John Vake
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Full name | John Taufa Vake |
| Born | 15 June 1991[1] Auckland, New Zealand[1] |
| Height | 183 cm (6 ft 0 in)[1] |
| Sport | |
| Country |  Tonga |
| Sport | Wrestling |
John Vake (born 15 June 1991) is a Tongan New Zealander pro-mixed martial arts fighter and wrestler, who has represented Tonga at the Commonwealth Games.
vake was born in Auckland, New Zealand and educated at Kelston Boys' High School.[2][3] He took up wrestling after failing to get into the school rugby team.[2] His first professional MMA fight was in 2012. In 2018, he opened a fight club in Auckland to help troubled youth.[4] He also runs a Whānau Ora-funded program for Kelston Boys' High School students.[5]
In 2022 he was selected for the Tongan team for the 2022 Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, England.[6][7] He was defeated in the first round by Muhammad Sharif Tahir.[8]
Mixed martial arts record
[edit]| 23 matches | 14 wins | 9 losses |
| By knockout | 3 | 3 |
| By submission | 5 | 1 |
| By decision | 6 | 5 |
| Res. | Record | Opponent | Method | Event | Date | Round | Time | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loss | 14–9 | Lachlan Stitt | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Eternal MMA 86 | June 22, 2024 | 5 | 1:48 | Gold Coast, Australia | For the vacant Eternal MMA Welterweight Championship. |
| Loss | 14–8 | J.J. Ambrose | Decision (split) | Shuriken Fight Series 15 | July 17, 2023 | 5 | 5:00 | Auckland, New Zealand | For the Shuriken MMA Welterweight Championship. |
| Win | 14–7 | Daniel Kerr | TKO (punches) | XFC 64 | April 15, 2023 | 1 | N/A | Dunedin, New Zealand | |
| Loss | 13–7 | Aldin Bates | Decision (split) | Eternal MMA 73 | February 11, 2023 | 3 | 5:00 | Perth, Australia | |
| Win | 13–6 | Andrew Mills | Decision (unanimous) | Eternal MMA 68 | August 20, 2022 | 3 | 5:00 | Perth, Australia | |
| Loss | 12–6 | Saeid Fatahifar | KO (punches) | Wollongong Wars 7 | July 12, 2019 | 2 | N/A | Gwynneville, Australia | For the Wollongong Wars Welterweight Championship. |
| Loss | 12–5 | Park Jun-yong | TKO (punches) | HEX Fight Series 13 | March 23, 2018 | 2 | 2:14 | Melbourne, Australia | |
| Win | 12–4 | Stephen Walton | Submission (arm-triangle choke) | HEX Fight Series 12 | November 24, 2017 | 1 | 4:25 | Melbourne, Australia | |
| Loss | 11–4 | Kitt Campbell | Decision (unanimous) | HEX Fight Series 10 | July 29, 2017 | 5 | 5:00 | Perth, Australia | For the vacant HEX Welterweight Championship. |
| Win | 11–3 | Liu Huanan | Submission (guillotine choke) | Chin Woo Men: 2016-2017 Season, Stage 6 | February 19, 2017 | 1 | 1:27 | Guangzhou, China | |
| Win | 10–3 | Sergey Lesnikov | Decision (unanimous) | World Kings Glory MMA | January 6, 2017 | 3 | 5:00 | Harbin, China | |
| Win | 9–3 | Zhang Mingyang | KO (punches) | Kunlun Fight: Cage Fight Series 6 | October 21, 2016 | 1 | 2:18 | Yiwu, China | Catchweight (190 lb) bout. |
| Loss | 8–3 | B.J. Bland | Decided (split) | Shuriken MMA: Island Wars | November 28, 2015 | 3 | 5:00 | Auckland, New Zealand | For the Shuriken MMA Welterweight Championship. |
| Win | 8–2 | Beau Rawiri | Decision (unanimous) | Fair Pay Fighting 1 | September 5, 2015 | 3 | 5:00 | Auckland, New Zealand | |
| Win | 7–2 | Brogan Anderson | Decision (unanimous) | Hammerhead MMA Fight Night 16 | May 23, 2015 | 3 | 5:00 | Dunedin, New Zealand | Return to Welterweight. Won the Hammerhead MMA Welterweight Championship. |
| Win | 6–2 | Naruaedon Keewkaew | TKO (punches) | Chiang Mai FC 4 | July 26, 2014 | 1 | 1:27 | Chiang Mai, Thailand | Light Heavyweight debut. |
| Win | 5–2 | Oh Jae-sung | Decision (unanimous) | PRO Fighting 9 | May 25, 2014 | 3 | 5:00 | Taipei, Taiwan | Welterweight debut. |
| Loss | 4–2 | Israel Adesanya | TKO (punches) | Shuriken MMA: Best of the Best | June 5, 2013 | 1 | 4:43 | Auckland, New Zealand | |
| Win | 4–1 | Maikara Potae | Submission (guillotine choke) | Farquhar Fight Night | May 4, 2013 | 1 | 1:00 | Auckland, New Zealand | |
| Loss | 3–1 | Julian Matenga | Decision (unanimous) | Combined Combat Inc.: Rising Stars | November 9, 2012 | 3 | 5:00 | Auckland, New Zealand | |
| Win | 3–0 | Eva Almente | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Autorea MMA Expo | November 3, 2012 | 1 | 1:59 | Auckland, New Zealand | |
| Win | 2–0 | Raihere Dudes | Submission (rear-naked choke) | Industry of Combat New Zealand 18 | September 22, 2012 | 1 | N/A | Auckland, New Zealand | |
| Win | 1–0 | Brent Tumoana Shadbolt | Decision (unanimous) | Supremacy Fighting Championship 9 | March 24, 2012 | 3 | 5:00 | Auckland, New Zealand | Middleweight debut. |
References
[edit]- ^ a b c "John Vake". Tapology. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
- ^ a b Jackson Thomas (31 March 2017). "'I'm gonna knock you out'". Stuff. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
- ^ "Guns of MMA go for shot at glory". New Zealand Herald. 25 September 2012. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
- ^ Torika Tokalau (5 September 2018). "At risk youths turn to mixed martial arts to save them". Stuff. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
- ^ "'You're here to be powerful' Groups make Dragons' Den-style pitches for Whanau Ora funds to run social programmes". Waipareira Trust. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
- ^ "Tonga competes in six sports at 2022 Commonwealth Games". Matangi Tonga. 29 July 2022. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
- ^ Soana Aholelei (23 July 2022). "Tonga Wrestling team make big sacrifices to get to Commonwealth Games". TP+. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
- ^ Zahid Noor (6 August 2022). "Sharif thrashes Vake to storm into CWG Wrestling quarter-final". A Sports. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
External links
[edit]Categories:
- 1991 births
- Living people
- New Zealand sportspeople of Tongan descent
- Sportspeople from Auckland
- Tongan wrestlers
- New Zealand male mixed martial artists
- Mixed martial artists utilizing wrestling
- Commonwealth Games competitors for Tonga
- Wrestlers at the 2022 Commonwealth Games
- People educated at Kelston Boys' High School
- 21st-century New Zealand sportsmen