There were no jokes, but plenty of great sport and entertainment this 1 April in Aruba when the tiny paradise island in the Caribbean hosted the Madness Fighting event which featured 11 professional MMA bouts, shining a light on this great sport.

Under the watchful eyes of some of the well-known names in the MMA community including referee Herb Dean and champions Rashad Evans and Jarred Brooks, the event didn’t disappoint. 

The event was made possible thanks to the invaluable contribution of martial arts pioneer RoonyBoye and MMA Aruba President Rygell Boye who joined forces to ensure everything was a success.

Speaking about the event and what it means to him personally, Roony Boye explained where his passion comes from, “Martial arts represents a big element of my life. It has been a long and amazing journey. I started with Kyokushin Karate and lived in the Netherlands for 20 years studying at the Chakuriki Gym and many others, before I fully embraced the latest evolution of combat sports which is MMA. I was there when GAMMA began, staging its first World Championships in Singapore, and ever since I have been spreading its vision and values across my beloved country where I’ve also helped my older son Rygell to build and develop our National MMA Federation which is recognised by GAMMA.

The Madness Fighting event has been an amazing opportunity as part of the development plans of GAMMA in the region ahead of the upcoming debut of our Federation in Nicaragua at the first Central American Championships.”