It would be a shame if we only remembered last night’s Bellator 99 as the first night of the promotion’s transformation into The UFC Senior Circuit, but honestly, there wasn’t much to write about on the main card of last night’s fights. So let’s start off on a positive note and talk about the main event.
In the main event of the evening, Bellator’s homegrown prospect Patricio Pitbull (Patricio Freire if you want to get technical) make very short work of Diego Nunes. The usually aggressive Pitbull was cautious during the bout, opting to wait for Nunes to lunge at him. The inevitable happened just over seventy seconds into their fight, and Pitbull made “The Gun” pay dearly for doing so. Pitbull not only improves to 19-2 in his professional MMA career, but now he also holds a victory over a guy that the casual MMA fan may have actually heard of – something that leads me to believe that Bellator’s “Sign Ex-UFC Fighters Who Won’t Challenge for the Title” business model may not be as foolish as most of us are making it out to be.
In fact, I’d be willing to write an Unsupportable Opinion piece based around that last sentence…if it weren’t for the gigantic waste of time that was the clash between Vladimir Matyushenko and Houston Alexander. Believe it or not, the fight between the forty-something ex-UFC gatekeepers was worse than you were expecting it to be. Probably not “Worst Fight of the Year” at this year’s Potato Awards bad, but it’ll certainly be included in the discussion. View at your own risk after the jump.
(Patricio Pitbull Vs. Diego Nunes.)
It would be a shame if we only remembered last night’s Bellator 99 as the first night of the promotion’s transformation into The UFC Senior Circuit, but honestly, there wasn’t much to write about on the main card of last night’s fights. So let’s start off on a positive note and talk about the main event.
In the main event of the evening, Bellator’s homegrown prospect Patricio Pitbull (Patricio Freire if you want to get technical) make very short work of Diego Nunes. The usually aggressive Pitbull was cautious during the bout, opting to wait for Nunes to lunge at him. The inevitable happened just over seventy seconds into their fight, and Pitbull made “The Gun” pay dearly for doing so. Pitbull not only improves to 19-2 in his professional MMA career, but now he also holds a victory over a guy that the casual MMA fan may have actually heard of – something that leads me to believe that Bellator’s “Sign Ex-UFC Fighters Who Won’t Challenge for the Title” business model may not be as foolish as most of us are making it out to be.
In fact, I’d be willing to write an Unsupportable Opinion piece based around that last sentence…if it weren’t for the gigantic waste of time that was the clash between Vladimir Matyushenko and Houston Alexander. Believe it or not, the fight between the forty-something ex-UFC gatekeepers was worse than you were expecting it to be. Probably not “Worst Fight of the Year” at this year’s Potato Awards bad, but it’ll certainly be included in the discussion. View at your own risk after the jump.
Also of note, Blagoy Ivanov returned to action on the preliminary card last night. Ivanov, who was the victim of an assault that nearly killed him last February, only needed seventy-seven seconds to choke out Manny Lara during their bout. Ivanov had the potential to make an impact on Bellator’s heavyweight division, and judging by his performance last night, hasn’t lost a step despite spending so much time away from the sport.
Full Results
Main Card
Patricio Freire def. Diego Nunes via KO (punches), 1.19 of Round One
Fabricio Guerreiro def. Des Green via unanimous decision
Vladimir Matyushenko def. Houston Alexander via unanimous decision
Justin Wilcox def. Akop Stepanyan via submission (rear-naked choke), 2.20 of Round Two
Joe Taimanglo def. Andrew Fisher via unanimous decision
Preliminary Card
Virgil Zwicker def. Nick Moghaddam via TKO (punches)
Blagoi Ivanov def. Manny Lara via submission (guillotine), 1:17 of Round One
Goiti Yamauchi def. Musa Toliver via submission (rear-naked choke), 1.01 of Round One
Gavin Sterritt def. Andy Murad via split decision
Hector Ramirez def. Savo Kosic via unanimous decision
It may not have been the barnburner that we hoped it would be, but Tyrone Spong improved his MMA record to 2-0 in the main event of last night’s WSoF 4 by earning a unanimous decision over Angel DeAnda.
Spong fought smart, utilizing leg kicks throughout the fight while avoiding DeAnda’s heavy hands for most of the fight. To DeAnda’s credit, he was never dropped by Spong, but he also never mounted any significant offense. At least I don’t think he did; one of the judges scored this fight 29-28.
Okay, so it wasn’t exactly the most exciting fight in recent memory. Fortunately, the rest of the WSoF 4 main card made up for the disappointment that was the main event. After the jump, there’s also videos of a knockout and submission for your viewing pleasure.
(Tyrone Spong vs Angel DeAnda.)
It may not have been the barnburner that we hoped it would be, but Tyrone Spong improved his MMA record to 2-0 in the main event of last night’s WSoF 4 by earning a unanimous decision over Angel DeAnda.
Spong fought smart, utilizing leg kicks throughout the fight while avoiding DeAnda’s heavy hands for most of the fight. To DeAnda’s credit, he was never dropped by Spong, but he also never mounted any significant offense. At least I don’t think he did; one of the judges scored this fight 29-28.
Okay, so it wasn’t exactly the most exciting fight in recent memory. Fortunately, the rest of the WSoF 4 main card made up for the disappointment that was the main event. After the jump, there’s also videos of a knockout and submission for your viewing pleasure.
(Ray Sefo vs Dave Huckaba)
Though JZ Cavalcante’s (questionable) knockout over Tyson Griffin earned him a spot in the upcoming lightweight tournament, my favorite knockout from last night involved heavyweights Ray Sefo and Dave Huckaba. Yes, you read that correctly.
It’s funny how the fight that many of us were expecting to be one of the ugliest bouts of the year – two old-timers engaged in a conflict of interest will drastically lower your expectations – turned out to arguably be the best fight from last night’s card. Sefo was in control for most of it, but he was caught by a fierce counter left hook that put him out on his feet. A few follow-up punches later, and Huckaba was awarded the standing TKO.
(Nick Newell vs Keon Caldwell)
Also from last night’s card, Nick Newell’s WSoF debut ended predictably. We were given a few takedowns by Newell, a comparison of Newell to Anthony Robles from Todd Harris, and then Newell locked in the fight-ending choke before the end of the first round. Don’t look now, but Newell is now 10-0, with nine of those fights ending in the first round and seven of those fights ending by submission. Expect him to receive a step up in competition for his next bout.
Full Results
Main Card
Tyrone Spong def. Angel DeAnda via unanimous decision
Marlon Moraes def. Brandon Hempleman via unanimous decision
Nick Newell def. Keon Caldwell via submission (guillotine choke), 2:07 of Round One
Dave Huckaba def. Ray Sefo via TKO (punches), 4:32 of Round Two
Gesias Cavalcante def. Tyson Griffin via TKO (punches), 1:37 of Round Three
Preliminary Card
Gerald Harris def. Jorge Santiago via unanimous decision
Lewis Gonzales def. Antonio McKee via unanimous decision
Jared Papazian def. John Robles via unanimous decision
Victor Valenzuela def. Isaac Gutierrez via submission (rear-naked choke), 2:41 of Round Two
Maybe one day there will be a Bellator lightweight contender who’s talented enough to defeat champion Michael Chandler — but it ain’t gonna be the dinosaur guy. (No offense.) Season 8 lightweight tournament winner David Rickels had a good head of steam going into his title challenge against Chandler last night at Bellator 97, with four straight wins including a TKO of Saad Awad back in March. But against a truly world-class lightweight, the Caveman was in way over his head.
As you can see in the video above, Rickels didn’t even have a chance to get started. Chandler swarmed as soon as he staggered Rickels with a right straight, landing more follow-up power shots and diving after Rickels when the challenger hit the mat. In just 44 seconds, Rickels was unconscious and Michael Chandler (now 12-0 overall) had made his second title defense with another fearsome display of killer instinct.
Chandler’s next fight will likely come against Dave Jansen, the Season 7 lightweight tournament winner who hasn’t been able to face Chandler yet due to injury. Jansen is 6-0 in Bellator, and is clearly the most qualified man for the job. And yet, we can’t help but wonder how Chandler would stack up against some of the top 155’ers in the UFC — not like that would ever happen.
Speaking of dominant Bellator champions who could use a higher level of competition…
Maybe one day there will be a Bellator lightweight contender who’s talented enough to defeat champion Michael Chandler — but it ain’t gonna be the dinosaur guy. (No offense.) Season 8 lightweight tournament winner David Rickels had a good head of steam going into his title challenge against Chandler last night at Bellator 97, with four straight wins including a TKO of Saad Awad back in March. But against a truly world-class lightweight, the Caveman was in way over his head.
As you can see in the video above, Rickels didn’t even have a chance to get started. Chandler swarmed as soon as he staggered Rickels with a right straight, landing more follow-up power shots and diving after Rickels when the challenger hit the mat. In just 44 seconds, Rickels was unconscious and Michael Chandler (now 12-0 overall) had made his second title defense with another fearsome display of killer instinct.
Chandler’s next fight will likely come against Dave Jansen, the Season 7 lightweight tournament winner who hasn’t been able to face Chandler yet due to injury. Jansen is 6-0 in Bellator, and is clearly the most qualified man for the job. And yet, we can’t help but wonder how Chandler would stack up against some of the top 155′ers in the UFC — not like that would ever happen.
Speaking of dominant Bellator champions who could use a higher level of competition…
Before his welterweight title defense last night against Season 7 tourney winner Andrey Koreshkov, Ben Askren completely wrote off his formerly unbeaten opponent, describing Koreshkov’s ground game as “embarrassing.” It turned out to be a very apt description, although Askren should feel free to share some of that embarrassment.
If you’ve watched any of Askren’s performances before, I probably don’t need to tell you what happened, but in short, Funky Ben took Koreshkov to the mat in every single round, and threw down enough half-hearted strikes to avoid being stood up by the ref. He racked up a truly absurd striking differential, and there were moments in the fight where Askren was confident enough to do absolutely nothing without fear of reprisal. That’s undoubtedly impressive, although not particularly entertaining to watch.
But while Askren was successfully able to lead the crowd in chants of “USA!” early in the fight, the fans eventually turned on him, as they always do. After nearly 18 minutes of Askren’s safe, stifling, tedious top control, the referee called it a TKO, more out of boredom than anything else. Afterwards, Askren accused the fans of being Communists. If booing lay-and-pray makes you a Communist, then yes, I believe the workers should own the means of production. Fun fact: Ben Askren is currently without a contract. Let the bidding war begin!
Elsewhere on the card, Muhammad Lawal went back to his wrestling roots for a ground-and-pound-based victory over Jacob Noe to win the 2013 Summer Series light-heavyweight tournament final, while Patricio Freire bounced back to the W column with a savage third-round TKO against Jared Downing. (Note: Downing was an injury replacement for Rob Emerson, who reportedly pulled a muscle while banging Ian McCall’s wife.)
Bellator 97 July 31st, 2013 Santa Ana Star Center; Rio Rancho, New Mexico
Main Card:
– Michael Chandler def. David Rickels via KO, 0:44 of round 1 [for Bellator lightweight title]
– Ben Askren def. Andrey Koreshkov via TKO, at 2:58 of round 4 [for Bellator welterweight title]
– Muhammed Lawal def. Jacob Noe via verbal submission (punches), 2:51 of round 3 [light-heavyweight tournament final]
– Vitaly Minakov def. Ryan Martinez via TKO, 4:02 of round 3 [heavyweight tournament final]
– Patricio Freire def. Jared Downing via TKO, 0:54 of round 3
Preliminary Card:
– Bubba Jenkins def. Mike Barreras via TKO, 1:05 of round 2
– Anthony Leone def. Frank Baca via submission (rear-naked choke), 1:07 of round 3
– Rafael Silva def. Rodrigo Lima via submission (rear-naked choke), 2:03 of round 3
– Will Brooks def. Cris Leyva via TKO, 2:20 of round 3
– Jeremy Kimball def. Keith Berry via KO, 1:45 of round 2
– Shawn Bunch def. Russell Wilson via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
– Donald Sanchez def. Cliff Wright via split decision (29-28, 28-29, 29-28)
– Adrian Cruz def. Felipe Chavez via TKO, 4:24 of round 2
– Javier Palacios def. Richard Jacques via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
(Go ahead and turn off your speakers for this one.)
Well here it is, folks. The hands down greatest MMA fail of the year.
It’s kind of a shame, really. There’s so much time left in 2013, yet who in their right mind is going to even attempt to pull off a more embarrassing feat in the cage than the gentleman above? There is so much fail involved in this video that we’re almost certain it was a self-parody gone horribly awry.
(Go ahead and turn off your speakers for this one.)
Well here it is, folks. The hands down greatest MMA fail of the year.
It’s kind of a shame, really. There’s so much time left in 2013, yet who in their right mind is going to even attempt to pull off a more embarrassing feat in the cage than the gentleman above? There is so much fail involved in this video that we’re almost certain it was a self-parody gone horribly awry.
Wisely, Martinez closed the distance and shot in as soon as the fight began, hauling Mayorga to the mat after a brief clinch against the fence. Mayorga temporarily controlled Martinez’s head with a broke-ass guillotine attempt of his own, but Level pulled out of it and started working on Mayorga from the top. When ‘El Matador’ tried to escape to his feet, Martinez wrapped up a choke and finished it immediately, earning the submission victory at 1:45 of round 1. The win bumped Level’s pro MMA record to 5-0-1, and sunk Mayorga’s to 0-1-0 w/ one no-contest.
This is usually the part where I’d say something like, “MMA isn’t for everybody, and Mayorga should go back to boxing before he embarrasses himself again.” But actually…this is kind of fun. Keep it up, Ricky!
* Yes, WSOF now runs fights in Nicaragua. The promotion has quietly been buying up local MMA promotions around the world and re-branding them, which is how ‘Omega MMA’ became ‘Word Series of Fighting Central America.’ We hear that they’re working on a more notable acquisition in Canada. Stay tuned.
Wisely, Martinez closed the distance and shot in as soon as the fight began, hauling Mayorga to the mat after a brief clinch against the fence. Mayorga temporarily controlled Martinez’s head with a broke-ass guillotine attempt of his own, but Level pulled out of it and started working on Mayorga from the top. When ‘El Matador’ tried to escape to his feet, Martinez wrapped up a choke and finished it immediately, earning the submission victory at 1:45 of round 1. The win bumped Level’s pro MMA record to 5-0-1, and sunk Mayorga’s to 0-1-0 w/ one no-contest.
This is usually the part where I’d say something like, “MMA isn’t for everybody, and Mayorga should go back to boxing before he embarrasses himself again.” But actually…this is kind of fun. Keep it up, Ricky!
* Yes, WSOF now runs fights in Nicaragua. The promotion has quietly been buying up local MMA promotions around the world and re-branding them, which is how ‘Omega MMA’ became ‘Word Series of Fighting Central America.’ We hear that they’re working on a more notable acquisition in Canada. Stay tuned.
But we never really expect to see beautiful, evenly-matched displays of sustained technique in one of these Youtube messes. That’s why we were pleasantly shocked to find perhaps the most technical street fight ever recorded and published on YouTube yesterday.
Ok, “street fight” may be stretching it, as these two guys did not fight on an actual paved road, but rather on what looked to be a Eurasian dirt patch. But dang, they could fight.
But we never really expect to see beautiful, evenly-matched displays of sustained technique in one of these Youtube messes. That’s why we were pleasantly shocked to find perhaps the most technical street fight ever recorded and published on YouTube yesterday.
Ok, “street fight” may be stretching it, as these two guys did not fight on an actual paved road, but rather on what looked to be a Eurasian dirt patch. But dang, they could fight.
Boxing lovers beware: There isn’t a whole lot of slipping and crisp jabs on the feet. But the grappling — from honest to goodness belly-to-back suplexes to triangle choke attempts — looks more like a professional MMA fight than a pick-up brawl.
All that really begs the question, according to CP Chieftan Ben Goldstein, is this really a street fight or actually a “way-off-Broadway unsanctioned yard-MMA match run by the Dagestani version of DaDa5000?”
Presumably such a man would go by “DaDagestani5000.” In any case, enjoy the beautiful destruction above, and we dare you to find and send us any better street fights than this one.
