Author: Riley Kontek

Bellator 138: Kimbo Slice vs. Ken Shamrock Main Card Preview and Predictions

It’s a circus. It’s a media frenzy. It’s so bad, you can’t look away.
Yes, folks, Bellator 138 is upon us, and it’s intriguing.
In the main event, MMA legend Ken Shamrock returns to the cage to take on Internet king Kimbo Slice in a fight that was supp…

It’s a circus. It’s a media frenzy. It’s so bad, you can’t look away.

Yes, folks, Bellator 138 is upon us, and it’s intriguing.

In the main event, MMA legend Ken Shamrock returns to the cage to take on Internet king Kimbo Slice in a fight that was supposed to go down years ago. It finally occurs on Friday—this time in the Bellator promotion.

The card is supported by a title fight and some big names. The event should pull big numbers for Spike TV and create a buzz for the company.

So with that thought in our heads, let’s look at the card and make some predictions.

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Invicta 13 Lineup Complete with Cyborg in Headliner, Three Title Bouts

International Fight Week in Las Vegas just got a big addition in the form of women’s MMA, as Invicta revealed its 13th installment with three title fights. The card will be spearheaded by Cris “Cyborg” Justino, who defends her Invicta Featherweight Cha…

International Fight Week in Las Vegas just got a big addition in the form of women’s MMA, as Invicta revealed its 13th installment with three title fights. The card will be spearheaded by Cris “Cyborg” Justino, who defends her Invicta Featherweight Championship in the main event.

The lineup and details were acquired through a press release from Invicta FC Thursday afternoon.

The event will take place in Las Vegas on July 9 during the biggest MMA weekend of the year, International Fight Week. It will air on UFC Fight Pass the same weekend as a number of events, including UFC 189: Aldo vs. McGregor and TUF 21 Finale, which also take place in Las Vegas.

Justino looks to continue her dominance in Invicta, as she is 3-0 with the company. This will be the second defense of her featherweight championship, a title she won back in 2013 with a win over Marloes Coenen and defended against Charmaine Tweet in her most recent bout.

She has been one of the best women in MMA since breaking onto the scene. She figures to try and drop to 135 again after this bout, as an impending bout with Ronda Rousey would be a box office mega draw.

She takes on Faith van Duin, a New Zealander with a 5-1 record, mostly taking place in Oceania. She made a victorious debut with Invicta at their last event, as she choked out Amanda Bell in impressive fashion.

Further than that, there are two other title bouts on the card.

The vacant Invicta Bantamweight Championship is up for grabs, and two of Invicta’s best will compete for it. Mexican banger Irene Aldana will take on TUF 18 veteran Tonya Evinger.

Aldana has cruised through the Invicta 135-pound division, going 2-0 with two fight-round finishes. In a total of 3:55 in Invicta cages, Aldana has choked out both Peggy Morgan and Colleen Schneider, which has earned her this opportunity.

Evinger, since her brief appearance on TUF, has turned a corner and become one of the best 135ers not on the UFC roster. She went back to the drawing board and took Invicta by storm, rattling off consecutive wins over Sarah D’Alelio, Ediane Gomes and Cindy Dandois.

Lastly, Invicta Atomweight Championship Herica Tiburcio will defend her title for the first time when she takes on top Japanese opponent Ayaka Hamasaki.

Tiburcio won her title in her most recent bout, when she shocked Michelle Waterson with a dominating submission performance. It was her debut at 105 pounds, as she spent the rest of her career at 115.

Hamasaki has split time between Invicta and Deep Jewels, only losing once in 12 career bouts. She, like Tiburcio, is a great grappler, which should lead to a great mat war.

Outside the three title bouts, there are four more undercard bouts that should make for a great event.

Ireland’s Catherine Costigan will make her Invicta and US debut when she takes on top 105er Amber Brown. Costigan fits the weekend well, as Conor McGregor’s presence will bring a strong Irish contingent, who could help fill the Invicta arena.

Also, Jamie Moyle will take on Amy Montenegro in the strawweight division; Cage Warriors champ Pannie Kianzad will premiere against fellow debutant Jessy Rose Clark; and Ronda Rousey running mate Marina Shafir will make her Invicta debut against Amber Leibrock.

It looks to be a loaded card that should be one of the many highlights of International Fight Week.

Stay tuned with Bleacher Report for more details as they become available.

 

Weight Class Fighter #1 Fighter #2
Featherweight* Cris “Cyborg” Justino (c) Faith van Duin
Bantamweight* Tonya Evinger Irene Aldana
Atomweight* Herica Tiburcio (c) Ayaka Hamasaki
Atomweight Amber Brown Catherine Costigan
Strawweight Jamie Moyle Amy Montenegro
Bantamweight Pannie Kianzad Jessy Rose Clark
Featherweight Marina Shafir Amber Leibrock

*Championship bout

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UFC 188: 3 Overlooked Fighters Who Could Make a Splash

UFC 188 is rapidly approaching, and all the press is geared toward the main event. That bout, a UFC title unification in the heavyweight division between Cain Velasquez and Fabricio Werdum, is the biggest bout in that division in a long time.
With all …

UFC 188 is rapidly approaching, and all the press is geared toward the main event. That bout, a UFC title unification in the heavyweight division between Cain Velasquez and Fabricio Werdum, is the biggest bout in that division in a long time.

With all the big stars, there are plenty of guys who are being overlooked on the card. These are guys who don’t have the name recognition, but they have the talent to one day work up the card and become players in their divisions.

With that, let’s look at three overlooked fighters at UFC 188 you should keep your eye on this weekend, as they could make a big splash on the card.

 

Johnny Case

Slowly but surely, Johnny Case has established himself as a lightweight to watch in the UFC. 

An Iowa native, Case has taken his game to Alliance MMA in California, where he has elevated his career through great training and commitment. He has gone from a finisher to a high-level finisher, which makes him that much scarier.

His time in the UFC has been brief, but it has been impressive. He is 2-0, choking out Kazuki Tokudome in Japan before knocking out Frankie Perez in Boston.

He is an aggressive, move-forward type of fighter who doesn’t visit the judges very often. You combine that with a great stylistic matchup against Frank Trevino come fight night, and Case becomes a target you should watch out for on the prelims.

 

Clay Collard

Most guys don’t get a lot of props when they compete in a losing effort in their UFC debuts. Clay Collard is one of the few exceptions, as the iron-jawed power puncher took a late-notice bout against top 145er Max Holloway and put on a show before ultimately taking the loss.

Collard is never going to wow anybody with his world-class abilities. In fact, he gets by based on toughness, willingness to engage and killer instinct.

That’s all you need sometimes when you are involved in a fist fight.

He has the raw ability and finishing prowess to make things interesting while making an opponent feel uncomfortable. Most opponents don’t like getting walked down by an aggressive lunatic, which is why Collard thrives.

Watch this man on the prelims. Not only will you be entertained, but your eyes will be opened to an exciting, blue-collared fighter.

 

Albert Tumenov

When it comes to sheer destruction and violence, few UFC welterweights can match the devastation that Albert Tumenov brings to the Octagon. That’s what makes him must-see TV.

Tumenov, a 23-year-old Russian, is still young in his career, but his highlight tape is longer than the intro to Patton. He takes to the cage with the intention of collecting souls, one vicious knockout at a time.

And other than a controversial loss in his UFC debut, he has been proficient. He doesn’t get the referee to pull him off you as you cover up; he knocks you clean out, with toes curled, eyes rolled back and a concussive state settling in like the Mormons in Utah.

Another win for the Russian is a huge deal. Hopefully, it gets him on television, as opposed to yet another UFC Fight Pass bout.

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TUF 21 American Top Team vs. Blackzilians: Episode 8 Results and Recap

With American Top Team reeling and the Blackzilians streaking, who would snag the last 50-point fight going into the final round? That was the big question going into episode eight of The Ultimate Fighter 21.
Following the last fight between Vicente L…

With American Top Team reeling and the Blackzilians streaking, who would snag the last 50-point fight going into the final round? That was the big question going into episode eight of The Ultimate Fighter 21.

Following the last fight between Vicente Luque and Nathan Coy, Blackzilian owner Glenn Robinson decided that the only fighter yet to compete, Felipe Portela, would fight next for the Blackzilians. It was on Portela to keep the momentum and keep home-gym advantage.

On the other end, ATT owner Dan Lambert and his coaches knew they needed to get a win going into the final round. So, they went with the only guy to secure a win so far in Hayder Hassan, who fought three episodes ago in a winning effort against Andrews Nakahara.

The focus on the build-up to this fight was their previous encounter, as Hassan faced Portela in Titan FC. In that bout, Hassan knocked out Portela in the first round.

In one of the best, if not the best, fight of the season thus far, Hassan was able to secure a two-round majority decision. It was his takedown defense and superior striking that was able to score him the win, though Portela showed great toughness in absorbing the shots that he did.

After the fight, Robinson questioned the referee and judges, making excuses for Portela and claiming victory for the Blackzilians. Regardless of his opinion, the score now sits at 200-100 for the Blackzilians, as we have the final four fights worth 100 points each coming up next.

 

Season Results

Winner Loser Points Leader
Kamaru Usman (B) Mike Graves (A) 25 Blackzilians lead 25-0
Luiz Firmino (B) Uros Jurisic (A) 25 Blackzilians lead 50-0
Valdir Araujo (B) Steve Carl (A) 25 Blackzilians lead 75-0
Carrington Banks (B) Sabah Homasi (A) 25 Blackzilians lead 100-0
Hayder Hassan (A) Andrews Nakahara (B) 50 Blackzilians lead 100-50
Jason Jackson (B) Marcelo Alfaya (A) 50 Blackzilians lead 150-50
Vicente Luque (B) Nathan Coy (A) 50 Blackzilians lead 200-50
Hayder Hassan (A) Felipe Portela (B) 50 Blackzilians lead 200-100

 

Notes and Observations

  • I have to say, I am pretty surprised the UFC used footage from Titan FC on the broadcast of this episode. The show is on Fox Sports, while Titan FC is aired on CBS Sports. That said, it was nice to see, to show fans what happened in the first encounter between Hassan and Portela.
  • I have said it a couple of times, and I will say it again. I love the atmosphere during the fights this season. Most seasons, it’s dead silence and all you hear is the coaches. This season, you have both gyms causing a ruckus in the gym. It’s fun to see and hear, making the fights feel like they have more meaning.
  • Glenn Robinson said that the fight should have went three rounds and I very much disagree. Although I think the fights should be three rounds to begin with, Hassan clearly won both rounds and it wasn’t even that close. All the Blackzilians were complaining about that, as well as the cage grabbing and other things. They have been winning all season, but now that they have tasted defeat, they haven’t been gracious in defeat.

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UFC 188 Preliminary Card Predictions

The UFC makes its return to pay-per-view and the country of Mexico, as UFC 188 comes to you live this Saturday. Headlined by a heavyweight title unification, the bout is deep with talent, especially when it comes to fighters from south of the border.
U…

The UFC makes its return to pay-per-view and the country of Mexico, as UFC 188 comes to you live this Saturday. Headlined by a heavyweight title unification, the bout is deep with talent, especially when it comes to fighters from south of the border.

UFC heavyweight champion Cain Velasquez looks to become undisputed against interim champ Fabricio Werdum. It’s a gigantic bout, featuring two Spanish-speaking fighters in front of a huge Mexican crowd that will make this event special.

Before that, though, we have the prelims. We look to forget last weekend, where we struggled with our predictions. Let’s look forward and hope that we can pick up the slack for last weekend. 

With that, here are the preview and predictions for the preliminary bouts of UFC 188.

 

2015 Riley’s Record: 65-48

Last Event: UFC Fight Night 68 (2-4)

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TUF 21 American Top Team vs. Blackzilians: Episode 7 Recap and Results

Following its first victory of the season, American Top Team already dropped the ball last episode. On this episode of The Ultimate Fighter 21, it looks to regain home-gym advantage from the dominating Blackzilians.
This episode was unique because it w…

Following its first victory of the season, American Top Team already dropped the ball last episode. On this episode of The Ultimate Fighter 21, it looks to regain home-gym advantage from the dominating Blackzilians.

This episode was unique because it was the halfway mark of the season, so the coaches were given the option of making two substitutions to their squad.

In examining their teams, both gyms made one replacement to their squad.

On Blackzilians‘ side of things, it was discovered that following his knockout loss to Hayder Hassan, Andrews Nakahara was given a medical suspension by the athletic commission. That meant he was ineligible for the rest of the competition, which led to Glenn Robinson inserting World Series of Fighting veteran Alexandre Pimentel into the field of fighters.

As for American Top Team, it was already down a fighter after Steve Montgomery suffered a seizure and was medically released from the house. So, Dan Lambert simply added Bellator vet Cristiano Souza to the squad.

As for the fight pick this week, ATT went with its captain and power wrestler Nathan Coy. He was countered by Blackzilian Vicente Luque, an underdog in the eyes of many.

When it came to fight time, things did not go as many would have probably expected. Coy constantly looked for his takedowns, with Luque defending them proficiently. Not only that, but Luque lit Coy up on the feet. We all knew that Luque held the striking advantage, but we figured that he’d overcommit and get grounded by Coy.

It went to a sudden-death third round, where a gassed Coy continued to shoot for takedowns. However, he left his neck open, which allowed Luque to grab a hold of an anaconda choke and earn a tapout, giving Blackzilians yet another win.

That put the Blackzilians up 200-50, and even more impressively, six fights to one. They continue their hold on home-gym advantage as they go into the final 50-point fight next week.

 

Season Results

Winner Loser Points Leader
Kamaru Usman (B) Mike Graves (A) 25 Blackzilians lead 25-0
Luiz Firmino (B) Uros Jurisic (A) 25 Blackzilians lead 50-0
Valdir Araujo (B) Steve Carl (A) 25 Blackzilians lead 75-0
Carrington Banks (B) Sabah Homasi (A) 25 Blackzilians lead 100-0
Hayder Hassan (A) Andrews Nakahara (B) 50 Blackzilians lead 100-50
Jason Jackson (B) Marcelo Alfaya (A) 50 Blackzilians lead 150-50
Vicente Luque (B) Nathan Coy (A) 50 Blackzilians lead 200-50

 

Notes and Observations

  • What’s kind of funny about ATT replacing Montgomery with Souza is that both men were a part of the ill-fated Fight Master: Bellator MMA. What’s even funnier is that Souza defeated Montgomery, his teammate, to get into the Bellator house and participate on the show.
  • Luque easily has the best English of any of the Brazilian fighters on the show. He has a slight accent, but just barely. I think that’s because he was born in New Jersey and moved to Brazil at a young age. This likely gave him time to develop his English before leaving (I believe he said he moved to Brazil at the age of five).
  • I am so surprised at most of these fights. I thought ATT was way stronger in terms of talent, and it is getting dominated. The biggest surprises, in my eyes, have been Luque and Jason Jackson, who beat guys I thought were vastly superior to them.
  • Dana White didn’t think there should be a third round, as he believed Luque secured the victory after two rounds. While he may have had a point, I think it was the right call. I actually think all the fights should be three rounds. I don’t like the two-round fights, as it takes away from a potential fatigue-induced finish down the stretch. There are more third-round finishes than you would think.
  • Just an observation about the live finale. It doesn’t appear that the UFC is going to be keeping a lot of these guys around. There are already eight fights added, and we’re not even on the final 100-point round of the show. Usually, there are 11 or 12 fights on a card. That means there are three or four fights left to add. After you consider there will be the finals bout between the two best fighters, there would only be room for two or three more bouts.

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