John Vake

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.

John Vake
Personal information
Full nameJohn Taufa Vake
Born15 June 1991[1]
Auckland, New Zealand[1]
Height183 cm (6 ft 0 in)[1]
Sport
Country Tonga
SportWrestling

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]

References
  1. "John Vake". Tapology. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
  2. Jackson Thomas (31 March 2017). "'I'm gonna knock you out'". Stuff. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
  3. "Guns of MMA go for shot at glory". New Zealand Herald. 25 September 2012. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
  4. Torika Tokalau (5 September 2018). "At risk youths turn to mixed martial arts to save them". Stuff. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
  5. "'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.
  6. "Tonga competes in six sports at 2022 Commonwealth Games". Matangi Tonga. 29 July 2022. Retrieved 30 July 2022.
  7. Soana Aholelei (23 July 2022). "Tonga Wrestling team make big sacrifices to get to Commonwealth Games". TP+. Retrieved 7 August 2022.
  8. Zahid Noor (6 August 2022). "Sharif thrashes Vake to storm into CWG Wrestling quarter-final". A Sports. Retrieved 7 August 2022.


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