There was a ton of combat sports from the weekend, so we’re here to cover the technical action from what we saw. We’ll go over UFC Fight Night: Tim Boetsch vs. Dan Henderson, WSOF 21 and GLORY 22. That means in addition to the UFC’s main event, we’…
There was a ton of combat sports from the weekend, so we’re here to cover the technical action from what we saw. We’ll go over UFC Fight Night: Tim Boetsch vs. Dan Henderson, WSOF 21 and GLORY 22. That means in addition to the UFC’s main event, we’ll talk about Blagoi Ivanov’s win, Rico Verhoeven’s defense of the title, Dustin Poirier’s punching power, Brian Ortega’s incredible guard, Lance Palmer’s brutal cranks and much more.
As is customary, here are news and notes from around the world of combat sports:
Here’s how Blagoi Ivanov used his ten-finger guillotine:
And this is how Lance Palmer got it done for his title defense against Chris Horodecki:
Erislandy Lara fights Delvin Rodriguez on Spike on Friday. Here’s Spike’s…
UFC middleweight Sam Alvey is always smiling, hence the nickname “Smilin'”, but with a three-fight win streak in the Octagon, he’s got a lot of reasons to be grinning.
“I’ve been getting hit up on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter. Just everythin…
UFC middleweight Sam Alvey is always smiling, hence the nickname “Smilin'”, but with a three-fight win streak in the Octagon, he’s got a lot of reasons to be grinning.
“I’ve been getting hit up on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter. Just everything,” Alvey told The MMA Hour’s Ariel Helwani of his recent surge in terms of fan visibility. “It’s been almost all positive lately. My wife, she’s huge into the forums. She’s been reading the forums out loud to me every night. It was a great fight. It was a good opportunity. I’m very happy with the outcome.”
He’s referencing his win in the Philippines on May 10 where he knocked out Australian judoka Dan Kelly in Adelaide in just 49 seconds into the first round. It’s the third fight Alvey’s won in a row in the UFC, all of them coming by way of first-round stoppage.
Alvey says that’s helped enormously with getting positive praise and more attention, something he’s not used to in his mixed martial arts career, whether in person or online.
“The Internet’s a dangerous place,” he noted. “More people than not, to this day, have been anti-Sam Alvey on the Internet. But it doesn’t bother me. It’s the Internet for a reason. People need a place to vent and I’m happy at least that they’re talking about me whether it’s positive or negative.”
The win streak has caused many to take a first look at Alvey as they’re curious to learn more about the fighter. Up first: what’s up with the nickname and where did it come from?
“At least my entire fighting career and I have to imagine before then,” Alvey says of how long he’s carried Smilin’ as his nickname. “What’s not to be happy about? I got air in my lungs and I get to punch someone in the face. It’s a good day in Alvey Town.”
The Team Quest fighter says the act of smiling is something he’s been known for for more than just his fighting career.
“I’d have to look back in my yearbook, but I might’ve been voted Best Smile. That might be in the yearbook still. My parents did something right. I’ve just been a happy kid, happy guy my whole life.”
Nicknames are nice, but Alvey’s results in the cage are something to behold and take seriously. It’s not as if Alvey ever did poorly in MMA, but until recently, he wasn’t doing this well. Something’s different now. According to him, it’s everything in life lining up in the way it hadn’t before.
“I’m finding that groove,” he says. “I’ve got a lot of fights and MMA’s kind of a streak sport. Luckily, I’ve been blessed never to have a streak on my losing side, but I’m hot right now. I’m going to keep staying hot. I’ll make that run for the title over time.
“I practice as hard now as I ever had,” he continued. “I have had a couple of really good camps. My head coach, Dan Henderson, my fights have kind of been lining up with his, so I’ve gotten to really piggyback off who he brings in and who he’s training with and getting to work out with him is a blessing in its own. I’ve been hitting that stride with training, with camps and fighting.”
But there’s another key ingredient to Alvey’s success and that’s his better half. Some might know her from her stint as a winner on season 11 of America’s Next Top Model, Mckey Sullivan. As many have noticed, she’s in the corner for every one of Alvey’s fights, something Alvey says is no accident or recent turn of events.
“She has been in every corner of mine since I started fighting,” Alvey noted. “I tell everyone. It started off, if she was in my corner, she was a free ticket in. We didn’t have to buy anything. She took it more serious than I did. To this day, she knows more about the guys I’m fighting than I do.
“She’s in the meetings. She’s game planning with us. She’s working at home. She is the one who kinds of choreographs how it’s going to be. She’s calls [my fights], down to the round I finish the guys in. She’s a gift to me camp.”
Alvey claimed she’s watching him practice at least three times a week and even trains a bit herself when he’s got the time.
“She has the best hand wraps in the entire industry. She will wrap a hand better and more soundly than anyone ever,” he claimed. “People think it’s because I hit hard. No, it’s because of her hand wraps.”
And that’s what brings everything full circle. According to Alvey, his post-fight speech after knocking out Kelly where he called Elias Theodorou was nothing more than an elaborate plan pushed by his wife and approved by his team.
“I said in my post-fight speech I want to fight the guys I like and I really mean it. My wife, she’s actually the one who does more of the research than I do,” he said.
“She says, ‘Well, how about this guy?’ I’ll watch some footage and I’ll be like, ‘I like this match-up. I think we match up well. I think our records go well with one another.’ Then I’ll send it off to my coaches and see what they think.”
Alvey claimed “Elias almost slipped through the cracks,” as they weren’t sure who they were going to call out next. But after Alvey’s wife spotted the Canadian and showed footage of him to Alvey, he knew it could be a good fit.
“‘This is great’,” Alvey said he thought to himself after watching footage his wife prepared. “Then we were looking at his website and thinking this was the match-up. And his website says he has the best self-proclaimed hair in MMA.”
“‘I’m going to make sure he takes this fight’. Because you know every fighter has the option to say no,” Alvey said he thought to himself.
But like everything else more recently in his career, with a bit of luck, a lot of charm and a little help from his wife, it’s all helped him to realize the perfect angle to get the fight he wants (even if UFC hasn’t yet approved). It’s also the sort of thing that’s helped make him a rising fan favorite.
“You call a man’s hair into question and you at least catch his attention,” Alvey said.
Let’s just admit it: UFC Fight Night 68 was a lot better than many expected (this writer included). The entire main card featured finishes, but more importantly, there were awkward post-fight interviews, strange entrances, great redemption stories and an all-time great putting off retirement with a thunderous KO victory.
See how the pros reacted to all the madness in New Orleans, Louisiana tonight.
Let’s just admit it: UFC Fight Night 68 was a lot better than many expected (this writer included). The entire main card featured finishes, but more importantly, there were awkward post-fight interviews, strange entrances, great redemption stories and an all-time great putting off retirement with a thunderous KO victory.
See how the pros reacted to all the madness in New Orleans, Louisiana tonight.
MMA Fighting has UFC Fight Night 68 results for the Boetsch vs. Henderson fight card Saturday at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, La.In the main event, Tim Boetsch battles Dan Henderson in a middleweight contest. Ben Rothwell squares…
MMA Fighting has UFC Fight Night 68 results for the Boetsch vs. Henderson fight card Saturday at the Smoothie King Center in New Orleans, La.
The UFC’s Fight Night series rolls on, this time in the Big Easy. Former PRIDE and Strikeforce champion Dan Henderson tries to hold onto his time in the spotlight against fellow middleweight Tim Boetsch, a fighter in a remarkably similar pos…
The UFC’s Fight Night series rolls on, this time in the Big Easy. Former PRIDE and Strikeforce champion Dan Henderson tries to hold onto his time in the spotlight against fellow middleweight Tim Boetsch, a fighter in a remarkably similar position. The card also features a battle of heavyweights looking for one more chance to climb the contendership ladder.
Where: Smoothie King Center, New Orleans, Louisiana
When: Saturday, the two-fight Fight Pass preliminary card starts at 7 p.m. ET and the four-fight preliminary card kicks off on Fox Sports 1 at 8 p.m. and the six-fight main card begins at 10 p.m. ET.
Tim Boetsch vs. Dan Henderson
This is an incredibly tough call. Henderson used to be known for his ability to take a shot, but that’s no longer the case. However, it’s not as if Boetsch has a ton left in him to take a beating. He was never quick, but has truly slowed down as he nears what is likely the not-too-distant end of his UFC run. Still, Boetsch can wrestle if he can get inside. Henderson might knock out Boetsch with a massive shot, but he also might over commit and get countered. It’s not as if Boetsch is confused about what Henderson is going to try to do. Henderson’s still got the power to turn anyone’s lights out, but I’m betting Boetsch can weather the storm.
I really can’t confidently pick either way. I’ll side with Mitrione, but with a fair amount of reservation. Rothwell’s probably going to look to pressure with forward motion, which I suspect will give Mitrione the time and space he needs to counter. He’s faster and should be able to find an opening on the more orthodox Rothwell. Still, if Rothwell can block a shot or two as he moves in, he can tag Mitrione at close range with enough ferocity to do damage, especially with the rear uppercut. I favor Mitrione’s chances, but not by a huge margin.
Medeiros is much more creative and offensively capable than he’s given credit. If these two fought ten times, I suspect he’d take at least two or more fights each time. On balance, however, there’s not enough reason for me to side with him. Everything he does well, Poirier arguably does a bit better. Poirier is alway susceptible early, but his submission defense is great and the longer this fight plays out on the feet, the more Poirier will adjust around Medeiros’ offense.
Tavares is a formidable task if your wrestling/guard retention/scrambling skills aren’t up to par. It could well be the case Ortega lacks in the third of those things, but I’m pretty confident in the first two. I’m also sure he isn’t nearly as shopworn as the tough if somewhat damaged Brazilian. If Ortega is able to work from space or achieve a dominant position on the ground, he can be a nightmare for Tavares. It’s a close fight either way, but Tavares might be running into top talent here.
Birchak’s very likely going to want some sort of body lock takedown where he can work a punch-pass-pressure game plan. I’m not saying he’ll be stifled the entire time, but I’m not confident he can do it enough to win three rounds against someone as experienced and well-rounded as Soto. Birchak is crafty and has all sorts of positional tricks. The key for Soto will not be trying to beat Birchak at his own game. Provided he can stop Birchak before he ever gets started, this is his fight to lose.
Rivera has great takedown defense, an excellent ability to scramble and a bomb of a right hand. Caceres is a little more varied and, if he can work the jab, manage distance between the two. But I’m guessing Rivera’s power is going to either make Caceres hesitant or wild. In either case, he’s going to be at Rivera’s mercy. I’d favor Caceres in a grappling exchange where Rivera also wanted to use his jiu-jitsu, but with such a power advantage on the feet, that’ll be his method of choice.
GLORY heavyweight champion Rico Verhoeven not only retained his title at GLORY 22 in Lille, France, on Friday evening, but did so in dominant fashion as he bested Benjamin Adegbuyi. Verhoeven won a unanimous decision with scores of 49-46, 49…
GLORY heavyweight champion Rico Verhoeven not only retained his title at GLORY 22 in Lille, France, on Friday evening, but did so in dominant fashion as he bested Benjamin Adegbuyi. Verhoeven won a unanimous decision with scores of 49-46, 49-46 and 50-45. The Dutch heavyweight is the first GLORY heavyweight champion to defend the title twice.
The bout started strongly for the challenger as Adegbuyi landed stiff jabs, punishing body shots and hooking punches that moved Verhoeven’s head side to side. The champion, however, adjusted properly, using cut kicks, inside low kicks and busy handwork to get Adegbuyi covering up beginning in the second round. From the third round on, Verhoeven assumed control, beating the challenger with his pace and diverse striking combinations. Adegbuyi made it to the final bell, but was almost entirely defensive for the final two frames.
“It was OK,” Verhoeven said of his performance. “Let’s say there’s room for improvement. A lot of improvement.
“It’s OK. [Adegbuy]’s a hard guy, a tough guy,” the champion continued. “He showed a lot of heart today. So, props to him.”
In the co-main event and winning the four-man lightweight contender tournament was Sittichai Sitsongpeenong who defeated Josh Jauncey via unanimous decision with scores of 30-27, 30-27, 30-27 to earn the right to face GLORY lightweight champion Robin Van Roosmalen. The date of that fight has not yet been determined.
Sittichai was brilliant all night, first besting former GLORY lightweight champion Davit Kiria with a jab to driving knee to the Georgian’s midsection that caused him to hit the canvas. Kiria was given a ten count and could not stand, giving Sittichai the victory at 2:09 of the first round. That moved the Thai lightweight to the night’s finals.
Jauncey advanced to the finals to face Sittichai by defeating Djime Coulibaly in the semis, winning via TKO as the final bell sounded after three rounds. Still, Jauncey was unable to do much against the Lumpinee Stadium champion in Sittichai. The Thai fighter used punishing left kicks at all ranges and elevations to keep Jauncey at bay. Sittichai also used proper distancing and angles to never let Jauncey get much of anything going.
Also on the GLORY 22 main card, light heavyweight Zack Mwekassa defeated Carlos Brooks via KO at 1:58 in the first round. Mwekassa stalked his opponent from the opening bell and used a series of punishing left hooks to finally put the American on the canvas after a final left hook went uncontested and landed flush.
GLORY 22 took place at Stade Pierre-Mauroy and aired live on Spike TV. For full fight card results, go here.
