Castaneda is Already Set for a Title Shot
“I took the fight because I am training full-time, six days a week, regardless of whether I have a fight coming up or not,” said Castaneda. “A couple of months prior, I was assuming I was on that card because I was asked to be on it initially. Then things fell through and I realized I wouldn’t be on the card. But I knew there were a lot of 135- and 145-pound fights on that card and something like this could happen. So it seemed right to take it.”
Seeing an opportunity to make some money, Castaneda jumped at the opportunity to fight Cruz. Combate gives out post-fight bonuses to fighters who are able to score a finish. Any fighter at Combate who wins either by knockout or submission earns himself a finish bonus of $2,000.
This of course entices fighters to work towards the finish, therefore making bouts more action-packed.
John Castaneda — Bad Ass MMA Fighter and All-Around Good Guy
It’s different from the UFC where fighters are awarded up to $50,000 for Fight of the Night or Performance of the Night honors.
“I’m biased, but I think this is a better way because it encourages all of them to try to have the Fight of the Night,” he said.
Castaneda went on to stop Cruz in the second round via devastating ground-and-pound attack, earning himself a TKO win and the $2,000 finish bonus from Combate.
But instead of keeping the bonus for himself, Castaneda whispered over to the head of Combate Americas Campbell McLaren, to give his bonus to his opponent.
“Give Cruz my bonus,” Castaneda said right then and there.
Prior to the bout Castaneda was able to spend a little time with his opponent to get to know him better.
Castaneda found out that Cruz was in dire straits financially, and had to fight to feed his family. If Castaneda had not taken the fight on short notice, Cruz’s appearance on the card would most likely have been cancelled and he would not have gotten paid.
McLaren says he was moved by Castaneda’s gesture and that it really tugged at the heartstrings.
“It really choked me up,” said McLaren. “I’d never encountered anything like that. MMA is a very charitable sport and you see fighters starting GoFund Me pages to help each other a lot. But this was a little different situation and it was so impressive. This came in the heat of the battle after a very tough fight.”
Cruz of course, was very grateful to Castaneda despite the loss.
Castaneda recalled having talked to Cruz after the weigh-ins and receiving a thank you.
“After the weigh-in, he stopped me and thanked me for taking the fight, and he said if I hadn’t taken it, the fight probably wouldn’t have happened,” said Castaneda. “He told me without the fight, ‘I couldn’t feed my family.’ That really hit home to me. This is real. This is life. He’s doing this because he has to in order to support his family.
“I met his kids, two little girls, and they were so cute. This was an extra fight for me and I wasn’t expecting this money. And so when I got the finish, I told Campbell that I could do without it and to give it to [Cruz].”
If more fighters were like Castaneda, especially the better paid ones, the world would definitely be a better place. Kudos to Castaneda for showcasing the true spirit of martial arts.
