Raging Wolf 9 (8/28/10)

Luigi Fioravanti, Jarrod Card, and Jay Adams are announcing again. Main event? Alexis Davis vs. Elaina Maxwell. Oh, great. This is from the RAGING WOLF EVENTS CENTER. Dear god. Yeah, its an ECW Arena situation where they just rename the Seneca Allegany Events Center when they book it.

1) Jason Bauman vs. Mark Carrow: Amateurs, 155lbs.

FIGHT: Bauman TKO Rnd. Carrow looks for a takedown early and gets nowhere. The announcers both say that if Bauman walks forward, he's getting laid out, and sure enough it happens maybe 10 seconds later. His chin was way too high up. (0)

2) Kevin Ayers vs. Patrick Gorman Jr.: Forrest Petz is reffing. 185lb ammys.

FIGHT: Ayers TKO Rnd 1. Gorman looked like he gassed out 30 seconds in after going wild with strikes. Ayers gets on top briefly but does nothing. When its stood back up, Gorman Jr. absorbs some punches and stuff and falls down. The end. Very blah. (0)

3) Jay Wadsworth vs. Jason Trzewieczynski: Jason T, as he will be known from here, is a 3-3 fighter, Wadsworth is 6-4. Lightweights. Pros. Do I care? Not entirely.

FIGHT: Jason T Submission Rnd 1. Wadsworth says in the prefight video package that he knows that Jason T has good submissions. What does he do? Takes it to the ground, then give up the arm inside a minute. Armbar from guard and sweeps Wadsworth over. (0)

4) Taylor Solomon vs. Sam Pascuzzi: Pascuzzi is a late replacement says a video package, and at a 180lb catchweight.

FIGHT: Solomon Submission Rnd 1. Solomon is from the Niagara Falls Gracie Baha school and shows that he has legit BJJ by moving to 3-0 and submitting Pascuzzi. Again, like the last shown fight - a situation of someone having a terrible gameplan with Pascuzzi getting the takedown and giving up the arm. Solomon though transitioned into it much faster, and while he was a little sloppy, Pascuzzi couldn't rotate out. (1) Solomon gets a point because he's the only interesting prospect.

5) Daniel Dwyer vs. Erik Herbert: 190lb catchweight here.

FIGHT: Dwyer Submission Rnd 2. Easy fight for Herbert. The only meaningful strike in the fight was in the start of round 2 from Dwyer as Herbert waltzed in hands down. The rest of the fight is basically either Dwyer pushing Herbert into the cage or Dwyer laying on top of Herbert. This does shift in the last two minutes or so as Herbert rolls over and gives his back in an attempt to get out of half guard. Eventually Herbert sinks in the choke. (0)

6) Alexis Davis vs. Elaina Maxwell: 135lb title fight, I think. Except that Maxwell came in over by 2.5 lbs. So it actually isn't. Davis is champion, like it matters.

FIGHT: Maxwell Unanimous Decision. A terrible, terrible fight. Among the worst I've EVER seen. Davis and Maxwell clinch up, Davis pushes trying to get throws, doesn't do anything, gets like two submission attempts, Maxwell kinda pushes her off and shit and man, this is terrible. Maybe 4 strikes landed the whole fight? Just abysmal to watch. The crowd leaves as the fight goes on. (0)

FIGHT OF THE NIGHT: Bauman/Carrow

KO OF THE NIGHT: Bauman/Carrow

SUBMISSION OF THE NIGHT: Solomon/Pascuzzi

OVERALL FOR THE EVENT: 2 out of 10. The promotion blew all their money for the night paying Royce Gracie's appearance fee to do signatures. Seriously. I can see it in the matchmaking and the people they booked. Maxwell hadn't fought for two fucking years before this fight. The card gets a 2 out of 10 only because I can see Solomon going somewhere in the sport with his BJJ. Maybe a TUF appearance or something?

D&R Rating: 3% (1/30)

Raging Wolf 8: Cage Supremacy (7/17/10)

This is a bizarre card, Nuri Shakir is in the main event? LOL. Also, Tonya Evinger and COREY HILL VS. KIT COPE. Luigi Fiorivanti and Jarrod Card are joining Jay Adams here.

1) Aljamain Sterling vs. Zech Lange: Lange is undefeated, Sterling is 4-1 and his loss is to Lange is that one blemish. Lange's from Bomb Squad. This is at 135 for an amateur title that is cooked up, so its 5 3 minute rounds.

FIGHT: Sterling Unanimous Decision.

Sterling: Decent striker, has good size for the weight, but his wrestling is pretty suspect. He got taken down a number of times, and while he could return the favor here and there, you still don't want to see the guy on his back if you expect him to go far. He kept going for a inverted triangle in the 5th round which was kinda cool and also got sorta caught in a near twister position, so I think he needs to stick to his grappling basics.

Lange: Too much in terms of flashy technique over basics. No need to over represent the thai shorts, dude. Wrestling wasn't too bad but he got taken down as often as he got the double. Not much of a submission game that I could see.

2) Corey Hill vs. Kit Cope: Hill was an exciting prospect - until his leg snapped. Oops. Cope has a ridiculous record and is more famous for going down hills in tires and banging a chubby Gina Carano than his MMA career.

FIGHT: Hill Submission Rnd 1. Nothing to see here, honestly. Hill gets dropped with a right hand shooting in and nearly stopped, but gets to drag Cope into his guard where he locks up a triangle that is SLOWWWWWWW. He's going nowhere big. (1)

3) Tonya Evinger vs. A.J. Jenkins: Women fighting! Innovation!

FIGHT: Evinger TKO Rnd 2. BTW, the crowd made ZERO noise this whole fight until the end. Nothing. Totally silent. Did they all leave? You could hear the shutter of a ringside camera over the fighters and fans.

Evinger: Looked solid. Got the takedown early in rounds 1 and 2 and totally dominated from there. Just smashed her opponent.

Jenkins: Dominated totally and completely. Had no offense, got busted up pretty bad. Evinger was all over her.

4) Alan Arzeno vs. Nuri Shakir: Arzeno is 3-2. Shakir is 14-17. This is the main event. This is a welterweighttitle fight. Shakir is really a lightweight. Jesus.

FIGHT: Shakir Submission Rnd 4.

Shakir: Opens this fight dropping Arzeno with a jab. Oh boy. Shakir dominates every aspect of the fight, easily counterpunching Arzeno's subpar striking and taking him down on occasion. He cuts up Arzeno in the process of battering him, and takes him down as Shakir flurries with wild strikes. When this occurs in the 4th round, it spells doom for Arzeno. Shakir is far superior on the mat and ends up grabbing an armbar as Arzeno tries to get away from him and stand.

Arzeno: Takes a battering on his feet, leaving him gassed out and in trouble by the midway point. On the mat, he's not even second rate, suffering the indignity of being submitted by a guy who just isn't an elite fighter.

FIGHT OF THE NIGHT: Shakir/Arzeno

SUBMISSION OF THE NIGHT: Shakir/Arzeno

KO OF THE NIGHT: Evinger/Jenkins

OVERALL FOR THE EVENT: 4 out of 10. Shakir smashing a total pretender is kinda fun, as is seeing Corey Hill/Kit Cope being a real fight.

Raging Wolf 7 (5/8/2010)

Jay Adams and Jarrod Card are your hosts for yet another edition of Raging Wolf Fights or whatever from Seneca Casino.

1) James Nevels vs. Eric Herbert: Light heavyweights. Nevels looks old and pudgy. Herbert is a younger guy with a Tim Sylvia sort of build: flattish stomach, love handles galore. Nevels comes in with about a week notice. Herbert won some ridiculous belt last time he was in Raging Wolf. Apparently that title already ceases to exist.

FIGHT: Herbert Unanimous Decision (0)

Nevels: Frankly, Nevels is a not too good 185lb fighter blown up and, by his facial appearance, 10 years too old to the game to make any noise. He can't check kicks, his punches are always slow, and he waits until far too long to shoot in. When he does, he easily gets on top and starts blasting. Herbert somehow slips an armbar attempt from Nevels that was ill timed, as merely by staying on top might have won him the fight. There's a quick standup and the time spent cleaning up Herbert probably keeps him alive.

Herbert: Keeps trying to touch gloves. Why? Weird, because its like everything follows with an attempt to touch gloves. Or is it him measuring his opponent? Either way, its not a wise strategy with anyone actually very good. Unlike his last fight, a classic display of fighting someone who could not wrestle, he shows respect for Nevels' ability to grapple, as he turns out to be as strong as he is and capable of defending the shot. This causes the fight to be a long, boring, tedious standup affair only marked occasionally with lousy shots from Herbert that are fended off or reacted to with illegal knees. Eventually he's taken down and actually takes a heck of a beating for most of the 3rd round, to what should have been a 10-8 round. In spite of this, he wins a UD.

2) Josh Thorpe vs. Don Carlo-Clauss: Thorpe trains with Nevels -that means RW got a discount on flying cornermen. Carlo-Clauss is a .667 fighter from Jersey's Bomb Squad. Lightweight belt or something on the line.

FIGHT: Carlo-Clauss Unanimous Decision (0)

Carlo-Clauss: Not an endearing performance. He gets hit with a lot of punches in this fight because he squares himself up to a guy who has a proper stance to strike. Frankly, he's lucky to have won, and the 30-27 card is a complete joke that goes to him. His takedowns aren't that good, nor is his activity on the mat.

Thorpe: You see a serious difference in stance - a true clash of styles. Thorpe stands like a classical boxer, and that leaves him open for leg kicks and the shot. Well, he's only taken down a couple times, lands all the meaningful blows standing, and Carlo-Clauss throws lousy leg kicks, so he actually comes really close to winning the fight. Might even deserve the W, though Carlo-Clauss basically gets it for going Tim Sylvia as his plan B and squashing Thorpe against the cage while a kindly ref lets him not do much.

3) Tonya Evinger vs. Alexis Davis: For a bantamweight title of sorts. Women fighting: WHAT WILL THEY THINK OF NEXT.

FIGHT: Davis Submission Rnd 3 (2)

Evinger: Evinger apparently said prior to the fight that she felt disrespected by her peers because they wouldn't give her a big fight. And then she goes out, does not much apart from hold top control, nearly gets caught in submissions in rounds 1 and 2, then Davis ends up taking her back after a telegraphed single and its all she wrote (no pun intended).

Davis: Okay fighter who isn't very big, moves her hips around pretty well on the bottom, and also has a decent sprawl. And that's it.

FIGHT OF THE NIGHT: Thorpe/Carlo-Clauss

SUBMISSION OF THE NIGHT: Evinger/Davis

OVERALL FOR THE EVENT: 3 out of 10. Not terrible fights or anything, but only three bouts and none of them that important. Evinger/Davis is kind of a fun upset, but I don't really care about women's MMA so its not a big deal to me.

D&R Rating: 13% (2/15)

Raging Wolf 6 (1/23/2010)

This show is from just outside Niagara Falls at Seneca Casino/Hotel. Jarrod Card and Jay Adams are announcing, with Mike Brown and Jon Jones guesting here and there. Some really interesting matchmaking too: Luigi Fioravanti vs. Shane Primm is on this show as the headliner. Corey Hill fought on the card in the real main event, but it wasn't available for taping due to Hill's UFC contract.

1) Eric Herbert vs. Oliver Kimmions: Heavyweights. Heavy is a key here, because they are chubsters. This is apparently an amateur bout, BTW.

FIGHT: Herbert Submission Rnd 1. Easy fight for Herbert as he shoots real early, takes down Kimmions, ends up with an RNC. Herbert is the new Raging Wolf Amateur Heavyweight Champion. Fuck these belts. (0)

Kimmions: Did nothing.

Herbert: Needs to drop to middleweight. Possibly even 170, since he's 5'11''.

2) Christina Domke vs. Bethany Marshell: Women's fights. Domke looks a little ragged with the tattoos. Fight taken on 9 days notice. 5 minute rounds.

FIGHT: Marshell Submission Rnd 1. Marshell gets a d'arce super early standing and basically drags down Domke into unconsciousness. 20 seconds. No point in reviewing further. Marshell on a different planet.

3) Allan Arzeno vs. TJ Sumler: Northeast Regional Raging Wolf Welterweight Championship of the World Not fucking kidding. One dude is 2-1 and the other 3-0. Enough with the fucking title belts. Worse yet, this is a full 5 rounds.

FIGHT: Allen Arzeno UD. 5 round fight that was almost all standup. Sumler threw single jabs and shots, and Arzeno, a brawler, countered with kicks and right hands. Near the end of the 5th round, a knee was thrown by Sumler while Arzeno was in 3 point, and gets a point taken away to sinch it up. (0)

Arzeno: Gutsy guy who bleeds easily; had a couple cuts on his face from the punches. Dropped in the first round. Mezger style kicks that do not much damage. Basically won because his opponent let him.

Sumler: Had the distance he wanted, technically seemed better. But he didn't move his head and allowed himself to be timed the way he was punching. Also thumbed Arzeno in the eye multiple times in the fight. Sucker for low kicks. Nearly caught in an ugly armbar attempt in round 1 after trying to finish off Arzeno from a knockdown started with a right hand. Looked gassed 6 minutes in.

4) Luigi Fioravanti vs. Shane Primm: Fioravantai in the prefight interview segments say Raging Wolf is the equivalent of UFC. Me = LOL. He's also still soft in the middle. This is a three round fight. Yes, two UFC vets aren't fighting for a title, but some guys that you have never heard of did.

FIGHT: Fioravanti UD. Total domination by the former welterweight gatekeeper. Primm simply cannot do anything with him. (2)

Fioravanti: The same as always. His midsection is really soft, he's always looking for takedowns and control, though he doesn't really go for any submissions. Luigi gets cut very badly at the end of the fight somehow after defending a kimura. Primm never had him in trouble with submission attempts on the mat.

Primm: Fioravanti took his back standing and on the mat repeatedly. He just had no answer for Luigi any time he'd turn around on him. The only thing he was effective was (and Fioravanti agreed) were some knees in the first round that led Fioravanti to go to more of a wrestling strategy to win. Any time you're this easily controlled on the mat, there's a problem.

FIGHT OF THE NIGHT: Arzeno/Sumler

SUBMISSION OF THE NIGHT: Domke/Marshell

OVERALL FOR THE EVENT: 1.5 out of 10. Best aspect was the length of time it took to watch with the commercials and interview bits. The fights were either lousy and long or terrible and short.

D&R Rating: 10% (2/20)