Travis Lizotte "Full Contact Writer"
As we alluded to last week; 23 year old Worcester, Massachusetts Middleweight prospect Colin "Superman" Robinson (3-0, Amateur MMA) was in Amsterdam, Netherlands last week representing Team Link Muay Thai Worcester, New England and The United States of America at GAMMA Worlds. Colin, who made the jump up a weight class to 205 pounds for the opportunity to represent his country, would fight three times over the course of the weekend amid a tournament style format, against other top competition from all corners of the globe.
Flanked by a legendary pair of coaches; pictured above, Phil "Mr. Wonderful" Davis (24-6, Bellator Light-Heavyweight contender) and collegiate wrestling coach Karl Reed (Paradigm Sports Agency), Robinson opened the tournament Friday against Poland's #1 Ranked Light-Heavyweight; Kacper Sczalast (5-0). Robinson and Sczalast split the first two rounds of the contest, but Colin sent it into overdrive at the beginning of the third round, steamrolling Sczalast to the mat and finishing him with brutal hammerfists.
Robinson would advance to the tournament's second round Saturday where he would line up with Greece's Georgios Papanikolaou. Colin wasted little time sending Papanikolaou into the ground and pound realm in the very first round, securing his spot in the tournament finals on Sunday.
The gold medal match, which would take place on Sunday, lined up Robinson with Kazakstan's Imran Taysultanov (6-0, Pro MMA, Tapology's #6 ranked Middleweight pro in Kazakstan), far and away the toughest test of Colin's young career. Colin showed some nice signs early in the first round, but a takedown by Imran lead to a grappling exchange that ended with Colin deep into a head and arm choke. A choke that most amateurs probably wouldn't have been able to finish against the high fight IQ of Robinson, but the seasoned professional Taysultanov used it to put Colin to sleep.
We have had a chance to speak with Colin since capturing the Silver medal; he is in great spirits and thankful for the opportunity GAMMA has given him to evolve as a fighter. "He (Imran Taysultanov) made me a better fighter and taught me some things about myself, he gave me a great battle." Colin remarked when asked about the experience. "It's what we want in life, the experience and the challenges. I wanted that fight, I wanted that experience."
To say we are proud of Colin would be a drastic understatement. Colin represented his country with the highest of skill and integrity...although Colin still competes at an amateur level he continues to show that he has the make up of a true professional. New England MMA fans keep your eye out, Colin should be making his New England MMA debut within the coming months as the current Valor FC Amateur Middleweight Champion and now GAMMA World Silver medalist looks to fight on home soil for the first time in his young career.
