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| Coastside's Castillo wins second mixed martial art bout By Mark Foyer--[ markf@hmbreview.com ] Published/Last Modified on Wednesday, August 8, 2007 3:19 PM PDT Raul Castillo was the lead-off fight for his first professional mixed martial arts bout last year. In the second professional fight, he moved up a bit. He was the main attraction for his July 27 bout against Nik Theotikos in San Francisco. The results were similar, however, as Castillo earned a first-round win by submission. Castillo took charge right from the start. He had Theotikos (4-1) in a defensive position right away. It was over quickly, much to the delight to the fans who made the trip to the legendary Kezar Pavilion. "There was a large roar in the stadium," Castillo said. "Everyone started chanting 'HMB! HMB!' Everyone was jumping up and down." Theotikos also had a large cheering section as well. A 2000 graduate of Capuchino High School in San Bruno, Theotikos finished sixth at 173 pounds in the Central Coast Section Wrestling Tournament. The two wins have Castillo lined up to battle for the Gladiator championship title later this year. "It's a good title to have," Castillo said. "But it's not the world title. That's something I want to have." Waiting is something that he doesn't like, though it's something he has become conditioned to. It was that way at the fight. "That was the worst part of the fight, just waiting for it," Castillo said. As he waits for his chance to fight for the title, he continues to work out. He sweats so much after a workout that the moisture could help ease the drought. "The fight wasn't the hard part," Castillo said. "It's the practice. I train every day like there's a championship coming up shortly. It's all about the training." A few days after his fight, Castillo was at the Half Moon Bay Mixed Martial Arts Studio. "It's all about the training," he said. The training has not been easy. In workouts leading up to the fight, Castillo had a cut over an eye, rolled an ankle, and sustained black eyes, a nose bleed and a broken toe. "The only way you get better is from practice," Castillo said. |