(Props: BCMMAUK via MiddleEasy)
I don’t know anything about London-based featherweight Theo Michailidis, other than the fact that he’s fought a bunch of guys with charmingly foreign names. (Kenzos Xristos! Giorgi Papuasvilli! Alex Bilobrovaka!) Last Saturday at BCMMA 9, Michailidis took on the relatively normal-named Corrin Eaton, and blasted him in the jaw with a devastating spinning back-elbow near the end of the first round. Eaton stiffens up and falls directly backwards; falling tree knockout has been achieved. Also, I think the ref’s t-shirt says “MAKE TEA NOT WAR,” which is 1) incredibly British, and 2) kind of unexpected in a combat sports setting.
(Props: BCMMAUK via MiddleEasy)
I don’t know anything about London-based featherweight Theo Michailidis, other than the fact that he’s fought a bunch of guys with charmingly foreign names. (Kenzos Xristos! Giorgi Papuasvilli! Alex Bilobrovaka!) Last Saturday at BCMMA 9, Michailidis took on the relatively normal-named Corrin Eaton, and blasted him in the jaw with a devastating spinning back-elbow near the end of the first round. Eaton stiffens up and falls directly backwards; falling tree knockout has been achieved. Also, I think the ref’s t-shirt says “MAKE TEA NOT WAR,” which is 1) incredibly British, and 2) kind of unexpected in a combat sports setting.
(Props: ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ on YouTube)
The Vik Grujic vs. Luke Harris quarterfinal fight from Wednesday’s episode of TUF Nations: Canada vs. Australia is notable for a few reasons. For one thing, it’s the only knockout that has taken place in the first eight episodes of the season. (See? Aren’t you glad you’re not watching?) Second, it ends with a storm of elbows from the top, which we always appreciate. And third, it features Harris doing the most dead-on Koji Oishi impression we’ve ever seen, before he inevitably gets his ass kicked.
By the way, Luke Harris isn’t some random palooka they found in a yoga studio. Every single victory in the Canadian’s 10-2 pro record has come by first-round submission, including a guillotine choke win over Edwin Dewees in 2012, if that means anything. [Ed. note: It doesn’t.] But clearly, he’s still figuring out the striking part of the equation. Watch as Harris stands in front of Grujic totally flat-footed and with his hands dropping to his waist, just waiting to get blasted in the chin. After a clash of strikes, Grujic slams Harris on the side of his head with minimal effort, then splits Harris’s dome open like a coconut with short elbows. The whole thing takes about 50 seconds.
But hey, that’s what this reality-show tournament is about, right? Filtering out the guys who aren’t real [expletive] fighters? And discovering the next generation of indistinguishable Fight Pass talent? The Grujic Era is coming, folks. Be ready.
(Props: ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ on YouTube)
The Vik Grujic vs. Luke Harris quarterfinal fight from Wednesday’s episode of TUF Nations: Canada vs. Australia is notable for a few reasons. For one thing, it’s the only knockout that has taken place in the first eight episodes of the season. (See? Aren’t you glad you’re not watching?) Second, it ends with a storm of elbows from the top, which we always appreciate. And third, it features Harris doing the most dead-on Koji Oishi impression we’ve ever seen, before he inevitably gets his ass kicked.
By the way, Luke Harris isn’t some random palooka they found in a yoga studio. Every single victory in the Canadian’s 10-2 pro record has come by first-round submission, including a guillotine choke win over Edwin Dewees in 2012, if that means anything. [Ed. note: It doesn’t.] But clearly, he’s still figuring out the striking part of the equation. Watch as Harris stands in front of Grujic totally flat-footed and with his hands dropping to his waist, just waiting to get blasted in the chin. After a clash of strikes, Grujic slams Harris on the side of his head with minimal effort, then splits Harris’s dome open like a coconut with short elbows. The whole thing takes about 50 seconds.
But hey, that’s what this reality-show tournament is about, right? Filtering out the guys who aren’t real [expletive] fighters? And discovering the next generation of indistinguishable Fight Pass talent? The Grujic Era is coming, folks. Be ready.
(Props: AXS.tv via RedditMMA. Be sure to stick around for the slow-mo replays at 4:45-4:58.)
With a perfect record of 14-0 (all by stoppage, 13 in the first round), Brazilian featherweight Thomas de Almeida is one of the hottest prospects in the sport. The 22-year-old Chute Boxe product last competed Friday night for the Standout Fighting Tournament in Sao Paulo, where he scored a TKO against Cemir Silva, and he’ll be returning to action on December 6th in the co-main event of Legacy FC 26.
To give you a taste of de Almeida’s fearsome striking ability, check out the above video of his last appearance for Legacy FC in November 2012, in which he put Cody Williams* to sleep with a standing overhand elbow. Usually, elbow-stoppages are the result of cumulative damage. (See: Melendez/Kawajiri, Mein/Cyborg). That’s what makes this one-elbow dinger so special; Silva vs. Fryklund comes to mind, and that’s about it. So enjoy, and keep your eye out for this kid.
* No relation to Tater.
(Props: AXS.tv via RedditMMA. Be sure to stick around for the slow-mo replays at 4:45-4:58.)
With a perfect record of 14-0 (all by stoppage, 13 in the first round), Brazilian featherweight Thomas de Almeida is one of the hottest prospects in the sport. The 22-year-old Chute Boxe product last competed Friday night for the Standout Fighting Tournament in Sao Paulo, where he scored a TKO against Cemir Silva, and he’ll be returning to action on December 6th in the co-main event of Legacy FC 26.
To give you a taste of de Almeida’s fearsome striking ability, check out the above video of his last appearance for Legacy FC in November 2012, in which he put Cody Williams* to sleep with a standing overhand elbow. Usually, elbow-stoppages are the result of cumulative damage. (See: Melendez/Kawajiri, Mein/Cyborg). That’s what makes this one-elbow dinger so special; Silva vs. Fryklund comes to mind, and that’s about it. So enjoy, and keep your eye out for this kid.
* No relation to Tater.