Tapout

Screenplay by Dennis Cox, Joel Souza

Synopsis

Tapout is the story of how one man revolutionized the fight game by bringing the ultimate martial arts fighting competition (MMA) from the seedy fight clubs of the Orient to the glitz and glamour of Vegas. On the verge of success he loses it all only to discover his true martial spirit when he gathers a rag tag group of undisciplined fighters together. He takes them from all walks of life and forms an MMA fight team that goes on to challenge America's best. He sets out to win a competition, but ends up on a journey to finding redemption and respect.

Bruce Koppel was one of best Kickboxers around. He was a 10 time world champion and on the verge of becoming a legend. Some of us fight for a living, some of fight to pay the bills; but to Koppel, fighting was his way of life. On one of his trips to the Orient, Koppel ventured into an illegal fight club and saw what was soon to become his obsession: Mixed Martial Arts fighting. He was so intrigued that he went in head first and almost ended up on a stretcher in his first and only mixed martial arts fight, but he was hooked. He saw MMA as the ultimate test of a man's fighting skills. He brought this new form of competition to the US but was castigated for it. He put everything on the line to promote the sport, and on the cusp of breaking through, ended up with nothing but a rotten deal from a two bit hustler who conned him into selling out. Broken and without a penny to his name, Koppel lost everything. Fate smiled upon him when his nemesis challenges him to a bout pitting the reigning championship MMA fighters against anything he could come up with. This challenge made Koppel come face to face with his own demons and would pit him and a rag tag team of fighters against overwhelming odds, betrayal and the mob in a quest to regain his rightful place in the world of martial arts and find redemption. 

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