Cage fighting, a contact sport where almost anything goes, has lead one Palo Alto student to the pros.

Vince “The Sniper from the Tower” Libardi has been fighting since the age of eight, when he started as a kick boxer. Watching Ultimate Fighting Championships as a child, Libardi was influenced and knew what he wanted to do in life. He received third place in the state at the age of 11.

Libardi started cage fighting at the age of 15. Cage fighting is a 9-minute contact sport with 3-minute rounds inside an octagon cage. For each fight, Libardi receives $1,000. Libardi is 20 years old and weighs 155 pounds, which is considered lightweight. He is training for an upcoming fight this May.

Palo Alto Freshman Vince Libardi lifts a dumbbell to bulk up for his upcoming pay-per-view fight on May 6 at the Will Rogers Coliseum in Dallas, Texas. Photo by Isaac Griego

“I’m training, but you’re never really ready for a fight simply because that guy’s training, too. You may look at his tapes from his last fight and see one type of style he was doing. He might have been an aggressor or a ground guy, but his stand up might have got a little bit better. So no matter what, you’re never really prepared for a fight. You’re only ready to go to a fight,” said Libardi, a freshman Kinesiology major.

Besides his heavy freshman load, Vince’s training takes up most of his time Monday through Friday. On Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, he trains at his dad’s gym. Tuesdays and Thursdays, he trains at Texas Power House.

“It’s kind of a downer because you go from 4,000 peoplein a crowd cheering to being in a quiet class;

it’s kind of hard to escape from that reality. It’s just hard to find time now that I’ve gone pro. It’s kind of hard to find time to get stuff done, but I try to make it work,” he said.

Libardi also trains others younger than himself in his spare time. “I don’t get them involved in cage fighting. My realm of knowledge is really in striking. I just do the cage fighting on the side for extra cash. For the kids, it’s just straight up kick boxing.”

As of now, Libardi is fighting for Renegades Extreme Fighting and also International Freestyle Fighting. His record includes four wins and two losses that include his amateur and pro fights. One of those losses was a decision that Vince thought should have gone his way. Libardi has only had one big injury while cage fighting.

“I got caught in an arm bar in one of my fights, and when I pulled out, I dislocated my shoulder, so they had to stop it. But that was when I was an amateur,” he said.

Before a fight, Libardi shaves his head so that when he’s on the ground with his opponent, he can rub his head on his opponent’s face to irritate their skin. Then, when he’s ready, Libardi throws a punch or elbow shot to open a wound.

Libardi said that you have to be an exciting fighter to bring people out to see you fight. Pretty much anything goes in cage fighting, except for hair pulling, eye gauging, fish hooking, head butting, groin punching and biting. A fighter wins when he knocks out his opponent, when an opponent taps out, or when the judge rules in the fighter’s favor.

“Try to live life to the fullest, because without cage fighting, I’m nothing man,” said Libardi. He feels cage fighting is everything to him and plans to keep on fighting until his body gives out.

Libardi has made friends at Palo Alto.

“Vince is a great friend. He’s a great guy,” said Skylar Aum, a freshman Criminal Justice major. “When he first told me he was a cage fighter, it took me back, because how many cage fighters do you know in your life? He talks to me about his fights and everything. It’s kind of surprising for him to be going every month or so traveling and fighting all over the place. It’s cool to have a friend like that.”

Other friends at Palo Alto also think he’s a cool guy to be around.

“I think it’s pretty cool. I mean he actually does something a lot of people don’t want to do. It’s good for him, because it helps get his anger out. He’s a good friend. You get to see the other side of cage fighting, not just the violence. It’s actually a job,” said Jacob Rivas, a sophomore Computer Science major.

Libardi has two upcoming fights. One on May 6, 2006, in Dallas, at the Will Rogers Coliseum where he will be fighting Cole Miller, and another on June 17, 2006, where he will be fighting Steve Garcia for the title belt at the Toyota Center in Houston.