawks rec wrestling program, dominated the first round and looked good in the second when a single mistake exposed his back, which allowed Perez to apply a choke and finish the fight with a submission victory.

“I did the opposite of what he expected me to do in the first round, showing off my hands,” Young said. “I'm sure he was looking to defend my takedown. I caught him with a real good knee that cut him bad.

"In the second round, I was a little over anxious and reverted to my wrestling. I missed my sweep and he caught me in a choke. This loss just motivates me to work harder and train longer. I saw how much I progressed in the last six months and can't wait to see how much further I can push myself.”

To prepare for the fight, Young—who is hopeful for a rematch against Perez—enrolled in Dundalk'sas well as Overlea's Charm City BJJ.

“Chris Clark at Practical MMA in Dundalk did wonders with my kick boxing, working on my footwork and the technical aspects of striking,” said Young. “I worked out with Shaun Grazuties at Charm City twice a day, five days a week to tweak my wrestling skill into more of an MMA style.”

Fellow professional fighter and former Dundalk Hawks wrestler saw good things in his former rec teammate.

“I know Mike from when he wrestled in the Dundalk Hawks program,” Jones said on Saturday. “I was really cheering for him, but he came up a little bit short tonight.

"He did what he was supposed to do in that first round and defiantly won the round, but he made a mistake in the second round and the guy was able to get a choke in. He has to keep his head up and learn from his mistake, that is what this sport is all about.”

Jones, who was unable to fight due to an injury sustained in a Bellator Fight in Atlantic City, N.J., also cheered for teammates from Ground Control Academy, run by Shogun Fights promoter

Team Ground Control went 3-1 with Dan Root, , and Ryan McGowan all collecting wins and Ryan Mackin taking the sole Ground Control loss.

Here are the complete results from Saturday's Shogun Fights card:

145: Marshall Thompson def. Dean Lavin at 3:40 of R1 via submission (rear-naked choke)

185: Manny Okorie def. James Kearns in R1 via TKO

170: Dan Root def. Diego Peclat at 1:59 of R3 via TKO

145: Brent Hess def. Keyon Wilkins at 4:10 of R2 via TKO

170: Bryan Lane def. Raoul Smith at 2:04 of R1 via submission (rear-naked choke)

145: Bryan Lashomb def. Ryan Mackin at 3:04 of R1 via TKO

155: Vaja Ioramashvili def. Neil Johnson at 3:20 of R2 via submission (guillotine)

195: Dave Daniecki def. Donald Crawford via unanimous decision

145: David Perez def. Mike Young in R2 via submission (rear-naked choke)

Super Heavyweight: Ryan McGowan def. Deon West at 3:37 of R1 via submission (strikes)