Ultimate Glory: 2010-2011 World Series Finals (/2011

Oh man - true story. Did you know that this tape came back with Mike Miller in his checked bag? Its true. I'm posting that story because no one ever reads this blog in spite of it being practically out in the open, and so its worth noting. More about that in a second. This show features the finals of the United Glory welterweight MMA tourney and then SO MUCH MORE. And by so much more, I mean kickboxing. The version on HDNet has Schiavello and Trigg with overdubbed commentary.

1) Igor Jurkovic vs. Pavel Zhuravlev: Heavyweight kickboxing madness. I'm sure it'll suck but whatever.

FIGHT: Jurkovic KO Rnd 2. Not a very action packed round but Zhuravlev seems to be looking to take a seat on the canvas. Jurkovic helps him by popping him hard early in the second and breaking both his nose and will to fight. Well, not that it even existed early on.

2) Denis Stojnic vs. Mlanden Kujundzic: Stojnic kinda sucks and looks like a roided up European guy. Probably because he is. The other guy is some random Croatian coming in on 2 days notice. Who is? I have no idea.

FIGHT: Stojnic Submission Rnd 1. Ugly grappling fight with both guys pursuing takedowns, no one really getting one except for Stojnic early in the round, and otherwise its all about Stojnic stopping Kujundzic's lousy singles, getting on top, and going for things. There's attempts for heel hooks and chokes and stuff and eventually he uses a head crank to get a RNC sinched in and forces a tap. (1)

3) Errol Zimmerman vs. Mourad Bouzidi: Bouzidi is a aging journeyman who is well skilled and Zimmerman is a lazy but talented kickboxer who should be a lot more than what he is.

FIGHT: Zimmerman Unanimous Decision. Lazy fight from Zimmerman who drops Bouzidi twice with hooks as Bouzidi comes forward, but Zimmerman puts in no serious attempt at ending this fight or even throwing punches most of the time. He looks a bit soft - apparently not training much and fucking Thai chicks is his routine these days. Good for him and shit, but man, he could be so much more.

4) Mark Miller vs. Nicolaj Falin: A little bird who told me the story about Miller bringing the show back in his luggage also was the one who booked him for this show. I guess I won't name him in case anyone actually does see this, but you can probably guess who that is. Anyhow, apparently Golden Glory cheap out on airfare, so Miller ended up taking a wild number of connections to get to Moscow and had a bunch of flights cancel on him. Yikes. But he got there and his luggage arrived with him (along with Mighty Mo) - I guess that would be extra important since he needed the bag to bring back footage for airing in the US. Oh, and another BTW: Get on Golden Glory's case about visas that way you don't have to call Brazilian Godfathers up to help make things happen.

FIGHT: Miller TKO Rnd 1. Most everyone knows about this already because it was a big news story in the MMA blogs. Miller came back from heart surgery and won in about 8 seconds landing a overhand right over a lazy right from Falin that he landed with his eyes closed. Can't do that buddy.

5) Mighty Mo vs. Sergei Kharitonov: Sergei had the big win in the SF tourney, but this bout is a kickboxing fight. Why? I have no idea. Would be better as a MMA fight. Less risk. But then I'm not managing these guys careers, am I? Mo is super fat. Sergei is soft too.

FIGHT: Kharitonov TKO Rnd 1. Man, this was sorta shameful. Kharitonov was hit a couple of times, but that's not really the story. The story is that Sergei did a terrible job using his height advantage, kept going inside with the smaller man and nullifying that advantage, and then won with an uppercut that laid Mo out.

6) Zabid Samedov vs. Ali Cenik: Kickboxing bout with Samedov being a guy notorious for being boring.

FIGHT: Draw. Boring as expected. Samedov probably deserved the decision and this would have gone to a sudden death round in K-1. Oh well. Both guys are small heavyweights and threw a lot of leg kicks. Samedov also ran a lot. The end.

7) Jason Jones vs. Shamil Abdulmuslimov: Jones I'm familiar with from a number of fights over the years. He was a favorite of M-1 for a time, actually. Abdulmuslimov probably fought there too but I can't remember him. Similar W-L records in terms of success.

FIGHT: Jones TKO Rnd 3. Not the most exciting fight. Some back and forth positioning battle BS with Jones often getting takedowns and then getting swept or turned over, and on the bottom he doesn't do a whole lot. Then again, Abdulmuslimov doesn't do much from the top position either. This pattern continues on and on until a standup due to inactivity in Round 3 - Abdulmuslimov shoots for the legs and eats a knee in the face from Jones. He's out cold. (0)

8) Nieky Holzken vs. Artur Kyshenko: This is a really good kickboxing fight among people in K-1 Max classes.

FIGHT: Kyshenko Unanimous Decision. Kyshenko outworks Holzken, lands a good mix of techniques, puffs up Holzken's eye, and so on.

9) Tommy Depret vs. Siyar Bahadurzada: And the finals of the welterweight tourney are at hand. AK-47 looks so old. He probably is!

FIGHT: Bahadurzada KO Rnd 2. Honestly, Bahadurzada looked not that great here. He got on top a couple times and actually pounded Depret out on the mat in the second after dropping him, but his mouth was open early in the second and he was getting landed on a bunch from Depret, who's a lousy striker. Doesn't look at that big as a welterweight either. Depret looked better than he often does, giving Siyar a serious run for his money before gassing out entirely. (2)

10) Gohkan Saki vs. Brice Guidon: Finals of the GG Heavyweight tourney in kickboxing. Saki's a legit talent of course.

FIGHT: Saki Unanimous Decision. He outworks Guidon, who still arm punches his way through fights with no real gumption or effort to win. Saki just cruises, drops Guidon early too.

FIGHT OF THE NIGHT: Bahadurzada/Depret

KO OF THE NIGHT: Jones/Abdulmuslimov

OVERALL FOR THE EVENT: As an MMA event, 3 out of 10. Just a couple bad fights. Siyar should have punched his ticket to a big show, but he won't last there.

D&R Rating: 20% (3/15) for the MMA portion.

Titan Fighting Championships 18 (3/26/2011)

More Titan FC from Kansas City. Watching this made me realize I forgot to watch the last DREAM show. Ooops! Been busy for months.

1) Sean Wilson vs. Deryck Ripley: Battle of irrelevant fighters with bad records: Wilson is 27-15. Ripley 11-19.

FIGHT: Wilson Submission Rnd 1. Kinda goes like you might expect. Wilson gets taken down early but sweeps and starts looking for various locks. He drops for a toe hold and rolls into the lock getting the submission. (0)

2) Joe Wilk vs. Jesse Zeugin: Wilk comes out to the Degeneration X theme.

FIGHT: Wilk Submission Rnd 1. Grinds on Zeugin, gets him down, beats him up, takes the D'arce when Zeugin gives him the head and neck and finishes it. Not much to really say about this. Crowd is all hyped up. Wilk seems to be a decent wrestler. Can't say anything about his stand up. I don't think he's big for the weight class, which could be a problem. (0)

3) Nick Budig vs. Bobby Cooper: Bobby Cooper I have some familiarity with from prior shows. Budig is 5-1 and I know nothing about him.

FIGHT: Cooper Unanimous Decision. Okay, so Cooper beats the hell out of Budig, who has a lot of heart and is much smaller (this is a 175lb catchweight fight, so I can guess who is coming up). But Budig is very wild coming in, doesn't set stuff up, just throws wild right leads or looping left hooks, and ends up taking a lot of punches and kicks as a result. By round 2, he has an eye closed and he's limping in the 3rd. To Budig's credit, he has guts and keeps on coming. He does land on Cooper too, who doesn't move that well in the early going and only seems to pick up lateral movement as Budig slows. Cooper's hands are slow though, and he holds them low, so I think he probably gets trashed when he moves up another level in talent. (0)

4) Jared Rosholt vs. Kirk Grinlinton: Jared Rosholt is a heavyweight and a big ass wrestler who is young in his MMA career. And he's as good a wrestler as his brother. Grinlinton is 2-2. Both look a little "soft" but that's really a way of saying "natural". Also - he's sponsored by U-Haul! I love it.

FIGHT: Rosholt TKO Rnd 1. Seems like Rosholt takes his time and lets Grinlinton get a moment to test his standup ability. Then he shoots the double, gets the takedown, and beats the hell out of his opponent. Just work and experience. Grinlinton didn't keep his distance or commit to shots and got taken down off a left hook. (1)

5) Darryl Cobb vs. Rudy Bears: Rudy Bears I've seen getting drubbed in second tier shows for a long time. Cobb I don't have familiarity with. He did beat Gary Tapusoa who I know.

FIGHT: Bears Submission Rnd 1. Bears and Cobb stand and trade a little - Both guys have their chin up so its a question of who gets cracked first - Cobb does and he drops from a right hand. Bears almost locks in a RNC from a weird side position, but Cobb wriggles out. He's still buzzed, Bears actually gets the back control again, and gets it with a second attempt. (0)

6) Jake Rosholt vs. John Ott: Ott got this fight because he survived a fight with Bobby Lashley. Rosholt was in the UFC or WEC or something and got dropped because he got his ass beat. Oh well.

FIGHT: Ott DQ Rnd 3. What a joke. Ott is beaten senseless for 14 minutes in a fight that should have been stopped for brutal, brutal cuts all over his face that he clearly could not see through and threatened his career. Rosholt actually lets off the gas after that, but Ott finds his way into a knee when he's got a point down and, oh, big surprise, he can't continue. Rosholt loses by DQ and Ott probably should be seriously looked at before getting licensed again. Rosholt didn't really set up the takedowns at all and in the first, Ott actually put his head down and inside, apparently forgetting that he was about to get dragged down and mounted. Mediocrity all around. (1)

7) Brian Davidson vs. Jens Pulver: Jens against a guy with an above .500 record. I know how this story goes.

FIGHT: Davidson Submission Rnd 1. So the internet will argue that Pulver only got submitted. If you didn't watch the fight, that is your take. He gave up the neck because he was turtling from punches to the face, and he spent most of the short fight on wobbly legs or getting hit. He got a nice takedown early but can't pull the trigger on ANYTHING on the mat. Davidson looks good beating a shot wrestler, but its still a shot wrestler. (2)

FIGHT OF THE NIGHT: Cobb/Bears

KO OF THE NIGHT: Rosholt/Grinlinton

SUBMISSION OF THE NIGHT: Wilk/Zeugin

OVERALL FOR THE EVENT: 4 out of 10. Lots of scrubby fighting, but at least it was short thanks to the stoppages. I feel like there's another Josh Hendricks type heavyweight that made his TV debut here, a failed prospect, and a sad old shot fighter. Not much beyond that.

D&R Rating 11% (4/35)

MFC 29 (4/10/2011)

We've got the debut of MFC in a proper round cage and also their debut in Ontario as they ran a show at the Caesars Windsor Ballroom. We've got Terry Martin, Hermes Franca, Ryan Jimmo, Pete Spratt, and Marcus Davis. Yes indeedy, this is gonna be a quality second rate show. I hope. Or not.

1) Andreas Spang vs. Ali Mokdad: Mokdad is a local boy from Windsor, Spang is Swedish but training in Vegas. No idea who either is.

FIGHT: Mokdad Submission Rnd 1. Mokdad gets the clinch, the takedown, takes the back when Spang tries to stand, and we have a KOTC special. (0)

2) Demi Deeds vs. Pete Spratt: Spratt is a legend who has never been in a bad fight. Ever. It should be noted that Spratt is now 40 years old. Both men are coming in on two loss slides.

FIGHT: Spratt Submission Rnd 2. Tough fight to break down. In effect, you have a very dull first round in which Spratt establishes the distance as well as the ability to get up from Deeds' takedowns and/or defend the shot. Deeds comes straight in, offers no angles, and doesn't really set anything up well and gets raked with punches at the end of the round for his trouble, along with low kicks. The theme continues in round 2, Spratt hurts him badly with a right hand and has to go chasing Deeds around the cage until he falls down. Spratt continues the battering there and then moves to an armbar from side control to force the tap. This is at least the second time that I can remember Frank Trigg being all wowed that Spratt does have submissions. Too bad they only work against crappy fighters. Spratt notes that he's getting old in the post fight interview. (2)

3) Robert Washington vs. Hermes Franca: Washington was on MFC 28 which I neglected to do a review of (but will soon). Franca has been on a tail spin in recent years. Now 36 (officially), he's won only one fight in his last 5, with one of the bouts being a "should be a win" sort of result against Ferrid Kheder.

FIGHT: Franca TKO Rnd 2. Horrible first round where both guys stand at distance and feel each other out. Washington tries to move his body around and throw jabs and stuff to set up his punches, but doesn't really do a good job of it. Its pretty predictable that he throws one jab and then the right hand and when he's going to close the distance. Franca times him jumping in with a looping right and Washington drops and takes a few more shots before the fight is stopped. Nothing to get excited about for anyone involved. (2)

4) Marcus Davis vs. Curtis DeMarce: Davis has fallen so, so far. From welterweight top 15 fighter in the UFC to a guy scrapping with generic lightweights on small casino shows in the course of about 36 months.

FIGHT: Davis Split Decision (2)

DeMarce: Not going to do a lot of breaking down on him because, hey, does he really matter? Some attempts at takedowns, not very good standing compared to Davis (as expected), but more often than not taken down himself or would lose position. He does damage Davis with what is said to be an elbow on the mat from the bottom, but honestly I thought it was a butt. Whatever. No biggie. You want to hear about Davis, right?

Davis: Davis fought this bout like a man trying to reinvent himself for the long run. Problem #1: That should have happened 5-6 years ago when he was in his physical prime. Problem #2: He's not that effective in doing it here against a nobody. Davis fights rounds 1 and the first half of roun 2 as a top control grappler who lies in half guard or guard and lands shots. That is astonishing to see from a guy who used to chase $50K/60K bonuses instead of wins like they were 6 figure paydays. In round 1, he clearly succeeds. In round 2, the cut that forms early on leads to a standup, and as a result of that, DeMarce comes forward and gets his own takedown. This is part of the problem of being a top control grappler - if you aren't the better wrestler, it doesn't really work as a long term plan. Yes, Davis sorta helps the matter by going for a guillotine, and yes, Davis then proceeds to shrimp and turn over and take top control on DeMarce. But this happens again and again as Davis continues to go for low kicks and knees and other strikes that are stupid to throw against a guy who is trying to wrestle you down. Especially when your hands are a million times better than the other guy's and landing at will.

My takeaways from the fight regarding Davis are this: His legs are shot. You can see it in his lack of real bounce in the ring. It looks like they're not really under him anymore and that everything he does has fragility. If you are a striker primarily and your legs are shot, your career is kaput-ski. Obviously Davis has tried to then transition to a different game, but its not really his game. And he did it far, far too late. He's not getting back to the big show and if he does, its on the basis of a Phil Baroni because he's broke and its the UFC's way of giving alms to the poor old fighters that broke down fighting for them to give them not much money in an attempt to be George Foremans and Randy Coutures.

5) Ryan Jimmo vs. Zak Cummings: Cummings is a balding grappler who is fighting above his best weight against a guy who is much, much bigger than him. Cummings also is a lousy striker, which makes the task even more difficult. Meanwhile, the MFC and HDNet continue to prop up Jimmo, one of the most boring fighters in the game. They note his 14 wins in a row coming in and compare it to guys like Jake Shields and Anderson Silva, who have beaten live bodies. 5 rounder for the MFC LHW title.

FIGHT: Jimmo Unanimous Decision. Impossible to reasonably breakdown on the basis of the fighters. (2)

Cummings comes forward with chopping right hand leads and shots and Jimmo defends them by going backwards and leaning on the cage. Sometimes Jimmo throws body kicks or low kicks. He throws about 3 right hands the whole fight. Both men are bleeding - Jimmo from a headbutt that occurs inside the first 30 seconds, Cummings from a punch to the face. Jimmo wins by inflicting actual damage on his opponent, particularly when he reverses position and ends up on top in the 3rd and 4th round landing blows and seeking kimuras.

This gets to a bigger point to make here and its about Jimmo. Boxing fans know who Jameel McCline is. He was a converted football player turned heavyweight boxer who nearly won the IBF heavyweight title in a fight against best friend Chris Byrd and came to prominence with an early KO of Michael Grant way, way back (2002? 2003?). Anyhow, I remember a poster on rec.sport.boxing saying that he hated Grant because in spite of being a huge beast of a man and being so athletic, he fought like a pussy. He never sat on his punches, leading to an abnormally low KO rate for a man his size. Here was a giant of a man who slap boxed guys he should have walked through.

Jimmo has similarities. He is this huge hulking dude who still has trouble being controlled by wrestlers much smaller than him, or at least in terms of them nullifying his offense. That's problematic. More problematic is his style. Again, huge dude, has power, what does he do? He sits on the outside and throws leg kicks. He still can't time dudes coming in to land shots, his lateral movement still isn't very good, and when dudes shoot in, he can't force them down to the mat himself and beat the shit out of them. I mean, if you can control how the grappling exchanges go, you win fights. Instead, he is a victim of wall and stall time and time again. And he sucks at avoiding punches. He leaves his chin out. 15 wins in a row is great, but man, who does he beat at 205 in the UFC? I'm clueless. I hate to say it, but give him Eliot Marshall in his next MFC fight and go from there.

6) Douglas Lima vs. Terry Martin: YOUR MAIN EVENT. MFC welterweight title is on the line.

FIGHT: Lima TKO Rnd 1. I'm shocked immediately by the size differential. Lima is two weight classes larger than Martin, who himself was actually a light heavyweight at one time. I know at that point that I had made the oh-so-wrong pick when predicting this fight. Lima catches Martin coming forward with a right hand, he drops to a knee, takes a couple more punches, and its waived off. Martin is washed up to the max. He looks like he needs to seriously consider 155 or retiring. (2)

FIGHT OF THE NIGHT: Davis/Demarce

KO OF THE NIGHT: Lima/Martin

SUBMISSION OF THE NIGHT: Spratt/Deeds

OVERALL FOR THE SHOW: 5 out of 10. There's some terrifically bad, some kinda interesting, some utterly lousy and soul crushing. This is minor league MMA defined; lots of ex UFC contenders who got somewhere short of the top fighting in a casino ballroom for scraps against no-names. None of them come out looking much better for it.

D&R Rating: 33% (10/30)

Ultimate Glory 13: 2010-2011 World Series Second Round (3/19/2011)

1) Hidouche Lahoucine vs. Allan Gozdizky: Kickboxing bout. Very evenly matched fight with both guys doing some wild stuff (Lahoucine throws a leaping spinning roundhouse in the first!) though it gets real sloppy in the third and Gozdizky gets a yellow card for rough play and gets kneed in the balls shortly thereafter. The yellow card is the deciding factor in the close fight.

2) Nicky Covin vs. Uriel Albamonte: Dudes. Covin is the crowd favorite.

FIGHT: Albamonte Submission Rnd 1. Not much to tell about this fight - Covin comes out swinging, grabs Albamonte, and slams him down. When there, Albamonte has full guard, closes it, and goes for a guillotine. Covin taps, and the fight is over in 45 seconds. (0)

3) Filip Verlinden vs. Frederic Sinistra: Kickboxing bout at heavyweight. Filip Verlinden outworks Sinistra and actually does a decent job keeping distance. Sinistra comes out with the heavy punching style that you expect from a Samoan in K-1 style competition and basically never even attempts to check kicks. Instead, he moves his head and comes forward looking to catch Verlinden moving straight back with punches. Even when Verlinden gets against the ropes, he never allows the big punch to land.

4) Omar Samb vs. Kriss Larcin: Another MMA bout. Both guys are local.

FIGHT: Larcin TKO Rnd 1. Basic KOTC special with Larcin beating the hell out of Samb in the mount until he turns over and gives up the RNC. (0)

5) David Kyrya vs. Robin Van Roosmalen: Kickboxing bout I sorta paid some attention to. Roosmalen wins a decision and basically works over Kyrya with combinations and such, though none of the blows were really devastating. Just decent surgical kickboxing. Kyrya wasn't that bad either.

6) Nicolaj Falin vs. Nathan an't Hoft: More kickboxers. Falin wins a decision and basically beat the hell out of Hoft. Not a bad fight or anything. Just not great.

7) Danny Covyn vs. Sebastian Thirion: MMA bout! Yay!

FIGHT: Thirion Submission Rnd 1. Covyn jumps for a guillotine after about 6 seconds if standup action. He doesn't get it, Thirion gets out of the full guard, and works with strikes to get separation. Once he does, he goes for a leg lock and switches from a heel hook to knee bar to get the tap. (0)

8) Errol Zimmerman vs. Zinedine Hameur Lain: Kickboxing contest. Zimmerman breaks Lain with a high kick that he tries to check with the arm, and Lain just lays across the top rope and waits for the ref to stop it. Beatdown. Not even competitive.

9) Frederic Hainni vs. Bob Van Boxmeer: More kickboxing. Hainni wins a kickboxing contest that was kinda awkward with both guys pushing a lot and that ends with a decision following a headbutt.

10) Nicky Holzen vs. Carlos Tavares: Kickboxing match. Holzen works head and body, and Tavares ends up leaving his hands low and gets KOed hard.

11) Brice Guidon vs. Mourad Bouzidi: Semi finals of the heavyweight kickboxing tournament. Bouzidi is a gatekeeper of a lower level than Guidon. Decent matchup on paper that favors the larger Guidon and he delivers with a surprising show of power from a guy known for arm punching and decisions. He lands a strong right hand to a overly aggressive Bouzidi and drops, leading to the end of the fight in the second.

12) John Alessio vs. Siyar Bahadurzada: Welterweight tournament in MMA, round 2. Bas Rutten and mystery announcer make note of a serious difference in size.

FIGHT: Bahadurzada TKO Rnd 1. Alessio never really shoots the whole fight, getting tagged by Siyar behind the ear about a minute in and being on retreat from that point forwards. He takes a lot of knees to the head and arms but never thinks to take a knee or a point down just to get out of it. Poor guy. Bahadurzada is in tears and misses his recently deceased coach. (2)

13) Tommy Depret vs. Roan Carniero: Depret and Carniero should be on different levels, but Depret is the company boy. What happens here?

FIGHT: Depret Submission Rnd 1. Carniero has no respect for Depret's guard and pays with a straight armbar. There's not a lot to it aside from that. Carniero wants the ground, gets it, and loses. Oops. Depret some how makes it to the finals in spite of being the worst fighter on paper in the entire tournament. Well, aside from the last minute replacement of Derrick Noble. (2)

14) Wendell Roche vs. Gokhan Saki: MAIN EVENT. Also a HW semifinal.

FIGHT: Saki Unanimous Decision. Basically, Saki lands a ton of stuff on Roche, who plays the part of sparring partner. Excitement comes very late when something (what precisely, is not discovered) causes Saki's right eye to swell shut in about 5 seconds. Roche responds by not doing anything, especially not throwing left hand punches that might win him the fight. Did I mention above that this event was held in Belgium because Dutch authorities don't like the ties with organized crime the promotion may have? So yeah.

FIGHT OF THE NIGHT: Lahoucine/Gozdizky

KO OF THE NIGHT: Bahadurzada/Alessio

SUBMISSION OF THE NIGHT: Depret/Carniero

OVERALL FOR THE EVENT: 3.5 out of 10. If you are really hyped about kickboxing, you may get something out of this show. Its not the most important kickboxing show ever, but....uhh...okay, its not the most important kickboxing show ever. As far as MMA is concerned, not really any can't miss fights. Bahadurzada got most of the coverage afterwards and that was deserved, but as far as MMA action goes, yeah, you can do better elsewhere.

D&R Rating (MMA bouts only): 16% (4/25)

Shark Fights 14 (3/11/2010)

Exactly 7 months after their last show, Shark Fights returns with new management/ownership and a TV deal. Really important women's bout on the card along with an entertaining middleweight contest. Same generic music being used for the walkouts as KOTC. The poster looks like a KOTC poster. Imitation, flattery, you know the drill.

1) Joseph Sandoval vs. Sean Shakour: Some prospects at bantam.

FIGHT: Sandoval Unanimous Decision. (0)

Sandoval: So the positives first - he's not bad when the fight hits the mat. He can get sweeps and survive bad positions. He also has a good gas tank - he basically outlasts Shakour here. The problem is just that though. Sandoval is taken down repeatedly with takedowns from way, way outside in the first two rounds. I mean, we're talking 6-7 feet out. Sure, he stops a takedown in the third and beats up Shakour as a result, but that's only because he was better conditioned. A superior top control grappler may wear him out and take an easy decision.

Shakour: Good shot. Striking doesn't really exist. Doesn't have a game off his back, like a lot of newer wrestlers. His finishing ability is not that good - he has Sandoval's back twice and can't make anything happen. So green. So, so green.

2) Layne Hernandez vs. Gabe Vasquez: 3 minute rounds.

FIGHT: Vasquez Submission Rnd 3. (0)

Vasquez: Dude likes crazy kicks. He lands one in the second round. Most of the time though, he gets taken down as a result of them. He has to fight for submissions here and there and has little luck until catching Hernandez with an arm-in guillotine in the third round after being taken down. This is why he's 3-2.

Hernandez: Can shoot. Has no standup. Decent at top control and wins the first two rounds by laying on his opponent. He's forced to stand up a couple times though due to inactivity, and it seems like every time it happened, he was seriously afraid.

3) Alex Cisne vs. Eric Davila: Davila beat Pete Spratt in a stunning upset after an (unintentional?) headbutt hurt Spratt.

FIGHT: Davila TKO Rnd 3 (1)

Cisne: Its really simple - yeah, he has a decent base of skills. Yeah, he is entertaining to watch. But you look at him physically next to the lumpy Davila - his chest is smaller, his shoulders aren't as wide, his torso as a whole is smaller, his legs are smaller. He's small for the weight class, and when you are like that, you gotta work hard to push guys around in the clinch or to stay on top of them. He does that and is running on fumes halfway through the second. By the third, his mouth is open, his hands are down, and he's squared up. You can practically feel his arms being tired out and feeling like limp noodles. Either he moves down, bulks up, or hopes for a new weight class to be made for him.

Davila: "Big Head" wins because he is comfortable fighting and because he can mitigate damage done to him. Technically he is nothing special, but the mental game is so important you can't ignore it. When you have the confidence that you can take the best the opponent can offer and come back with twice as much punishment, and you have the technical ability to make it happen, you're gonna be a challenge for fighters.

4) Lucas Lopes vs. Mike Bronzoulis: Lopes I've seen only once in a fight at Jungle Fight 1. There is a t-shirt with a LOU SAVARESE quote. How do I know? IT SAYS LOU SAVARESE SAID IT.

FIGHT: Bronzoulis Unanimous Decision. Close fight. (0)

Lopes: Honestly, Lopes looked great in the first. Well, great for being Lopes. He's a lot bigger of a guy. Very tall. But he ran out of gas in the first and ends up eating right hands and knees throughout the second and third en route to losing the decision. He was a better grappler than Bronzoulis as well.

Bronzoulis: The Greek doesn't really do anything to throw off Lopes' timing. No movement, he runs straight back when Lopes comes forward, etc etc etc. Bronzoulis admits he has middling talent and technique and comes to scrap. Why sit here and argue with the guy?

5) Tara LaRosa vs. Carina Damm: LaRosa is maybe the best women's fighter ever. Ever! Damm is good, but on a losing stretch.

FIGHT: LaRosa Submission Rnd 2. Damm is scared to engage standing and is happy to get the clinch in this fight because she can get the takedown and work. But as soon as she's in mount, she's bucked off, and LaRosa spends over 3 minutes in top control. In the second, she comes straight at Damm and Damm folds and drops to her butt looking for a desperation leg lock. LaRosa isn't being extended or figure four'd, so she does it to Damm instead and locks in an inverted heel hook. (4)

6) Matt Horwich vs. Danillo Villefort: Main event, but not for a title, sadly.

FIGHT: Villefort Unanimous Decision (2)

Villefort: Good win. He didn't wilt under the pressure of Horwich (who was there all night) and that was important. As was expected, he's a far mroe dynamic striker than Horwich and as far as grappling goes, he's at least as good or better. He had some great throws. If you want to complain, there's are some things to look at. His lateral movement stopped after the first round. Did he get tired? Maybe. But he stopped moving and giving angles and Horwich closed the distance. Against Horwich, that is something that can be forgiven. Against a big wrestler like, I dunno, Chael Sonnen, its not an option.

Horwich: He fights like a robotic Matt Lindland, except now with 100% more submission skill. Of course he isn't as good a wrestler as Lindland, but he sure has a better chin, and that's almost as important.

FIGHT OF THE NIGHT: Hernandez/Vasquez

KO OF THE NIGHT: Davila/Cisne

SUBMISSION OF THE NIGHT: Hernandez/Vasquez

OVERALL FOR THE EVENT: 4 out of 10. This was not mindblowing bad but it wasn't very good either. Highlight is most definitely the women's bout.

D&R Rating: 23% (7/30)

King of the Cage: Bad Boys Too (4/12/2010)

I very nearly went to this card, thinking that the top two fights when originally promoted looked good (Joe Doerkson/Jeremy Horn and Ron Sparks/RAY MERCER) were interesting enough. And then the fights were cancelled and I was glad I wasn't going. This event is being telecast from Cobo Arena in Detroit. THE VOICE~ and Triggonomics announce for HDNet.

1) Brandon Hunt vs. Brad Burrick: This is the THIRD fight between the two, and the end of a trilogy no one noticed. Burrick is much bigger.

FIGHT: Round one is all Burrick; Hunt consistently goes for takedowns and gets stuffed and beaten up for his trouble of trying the single. In round two, Hunt comes forward and catches Burrick with his chin up moving in the wrong direction. Huge KO. Not a great fight. Impressive comeback I suppose though, because this was totally one sided up until the KO. (0)

2) Steve Berger vs. Waylon Lowe: Fought at a catchweight of 165.

FIGHT: Lowe TKO Rnd 1. Berger has been around the game a long time and looks shop worn and shot here. Lowe just comes forward whipping bombs and Berger moves straight back into them until eventually being laid out on his back, completely unconscious. Berger had a horrible time just leaving his lead hand out after jabbing. (1)

3) Jason Holmes vs. Daron Cruickshank: Uhhh, dudes at welter.

FIGHT: Cruickshank Unanimous Decision. Cruickshank is a wrestleboxer who likes to use unorthodox techniques like spinning back fists and side kicks. He's not bad, just a little small for welterweight at 5'8'' and he doesn't seem to have a lot of KO power given how often he landed on the lumpy Holmes without stopping him or really hurting him. He had some decent takedowns and a couple sub attempts, and seems capable of at least showing up in the UFC once. (1)

4) Dom O'Grady vs. David Shepherd: Lightweight contest. Both guys have good size for the division, standing at 6'. Almost equal for age and reach, the big difference is that O'Grady is much more experienced.

FIGHT: Dom O'Grady Submission Rnd 2. Shepherd gets taken down a couple times by O'Grady in the first round but doesn't really absorb any punishment and ends up going for a couple submission attempts while generally nullifying any serious offense from O'Grady. But the second round was a very different story - O'Grady tags Shepherd early and drops him. O'Grady survives and actually sweeps Shepherd, getting on top and looking to continue from round one. But unlike round one, he's expended a lot of energy and ends up dodging triangle attempts and armbars until he is finally forced to tap late in the round. (0)

5) Chad Herrick vs. Joe Doerkson: I'm kinda over watching Dirty Joe fight. Like, OK, he's old now and is a long time journeyman. Great for him. Herrick is some lug who was pulled out of another fight when Horn pulled out here.

FIGHT: Doerkson Unanimous Decision.

Is this ugly? Sad? Both? Doerkson is clearly past his prime already in his early thirties, having been in too many wars with too many good fighters. Doerkson is sloppy standing and while he wins a slow first round that more or less resembles a sparring session, he does get tagged at the end of the second and goes down off it. He wins because Herrick cannot defend a takedown to save his life and Doerkson gets deep on the double no matter where he shoots from. On the mat, Herrick is a good enough grappler to survive Doerkson's attempts and escape but gets put in the same bad positions of side control and mount and back control over and over and over again. Then, after hurting Doerkson in round 2, Herrick proves that was a fluke by being dropped himself on wide hooks in round 3. (1)

FIGHT OF THE NIGHT: Cruickshank/Holmes

KO OF THE NIGHT: Berger/Lowe

SUBMISSION OF THE NIGHT: O'Grady/Shepherd

OVERALL FOR THE EVENT: 3 out of 10. The worst KOTC show on HDNet by far. Looks like their contract is gone too.

D&R Rating 12.5% (3/25)

Titan Fighting Championships 16 (1/29/2011)

HDNet brings us this card of fun headlined by Tim Sylvia vs. Abe Wagner. The Voice and Trigg are announcing. Ring announcer has jowels and a ridiculous ponytail.

1) Alonzo Martinez vs. Deryck Ripley: Why is this on TV? Live TV? Martinez is a journeyman of a higher caliber than Ripley. Its downright obvious, actually. The records say it: 11-18 vs. 28-12-2.

FIGHT: Martinez Submission Rnd 2. Squash that went longer than it should have because the guy doing the squash isn't quite good enough to make it really short. Ripley's stand up isn't very good and he eats repeated hard punches that put him down. On the mat, Ripley has "really good technical jiujitsu" in so much as he is able to roll from position to position and not get finished while he's totally dominated. Eventually we get a rear naked choke that should have happened 90 seconds in. (0)

2) Jacob Aiken vs. Anthony Gutierrez: Another fight that I'm baffled by being on TV. Two bantams making debuts. Gutierrez apparently is training with Faber though, so, yeah.

FIGHT: Gutierrez TKO Rnd 1. Aiken likes leg locks! This I know for certain. He gets stacked going for one in the early going after getting a takedown (which he's swept immediately after) and loses it. Aiken keeps going for armbars and gets the CATCH and then gets slammed out over and over again. After another desperation leg lock attempt goes wrong, Gutierrez continues to take control on top and pounds him out with elbows from side control. (1)

3) Bobby Cooper vs. Drew Dober: Who?

FIGHT: Dober Unanimous Decision. Its a simple equation - Dober gets takedowns, Cooper isn't that good working off his back. If you spend the overwhelming majority of the fight on your back, you don't win. Neither guy had particularly notable standup or setups and Dober seemed a little small in this, a catchweight fight of sorts around welterweight. (1)

4) Drew McFedries vs. Gary Tapuosa: Tapuosa is a last minute replacement and is clearly a much smaller man. What he brings to the table is a southpaw stance and Samoan blood.

FIGHT: McFedries TKO Rnd 3. Tapuosa actually confuses McFedries with his stance and we get the worst McFedries fight possible. They stand at distance and jab at one another and occasionally step forward with power shots that miss the target. Tapuosa actually lands one of the strongest shots in the fight during round two, and Drew is shook up. As round 3 drags on, Tapuosa is increasingly tired and taking shots. He eventually turns his back standing and forces the ref to step in. (1)

5) Aaron Derrow vs. Rich Clementi: Another head scratcher. Derrow is a bigger man and this is a fight that was thrown together last minute.

FIGHT: Derrow Submission Rnd 3. A strange bout that shows the hubris of Clementi. He completely dominates Derrow and shows off constantly - throws spinning back fists, kisses his hand before throwing punches through the guard, tossing Derrow around, spending time gesturing to the ref and crowd during submission attempts. You know, stupid things that can cause you to lose. Derrow jumps and pulls guard in the third round (which he had done before in the fight) and Clementi leaves his arm in too long. He gets caught in a triangle choke and doesn't tap, leading to unconsciousness. Derrow admits in the post fight interview that he sucked and got a come from behind win. (1)

6) Jason High vs. Rudy Bears: Bears is a journeyman and High is a guy who has had big wins in Japan as well as crushing defeats.

FIGHT: High Submission Rnd 1. Not much of a fight. High gets an early double, postures up, and Bears scrambles right into an arm in guillotine that he taps to. (2)

7) Abe Wagner vs. Tim Sylvia: The main event. And what a main event it was. Abe Wagner was in one of the worst televised heavyweight fights ever. Tim Sylvia was a former two time UFC champion who talked about his comeback trail extensively entering...and he weighs over 310lbs.

FIGHT: Wagner TKO Rnd 1. Sylvia comes straight at Wagner and has his chin up and hands down. Wagner returns fire and Sylvia is hurt, then dropped, then face plants. The ref stops it and basically has to hold Sylvia up. Embarassing. Abe Wagner maybe punches a ticket somewhere else. (3)

FIGHT OF THE NIGHT: Derrow/Clementi

KO OF THE NIGHT: Wagner/Sylvia

SUBMISSION OF THE NIGHT: Derrow/Clementi

OVERALL FOR THE EVENT: 3 out of 10. There's a notable main event upset in a 30 second fight, Clementi showboating and losing, and lots of stuff that doesn't matter or isn't good. I fell asleep trying to watch this 4 times.

D&R RATING: 26% (9/35)

XFC 13 (12/3/2010)

Back to HDNet Fights for another exciting card. Maybe. This show eminates from Tampa, Florida and features a title fight and one of the best fat men heavyweight bouts ever concieved. The Voice and Guy are the announce crew.

1) Joe Ray vs. Jeremy Smith: Ray is a recent convert to ATT and was ranked among BE's top ten prospects at welterweight. Naturally, he is on the patented ATT diet and is already a middleweight. His opponent is Jeremy Smith, an unheralded fighter from the XFC satellite gym in South Africa.

FIGHT: Smith Split Decision. Close, exciting fight. I had it 29-28 for Smith, two judges saw it 30-27 for him in spite of a closed eye. (2)

Ray: Big issue here - he can't wrestle. He is a decent enough striker and has some degree of submission skill. His work standing should earn him the second round in my book. But his consistent problem is that he's taken down in all rounds. All the damage in the world has the potential of being nullified if you are laid on.

Smith: Lots of heart. His technique is mediocre as far as takedowns are concerned and he just powers through them. He's listed as being primarily a muay thai expert but looks to be the worse striker by some degree.

2) Ian Stephens vs. Joe Heink: Welterweight contest with Stephens being an All American wrestler in college.

FIGHT: Stephens Unanimous Decision. Me and the judges thought it was a clean sweep. Heink couldn't stop Stephens takedown attempts and his Brown Belt in BJJ wasn't on display here. Stephens can't really strike too well - he just rushes with them to the clinch. He throws some low kicks in the third as he gets comfortable, then shoots when he's hit with a jab in the face. Well, no surprise about his instincts. Most of the fight is spent in the half guard or full guard with Stephens on top landing few shots and not really trying too hard to pass to side control or mount. (1)

3) Gabe Salinas-Jones vs. Parker Porter: A heavyweight contest of prospects! Both are heavy. Like, extra 30-40lbs each heavy.

FIGHT: Salinas-Jones Submission Rnd 1. Rear Naked Choke finish for Salinas-Jones, who consistently got takedowns and had a huge throw in this fight. Nothing to write home about in striking as he powers through him with grappling. (0)

In between fights, the XFC president says that they're gonna run three shows in China next year. XFC has that sorta co-promotion "buy a show" deal as King of the Cage or Gladiator Challenge.

4) Marissa Caldwell vs. Marianna Kheyfets: Caldwell was DEMOLISHED by Jessica Eye. Kheyfets demolished Kim Couture. So I guess we still won't know how good Jessica Eye is after this really, but we'll know if she's as good or better than Kheyfets. Right?

FIGHT: Kheyfets Unanimous Decision. So Caldwell is tough as nails. This is determined for sure. My thinking watching this is that Eye is the better fighter between her and Kheyfets. (0)

Kheyfets: Good striking - big repetoire of stuff pulled out in this fight with elbows and spinning hook kicks and stuff. Movement's not bad. Keeps the chin down. BJJ needs work, but her defense is alright and she has some solid takedowns. Punching power though is nonexistent as far as I can tell. Then again, Caldwell got beaten like a drum by Jessica Eye and went the distance too.

Caldwell: Botched a throw that got her put on her back instead. Oops. Not really a BJJ expert at all. Can't wrestle. Is a pretty orthodox striker that tries to keep everything straight, but her hands are so slow. So. Slow.

5) Chris Barnett vs. Mario Rinaldi: Barnett went to Singapore on like two weeks notice weighing 315 and got beat there. Does he have a manager? Note: I will be Barnett's manager if he sends me $50 in the mail and says he'll get me a plane ticket to Sentosa next time he's requested. Rinaldi, meanwhile, is better at everything but has a history of losing to big fat guys when he runs out of gas 4 minutes into a fight. See also: DJ Linderman.

FIGHT: Barnett TKO Rnd 2. (1)

Barnett: Barnett was 18 lbs over the 265 limit. Yikes. He gets taken down and is worked over for 3:15. Then he flips over Rinaldi and takes over. He stops him with strikes in the early part of the second.

Rinaldi: Looks like a KOTC special, as he has Barnett's back like 30 seconds in. But he runs out of gas punching Barnett and ends up on his back later in the round. In the second he gets taken down by Barnett who drops levels in the clinch, pulls a switch, and pounds him out from back control. Sad. Where's Tim Persey when you need him?

6) Jarrod Card vs. Luis Palomino: Featherweight title bout in XFC.

FIGHT: Palomino Unanimous Decision. Wide win for Palomino - I gave him every round. (2)

Palomino: Better in almost every aspect, he also hurts Card with shots in almost every round. He's cut in round 3 by a headbutt, which barely slows him down. Palomino hurts Card badly with low kicks but is afraid to throw them in spite of having Card in serious jeopardy because Card does seem to have a decent takedown. Says in the post fight interview that he doesn't like the cut to 145 and will return to lightweight after winning the title.

Card: Good wrestling, but he's below par everywhere else. Wrestling and control aren't good enough to keep Palomino on his back at will, which means that a lot of energy is expended going towards trying to do that with poor results. By round 3, he's done as far as energy is concerned, and to top it off, he can't properly block low kicks, nor does he adjust stance to move his damaged left leg out of the way of more kicks. One of the more desperate shots in history comes from Card following a low kick that sweeps him off his feet and sends him flying towards Palomino trying for a double. No Jitz.

FIGHT OF THE NIGHT: Ray/Smith

KO OF THE NIGHT: Barnett/Rinaldi

SUBMISSION OF THE NIGHT: Salinas-Jones/Porter

OVERALL FOR THE EVENT: 6.5 out of 10. Not the greatest show in the world - the decisions were generally pretty wide but the fighters that lost were at least game and tried. Ray/Smith is a great fight at this level. And I'd gladly say its the best XFC show I've watched. I'm not big on PROMOTIONAL NARRATIVE, and I think bringing in a random guy from Bellator to win your title and immediately say he wants to leave and fight at a different weight class must be a terrible way of doing that, but I'm sure someone will spin it different. Who cares. The fights were good for a change.

D&R RATING: 20%(6/30)

KOTC: No Mercy (9/17/2010)

King of the Cage hails from the MGM Grand (ITS FOXWOODS, PSSSS) in Connecticut. We've got Schiavello & Mezger. Mercer was supposed to fight Ron Sparks in the main event, but was discovered by the commission's doctor squad that he had some issues medically. Turns out that his C-Spine, which had surgery back in the 1990s, had some issues. The officials weren't really OK with him going in and fighting given the way his discs looked after CT and MRI scans and Mercer refuses to even go on air and address what happened. That's no good.

For this show, KOTC is employing a round cage.

1) Sean Wilmot vs. Noah Weisman: Lightweight. Wilmot has been around forever and ever and ever and ever. Weisman is a prospect with 3 wins.

FIGHT: Weisman Unanimous Decision. Not the most enthralling fight. Wilmot hadn't fought in 4 years in a pro bout, and it showed as he basically does nothing other than give Weisman rounds and go for a heel hook in the second round. Weisman hurts Wilmot a couple times with grazing head and body shots and Wilmot goes immediately into survival mode. (0)

2) Chip Moraza-Pollard vs. Jesus Martinez: Welterweights. Both are New England guys.

FIGHT: Moraza-Pollard Unanimous Decision (1)

Martinez: Looks more comfortable on his feet early, then gets tired as he is taken down. Also absorbs punches (as in the first where he's dropped) as he moves straight backwards with the hands down.

Moraza-Pollard: Decent striker with better kicks than punches. Likes to take a picture after his shots, for the most part. OK takedowns, does a nice wrestling switch in the third. No idea if he can pull subs. Not overpowering though on the mat. Looks like he'd be disrupted if you threw a jab twice though.

3) Pat McGreal vs. Donald Sanchez: Bantamweight title bout, but this being KOTC, that means 145. McGreal was a track and field guy and is undefeated in 6-0, but only has trained for 15 months. Sanchez is a journeyman type guy who has some wins over people its unlikely you would have heard of unless you read this blog (example: Joe Boxer).

FIGHT: Sanchez Submission Rnd 1. Pretty easy fight, as McGreal and Sanchez end up on the mat, Sanchez gets the switch and takes the back, eventually winning by RNC. McGreal tries to stop the sub by standing up with Sanchez on his back, but it is to no avail. Sanchez wants a guy in the top 10. (1)

4) Myles Jury vs. Sam Oropeza: Welterweights. Both are undefeated. Jury has a bunch of early stops.

FIGHT: Jury Submission Rnd 1. Jury was apparently a huge underdog we're told after, but at this stage, you can't take that stuff too seriously unless its a Cain Velasquez squash early in his career. Jury and Oropeza are close standing, but Jury gets a takedown in the first. He then takes the back after affecting Oropeza with a strike. Like the last fight, the opponent elevates to try and relieve themselves of the man on their back. And also like last time, it fails. Jury holds the body triangle and tries for the RNC, and sorta wins by that - he never sinks it but basically smothers Oropeza's mouth and nose with it. (1)

5) Jimmie Rivera vs. Abel Cullum: Flyweight title bout. Rivera is an undefeated fighter, Cullum a DREAM and EXC vet.

FIGHT: Rivera Split Decision. FOTYC. (3) Another example of why 5 rounders are great. The scoring on this is 49-46 for Rivera from two judges and 48-47 for Cullum by one. Honestly, its a tough fight to score. Cullum can be argued to have been controlling the bout by consistently pushing the pace, either with takedown attempts or with striking as he did in the 4th. He even had a reasonable submission attempt in round 5. However, Rivera generally pushed around Cullum after the clinch was initiated and landed more strikes in Round 1-3. More on all this in the analysis below.

Cullum: Cullum comes out in the first 3 rounds looking to overwhelm Rivera with activity, pushing the pace, looking for takedowns and punishing with punching. Cullum isn't a big 135lb fighter though, and whatever technical advantages he imagined coming in never come to fruition. In fact, its not until round 3 that he scores any sort of takedown on Rivera, and even that is potentially nullified in scoring by a takedown by Rivera near the end of the round. In round 4, Cullum decides to go full bore into kickboxing mode, again pushing the pace and seeking to outwork Rivera. He does in fact out throw Rivera by a healthy margin in the last couple of stanzas, but as Compustrike displays, the connection rate is so much higher for Rivera that they basically land an even number of punches and kicks. His best chance at finishing comes in round 5, as Rivera takes his back standing after Rivera shoots for a takedown attempt and there's a resulting scramble. Cullum locks in a straight armbar from the position, but can't get Rivera to release his grip on his left arm, preventing him from pushing it away and then rolling to the mat with Rivera in tow. When Rivera escapes, it leads to a knee that in many ways punctuates the fight for him.

Rivera: Rivera comes in looking like the larger man and he fights that way too. When Cullum comes forward to take him down, Rivera is often able to get underhooks and then push around Cullum. Not only does he prevent the takedowns in this way, he also gives the impression (because, well, he is) that he is controlling the clinch. Rivera also lands over and over and over with the left hook. The fact that Cullum basically never sees it coming and yet isn't rocked by it is due to Rivera never really turning his hips into the shots. They're arm punches, and more important than that, he's landing often times with the finger side of the gloves. That kind of slapping gets missed a lot in camps because when you hit with big ass 16 oz ammy gloves on pads, hey, the white zone stretches far.

As the fight progresses, Rivera continues to land the hooks, straight rights, and even a jab at incredible rates. He has leg kicks too, though he doesn't concentrate on these too much, fearing a loss of balance and a resultant takedown. He himself shoots on Cullum in round 3 and round 5, getting takedowns, however brief, on both occasions. Rivera escapes an Saku style armbar attempt after one of the attempts (round 5) ends in a scramble with what would seem to be dominant position. He has some bruising on the face when this is over from Cullum's intense forward assault, but its not any worse than how Cullum looks. A very good effort by Rivera, who looks like a legitimate prospect capable of some impressive things in the sport. Can't say yet that he's a title contending sort of guy, but 135 is thin and he's not tiny for the weight.

FIGHT OF THE NIGHT: Rivera/Cullum

SUBMISSION OF THE NIGHT: Oropeza/Jury

OVERALL FOR THE EVENT: 6.5 out of 10. The quick stop fights aren't anything mindblowing and are often between guys that don't really ring anyone's chimes in the sport. However, the main event is a great affair - yeah, it'll be lost to the two great UFC fights of the year (Sonnen/Silva and Carwin/Lesnar) but it is still a great, great contest.

D&R Rating: 20% (6/30)

King of the Cage: Imminent Danger (8/14/2010)

From the Inn of the Mountain Gods Casino in New Mexico (9200 ft above sea level), Schiavello and Mayhem Miller are announcing this ShoXC....I mean, KOTC show. I keep forgetting to watch KOTC on HDNet, because these shows are actually good and KOTC burned me so many times before.

1) Trevor Mellen vs. Gerald Lovato: Mellen is a young flyweight and Lovato a long time gatekeeper bested by the Mike Easton and Takeshi Inoue's of the world.

FIGHT: Mellen Unanimous Decision (2)

Mellen: Against a guy who's a survivor, Mellen comes in and fights quite well, regularly getting Lovato down and only finding himself in trouble when he makes physical miscues like stumbling after a kick rather than making mental miscues that lead to him getting hit in the head. On the mat, not much can be discerned about his ability to defend himself against a superior wrestler who puts him on his back, but he has a good transitional game and is able to pass and go for submissions. Unfortunately, against Lovato (a man with two submission losses), he didn't display much for finishing capability. Interesting fact: A guy fighting at 125 beat a former KO victim of Edson Draggo. True story.

Lovato: Survivor; perfect as a gatekeeper/journeyman talent needed for this level of the sport. Enough ability to go rounds and provide resistance, not really good enough to beat anyone who isn't a fraud or terrible.

2) Tyler East vs. Estevez Jones: Heavyweights. East was in a great fight on a previous KOTC event shown on HDNet where he nearly defeated Tony Lopez, only to get submitted in the rematch. Jones has a win over longtime journeyman Andy Montana and pretty much no one else.

FIGHT: East KO Rnd 1. Wild striking affair - Both were just exploding with energy and would have gassed if it didn't end in the first 3 minutes. East answers a crazy front kick/spinning back fist combo by feinting and then throwing a spinning back fist of his own that stuns Jones. Jones then takes all sorts of clubbing and slapping blows against the cage before finally falling down. East could have a future as a journeyman. (1)

3) Quinn Mulhern vs. Levi Stout: Mulhern had an incredible performance beating the shit out of Rich Clementi about 6 months ago. Stout I have never heard of, but has beaten trial horses like Adam Madrid. This is for KOTC's welterweight title.

FIGHT: Mulhern Submission Rnd 1. After some feeling out standing, they clinch and Stout goes for this wild flying kimura attempt. Mulhern anticipates it and ends up taking Stout's back. Its just a matter of time until the rear naked choke. Another good performance for Mulhern - would love to see him fight the Joker again to see if he can get that series even. (2)

4) Bobby Green vs. Daron Cruickshank: Green is the junior welterweight champion, it seems. He lost to the mediocre Dan Lauzon back at Affliction's second event but now in KOTC he's been trucking along with some decent performances. His opposition here comes in the form of an undefeated wrestler.

FIGHT: Green Submission Rnd 2. Entertaining fight. (1)

Cruickshank: did everything he could to get this fight down, constantly seeking the shot. It never came. On his feet he couldn't compete with Green's sometimes wild and unorthodox technique, and he was forced to keep at it. It proved his undoing, as he fell into a guillotine while shooting for a single.

Green: Showed a good scramble here, though it was in part assisted by his holding of the cage. Standing he threw a crazy front kick that landed right on Cruickshank's face, along with an array of punches and stuff like that. Eventually he catches Cruickshank with a sort of modified guillotine where it looks like only one arm is really in choking on top in half guard as he uses his body to close off the other half of the carotid with his body. Cruickshank just can't hang on or break out on the bottom with Green in a dominant position.

5) Daniel Cormier vs. Tony Johnson Jr.: Johnson beat Tony Lopez for the title, and Cormier as challenger has been pro less than a year, but has incredible wrestling chops. Johnson's not bad there either. They even look similar physically.

FIGHT: Cormier Submission Rnd 1. Cormier really works well on the mat spinning around and changing positions. When he gets Johnson stunned with punches, and Johnson starts looking for a shot, Cormier scrambles to the back and really starts to put it down, eventually putting in the hooks, flattening Johnson, and then choking him out. (3) Cormier looks like a good heavyweight prospect, and Johnson might actually bounce back.

FIGHT OF THE NIGHT: Green/Cruickshank

KO OF THE NIGHT: East/Jones

SUBMISSION OF THE NIGHT: Green/Cruickshank

OVERALL FOR THE EVENT: 7.5 out of 10. Man, this was really fun to watch. Good fighters, good fights, announcing that didn't hurt to listen to - I couldn't ask for more. I haven't reviewed an event I gave more than a 5 out of 10 since April (Art of Fighting 6). Since then, I've watched and reviewed 19 events for this blog. That's a lot of crapola.

M-1 Breakthrough (8/28/09)

I've not stopped with this; Oh no. There will be more to document so that I can toss away these notebooks I store my thoughts in for future analyzing fun action. Or whatever other OCD reasoning I have for trying to keep record of this stuff. This show is a fairly short one eminating from somewhere in Kansas City. Venue isn't that important. I'm sure its listed on Sherdog.

1) DAISUKE NAKAMURA vs. FERRID KHEDER: One thing about old King of the Cage shows is that they would have these wild claims about any Japanese fighter that came over as part of their talent trade with PRIDE (one that worked, unlike the UFC's- go figure). Like, that Daijiro Matsui and Alexander Otsuka had to be good because, hey, the Japanese would never send over a representative that wasn't. Matsui is now forgotten and Otsuka is remembered as having the worst records in MMA history for a guy who fought almost entirely in major promotions.

I say this to preface Nakamura because he is hyped entering here as being good. To be fair, he is not bad, which is better than Matsui or Otsuka. Following his loss to Vitor Ribero in Cage Rage, he actually rattled off 8 consecutive wins; a shocking amount given that prior to that he was effectively a .500 fighter. The opposition was less than stellar, however. Hideo Tokoro was the high point - the low is tough to determine. Racist Stereotype Andy Ologun? The 0-7 Carlos Valeri? Who knows. His opponent on this night is Ferrid Kheder, who comes in 10 lbs over the lightweight limit and loses some cash as a result. He's fought everywhere from Brazil to Belgium, and Costa Rica to Canada. Truly, a journeyman for our times.

Tenative stand up opens the bout, and after a clinch, its Nakamura leading Kheder to the corner and....that's most of the round. Its slow going. When there's separation, Nakamura seems to land more shots like jabs and low kicks because he throws at all. Nakamura lands a few right hands late in the round and he's not even pretending to defend anymore. Kheder leads a comeback early in the 2nd as he starts throwing the left hook, and Nakamura responds with a flying armbar attempts. Kheder defends it well and stands. Nakamura still won't hold his hands up, and a combination of punches and kicks sweeps him off his feet. He scrambles up, gets tagged, tries for another flying armbar (which is like going for nothing but fake field goals when you're out of range for the kicker anyways), and isn't successful. Nakamura lands a right hand, but probably loses this round.

Third and final round: Nakamura is landing much more solidly as the bout turns into a boxing match. A right hand-low kick combo forces Nakamura to turn and give his back. He's suplexed but scrambles up again. The ref gives him a reprieve to fix tape on the glove, and we restart standing with separation. Shots ate traded, Nakamura goes for, yes, another flying armbar, and Khedar tries to lock in an arm triangle in a fast sequence near the final bell. All too little, too late for Khedar. Nakamura by unanimous decision. (1)

2) MICHAEL KITA vs. LLOYD MARSHBANKS: Marshbanks is a tank of a man. He probably weighs as much as a German Panzer. He is also 5'8''. Kita is also a big, big man. Both like the wrasslin' too.

Marshbanks catches a kick, clinches, throws a belly-to-belly, and mounts Kita. Not a good start for Kita. Kita bucks Marshbanks out and stands. Kita defends a shot and punches Marshbanks. And then he punches some more and more. Marshbanks taps for seemingly ever before the ref bothers to do anything about it. Don't hate the guy though; he just won a one night tourney in Russia. Yes! A one night tourney! He KOed Alexiy Olenik and Baga Agaev (and a Sanda fighter with a losing record) to claim the title. (1)

3) ROB BROUGHTON vs. JESSIE GIBBS: For the unofficial title of #1 super heavyweight in the world, IMO. Yeah, its a dead division. So what? In case you don't know, Broughton is a very large wrestler from the UK, a place not known for wrestlers. Gibbs is a very large kickboxer/grappler from the Netherlands.

Broughton clinches early, pushes Gibbs to corner, and Sumo has broken out. Eventually, they are separated. Gibbs trips after a low kick, and Broughton ends up on top in half guard. Gibbs isn't bad though; he sweeps with a kimura into side control, though he's eventually dragged back to half guard for the rest of the round. The second opens with Broughton again going to bring it to the mat. He shoots, there's a bodylock, drops for a single, and Gibbs removes himself from that as well. This is slow. Standup is all one shot at a time. Broughton gets a body lock, and the crowd is boing as he drags this further into the muck. This continues in the third, except that Gibbs is on top some when it does hit the mat. Terrible fight, Gibbs wins, division is still, thankfully, deceased. (1)

4) MIKHAIL ZAYATS vs. LUCIO LINHARES: Middleweight contest between M-1 regulars. Linhares recently signed by UFC; does that spoil this?

Wild punches thrown, Zayats is dropped by a punch, as he tries to rise, he's choked out. (2)

5) JOHN DOYLE vs. KARL AMOUSSOU: Amoussou has been getting lots of creme puffs lately. Here is another.

Doyle gets the takedown and is in full guard. He's throwing blows but totally ineffective when it comes to making them count. Amoussou sweeps him, full mount, punches, Doyle gives his back, and its a rear naked choke. That's a KOTC standard minus needing to sweep to get on top to start with. (1)

At this point, the big selling point for the show, a Judo/Sambo exhibition with Mousasi and Fedor, commences. Its mildly interesting for rolling around.

6) "KING" MUHAMMAD LAWAL vs. MARK KERR: So many things to say. Lawal is a rising star. Furthermore, here is something for you to chew on (since the source is not likely to see me writing this, much less anyone else): Kerr is a late replacement for Don Frye, as a lot of people know. Frye was originally booked but actually cancelled over money issues. Lawal was offered actual opponents to take Frye's place, but responded saying he was taking the fight because he wanted to fight a tomato can. Enter Mark Kerr. The one time surest of sure things was briefly kept out of fighting in this recent comeback attempt when an apparently heart issue showed itself during an EKG during licensing for a fight in Connecticut. The card there was scuttled as a result, and Kerr was even more damaged than before. He's still trucking along here though.

Mo shoots a single, slams Kerr, and then punches his lights out. Pathetic. Kerr then admits its probably time for a new profession. Really? (2)

FIGHT OF THE NIGHT: Nakamura/Kheder

KO OF THE NIGHT: Kerr/Lawal

SUBMISSION OF THE NIGHT: Doyle/Amoussou

OVERALL FOR THE EVENT: 2.5 out of 10. As far as actual fights go, pretty lousy. The exhibition was nice, but irrelevant. Mark Kerr fighting on a card in this decade guarantees it a low score.

D&R Rating: 27%

RING OF COMBAT~! 18 (3/7/08)

Another HDNet exclusive featuring guys that don't matter in large part in bouts that often were not good. Kenny Rice and Frank Trigg are announcing from Boardwalk Hall in Atlantic City in front of about 5 people. Rules are effectively IFL rules but with 5 minute rounds.

1) RANDY DURANT vs. RICARDO ROMERO: No idea about these guys. Romero is 3-0 coming in, Durant 2-3.

Short bout. Romero lands a left hook and drops Durant. He pounds him out in side control. Romero is now 5-0, so (1).

2) MIKE MEDRANO vs. RICH ASHKAR: Another fight where I have heard of neither participant. Ashkar is 3-0, Medrano 0-1.

Medrano lands a right hand under 20 seconds in and Ashkar just falls to the floor face first. (0)

INTERVIEW TIME WITH RENZO GRACIE. Nothing is learned. He will fight again. Hopefully this time he does not bitch out.

3) AL BUCK vs. JAMES "BINKY" JONES: Binky just fought on the undercard of the Elite XC Primetime show. Buck has done a good job losing to guys that are mediocre at best.

Buck goes for a guillotine standing very early on, but Jones pulls guard and get out of that. Buck tries to throw punches, Binky goes for an armbar which he transitions into a kimura and rolls him with. Buck tries to roll his way out of it and just gets deeper. Tap out early in round 1. (0)

4) IGOR GRACIE vs. TOM GALLICCHIO: A new Gracie! He is making his pro debut. Gallicchio is a solid 7-3 with his best win coming against IFL "vet" Nate Lamotte, who I reviewed fighting Chris Horodecki not long ago.

Round 1 was an impressive showing of the ol' Gracie zhoo-zhit-su but Gallicchio is skilled enough to escape everything and even ends up on top at the end of the round. Gracie is never the same, having gassed himself out going for fancy chokes and stuff. Gallicchio wins a very dull Round 2 by laying on Gracie in the guard for virtually the entire round. Round 3 copies that except with a short standup portion in which Gracie is nearly KOed. Gallicchio wins on every single card and picks up a surprising decision. (0), simply because the fight was not enjoyable to watch and I don't know that I see Gallicchio making inroads anywhere.

5) MIKE GEURIN vs. DAN MILLER: Miller is a WORLD CHAMPION now. Amazing. Geurin is a nobody still. Go figure. How did this titanic struggle go?

Some standup, Guerin and Miller's heads collide, ref stops the fight, NC. (0)

FRANKIE EDGAR INTERVIEW. Not that informative.

6) JOSE RODRIGUEZ vs. JOHN "DOOMSDAY" HOWARD: Howard was robbed at ROC 17 against Dan Miller. Even Sherdog called it a bullshit decision! His trainer told me so. Oddly, nothing on the ol' Fightfinder about "BS decision". Rodriguez is a 5-3 fighter from who knows where.

Howard is shit on by the announcers early on here as being a guy who is a lay and pray fighter. Ouch. After all, he's all decisions and submissions, no KOs, and that's not really worthy of the nickname "Doomsday", which the announcers also refuse to call him. Trigg says something about it not being as catchy as "Babalu". Early on, their remarks make sense. Howard with a takedown, some control, some more control, then he takes the back and nearly sinks in a choke. Rodriguez spins into it and then stands out of the guard, taking this back to the place Howard apparently hates or something. Then Howard throws a combination of shots and Rodriguez is hella unconscious and then the announcers are like "nah dogg we was playing that's a good nickname." Rodriguez goes out on a backboard, Miller/Howard for the IFL title now doesn't happen. (1)

7) ALEXIS AQUINO vs. LYMAN GOOD: There are some serious ass expectations with a name like "Good". Plus he has a perfect record and beat Mike Dolce. Aquino's loss is to Dante Rivera, who Trigg notes he trains with and is on Ultimate Fighter. Somewhere, Zach Arnold is totally upset because HDNet isn't protecting DA BRAND.

Another fight that was conceptually interesting but lacked in actuality. The fight begins really with a high kick by Good that nearly KOs Aquino, and that's really it for interesting offense. Good and Aquino mostly stand, and when they do Aquino has the idea that by throwing a hundred spinning back kicks, he is sure to land one fight ender. No such thing happens. When they "box" each other, its pretty sloppy most of the time with Good getting in more shots because of his hand speed advantage. Aquino is a gamer though and refuses to lay down for any shots in this fight. Seeing as he was KOed in his next fight in under one round, probably not a good sign of future things for Good. Most interesting moment: Aquino shoots in and both men nearly tumble out to the floor. The ring has its pluses for the fans, but not for the competitors. Good by UD. (1)

8) DOUG GORDON vs. GREGOR GRACIE: Gracie is 2-0 and Gordon is a paltry 6-4.

Gracie immediately goes for a take down and ends up in mount as soon as he succeeds. Oh, great, another Gracie exhibition. The world didn't have enough of these in 1994. Gracie in and out of mount, goes for a guillotine that Gordon reverses and stands up out of, but he gets taken down again. The bell for the second rings, and you can guess what happens. Gracie takedown, on top, however he's not nearly as active. Just like the other family member on the card, Gracie sucks at cardio. Gordon at least put in road work and is able to fight his way back into this, even if from the bottom. Still lost round 2. Third and final stanza begins, Gordon walks out, throws a right high kick, and Gregor is immediately KOed. So this is why the Gracies never get calls to the UFC anymore. (0)

9) KRYSTOF SOSZYNSKI vs. ALEX ANDRADE: Andrade returned for three fights with his ol' Lions Den buddy's promotion Art of War, and now he's here in NJ to take on the ex-IFL heavyweight "contender". Soszynski lost so much weight he looks like he got AIDS.

This fight is absolute trash. Totally unwatchable. Amazingly, a lower moment in Andrade's career than even being DQed that one time in the UFC for ignoring the "no kicking with shoes" rule they had back when you could wear shoes. Andrade rushes forward, they clinch, that's it. It is Yasuda/Saatake USA, but with only one consolation: Andrade's strikes all land dead in the cup. Every fucking time he throws a low kick or knee, straight in the balls. After 4 stoppages for low blows, he is DQed. (0)

10) CHRIS LIGOURI vs. JIM MILLER: When I realized this was the main event, there was some horror to note how much the last IFL show ever was like a Ring of Combat event. I guess then that its spirit will live forever in NJ. Miller's only loss is to Frankie Edgar, and he's beaten Muhsin Corbbrey, Nuri Shakir, Chris Ligouri previously (by cut) and a month later was victorious over Bart Palaszewski. Ligouri I've seen fight for MFC thanks to Bodog (against Erik Oganov) and has a whole bunch of losses to good fighters like Pete Sell and also Pete Sell. Apparently rematches against guys that beat you is no big thing for him. He's even a UFC vet, fighting at UFC 45! He lost to Keith Rockel, so I guess he had octagon shock.

Not an awful first round with some back and forth action. Miller gets a takedown early but Ligouri is able to stand out of that and lands some straight right hands against his southpaw foe. Miller gets desperate and keeps trying for takedowns, all of which get stopped. He just gives up on that and pulls guard to get the fight off the feet, and when Ligouri tries to stand out, he goes for a single. Finally, he finds success and gets on top. Ligouri seems to have some BJJ skills and is scooting the legs up when the round ends.

Round two kicks off with lots of takedown attempts, lots of Ligouri defending, lots of Ligouri forgetting what worked in round one and what should obviously work and gets lulled into fighting Miller's fight. They trade low kicks and it forces Ligouri into the corner. That powerful left of Miller lands dead on his chin and a hurt Ligouri goes to try and take down Miller. The single puts his head right into a guillotine attempt. A couple taps later, fight's over, Miller wins. (2)

FIGHT OF THE NIGHT(S): Ligouri/Miller. The best on a not very good show.

KO OF THE NIGHT(S): Gordon/Gracie

SUBMISSION OF THE NIGHT(S): Jones/Buck

OVERALL FOR THE EVENT: 2 out of 10: If you like to see the Gracie family get shitted on, this is your show. Otherwise, so many boring fights. So many nothing fighters.

D&R RATING: 10% (5/50)

INTERNATIONAL FIGHT LEAGUE 4/4/08

I went to what was, apparently, the final IFL show in existence a few weeks back. It was a sort of weird feeling show but it seemed that they were totally gung ho about the August event, even if many of the internet hardcore fans (myself included) were less enthusiastic about their chances. It was odd that they picked a 4 month gap between events when there was a 6 week gap between this April show and that May event, in my book. So, as a bit of a tribute to the likely fallen organization, here is a review of their (probable) next to last event. HDNet is televising, and Bas and Kruk are announcing.

1) CHRIS HORODECKI vs. NATE LAMOTTE: Horodecki recieved a lot of publicity from the company after his exciting fight with Shad Lierley and the fact that he was undefeated. He made it all the way to the Grand Prix finals before luck ran out. Ryan Schultz pounded him into dust and became the IFL's lightweight champ, further crippling one of the few stars they had managed to make. Lamotte was chosen as his comeback fight.

Round 1 shows the two approaches at play here. Lamotte wants takedowns and ground and pound. Horodecki wants to be standing and delivering punches and kicks. He reminds me a significant amount of Sam Stout, perhaps without the one punch KO ability. He does do a decent job early on of preventing the takedown and pummeling for the underhooks. When there's separation, he's clearly the class of the two. Right hands and low kicks are especially valuable here. Lamotte's best chance for offense comes at the end of the round as he nearly gets a takedown, but Horodecki blatantly holds the ropes to prevent it. Miragliotta, BTW, is the ref here. Start the conspiracy theories now!

Round 2 continues in much the same vein. Lamotte is able to secure a takedown by grabbing a low kick and forcing forwards, but its short lived as Horodecki is able to get his feet on the hips and push off, returning this fight to standing. Horodecki continues the assault of low kicks, with the sole next moment of offense being a feinted shot by Lamotte that Horodecki buys into, sprawls with the air, and then nearly gets spun on by Lamotte. Horodecki is enough of an athlete to prevent getting his back taken or even being flipped onto the bottom though, and the fight stays on its feet, even with a knee landing to the mush of Lamotte in the clinch before the two separate.

Round 3 opens the same way as all the others. Lamotte wants that take down but won't string together enough shots to get inside and take a dominant position. He's probably never fought anyone good enough to actually prevent his stuff and so he's been lazy about improving how to actually get the fight where he wants it. After eating a bunch more kicks, he finally gets the fight down for an extended period of time with only 1:30 remaining in the fight, and he really only lands anything substantial from a ground and pound perspective in the last 30 seconds. I gave Horodecki the round for having won the first 2:30 and having denied any real offense for another minute, but the judges let Lamotte steal that one. UD, 29-28 all around. (2)

2) BART PALASZEWSKI vs. JIM MILLER: Miller's brothers fight. Bartimus trains with Total-MMA writer Bill Thompson totally trains with him. Or trained. Or something. I remember he talked about it a lot. But anywho, THE FIGHT.

Round 1, much like the last fight, is this fight in a nutshell. Palaszewski wants to stay standing because his standup is crisper. Miller wants to go on the mat because his wrestling is better. Unlike the TV opener, Miller's wrestling is better than Palaszewski's takedown defense, and so it ends up on the mat primarily. Miller nearly locks in an anaconda early in round 1, but Bart is able to get out of that and bring it back to the feet. Well, at least until he decides to bodylock and slam Miller. That doesn't work all that well, what with Miller being better on the mat, and Miller ends up getting the fight up, landing a crisp right hand, and then clinching up again with Bartimus. Palaszewski gets taken down right into side control, but goes for a leg. He is punished for his efforts. Easy round for Miller.

Miller shoots early in round 2 and Palaszewski's early success with the sprawl doesn't last, as he gets taken down anyhow and put in side control. He gains half guard on a poor attempt to pass to mount by Miller, which is helpful for a few moments. Miller passes again and goes for a guillotine, gets put back in half guard, and a sweep by Palaszewski puts this on the feet again. Palaszewski's offense for the round is a right hand that lands while standing, which he follows with a shot that fails miserably and leads to him being on the bottom in, you guessed it, half guard.

Final round begins with a Miller take down attempt. Palaszewski actually blocks it and decides to go for a standing kimura. He is not Sakuraba, unfortunately, and Miller spins around to the back and basically rides Palaszewski down. The next 3 minutes are Miller riding Palaszewski's back and trying to get a rear naked choke while Palaszewski looks around as if he is confused and attempts some toeholds that Miller uses as opportunities to make everyone believe he's really gonna finish the fight. Doesn't happen. Palaszewski eventually realizes that when Miller loosens his hooks, he should probably spin around and try to stand up, since there's no other way he can win. This doesn't connect in his brain until there's about 30 seconds left in the fight. Miller rides this out standing by not getting hit with anything stupid and wins a unanimous decision on all 3 cards of 30-27. (3)

3) BRAD BLACKBURN vs. DELSON HELENO: Heleno was the IFL's favorite to win the middleweight title, and whoops! He failed, and that belt was never successfully defended. Blackburn is a journeyman fighter with losses to Roger Huerta and Rory Markham and wins over Jay Hieron and Chris Wilson. Very inconsistent to say the least.

Round 1 has the usual halfhearted standup to start leading into the opening takedown attempt by Heleno. He gets the fight down and is in half guard, Blackburn regains guard and uses that to put himself back on his feet. Heleno doesn't want it there and takes him down again. Heleno is doing his damnedest to get through the guard of Blackburn, and his mediocre hammerfists aren't really doing the job of distracting Blackburn. Needing something else, Heleno thinks the eternal question of "What would Sakuraba do?," gets up out of the open guard, and then tries a leaping guard pass with punch. Pretty much all Heleno.

Second stanza starts much the same. Heleno is obviously not looking for a punch or kick to get him the win, and that's Blackburn's only real chance. He's not getting any luck teeing off, with another takedown from Heleno that sees most of the round being a positional battle with Blackburn trying to not get mounted for very long and Heleno trying to constantly pass guard/half guard. Heleno goes for the leaping punch/pass again here. Blackburn does get an opening during this to try a toehold, but Heleno quickly reverses and mounts him to end the round.

As the final round starts, the fight looks pretty noncompetitive. Heleno has controlled the whole fight and in doing so provided little action. Blackburn decides in round 3 that he wants to be on top and actually goes for the takedown himself, which he is easily denied. Interesting tactic though, probably well late in the fight. Heleno surprises no one by then shooting for another double leg. This time Blackburn is more prepared to defend, having given himself more distance. He easily stuffs the halfassed shot and then throws a whistling right hand at Heleno, connecting dead on the temple. Heleno is done. Blackburn jumps on him and throws some more punches, and the ref stops the bout. Kruk had said just 10 seconds before that Blackburn needed something spectacular, and that was it. (2)

4) VLADIMIR MATYUSHENKO vs. JAMAL PATTERSON: I'm a big fan of Matyushenko, but I'm also cognizant that he's not one hundred percent what he was in the late 1990s. Still, he's rebounded beautifully from the KO loss to Arlovski to get legitimate wins over Tim Boetsch, Justin Levins, and Alex Schonenauer. He's argurably a top ten fighter, and I posed that question at the Total-MMA forums some time ago. I really haven't gotten a chance to watch him of late, and so this was a pretty key bout to watch on the card. This is, of course, scheduled for 5.

Round 1 is actually a Patterson round. Matyushenko looked very slow in against Barretto until Carlos' knee exploded, and he's still very slow of hand here. Maybe slower. Patterson actually puts together several punches that land, and one early in the round hurt Matyushenko. VMAT doesn't get his act together until late in the round, as he begins to throw the push kick to set up the double, which he's somewhat successful in obtaining (I say somewhat since Patterson actually tried to get a guillotine and was willing to go down to the mat). Unfortunately, he does little with it once he has control and rides out the final 30 seconds of the round.

Round 2 is a completely different story. Maty throws the hard right looping shot and follows it with a takedown. Passes guard with a fair amount of ease and keeps going for that Matt Hughes tactic of trapping the arm while pounding. Patterson is defenseless under Matyushenko and gets rolled on. The ref finally jumps in to stop it after what was a classic GNP performance. (3)

5) WAGNNEY FABIANO vs. SHAD LIERLEY: Lierley was in the best IFL fight ever and Fabiano is a monster 145 lb fighter who will probably not be in a great deal of trouble when it comes to getting a contract elsewhere. This is scheduled for 5 for Fabiano's title.

Fabiano comes out throwing low kicks and they are absolutely vicious. Lierley drops his hands and Fabiano plants a right hand on Lierley. Lierley is absolutely stone cold out. (3)

6) MARK MILLER vs. JAY HIERON: And here we've got the main event of the night. Mark Miller is a decent fighter and Jay Hieron is a chronically underrated fighter in my book. Hieron has less than spectacular results in the UFC, but he's training at Extreme Couture now and the IFL title he won is a big boost in confidence.

One short but sweet round. Hieron gets the takedown with a legtrip early and just punishes Miller with strikes from full guard. Miller just really not able to defend them at all and the fight is stopped after about 2 minutes or so. Coleman-like ground and pound is so awesome to watch on TV. (2)

Luckily, HDNET doesn't go off the air quite yet. Prelims!

7) EMYR BUSSADE vs. JESSE LENNOX: Bussade just was featured in the review I did of Ring of Fire 3, so its nice and actually surprising to see him again so soon. Lennox is some young buck training at MFS.

Lennox has horrible striking, probably because there are no decent boxing trainers in Iowa. He is, here's a shock, a good wrestler. He goes for the clinch early in the fight and Bussade tries to drag him down by pulling guard. The problem is that Lennox has some of that vaunted "farm strength" and holds him up in the air before slamming him and then standing up again. Okay, so he can't strike and he's afraid of getting subbed, so, uh, how is he gonna win? They trade punches in an amateurish fashion, with whomever decides to throw straight landing and the other guy who throws in a looping fashion getting his punches somewhat nullified. Bussade pulls guard again, and Lennox is all HULK SMASH and tries to land punches. Bussade goes for a leg, Lennox defends well and punches some more. Bussade gets out of the position and brings it back to standing, and more punching exchanges. 10-9 to Lennox.

Round 2 again goes the same way. Lennox this time displays a low kick that almost sweeps Bussade off his feet, and then they punch some more. Then circle, punch more. Bussade pulls guard and Lennox wants it back up for more clubberin'. Bussade is not stupid and instead of agreeing to that subconsciously, he uses Lennox's ignorance as to how to protect himself when trying to escape to grab his leg and turns into a kneebar. Lennox is clueless and just tries to pull straight out with his leg, but its figure four'ed and in super tight. As one could expect, there is a lot of screaming from Jesse Lennox, as he is in such severe pain he doesn't even think to tap out. The ref is smart enough to interpret the cries as a submission and breaks it up. This is good because I do like to do a "submission of the night" and there wasn't one in the whole show other than this. (1) because neither is a top contender, but it is a pretty gnarly kneebar.

8) CARMELO MARRERO vs. MIKE CIESNOLEVICZ: This is a pretty interesting fight between a IFL product and a UFC washout. Marrero infamously ruined Dana White's day at UFC 64 by beating Chieck Kongo, thus (for at least a little while) taking a heavyweight hopeful out of contention.

Marrero shoots in for a takedown and gets a chin to the top of the head that causes a geyser of blood. Marrero is all over Ciesnolevicz and tries to just beat him down and out before the ref stops it, but no use. Worst of all, Ciesnolevicz is initally ruled the winner because its claimed that a high kick caused the cut, though watching the fight itself and replays, its obvious no part of his leg or foot was anywhere near Marrero's head and that their skulls collided hard. Later on, it was changed to a NC. As with all no contests: (0)

FIGHT OF THE NIGHT(S): Heleno/Blackburn. Really, its tough to give it to any bout but this. Blackburn made it all worthwhile with a sudden turn of events.

KO OF THE NIGHT(S): Fabiano/Lierley

SUBMISSION OF THE NIGHT(S): Lennox/Bussade

OVERALL FOR THE EVENT: 4.5 out of 10. A bit on the dull side, particularly early on. Some decent performances in the title fights, however.

D&R RATING: 40% (16/40)