Estevan mixed martial arts fighters Derek Daku and Wade Baldwin found success while experiencing an adventure in the U.S. Virgin Islands last week.
The two amateur fighters won their bouts on a Paradise Fighting Championship card dubbed MMA in Paradise II. The event took place in St. Thomas, one of two islands that make up the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Daku (4-1) was fighting for the organization's heavyweight championship and defeated Saul Solivan of Puerto Rico.
Solivan had the upper hand in the first round, but he submitted with 10 seconds left in the second round after breaking his hand.
Late in the first round, Daku took a heavy right fist from Solivan and took a few more strikes on the ground before the bell.
"I honestly admit I probably lost that round. I was bleeding out of the bottom of my eye and probably having a little trouble seeing," said Daku.
It was a different story in the second round as Daku, in his own words, dominated.
"I came back at him, got some good strikes in on him, slammed him down to the ground, got some really good strikes in from the top and we ended up clinched together on the ground. The ref stood us back up and (Solivan) was pulling his mouthpiece out and he quit."
Baldwin, meanwhile, needed less than a minute to take care of American opponent Ken Sweeney.
"I came out and threw a bunch of leg kicks. I don't think I've ever thrown a leg kick in a fight before," Baldwin laughed. "I got him worried about them, he clinched up against me, and I got him up against the cage and got him with strikes."
Baldwin landed more than 10 strikes, with Sweeney not defending himself, and the referee ended the fight by technical knockout.
Baldwin (2-3) said the event was well put together and he hopes to return in the future.
"It's good to see a bunch of different guys from different countries and their level of training. I was actually surprised by how good everybody was. Lots of the fights were exciting and went the distance," he said. "I'd gladly go back down there and fight."
Daku and Baldwin were the only Canadians on the card, which featured eight fights.
