Karate Combat “Evolution” had the full-contact karate promotion crown its first champion when Edgars Skrivers finished Luiz Rocha by TKO in the third round. The event name “Evolution” was appropriate as the league is making changes as it moves forward. Change is not easy as the there was a delay in preparation at the new KC-1 “secret Budokan” location, which had the event air later than advertised.

However, a spokesperson for Karate Combat said, “Some last minute adjustments to the fighting pit caused a delay, but since the next several events will take place at the same venue, KC-1, it won’t be a problem again.”

Other changes included more video game-themed introductions for fighters, black and white karate pants as opposed to the blue/red corner seen in most combat sports and of course having a five-round championship main event. Skrivers made sure to deliver in winning the Karate Combat golden belt with a body shot that Rocha would not be able to recover from in the third round.

Finishing with a body-shot impressed one legendary fighter, who has his own share of wins by dropping opponents with shots to the liver. Bas Rutten, who was calling the fights along-side Kenny Rice, said, “Edgars Skrivers? Who are they gonna find to fight him? What a great fighter!”

Karate Combat’s next event is rumored to be scheduled in November.

Edward Carbajal serves as the lead MMA analyst for Frontproof Media and holds a black belt in Brazilian jiu-jitsu and a brown belt in Ishin Ryu karate. He has covered combat sports since 2014 and has been a fan of MMA since the first UFC. You can follow him on Twitter @Carbazel or at his website TheBlogBoardJungle.com.