Glory 33: Brandon Cuttino

What is kickboxing?
A group of stand up combat sports based on kicking and punching. It is a universal sport as in Cambodia its called Pardal Serey, in Burma, Lethwei, in the Philippines, Yaw Yan, and in Thailand Muay Thai. In the US it has developed as a hybrid (combining Karate kicks and boxing punches)which limits contact to only hands and feet/shins (not knees and elbows like Muay Thai).
Today the Dutch are known to have developed the world’s best kickboxers as it is a very popular sport there. But it is not as popular as it should be in the US, according to Brandon Cuttino.

What is Glory Kickboxing?
The former premier international kickboxing organization was called K1. When that organization collapsed due to financial difficulties following scandals involving organized crime, a new organization arose to fill the void, initially called Glory World Series and then Glory Kickboxing. Glory has its headquarters in Singapore and the bouts are held all over the globe. The competitors are like Olympians in that there are representatives of many countries.
Also though not as popular in the United States as MMA, kickboxing has an international appeal and is more popular than MMA abroad. Unfortunately in the US, Glory does not have the same media exposure as MMA. But it should, according to Brandon Cuttino.

What is Glory 33?
This Friday, September 9th, Glory Kickboxing will hold Glory 33 at the Sun National Bank Center in Trenton, New Jersey. The Heavyweight Title headliner will be between Rico Verhoeven, the reigning champion, and Anderson Silva, currently ranked number 4. The middleweight card will feature champion Simon Marcus against number-two-ranked Jason Wilnis.
This might be the most anticipated event for Glory this year with a remarkably stacked card. The heavyweight bout features arguably one of the best and most dominant heavyweights in the sport in Rico “The Prince of Kickboxing” Verhoeven (48-10- 1, 12 KO). He faces off against Anderson “Braddock” Silva (40-14- 1, 25 KO). Verheoven is from the Netherlands and his speed and precision are unparalleled in the kickboxing world. The general consensus is that he will win this fight and will be later be matched against his true nemesis Badr “The Golden Boy” Hari, a Morrocan-Dutch superheavyweight kickboxer from Amsterdam. Badi Hari is a former K1 Champion and the two will meet in a non-title fight called Glory Collision in December of this year.
Like the heavyweight fight, the middleweight portion of the card is also exciting, as Simon “Bad Bwoy” Marcus has a rematch with Jason “Tyson” Wilnis. Marcus beat Wilnis by decision at Glory 20 in Dubai on April 30th 2015, winning the fight due to sheer volume of strikes. Both fighters are approximately the same height and weight. Both fighters also have similar Muay Thai styles replete with teeps, strong round kicks and strong punches. Here, Marcus has a more complete Muay Thai background. Stylistically they both come forward delivering full power shots trying to break through each other’s defense and guard. These two produce nonstop action and this rematch is guaranteed to be a very busy and action-filled affair.

For those questioning the state of MMA and American Boxing, fight fans have become curious about kickboxing. Kickboxing has it all, according to Brandon Cuttino.

Who is Brandon Cuttino?
Brandon Cuttino fights in the 160 lb division and is on the rise.
Hailing from the fighting team formerly known as Tiger Shulmann Karate, Now Tiger Shulmann MMA, Brandon “The Mechanic” Cuttino made his Glory Kickboxing debut on February 26th this year against an aggressive swarmer in Raul Gonzalez from the Alpha Male gym. Although Cuttino had a height and reach advantage, he succumbed to Gonzalez’s constant pressure and came up short in his first foray in this top level kickboxing professional fight game.
But, as the saying goes, “What does not kill you makes you stronger,” and Cuttino is returning to secure his rightful place among kickboxing’s best fighters. Having had the time to lick his wounds and massage his pride, The Mechanic has not been idle but has been consistently honing his craft and sharpening his tools for the next opportunity.

Brandon was supposed to fight at the end of July but his opponent’s injury cancelled that matchup. Luckily for his fans, his agent called him for the opportunity to demonstrate his skill on this big stage in Glory 33. Improving in areas of strength and conditioning, Cuttino plans to demonstrate his improvement with a trip to the welterweight division.
Brandon’s opponent is Joe “Avatar” Bastone of Impact Martial Arts Academy and Jab Martial Arts and Fitness. Bastone is a tall fighter who sets up combinations with his steady jab, mixes up high and low kicks, and also combines punches and kicks consistently. He is a methodical fighter, in contrast to the swarming tactics used by more novice fighters. He seems to be able to weaken his opponents by maintaining this varied attack.
NewYorkFigting.com predicts this to be an entertaining scrap as both fighters are rangy technicians coming off losses with a lot to prove to themselves, matchmakers, and fans.
NYF‘s Adrian Anthony had the opportunity to visit Cuttino at one of his training facilities – Tiger Shulman MMA in Elmwood Park, New Jersey. A week before fight night, Cuttino had a light training session where he worked on things to surprise his opponent this coming Friday.

AA: What do you know about your opponent?
BC: I know he is a tall guy. Some says he had good kick s, punches, footwork, and good head movement. My coaches have seen him and we have a good game plan.
AA: In your last fight you had a loss. How are you prepared differently for this fight?
BC: Since that fight I have worked on a number of things. I always aim to improve my conditioning.
AA: You opponent is tall like you. How do you adjust for this? This should be a different look for you.
BC: Well actually the opponent that I had for July…on the fight that got cancelled, he was tall, so I have been preparing for a tall opponent for some time. My sparring partners are tall. I have been working on things to handle this kind of opponent. As you know Tiger Shulmann and Ron Shulmann are my coaches and we have a great game plan.
AA: How did you get on this card? Seems like a pretty stacked card.
BC: After my other fight got cancelled my agent David Fish told me about this opportunity. I usually confer with my coaches and we agree if it’s a good match up for me.
AA: Is the Elmwood Park gym your home training facility?
BC: I teach at Tiger Shulmann’s and train at Tiger Shulmann’s so I am also at the East Brunswick New Jersey location.
AA: You have Abington on you shirt. What does that mean?
BC: The Abington PA location is where I started my amateur career so I still have my Abington Tiger Shulmann Shirt.
AA: Who set you game plan?
BC. Tiger Shulmann and Ron Shulmann set my game plan. Also my boxing coach Ray Velez gives me his input.
AA: Do you also have a strength and conditioning coach?
BS: Not at the moment. Tiger Shulmann has a very unique and very specific training regimen. His fighters are always in shape and conditioned. I personally never have issues with weight.
AA: Why are you here at Elmwood Park?
BC: We are family at Tiger Shulman so I was getting training from Louis Gaudinot who is the current CFFC flyweight champion and former UFC competitor.
AA: So what do you want people to know about you? Are you a kickboxing killer? Where are your tattoos and earrings and such?
BC: No, as I once said I grew up a fan of Bruce Lee. That is how I got into martial arts. Although I compete in kickboxing I do everything from grapple, box and kickbox. I am a churchgoing family man who appreciates what martial has done for me so I train, I teach and I hope to encourage more people to get involved. I teach full time at the East Brunswick branch of Tiger Shulmann’s. I help my students reach their goals in and out of the dojo. I wish to be a role model.
AA: As I was driving here to meet you I was thinking about what you said in our early conversations about your love for kickboxing. That you believe it should be more popular. What are your short term or long term goals?
BC: I plan to be a world kickboxing champ. I love to teach and help the kids. I want to be a role model to them. I know every promotion is different. [Not just] how the money is made but fighters in general should be making more. I think that kickboxing should be bigger in the US because boxing fans like knock outs and so do MMA fans. I know that the casual fan does not get into the MMA ground game as much. Kickboxing has fewer rounds, more dynamic fighting with more immediate action. The fans get more out of kickboxing. It would be huge if there were more promotion.
AA: Well Thanks Brandon. I don’t want to take away form your training time. I hope to get the New York Fighting team out here for a video interview so your growing fan base can see you live.

Check out “The Mechanic” this Friday at Glory 33

Writer: Adrian Anthony

Editor: Kyle Antonelli