Gesias Cavalcante-Pat Healy Booked For Titan FC 39, Lightweight Title

Gesias Cavalcante and Pat Healy will compete this June for the Titan FC lightweight championship, the promotion announced recently.

Set for June 10 from the BankUnited Center in Coral Gables, Florida, the event – Titan FC 39 – will stream live on UF…

gesias-cavalcante

Gesias Cavalcante and Pat Healy will compete this June for the Titan FC lightweight championship, the promotion announced recently.

Set for June 10 from the BankUnited Center in Coral Gables, Florida, the event – Titan FC 39 – will stream live on UFC Fight Pass.

Cavalcante (19-8-1 is a former Strikeforce and World Series of Fighting veteran. However, the 32-year-old has not fought since 2014 when he topped Gele Qing on the regional scene. His WSOF run ended with a 2-2 record.

During his career, Cavalcante has scored wins over the likes of Tyson Griffin, Bobby Green, Nam Phan and Caol Uno.

Healy (33-21) held the Titan FC title before, but lost it after missing weight. The UFC veteran is 4-1 over his last five, including three wins with Titan FC.

WSOF 11 Results: Gaethje Knocks Out Newell, Fitch Blankets Hallman

WSOF 11 completed the first leg of this weekend’s MMA triple crown–WSOF 11, UFC 175, and then the TUF 19 Finale. By all accounts (including our own), WSOF 11 was a solid MMA event. The pacing was perfect, and (almost) the fights all delivered.

We were lucky enough to watch the card at a postponed 4th of July BBQ (it rained at Castle CagePotato yesterday). Here’s a brief recap of the night’s events:

In the first fight of the night, Cody Bollinger steamrolled over Pablo Alfonso. He submitted him with a rear-naked choke in under three minutes. Not much else to tell.

In the next bout, Melvin Guillard made his triumphant return to MMA. This was Guillard’s first fight since the UFC cut him after his loss to Michael Johnson. He squared off against Gesias Cavalcante and picked him apart. Guillard looked crisp, fast, and accurate. He seemingly had his shit together, which allowed him to put Cavalcante away in the second round via TKO.

The recap for Jon Fitch vs. Dennis Hallman and Nick Newell vs. Justin Gaethje are after the jump.

WSOF 11 completed the first leg of this weekend’s MMA triple crown–WSOF 11, UFC 175, and then the TUF 19 Finale. By all accounts (including our own), WSOF 11 was a solid MMA event. The pacing was perfect, and (almost) the fights all delivered.

We were lucky enough to watch the card at a postponed 4th of July BBQ (it rained at Castle CagePotato yesterday). Here’s a brief recap of the night’s events:

In the first fight of the night, Cody Bollinger steamrolled over Pablo Alfonso. He submitted him with a rear-naked choke in under three minutes. Not much else to tell.

In the next bout, Melvin Guillard made his triumphant return to MMA. This was Guillard’s first fight since the UFC cut him after his loss to Michael Johnson. He squared off against Gesias Cavalcante and picked him apart. Guillard looked crisp, fast, and accurate. He seemingly had his shit together, which allowed him to put Cavalcante away in the second round via TKO.

The co-main event featured Jon Fitch vs. Dennis Hallman. Originally, Rousimar Palhares Jake Shields, Josh Burkman was supposed to take on Fitch but they all pulled out for varying reasons. This fight was a vintage Jon Fitch performance, which meant it put the crowd to sleep. If “Broke Jon Fitch” was super-exciting and aggressive, then this was a return to “Real Estate Boom” Jon Fitch–the kind of fighter who grinds without ever coming close to even attempting to finish the fight. Fitch won a unanimous decision win without much surprise or fanfare.

Nick Newell and Justin Gaethje met in the WSOF 11 main event. We hate to break out the “it was a WAR, BRO” cliche, but the first round was a war. Newell did a tremendous job of taking it to Gaethje, and Gaethje reciprocated. In the second frame, Gaethje started to pull away. Newell was unable to block Gaethje’s right hands properly, and got tagged numerous times as a result. Gaethje eventually nailed him one time too many, and Newell crashed to the mat. The referee called it at 3:09 of the second round. Here’s a GIF.

Overall, the event was a breeze to watch. The four-fight main card was incredibly refreshing in the age of 6-hour UFC shows full of jobbers and the incessant broadcasting of the same four commercials. We also gave WSOF a huge thumbs up for their pristine white canvas. The white canvas helps make things a bit brighter and less drab. It also highlights any blood that spills from the fighters better than the UFC’s grey canvas, upping the violence factor.

If you DVR’d this, watch it when you get time. It’s worth it.

Here are the complete results:

Main Card

Justin Gaethje def. Nick Newell via TKO (strikes) at 3:09 of R2
Jon Fitch def. Dennis Hallman via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 30-27)
Melvin Guillard def. Gesias Cavalcante via TKO (strikes) at 2:36 of R2
Cody Bollinger def. Pablo Alfonso via submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:37 of R1

Preliminary Card

Jake Heun def. Kendrick Miree via unanimous decision (29-28, 29-28, 29-28)
Neiman Gracie def. Dustin Holyko via submission (rear-naked choke) at 2:21 of R2
Jose Caceres def. Walber Brito de Barros via unanimous decision (30-27, 30-27, 29-28)
Muhamed Dereese def. Rashaun Spencer via unanimous decision (30-27, 29-28, 29-28)

WSOF Check-In: Lightweight Tournament Announced, Newell & Spong Prepare for Fights This Saturday

(Learn more about lightweight rising star Nick Newell and the challenges he’s overcome | Video via MMA World Series Youtube page)

We’ve been following lightweight prospect Nick Newell’s unlikely and inspiring career for some time now here at CagePotato, and this Saturday he makes his next big move at the World Series of Fighting 4 event in Ontario, California. Newell will face TUF veteran Keon Caldwell.

Even though Newell hasn’t yet won his WSOF debut, the promotion announced that a win over Caldwell would earn Newell a spot in its upcoming lightweight tournament, which will crown the promotion’s inaugural 155-pound champion. If Newell does indeed enter that tournament, he’ll have a chance to prove once and for all that he’s truly a UFC-caliber fighter.

Why, you ask? Well, simply because the tournament is stacked with top international lightweights including a number of UFC veterans. Dan Lauzon will be in the tournament, as will the winner of an excellent WSOF 4 match up between Tyson Griffin and Gesias Calvacante.

Of course, all this doesn’t sit so well with Keon Caldwell’s camp, who tell MMA Junkie that they are worried of unfair treatment from the WSOF. While Newell has been publicly guaranteed a spot in the lightweight tournament if he’s victorious this weekend, Caldwell has been given no such offer. (“I just think they’re on the Nick Newell hype train,” said Caldwell’s trainer Richard Cox.)

Also fighting this Saturday will be kickboxing star Tyrone Spong, who will be headlining WSOF 4 against California-bred knockout artist Angel DeAnda. It will be Spong’s second World Series of Fighting appearance following his beat-down of Travis Bartlett in November. You can check out a lil’ video of Spong hitting people and acting cocky after the jump. Above, you can enjoy a mini documentary show on Newell’s life that takes you inside his camp, family, and home.


(Learn more about lightweight rising star Nick Newell and the challenges he’s overcome | Video via MMA World Series Youtube page)

We’ve been following lightweight prospect Nick Newell’s unlikely and inspiring career for some time now here at CagePotato, and this Saturday he makes his next big move at the World Series of Fighting 4 event in Ontario, California. Newell will face TUF veteran Keon Caldwell.

Even though Newell hasn’t yet won his WSOF debut, the promotion announced that a win over Caldwell would earn Newell a spot in its upcoming lightweight tournament, which will crown the promotion’s inaugural 155-pound champion. If Newell does indeed enter that tournament, he’ll have a chance to prove once and for all that he’s truly a UFC-caliber fighter.

Why, you ask? Well, simply because the tournament is stacked with top international lightweights including a number of UFC veterans. Dan Lauzon will be in the tournament, as will the winner of an excellent WSOF 4 match up between Tyson Griffin and Gesias Calvacante.

Of course, all this doesn’t sit so well with Keon Caldwell’s camp, who tell MMA Junkie that they are worried of unfair treatment from the WSOF. While Newell has been publicly guaranteed a spot in the lightweight tournament if he’s victorious this weekend, Caldwell has been given no such offer. (“I just think they’re on the Nick Newell hype train,” said Caldwell’s trainer Richard Cox.)

Also fighting this Saturday will be kickboxing star Tyrone Spong, who will be headlining WSOF 4 against California-bred knockout artist Angel DeAnda. It will be Spong’s second World Series of Fighting appearance following his beat-down of Travis Bartlett in November. You can check out a lil’ video of Spong hitting people and acting cocky after the jump. Above, you can enjoy a mini documentary show on Newell’s life that takes you inside his camp, family, and home.

Elias Cepeda

World Series of Fighting 2: Arlovski vs. Johnson — The Good, The Bad, And The Ugly


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 addictioninsanity 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.

@SethFalvo

 

World Series of Fighting 2: Arlovski vs. Johnson — Live Results and Commentary


(Admit it. You kind of missed that tongue.Photo via facebook.com/MMAWorldSeries)

Tonight in Atlantic City, former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski headlines World Series of Fighting 2 against former UFC whateverweight Anthony Johnson, in a battle that will surely earn the 2013 Minowaman Freak Show Hall of Fame Award. Also on the card: UFC vets Josh Burkman and Aaron Simpson throw down in the welterweight division, Paulo Filho hopefully shows up to fight David Branch, and Marlon Moraes returns from his win over Miguel Torres to face Bellator champ killer Tyson Nam.

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.


(Admit it. You kind of missed that tongue.Photo via facebook.com/MMAWorldSeries)

Tonight in Atlantic City, former UFC heavyweight champion Andrei Arlovski headlines World Series of Fighting 2 against former UFC whateverweight Anthony Johnson, in a battle that will surely earn the 2013 Minowaman Freak Show Hall of Fame Award. Also on the card: UFC vets Josh Burkman and Aaron Simpson throw down in the welterweight division, Paulo Filho hopefully shows up to fight David Branch, and Marlon Moraes returns from his win over Miguel Torres to face Bellator champ killer Tyson Nam.

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

‘Disappointed’ JZ Cavalcante Wants to Return to Action Soon

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DALLAS — MMA Fighting spoke to Gesias Cavalcante after his no decision against Justin Wilcox at Saturday’s Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum event. Cavalcante discussed his reaction to the decision, how he ended up poking Wilcox in the eye and much more.

 

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DALLAS — MMA Fighting spoke to Gesias Cavalcante after his no decision against Justin Wilcox at Saturday’s Strikeforce: Overeem vs. Werdum event. Cavalcante discussed his reaction to the decision, how he ended up poking Wilcox in the eye and much more.

 

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