Numerous combative events on top for Saturday's `Brawl at the SuperMall'

AUBURN -- Mixed martial arts, regarded as the fastest-growing combative sport in the world, will be among several disciplines featured Saturday night during the ``Brawl at the SuperMall'' at Vision Quest Sport and Fitness.

The event includes 16 amateur bouts in mixed martial arts, kickboxing, boxing and wrestling. Doors open at 7 p.m., and the first bout begins at 8 p.m.

Admission is $30 for VIP seating and $20 for general admission. More than 1,500 of the 2,000 seats at Vision Quest right inside the SuperMall have been sold. For ticket information, call 253-333-7771.

The 38,700-square-foot Vision Quest facility is often used as a practice site by 16 high school wrestling teams, including those at Auburn Riverside and Auburn, and proceeds from this event are used to keep the doors open to them. Vision Quest majority owner Brad Swartz said 31 participants at last month's Mat Classic at the Tacoma Dome, including eight state champions and 13 state placers, train at the club.

``I've always believed it's important to give back to the community, and this is one of those ways,'' Swartz said.

Local members of Vision Quest's mixed martial arts school, including a number of former state champion wrestlers, will compete Saturday.

Among the competitors are Jason Healy, who was seventh at state in wrestling as a junior for Auburn High; Steve Skid, a Vision Quest instructor and a pilot for Alaska Airlines; Jason Perry, a personal trainer at Vision Quest and a former Oregon Wrestling Classics champion; and, Bruce Larson, a former national power-lifting runner-up.

Among the celebrities expected to attend are Bob Sap, a mixed martial arts competitor from Japan; as well as two world champions, Maurice Smith and Matt Hume.

Reported by: King County Journal Newspaper