Editor’s Note: This is part one in a three-part series about the sport of mixed martial arts. Find part two in the May 16 edition; find part three in the May 30 edition.

Sacramento’s James “The Sandman” Irvin needed only eight seconds to remind the world that he’s a force to be reckoned with. Just ask Ultimate Fighting Championship knockout specialist Houston Alexander, who got a taste of his own medicine on April 2.

After coming back from an injury that sidelined him in 2007, the 29-year-old Irvin (13-4-1) stepped back into the national spotlight on Spike TV’s “UFC Fight Night 13,” faced off against a brawler expected to deliver a beat down and knocked him out in a UFC record-tying eight seconds.

The win not only gave the 6-foot-2-inch, 205-pound fighter the boost he needed in the ring, it opened a door now to the biggest fight of his career, replacing the legendary – and now injured – Chuck Liddell in England against undefeated star Rashad Evans on June 7 in the pay-per-view UFC 85 main card.

Slaying a Giant
To get his big shot, though, first Irvin had to deliver one to a guy known for shelling out knockouts. The 8-second TKO of Alexander did the job just fine.

“We wanted to show who was going to be the boss in that ring,” Irvin said in an interview with The Union at Kickboxing, Inc. in Roseville. “We were going to go out there and throw our hardest punch at him, and that was the one you saw, the Superman punch.”

Sacramento’s James Irvin, right, delivers a “Superman punch” to the chin of Houston Alexander in Irvin’s
win on April 2. The punch knocked Alexander to the ground and ultimately led to the fight’s end.
(Photo Courtesy Josh Hedges, UFC )

Fighting over a mile high in altitude in the Broomfield Event Center in Colorado, Irvin made quick work of the fan-favorite Alexander, using only a lunging right cross to get the Nebraskan to the mat, and another few hooks while he was down to prompt the referee to stop the fight.

“That’s not something you just walk out and throw,” Irvin said of the punch. “We did that for a reason. We did it to say, ‘Hey dude, just because you’re a big guy doesn’t mean you’re the one ruling this ring.’”

The Superman punch – which consists of a fighter lunging off of his lead leg and striking an opponent with a flying punch from the trailing, strong hand – caught the stalking Alexander off guard, and what was to be a drag-on slugfest turned out to be a one-and-done affair.

“Our game plan worked perfectly, more perfectly than even in my dreams,” said Eric Regan, Irvin’s trainer, who currently is also a professional boxer and kickboxer. “I dreamt that, but I didn’t think it was going to happen that fast. I get these premonitions, and in that last fight I was seeing the movie ‘Troy,’ where Brad Pitt runs as fast as he can and lunges at the giant with the sword. I knew that was going to be the killer. That’s what was gonna slay the giant.

“They brought us to Colorado, they didn’t think we were gonna win. They wanted Houston Alexander to win. I figured him as the big guy.”

It was apparent even in the crowd’s response. A disappointed packed stadium booed at the announcement of Irvin’s win, thinking Alexander could have gotten up to continue the fight before referee Steve Mazzagatti stopped it. Irvin’s response to them showed just how ready he was for Alexander and his comeback in the UFC.

“I would give anything to fight Houston again right now,” he said over the microphone in the ring during the post-fight interview. “We can do it again right now. I’m down. You wanna go out in the parking lot? We can go out in the parking lot and do it.”

“They booed me anyways,” he told The Union later. “I thought being a white guy from California they would have loved me in Colorado. It was just the opposite. They hated me. That was like throwing wood on the fire. They were all wrong. He was clearly out. The crowd didn’t see it. They just wanted to see a guy get beat up. But I’ll take a win any way I can get it.”

The Next Big Thing
Next on the list is an even bigger foe in Evans. Although not as tattooed and fearsome as Alexander, Evans is a proven talent. His scheduled fight with Liddell was rumored to be for the No. 1 contender spot in an upcoming title shot in the light heavyweight division. Although the situation has changed, Evans is still an undefeated contender at 16-0-1, one Irvin can leap frog with another surprising win.

“This [fight] definitely puts me in the top five,” Irvin said of his rank in the light heavyweight ladder. “We asked for a top 10 guy after this Houston Alexander fight, but we asked not to fight until the end of summer because I wanted to work on things. Now, I’m jumping right back in the fire. But how can you turn that down? It’s a win-win situation for me.”

“We’re gonna train in Thailand for two weeks and then go to [Rampage] Big Bear [Training Facility] with all of the big wigs,” Regan said. “We are going to crank it up and be ready. We’re already thinking of a game plan for Rashad. He’s got a lot of heart and a big wrestling background. I think he’s gonna fake the stand up and try to shoot in on James. We expect that.”

Evans, a well-established collegiate wrestler, has won many fights with a takedown and ground-and-pound thereafter. Irvin wants no part of that.

“He’s gonna eat a hot one from me,” Irvin said. “I think I’m gonna catch him. It’s just his time. He’s undefeated, I had a horrible run of luck last year. Now it feels like it’s my time, and I’m excited to take it.

“We always want to drag people into what our game plan is. It’s obvious we want to knock them out. I’m trying to end fights as fast as I can. We watched his last four fights and the guys didn’t leave with as much as a bloody nose or a black eye. These guys wanna take you down and hold on to you. I know why; they don’t want that little red zone open there. It’s safe for them. But there’s nothing safe about fighting, and that’s just not my fight style. I’m trying to end this fight violently.”

Regan’s already got another premonition brewing, one that has his Irvin’s hand raised once again.

“I feel one coming with Rashad,” he said. “I’ll go on the record with this one. I think the knee is going to be there. I already visualize what he’s gonna do. He has a big heart and is not gonna want to quit. He’s a tough character. I see him coming and faking like he’s going to swing, only to take a dive on your leg.

“He’s wiping his brow thinking, ‘Whew, Chuck Lidell is hurt. Oh, James Irvin? Alright.’ But we’re gonna show him that Superman, too, just to make him hide in the basement, and that’s where we’re gonna be waiting for him. The Boogeyman is going to be down there waiting.”