Author: Michael David Smith

Jimmie Rivera Beats Abel Cullum in King of the Cage Battle

Filed under: King of the Cage, HDNetJimmie Rivera and Abel Cullum waged a highly entertaining five-round battle for the King of the Cage bantamweight belt on Friday night, with HDNet viewers treated to a good fight that ended with Rivera taking Cullum’…

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Jimmie Rivera and Abel Cullum waged a highly entertaining five-round battle for the King of the Cage bantamweight belt on Friday night, with HDNet viewers treated to a good fight that ended with Rivera taking Cullum’s title by split decision.

It was one of the better shows King of the Cage has put on HDNet, which needed the Rivera-Cullum main event to entertain the fans and make up for the fact that former heavyweight boxing champion Ray Mercer abruptly pulled out of his scheduled fight with Ron Sparks.

Cole Miller Submits Ross Pearson in Great UFC Fight Night 22 Battle

Filed under: UFCFormer Ultimate Fighter winner Ross Pearson fought a good first round against Cole Miller Wednesday night at UFC Fight Night 22, but a good first round wasn’t enough.

Miller turned the fight around with a sensational comeback in the se…

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Former Ultimate Fighter winner Ross Pearson fought a good first round against Cole Miller Wednesday night at UFC Fight Night 22, but a good first round wasn’t enough.

Miller turned the fight around with a sensational comeback in the second, winning a great fight to start off the night’s televised card, and he said afterward that he was proud to have finished his fight.

“I’m just happy I came out here and did what I said I was going to do,” Miller said. “I see all these wrestlers, point fighting strikers and lay and pray jiu jitsu guys all doing the same thing. Nobody tries to finish, pass guard, mount, nothing, just control the clock. This ain’t football. People got to come in here and fight.”

Jim Miller Beats Gleison Tibau at UFC Fight Night 22

Filed under: UFCAs he continues to climb up the lightweight ladder, Jim Miller notched another big win Wednesday night with a hard-fought decision over Gleison Tibau fought at UFC Fight Night 22.

The judges scored the fight 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28 for …

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As he continues to climb up the lightweight ladder, Jim Miller notched another big win Wednesday night with a hard-fought decision over Gleison Tibau fought at UFC Fight Night 22.

The judges scored the fight 30-27, 30-27 and 29-28 for Miller, and although the fight was a little closer than those scores would suggest, it was still a very good showing for Miller, who is now 18-2, with his only two losses coming by decision to the two best lightweights in the world, Frankie Edgar and Gray Maynard.

Charles Oliveira Submits Efrain Escudero at UFC Fight Night 22

Filed under: UFCOne of the most exciting young prospects in mixed martial arts got the biggest win of his career Wednesday night at UFC Fight Night 22, as Charles Oliveira beat Efrain Escudero with a beautiful standing rear-naked choke in the third rou…

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One of the most exciting young prospects in mixed martial arts got the biggest win of his career Wednesday night at UFC Fight Night 22, as Charles Oliveira beat Efrain Escudero with a beautiful standing rear-naked choke in the third round of what had been a very competitive fight.

At the age of 20, the Brazilian Oliveira has already developed a well-rounded game, as he showed against Escudero by hurting him standing up with an array of kicks before eventually using his excellent jiu jitsu to win by submission. Escudero also has a little bit of a mean streak in him, as he really went for the kill in the third round after Escudero hurt him with a knee to the groin. At one point in the second round Oliveira even did a little Anderson Silva routine, dancing around in front of Escudero and then interrupting the dancing to land a couple strikes.

Nate Marquardt TKOs Rousimar Palhares at UFC Fight Night 22

Filed under: UFCIn a bizarre ending to the main event at UFC Fight Night 22, Nate Marquardt knocked out Rousimar Palhares with a series of huge punches on the ground — only to have Palhares appear to complain afterward that Marquardt had been cheating…

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In a bizarre ending to the main event at UFC Fight Night 22, Nate Marquardt knocked out Rousimar Palhares with a series of huge punches on the ground — only to have Palhares appear to complain afterward that Marquardt had been cheating by greasing up his legs.

Palhares seemed to have Marquardt exactly where he wanted him on the ground, sinking in one of his signature heel hooks. But Marquardt pulled his leg free, and when he did, Palhares complained to referee Herb Dean that Marquardt must have been greasing. It was stupid of Palhares to complain to the referee during the fight, and Marquardt made him pay for it, landing a hard punch and then a bunch more punches until Dean stopped the fight.

Neil Grove, Cole Konrad Advance at Bellator 29

Filed under: BellatorWith two fights down and one to go, Neil Grove is tearing through the Bellator Fighting Championships heavyweight tournament. Next he’ll have to face Cole Konrad, who has been winning less dynamic fights, in the tournament final.

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With two fights down and one to go, Neil Grove is tearing through the Bellator Fighting Championships heavyweight tournament. Next he’ll have to face Cole Konrad, who has been winning less dynamic fights, in the tournament final.

Grove destroyed Alexey Olenik Thursday night, whacking Olenik with a head kick, pouncing on him on the ground and finishing the fight with a series of hammer fists that led the referee to call it off after just 45 seconds of fighting. It was the second first-round TKO for Grove in the Bellator tournament; he previously defeated Eddie Sanchez by first-round TKO in the quarterfinals.

“If you fight you come out to win, not to score points,” Grove said. “My job is to finish the fight quite quickly.”