Last month, Cellar kickboxers Sam Bailey and Katie Locken traveled to Santiago, Chile to compete in the prestigious WAKO Pan-American Championships alongside Team USA. Both fighters represented our gym and Team USA with high-level performances and some great results!

Katie Locken fought a rematch against a strong opponent from Team Canada. After a very close first round with lots of action from both fighters, Katie swept the second round with powerful low kicks and head-snapping punches to secure the lead. Unfortunately, her opponent came out very strong in the third round to just barely edge out the score. Katie lost a close judges’ decision, but this was an incredible fight and a valuable building opportunity.

Sam Bailey faced a tough and explosive fighter from Brazil in his first fight of the tournament. After dealing with some adversity, Sam used exceptional range and feints to set up his combinations and low kicks. He won the fight by decision and moved into the semi-finals against a skilled and technical fighter from Mexico. Sam used tiny angles, feints, level changes, and unpredictable attacks to disrupt his opponent’s game plan and secure a big win by unanimous decision.

In the finals, Sam’s opponent from Canada wanted to brawl, but Sam landed great kicks and punches and was able to evade any real dangers. He won the fight with a major lead on points and secured the WAKO Pan-American gold medal in the -67kg K1 division. Congratulations, Sam!