With UFC 180 and Bellator 131 taking the majority of the spotlight this past Saturday night, MMA enthusiasts sort of forgot to pay attention to the stacked WSOF 15, which took place at USF Sundome in Tampa, Fla.
The main event saw David Branch successfully defend his 185-pound title against former UFC middleweight contender Yushin Okami, stopping the Japanese veteran in the fourth round with punches.
“Thunder” had the grappling advantage, yet the Renzo Gracie-trained combatant kept finding a home for his right hand. After three close rounds, Branch drilled his opponent with a solid right hand, dropping the challenger and continued to pounce on him until being awarded the stoppage victory. See the GIF after the jump.
With UFC 180 and Bellator 131 taking the majority of the spotlight this past Saturday night, MMA enthusiasts sort of forgot to pay attention to the stacked WSOF 15, which took place at USF Sundome in Tampa, Fla.
The main event saw David Branch successfully defend his 185-pound title against former UFC middleweight contender Yushin Okami, stopping the Japanese veteran in the fourth round with punches.
“Thunder” had the grappling advantage, yet the Renzo Gracie-trained combatant kept finding a home for his right hand. After three close rounds, Branch drilled his opponent with a solid right hand, dropping the challenger and continued to pounce on him until being awarded the stoppage victory (GIF via Zombie Prophet).
Melvin Guillard, the A-list fighter competing in the B-list league, ruined his chances at securing a world title after failing to make weight prior to his bout alongside Justin Gaethje, but none of that truly mattered. The reigning lightweight champion got the better of his foe during the course of three rounds, winning the contest by split decision. It was a back and forth affair (mostly won by the undefeated slugger), contested mostly on the feet, and lived up to the billing. It’s a shame it was marred by Guillard failing to make weight yet again, taking a bit of the muster away from the bout.
Also on the card, Jessica Aguilar, arguably the best women’s strawweight fighter in the world, took care of business by beating Kalindra Faria and defended her title for the second time and earned her 10th consecutive victory. Credit Faria for going for broke early and trying to make it a dogfight against “Jag,” however, after winning the first round, the hopeful challenger was not match for the American Top Team standout.
To be fair, nobody in their right mind would have picked WSOF over the top two MMA promotions on Saturday evening, seeing how all three had fairly big events on the same night. But, Ray Sefo and the gang loaded the card with familiar names and backed the event with star power, delivering a pretty good night of fights from the Sunshine State. It’s a shame nobody watched it, yet you can pretty much access anything these days and spend your Sunday afternoon catching up. It’s kind of worth the squeeze.
WSOF 15 Main Card Results
David Branch def. Yushin Okami via TKO (punches) at 3:39 of R4
Justin Gaethje def. Melvin Guillard via split decision (28-29, 29-28, 30-27)
Jessica Aguilar def. Kalindra Faria via unanimous decision (49-45 x3)
Jorge Patino def. Eric Reynolds via unanimous decision (30-27×2, 29-28)
Under Card Results
Maurice Salmon def. Javier Torres via TKO (doctor’s stoppage) at 5:00 of R1
Andrew Hutchinson def. Troy Gerhart via unanimous decision (29-28 x3)
Ryan Keenan def. Jose Andres Cortes via submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:16 of R3
Tony Way def. Fred Moncaio via submission (guillotine choke) at 2:03 of R3
Hector Ochoa def.. Robert Reed via split decision (28-29, 29-28×2)
Reggie Pena def. Joe Johnson via submission (rear-naked choke) at 4:15 of R1
Matt Frevola def. Josh Zuckerman via submission (armbar) at 2:50 of R1
Over the weekend, welterweight scrapper Josh Neerpicked up his third straight win since being ousted from the UFC for a third time back in February of 2013 with a first round armbar over Travis Coyle, capturing the VFC (so close!) welterweight title in the process. It was a victory that may very well earn “The Dentist” yet another chance in the octagon, where he may very well washout yet again in four or so fights.
With all due respect, that’s just the level of fighter Neer seems to be; a perpetual gamer with good enough skills to destroy anyone on the local circuit while never quite being able to establish himself in the big leagues — which is saying something for a guy who holds victories over the likes of Melvin Guillard, Duane Ludwig, and Mac Danzig. But while Neer may never be a title holder in the UFC or even a contender, it would be hard to deny that he’s one of the most dangerous guys competing outside of it today.
Here are five more of those guys, listed in no particular order.
A staple of the UFC’s welterweight division during the late aughts, Josh “The People’s Warrior” Burkman has had the most unexpected non TRT-induced career resurgence this side of Mark Hunt. After receiving his walking papers following a unanimous decision loss to Pete Sell at UFC 90 (with a 5-6 record overall), Burman all but vanished from the public eye. The reason behind his disappearance was similar to that of countless MMA veterans before him: Injury.
(Photo via Getty)
Over the weekend, welterweight scrapper Josh Neerpicked up his third straight win since being ousted from the UFC for a third time back in February of 2013 with a first round armbar over Travis Coyle, capturing the VFC (so close!) welterweight title in the process. It was a victory that may very well earn “The Dentist” yet another chance in the octagon, where he may very well washout yet again in four or so fights.
With all due respect, that’s just the level of fighter Neer seems to be; a perpetual gamer with good enough skills to destroy anyone on the local circuit while never quite being able to establish himself in the big leagues — which is saying something for a guy who holds victories over the likes of Melvin Guillard, Duane Ludwig, and Mac Danzig. But while Neer may never be a title holder in the UFC or even a contender, it would be hard to deny that he’s one of the most dangerous guys competing outside of it today.
Here are five more of those guys, listed in no particular order.
A staple of the UFC’s welterweight division during the late aughts, Josh “The People’s Warrior” Burkman has had the most unexpected non TRT-induced career resurgence this side of Mark Hunt. After receiving his walking papers following a unanimous decision loss to Pete Sell at UFC 90 (with a 5-6 record overall), Burman all but vanished from the public eye. The reason behind his disappearance was similar to that of countless MMA veterans before him: Injury.
Burkman spent the next year and a half recovering from back surgery, but when he reemerged, he did so as a completely changed fighter. A 5-1 win streak across various promotions would follow before Burkman would sign with the WSOF, where he would score upset wins over fellow UFC alums Gerald Harris, Aaron Simpson, and most impressively, Jon Fitch. Although Burkman’s meteoric rise would be halted in his WSOF title fight against Steve Carl, “The People’s Warrior” would bounce back from defeat with yet another brutal stoppage of Tyler Stinson at WSOF 9. And you better believe it was a walkoff KO.
Speaking of the WSOF, David Branch has built up quite a little streak of his own in the Ray Sefo-led promotion, notching back-to-back-to-back wins over Dustin Jacoby, whatever remains of Paulo Filho, and Daniel Villefort before capturing the middleweight title via a first round submission of Jesse Taylor (who himself has seen a good deal of success outside the UFC) at WSOF 10.
Branch’s last fight in the UFC saw him fall victim to the nightmare scenario that is a Paul Harris kneebar, yet somehow, he was not admitted to a psychiatric facility shortly thereafter and in fact has compiled a 6-1 record in the time since, with the lone blemish coming by way of decision to hulking light heavyweight Anthony Johnson. Not bad for one of the most infamous KO victims in UFC History.
We may rip on Rampage every now and again for being an annoying loudmouth with ever-deteriorating skills, but when it comes right down to it, the former UFC light heavyweight champion still has a lot of fight left in him. Now competing under the Bellator banner, Page has scored three straight victories for the first time since entering the UFC back in 2007 (a comparison we’re sure he’d appreciate), including a first round TKO of current/inexplicable title challenger Joey Beltran and a controversial decision over King Mo at Bellator 120: Dicks Be Ridden.
And while it’s almost certain that we’ll never see the 36-year-old back in the Octagon before he hangs ‘em up, we may very well see him rise to the respectable position of Bellator light heavyweight champion once Emanuel Newton sacrifices Joey Beltran to the MMA Gods. Have I mentioned how confused I am by that fight?
Although he may technically be considered a Bellator washout these days (which really doesn’t help prove our case), Ben Saunders has done a lot to separate himself from countless TUF washouts before him. He went 4-3 in the UFC following his stint on The Ultimate Fighter 6, picking up brutal stoppages of Brandon Wolff and Marcus Davis in the process, and has advanced to two Bellator welterweight tournament finals (and a third semifinal) via scorching knockouts of Raul Amaya and Brian Warren. He also likes to think that he helped get noted dog-killer Bjorn Rebney removed from his throne over at Bellator, which doesn’t exactly lower his stock in our book either.
(I am being told that this is not one of Daley’s recent highlights, but is in fact the lowest lowlight of his entire career. I apologize for the mistake.)
Paul Daley’s decision to cheap shot Josh Koscheck following their fight at UFC 113 has been discussed to the point of nausea (or as Tito Ortiz might put it, “ad museum”). Daley’s apologized for it, repented for it, and probably made a donation to The Human Fund in Koscheck’s name in a last ditch effort to get Karma back on his side. The unfortunate incident is mentioned in every article even tangentially related to him despite happening some four years (and a half dozen or so brutal KO’s) ago, and he’ll arguably never live it down, not even if he cures cancer while saving a baby from a building burning.
But to act as if the cheap shot never happened would be to revise the history of MMA to suit our needs, and we’ll be damned if that’s going to happen under our watch. So let’s talk about it some more.
Honestly, I’m of two minds about Daley’s decision. On one hand, Koscheck is a bit of a turd, and turds sometimes require an uncouth method of expulsion, lest they stick around too long and stink things up for everybody. On the other hand, striking an opponent after the bell is perhaps the most cowardly, punk-ass move in the book, and allowing Daley to return to the octagon would be all but rewarding his despicable behavior.
Oh right, Daley’s record. Since exiting the UFC, “Semtex” has gone 11-4 and 5-2 in the past two years across various organizations, with 7 of those wins coming via uber-violent knockout. A clean bill of (legal) health finally obtained, Daley re-signed with Bellator in July and will likely continue breaking jaws with tremendous aplomb for the foreseeable future.
Andrei Arlovski showed resiliency for the second fight in a row Saturday night in the World Series of Fighting (WSOF) 5 event in New Jersey, this time coming away with a win. Last March, Arlovski had his jaw broken after taking extra punches from Anthony Johnson when the referee allowed the first round to go on past the bell but fought on for the duration of the bout, ultimately losing a decision.
Saturday night, the recently un-retired Mike Kyle dropped Arlovski twice, once in the first and once in the third round, but “The Pitbull” came back each time and scored enough himself to be awarded winning scores of 29-28 by all three ringside judges. Arlovski took the fight on a month’s notice after Johnson himself was injured and had to pull out of the fight with Kyle.
“It was a great fight,” Arlovski said after the bout. “[Kyle is] a top fighter, and I really appreciate him for this fight.
In the WSOF 5 co-main event, middleweight David Branch won a decision over Danillo Villefort on the strength of dominating take downs and ground grappling. With the win, Branch has earned a shot at the WSOF middleweight belt. His opponent for the inaugural middleweight title bout has not yet been announced.
In heavyweight action, Derrick Mehmen knocked out Rolles Gracie in the second round. Throughout the first round, Gracie was able to stay safe and use his grappling effectively against Mehmen but in the second stanza, his opponent connected with a clean right hand on the feet that put Rolles out in unintentionally hilarious fashion.
In a strange turn of events, the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board officials called off a middleweight tournament bout between Elvis “The King” Mutapcic and Jesse “JT Money” Taylor just moments before the two were scheduled to hit the cage.
According the commission, Mutapcic took a prescription pill that had not been cleared for use.
(Former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski [right] connects with a right on Mike Kyle Saturday night at WSOF 5 | Photo by Lucas Noonan/WSOF)
Andrei Arlovski showed resiliency for the second fight in a row Saturday night in the World Series of Fighting (WSOF) 5 event in New Jersey, this time coming away with a win. Last March, Arlovski had his jaw broken after taking extra punches from Anthony Johnson when the referee allowed the first round to go on past the bell but fought on for the duration of the bout, ultimately losing a decision.
Saturday night, the recently un-retired Mike Kyle dropped Arlovski twice, once in the first and once in the third round, but “The Pitbull” came back each time and scored enough himself to be awarded winning scores of 29-28 by all three ringside judges. Arlovski took the fight on a month’s notice after Johnson himself was injured and had to pull out of the fight with Kyle.
“It was a great fight,” Arlovski said after the bout. “[Kyle is] a top fighter, and I really appreciate him for this fight.
In the WSOF 5 co-main event, middleweight David Branch won a decision over Danillo Villefort on the strength of dominating take downs and ground grappling. With the win, Branch has earned a shot at the WSOF middleweight belt. His opponent for the inaugural middleweight title bout has not yet been announced.
In heavyweight action, Derrick Mehmen knocked out Rolles Gracie in the second round. Throughout the first round, Gracie was able to stay safe and use his grappling effectively against Mehmen but in the second stanza, his opponent connected with a clean right hand on the feet that put Rolles out in unintentionally hilarious fashion.
In a strange turn of events, the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board officials called off a middleweight tournament bout between Elvis “The King” Mutapcic and Jesse “JT Money” Taylor just moments before the two were scheduled to hit the cage.
According the commission, Mutapcic took a prescription pill that had not been cleared for use.
“There were some prescriptions that weren’t given to our doctors during the physicals and that weren’t approved by us, the commission,” a commission official said. “So since we don’t know what they are and what they do, we canceled the fight.
Mutapcic insisted he hadn’t taken any pills and that the inspecting New Jersey state commission officer may have mistaken him for his manager, who is currently using medication for a heart condition.
“I really don’t know what happened, what [the inspector] saw,” Mutapcic said. “She might have been taking some medication, herself. I put in a good 10-week training camp. I worked my ass off. I know Taylor’s ready. I’m not sure if she mistaken me for my manager, who has a heart prescription. He was the one that had it. We’re all dressed the same – same T-shirt, same hat. I mean, there’s four of us, and she’s pointing me out, that I took it. I say I’ll take a blood test. I’ll give a hair sample if they need it. I’ve got nothing in my system. I’m completely clean.”
Full WSOF 5 Results
Main Card
-Andrei Arlovski def. Mike Kyle via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
-Dave Branch def. Danillo Villefort via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
-Derrick Mehmen def. Rolles Gracie via KO, 2:40 of round 2
-Georgi Karakhanyan def. Waylon Lowe via submission (guillotine choke), 3:37 of round 1
Preliminary Card
-Rick Glenn def. Artur Rofi via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
-Jimmie Rivera def. Sidemar Honorio via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
-Richard Patishnock def. Gregor Gracie via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)
-Ozzy Dugulubgov def. Andrew Osbourne via submission (achilles lock), 1:12 of round 2
-Neiman Gracie def. Darren Costa via submission (armbar), 3:57 of round 1
Special thanks to Oliver Chan and photographer Rick Albrecht for the photos.
If there’s one thing that I took away from last night’s World Series of Fighting card, it was that even a high profile promotion that puts on a night of entertaining fights is going to encounter some hiccups during its second event. Join us as we relive the highs and lows from WSoF 2.
The Good:
Anthony Johnson looked legitimate at heavyweight: Heading into last night’s main event, a lot was riding on Anthony “Rumble” Johnson actually fighting like a true heavyweight and not just looking like one. With all of the focus from fans and pundits alike on the “former UFC welterweight” issue, a poor showing from Johnson could have caused many fans to dismiss WSoF as an organization of squash matches and freak show fights. Fortunately for the organization, last night Rumble proved that his fight against Andrei Arlovski didn’t deserve freak show status. Johnson was too quick for Arlovski early on, and almost finished the fight before the end of the first round. He may have gassed out early – that’ll happen when you take a knee to the juevos during your first fight as a heavyweight – but at least he demonstrated that he’s capable of being a competent heavyweight if Ray Sefo needs him to be one again.
Special thanks to Oliver Chan and photographer Rick Albrecht for the photos.
If there’s one thing that I took away from last night’s World Series of Fighting card, it was that even a high profile promotion that puts on a night of entertaining fights is going to encounter some hiccups during its second event. Join us as we relive the highs and lows from WSoF 2.
The Good:
Anthony Johnson looked legitimate at heavyweight: Heading into last night’s main event, a lot was riding on Anthony “Rumble” Johnson actually fighting like a true heavyweight and not just looking like one. With all of the focus from fans and pundits alike on the “former UFC welterweight” issue, a poor showing from Johnson could have caused many fans to dismiss WSoF as an organization of squash matches and freak show fights. Fortunately for the organization, last night Rumble proved that his fight against Andrei Arlovski didn’t deserve freak show status. Johnson was too quick for Arlovski early on, and almost finished the fight before the end of the first round. He may have gassed out early – that’ll happen when you take a knee to the juevos during your first fight as a heavyweight – but at least he demonstrated that he’s capable of being a competent heavyweight if Ray Sefo needs him to be one again.
Marlon Moraes Proves his Win Over Miguel Torres Wasn’t a Fluke: Marlon Moraes vs. Tyson Nam was a battle between two fighters that many fans aren’t familiar with, but should be. Just 2:35 into the first round, “the guy who beat Torres” finished ”the guy who beat Bellator’s champion“ with a devastating head kick. Moraes vs. Nam proved to be an entertaining co-main event that established Moraes as a legitimate bantamweight contender. As an added bonus for WSoF, Marlon Moraes is essentially a “home grown” prospect, in the sense that unlike Arlovski, Torres, Fitch and Johnson, Moraes isn’t already known for his previous work in a different major promotion. It’ll be interesting to see who the promotion will find to challenge Moraes next.
Josh Burkman’s Knockout Over Aaron Simpson: There may not have been a lot of action leading up to it, but Burkman’s knee to Simpson’s head was a great finish. Burkman now improves to 7-1 since being released from the UFC in 2008, and a rematch against Jon Fitch appears to be inevitable.
The Bad:
Where Does Andrei Arlovski Go From Here? Arlovski may be 4-1 with one no contest in his last six fights, but I think it’s safe to say that last night’s performance proved that his days as anything more than a Sylvia-esque sideshow are limited. I hate to sound be so negative, but let’s face it: Arlovski is a mid-level heavyweight at this point of his career. An accomplished one who can still beat the not-quite-readies and never-weres of the division, but one nonetheless. His loss to Anthony Johnson demonstrated that his days as a major organization’s champion are clearly behind him. Even when he was awarded the final round, it felt like Arlovski won it because Johnson was too tired to do so himself. So now the question is, what does WSoF do with him? Do they continue to pay him former heavyweight champion money to crush cans? Do they sacrifice him to a promising upstart? Or do they just throw dignity to the wind and bring in Tim Sylvia?
Cage-Gate: Believe it or not, up until two hours before the preliminary fights, there was the possibility that there wouldn’t be a World Series of Fighting II. Up until then, the New Jersey State Athletic Control Board had issues with the corner pads and canvas WSoF initially planned on using in the cage and refused to approve it for competition. You can read more details on the almost-catastrophe here, and feel relieved that your Saturday night was not ruined by sloppy event planning. Of course, that wasn’t the only case of minor league shenanigans to come from the event…
The Ugly:
Sweet Gloves, Bro. I Bet You Trane UFC:
Now that’s some minor league, Mickey Mouse bullshit. You would think that someone at World Series of Fighting – or NBC, for that matter – would have bought the guy a different pair of gloves instead of putting their faith in a strip of tape.
Whatever Paulo Filho Did for Three Rounds: There are two very good reasons no other semi-legitimate promotion on the planet wants anything to do with Paulo Filho. For starters, despite having all of the necessary skills to be a great fighter, Filho’s life is such a tragic whirlwind of addiction, insanity and unreliability that he’s a headache for promoters. If that doesn’t scare you away from signing him, then know that he couldn’t give less of a fuck about fighting, even when he’s locked in a cage with someone trying to hurt him. When he unretired (*sigh*) to kick Ninja Rua’s ass one last time, World Series of Fighting apparently saw something that led them to believe that he could be placed on the main card of WSoF 2 without making a mockery out of the organization. Predictably, if the pre-fight panic-attack wasn’t enough to make Sefo and co. regret their decision, the three rounds of bullshit against Dave Branch probably was. The saddest part here is that Branch looked great – or at least I think he did – but it’s impossible to put too much stock in a victory over a guy who doesn’t want to even be in the cage.
JZ Calvalcante’s Face After His Fight Against Justin Gaethje:
Entering the bout, the 7-0 Justin Gaethje showed a lot of promise, but like most young up-and-comers, held zero notable victories to his name. Well, unless you count his unnecessarily sad knockout over the troubled Drew Fickett, in which case, we might not have the same definition of “notable.” Gaethje kicked off the main card by butchering JZ Calvalcante’s face on the way to a doctor’s stoppage. Early stoppage? I don’t think a cut above the eye is something to take lightly, but I also wouldn’t be opposed to a rematch, either.
Our man Oliver Chan is on the scene tonight at the Revel Casino, where he and photographer Rick Albrecht will be posting round-by-round updates, commentary, and visual aids after the jump, beginning at 9:30 p.m. ET / 6:30 p.m. PT. Refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest from the NBC Sports Network main card broadcast, and let your voices be heard in the comments section.
Our man Oliver Chan is on the scene tonight at the Revel Casino, where he and photographer Rick Albrecht will be posting round-by-round updates, commentary, and visual aids after the jump, beginning at 9:30 p.m. ET / 6:30 p.m. PT. Refresh the page every few minutes for all the latest from the NBC Sports Network main card broadcast, and let your voices be heard in the comments section.
Please stand by.
Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, children of all ages, I would like to wish myself a happy 32nd birthday on this lovely Saturday evening where I am sitting cage-side at the World Series of Fighting 2 coming at you LIVE on NBC Sports. We’ll be bringing some of the action to you live on CagePotato as well. But first, here are the prelims:
Frank Buenafuente vs. Bill Alego
Alego wins by Rear Naked Choke at 4:26 in the 2nd round
BrensonHansen vs. Tom Marcellino
Hansen wins by KO at 3:24 in the 2nd round
Chris Wade vs. Ozzie Dugulubgov
Ozzie (yeah, not attempting that name again) wins by Unanimous Decision
Igor Gracie vs. Rich Patishnock
Rich Patishnock wins after doctor stoppage (athough Igor clearly had won the round)
Waylon Lowe vs. Cameron Dollar
Waylon Lowe wins via 1st Round KO
Rick Glenn vs. Alexandre Pimentel
Rick Glenn wins via KO at 1:51 in the 3rd round
Danillo Villefort vs. Kris McCray
Villefort via split-decision
Main Event Coming Up!
JZ Calvalcante vs. Justin Gaethje
Well, for this fight, I will definitely be referring to these fighters by their first names.
Round 1
Justin comes in with a couple of leg-kicks. JZ shoots for the takedown, but Justin defends connects with some heavy fists. Justin gets JZ against the fence and hits with some more combos. JZ eats some knees from the clinch. Justin slips after some monster knees and a series of punches in bunches, JZ takes the action to the center of the ring. Justin gets JZ back against the fence and delivers some bone-crunching elbows to the face. JZ struggles to get off the fence as Justin continues to deliver powerful uppercuts to the face of JZ who is now bloody.
Ref halts the action to have the doctor examin JV’s face which has a rather large gash above the eye. Doctor comes in to check out the wound and calls the fight.
JZ is pretty pissed that the fight was stopped, understandably since he can still continue, however that giant gash above his eye will only get worse if they continue.
Justin Gaethje wins by Doctor’s Stoppate at 2:27 of the first round
Josh Burkman vs. Aaron Simpson
Simpson coming out to Quiet Riot.
Josh Burkman Twisted Sister. Lot of 80s hair-band music… We are SO in New Jersey right now.
Round 1
Simpson ties up Burkman against the fence. Burkman reverses. The two separate and square off again. Simpson is bleeding from the mouth. Burkman drops Simpson to one knee with a vicious right hook. The two square off again. Nasty leg-kick by Burkman. He unleashes on Simpson! Gets him against the fence KNEE TO THE HEAD! Simpson is down and the ref jumps in to end it.
The round started off pretty slow, but ended with a huge exclamation point.
Final decision coming up.
Burkman wins by KO 3:04 in the first
Burkman: “Jon Fitch needs to earn his title-shot”
Paulo Filho vs. David Branch
Branch channeling his inner Wandy with his entrance music.
Round 1
Branch pops Filho with a few jabs before taking hi down to the mat. He’s in Filho’s half-guard looking to ass. Branch works some GnP from the half-guard.
There’s certainly some Brooklyn fans here.
Branch is landing some hard shots to Filho’s mid-section. While in the half-guard.
And there’s a failed attempt to start a “U.S.A.” chant.
Branch passes the guard into the mount, but Filho is able to get Branch in his full guard before any damage can be done. Branch works some body shts from the guard. He has Filho up against the cage. Filo attempts some sweeps from the guard. Branch is able to defend and works some shots from the guard.
Yep… Here come the boo-birds… Like they can do better.
Branch lands some more shots now from the guard as the round ends.
Round goes to Branch 10-9.
Round 2
The two square off in the center. Branch drops FIlho with a kick to the midsection. Filho scrables up and Branch lands some strong combos. FIlho lands an overhand, but Branch drops him to the knees. Filho gets up, Branch lands the double leg and pins Filho to the cage. Filho stands up, but is tied up against the cage. Ref separates them.
Filho with a left hook. Branch ducks, double leg into side control. Branch in the mounted crucifix. ands some shots to Filho’s head a la Matt Hughes vs. BJ Penn. Filho attempts to rll into Branch. Filho is looking tired. Branch flattens Filho out and keeps popping Filho in the head. Branch attempts to transition into the mount, but goes back to side control. Filho attempts to hip out, but Branch again flattens out his shoulders. Branch lands some elbows to the face and body from side control. Now adding knees into the mix. Branch gets the knee on belly, but moves back to side control. Branch goes to north-south and lands more body shots to Filho’s midsection. End of round 2.
Branch dominates the second round. Easily another 10-9 to the Renzo Gracie fighter.
Round 3
Filho attempts a spinning back kick, but it’s stuffed by branch who gts into th mount and lands some vicious ground and pound. Filho gets Branch into his half guard as Branch continues to land some powerful elbows. Filho can’t seem to get out of the bottom position as Branch continues to land some powerful body shots while in the half guard. Filho gets Branch into the full-guard and lands some elbows, but Branch continues to control Filho from inside the guard.
Ref stands the up and the crowd cheers.
Branch gets Filho into the clinch against the fence and lands some knees. The separate and a left kick by Branch. Branch gets Filho against the fence again, knees to the face and body. Branch gets the double leg and some more ground and pound and the round ends.
Branch easily takes the third once again 10-9.
Official decision: David Branch wins by unanimous decision (30-26, 30-27, 30-27)
Tyson Nam vs. Marlon Moraes
Moraes coming out to some 90s Nirvana. I like.
Round 1
Tyson and Moraes feel each other out for a bit. Moraes starts to throw some heavy hands, but does not connect. He lands a strong leg kick on Nam. Nam comes in with a cross, Moraes steps away and lands a hard body kick. Morares and Nam exchange a few punches. Moraes with a nice combo. Moraes takes Nam down, but unable to capitalize as Nam quickly gets to his feet. Moraes lands a ROUND HOUSE Kick to the head and Nam is OUT!!!!
Official Decision: Moraes wins by KO 2:35 in the 1st Round
Andrei Arlovski vs. Anthony Johnson
Get ready for the main event. Quick note, thanks to CagePotato for this opportunity to come to the fights in person. Been here since 6 and been running on coffee and EBoost all night.
A quick shout-out to the comment section specifically “Thumblaster” for the comment that made me chuckle: “Rumble got his nickname because that’s what his stomach always used to do when he would fight welterweight”. Congrats. You win my approval.
Rumble Johnson coming out to some more Nirvana! This time it’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit”. I’m pumped! Looking at Rumble one must wonder how he once fought at 170!
Andrei is coming out to “Eye of the Tiger. The crowd here is definitely pumped now!
Round 1
Rumble comes in with some heavy hands and kicks. He is definitely pushing the pace and looking good. Rumble lands a nice combo. Andrei returns with a strong jab. Rumble throws to head-kicks, but fails to connect. Rumble with a nice body-kick. Andrei with a few body jabs and has Rumble backing up a bit. Rumble comes in with a combo, goes for a double leg and has Andrei against the cage. Andrei has the overhook, but Rubmle continues to press him against the cage. Rumble throws a few knees to Andrei’s legs. Ref separates.
Andrei with a nice combo. Rumble goes for the single-leg, but Andrei defends and now has Rumble against the cage. Andrei throws a few knees as the two pummel. Again, the Ref separates and the two are squaring off throwing punches in the center.
Rumble knocks Andrei down. Lands a few punches. He has Andrei against the cage as the bell rings.
Solid round by Rumble 10-9.
Round 2
Both fighters connect with some powerful shots to the head. Rumble has Andrei against the cage looking for a take-down.
Once again, the ref moves them to the center of the ring and they square off. Andrei lands some nice jabs.
Rumble comes in with a few overhands and connects. Andrei counters with a nice uppercut. Some front kicks to Rumble’s body. The two exchange some more. Rumble goes for the take-down, Andrei sprawls and the two press up against the cage. Andrei reverses and now has Rumble against the cage. The two exchanges some knees and continue to pummel. Andrei catches Rumble in the jewels with a knee and a Rumble is given some time to recover.
Rubmle is back up, they touch gloves and back at it. Rumble comes in with some strong overhands shoots in for the take-down and once again has Andrei against the cage. Rumble gets the take down. Andrei rolls out, Rumble has control of his back. Andrei is back up against the cage. Rumble going for the take-down as Andrei lands some hammer-fists. Andrei sprawls, defending the take-down and Rumble presses him against the cage. Round 2 over.
Bit closer round. I’m going to side with Andrei on this, but it could go either way. 10-9 the Pitbull.
Round 3
Rumble goes in for an overhand and Andrei counters. The two exchange punches and now Rumble has Andrei against the cage. Andrei lands some strikes to the boy. The Ref resets once again.
Rumble with a nice head-kick. Andrei answers with a front kick to the body. Rumble lands a nice cross to Andrei’s chin that definitely would kill a normal man. Rumble has Andrei pressed against the cage… Just waiting for another reset now. Andrei reverses and has Rumble pressed against the cage. The two exchange knees to the boy. The two make their way to the middle. Some hard hits are exchanged and Rumble has Andrei against the cage. Andrei reverses and the two make their way back to the center. More hard hits are exchanged. Andrei’s mouth is open ans he connects with some nice body shots and one to Rumble’s Chin. Rumble goes for the single-leg, but gives up on it. Goes for another one and the two are against the cage. Andrei with some body shots and that’s the third round.
A close round, but I think Andrei landed the better shots. Tough one for me to call, but I’m leaning to Andrei in a close 10-9 round. Official decision coming up now.
Official Decision: Anthony Johnson (29-28 all)… I was waaaaaaaaay off!
Well, folks, thank you for joining me on my birthday (although technically now it isn’t my birthday anymore). Great fights put together by the WSOF. Hopefully more to come. Thanks to Ben and the rest of the CP staff for giving me this opportunity. Thanks to my Rick Albrecht for his great photog work. Thanks to EBoost for keeping me going for 6 hours straight. Don’t forget to donate to Nick Newell’s favorite charity, Tap Cancer Out, by visiting my fundraiser page at www.stayclassy.org/oliverchan
(I believe that’s the universal puppy expression for “get me away from this crazy fucker.” / Photo via: sportv.globo.com)
World Series of Fighting took a major risk by putting Paulo Filho on the main card of its “Arlovski vs. Johnson” event this Saturday. Eccentric at best and tragically troubled at worst, the Brazilian cautionary tale has suffered countless career setbacks due to drug addiction, emotional breakdowns, and simple clerical errors. So maybe we should start preparing for the possibility that his scheduled match against David Branch might not happen. Let’s just call it a hunch — a hunch based on the fact that Filho missed his flight to Atlantic City on Tuesday due to a panic attack.
MMAFighting passed along that news last night, adding the following: “On Wednesday, though, Filho confirmed that he was on a plane headed to New Jersey, so as of Wednesday night, the Filho vs. Branch fight is still on.” Oh, Filho confirmed it? Well, then. Crisis averted. I’m sure he’s not hiding in an underground bunker somewhere deep within the Amazon rainforest, surrounded by boxes and boxes of sleeveless flannel shirts.
We’ll keep you posted if we hear more. I think at this point, a blown weigh-in and distracted performance would be a best-case scenario. The smart money’s still on “no-show,” though.
(I believe that’s the universal puppy expression for “get me away from this crazy fucker.” / Photo via: sportv.globo.com)
World Series of Fighting took a major risk by putting Paulo Filho on the main card of its “Arlovski vs. Johnson” event this Saturday. Eccentric at best and tragically troubled at worst, the Brazilian cautionary tale has suffered countless career setbacks due to drug addiction, emotional breakdowns, and simple clerical errors. So maybe we should start preparing for the possibility that his scheduled match against David Branch might not happen. Let’s just call it a hunch — a hunch based on the fact that Filho missed his flight to Atlantic City on Tuesday due to a panic attack.
MMAFighting passed along that news last night, adding the following: “On Wednesday, though, Filho confirmed that he was on a plane headed to New Jersey, so as of Wednesday night, the Filho vs. Branch fight is still on.” Oh, Filho confirmed it? Well, then. Crisis averted. I’m sure he’s not hiding in an underground bunker somewhere deep within the Amazon rainforest, surrounded by boxes and boxes of sleeveless flannel shirts.
We’ll keep you posted if we hear more. I think at this point, a blown weigh-in and distracted performance would be a best-case scenario. The smart money’s still on “no-show,” though.
